Enough for these kinds of drawdowns. The order would also complicate the transition process of his successor, joe biden, who is moving ahead with the transition plans despite the president s refusal to actually concede the race. Youre looking at live pictures there. The podium is in wilmington, delaware where we will see the president elect momentarily and we will listen in and take him live. But i want to jump straight to the white house, to cnns kaitlan collins, and kaitlan, this troop withdrawal, we know this is something he wanted to do, its something he said he was going to do in his time in the white house, and until now it hasnt happened. Here we are 65 days until the change in administration. Whats he doing here . Reporter thats right, now were seeing the president doing something he promised to do for a long time, brooke, and that has alluded him. Even if he gets to the numbers by sending out this formal order we are now expecting to draw down these troops, it would decrease the number of troops in afghanistan and iraq, but it would not bring the number to zero which, of course, is something the president promised would happen at the end of his first term in office. The pentagon has sent this warning to commanders, basically telling them to prepare for a troop drawdown in afghanistan and iraq. Right now youve got about 4,500 troops in afghanistan. 3,000 iraq troops would bring it down to a lower number. This would have the president doing what he promised, which was to bring troops home from the middle east. Of course, that gets complicated when you see that troops were sent to places like saudi arabia, but the question is what is the pentagon saying about this . Weve heard from the chairman joint chiefs of staff, chairman milley, saying it should be commissions based. You heard Robert Obrien who pushed for a more conservative call. And the president fired the defense secretary mark esper. We saw others either being fired or resigning in the wake of that, and so weve seen theyve been on two different pages about how quickly this should happen and what conditions it should be based on given those agreements with the taliban. So this is what were expecting so far. We know the president is supposed to have a meeting on this at the white house this afternoon. Whether or not they bring reporters in and take questions, brooke, still remains to be seen, because he hasnt taken questions from reporters since election day, we should note. Im glad you noted that, and also, you know, this is precisely what people were wondering could happen after, to your point, those folks at d. O. D. Were replaced with loyalists, and voila, you have this news about the withdrawals. Kaitlan, thank you so much. I want to get deeper into this with chief analyst Gloria Borger and cnns diplomatic analyst and rear admiral john kirby. Welcome to both of you. Gloria, again, just reminding people. You look at the calendar, 65 days. That will be here in a blink, right, until we have a new president , and this is the kind of move that this current commander in chief decides to do. Why . Because its on his bucket list and he sees it as something that he promised he would do, and he wants to put a check mark next to it. I dont think it has much to do with National Security strategy. Jake tapper reported that that could be the reason why former defense secretary esper and his likeminded colleagues were pushed, because they didnt agree with this strategy, but this is something the president has decided he wants to do, so he will do it. It does complicate things for joe biden, as we all know. Those of us who have known joe biden for years know he is not someone who has been for robust military intervention, but this could be something he decides he needs to reverse in midstream, so it complicates life for him. I want to come back to the conflicting things point on biden. And admiral kirby, to you, let me preface this question by saying, we all want to see our men and women in uniform out of harms way and home, of course. But when you look at the numbers, drawing down troops from 4500 to 2500 in afghanistan and 3,000 to 2500 in iraq, you know this more than anyone. Given the taliban violence, is this the right move right now . Im very concerned about it. Its fine to want to end wars, and this war has been going on for 20 years, but how you end wars, brooke, matters a lot. You have to end it in such a way, particularly in afghanis n afghanistan, so you dont have to go back in. The purpose of that war under two administrations has been to get afghanistan safe from ter r terrorists again. If you withdraw too many in different places, you could create a situation where, unfortunately, its that much more stable and you might have to send troops back in again. It really depends on where the numbers are going to be, where theyre going to be stationed, these 2,500 troops, and what missions theyre going to be doing. I do agree it certainly puts a kink in whatever plans president elect biden might have to come in with. And it certainly makes it harder for him to plan. It also no doubt will put in a much harder place the afghan government, these negotiations with the taliban certainly one of the leverage pieces we have against the taliban in afghanistan is our troop Level Presence there. You pull that out precipitously, youre basically giving them a major concession with nothing in return, and you have nato allies that also have troops on the ground that are depending on us for support and guidance and leadership, so where does this leave them . What about glorias point, what if president elect biden comes into office and suddenly has to reverse this . A, thats a lot of troops that youre reversing, and how does that how quickly can you do Something Like this even if you are commander in chief, sand number two, what message does this send the world . It further, i think, convinces the world that the