pay a significant price if it invades. >> we have been very clear throughout. if any russian military forces move across the ukrainian border and commit new acts of aggression against ukraine, that will be met with a swift, severe, united response. >> if russia were to make any kind of incursion into ukraine of any -- on any scale whatever, i think that that would be a disaster for not just for ukraine but for russia. it would be a disaster for the world. >> the show of force comes ahead of a critical potentially last-ditch effort of diplomacy tomorrow in jgeneva. >> nick robertson is live in moscow. russia sick nalling this morning openness to another meeting between biden and putin. i wonder if they were hearing, nic, a comment from yesterday's press conference from biden that got less attention than maybe it deserved where biden seemed to say that ukraine's potential membership in nato is a long time off, right, as perhaps a diplomatic off-ramp here. is that how you heard it? >> reporter: there certainly seems to be something in dmitry peskov, president putin's comments today, that could give some grounds for hope that that could provide the path, the idea that ukraine doesn't automatically become a member and somehow sort of get shelved, lost in the long grass. that would go some way to what russia wants. but, you know, we heard as well from dmitry peskov saying there is some willingness to talk about some issues that's positive. he also talked about the possibility of, you know, president putin and president biden having another face-to-face meeting. but he caveated that, and i think that's where you get into the difficulty over the interpretation of when ukraine could join, because russia says no way, and the united states says no way can you say that to us about ukraine joining nato, that russia is looking for a written response, right. it's said the foreign minister, sergey lavrov, has said that. we've heard it from other russian ministers yesterday. the deputy foreign minister has said it as well. they have to have this written response to their written proposal, their security demands as they see them, to move forward on this potential face-to-face meeting between the two presidents. but secretary of state blinken has said that's a no-go when he meets with sergey lavrov, the russian foreign minister, tomorrow in geneva. so you wonder how you're even going to get onto that off-ramp if the entry level requirements aren't there for it, jim. >> yeah. >> nic robertson, a big day tomorrow indeed. thank you so much. joining us to discuss is ambassador richard haass, president of the council of foreign relations and author of "the world: a brief introduction." welcome to the program. great to have you on. i can't get over the one comment that president biden made yesterday, and that is that vladimir putin has to do something. it's not because i necessarily disagree with him. many a top russian experts and analysts have said the same. he sort of pinned himself into a corner now and he has to act. but it sounds different coming out of the mouth of a u.s. president. i'm curious your perspective. is that good policy to broadcast that an invasion is perhaps inevitable that the point? >> well, i don't think an invasion is inevitable. it's obviously possible. it's not clear that mr. putin has made up his mind. the idea that putin might quote, unquote need something in order to need something to justify backing off after this enormous buildup is fair enough. i don't necessarily agree with saying it publicly. the real question is can you structure a diplomatic outcome dealing with europe that would give putin enough but not too much. there might be other things when it comes to arms control or what have you. at the end of the day, it's going to be putin's decision to make, and he's going to have to think about the costs and benefits of going in at whatever level versus the costs and benefits of holding back. >> the other comment that drew a lot of attention, ambassador haas, was the president's wording about if it was a minor incursion, suggesting the western response would not be as vigorous. clearly, the white house knew it had a problem afterwards because they quickly got out a clarification saying no, take any territory, there will be a massive response here. do you think the mouse white house has cleaned that up sufficiently to this point? it was notable to see the ukrainian president tweet this morning there are no minor inku incu incursions. i understand. what the president said again may not have been diplomatically advisable, but it does have, what, the virtue of being probably true, that the more dramatic a russian action would be the less difficult it would be to probably pull the allies together, but anything that takes place in a so-called gray area between diplomacy and an all-out invasion, you'll begin to see the alliance unraveling and above all the germans. this new government, this new coalition government, the enthusiasm for standing up to russia, shall we say, is quite limited. and so i think the president was simply reflecting -- that wasn't news, by the way, from vladimir putin. trust me. he knows full well that there's divisions within the nato alliance, germans in particularly. that's already been factored into his calculations. i think what it might have done for president biden is create some political problems here at home that if this scenario were to come about, if there were to be some type of quote, unquote limited incursion, people will say he green lighted that when, in fact, it's probably been an option all