hello, everyone. i'm kate bolduan. thanks for joining us this hour. no matter how you slice it, the coronavirus pandemic is going from bad to worse, ravaging communities in states across the country at this point. this as the united states has recorded 11 million cases. just six days after hitting 10 million cases. more than 100,000 cases in the last 13 days. 23 states are reporting record highs in hospitalizations over the weekend. the situation is not better in the rest of the states ooit

either. the number of americans in hospital is at the highest level since the pandemic began. this outlook is forcing state and local officials to step up and impose new restrictions, the likes of which we haven't seen in months. in michigan, high schools and colleges are going back to remote learning. indoor dining is suspended. michigan's governor saying the exploding case numbers leaves her no other choice. >> we are in the worst moment of the pandemic to date. the situation has never been more dire. we are at the precipice and we need to take some action. >> a short time after she said that, president trump's current top coronavirus adviser, dr. scott atlas, who's been controversial all along took to twitter to respond to the governor writing this, the only way this stops is if people rise up. you get what you accept. and president trump continues to do little on covid other than

tweet about it. there is some hopeful news this morning in the quest for a coronavirus vaccine. moderna announcing results this morning on its phase three trial. elizabeth cohen is standing by with the details. 94.5% effective. tell us what the results mean. >> what they mean is that this actually looks like the trifecta for moderna. it's the second vaccine, pfizer was the first last week that is showing more than 90% efficacy. both vaccines showing a good safety profile, very few side effects what they were was body aches and headaches for a short period of time. third, this is from moderna, they don't need special freezers to transport their vaccines. you can use ones that doctors' offices and pharmacies already have. i want to talk about how their phase three clinical trial was done. they put shots into arms and let people go live their lives. they say go home, back to your

communities. there is, unfortunately as we heard so much covid in the united states and has been for a while now, that people did run into the virus. they didn't have to give the virus to anyone, people just ran into it. they just caught it as part of their daily lives. let's look at the specific numbers for moderna's phase three trial. they gave 15,000 people a placebo, a shot of saline that does nothing. and 90 of those people became sick with covid. they also gave another 15,000 study participants the vaccine and 5 of those became ill with covid. only 5 and none of them severely, which is worth noting. 11 of the folks who got the placebo did become severely ill with covid. it's interesting that moderna just found out this news yesterday from an independent data and safety monitoring board that's been keeping track of the trial. they called moderna to give them the results. it was obviously good news

especially because this is a new technology. this technology, called messenger rna or mrna, the technology used in this vaccine has never been used with a vaccine on the market before. i talked to the chief medical officer of moderna last night. let's listen. >> this is a major win for mrna technology and its ability to prevent disease and for us as a society in our ability to work collaboratively and quickly from the start of the pandemic, be able to leverage science and collaboration to have a vaccine that has the potential, now the proof, to prevent covid-19. >> now we don't know how long this shot's immunity right last. you might have to get the vaccine once a year. dr. anthony fauci told me last night that he thinks we could be getting needles into arms starting in the second half of december. kate? >> hold onto that ray of sunlight amidst the darkness.

that's for sure sure. elizabeth, thank you so much. joining me now to talk about this is dr. william shaftner, it's good to see you again, doctor. what do you think of the moderna news? >> splendid, it's wonderful, extraordinary effective, as with the pfizer vark seen. now we have two vaccines. the more the merrier. the goal in the united states alone is to vaccinate 330 million people. we need as many vaccines out a there as possible. this is very good news and better that we have data now that it can also prevent severee in intensive care units. >> absolutely. and this is a rare ray of sunlight in what by all measures you can look at right now is a dark time with the virus. we're looking at almost 70,000 people hospitalized with covid, which is like 10,000 more than

we saw in the peak with the virus in the spring. what is most concerning to you right now in what we're seeing? >> well, at the moment, of course, the concern is that the virus is spreading really uninhibited throughout most of the united states. people have covid fatigue, covid announce, really, and we'll have to get them back understanding that we can't vaccinate everybody in had a week and a half at the end of the year. this will take months to distribute this vaccine. and in the meantime, please wear the mask. please social distance. avoid those large group gatherings. even family groups. those are accelerator events. that's where the virus enters, spreads and then you take it home, spread it to your own families and further to the neighborhood. so so we have to curtail our activities just this year.

