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EARLY START

U.S. Preparing New Sanctions Against Russia Over Navalny Poisoning; 13 Candidates Battle In New York City Mayoral Race; Olympic Spectators Will Be Allowed At 50 Percent Capacity. Aired 5:30-6a ET

Aired June 21, 2021 - 05:30   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

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[05:31:10]

LAURA JARRETT, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, everyone. This is EARLY START. I'm Laura Jarrett.

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Christine Romans. It's 30 minutes past the hour this Monday morning.

JARRETT: The Biden administration is preparing new sanctions on Russia over the poisoning and imprisonment of opposition leader Alexey Navalny. According to National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan, the sanctions will be finalized once the U.S. can verify the correct targets. This, just days after President Biden's summit in Geneva with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

CNN's Arlette Saenz has more on all of this from the White House.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ARLETTE SAENZ, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (on camera): Christine and Laura, the White House is preparing a fresh wave of sanctions against Russia as it's looking to take a stronger response against the country in the wake of the poisoning and imprisonment of opposition leader Alexey Navalny, a man whose name President Putin would not even utter in a press conference last week.

Now, this would be the second wave of sanctions after the U.S. and E.U. imposed sanctions on Russia back in March.

And the White House national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, talked to our colleague Dana Bash, where he previewed these possible sanctions that will be coming in the near future. Take a listen.

JAKE SULLIVAN, NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER: And we are preparing another package of sanctions to apply in the case as well. We've shown all along the way that we're not going to pull our punches, whether it's on SolarWinds or election interference, or Navalny when it comes to responding to Russia's harmful activities.

SAENZ (on camera): Now, this statement comes just days after President Biden sat in that face-to-face meeting with Russia's president, Vladimir Putin. And he warns there would be dire consequences for Russia if Navalny were to die while in prison.

Now, Sullivan did not outline any timeframe for when these sanctions will be imposed, but President Biden is facing pressure from lawmakers up on Capitol Hill, including Democrats, to act soon -- Laura and Christine.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ROMANS: Arlette, thank you so much for that.

So that brings us to three questions in three minutes. Let's bring in CNN White House correspondent John Harwood. Good morning, John.

JARRETT: Hey, John.

ROMANS: What do we know, John --

JOHN HARWOOD, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Good morning.

ROMANS: -- about the timing of these new -- the timing of these new sanctions on Russia or what they could possibly include?

HARWOOD: Well, the White House press secretary, Jen Psaki, said this reflects no change from the posture of the administration before the summit meeting in Geneva to now. So just because we have just learned about these sanctions from Jake Sullivan doesn't mean that Vladimir Putin is just learning about them or that they reflect any kind of a shift.

We do know, though, that Republicans have been criticizing the administration, saying that well, they were not tough enough on Russia at the session. And, of course, the entire free world has been concerned and highly critical and condemning of the Russians over the treatment of Alexey Navalny.

They are clearly trying to target them, as Jake told Dana yesterday, as soon as they identify the proper targets. That's when we're going to see those sanctions. That's pretty much all we know at the moment.

But it was a striking follow-on to that meeting in Geneva. Remember, the president had a couple of goals. One was to try to put the Russian relationship on a stable and predictable basis, but the other was to stand up to Putin and draw a contrast with the way President Donald Trump was subservient to Russia in his public statements and some of the actions that he took.

JARRETT: So, John, you have another great piece up on CNN this morning sort of laying out all the obstacles in the president's way, including those narrow margins in the -- in the Senate. And you write this. "For Biden, confronting Putin may have been easier than dealing with Republicans back in Washington." That's quite a statement.

What do you think are his biggest challenges now that he's back at home?

[05:35:00] HARWOOD: Well, of course, Laura, there is no sanctions package to roll out against legislators who don't support a president's program.

JARRETT: As much as he wishes there was.

HARWOOD: So what the president can --

JARRETT: Yes.

HARWOOD: Yes, exactly right.

So what the president can do is try to elevate priorities that are popular with the public -- that's what he's done with the infrastructure plan --

JARRETT: Right.

HARWOOD: -- and do his best to make the case and put public pressure on them to go along.

Republicans have been somewhat responsive to pressure. That may be why these five Republicans, with the blessing of Mitch McConnell, have been negotiating with their Democratic counterparts. But very tough to get them to agree on all of the details of this.

Now, Democrats -- you know, they've got another path, as you guys know, of going Democrats alone through a special set of budget procedures. But you can only do that if you hold off 50 Democrats and some of those Democrats want to pursue the bipartisan path first.

So the administration doesn't really have options but to do the laborious, painstaking work of trying to see if they can make a smaller deal as a down payment on a bigger deal to come later with only Democrats.

