good evening. we begin tonight with breaking news on just how unhinged the final days of the last administration were, and how much worse they might have gotten. we have some examples, which are just now coming to light. america's top-military commander, comparing then-president trump's rhetoric to hitler's, and his followers to brown shirts, to nazis. that top commander, finding himself rallying subordinates to protect the peaceful transfer of authority, and perhaps even head off a coup. having to explain to the speaker of the house that, no, this country will not launch a nuclear strike at the whim of who she characterized as an

unbalanced president. these and other chilling scenes contained in a new book, "i, alone, can fix it." the authors are pulitzer prize winning journalists from "the washington post." it comes out next week. cnn has obtained a series of excerpts. each, which is really more alarming than the next. in this one, mark milley, chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, is reassuring his deputies about preventing a coup attempt. quoting now from the book. they may try but they are not going to effing succeed, he told them. you can't do this, without the military. you can't do this without the cia and the fbi. we are the guys with the guns. cnn special correspondent, jamie gangel, is doing the reporting on this for us. she joins us, now. i mean, it's fascinating to hear how far general milley and what, exactly, how he saw this. um, according to -- there are parallels, according to their book, about what the former president said about the election being stolen and adolf hitler's rhetoric. >> absolutely. milley was so shaken by trump's

behavior that, what he did was, he got together with the other chiefs. the navy. the air force. the marines. and they planned. they believed there really could be a coup attempt by trump. and they write milley viewed trump as, quote, the classic-authoritarian leader, with nothing to lose. and then, milley is quoted as saying, this is a race-dog moment, milley told aides, the gospel of the fuehrer. look, we've known that people were concerned -- um -- that trump wouldn't leave office. we -- we reported that. to hear general milley say this. it's clear, when you read the book, he cooperated. there are extensive quotes. >> and he comes off looking pretty good, from what i understand. >> he does. and -- and -- and let's remember, he had his lafayette square, very bad moment. >> which he apologized for.

he -- he was, i believe, in combat fatigues, walking with the president in that kind of motley assortment of people from the white house to -- to lafayette square. >> the very bizarre moment. but to hear general milley say this is stunning. >> the -- there were also, according to this book, daily check-in calls that milley started to do with mark meadows and some others. >> so one of the interesting things about that is, in the book, milley says he was doing it, also, to keep tabs on trump. as if, by talking to pompeo and mark meadows, he would get a better sense of what's going on. we should say that pompeo has denied some of this account to the authors. but there is a -- a -- another, extraordinary moment where, after january 6th, and milley's seen the insurrection. he is now preparing for the inauguration with other law-enforcement officials, with the national guard, at ft.

meyer. and he is so worried that there is going to be another violent attack by trump supporters, that he says, to the other-senior advisers, quote, here's the deal, guys. these guys are nazis. they're boogaloo boys, they're proud boys. these are the same people we fought in world war ii. everyone in this room, whether you're a cop, whether you're a soldier, we're going to stop these guys to make sure we have a peaceful transfer of power. we're going to put a ring of steel around this city, and the nazis aren't getting in. >> that's incredible to hear. there is, also, a lot of revolutions -- revelations, including one after the insurrection. general milley and congresswoman liz cheney. in which, cheney who voted for impeachment, describes a confrontation she had. it was during the attack. during the insurrection. republican congressman jim jordan kind of, i guess, tell us

what happened. >> so, jim jordan is a staunch ally of president trump. he's at the head of -- of freedom caucus. he is known to make a circus out of things. he is, certainly, the antithesis, on the impeachment of -- of -- you know, liz cheney's supported -- supported the impeachment. so, milley and -- and cheney are, actually, close. they're friends. they talk a lot. they have a phone call. and in the book, milley says to cheney, this is the next day, the 7th, how are you doing? and she reacounts this encounte with jim jordan and she says, quote, that effing guy, jim jordan, that son of a -- you can read it on the screen -- cheney said. while these maniacs are going through the place, i'm standing in the aisle and he said, we need to get the ladies away from the aisle. let me help you. i smacked his hand away, and told him, get away from me, you

