5,000 pages, we'll let you get back to reading. don't miss "full circle." you can catch it streaming live or catch it there and on the cnn app at any time on demand. the news continues, so let's hand it over to chris for cuomo "prime time". >> thank you, chris. today is the winter solstice. days are only supposed to get brighter from here. but it is also the darkest day of the year. that is a fact as well. it is too true for too many and for too many reasons. there is a vote going on right now. that's what john and manu were talking about. the relief bill will finally become a law. but it is barely a visible shaft of light in the pandemic darkness. it is more about who's getting the shaft than it is any kind of

ray of light. this is an economic crisis in the middle of a pandemic. help should have come in days, not months. $600 checks for struggling individuals. another $600 per child. $1,500 per couple making less than $150,000. if you make less than $150,000 together, you get $2,400. is that something? yeah, it's something. but after months, after months, doesn't really mean as much as it would have. maybe you would have gotten two done in this time. everything is worse than it was the first time they gave us some relief. why did it take longer in the richest country in the world? here is the real indignation. i argue to you, my brothers and sisters, you must be indignant

because you must be angered by what is unfair in all of this. if you want anything to change, you have to include that kind of response. the indignation here is not just the delay but why it was delayed and what was bargained for. tax breaks for ceos. the so-called three martini lunch thing. reigning in the federal reserve to boost the economy. protection for sick workers, that was the reason for the delay. democrats were forced to give in on some of it. gop demands so big business could write off a lunch, that's the three martini thing. that likely will cost more than $600 a pop, those big lunches. republicans used the three

martini lunch as leverage for tax credits for needy families. seriously? you don't get the lunch thing, you won't give us the tax credits? you don't like the lunch, we don't like the tax credits. and you're okay with that? americans are starving and waiting in food lines all across the country and that's what they balance it against, martinis or families get less money? are you serious? liability protections for corporations. where are the lawsuits? oh, there are like 1,500. we don't know there is any abuse. that's what held it up for months. that's an untold part of this story. my christmas gift to you, you're going to hear nancy pelosi, man, she got this bill, it was like $2 trillion, $1.8, it was never enough. she gefr got a version of this bill. there were never any negotiations where that

corporate liability wasn't in it until just now at the end. just now at the end. now, fair criticism. why didn't the democrats point this out more and better? where was their indignation? i think that's a fair question. i mean, they weren't the source of the problem, but they could have rang the bell louder. republican senator toomey, him doing this, well, i really got to have the federal reserve be able to reign in the lending powers. why now? what the hell does that have to do with the pandemic? why am i saying this? where is rubio and cruz? all these other trump wannabes and patriots? why didn't they speak up about those things? how could any of that hold up in a crisis? how could these men and women say nothing? you must be indignant. never forget these people.

never reward them for what they did and didn't do during this time, because this is crazy. it's like saying in the middle of a war, we've got to meet and authorize this. wouldn't that be nice, by the way? how many conflicts? how many of our men and women go to die? we don't even have congress to vote on it, the cowards. let's say they did. in the middle of that negotiation, one sidesteps up and says, we got it all done, but we got to get a tax deduction for bentleys. why? we're going to war. yeah, i know. but i need it. that's what's happening right now in the middle of an emergency. the country is burning down. why aren't they in a rush to put out the fire. why did this take months? i'm telling you, i'm putting it on you. i know it's them. i know it's them. they're not going to change out you. i get that.

you have to expect better. i know why you don't. okay? you don't expect better because you have watched it get worse and worse. and it hurts. it hurts to be disappointed to be disenfranchised, to be made the fool by these people. you decided to not pay attention to them in their power place. but what's happened? the lower we let the bar get, it's gotten indignant. when someone gets called out, be all over them. use that. and in social settings as well. okay? instead of fighting over stupid things with people, find these areas of agreement and out range about what took so long and why it wasn't done the way it should have been done. find where you agree and magnify it. they're listening. the politicians just saw how many of you will vote. amazing demonstration of