ROMANS: So where does that infrastructure deal stand at this hour as we start a new -- a new week? I mean, is it looking more optimistic?

HARWOOD: Yes, they made some progress last week. They are proposing significantly more in new money that the other Senate Republicans led by Shelley Moore Capito of West Virginia --

ROMANS: Right.

HARWOOD: -- who was negotiating directly with the president -- more than she was talking about.

Still disagreement over how to pay for it.

The -- some of the Republicans want to raise the gas tax. Joe Biden says not going to do that. Joe Biden says let's raise the corporate income tax. The Republicans say we're not going to do that. There are possible ways they could bridge that gap -- say, by stronger IRS enforcement.

So it's very difficult to get this done but it's not impossible. The White House -- I talked to a senior administration official last week as the president was returning and he said we've got progress -- still a lot of bumps ahead. And that's certainly what we can expect over the next couple of weeks trying to get over those bumps.

ROMANS: Yes, and Joe Biden has promised -- the president has promised he will not raise taxes on anyone making less than $400,000 a year and his team is adamant that they stick to that. They wanted to raise taxes on companies.

HARWOOD: That's right.

ROMANS: So we'll see. We'll see how that goes.

Thanks so much, John Harwood. So nice to see you this morning.

JARRETT: Thanks, John.

HARWOOD: You bet.

ROMANS: OK, a political free-for-all in New York City with 13 candidates battling for the keys to City Hall. But the mayoral race is also offering a window into a broader issue of crime, social justice, and economic inequality facing other cities across the country.

CNN's Polo Sandoval has more.

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POLO SANDOVAL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (on camera): Christine and Laura, good morning to you.

With primary day here in New York City just around the corner, those candidates that are hoping to become the city's next mayor are making those final pushes right now hoping to rally as much support as they can. This is obviously going to be a critical primary as it's happening in the country's most populated and heavily Democratic city.

Voters will be using a new rank choice system this time, in which they will be picking up to five of their favorites among the long list of candidates. Right now, polling suggesting that Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams remains the favorite, but the race still remains within the margin of error.

This weekend, the race taking quite the interesting turn, too, as two other mayoral contenders -- that's former presidential candidate Andrew Yang and former sanitation commissioner Kathryn Garcia announced that they would be campaigning together.

However, an interesting development here. Yang still continues to urge his supporters to rank Garcia second behind him on their ballot. And, Garcia even stopped short of returning the favor and instead said that her backers should not rank Yang or really anybody else for that matter.

Back to Adams -- he did make some remarks in the Bronx over the weekend at the site of a shooting where two children narrowly escaped being harmed. He echoed what we have heard from a couple of other of his fellow candidates that tackling the city's growing issue of gun violence would be a big priority if elected.

As for early voting, that actually ended yesterday with some less than favorable turnout.

Christine and Laura, back to you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

JARRETT: All right, we'll see what happens tomorrow. Polo, thank you.

He once led an armed occupation of a wildlife refuge (ph). Now, Ammon Bundy is running for governor of Idaho.

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AMMON BUNDY (R), CANDIDATE FOR GOVERNOR OF IDAHO: I'm running for governor because I'm sick and tired of all the political garbage, just like you are.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

JARRETT: Bundy, who has a long history of anti-government activism, enters a crowded Republican primary race here, challenging Idaho's GOP Gov. Brad Little. Bundy's been critical of Little's handling of the pandemic.

ROMANS: All right, 39 minutes past the hour this Monday morning.

People are quitting their jobs at the fastest pace in two decades, a shift by workers into new careers and new jobs. It's actually a sign of dynamism. It's a good sign about the labor market. Recent data shows nearly four million people quit their jobs in April, the most ever.

The industry workers who are leaving the most, leisure and hospitality. More than 740,000 workers quit that industry in April. It's why employers are raising wages and offering bonuses to attract and retain talent.

[05:40:03]

But many workers are still holding back. A few reasons here. Childcare still a problem for millions of parents, especially mothers. There are health and safety concerns.

And jobless benefits and stimulus checks have given workers some breathing room to retrain, actually, for different industries. Even though those jobless benefits will start running out, workers may not rush back to those jobs in low-wage sectors. Again, they are repositioning in the economy.

Also, the child tax credit will start landing in parents' bank accounts soon. That's new critical aid for millions of low-income families. We'll be right back.

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ROMANS: Wild weather in the Midwest. In suburban Chicago, at least six people injured and more than a dozen homes damaged by severe storms late last night.

Woodbridge, Illinois police confirm a tornado touched down there. Many roads impassable and powerlines are still down in the area, so residents are waking up to dark homes this morning.

[05:45:07]

In Naperville, 30 miles west of Chicago, the fire chief reports extensive damage to homes from trees and flying debris.