along. >> something we keep hearing from western leaders is that an invasion would have larger ramifications than just on ukraine itself. and it didn't go unnoticed yesterday that the iranian president was in moscow as well, meeting with vladimir putin, someone who has really isolated himself from around the world many times to meet with the iranian president. u.s. officials to this day say that despite the tensions with the united states and russia right now, russia has been very helpful in getting iran back to the table, back to perhaps rejoining the jcpoa. if we do see things escalate with russia, if russia invades iran, what does that do -- invade ukraine, what does that do regarding getting iran back to the agreement? >> well, it's true that russia has no interest in seeing an iran with nuclear weapons. it gets very nervous because it's muslim areas within russia and the possibility of some materials or weapons one day making their way in again, possible terrorism. so russia has been to some extent helpful. i think, bianna, you raise a larger point that this may be once where a big square on a chess board but it's not isolated. every country in the world, friend and foe alike, is going to watch what's going on to see what lessons they can derive about american willingness and ability to stand up to aggression. we may see opportunities if we get bogged down. it's not an isolated event. it will have all sorts of repercussions. >> people forget that the iran nuclear deal was one that brought together an odd collection of characters in terms of russia, china, the u.s. i want to ask you briefly, because the president was pushed on afghanistan and the withdrawal. his answer basically restated his case for the withdrawal but did not answer how that withdrawal was carried out and the chaos we've seen ensue. has the president answered sufficiently on that? >> no. i don't think he made the case either for the fact of withdrawal or how we did it. he said, for example, if we stayed, there would have been -- it would have required tens of thousands of more troops, there would have been a lot of casualties. he said the casualties came down as a result of the agreement the trump administration signed. in fact, u.s. troop casualties came down five years before when we stopped participating in combat operations. so i still think there's big questions out there about the wisdom of leaving and obviously the tactics of how they left. i think that's all out there. it was not resolved last night. >> the pentagon proposal had been for 2,500 troops, not for tens of thousands. ambassador richard haass, always good to have you on the program. >> thank you. if russia does decide to invade ukraine further, we should note there are already russian forces there, americans could feel it at the pump as the conflict would likely drive gas prices up due to an effect on the broader oil market. >> cnn's matt egan joins me from new york. you've been talking about how americans are already dealing with rising oil prices and gas prices. how would this impact average americans? >> reporter: this is clearly a national security crisis. if there is a full scale invasion, this would be a human tragedy too. but the shock waves could very well be felt by millions of americans at the gas pump. one market analyst told me that if russia goes with a full-scale invasion of ukraine, all belts are off for the oil market. that's because russia is the number two oil producer on the planet behind only the united states and ahead of saudi arabia. a remarkable recover from the spring of 2020. that is driving up prices at the pump. the national average is at $3.32 a gallon, four cents from the recent low. gas prices would likely go much higher. three big fears, one that the west would punish vladimir putin by sanctioning russia where it hurts the most, and that's energy. two, that vladimir putin would retaliate by weaponizing oil and natural gas exports by cutting off supply to europe and the rest of the world. and then, three, natural gas prices would skyrocket so much in europe that it would force factories and utilities to switch from natural gas to oil. that means demand for oil is going up as supply is being threatened. in that situation, it's easy to see why investors would buy first and ask questions later. >> biden also did make a point that russia stands too lose as well because 45%, big portion of their national income, comes from energy sales to europe. the question is how long they can withstand it. for americans at home, what's the white house doing to prepare for this? the president mentioned again yesterday the idea of strategic oil reserves. >> reporter: right. this is a very tricky situation for the white house because, you know, we know that millions of americans are really feeling economic anxiety. inflation is already a big problem. and so what the national security council is telling us in a statement is, quote, we are prepared to deliver severe costs to the russian economy, including its financial system and sectors deemed critical to the kremlin and president putin's ambitions while minimizing unwanted sillover. but that last part is going to be tricky. a senior administration official told me the administration is taking contingency planning very seriously, including, key, holding talks with energy companies and other countries. so jim and bianna, the biden administration has this very unenviable task of trying to hold putin accountable without causing inflation to get even worse. >> right. >> it's a battle, man. it's chess board and a big one. matt egan, thanks so