next year will be much better. hang in everybody, wear the mask. >> talk about, you know, covid fatigue and announce. the dakotas is an area of serious concern right now. where the virus is out of control. a nurse from south dakota was on cnn this morning, spoke to cnn, and the stories that she told are really unbelievable. doctor, patients dying in her care of covid but denying until the last breath that they believe the virus is even real. let me play for you how she describes it. >> yeah. i think the hardest thing to watch is that people are still looking for something else and they want a magic answer. and they don't want to believe that covid is real. and their last dying words are, this isn't be happening, it's not real. and when they should be spending time, face timing their families they're filled with anger and hatred.

it made me really sad the other night. i can't believe those are their last thoughts and words. >> we didn't hear things like that during the peak in the spring. what do you do with that, doctor? >> first of all, my heart goes out to the nurse and everyone else affected. and given that it's in the dakotas, let me mention also, it's in rural tennessee, it's gone from the cities and spreading widely in rural areas now. we'll have to take a new national perspective, and it will be difficult to bring people to the realization that covid really is real. it's everywhere. and that we can, together, do something to curtail its spread. we need to do that. otherwise, i'm afraid the people who work in the cemeteries digging the graves will be very busy throughout the winter. >> is there even time to change -- forget hearts, but to change minds and to believe the reality of the science right now? just the timing we're looking at

and how we're in the middle of it right now. i have to ask you, the president's top advicer on covid, dr. scott atlas he responded to an announcement from michigan's governor of new restrictions, shutting down schools, indoor dining and more. his reaction was saying that the only way to fix this is that people rise up. a doctor, supposedly in charge of public health, suggesting -- though he tried to walk it back later -- you should rise up against these public health measures? what do you say to that? >> i'm speechless. that's profoundly sad because it's exactly the opposite. exactly the opposite of what we should be doing. we should be embracing these public health measures recognizing they protect ourselves, our families and others around us. not wearing a mask, kate, is exactly like driving on the red. it's not your individual decision alone.

it puts people around you at risk. this is contagious. it's not just your decision. we have to do this together. >> thanks for coming on. thanks for always following the science. >> thank you, kate. >> i really appreciate it. still ahead, the trump administration is refusing to share information on the covid pandemic with president-elect biden and his team saying they'll only bring them in when it's appropriate. what if they never get there? pluz joe bidplus joe biden kamala harris are going to speak out about the economy as millions of americans are desperate for relief. came to qu. the support we've had over the last few months has been amazing. it's not just a work environment. everyone here is family. if you are ready to open your heart and your home, check us out. we thought for sure that we were done.

and this town said: not today. ♪ ♪ you know limu,g after all these years and this town said: not today. it's the ones that got away that haunt me the most. [ squawks ] 'cause you're not like everybody else. that's why liberty mutual customizes your car insurance, so you only pay for what you need. what? oh, i said... uh, this is my floor. nooo! only pay for what you need. ♪ liberty. liberty. liberty. liberty. ♪

we started by making the cloud easier to manage. but we didn't stop there. we made a cloud flexible enough to adapt to any size business. no matter what it does, or how it changes. and we kept going. so you only pay for what you use. because at dell technologies, we stop...at nothing. ♪

because at dell technologies, we stop...at nothing. he used to have gum problems. now, he uses therabreath healthy gums oral rinse with clinically-proven ingredients and his gum problems have vanished. (crowd applauding) therabreath, it's a better mouthwash. at walmart, target and other fine stores. coming up very soon,