democracy in action. now make them feel that pressure on an ongoing basis. i'm telling you they're paying attention. what did you just see in mcconnell? why did all of a sudden he decide we had to have relief happen after months? why? because you showed him you will vote your conscious. now he's worried about georgia special elections. he said we have to get relief done. it's hurting us in georgia. let him know. all the while, don't forget why you have good right to be angry. do you know what trump is doing right now? nothing. nothing to do with the relief except he said, gee, i wish the checks were bigger so when they send it it will say $2,000 on it. he's attacking our democracy with his cookie counsel and retrumplicans to still try to overturn biden's win. if you are wondering what took so long to get this relief bill,

look at the retrumplicans. they're spending their time trying to take down the republic, not save it. another example, bill barr. now he's the poster boy for the rule of law. listen to this. >> i see no basis now for seizing machines by the federal government. you know, wholesale seizure of machines. we had looked at suggestions or allegations of systemic or broad-based fraud that would affect the outcome of the election and i already spoke to that and i standby that statement. if i thought a special council at this stage was the right tool and was appropriate, i would name one, but i haven't and i'm not going to. from the information i have, you know, i agree with secretary mike pompeo's assessment. it certainly appears to be the russians. >> now, remember, this is bill

no hold's barr. i called him that because it seemed there was nothing he wouldn't do for trump. now what happens? just so you understand the state of play and why it comes down to you. these die hard partisans, they're not getting us out of this. they're all about this. they love this. okay? as soon as barr parted from the perfity, he's seen as legit. he's called a rhino. that's how sick we have gotten. ain't no vaccine for this. the only cure is what you tolerate and show by your indignation, your social media, how you talk to one another, what you care about. that's all that's going to get us out of this. they won't. now, where do we go from here after all these big events. let's bring in the better minds. david gregory, michael smerconish. first, david, this idea of mark meadows saying stay tuned.

got something for you on january 6th. do you believe that? >> i think this is a smaller issue than it may appear to be. i mean, you hear mitch mcconnell dissuading other republicans. biden is going to become our next president. this is over. this is about a small number of republicans wanting to stay in tune and in check with trump because of his post presidency plans either to run again or to somehow try to have some choke hold over a portion of the republican party. i don't think it's bigger than that. you mentioned social media. it allows people kind of a corner of the universe to yell and scream. i don't think it's bigger than that at this point. there are enough people who will partake, who may try to make this debate longer on january 6th. i just don't feel it is a bigger

movement than that right now. >> michael, weigh in on that but then extend to what you see as the state of play in general. >> first, with regard to the three martini lunch, you would enjoy my company after one, but by the third, things are getting ugly. >> i'm asleep. i'm asleep after two. >> i'm wondering why is bill barr leaving wednesday? nobody leaves a gig, a gig like that, with a month left on the clock. you finish out the term. i'm telling you, chris, i think it's because he believes things are going to get even uglier as we get closer to january 6th. i'm sitting here tonight and i'm remembering august 7, 1974. it was senator's goldwater, roads and scott who went to see president nixon and told him, you don't have the votes. you're out of here. they didn't convince him. they just pointed out the scorecard. who are those in the senate who

would make that trip down pennsylvania avenue and would they be listened to if they were to break that news? >> on our clock, by the way, just so you know, the house just passed the relief bill. so now it's going on to the senate. what do you see in this, david, that is a suggestion of where we're going to be in the next administration? >> two things. let's remember, you know, part of the cynicism of how people feel about washington. the figure $900 billion, you know, normal people don't sit down and come up with that figure. you have to realize it is because politicians are scared of anything that starts with a t, trillion. that, to me, is indicative of what the future looks like. is this too late for the need that's out there? just one data point, you have one in three small businesses in connecticut that are out of business because of covid. there is so much need that continues to be out there.