much. >> thanks. coming up, i'm going to speak more about this, including inflation worries, with commerce secretary gina ramundo. first, president biden is optimistic that parts of his build back better plan can still pass. does that mean more negotiations with senators manchin and sinema? how about republicans? we're live at the capitol. and we go to one rural georgia county where critics are finding an effort to consolidate seven voting places into just one for nearly 8,000 residents. >> i think it's minute to disenfranchise people of color. i think it's meant to disenfranchise the poor. this is about good old boys, their power and their will to stay in control. plus, it's one of the most fun reveals at the winter olympics opening ceremonies. what are the athletes wearing? we have a first look later in the hour. downy will soften your clothes wiwithout dyes or perfume . the towel washed with downy is softer, and gentler on your skin. try downy free & gentle. inner voice (kombucha brewer): as a new small business owner, i find it useful to dramatically stare out of the window... ...so that no one knows i'm secretly terrified inside. inner voice (sneaker shop owner): i'm using hand gestures and pointing... ...so no one can tell i'm unsure about my business finances. inner voice (furniture maker): i'm constantly nodding... ...because i know everything about furniture... ...but with the business side... ...i'm feeling a little lost. quickbooks can help. an easy way to get paid, pay your staff and know where your business stands. new business? 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what are republicans for? what are they for? t >> cnn congressional correspondent lauren fox is on capitol hill. lauren, where do things stand this morning after we heard those words from the president last night? >> reporter: well, bianna, we should remind viewers back home that the people standing in the way of biden's agenda are really two democrats right now, both kyrsten sinema and joe manchin, despite the fact that he's arguing there that republicans are standing in the way. they could pass build back better with a simple majority using that special budget process they have at their disposal. so far, however, they have been unable to get senator manchin on board. you saw yesterday the president indicating that perhaps they could break this bill into smaller pieces, try to pass it that way. there are some provisions that perhaps could garner enough democratic votes to pass it through that special budget process. one of them, as you mentioned, was prescription drug reform. that was a proposal that was highly negotiated very closely with those moderate democrats including senator kyrsten sinema, who had problems with the original bill but worked with her colleagues to get to yes on that specific provision. there's also some discussion about whether or not some climate change provisions could pass despite the fact that manchin comes from a coal-producing state in west virginia. he worked very closely with senator tom carter on those provisions, is that another place they could go. there are areas of agreement for democrats but things like the expanded child tax credit, those are issues that despite popular with the american public do not have the support from senator joe manchin. >> lauren fox, thank you so much. joining me now to talk about all of this is cnn political analyst julian zell ger. he's a historian and professor at princeton university. great to have you on this morning. let's dig deeper into what lauren was explaining there, because we heard the president say and question what the republicans stand for and that they have been roadblocks all the way. but the real focus as of late has been on those two democratic senators, right, sinema and manchin. here's what the president said. i want to play it for you and we'll talk about it about how he plans to address them specifically on bbb in the months ahead. >> i think the most important thing to do is try to inform, not educate, inform the public of what's at stake in stark terms and let them make judgments and let them know who's for them and who's against them. >> so assuming -- there he is talk about these two senators. at this point, what more can he inform them of? it was striking to hear the president say yesterday when addressing inflation that build back better will, in fact, lower inflation in the country. and some economists seem pretty skeptical about that. >> well, he's not wrong in that the stronger the case he can make of the specifics that he plans to push through. don't talk about build back better. don't talk about the reconciliation package. but talk about item one and item two, what they're going do for voters, what they're going do for voters in west virginia, and make a case how they're actually anti-inflationary. the more he can do that, the more of a defensive position he could put senator manchin in. it's really his only option at this point in terms of pushing these provisions. >> he also addressed voting rights legislation that has stalled as well. and he raised some eyebrows and garnered skepticism when he said that he does believe some elections may be illegitimate because of the obstruction coming from some of these tighter, more restrictive laws that have been passed in several states. he's getting pushback from that, not only from democrats but republicans as well. i'm curious your take because we've been covering all the reasons why we may, in fact, see voter restrictions. so was he wrong to address it the way he did? >> well, one problem is borrowing the language