United States cannot be counted on for Global Leadership around the world, certainly in hot spots, and our National Security standing will be hit heavily on this. Back to glorias excellent point, we get caught up in numbers, brooke. We have to think about what do those numbers comprise . What kind of troops are they, what missions are they performing . We have no idea about what hes thinking in that regard right now. So thats a whole other thing that has to be considered here Going Forward. I remember i was in the pentagon when the Bush Administration transferred over to the obama administration, and president bush very specifically refused to make major troop decisions in iraq and afghanistan after the election of president elect obama so that he didnt hamstring, he didnt make it more difficult for president obama coming in. This is part of the normal smooth transition you want to see. So, then, gloria, back to your point. How does this complicate things . In every way. I think it complicates it in every way. First of all, lets just say that intelligence is not being shared at this point the way it should. Correct. So that the incoming biden administration, under normal circumstances, a, would have been given a heads up, or b, this wouldnt have been done, as general kirby says. This wouldnt have been done admiral kirby says, sorry this wouldnt have been done. It complicates things in every which way, and if youre the incoming president , you just have to shake your head and say, okay, this is what were dealing with now, and were going to have to take a look at it once we have all of the intelligence information, which they dont have. Right. Right. They dont have. And we dont know yet whether or not this was, to kaitlans point a second ago, the secretary of defense being fired, was he pushed . Did he know this was coming . Because, admiral kirby, doing this, this goes against the recommendation of military commanders who have argued that any additional withdrawals should be conditionsbased. We heard from chairman of joint chiefs, mark milley, who said that, and this situation does not currently merit any additional drawdowns. Is the president taking the best advice from his top you know, military brass, the commanders, or is this just merely politics . Well, as commander in chief, its certainly his right and responsibility to give these kinds of orders, and if that was his strategy going in, well, were just going to end the war, were going to pull out, thats fine, but brooke, the problem is National Security strategy which his white house wrote and the National Defense strategy all talks about continuing to build coalitions in afghanistan so that afghanistan can become a safe haven again. If thats the mission that the military has been signed and its the mission they believe this goes against that. Then this goes against that and makes it that much harder. Drug maker moderna reporting its vaccine is nearly 95 effective. Plus the great news here is its much easier to distribute than the other promising vaccines. We have details on that ahead today. And more than 1 million kids in the United States have now contracted covid, and many others are suffering. Mental Health Problems as the pandemic rages. Well talk to a doctor. 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Why . ahhhh incoming ahhhahh im saved water tastes like, water. So we fixed it. Mio. Ythey customize yours lcar insurance. So you only pay for what you need. Wow. That will save me lots of money. This games boring. Only pay for what you need. Liberty. Liberty. Liberty. Liberty. Good afternoon. President elect biden and i just met with some of our business and union leaders. Together they represent millions of workers across our country, and some of americas leading technology, auto and retail companies. We had an important conversation about the impact that this pandemic has had on workers, especially essential workers, front line workers, who have risked their own health and the health of their families, and many who have given their own lives to keep us safe and keep our economy running. And we all know that this pandemic and this recession have hit communities of color particularly hard. Africanamericans and latinos are more likely to contract covid and possibly die. Africanamericans are four times more likely to be hospitalized than others. And last month the Unemployment Rate for black americans was almost twice the rate of others. And we have also had a conversation about the impact this pandemic has had on us as a whole, from individuals to Small Businesses that so many rely on. Over the past month on the campaign trail, the president elect and i saw that impact firsthand. In state after state, we met with workers who shared their struggles and told us about their pain. Essential workers, who have had to stay on the job, even as they worry about their families wellbeing and their own. Small Business Owners who are dipping into their own savings to make payroll and keep their doors open. And many others who have had to close their doors and fear never reopening at all. Their stories have stayed with us. And the president elect and i are focused on building our country back better for them and all americans. And as i said the night we won this election, now is when the real work begins, the necessary work, the good work of getting this virus under control, saving lives and beating this pandemic and opening our economy responsibly while rebuilding it so that it works for working people. And we will do it by protecting the health and safety of our workers and creating millions of goodpaying union jobs from auto and construction jobs to Domestic Workers and caregiving jobs, to service and hospitality jobs. The road ahead, it will not be easy. But the president elect and i are hitting the ground running because we all know the challenges facing America Today are great. The American People