restaurants, small businesses that are shutting down, people that we're not even seeing who are in dire straights. i think an incoming biden administration wants to do more work, but there is capital when government spends this much money. forget about the debates about three martini lunches and everything that goes into this pot. is there more relief that can be in the first quarter of next year? that's a question to me because biden will have to fight for it and use political capital to get it done. >> michael, you didn't answer. you say barr is going to leave because maybe he thinks it's going to get worse. are you suggesting a january 6th thing? what do you think about that? >> i'm thinking that the talk that i'm hearing out there, this martial law talk, if it really took place, is 25th amendment kind of stuff. >> never happen. >> you have the armed secretary -- well, i'm just --

it will never happen, but i'm alarmed by it. i remember two months ago when i would take radio calls from people who would say, you know, i think he doesn't leave if he loses and i would scoff at that. this is really, really delusional at this stage. and as you know, it just takes one on the senate side to all of a sudden make them deliberate. you know who i'd like to hear from? i'm like to hear from vice president mike pence. what is he saying? what role does he perceive for himself on that day? again, it will never happen that donald trump will extend his stay, but things might get ugly, and i worry about the people out there not playing with a full deck who are watching some of this thing and they're reading tea leaves and may act accordingly. that scares me. >> you know, what i see in all this is it may happen. trump may try to do some martial law thing. he may try to do a couple different things. we needed the test. i really believe weak people make hard times, and we have

gotten soft and weak. i don't mean on the individual basis. all three of us know, you all travel, you're all story tellers, you meet people in all walks of life. people are desperate and grinding every day to get anywhere near where they thought their dreams would take them. that's not what i'm talking about. collectively, it's about what we believe in. we have let them get weak. trump is going to test them. i do not think this is over. we'll see where it takes us, and i will need my better minds. david gregory, i love you, brother. michael smerconish, you are -- and not just because you have the best head in the business. i say it all the time it is the best head, but i love having it on my show. if i don't speak to you, the best to your families for christmas. >> you too. merry christmas. >> appreciate you. all right. so we're in the senate right now. are they going to vote through this deal? they should. i do not see that as a pat on their back. this is months too late. now, one of the players on the

left says it's unconscionable what the right has prioritized in a time of crisis. you know what? they should have complained more or not. what was the right thing to do? how did we get here? the ranking member of the senate finance committee joins us ahead of the big vote. the senator saw it happen. what does he think about what this says where we are. next. the ultimate holiday sale is happening now.

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we are approaching 60 million americans starving, and our congress watched it and waited. an eviction notice more likely than presents for too many this christmas, and congress watched and waited. businesses, jobs disappearing faster than we have seen in decades. so what is our question now? the relief is getting through. they're going to get some help. but was this anything like a legitimate process? and what does it mean about all the need that there is to come? we are joined by special guest democratic senator ron widen of oregon. good to see you, sir. best to your family for the holy days. >> thank you, chris. >> so is it true that the delays on the right were as now reported? the fed reserve, got to stop them from being able to juice

the economy. corporate liability, got to be careful about these lawsuits from workers who may be sick and got to get this lunch. that's how you help restaurants. got to give the three the big lunch deduction. that's how it will get the restaurants back. were those really sticking points? >> chris, clearly what was going on was extraordinary foot dragging. you know, i wrote the bipartisan bill initially, the extra $600 per week for the unemployed and the gig workers and the like, and mitch mcconnell just dragged the feet. and then he asked for this liability handout. and we just got the numbers in a little bit ago, and these wealthy ceos are going to get more than $6 billion in tax writeoffs for their steaks and their martinis, and they basically said that's the price of admission in order to give folks who are really hurting the assistance that they would need

in order to make rent and buy groceries. >> two things. one, was it really a quid pro quo that if we don't get this thing, you are not getting the money, the tax credits for the kids? and secondly, what is their argument for how that helps restaurants? >> first of all, it is not helping the people that we ought to help, and that is the folks in the neighborhoods, the small restaurants, the folks you wrote about. it is called the restaurant about. i did it with that initial legislation of unemployment. that's not what mitch mcconnell is interested in. he was playing hardball. his supporters wanted those breaks, his healthy contributors and he basically said the price of admission for this is giving breaks to them and then maybe he'll give just maybe a little

bit of money so that the vulnerable can try to scrape by. >> is it true that mcconnell was doing trump's bidding on this, that he got a lobbying call from wolfgang puck who was asking for business intersupgs kruption co but trump connected, that's a good way to give to these corporate execs. is that how this happened? >> donald trump has talked off and on about this extra break that this was going to be a panacea for the economy. even conservative economists don't share that view. but what happened here is this was parachuted in at really the last minute. i'm the ranking democrat on the finance committee. we heard about it at the last minute. and mcconnell basically said, this is our demand for democrats to get some help for folks, for example, who need the earned