that his predecessor used. and i think there will be criticism about using that. but being very clear on what voting rights restrictions do and the kinds of threats they pose and impose historically is exactly what the president should have been talking about since day one. similarly, we election sub version efforts taking place to stack local election boards or how politicized secretaries of state, that's a serious issue and he should be clear eyed in talking about it. i think a more forceful language is important, but it comes very late. a lot of his critics say this should have been what he was doing from day one rather than in year two. >> perhaps they can settle on the electoral reform act. we are seeing some bipartisan support on that. that could count as a victory, however small, for many people's perspective for the president going into the midterms. julian, thank you as always. we appreciate it. >> thank you. coming up next, we will be live at the white house for today's jobs report. it was dispinting, but the big picture on employment remains positive in this country. we'll speak live with commerce secretary gina raimondo after a short break. if i go to sleep right now, i can get more.... four hours. that's not good. what is time? 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>> thank you. as you say, these are, you know, strong numbers. by any measure now we have a strong economy, you know, created over 6 million jobs last year. we're the only economy in the world that is stronger now than prepandemic. and the unemployment rate is following over the past year. so we look at those numbers. i mean, week to week, month to month, there are small variations, but it's a strong employment picture. wages are up, jobs are up, growth is up. as you say, you know, obviously we have inflation and that is what we have to deal with. >> yes. i want to talk to you about inflation because the president, while acknowledging it will be difficult and is difficult for people today, he said he's optimistic things will improve. as you know, the fed is preparing a months-long effort of interest rate rises. they look at this as a lasting problem, as do many of the investment banks. what gives the administration confidence that inflation will not be a lasting challenge? >> i think a few things. first of all, the fed does have tools to deal with inflation. and we have confidence in the fed. they're professionals. they're independent, apolitical. and, you know, they're aware of it and i think they'll use their significant tools. secondly, we in the administration under president biden's leadership, we're doing everything we can including working on the supply chain issues. we've seen really excellent results reducing congestion at the ports. we're training more truck drivers. the president tapped into the petroleum reserve trying to stabilize gas prices. so it's a whole, you know, every day get up and attack it. i will say this -- congress has to do its part. by that i mean congress has to pass the chips act. the inflation numbers that came out a week ago, a third of those numbers were driven by increases in car prices. that is almost exclusively due to the lack of semiconductor chips. there's 2,000 chips in an electric vehicle. so if you really want to drive inflation down, pass the chips act, make more chips, increase supply, and prices will go down. >> i want to talk about chips. but before that, the president said last night he will have to break up build back better into chunks, which he's confident he can get passed. commerce, part of your job, right, is to keep economic growth going. the administration's argument that this will help, which chunks exactly and which come first? >> so, early on when this began, people asked me that question. and i said here's the one prediction i will make. the build back better bill that the president signs will look different than what was introduced, which is to say we don't know. this is how our democracy works. we'll work with congress, figure it out, compromise. but the president is committed to these investments. by the way, these are job-creating investments. if you want inflation to go down, let's help women get back to work, expand the labor pool. how do we do that? provide universal pre-k and child care. this is a negotiation and we'll do our job and stay at the table until it passes. >> a specific piece of it of course is the child tax credit. that's something the administration has argued is necessary for many families i, to fight inflation. it's ending for many americans around the country, concerns it might contribute to a resurgence of child care poverty, but you don't have manchin on this. effectively, as a practical matter, is the child tax credit dead? >> again, i'm not going to negotiate in public. manchin has been clear. it's not something he's for. we're going to do everything we can to get as much of this package in the final version as possible, but i will also say we need to compromise and we're going to do that. >> we'll be watching you. we'll look for those compromises where it brings you. on the chip funding, can you describe to folks at home what this consists of? as you mentioned, chips go into cars. cars are basically computers with four wheels now. this is affecting the prices of cars. how will they see this and how quickly? >> so, first of all, congress needs to pass the bill. there's a bill weaving its way through congress. it's kind of stuck in the house right now which allows us, the department of commerce, the tools we need to provide incentives for companies to make chips