deserve no less, and we dont have a moment to waste. And now it is my incredible and great honor to introduce our president elect, joe biden. Thank you very much. Good afternoon. Vice president harris and i just met with a group of americas top Business Leaders and labor leaders. And i must tell you, it reinforced what i thought from the beginning. Were ready to come together. The unity was astounding. I want to go back and talk about the people who actually participated in that. Im going to list all the people just so you know who we spoke with. Number one, there was mary barrett, ceo of general motors. Brian cornell, ceo of target. Mr. Nadell, ceo of microsoft. Murray gamble, president of the uaw. Mary henry, president of sciu. President malone, president of uscw. Lou saunders, president of acsbe and president of the afccio. It was comforting to get leaders of business and labor together on our way to move forward, which im convinced the American People will want to do when they hear what i have in mind. Im very pleased they all came together around the same table to advance certain areas of common ground, and we agreed we will continue these conversations. They represent very different perspectives, but im convinced we can all come together around the same table to advance areas of common ground, which are really i wish you could have all heard the conversation. It was really encouraging. And thats what we were ready to discuss today. We all agreed were ready to get the economy back on track, we need the workers to get back on the job by getting the virus under control. Were going into a very dark winter. Things are going to get much tougher before they get easier. That requires sparing no effort to fight covid so we can open our businesses safely, resume our lives and put this pandemic behind us. Its going to be difficult, but it can be done. And they all agreed that means rallying the country behind a National Strategy with Robust Public Health measures like mandatory masking, widely available testing with rapid results, scaledup production of lifesaving treatments and therapeutics and safe, equitable and free distribution of the vaccine. Its great news that moderna and pfizer each come up with vaccines that are in excess of 95 effectiveness. Getting the vaccine and a vaccination, though, are two different things. Everyone on our call today, in our zoom today, agreed that the sooner we have access to the administrations distribution plan, the sooner this transition would smoothly move forward. As we battle covid, we also need to make sure the businesses, the workers, have the tools, the resources, the National Guidance and health and Safety Standards to operate safely. And we can do that. We can bring democrats and republicans together, work with business and labor to deliver those necessary resources. And for millions of americans who have lost hours in wages or have lost their jobs, we all agreed on our call that we can deliver immediate relief and it need be done quickly. Affordable health care for millions of people who have lost it or are in danger of losing it. Child care, sick leave, family leave so workers dont have to choose between work and family. Corporate america agreed on this tod today, the folks on the call. We need to support Small Businesses and entrepreneurs that are the backbone of our communities but are teetering on the edge. And we all agreed on the urgent need for funding for states and localities to keep front line workers and essential workers on the job. Vital Public Services running Law Enforcement offices, educators, First Responders like we did in the recovery act of 2009, saving literally millions of jobs. There is a reason why the federal government is able to run a deficit, because the states must, must balance their budgets. And theyre in real trouble. Youre going to see hundreds of thousands of police officers, firefighters, First Responders, Mental Health clinics, youre going to see them go out of business. Right now congress should come together and pass a covid relief package like the heroes act that the house passed six months ago. Once we shut down the virus and deliver Economic Relief to workers and businesses, then we can start to build back better than before. We talked about how we have an opportunity to come out of this stronger, more resilient than we were when we went in. I wish you could have heard Corporate Leaders and major labor leaders singing from the same hymnal here. Throughout the campaign i laid out my build back better plan. We laid out our plan, that an independent analysis put out by moodys, a wellrespected wall street firm, projected it would create 18. 6 million jobs. We can also we talked about the need to own the electric vehicle market. We talked about climate a lot. Building 550,000 charging stations, creating over a million goodpaying union jobs here at home. The need for federal government to invest more in clean energy research. You know, its based on a simple premise. Its time to reward work, not just wealth in america. Were going to have a fair tax structure that makes sure the wealthiest among us and corporations pay their fair share. Our plan will create millions of goodpaying union jobs in manufacturing, building the vehicles, products, technologies that were going to need for the future to compete with the rest of the world. From autos to our stockpiles, were going to buy american. No government contract will be given to companies that dont make their products here in america. To secure our position as a Global Leader in research and development, were going to invest 3 300 billion to the newest Competitive Industries in technology, creating 3 million goodpaying jobs. The corporate American Technology firms like microsoft on the call, they all agreed. We can make sure our future is made here in america, and thats good for business, and thats good for American Workers. We can also modernize infrastructure. Roads, bridges, ports. 