income tax credit, which, by the way, had a lot of republican support over the years and rewards work. >> you know, is that -- i want to know your experience when you're in committee. i know you got to work with these people, but when you're talking pandemic, crisis, hunger, long lines, depression, this is the worst, generational illness, and they're saying, yeah, we got to keep the number down, though. let's avoid the trillion price tag. how is this able to be treated as just some other budget negotiation? >> well, it shouldn't be because this was really particularly, and i think about those first few months when we got a bipartisan bill. if we hadn't had that money, $250 billion for people to make rent and buy groceries and pay for their kids' medicine and car insurance, a lot of people have said it would have been much worse. so these kinds of approaches,

they're enormously important for our country. that money, chris, is spent locally. unemployed folks don't take this money and go out and buy a bunch of fancy imported goods. they spend it local on groceries in the stores, and that's why it is so important. you don't treat it like just another budget number. >> you know what i want from you for christmas, seeing how you asked? >> yeah. >> he didn't ask. here is what i want -- >> you want to play basketball? >> no, you'll beat me. i want snitches for christmas. i want you to know that you have this show as a platform because we will need more work from your guys. there will be pain after the holidays. there will be pain into the spring. there is going to be a need for more relief. and we need snitches. we need people who are willing to say, hey, toomey is asking for this crazy thing or this one or even if it's a lefty. this person is asking for this crazy thing. we can't get it done.

i need snitches for christmas because it is the only way we will get things to change. senator, i wish you the best. you are always welcome here. help us create better expectations out of congress. i got to jump, but you're always welcome. >> chris, you got it. i've got dna. i've got whistleblower dna. we'll do it. >> thank you, sir. be well. two vaccines now in play. good, good. but i have been saying this and we have got to get our hands around it. this is a gift getting these done. operation warp speed great idea trump and co. the scientists who worked on it, what a body of all stars. i hope you are up for huge prizes. but are we going to waste it? i think we may waste it because we're not getting it together on the vaccines front. i know the general just jumped on the grenade and said it's my fault. it's not his fault. now there is a mutation of the virus in britain. what does that mean?

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some of you aren't paying attention to the vaccination effort. you're making a mistake. we're going to cover it every night because the logistics getting it out and distributing it is everything. now there is a wrinkle. there is a new variant of the coronavirus spreading in the u.k. it is not speculation. it's fact. 60% of the new cases there are there variant. spreads up to 70% faster. that's what they know about it, okay? not that it makes you more sick, but it's spreading faster. why? we don't know yet. but it underscores how the virus refuses to wait as we figure out what we're doing. that's why we say the virus is the truth. if you lie about what you're doing, the virus is the truth. it always does what it does. we know viruses mutate, okay? this is not something unheard of. this was always a race against

time as a result. we have seen you every night on this show the vaccination effort has stunk from day one. we were worried that it would because they have never done anything like this and there is no leadership at the top. congress finally appears willing to cough up the money they need. okay? $8 billion to distribute the vaccine. they needed it to get going. not a single elected official that we've had on this show can answer who makes the call about how many doses go where. can you imagine that? we actually got an apology this weekend, but we didn't get answers. >> i am responsible, and i take responsibility for the miss communication. >> now, look, we're asking for the general to come on. it's not happening. okay. that's the reality in trump world. people don't want to come on and discuss what they're doing. but perna is logistics. he is the middleman. he's carrying out the mission. he's not making the calls.