in america. like, that's number one. we have to make this stuff in america and make more of it. but it's pretty simple, you know, economics 101, which is to say last year the auto companies in america made about 8 million fewer cars than they thought they would. supply is down, prices go through the roof. the number-one reason they couldn't make those cars, they didn't have enough computer chips. and so we need more chips, equals more cars, equals lower prices. >> let me ask you bigger picture before we go. you heard the president. describe him and his administration as outperforming, which was an interesting argument for some to hear given that two of the biggest piece of his agenda, build back better and voting rights, did not pass, and voting rights at least by itself is not going anywhere. did the president overstate the administration's successes so far? and what folks at home appreciate an acknowledgment that, hey, you know, some things didn't work out? >> yeah. i don't think he did. i will tell you i think he is overperforming. things aren't perfect. i know folks are dealing with infl inflation, and we're on that. a personal perspective, i was a governor and a state official in a state, 2010 to last year. it was brutal. it took us almost a decade to crawl out of the last recession, right. but after the last recession, the bottom fell out of pension funds, states had to deal with cuts to schools and aid to the developmentally disabled, to hospitals. that's not happening now. you know, i remember as a governor in the middle of this pandemic, we had 12%, 15% unemployment. i never -- if you had told me then that by january of 2022 we would have a stronger economy than when we went into the pandemic, i never would have believed you. and we do. we've created -- the president created more jobs last year than any president ever in the first year of office. so, yes, do we have more work to do? yes. but i do believe we've overperformed. >> we'll keep up that conversation. secretary gina raimondo, thanks for joining us this morning. >> thank you. still ahead, one rural georgia county faces a possible consolidation of voting rights leaving 250 square miles with only one voting precinct. how officials are responding to critics calling it voter suppression. that's up next. back. it goes on clearar. no mess just soothing comfort. try new vicks vapostick. okay everyone, our mission is to provide complete balanced nutrition for strength and energy. woo hoo! ensure, complete balanced nutrition with 27 vitamins and minerals. and ensure complete with 30 grams of protein. ♪ ♪ plaque psoriasis, the burning, itching. the pain. emerge tremfyant®. with tremfya®, adults with moderate to severe plaque psoriasis... ...can uncover clearer skin and improve symptoms at 16 weeks. serious allergic reactions may occur. tremfya® may increase your risk of infections and lower your ability to fight them. tell your doctor if you have an infection or symptoms or if you had a vaccine or plan to. emerge tremfyant® with tremfya®... ask you doctor about tremfya® today. do you have a life insurance policy you no longer need? 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>> reporter: going door to door. >> i didn't know you stayed here. >> reporter: gathering signatures from voters. >> have you signed the petition? >> reporter: in an effort to stop the new board of elections from replacing all seven of the county's voting precincts with just one voting center, the complex in lincolnton, for the entire rural county. >> this is a huge county. people live so far away. we don't have public transportation. we don't have access to lyft or uber or taxicab. we have nothing. >> reporter: just about 7700 people live in the east georgia county where donald trump won more than 68% of the vote in 2020. notices for public hearings went out last september, advertising a move to make voting, quote, easier and more accessible. >> well, we probably had about 15 to 20 people at each public hearing. >> reporter: election director bolton says the board pitched the reconciliation center as being big enough to support social distancing and voting equipment while also allowing the county to reduce staffing and travel needs. >> i mean, i don't see how making things better is such a bad thing. >> reporter: but freeman, a former school board member, says most of the people she meets knocking on doors didn't know about the proposal until last month. she and other voting rights activists believe eliminating all but one print in a 250-square-mile county that's nearly 30% black in an election year is just another example of voter suppression in georgia. >> i think it's meant to disenfranchise people of color. i think it's meant to disenfranchise the poor. this is about good old boys, their power and their will to stay in control. this is not what fair elections are about. >> i don't want to disenfranchise anybody, nobody, from being able to vote. >> reporter: county commission chairman walker norman in lincoln county politics since he was 18, said more than half the county votes early or by mail, although mail voting has new dead lions and i.d. requirements under the state election law. still he doesn't think the change will affect most voters. >> you have prints on election day, you don't have 30 people voting. >> reporter: do you think by closing those precincts, though, those 30 people may not bother? >> no. i think anybody who need to vote is going to vote anyway. >> reporter: but for some voters it would take a lot longer to do it. we made the drive ourselves from the northeast lincoln county