effing did this. i don't think liz cheney felt she needed jim jordan's help, at that moment. >> according to this, i mean, during the actual insurrection, liz cheney saw this as a direct result of jim jordan and the other enablers of -- of the former president. >> absolutely. looking back, we knew about the big lie. and jim jordan was close to the president. he was, probably, calling the president every day, a couple of times a week. in the weeks leading up to january 6th. it was not a surprise, to liz cheney, that this happened. and she feels that jim jordan was part of it. >> i want to bring, also, stay with us, because i want to bring in our chief-political correspondent, state of the union co-anchor, dana bash. also, cnn senior law enforcement analyst and former fbi director, andrew mccabe. so, dana, we are talking about concerns from the country's top-military officer of an attempted coup by the president of the united states and his allies. this is one of those things you have to kind of step back and

just kind of realize, this is so out of the ordinary. there were, clearly, a lot of, you know -- a lot worse things happening, behind the scenes, according to this than anyone knew publicly. >> absolutely. and, you know, it is important to understand and learn this, for lots of reasons. but first and foremost, it's because, yes, it's history. but it is recent history. and it informs what is going on, right now. and that is, if general milley was, you know, saying these things and screaming from the rooftops. and having conversations, jamie's reporting, also, about this book. is that nancy pelosi, the house speaker, was involved in conversations. then, there's no way that the republican leadership weren't, also, aware of some of this. even if they didn't have direct conversations with the likes of general milley. those republican leaders are, currently, running the gop. and running towards donald

trump, still, right now. and that is what -- one of the things, if you look at it from where we are now is, so remarkable. that, even those days, these stories, what happened on january 6th and the days following. if that's not enough for them to say, wow, we have to stand up and separate ourselves from him. it's hard to imagine what is. >> and, andrew, i just want to read this part about the coup, again, for your reaction. milley says they may try but they're not going to effing succeed. he told them, you can't do this without the military. you can't do this without the cia and the fbi. we are the guys with the guns. i mean, obviously, there's an awful lot of guns out there in circulation. so there is a lot of people who do have guns. but the chairman of the joint chiefs was, essentially, ready for a showdown with the commander in chief. and comparing him to hitler. >> yeah, he was, apparently. and -- and -- and -- and sounds like, he was actually thinking

through the mechanics of what a -- a -- a military conflict, a hot conflict would look like. and how that would play out here, in the capitol. i mean, it's -- it's absolutely extraordinary. i think it, fortunately, shines, yet, another light on the commitment and the dedication of career-public servants. this time, of course, general milley and -- and his team in the military. um, with the courage to stand up. to realize that something was going horribly off the rails, with the president of the united states. and that they might be thrown into a terrible, terrible, never-before-thought-of or experienced scenario, in which they had to do exactly what you suggested, which is stand up to the president, himself. um, but they were willing to do it because we have those sort of dedicated-career professionals serving in government. >> well, it also, you know, you think about all those people who took part in the insurrection. who attacked the capitol. who call themselves patriots.

and that word, patriot, has now been kind of taken over by far-right, you know, there were far-right nationalists, who marched, i think, it was through philadelphia the other day calling themselves patriots. you read what milley was doing, and which, you know, is obeying the constitution. it's -- it's standing up to the oath that he and serving members have taken. i mean, that's what a pay triot does. >> that is kpaexactly right, anderson. it's exactly right. so patriot is someone who stays committed to that oath to the constitution, despite the politics and the craziness swirling around. does the right thing for the american people. obeying the law. unlike the direction they were being pushed by the -- by the presidency of the united states. it's just -- it's just absolutely stunning. and the way that that crowd, that attacked our capitol on january 6th, has completely co-opted patriotism is an offense and should be an offense

to all americans. those are not patriots who threw themselves on the capitol and through the doors and windows of the capitol on january 6th. they're not. >> go ahead. >> anderson, can i just add one thing to that? and, that is, the constitution deliberately set up the balance of power, so to speak, so that there is civilian leadership at the pentagon. and that the -- the elected president is the commander in chief. but in this, particular case, according to this new reporting that jamie has and the book, it is the military, and the military leaders, who are trying to protect american democracy. and people around this elected official. in this case, the president of the united states. it -- it's really kind of -- it turns what the -- what the founders of america thought, on its head. >> yeah. there is another moment, jamie, in this book that you've learned about. where the former president, then-president trump, is talking about his strained relationship with german chancellor angela