i think he's being too good the soldier on that saying it's me. i don't think it stops with him. the numbers that he promised states were based off how many doses pfizer makes rather than how many make it through the fda quality control process. so we got a couple of questions. why didn't the general in charge of distribution know about this fundamental step in the process? and also, you know, because by the way, it's written into the fda's emergency use authorization. the step is in there. how did you not know? and why are 20% to 40% of the doses allotted to some states getting hung up in qc, in quality control? what about the batches that do get through? who is keeping track of where the stuff is going? who is letting us know? especially now that you have the moderna vaccine going directly to providers like cvs. that's going to be harder to track. the cdc launched its own vaccine

tracker, vax track. but it is more about the appearance of transparency. this isn't cynicism. it's at best skepticism, but i think it's truth. here's why. the site has two numbers and no context. distributed doses and administered doses. so what they got sent and how many they gave to people. but it doesn't say where they went. it doesn't say when more are coming. there is no breakdown, which is pfizer, which is moderna. there is no breakdown on what category are these people in and why? which communities? do you know what i'm saying? health care workers? nursing home patients? members of the senate? you know what i'm saying? why not? transparency is truth. it always is. nobody hides numbers they're proud of. and that's why now we're getting stuck in a box where we will have to rely on states. and why would they be more

honest if things don't go well? governor after governor, they're shooting their photo ops, showing themselves as a nation of small arms getting needles. but they're not telling us the whole story. i've never been more sure about anything that i have talked to you about. this is going to be a problem. the case surge is going to get worse. people are going to wise up. they will want this vaccine because it is the only escape from this monotony of wondering when you are going to get it. when is your community going to get shut down? when is your school going to get shut down? this is your out. the demand will be there and the supply may or may not be and the distribution will be everything. we officially topped 18 million cases this evening as hospitalizations again climb to a new high, above 115,000. so let's talk about what these problems are and how they are fixable. make sure i'm right on the science about how we have to

worry about this new u.k. variant because you know it will come here. look at the people flying to the u.k. right now. joining us now michael and andy. thank you to you both. let me talk science first. okay? andy, am i right about the variant that it's spreading faster but not making people sicker and it will probably come here? am i missing something or no? >> that's what we know so far. and you said it exactly right. we have these mutations occur. the good news is that the body can create an immune response, then you can create a vaccine. to this point what we know is this is spreading more rapidly, so we think. but the clinical manifestations are exactly the same. but here is what's misleading. would you rather have the old virus or this virus inside a nursing home?

something that spreads more rapidly can be more deadly just simply by spreading more rapidly. michael will tell you the science behind that. >> no, i don't want to know the science. i'll tell you why. it doesn't matter. if it's spreading faster, you want it less. michael, congratulations, being brought into public service more so on this, the director of the university of minnesota's center for infectious disease research and policy. i loved having you on this show and i remember after having you on the show being like, great, this is one guy who knows what he's talking about. i'm glad you will be helping the rest of the country. the science doesn't matter. it's spreading faster, fine. here is what we do understand. this logistics things looks like it is shipping to be a nightmare. i don't think perna is making the calls. he may have missed the fda step. but do you believe that general perna is the end of the accountability chain about whose makiing decisions?

>> i don't know that. what i can comment on is i do have tremendous confidence in the state and local health departments once they get the resources they need to distribute this vaccine that will get distributed appropriately. i think you will see real change in the next several weeks in the way in which the vaccine is distributed, how much information is publically available. it has to be 100% transparent. i think that's going to happen. >> what if they don't have the money? even minnesota, they cheaped you on this relief bill in terms of giving you the money for the distribution. >> well, what i understand right now in the bill, there actually is money for distribution of state and local health departments. we'll see what's finally signed and sealed. but at this point what we have at least as of a day ago was resources for distribution. >> absolutely. i'm just saying it is not enough. i'm not saying it's never enough. we'll see how it plays out.

andy, no one i have talked on biden's team or around operation warp speed and i'm telling you i'm deep on operation warp speed. nobody knows who is making the call of how much the vaccine gets delivered to places. what does that tell you? >> look, i wish i could tell you that this administration earned the benefit of the doubt over time. you'd say there is someone that must be doing with. they play it close to the vest until they get discovered having made a mistake. then we tend to hear one explanation and the first thing we heard from alex azar was that it was pfizer's fault. then of course we hear a different explanation and as you guys do your job, you can't keep these secrets for very long. so this is probably disorganization and early chaos. this is probably not anything more evil than that. i'd love to say this is a

competent administration's job. but i can't say that. imagine if apple shipped more iphones than were ordered. that would be not good. not normal. >> i'm with you. but at least you know they're coming from apple and there is somebody you know at the top of the distribution chain. the concern becomes you guys are going to take this over. if it's screwed up in the beginning, it is not easy to fix because you will have such big numbers and such need and so much blame and scrutiny and people sick, are you worried about what you inherit? >> first of all, again, being on the advisory board, i don't have anything to do with that. but there are members working closely with the current administration who are actually looking at detailed plans so that the biden/harris administration hits the ground running on january 20th. that part i feel very confident in. and i have a tremendous confidence overall in what will happen after january 20th.