1. 5 million new Affordable Housing units, highspeed broadband we talked about for every american household, which is more important than ever for remote learning, remote working, telemedicine in the 21st century. Building an infrastructure to help office workers, First Responders and students. 100 million to rebuild our crumbling schools. The Business Community talked about the need to invest in hcbus and Community Colleges. Retrofitting 4 million new buildings. Retro fitting o retrofitting Old Buildings and making them new. These investments will specifically target communities of color so we can break the cycle where in good times they lag, and in bad times, they get hit first and the hardest, and a recovery is the toughest to bounce back. These are the kinds of investments that are going to strengths strengthen our economy and our competitiveness and create millions of jobs and union jobs. To do so, we will respect the did he go anytime dignity of work and the power of workers. You heard me talk about my dad in scranton, pennsylvania, when he would get a job, he said its about respect, community, being able to look your kid in the eye and say, honey, its going to be okay. When we build back better, well do so with higher wages, including a 15 minimum wage nationwide, stronger bargaining rights that you can raise a family on. Thats how we build back the middle class better than ever. Thats how we make sure workers are treated with the dignity and respect they deserve. I could go on, and you can tell i was very encouraged by our conversation. But the point is this. There is so much we can do. The only way we do any of this is if we work together. I know we can do this. For example, on the call, i made it clear to the Corporate Leaders, i said, i want you to know im a union guy. Unions are going to have increased power. They just nodded. They understand. Its not antibusiness. Its about Economic Growth creating goodpaying jobs. Eleven years ago when barack and i took office during the Great Recession and implemented the recovery act which saved us from another great depression, we didnt see a map in red and blue states, it was the United States of america. We didnt care whether the city had voted for us or against us, the state voted for us or against us. We work with everyone. And we recovered and rebuilt together as one nation. We can do this again. Refusal of democrats and republicans to cooperate with one another is not due to some Mysterious Force beyond our control. Its a conscious decision. Its a choice that we make. If we can decide not to cooperate, then we can decide to cooperate. I believe this is in part a mandate for the American People, part of the mandate they gave us. They want us to cooperate. They want us to deliver results. And the choice that kamala and i will make is that were going to do that. Thats why im so pleased today were able to bring together business and labor leaders, to make the choice jointly with us. Were all americans. Lets get to work. As ive said many times, thank you, may god bless you, and may god protect our troops. I understand now im going to take some questions. Megan, fire away. Reporter thank you, president elect biden. I looked in the wrong direction. Sorry. Reporter good to see you. I wanted to start with a question about your pandemic planning and then a question about your economic plan. You spoke about the need to access the out goigoing covid1 administration plans. What do you see happening given the president s attempt to obstruct a smooth transition of power . More people may die if we dont coordinate. Look, as my chief of staff ron klain would say, who handled ebola, a vaccine is important. Its of little use until youre vaccinated. So how do we get the vaccine . How do we get over 300 million americans vaccinated . Whats the game plan . Its a huge, huge, huge undertaking to get it done, prioritize those greatest in need and working our way through it, and also cooperate with the World Health Organization and the rest of the world in dealing with this. They say they have this Warp Speed Program that not only dealt with getting vaccines but also how to distribute this. If we have to wait until january 20th to start that planning, it puts us behind over a month, month and a half. So its important that it be done, that there be coordination now. Now or as rapidly as we can get that done. Reporter on the economy, the Vice President elect talked about having an economy that works for working people. One thing i didnt hear you talk about was cancelling Student Loan Debt . Does that figure into your plan and would you take executive action to achieve it . It is part of my plan. The Democratic House calls for an immediate 10,000 forgiveness of Student Loans. Its Holding People up. Theyre in real trouble. Theyre having to make choices between paying their student loan and paying the rent, those kinds of decisions. It should be done immediately. In addition to that, i think everything from Community College straight through to doubling pell grants, to making sure we have Free Education for anyone making under 25,000 for four years of college, and there is a program that exists now under the law that forgives Student Loans for being able to engage in a public service. Im going to institute that fundamental change so that its able to be available to everyone that, in fact, is engaged. Its not being very well managed right now, so im going to do all of those things. Thank you. Reporter thank you, mr. President elect. You just spoke of the dangers of some of the president s sto stonewalling of this administration. It doesnt look like the president is going to come around any time soon and admit defeat. So what are you going to do . What options do you have to make sure you are ready to go on day one . Do what every other individual in the country, from business to