to beat the goal of 100 million shots in arms in his first 100 days in office. he now promises that milestone will be reached, by his 60th day in office. so, that's just ten days, from now. let's begin with our jeremy diamond. he joins us this morning, at the white house. that was -- there were so many important things, i think, for america to hear last night in those remarks from the president. have you learned anything, more, this morning, in terms of all these goals and dates that he put forward, really, promised last night? >> well, look. it was interesting because, in the first part of president biden's speech, which you heard from him was looking back. looking back at the sacrifices, the grief, the loss that americans have had to deal with over the year of this coronavirus pandemic. but then, he pivoted. and he started talking about the future and about what his administration is doing, to try and return to that sense of normalcy. and for the first time, he laid out, perhaps, the clearest timeline to actually getting to some, at least a little bit, a sliver, of that normalcy. and what it will take to get there. the president, promising that he will order all states, territories, and tribes, by may 1st, to allow every-adult american to be eligible to receive that coronavirus vaccine. at the same time, as he is doing that, on may 1st, he will, also, release this new website. which will give americans an opportunity to have a centralized system, for where they can get access to the vaccine. and then, he talked about july 4th. that is the president's goal for that return to at least some sense of normalcy. with allowing americans to gather with family members, with friends, in small groups, to celebrate july 4th. but, even as the president laid out that timeline, he made very clear that we are not out of the woods, yet, in this pandemic. and in order to get there, he implored americans to help him along. listen. >> i will not relent, until we beat this virus. but i need you, the american people, i need you. i need every american to do their part, and that's not hyperbole. i need you. >> and we didn't hear the president talk, a whole lot, about the nearly-$2 trillion piece of legislation, which he passed yesterday. he mentioned it, briefly. but today, we will see the president celebrate that accomplishment with a signing ceremony, here, in the rose garden at the white house. where he will be able to celebrate, with congressional leaders, the passage of this massive legislation. which he says, will help move the country forward, out of this pandemic. and over the next week, you will really see this effort ramping up by the president to tout this signature-legislative accomplishment. the president hitting key states like pennsylvania and georgia, as well as other-administration officials doing the same. all, in preparation, of course, for the 2022 midterm elections. jim. poppy. >> yeah. jeremy, thank you very much, from the white house, this morning. president biden said, also, last night, during that speech to the nation, that his administration is trying to rebuild trust in the government by telling all of us the truth about this pandemic. >> we need to remember, the government isn't some foreign force in a distant capital. no, it's us, all of us. we, the people. joining us, now, to discuss cnn senior political analyst, david gergen. david, good morning to you. >> good morning, jim and hello, poppy. >> good morning. >> you know, the central part of that point, from president biden last night, about trust in government. it goes further than just hearing factual statements from the white house, as opposed to lies. because it -- it -- you know, when you look at the covid relief, this is a massive change in the government role in people's lives. with high-approval ratings, you know, david brooks, conservative columnist for "the times," i know you know him well. he compares this to a kind of mirror image of the reagan revolution, right? turning it around from saying all-government intervention is bad. to, listen, even going back to the trump administration, right, trillions of dollars from the government to help people. right? i mean, i wonder if you have the same view as brooks does? >> yeah, absolutely. because ron reagan, in his inaugural address, says government is not going to solve our problems. government is the problem. and, here, joe biden is saying, number one, out of the box, you know, we are not going to be able to solve this on our own. the government has to do it. and i think he was very effective last night. if you go back and listen to the fireside chats of franklin roosevelt. they're wonderful to listen to because they are soothing. they're informational. they're a teaching device in fdr. i thought that's what biden did last night. he is a fan of franklin roosevelt, as we all know. but he really -- he really copied some of the techniques that, i think, made fdr so effective. and that is, you can trust somebody who is more low key. you know, who doesn't say -- he said we are going to make it by july 4th, if you all stick together. it's not a speech about i, i, i. it's a speech about us, us, us. what we -- what we can do together. so, i thought, altogether, it was just a very effective start to the -- the execution of this new plan. >> yeah. that's a great point, david. i think, what struck me, most, in it. i guess, as -- as a parent, and he's raised young kids. is when he said that line about the hardest walk you'll ever have to make is a parent walking up to your child's bedroom, to tell them i lost my job. and we can't live here anymore. and -- and i pose this to you in the mind frame of there are still challenges. we are entering an economy, where, you know, economists say maybe 40% of the jobs lost are never going to come back. so there is a lot of work to do here. >> there is a lot of work to do. i must say, i am so glad you remembered the phrase the metaphor because it worked so well. and you had a sense joe biden had been on the stairs, himself, more than once. >> yeah. >> and that made it very, very effective. but there's no question. we -- we have a great deal of work to do. i think the biden administration was smart not to overpromise. they underpromised. i think they are going to over-deliver on the first, you know, hundred-million shots. they'll be well within the goal -- the goal they set. but i think this idea of setting some goals, and then measuring yourself by that. and letting the country measure you. you know, this gives the country a chance to say, okay. mr. biden, you promised x. now, you only got