>> i'm with you. and i wish i could say michael is right. those men and women, they know. i talked to rick the other day. again, a guy that lives up to his surname. he doesn't know either. i'm telling you, there is something very worrisome about this process. and it is going to be the most important process in this country for the next eight months. michael, thank you very much. >> thank you. >> good luck advising these men and women. they will need it. andy, i will lean on you like a sherpa going forward so hopefully we can get through this together. be well. >> thank you. >> best for the holidays, gentlemen. >> all right. more pandemic relief is going to be needed. tonight's bill is not enough. okay? and this isn't some typical, oh, it's never enough. all we do is wait. this is your money. all right? these are tax dollars. now, how quickly, how well do things get done the next time? georgia is going to be a big decider in that. you saw what the republicans will do with this.

they have been programmed to not care about this pandemic the way they should. that came from the top. now where does this state of play stand in georgia? i've got the latest numbers with the wizard of odds next. some hot cocoa? mom, look! are you okay? head home this holiday with the one you love. visit your local mercedes-benz dealer today for exceptional lease and financing offers at the mercedes-benz winter event. spoil your pets with 50% off tall dog and cat holiday toys. is happening now.

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georgia matters. if the democrats win, they control both houses. is this a good time for balance in government? that's a good question georgia will answer for us. now, there is a turnout story developing down there that we did not expect. for context, wizard of odds harry. we are supposed to see a depressed turnout number in a special election because all the hype went out with the real election. what did we find out here? >> this to me is the biggest

develop that we've seen. so far ballots cast as of this morning 15 days before the election. 1.5 million so far. compare that to the november election. 1.5 million. no dropoff, chris. no dropoff. this is very unusual. go back to the last time that there was a special senate election back in 2008 when it was a presidential year. look at that dropoff between the general election where nearly four million votes were cast and the runoff election total two million. we are not seeing that right now. and that's a variable that i honestly did not expect to see what we're seeing at this point. >> do we think it's going to die through the holidays? do we know this is as good as it will get? >> yeah. that's a big question that i'm not sure we know the answer to. the runoff occurred in december. this one of course is occurring in january. so that is a big question mark. i'm not sure of the answer to

that. that's one of the beautiful things. sometimes the wizard of odds doesn't know the answer and that's why we have to stay tuned. but in terms of who this might help out, that's the ultimate question, african-american turnout in this so far run-off election, ballots cast 15 days before the election, african-americans are making up 32% of the electorate. at this exact same point in the november election, it was just 31%. i thought there was going to be a considerably larger dropoff. if you go back to that 2008 example, what you saw in that particular year was on the run-off the black percentage was 28% versus that round 30%. this is good news for democrats. this idea that black voters wouldn't necessarily turnoff for a run-out is not coming true in the numbers. we still have 15 days to go. >> it will be interesting for us

to see if trump people stay home because they were angry that georgia didn't do enough to try to steal the election for trump. but this is a surprise. we didn't expect to see it. >> my pleasure, sir. >> all right. we have an exordinary ameri-can with us. answered the call in the middle of a flight when another passenger showed what could have been the sudden, terrible impact of covid. the story is sad, okay? but we have to know this, not just to see the courage of the best of us, but what we have to accept for the rest of us. next. the ultimate holiday sale is happening now.