labor, republicans to democrats, to try to pull together a serious and consistent plan so were ready on day one, everything from staffing to ultimately naming cabinet members to moving along on coordinating with business and labor. The covid attack, how were going to attack covid, and so it would make it a lot easier if the president were to participate. We have a number of republicans suggesting that. The good news here is my colleague is still on the intelligence committee, so she gets the intelligence briefings. I dont anymore. So that is, but there is a number of republicans calling for that. I am hopeful that the president will be mildly more enlightened before we get to january 20th. Reporter what is your message to republicans who are backing up the president s refusal to concede . You clearly need to work with them Going Forward. My message is i will work with you. I understand a lot of your reluctance because of the way the president operates, but ive been in contact with them and will be in contact with more of them as we move along. If it has to wait until january 20th to actually become operational, thats a shame, but maybe thats the only way to get it done. Thank you very much, mary. Reporter thank you very much, mr. President elect. I want to kind of piggyback off of that. I want to get your thoughts on the president s tweet over the weekend where he first seemed to acknowledge that you won, then he said he wont concede, then he said, i won. How did you interpret that, and at the end of the day, do you want him to concede . I interpret that as trumpism. No change in his mode us operan. Look, im having a lot of meetings with World Leaders on the telephone. I cannot negotiate with them about things that are going to be done, but theyre calling with some degree of enthusiasm, everyone from the holy father to prime ministers across the globe. And so were moving along knowing what the outcome will be, and as i said earlier, and i probably shouldnt repeat it, but i find this more embarrassing for the country than debilitating for my ability to get started. Reporter then secondly, i want to follow up with you on the vaccine. If the fda gives emergency authorization to the pfizer or Moderna Vaccine in the coming weeks, will you get vaccinated . And if youre hesitant, why should any american have confidence in the vaccine . First of all, well see if that comes forward. And, secondly, its important that people who are in the greatest need get it. I wouldnt hesitate to get the vaccine. But i also want to set an examp example. But i wouldnt hesitate to get the vaccine if, in fact, dr. Fauci and these two organizations, whether its moderna or pfizer who have been extremely responsible, conclude that it is safe and able to be done. Look, the only reason people question the vaccine now is because of donald trump. Thats the reason why people are questioning the vaccine, because of all the things he says and doesnt say, is it truthful or not truthful, the exaggerations . I think were on a clear path now. Were on a clear path with the International Community and National Leaders and the Scientific Community have focused on these two vaccines. They appear to be ready for prime time, ready to be used, and if that continues along that road, i would take the vaccine. Reporter thank you. Reporter thank you, mr. President elect. You have been urging the American Public to continue practicing social distancing and wearing a mask, but with cases skyrocketing across the country, do you think that more governors should be closing nonessential businesses and reinstating stayathome orders . It depends on the state. What i failed to mention earlier is the enormous respect i have for republican conservative republican governors who stepped up and issued mandates for wearing masks. In north dakota, one of the leaders in this area has been the republican governor and the republican governor in ohio. In addition to the folks who have already been leading, like the governor of michigan. I mean, you know, the idea that the president now is existing remaining adviser on covid. What is the matter with them . Resist . Every major individual of any consequence in the health field is saying, we can save 100,000 lives just between now and january 21st by wearing these masks. Its going to take a while for the vaccine to be able to be available, distributed and get to people. Were talking about 350 to 400,000 people dying . What are they doing . Its totally irresponsible. So i compliment the governors who are stepping forward, have stepped forward, and also the republican governors who stepped forward. I left out the governor of utah, very conservative state. Governor of north dakota. And all the democratic governors who have been doing it all along. Its i just ask a rhetorical yes. Do you guys understand this . Does anybody understand why a governor would turn this into a political statement . Its about patriotism. Its about being patriotic. Its about saving lives for real. This is not hyperbole. Its about being patriotic. And i think youre seeing more and more as this godawful virus continues to spread almost unabated that we that governors are stepping up. Reporter just following up on that, especially with many states reporting new highs in terms of the daily number of cases and a lot of Public Health officials sounding the alarm over the holidays, what is your message to people who are considering, for example, getting together with their families and others for thanksgiving . Would you urge people to reconsider their plans . Heres what i would do. Let me tell you what the Health Experts have said to me. And its not because im unique and president elect, its because of my family. They strongly urge that if, in fact, were going to have thanksgiving with anyone that we limit it to a maximum, maximum they suggest five people maximum ten people socially distanced wearing masks. And