to y. why? what happened? i think, that's very, very good. i must -- i must say one, other thing. you know, it was so interesting last night to -- in terms of how we think about what's normal. when -- and biden's phrase. when he talked about july 4th. what he remembered was family barbecues. going outdoors, with your family. maybe your dogs. but small, intimate gatherings. it's worth remembering, when we had our last july 4th, with president trump, where did we go? we went to mt. rushmore. that's what he thought about july 4th. and i thought it told us everything we need to know about the two different men. >> david, you have watched republicans struggle, a bit, to criticize this plan because they know that -- that even a large-majority of republicans, actually, approve it. certainly, independents and democrats. kind of, saying, well, i like this piece. but not -- but not that piece. so, what do they do, right? i mean, there -- there is some confidence among republicans that, well, obama's stimulus plan, post-2008, was at first popular. became less popular. certainly, not to the levels we have seen now. i mean, is the strategy just to try to attack it on the outside, and make it just less popular? >> i think, strategy on the bill to just pass covid bill will be to try to undo it, here and there, so it doesn't become -- it gives -- it gives the right, the conservatives, something to hang their hat on when they say it wasn't perfect. a lot of flaws in it. we would have done it better. that's the approach they took to oba ob obamacare and it worked to a point. as a political matter, it worked. what the republicans need to do, though, is, frankly, they don't have a game plan for where the country ought to be going. you know, they didn't have a -- when they went to the convention, they didn't come out with a manifesto that if they were elected, here's what they were going to do. they need to do that on infrastructure and immigration. these two big issues that are coming down the pike, very fast. and not wait for the democrats to come up with their view. if we are going to have a true negotiation, republicans have got to put something on the board and say, here's what we believe. now, what do you believe? >> uh-huh. >> yeah, listen. although, it seems like the cultural path. the cultural warpath is the interim strategy, right? dr. seuss and beyond. >> i agree. >> sorry. >> but victory lap last night. he didn't go out there and pound his chest. i was so pleased about that. lower-key about it because i thought it was more trustworthy. and, sort of, like, okay, i get it. i get what you are trying to do and let's work on it. >> yeah. yeah. definitely, change in tone. david gergen, always good to have you on. wish you the best for the weekend. >> thank you. take care, poppy. >> thanks. well, maryland is the latest state to roll back covid-19 restrictions. starting later today, restaurants and other businesses will be allowed to open, at full capacity, there. the state's mask mandate, however, remains in place. so, the governor there, larry hogan, cited significant improvements in the state's health metrics as his reason for relaxing restrictions. let's go to our colleague, joe johns. he joins us from national harbor, in maryland. it sort of seems like a middle ground, between where we are in new york and what texas did. because he is keeping the mask mandate in place. >> that's absolutely right, poppy. and, look. governor larry hogan has put this thing into effect. 5:00, eastern time, a bunch of coronavirus restrictions ease up, including bars, restaurants, gyms, and other businesses, will be able to open, at full capacity. but with a bunch of caveats, including, there will still be social distancing. people will still have to wear masks. so, keep those masks around. but probably, the biggest caveat of all is the fact that, in this situation, at least the individual localities, counties, cities, can opt out, if they think they're not ready. so, despite all the caution, governor hogan has still got a bunch of grief, from people who say he is going too fast. even though he is not going as fast as some other states, like oklahoma. that has, essentially, gotten rid of all of its restrictions. or take, for instance, texas, which has gotten rid of most of its restrictions. but also, the attorney general there is suing austin, the capital of texas, as well as surrounding, travis county, because they're not getting on board with the program. so, it just goes to show that this is a situation, where one size fits all, still, doesn't seem to work. back to you. >> that's right. joe johns, thank you for that reporting, this morning. we have a lot ahead, this hour. including, a warning from the cdc director. what the u.s. does, next, can and will effect the trajectory of this pandemic. her advice for the critical months of march and april. next. and we have new reporting, this morning. former-president trump's time in the white house may open him up to even more legal exposure. our reporting on that, ahead. and with talk of reopening the united states, and returning to normal. or close to it. italy, very hard hit at the beginning of the pandemic, announces another, nationwide lockdown. we're going to be live from there. keeping your oysters business growing has you swamped. you need to hire. i need indeed indeed you do. the moment you sponsor a job on indeed you get a shortlist of quality candidates from a resume data base claim your seventy-five-dollar credit when you post your first job at indeed.com/promo start the year smiling at aspen dental where new starts happen, every day. get exceptional care at every step, unparalleled safety at every visit, and flexible payment options for every budget. now, during the everyday smiles event new patients get a full exam & set of x-rays with no obligation. no insurance? no worries, it's free. plus, now all patients can get 20% off their treatment plan. find every reason to smile. every day at aspen dental. call 1-800-aspendental or book today at aspendental.com covid-19 numbers are on the decline in the u.s. that's good news. but remember this. with tens of thousands of deaths still projected over the next-several months, experts are warning americans not to drop their guard, just yet. it's too early. >> that's right. one of the key concerns is the spread of these variants. >> there is about the same amount of travel now as happened during thanksgiving. we do know every single time we have escalations in travel that happened around july 4th, it happened around labor day. it happened around the holidays. right