president-elect joe biden will be speaking on the economy. and we also have a stark new image from this weekend of just how bad things are still for so many americans in the face of the coronavirus pandemic. look at these lines. thousands of people, cars, lining up near dallas. not because they want to. but because they have to. for a food bank in texas handing out over 600,000 pounds of food this weekend. a spokesperson for the group said half of the people coming through are doing so for the first time. that gives you a sense of the scope. it's been crickets from washington and congress as talks other stimulus measures sputtered out weeks ago. jessica dean is in delaware where biden will be giving remarks on the economy soon. what are you hearing from the transition team? >> reporter: they'll tell you they're doing everything they can to push the transition forward. they feel good about what they've been able to accomplish

but the fact remains they cannot talk to federal officials they need to talk to to plan for the transition because president trump has still refused to concede and the general services administration, which is responsible for signing off on triggering the formal transition process which opens up the lines of communication has not done so. so that means that the transition team is left to do what they can within the realm that they've been given. so we know that they're back channelling with local governments on coronavirus pandemic. we know that they're talking this week with drug makers, including pfizer, about the vaccine distribution plan. that's one key area they'll tell you this delay on the transition could have a very serious impact. incoming chief of staff ron klain talked about this yesterday. listen. >> joe biden is going to become president of the united states in the midst of an ongoing crisis. that has to be a seamless

transition. we have the possibility, we have to see if it gets approved of a vaccine in december, january. there are people at hhs making plans to implement that vaccine. our experts need to talk to those people as soon as possible so nothing drops in the change of power we'll have on january 20th. >> reporter: they know they have a huge challenge in front of them, made more difficult by the fact they cannot talk to the people they need to talk to. we'll see the president-elect and vice president-elect give talks on the economics later. they understand the economic recovery is tied to getting the coronavirus pandemic under control. kate. >> thank you. joining me with more is olivia troy, a former task force adviser to vice president mike pence. you've been outspoken with your criticism of the administration's response in the pandemic.

i want to play for you what the administration said this morning about getting biden's team read in. >> don't you need to talk to biden's team now? >> we'll do that when it's appropriate. right now we're talking to the jurisdictions across the country. we'll be shipping the vaccine where they determine where it ought to go. >> why isn't it appropriate now? >> gsa has to make the determination a transition in is in effect. that determination hasn't been made. >> what do you think of that knowing numbers are skyrocketing everywhere. >> it's ridiculous. secretary azar needs to grow a backbone and stand up to the president and say this is wrong. he has been the face of leading the charge for hhs on this pandemic. and really this falls on him. he needs to stand up. the time is right now.

there's no other appropriate moment. this pandemic is out of control right now. we're facing significant crisis across the united states. so these people need to be talking to each other. the patriotic american thing to do is give the transition team a chance to meet the experts. if you care about americans and their lives, these people should be meeting together and discussing it and figuring out a way together. >> you've been in the task force meetings. what do you think is the damage that's being done, or what worries you most about the administration not cooperating with the transition, specifically in this area of covid? >> i think with covid time is of the essence. there are certainly communities out there that are very much hurting. i'm in my hometown of el paso, it's ground zero right now for how bad this virus can get. the longer the conversations are delayed, it impacts things like the vaccine distribution

planning. those discussions are happening right now. the biden team needs to be able to plan accordingly. also where are we on ppe? we were shipping stuff all over the world, jared kushner was behind the scenes doing it. where is that now? what's the status? do we have enough for health care workers, communities? it's a fundamental thing to slow the virus and what everyone can do is wear a mask. do we have enough masks? these are things that the biden team is going to have to deal with for months to come. they need to have that background now so they can move forward and not look backward. we made mistakes along the way, they can learn from that. i don't want them to have to do the work that's been done by the task force in the discussions that's happened, that the president chose to override and didn't implement. they should be able to move forward with that. >> to be clear, because there was a point when there were

enough ppe, there were enough masks, there were enough gloves for all health care workers around the country as we were looking at spikes, that does not mean there still is now when there are spikes all over the country not just hot spots as it was moving about, that is a concern i've heard as well. a spokesperson for the president last night made clear he does not think it's not a big deal at all they're not engaging with biden's team. we can read you his tweet, put it up. the press would ask why don't you meet with them and we would say what should we meet about? you ask, here are some quotes on the vaccine distribution plan and he says, here is the publically available distribution plan. this is brian morganstern, he's saying essentially that everything needed right now for the biden team to prepare is publically available. is that true? >> no.