merkel. >> well, some of this won't surprise us because we've heard some of this from donald trump, before. but he is speaking, in the oval office, about merkel and the germans. he says that bitch, merkel. can we say that on tv? >> well, just did. >> i just did. and then, he goes on to say, i know the effing krauts. a very derogatory term. i was raised by the biggest kraut of them all and points to a picture of his father. again, maybe, not surprising because we've had reporting about the president saying things, like this. but another, stunning revelation. >> there's also a report in the book about pompeo actually going to milley's house, right? and sitting at -- at the table which pompeo is now denying. but -- but the fact that, you know, it's two people sitting at a table. i mean, it seems like it's got

to be true, based on the other information they have in this book. what happened? >> so, what happened in -- in that case was they both live at ft. meyer. they have houses near each other. and according to the book, they were checking in, regularly, with each other. pompeo comes over to milley's house, one day, and talks about having to be careful of the crazies. and keeping an eye on all of this. >> the crazies are in control or the crazies are now the ones around -- >> correct. pompeo, for the record, someone close to pompeo denies his saying that. but when you look at everything in this book, these are very -- um -- direct quotes. carol and phil are two excellent reporters. >> and assuming -- i mean, if one assumes and i don't know this for a fact but based on, you know, if milley did talk to them for this book or talk to other people who talked to them. it -- you know, he was the other guy at the table.

pompeo, clearly, you know, has visions of himself running for president. or having a political career and wants to continue sucking up to the former president. >> he is not -- he wants the trump base. he is planning to run for president, by all accounts. and he does not want to -- >> doesn't want to be on record calling them all crazy. >> correct. >> yeah, probably a good idea. >> one point that dana raised about the constitution and something someone -- people should understand about general milley. he believes in civilian authority. he did not want to be doing this planning. so, he was walking a very fine line, so that it wouldn't appear the generals or senior officials were planning something. he was trying to keep the guardrails up to january 20th. >> and, dana, we just know what happens next, which is the trump world now goes after milley. uh, which republicans have, already, been doing because he talked about critical-race theory, as being something

that -- >> exactly. >> -- you know, as a manager of an enormous organization, the u.s. military, he's -- wants to know about all these theories. just like he wants to know about mauism and communeism. >> yes, he is a public servant who is steeped in history, who is well read and well educated. the kind of public servant we should, all, want. and i totally agree with jamie, that based on the account in this book, that he was trying to walk that fine line. knowing that he wears a uniform. and is not an elected official or appointed by one who or confirmed by the congress as -- as somebody who works in that other branch. but there's no question. you -- you can write the -- the script, the now-press release, not tweet, anymore, that the former president is going to send out. we all know what it is -- what it is going to be. but the fact is that people, as we get a little bit further away. and as we said at the beginning of this conversation, as the

reality of what happened is becoming twisted and warped and whitewashed and -- and the former president continues to lie about things. # it, clearly, is more important and more imperative for the people who were there to pull back the curtain. and as somebody -- a friend just said to me in a text, it's kind of unbelievable that we knew how bizarre and scary and dangerous it was because we saw it with our own eyes. but now that we're -- we're seeing even more that was behind the curtain. it's even more frightening. >> well, also, you think about the future and, you know, obviously, this is the -- the -- you know, news is -- you know, paraphrasing the first page of history. the fame idea. you know, these books are now starting to be written ten years from now, 20 years from now. once more documents actually come out and, you know, e-mails and things. and the -- there is the passage of time and historians look at this. it's not that this president's

reputation is going to get any better. i mean, as we learn more and more details, it only gets more and more tarnishing. andrew, i mean, according to the book, general milley tried to stop the former president from firing fbi director chris wray and the cia director, gina haspel. we talked about this a little bit earlier but as someone who serv served in the fbi at the highest levels, did you get the sense at the time that director wray was close to being fired? >> i think if you go back, anderson, all the way to the beginning of 2017. jim comey and i knew and -- and frequently talked about the fact that he could be fired, or i could be fired, at any time. and so, i think that serving under donald trump and, particularly, in the role of director of the fbi, came with that understanding. it would not surprise me at all if, several times during the course of his service for donald trump, director wray thought he was probably pretty close to the knife. and who's to say why that never,

actually, happened? maybe, it was because people, like general milley, came in and -- and made the comments that he did. according to our reporting. but that's just life, in a trump regime. i think, people who are compelled to do the right thing and follow the rules are -- are cognizant of the fact that they'll probably get fired for it. >> yeah. i mean, dana, i can't imagine anybody working in the trump orbit, who does not, now, know that there is no such thing as loyalty to this person. and no matter how much you debase yourself, no matter how much you rudy giuliani yourself , in the end, he is going to trample on you, defame you, or just disavow you. >> it's a one-way street. and in this time and place, for the former president, it is all about -- he talked about his father in this -- according to the quotes in this book. it is all act not committing one of the major sins that his