after that, we have a surge. we are very worried about transmissible variants. a lot of them have come through our travel corridors. so, we're being extra cautious, right now, with travel. >> let's bring in dr. paul offit. he is the director of the vaccine education center at children's hospital philadelphia. he is also a member of the fda vaks upons and related biological products committee. quite the title. quite the expertise. we are glad you are with us, good morning. >> good morning. >> so, two big goals set out by biden, last night. do you believe, as he said, we can be back to seminormal by july 4th? >> i believe, it's possible. i mean, if we -- if we can get roughly-80% population immunity. and by -- by that, i mean, people who have either been naturally infected and are now immune. or people who are vaccinated and are, therefore, immune. i think we can significantly stop or at least slow the spread of this virus. plus, the other thing working against this virus is the weather. as we move in the summer months, this is, at its heart, a winter virus. so that also works against the virus. >> doctor, two of the things that worried folks in recent months about holding back progress we have made. one, the advent of variants. and -- and, two, what looked like it might have been a plateauing in the statistics and number of infections and new deaths. i believe we have a graphic that shows that plateauing is now resumed its downward trend. does that put us, in your view, does that give you more confidence that -- that we're on a positive path now? in terms of reaching that goal for the summer. >> yes, absolutely. i mean, i -- i think the -- the -- the good news is -- is the 25% of this population has already been exposed to the virus, and, therefore, they're immune. another 10% have been fully vaccinated. if we can get to 80% population immunity, which means another 120 million people would need to be vaccinated. that's 240 million doses, for the most part, because most of the vaccine out there is the two dose, mrna vaccines. at the rate we're currently going, we can definitely reach that mark by the summer. what worries me is we don't get to that mark. and as things get better, you know, because this is a winter virus, largely, and you don't see it over the summer months. people say, great, i don't need a vaccine, it's gone. and it's not gone. this virus is not going to be gone for decades, in all likelihood. what we're trying to do is control it, not eliminate it. and you are going to know whether or not we've won, whether next winter comes because when we get 80% population immunity, when next winter comes, you are just going to see a bump in cases instead of a fierce surge in cases. >> let's hope it doesn't come to that next winter. it'd be nice to have a winter without what we have had in the last few. may 1st is the goal for all adults to be able to be vaccinated. that's great. it made me think, immediately, well, what about our kids? i mean, jim and i, you know, our youngest are toddlers. i understand, like, 12-year-olds and teenagers may be sooner but what about the littlest of kids? >> right. so -- so, already, trials are being done down to 12 years of age and those trials are fully enrolled for the mrna vaccines. then, going down to 6 years of age. and i think moderna and pfizer will, also, be doing those trials. i don't think we are going to go younger than 6 years of age. for the most part -- >> at all? >> -- this is not a virus that causes disease in less-than-5-year-old. >> at all? our kids get flu shots, right, as young as 1. but that's interesting. you are saying people under 6 just probably won't get this vaccine, at all? >> no, i think -- i think we will have a vaccine for the 12 to 18-year-old by the summer. i think we will have a vaccine for the 6 to 12-year-old by the end of the year. remember, children -- young children don't express the so-called receptor the virus binds to. the virus has to get into cell by binding to a cell on the surface, that protein is called ace 2. young children don't have that protein. that's why they generally don't get infected. >> okay. great. >> dr. offit, johnson & johnson has been a little slow in reaching the production targets that had been hoped for. i wonder -- you know, listen. right? because you have got three-approved vaccines. but do you see those issues being solved to help juice, right, the overall-vaccination numbers? >> yes, i do. i mean, as the old saying goes, the hardest part of making vaccines is making a vaccine. it's hard to mass produce v virologicals. and you have two that likely will be coming online. we'll see. one is the novavax. we, the fda vaccine advisory committee will probably be hearing about that in the next few months. we will see but that, also, will help. >> doctor, thank you. so nice to have good news to talk with you about. we appreciate it, very, very much. well, a stunning admission from the president -- from president trump's own acting secretary of defense. he says that trump is to blame for inciting the violence at the capitol on january the 6th. more on that, ahead. still a father. but now a friend. still an electric car. just more electrifying. still a night out. but everything fits in. still hard work. just a little easier. still a legend. just more legendary. chevrolet. making life's journey, just better. folks the world's first fully autonomous vehicle is almost at the finish line today we're going to fine tune the dynamic braking system whoo, what a ride! i invested in invesco qqq a fund that invests in the innovators of the nasdaq 100 like you you don't have to be a deep learning engineer to help make the world a smarter place does this come in blue? become an agent of innovation with invesco qqq former-president trump's time in the white house, temporarily, shielded him from some-legal actions. but that delay could, actually, come back to haunt him. cnn is just learning that prosecutors investigating trump's finances have discussed using a legal mechanism, that could extend the statute of limitations for some-potential crimes. >> it's fascinating. our kira scanell has this story. >> sure, poppy. so, i mean, this whole center on the statute of limitations in new york for most felonies, that's five years. so sources tell us prosecutors in the da's office are exploring using a provision of the new york criminal-procedure code, which says that prosecutors don't have to count the time that someone is continuously out of state, when they are looking at the statute of limitations. and that applies to the former president because, even thoug