look, there's data that's happening, these people need to have the serious conversations with the task force doctors, they need to be able to speak freely with dr. han, dr. birx. this is all just, you know, smoke and mirrors, typical of this administration. the problem is they've been doing this for months now. they have put us in this situation. it didn't have to be this way and we're there now. and continuing to play out the narrative and playing games like this is just absolutely ridiculous. it's time to stop being sore losers and focus on what's happening, which is a crisis across america. >> you mentioned el paso, and i wanted to ask you on a personal note you left washington to drive to el paso, 2,000 miles to pick up your mom because you're worried about how bad things are getting there. what are you seeing that has you concerned and driving across the country, olivia? >> the cases are through the roof here and the health care workers, they have asked for help. they've asked for help from the

governor, the governor needs to have this community's back. it's like there's a political fight where the governor is following the president's rhetoric and the attorney general as well. this is all wrong. el paso is ground zero. they are in a very tough spod right now. and they do need to take precautions and they do need to shutdown some nonessential businesses. that's where this community is. doesn't mean the rest of the country needs to follow suit or anything like that. but when el paso is overrun like it is already and cities like dallas and houston across the state are also having increasing cases this is very worrisome we're seeing it happen across the country. i know covid fatigue is real. that's why i get that. i drove three days nonstop to get my mom and be with her and bring her back safely. she's going to spend the holidays with us because her mental health matters to me.

it's going to be a hard if you have months we have to continue to isolate and we have to stand by each other. the quicker we do that, the better off we'll all be until the vaccine can be distributed. >> a few months is not forever, but what can happen if you do get covid can be forever. thank god your mom has a daughter like you to come to the rescue. thank you for coming on. president trump continues to spread almost nonstop conspiracy theories about an election he lost. if he and his team know the reality, and they do, what is the game here? if you're on medicare, remember, the annual enrollment period is here. the time to choose your coverage... ends december 7th. so talk to unitedhealthcare and take advantage of a wide choice of plans...

including an aarp medicare advantage plan from unitedhealthcare. it can combine your hospital and doctor coverage with prescription drug coverage, and more, all for a low monthly premium or in some areas, no plan premium at all. take advantage of $0 copays on all primary care doctor visits, all virtual visits, and preventive dental care. plus $0 copays on hundreds of prescriptions. and with renew active, enjoy a free gym membership. so call unitedhealthcare and take advantage of the range of plans we offer, including ppo plans that let you see any doctor who accepts medicare, without a referral. enrollment ends december 7th. call unitedhealthcare or go online today. [sfx: mnemonic] keeping your oysters busihas you swamped. you need to hire. i need indeed indeed you do. the moment you sponsor a job on indeed you get a shortlist of quality candidates from a resume data base

claim your seventy-five-dollar credit when you post your first job at indeed.com/promo

it's time you make the rules. so join the 2 million people who have switched to xfinity mobile. you can choose from the latest phones or bring your own device and choose the amount of data that's right for you to save even more. and you'll get 5g at no extra cost. all on the most reliable network. so choose a data option that's right for you. get 5g included and save up to $400 dollars a year on the network rated #1 in customer satisfaction. it's your wireless. your rules. only with xfinity mobile.