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tv made simple, easy, awesome. cross-country flight last week became this.

what is that? that is somebody feverishly doing chest compressions on another passenger's body because the passenger suffered cardiac arrest about 20 minutes after lift-off. at the time, it was suspected he had covid. why? because people heard him coughing, he was having trouble breathing. but that didn't stop the three health care workers onboard from jumping in. for nearly an hour, they took turns performing cpr. unfortunately, the man died. but one of those responders is here, and his name is tony. let me tell you, it's an honor to have you on our air. >> thank you. it's definitely an honor to be here with you. >> i'm sorry he didn't live. but your job is to try. and you were on the plane and you hear pretty early on, i

think this guy has covid. doesn't stop you. why? >> i mean, that's the world we live in right now. yeah, i work in an emergency room in los angeles. and, you know, it's unfortunate, but right now we have to treat everybody as if they do have covid until we know for sure that they don't. my mindset was, this individual needed cpr, and regardless of anything else that he could have had, cpr was the primary thing he needed at that moment in time. >> if he had covid, he shouldn't have been flying, and you might get it, and there were other people who could have done it. you did it anyway. why? >> that's, you know, for me, i spent eight years in the navy, you know, i've worked with the fire department, as an emt, i

had great training from strategic operations in san diego. for me, everything just fell back on training. that's what i've done for over a decade now. and it's kind of become second nature. when you see something, you got to do something. that's what happened that night. i saw something, and i like how you did mention there were two other individuals doing cpr. it seems like i've gotten a lot of the spotlight. i wish i knew who they were so i could reach out to them. but it was a team effort. it wasn't all me, there were two other people doing cpr, people handling the medical equipment around us, the flight crew was amazing. it was a team effort. it's unfortunate i'm the only one that is getting, like i said, getting the spotlight. but there are a lot of people who deserve a lot of thanks for this, too. >> and you get home, and this is

your job. california is blowing up with cases. it's going to get worse after the holidays because people will move around, and they're not doing what they're supposed to do. it's going to be bad. are you still going to go in there and do the job, or have you had enough? >> this is the job i signed up for. it's something i've trained for over a decade, this is my life. i love helping people, you know, in any capacity. the military, fire department, in the medical field. i'm surrounded by a great team of doctors and nurses at the v.a. hospital. the first day they say i can be back at work, i'll be there. i wouldn't say bright and early, because i work the night shift. but i'll be there and i'll do my job to the best of my abilities. >> have you had it? are you afraid of getting it? >> i haven't had it. fortunately, i've tested negative. i have been experiencing some

symptoms, a lot of the nurses that i work with at the v.a. they've unfortunately caught it at one point in time during the pandemic. i think we're all kind of in the mindset, if it happens, it happens. we have a job to do. our job is to take care of the people that need to be taken care of. >> you're feeling symptoms now, since you got off the plane? >> correct. you know, the first couple of days afterwards, i was real tired, i was exhausted, my body was hurting. but i attributed it to doing cpr for an hour. but i developed a cough, had a headache, kind of still dealing with that right now. fortunately, if the symptoms i have are from covid, they've been very mild. haven't had a fever. i still have all my senses. so, like i said, i've been fortunate, if this is covid

related, i have tested negative twice now. i plan on getting tested again tomorrow. then i'm going to go from there. like i said, as soon as i get back to work, i'll be at work. >> when can you get the vaccine? >> the vaccine, it's at the v.a. hospital right now. i know a lot of the staff is getting vaccinated. i was scheduled to receive the vaccine last week. but since i was showing signs of an illness, it was advised that i don't get it at that time. as soon as i'm cleared, i will. >> a lot of people think you get the vaccine, and it cures you. and it doesn't do that, and you're proof of that. if you have any symptoms, they don't want you to get it. it's not unusual that you don't recognize what you mean to the rest of us. and that's cool, tony. it's cool that you just see yourself as doing the job. but you really aren't.

>> thank you. >> you are keeping hope alive for people in this country, that there's still good people. there are still people who do things -- >> thank you, i appreciate it. >> i appreciate it, you live it. you just keep going, because it's the right thing. and god bless you for that. thank you for letting us know that there is virtue, there are good people in this world. thank you for reminding us for christmas, you are a present that i couldn't have dreamed of having. thank you for being a gift to the rest of us. >> thank you, sir. >> god bless. be well. >> you as well. merry christmas. >> i took don's time. let's get to him right now. i don't care, because it was worth it. don lemon is not here. you have the upgrade, laura coates on cnn. good to see you. big shot, serious radio show,