people who have quarantined. So jill and i spent this morning, like many of you, trying to figure out, what are we going to do for thanksgiving . How are we going to do it . And weve narrowed down which family members and that they were tested, recently tested, in 24 hours. And so i would strongly urge for the sake not just for your sake, for the sake of your children, your mother, your father, your sisters, your brothers, whoever you get together with at thanksgiving, think about this. There should be no group more than ten people inside the homes. Thats what theyre telling me. Theyre telling me making sure thats the case. And i have the more potent mask behind this one. I took it off when i came out here, i wear it inside this, that you be masked. Lets save lives. So, look, i just want to make sure that were able to be together next thanksgiving, next christmas. I mean, it is an international crisis. Its an International Health crisis. And the idea were at war with the virus. It is a war for real. I watch you all, you all seem to wear masks all the time and the group that follows me follows me that is assigned to delaware with me seem to do that. I strongly urge you to do it. Theres nothing macho about not wearing a mask. Reporter thank you. Reporter thank you, president elect, Vice President elect. My earring is stuck on my mouth. Your plan you outlined just now, about a Million Energy jobs, clean energy jobs, investments in hcbus, those are things we take time. We have a problem with longterm unemployment thats growing fast right now. What would you do right away, specifically, to address jobs that may not return for months, may not return ever, including in communities of color . What i would do, i would pass the heroes act. It has all the money and capacity to take care of each of those things. Now. Now. Not tomorrow. Now. And the idea the president is still playing golf and not doing anything about it is beyond my comprehension. You would at least think he would want to go off on a positive note. But what is he doing . And theres virtually no discussion. And the republicans, were told i dont know that its true you may know, senator, but theres 22 republicans who say they wont vote for anything. Well, there ought to be at least a dozen of them have the courage to stand up and save lives and jobs now. We should be doing it now. Keeping those businesses open, providing the ppe, the protective equipment as well as the ppp, the money that would allow people to get funding to keep their businesses open, everything from separation to testing to a whole range of things that allow businesses to open and stay open. Thats what the plan was at the beginning. By the way, if you notice in the very beginning when they dont passed the Stimulus Program in the first two pieces, what happened . Businesses were staying open. Then when they werent open, people were still able to get paid. But look where they are now. People are running out of unemployment insurance. What are they going to do . 22 Million People on the verge of losing their home because they cant make a mortgage payment. We have a larger number that will be kicked out in the street because they cant pay their rent. And, by the way, its not just the renter, its the outfit that owns the building. A lot of them arent multimillionaires, theyre running small operations. How can they do it . This is about keeping americans afloat. Get them through this pandemic, get them through where they still their businesses are able to come back. The money is there. The money is there. Reporter and also on the economic front, as we fight the pandemic, world trade continues and there is great debate over world trade agreements, International Trade agreements. It seems that in the last couple of days, 15 countries, Asian Pacific countries have signed onto a new trade deal, the rcep. Should the United States consider joining that trade agreement . Ive talked to a number of these World Leaders, and i told them under the law, i am not able to begin to discuss with them there is only one president at a time as to who can say what our policy will be. So im reluctant to answer that question now, but heres what i can say. We make up 25 of the worlds trading capacity of the economy in the world. We need to be aligned with the other democracies, another 25 or more, so that we can set the rules of the road instead of having china and others dictate outcomes because they are the only game in town. And so but what im insisting on and when asked by World Leaders as to what i would do without getting into detail, ive said, but i want you to know there are three things that will happen if im elected. One, were going to invest in American Workers and make them more competitive. Number two, were going to make sure labor is at the table and environmentalists are at the table in any trade deals we make. Im not looking for fate. The idea were poking our fingers in the eyes of our friends and creating autocrats makes no sense to me. I promise you i have a pretty thorough plan and ill be prepared to announce that to you on january 21st. Reporter you have changes you want to make on other fronts, like the paris climate deal thats the notion of rejoining, but it doesnt get into detail of what well do in that agreement. The same thing with rejoining the World Health Organization. Reporter why not here . Because youre asking me about whether i would join a specific proposal that details what are now only being negotiated among those nations. They require negotiation. Reporter thank you. Thank you. Thank you, guys weve been listening to the president elect there, and Gloria Borger, i want to talk to you first, because to me the line that really resonated with me, and i think a lot of americans watching, was when biden said more people may die if we dont coordinate, right . This all has to do, of course, with coronavirus and the current administrations