it's been almost two weeks since the last votes were cast in the presidential election. the results are clear. joe biden is the president-elect. he is now ahead in the popular vote by 5.5 million votes. but president trump continues to operate in his own reality here. for a brief moment yesterday, trump appeared to accept defeat in a tweet though throwing around more allegations of the election being rigged and stolen. but then hours later and this

morning the president is back inside his own reality that he thinks he won. what is trump up to here? he knows he has lost. the people around him know that as well. he knows he's leaving the white house. joe biden will take office on january 20th. i want to bring in abby phillips for more on this. what do you think the game is now then for president trump since he does know the reality here? >> it's such a great question, kate. i think a lot of this is what it has always been about, which is maintaining the president's supporters' reliance on him for their reality. the reality that he is spinning is one that we saw this weekend as thousands of his supporters showed up in washington. they really believe, and the longer -- the more that they rely on president trump for their information, for their sense of reality, the more power he has, and that's regardless of whether he's in the white house, and you've seen the consequences of that. republicans are reliant on president trump because they need the support of his base and

that really is what this is all about. i think president trump is someone who's always been focused on the importance of raw power and he's exercising it right now regardless of the consequences. >> you can see it in how many republicans are reacting. >> yeah. >> this does get at something that president obama was speaking to last night in interviews on "60 minutes". let me play this one part. >> maybe most importantly and most disconcertingly, what we've seen is what some people call truth decay. something that's been accelerated by outgoing president trump. this sense that not only do we not have to tell the truth, but the truth doesn't even matter. >> it's something we've all kind of started to talk a lot about much more. is it clear, do you think, what the long term impact when you look at politics is, even after president trump is out of

office? because i don't get a sense that anyone thinks, abby, that the whole thing. the whole political system resets once trump gets out for the last time. >> kate you have the ohio governor john kasich on your show he talks about the republican party that he was once a part of. i think he's hopeful as are a lot of republicans in his position, that are not pro-to h pro-trump, and want the party to reset after wards. but we know it's not going to reset, it's not going to snap back. this is the reality in which many republicans, including establishment republicans ted cruz and others are lining up behind the president in this universe in which reality is not reality. in which there is some possibility of overturning hundreds of thousands of votes where there is none. i think that's what's happening right now is that we have to come to terms with the fact that

there are many people in this country who don't want to believe objective fact and reality and are willing to believe a lot of falsehoods. we've seen those supporters interviewed by our own reporters at campaign rallies where we tell them it's not true and they say, i believe it's true and you're fake news, you're a liar. i think it's incumbent on people in power to push back on that but we're already seeing they're not doing it. i don't know what to say, other than that. this is the world that we are living in. i think we have to be prepared for what that looks like even with a joe biden administration come january 20th. >> and with president trump winning 73 million votes in the election, it shows once again how divided the country is and also the task as you lay out the task ahead for joe biden and kamala harris and not alone, for republican leaders. >> exactly. >> good to see you, abby. thank you. still to come, hard hit

oregon is about to begin what the governor is calling a two week freeze. what the restrictions mean in one covid hot spot in the state. why restrictions there are going to last even longer. ♪ since pioneering the suv in 1935, the chevy suburban has carried many things. nothing more important than family. introducing the most versatile and advanced chevy suburban and tahoe ever. some things are good to know. like where to find the cheapest gas in town and which supermarket gives you the most bang for your buck. something else that's good to know? if you have medicare and medicaid, you may be able to get more healthcare benefits through a humana medicare advantage plan. call the number on your screen now and speak to a licensed

humana sales agent to see if you qualify. learn about plans that could give you more healthcare benefits than you have today. depending on the plan you choose, you could have your doctor, hospital and prescription drug coverage in one convenient plan from humana, a company with nearly 60 years of experience in the healthcare industry. you'll have lots of doctors and specialists to choose from. and, if you have medicare and medicaid, a humana plan may give you other important benefits. depending on where you live, they could include dental, vision and hearing coverage. you may also get rides to plan-approved locations; home delivered meals after an in-patient hospital stay; a monthly allowance for purchasing healthy food and beverages, plus an allowance for health and wellness items. everything from over-the-counter medications and vitamins, to first-aid items and personal care products. best of all, if you have medicare and medicaid,