community of broad river to the proposed new voting center midday, midweek. it took us 26 minutes to get there. to the original precinct, less than ten. >> the people who are doing this need to sit and think, is this going to hurt us in the long run, or if it's going to help us? i'm here looking at you, talking to you, telling you that it's going to hurt them. >> reporter: director bolton took us around the county from print to print. she says the main buildings don't adequately support election needs and she can't find new ones. >> if i had the structures, yes, it would be more than one. but the structures are not there. that is the reality of lincoln county. >> reporter: like election departments across the country, she's struggling to find poll workers to staff multiple locations. >> they left me a mess. >> reporter: and claims is toxic nature of american politics has prevented churches and even fire departments from stepping up to offer larger spaces. >> they don't want to be associated with anything political. >> reporter: including the democratic act of voting. >> that's right. >> reporter: but adding to this is the board itself. last year, after georgia's controversial election overhaul law was signed by the governor, the republican-controlled state legislature passed laws reorganizing six county election boards. lincoln county was within of them. >> particularly in georgia, we know that folks wanted to believe the big lie, but we do know there's a coordinated effort to close the margin of the 11,000 votes across the state and how this is happening. they want to cherry-pick these smaller rural counties that definitely don't have the same adv advocacy, the same agency, empowerment tools as other bigger counties to get this strategy done. >> reporter: state senator leigh anderson didn't respond to our interview requests. norman says the republican and democratic party used to each nominate a board member, but the state told them last year that wasn't allowed. >> back when they abolished the old board and just started all over. >> reporter: now norman's all-republican commission nominates 3 of the 5 board members. bolton said the state play nod role in the consolidation proposal. >> we had no influence from anybody. >> reporter: before a supreme court ruling gutted the voting rights act in 2013, polling places in georgia would have required federal approval to ensure it would not hurt minority voters. now the five-person lincoln county board of elections can make the decision with a simple majority vote. >> the petition we are submitting meets the 20% threshold. >> reporter: but due to reverend freeman's efforts, the vote's been tabled, at least for now. >> we will not vote tonight. >> reverend freeman says she's not giving up. >> get off the fence! do the right thing! >> reporter: and warns people should pay attention to election-related decisions in small counties. do you think this is a test run for bigger counties? >> i think this is a test run for the entire country. >> reporter: now, those 600 signatures on those petitions are actually in the building behind me here, being gone through by the election director name by name, cross-checking them to see if they're valid registered voters. after that happened, they'll take into consideration comments from people in the community during a pretty bombastic meeting last night, and then they potentially could try to come up with a new plan. but, jim and bianna, there's no guarantee there. technically, they shouldn't be able to shut down the prints from the people who they got those signatures from and petitions, but, again, they'll consult attorneys and see what that might mean for them going forward here. >> it's great reporting, dianne gallagher. thanks so much. we'll be right back. scent set the mood. ♪ feel the difference with downy. as a dj, i know all about customization. that's why i love liberty mutual. they customize my car insurance, so i only pay for what i need. how about a throwback? 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what do you think? >> reporter: put me on the podium. this is gold medal worthy. this is the gear that will be worn by team usa for the opening ceremony 15 days from now. ralph lauren is going to keep these athletes warm in beijing where it will be frigid. this is innovative first to market technology called intelligent insulation. ralph lauren is not using wires, batteries or heated coils like for pyeongchang. this fabric adapts -- jim, it's like a transformer -- depending on the temperature. when it's warm, it's breathable. when it's cold, these two separate materials morph and create an extra layer of insulation. no need for multiple layers. wear it inside, outside. the olympians love it. >> i love just the overall vibe, and i think that the sustainability factor is really important. you know, it's made from recycled products, so that helps me to feel good, like i'm, you know -- it's good for the environment. >> we all need heroes. we all need to come together as a planet. and to see team usa walk out there, it just makes you feel so proud and it makes you hopeful for a world coming together. >> reporter: about 3,000 athletes from around the world, 90 different nations respected there in beijing. and i know i'll be warm when i come back. snack pocket. can't wait for that. >> just need some gloves and you're set. >> the italians have armani, but it looks good. coy wire, you wear it well. thanks so much. >> thank you. thanks for joining us today. i'm jim sciutto. >> i'm bianna golodryga. 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