unwillingness to give them access to the, you know, information they need in order to not, you know, be behind come january 20th. What did you make of the president elects message . I think it was very clear and very direct, which is that we need to get the Delivery System in place for the vaccines. As he said, quoting his own chief of staff, you know, vaccines dont save lives, vaccinations save lives. So he said, look, we cant do this. We need to be able to share that with you right now, and he said, i was hoping the president would become mildly more enlightened on this, and he kind of said it in a way that you know he probably does not expect him to, and there was one more thing also, which i think he sort of let it be known that while hes not happy with senate republicans, he said that he understands that a lot of your reelection depends on the way the president operates, and so he understands why they may be reluctant to come out and call him president elect. And he called it a shame, but what he was effectively saying is, you know, i know that the president will be out to get you if you say anything about me, so i get it. He didnt like it, but he said he understood it as a way of showing their lack of courage as well. Stay with me, gloria. I want to bring in dr. Leana wen who has also been listening. We should vus prefapreface this president elect did, that hes had meetings with business and labor leaders just in terms of economic recovery in the months to come. You want to talk about how labor is the pathway to economic recovery, number one, and touting the possibility of some really effective vaccines in the form of pfizer and moderna and how he was asked, would you take the vaccine, and he says, if fauci and the docs give it the okay, then yes. Yeah, i think that this meeting today was so important, brooke, because for so long this conversation has been framed by President Trump as somehow Public Health is the enemy of the economy, that its democrats and doctors who want to shut everything down and republicans want to open the economy. I think in this conversation today, president elect biden is making clear that Public Health needs to work hand in hand with the economy, that containing the virus is something that Business Leaders also agree is key to get the economy back on track. And i think the comment about the vaccine is so important. It is great news that we got today about the Moderna Vaccine being about 90 effective, at least in their preliminary studies in preventing but we have to get to the point of having vaccinations into peoples arms. So the plea to be really careful over thanksgiving, i would even go further that president elect biden saying do not get together indoors with people outside of your immediate household right now and includes thanksgiving. We have a difficult winter ahead but we have to get it to get to the spring when a vaccine may well be here. I was thinking of you as the president elect was talking about, you know, how he and his wife were making playe ining th this morning. Ten people inside and get your test and quarantine. I thought you would say differently. We talked last week what you wrote in the washington post. For everyone watching as you are one of those experts, what is your advice for people in terms of numbers around the thanksgiving table next thursday . So its not so much a total number but, rather, how many people are in your immediate household, the people that you live with who are currently in your pandemic bubble. If you are already in a bubble with one other family and its ten people total, that is fine. Even if its 20 people total. If they are in your bubble, that is fine. Do not see people indoors who are not in your immediate household or if your pandemic bubble and because of how much this virus is surging all across the country. This is not the time for us take any risks at all because there is just so much virus. There is coronavirus rampant all across the country. The entire u. S. Is a hot spot of infection. We have to get through this. We can celebrate thanksgiving in july if we want but lets survive until then. Dr. Wen, thank you so much. Arlette saenz was in the room there and covering the press conference. We are grateful for opportunities like these. You and i have talked about how he is projecting, you know, lowering the temperature and if they cant coordinator with team trump, what did you think . Reporter it was bit of a more aggressive posture than the previous week, when biden talked about the need to have calm and patience over this transition process, but he was very blunt that if the Transition Team is unable to coordinate that will put americans lives in jeopardy. We heard his incoming chief of staff ron klain echo something similar yesterday when he expressed frustration over the fact that the Transition Team cant speak with hhs officials when it comes to the distribution plans for that vaccine. So biden, today, really kind of stepping up his game and laying out the stakes of what is at stake right now if the Transition Team is not coordinating with the outgoing Trump Administration. We have seen biden the past week really project those calm tones and saying that this is a process that will play out but he is making it very clear right now that there are lives on the line when it comes to the fact that they are unable to coordinate with the Trump Administration. Arlette, thank you. Kaitlin collins, let me priivoto you to the white house. The elect saying i hope the president is more enlightened before we get to january 20th. He was saying it in a way i dont think trump will get more enlightened. On that subject of enlightenment, what is the chances that the president will concede . The president said im not conceding anything when people realized he was acknowledging that joe biden won this election. Its making awkward situations for the health and Human Services alex czar