you may qualify for multiple opportunities throughout the year to enroll. so if you want more from medicare, call the number on your screen now to speak with a licensed humana sales agent. learn about humana plans that could give you more healthcare benefits; including coverage for prescription drugs, dental care, eye exams and glasses, hearing aids and more. a licensed humana sales agent will walk you through your options, answer any questions you have and, if you're eligible, help you enroll over the phone. call today and we'll also send this free guide. humana, a more human way to healthcare. we did it. americans from both parties. turned out to vote in numbers like we haven't seen in a hundred years. and election officials counted those votes carefully, transparently and in accordance with the law. so, no matter who you voted for, if you cast a ballot, or counted them.

thank you for showing the world that even in times like these, america is still going strong.

but some things are too serious to be ignored. if you still have symptoms of crohn's disease or ulcerative colitis even after trying other medications, it may be a sign of damaging inflammation, which left untreated, could get much worse. please make an appointment to see your gastroenterologist right away. or connect with them online. once you do, seeing the doctor is one less thing to worry about. need help finding a doctor? head to crohnsandcolitis.com

welcome back. oregon is preparing for a freeze. a two-week coronavirus freeze put in place by the governor starting in full on wednesday as the state is facing more troubling indicators that covid is getting out of control there as well. the new restrictions include limiting social gatherings to no more than six people and limiting restaurants and bars to takeout and delivery only. churches and other faith groups limited to gatherings of 25 people indoors, 50 people outdoors. gyms and other facilities shutdown again as well. and there's more. the restrictions stay in place p even longer, four weeks for some of the hardest hit areas of the state, including portland. joining me is the county chair. thank you for being here. i appreciate it. you said this is the toughest thing that your community has ever had to go through. why do the governor -- why does

the governor and your community need to do this right now? >> because we -- we did really well at the beginning of this virus. the governor asked all of us around the state to stay home and save lives, and we did that. but we've seen just the numbers going through the roof recently. and we think we've had several holiday weekends, we had unprecedented wildfires around our community that we had evacuees from neighboring communities, literally tens of thousands come to our county, and we have pandemic fatigue. people are tired we've been under some restriction for nearly nine months. >> as we talked about quite a bit in the show today. covid fatigue is real. pandemic fatigue is real. with that in mind are you confident people are going to take the restrictions, the freeze seriously this time? that they're going to comply?

>> i am. i'm hopeful. i have seen throughout you this pandemic, i have seen -- i've seen people working really, really hard to protect themselves, protect others and also to reach out to their neighbors to make sure they are okay. we've set up places for folks experiencing homelessness to go and we had volunteers across our region reach out wanting to help. i think people here, we felt lucky. we had lower numbers than any other state in the country and i think people got relaxed so they started going to the coast for the weekend with another family or having relatives over for dinner. and it's -- we can do it. i know we've done it before, we slowed the spread early in may, this summer, and we can do it again. >> it's definitely possible. it is doable. it is in everyone's power to actually do it. but i'm also seeing the governor is getting a lot of -- some

backlash from republicans trashing this already, calling the restrictions unconstitutional. a counter part of yours would consider it in another county is tweeting out she's going to have as many family and friends together on thanksgiving as she can find because she said the governor is wrong is what she tweeted out to order otherwise. what do you say to that? >> i say it's not about you. i mean, we do -- as you said we have the power, it's in our control, to stop this virus. but it's not just about ourselves and what we believe. we have to think about others. and i think that's what i tell people most of all is if you don't want to wear a mask, stay home and don't wear your mask. but when you go out in public or you're around other people, it's a gesture to them, you're showing them that you care about them and you want to protect them as well as yourself. >> a big question about this, especially when you're talking about compliance, is enforcement. i see there could be a fine of

over $1,000 or even arrest and jail time if people are found not complying with the restrictions. do you anticipate folks are going to have to be arrested over this? do you see that happening? >> i would hope not. i think that sending out the message from the top from our governor and being clear to our community that it is an option, we don't -- we don't have a police force at the county, those are run by the cities. but i don't think anybody wants to have additional police contact. we've had, in portland, as i'm sure you and your viewers know, we had unprecedented protests for the past few months about our racial unrest and racial injustices in our community and really the last thing we need to do is put the police in the position of enforcing this action from the governor. so i'm calling on my neighbors to please just do what is in the right thing.