JARRETT: And in the west, exceptional drought conditions. Later this year, the U.S. government is expected to declare the first-ever water shortage along the Colorado River. Water rationing may soon be coming to several western states, as well, where temperatures have been soaring over 100 degrees this month.

Our meteorologist Pedram Javaheri has a look at the forecast.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PEDRAM JAVAHERI, AMS METEOROLOGIST (on camera): Christine and Laura, good morning, guys.

Yes, the summer solstice is also upon us here in the past couple of hours. While you were sleeping -- 11:32 p.m. there across the northern hemisphere -- summer officially arriving, meaning the longest day of the year and shortest night of the year upon us. Of course, the opposite end takes place in the southern hemisphere with winter arriving.

But speaking of summer getting here, we talked about the big-time heat. And how about this? How about 115 degrees for six consecutive days. Temps exceeding that over the past six days in Phoenix. This has never happened in recorded history for the city of Phoenix and really speaks to how impressive this heat wave is even by their standards.

Notice Palm Springs, notice Death Valley -- record temperatures in place there over the past several days. Sacramento comes in with 110 degrees and also goes into the record books. Even across the Pacific Northwest, middle-90s seen over the past several days.

But I'm here to tell you -- you get a little bit of a break -- and by a break, I mean Phoenix drops down from the one-teens into about 105- 106 range, while Seattle dips into the upper 70s.

But notice what happens here. As we go in towards next week, another heat wave -- this time more centered towards portions of the northwest. Seattle, 20 degrees above average by Saturday afternoon. And at that point, Saturday into Sunday, as many as 50 records could be centered across the northwestern U.S. Summer getting off to a toasty start, guys.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ROMANS: All right, Pedram. Thank you so much for that.

To the Olympics now. Organizers just announced that spectators will be allowed at 50 percent capacity in next month's Summer Games in Tokyo. This, after Japan's top coronavirus adviser said an event without spectators would be desirable.

Selina Wang is live in Tokyo. Selina, how are people in Japan reacting to this announcement?

SELINA WANG, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Christine, there's certainly a sense of frustration since the organizers are essentially going against the advice from the country's top COVID-19 adviser who recommended hosting the Olympics without any spectators. But the organizers are saying that they could still cancel the rule they have and there could still be no spectators at the Games or the cap could be lowered depending on how the COVID-19 situation evolves.

But for much of the public, as well as medical experts, their concern is that holding these Games, especially with spectators, could cause a rebound of COVID-19 cases in Japan and put a strain on the medical system, especially as you have more of the Japanese public moving around, traveling, celebrating for these Games.

But, Christine, for any of the spectators who can actually come to these Games, it's not going to be the normal fun. They're asked to go straight from their homes to the Olympic Venue and back, no drinking or partying in the streets, wear their masks at all times, no shouting or cheering. So certainly, it will be unusual for them.

ROMANS: Absolutely.

CNN also got a first look, Selina, inside the sprawling Olympic Village. You went on a walk-thru. Describe the layout for us.

WANG: Yes, Christine. Well, the Olympic Village is really like this city within a city -- a place for preparation but also, as you know, a lot of partying and fun. But I saw a lot of Plexiglas, social distancing, hand sanitizer -- so this year it's more of an anti-social sanitized bubble.

So, for instance, the main dining hall. Athletes are asked to download a smartphone app and only go when there's less congestion. They're asked to dine alone. They're separated by these plastic barriers and asked to leave as soon as they finish eating, after wiping down their seats.

Now, I did also get a look at the bedroom. So it looks kind of like a dorm -- far from glamorous -- and they can actually have up to eight people in a suite. And that does bring up some concerns from infectious disease experts who say having all these athletes sharing rooms, even if they're from the same country, does increase the risk of COVID-19 infections. An interesting note, Christine. These beds are made out of cardboard. It's supposed to be recyclable -- eco-friendly. I did sit on it. However, they are sturdy and can hold up to 400 pounds. And they also -- for those big suites of eight people, four people have to share one pretty small bathroom. For eight people, there's only about 100 square meters.

Another interesting point for this Olympic Village suited for COVID- 19, there is a fever clinic. It's where these athletes go if they test positive for COVID. And if they do test positive twice, Christine, they lose their chance to compete.

ROMANS: OK, Selina. Thank you so much for that sneak peek. Nice to see you.

JARRETT: All right. A suspect has been charged with murder in the death of an American student in Russia who vanished last week. Thirty- four-year-old Catherine Serou had been a graduate student at a state university just east of Moscow.

A Russian court alleges last Tuesday, the suspect offered her a ride after seeing her at a bus stop, then drove her to a wooded area where he stabbed her. Serou's body was found on Saturday.

[05:50:08]

Russian authorities say the suspect has a previous criminal record.