saying they wont have the go ahead. Dr. Anthony fauci said that will cause problems if not a smooth transition when 2 comes to the rollout of the new vaccine. You heard joe biden talking about whether or not this transition is going to go. He said its more embarrassing than debilitating the way the president is blocking the biden team from getting its access to start this transition. One remarkable point he made was the Vice President elect harris is still being read in on intelligence he does not have access to. That is incredibly notable and not a power dynamic you walk and see between a ticket that has just won. Mike pence was not getting briefings that the president didnt have access to in their period while they were waiting to come into office. I thought that was incredibly notable to see how he framed that and how part is getting access and part is not. The other notable thing joe biden said calling for stimulus to happen now in this lame duck period and not to wait until january because they know that could affect them. Any little bit of stimulus that would happen now would make it easier transition for them to try to have the economy recover which was the point of these remarks today. We will see how people on capitol hill respond to that if there is any agreement. We know there has been none right now. Now president elect is calling on stimulus to happen now and not when he takes office in january. As he called for another dig at the president he is playing golf he says and has done nothing about it. This whole thing was about economic recovery. Talk to the labor leaders and Business Leaders and wants to get the economy rocking and rolling as soon as possible. What was your takeaway from listening to the president elect . I think the eureka moment was the strategy is not the enemy of the economy or economic recovery. They go hand in hand. You know . Music to my ears when youre talking about scaledup testing and when youre talking about a National Mask wearing mandate. Fine. That is the of the governors but just getting the messaging right from the president elect and top down here is so critical for businesses of all shapes and sizes also for workers. The other fact, of course, as kaitlan was saying there critical the fact he is saying do a deal now. Why doesnt the president want to have some victory as he leaves the white house here . He has to now talk to the democrats and say, look, even if this lame duck period, what is feasible here . Never mind the republicans. Then i think we can talk very quickly longer strategy and great to be talking about green energy to talk about beefing up the social security. A leaf out of Donald Trumps book as far as buying america and making sure that a lot of the production we see happens in america. I think also pivots and very important as well but that comes down to the politics of what is possible and whether or not the republicans hold the balance of the power in the senate and he didnt address that Going Forward but the message is right on covid and that is critical to the economy. To that point, thank you so much, julie. Gloria, what is possible for people listening to this conversation and watching at home, needing the assurances that help is on the way and not understanding why the folks on the left and the folks on the right arent getting together to pump something into the economy so that, you know, people can get through this tough pandemic winter, economically speaking . Where are the members of congress on this . Well, look. Right now, i think the republicans in the senate and the senate stepping in the way. The house has passed measures. They are looking to the president for leadership. The president has said time and time again pass a big stimulus package, some of them say okay. Most of them say that is not going to sit with my constituents. So the republicans have to decide right now where they are on this and a lot of them dont want to cross the president. He keeps changing his mind. First he wants a big stimulus bill and then he doesnt want a stimulus bill and we dont know what he wants to do. One point about joe biden, though, i think his tone was kind of incredulous. He was saying at one point in referring to dr. Scott atlas who called for people in michigan to rise up against new covid19 measures, he said, what the hell are these guys thinking, right . Something like that. He just seems to say you at least think he wants to go off on a positive note. But he seems to not be able to understand what donald trump is thinking right now and i think he is speaking for a lot of us. He is incredulous. It is striking. Arlette was noting from last week its going to be okay. We got this. Transition. We dont need to be too aggressive and now to the tone we have heard today. We have 65 days to go. I think its note worthy how the embarrassing line, wouldnt he want to do something. He is out golfing. Exactly. I got 40 seconds. Gloria, take me to the end and just with everything that has happened now with the withdrawals, iraq and afghanistan and trump, its 65 days to go. I think the president is playing out a string and he is not sure how the show he is the star of is going to end but he always knows, brook, that he has to be the star no matter what. And i think that is what he is figuring out right now. He has got to leave the stage but he still wants to be the star. How does he do it . Youre so right. Gloria, thank you. Thanks to everyone for talking to me after listening to the president elect. Im brooke balancdwin the lead with jake tapper starts right now. Announcer this is cnn breaking news welcome to the lead. Im jake tapper. We begin with breaking news. Moments ago president elect joe biden was speaking. He called for cooperation between his Incoming Administration and the outgoing Trump Administration which is still refuse to go accept the reality of mr. Trumps loss. More people may die. The sne