it will help us all. it will help us in the long run. >> we'll definitely check back in as it all goes into effect on wednesday. thank you for your time. >> thank you so much. coming up for us. if president trump really does believe that the election was stolen from him, why is his campaign dropping a central part of his election lawsuit in pennsylvania? still a father. but now a friend. still an electric car. just more electrifying. still a night out. but everything fits in. still hard work. just a little easier. still a legend. just more legendary. chevrolet. making life's journey, just better.

chevrolet. at aconnected approachtal, to your health and wellness to help you age actively. with medicare advantage plans designed for the whole you. we offer monthly plan premiums starting at $0. hospital, medical and prescription drug coverage, in one simple plan. plus dental, vision and hearing. aetna medicare advantage plans. medicare annual enrollment ends december 7th.

call today to learn more and we'll send you a $10 visa reward card with no obligation to enroll. >> tech: every customer has their own safelite story. this couple was on a camping trip... ...when their windshield got a chip. they drove to safelite for a same-day repair. and with their insurance, it was no cost to them. >> woman: really? >> tech: that's service you can trust. >> singers: ♪ safelite repair, safelite replace. ♪ but i'm not a new customer. a deal on a smartphone, well, actually now, new and existing customers can get our best smartphone deal.

it's historic. that is historic. which means... i'm making history, right? yea, i don't know if i'd exactly sa- wow. me, dave brown. existing customer who got the greatest deal in history. just like every other customer gets... oh that's cool too. it's not complicated. at&t is making history. everyone gets our best smartphone deals.

president trump's long shot quest to reverse the results of the election through the courts is facing mounting setbacks. on friday alone, nine cases meant to attack joe biden's --

joe biden in key states, those were denied or dropped. nine. nine. and just last night, the trump campaign dropped a key claim in its legal challenge in pennsylvania, a state critical to president-elect biden's victory. the revised lawsuit removes allegations officials violated the campaign's rights by limiting the abilities of their observers to watch the ballots being counted. an allegation central to trump's claim. joining me is a constitutional law professor at new york university's law school. the fact that they're now dropping what has been a central argument overnight from their lawsuit in pennsylvania, what does that tell you? >> it tells me one of two things. one is that once they investigated the facts more fully, the facts weren't there to support the claim. or secondly, it was always clear that this claim was never going to result in the invalidation of

ballots and may have finally woken up to that reality and realized time is pressing, they need to focus on the claims that might better to jet son this claim which never was going to effect ballots that had already been counted. >> right. when you look at this now paired down lawsuit and the allegations in it, in pennsylvania specifically, is there any chance remaining that president trump is going to be able to find tens of thousands of votes to overturn the result in pennsylvania? >> so the easy answer to that is no. when i look at these cases, i'm looking at two things. one, are there plausible legal claims. second, if there are plausible legal claims, how many ballots could potentially be effected. in the couple of cases there might be a plausible legal claim, there's simply not enough ballots to be effected, even if those claims were to win, so

there's been nothing in all these suits from the very beginning that had any realistic chance of overturning the margin as large as the one in pennsylvania and we just are waiting for the process to play out, but there's no realistic prospect that the number of ballots that would need to be effected are at stake in these cases. >> now we know the president put rudy giuliani in charge of the overall strategy of all of the election challenges. the fact that he is his lead attorney, what does that say about president trump's case more broadly, richard? >> rudy giuliani seems to be the attorney for purposes of public press conferences, he is not the attorney in any of the courtrooms, and there's a huge difference between the kinds of claims you can make rhetorically in press conferences than having to prove those in court.