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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Three, two, one, go.

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ROMANS: You're watching a controlled explosion triggered by the U.S. Navy in the Atlantic Ocean on Friday. They were testing the ability of their newest aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald Ford, to deal with battle conditions before its full deployment. The blast, 100 miles off the Florida coast, registered as a 3.9-magnitude earthquake, by the way.

The Navy say the shock trails demonstrated Navy readiness and showed that -- shock trials, rather -- and showed that the new warship can take a hit.

JARRETT: Wow, look at those pictures.

All right. A tragic accident at a pride parade near Fort Lauderdale this weekend.

Police say the 77-year-old driver of a pickup truck accelerated unexpectedly, hitting two pedestrians there. We're told it was unintentional but one of them was, sadly, killed. The driver was unable to walk in the parade and had been selected to drive the lead vehicle instead.

The two pedestrians that were hit and the driver were all members of the Fort Lauderdale Gay Men's Chorus.

ROMANS: There are some new faces on "SESAME STREET." The iconic children's show introducing a family with two dads in a special family day episode during pride month.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BIG BIRD, "SESAME STREET": Wow, all the families look so different.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes. There's all kinds of different families, but what makes us a family is that we love each other.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: LBGTQ advocates are celebrating this inclusion. Throughout the year, "SESAME STREET" has celebrated diverse families. Just this year, the show introduced two Muppet characters who are black and discussed racial differences.

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CLIP FROM LIONSGATE FILMS, "THE HITMAN'S WIFE'S BODYGUARD."

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JARRETT: Another sequel taking the top spot at the movie box office. "The Hitman's Wife's Bodyguard" -- say that five times fast -- earning $11.7 million in its opening weekend. It has made a total of $17 million since it premiered last Wednesday.

"A Quite Place II" slid to number two this weekend, raking in $9.4 million. The film remains a big pandemic hit. After four weeks in theaters, it has made $125 million.

ROMANS: So let's get a check on CNN Business this Monday morning.

Global stocks slide as investors weigh these signals from the Federal Reserve that it could raise interest rates sooner than expected. You can see down in Tokyo and in Hong Kong, although Shanghai up just a little bit. And it looks like Europe has bounced back a bit this morning.

Let's take a look at Wall Street right now. Stock index futures here in the U.S. -- they are pointing higher.

Inflation concerns had been the big story on Wall Street last week. Cue the beginning of the end of the Fed's unprecedented emergency support of the economy. Some economists think the Fed should start by paring back purchases of mortgage-backed securities.

Ultra-low mortgage rates have helped feed a frenzy in housing. We're going to get new data on the red-hot housing market later this week.

The HUD secretary expressing concern the U.S. could see a new wave of homelessness when the CDC's federal ban on evictions expires next week. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARCI FUDGE, SECRETARY, HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT: I won't lie to you and say that I'm not worried. I am worried. But I do believe that the president has put in place the tools to keep that from happening.

There's $46 billion available to assist renters and homeowners who are behind. And so I do believe once those resources come through the pipeline you will not see the kinds of evictions that people are expecting.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: HUD Sec. Marcia Fudge also said the Biden administration is looking at solutions to address disparities in homeownership among Black communities.

Temperatures are rising across the country and so are energy prices. Natural gas prices hit their highest prices heading into the summer since 2017 this weekend. Businesses and homes across the country are using more natural gas to cool down during the recent heat wave. If higher prices continue it will mean bigger utility bills for consumers.

JARRETT: And finally, rock and roll returns to Madison Square Garden. A line of eager fans, all fully vaccinated, stretching around the arena Sunday for the first full-capacity concert at the Garden since March 2020. They were all there to see the Foo Fighters.

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FOO FIGHTERS: Singing "Times Like These."

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JARRETT: Front man Dave Grohl, you can see there, right at home in front of the packed house. See, folks -- you get vaccinated, you get to see Foo Fighters.

ROMANS: Packed house for the Foo Fighters. You know, we've seen -- Bruce Springsteen is going to be going back to Broadway --

JARRETT: Yes.

ROMANS: -- vaccinated only. We saw Cold Play play a free concert in Long Island City.

JARRETT: Music is back.

ROMANS: Music is back for vaccinated consumers.

Thanks for joining us. I'm Christine Romans.

[05:55:01]

JARRETT: Have a great Monday. I'm Laura Jarrett. "NEW DAY" is next. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: I'm John Berman with Brianna Keilar.

On this new day, 10 people killed in a horrific chain-reaction crash in Alabama. Most of the victims, young children.

Plus, Dr. Anthony Fauci firing back at critics and people who question science.

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN ANCHOR: And new data suggesting how you vote could determine how you spend your post-pandemic summer.

And a staffing shortage forcing one major airline to cancel.