>> that's right. rudy giuliani last night talking about 600,000 votes that should be invalidated in the commonwealth, and in court they offered no evidence of any voter fraud that would lead to that that we've seen so far. if you take a step back, voting and counting going smoothly, challenges without basis in court are being dismissed, more today are happening. yet thousands are protesting over the weekend saying trump won and the election was rigged. is there longer term impact you're concerned about in what the president is doing here? >> yes, absolutely. these claims are not going to change the outcome of the election in court but it is of enormous concern if a significant portion of the president's supporters remain convinced that the election was rigged, that the process was manipulated, that's very damaging potentially for government going forward, for the democracy of the united states. both in the immediate short

terms of biden administration and assistance mobilized against it, but also in terms of undermining people's confidence in our democratic processes. we actually ran an incredibly smooth election under extremely difficult circumstances and part of the tragedy here is that a significant portion of the president's supporters may never believe the election was in fact fair and properly run. >> richard, thank you for your expertise. >> nice to talk to you, kate. coming up next, today, united airlines is launching a program to give rapid covid tests to transatlantic passengers. could this lead to an end on restrictions of international travel? what does this mean now? we'll be back.

if you're on medicare, remember, the annual enrollment period is here. the time to choose your coverage... ends december 7th. so talk to unitedhealthcare and take advantage of a wide choice of plans... including an aarp medicare advantage plan from unitedhealthcare. it can combine your hospital and doctor coverage

with prescription drug coverage, and more, all for a low monthly premium or in some areas, no plan premium at all. take advantage of $0 copays on all primary care doctor visits, all virtual visits, and preventive dental care. plus $0 copays on hundreds of prescriptions. and with renew active, enjoy a free gym membership. so call unitedhealthcare and take advantage of the range of plans we offer, including ppo plans that let you see any doctor who accepts medicare, without a referral. enrollment ends december 7th. call unitedhealthcare or go online today. [sfx: mnemonic]

starting today, united airlines is offering rapid coronavirus tests to all passengers from newark, new jersey to london. is this a sign of things to come and what does this mean for air travel now? one of the people set to board is richard quest, joining me from new york international airport. richard, walk us through the new protocol by united. >> reporter: well, united found it very successful from san francisco to hawaii at avoiding, allowing passengers to avoid quarantines on the other side. they're trying it now with london. tonight, in the airport before we depart, and all the passengers will receive a rapid results covid test. a nasal swab that we are familiar with. only if you're tested negative can you board the aircraft. the idea being that you can guarantee all passengers are tested negative. yes, some will say there could

be incubations and this, that and the other, but if trying to build confidence with passengers and with other governments like the uk government, kate, then this is the way forward. testing is far better than quarantining which is what the uk is using. >> and confidence as you get at is basically everything with the airline industry at the moment. what is the current status of how things are going in the travel industry? >> reporter: the second and third wave that's happened in the u.s. along with appalling conditions elsewhere in the country, the industry is on its knees, can't get up. the airlines have done a good job of recapitalizing, they have billions and billions of dollars in the bank. they're not going out of business, big carriers. what they do need is passengers back on the plane. thanksgiving, christmas, holiday times. scott was telling me this

morning reservations flat lined because of what's happened. testing measures are the way forward to build confidence and get people flying again. i'll see you in london tomorrow. >> sounds good, darling. thank you so much. thank you for joining us this hour. kate bolduan. john king picks up coverage right now. hello to viewers in the united states and around the world. john king in washington. thank you for sharing your day with us. dr. anthony fauci wants you to know a new coronavirus vaccine development is, quote, good as it gets. president trump wants you to know he won the election. dr. fauci lives and works in the real world, a place where science and facts matter. the president favors conspiracy and is pedaling theories even his own lawyers are backing away from. another tweet from the president, i won. the man that did win, president-elect, joe biden, plans a big economic speech next hour how to build back better and how to dig