father warned about, which is being a loser. and all of the lies. all of the conspiracies that he's peddling. all boil down to that, one trait that he is desperate not to have. and, that is, to be a loser. to have lost the 2020 election. and -- and that's why he continues to do what he is doing. and that is why anybody who gets in his way, to tell the truth, will get steamrolled by him and as part of that, the people who support him. the conservative media. the social media. all of those who will just take what he says, as gospel. >> yeah. and, of course, the irony is he has become and is what he has always feared he would end up being, which is a loser. jamie gangel, appreciate it. it's fascinating reporting. dana bash. andrew mccabe, appreciate it. thank you. coming up next, what the book has to say about the house speaker's fears about what she feared was an unbalanced president with nuclear-command authority. former defense secretary,

william cohen, joins us for perspective on that. later, what the current president is doing to rally to get the country get vaccinated as dangers of the delta variant threatens to undo months of progress containing covid. a choice that requires no explanation. it's where safe and daring seamlessly intersect. it's understated, yet over-delivers. it is truly the mercedes-benz of sports sedans. visit your local mercedes-benz dealer today for exceptional lease and financing offers. limu emu... and doug. so then i said to him, you oughta customize your car insurance with liberty mutual, so you only pay for what you need. oh um, doug can we talk about something other than work, it's the weekend. yeah, yeah. [ squawk ]

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we were talking tonight about the terrifying, new book from "the washington post" "i alone can fix it." it comes out next week. cnn's jamie gangel has obtained excerpts of it. in this one, house speaker nancy pelosi confronts joint chiefs chairman, mark milley, about the specter of the president ordering a nuclear strike without justification. quoting now, from the book. quote, this guy's crazy, pelosi said of trump. he is dangerous. he's a maniac. we have deep concerns. ma'am, i guarantee you that we have checks and balances in the system, milley told her. he walked her through the process of nuclear-release authorities. ma'am, i guarantee you these processes are very good, he said. there is not going to be an accidental firing of nuclear weapons. how can you guarantee me, pelosi asked?

ma'am, there's a process, he said. we will only follow legal orders. we will only do things that are legal, ethical, and moral. joining us now, someone intimately familiar with the chain of command, former-defense secretary, william cohen. secretary cohen, appreciate you joining us. former-defense secretary. what do you make of the fact that the house speaker, pelosi, confronted milley over the possibility the president of the united states using nuclear weapons inappropriately? >> well, i think she was right to be worried. um, i have said this on multiple occasions, going four years, five years ago. and saying i thought that the former president was unfit to be commander in chief. for the reasons i felt, at that time, were pretty evident. i think his nature is impetuous. he is -- has no sense of -- of value for the rule of law. and all of the combination of -- of factors that he exhibited, from the time he started running, made it very clear to me that he would pose a danger. i had confidence, certainly, in

the -- in the military and dod. i certainly had confidence in jim mattis. and i -- i worried about it because the former president would say, wait till i get in and i'll get my generals. i'll get my justice department. i'll get my judges. and so, everything was possessive. my, my, my. and i worried, at that time, that he would try and put in place people who would just say yes to him. he could do that in terms of appointing cabinet positions. i didn't feel very confident he'd be able to override the generals, who understand the rule of law better than he does. >> can you -- i mean, kind of walk us through, in layman's terms, how the chain of command works on ordering a nuclear attack? i mean, you know, we all know about the football. it -- i mean, can the president just get that and launch an attack? >> the answer is, it would be very, if not hard, almost impossible, for him to do. is it -- is it possible? rarely.

could he ever do this because you do have checks. you do have others, who are in the chain, who have to carry out his order. there are others who would, number one, they would check through the chain of command. through the secretary of defense. would the secretary of defense continue to support the president, under these circumstances? would the chairman of the joint chief? would the chiefs support what the president's ordering? now, they're not in the chain of command. make that very clear. but certainly, if he were to give that order. and the chiefs are undoubtedly would be consulted on this. i think they would be an absolute walkout, en masse, in what he was trying to do sending the signal down. first, he would turn to secretary of defense. remember, during the nixon years when jim shlessinger put the word out to people saying, look, who is military, if you get any recommendation or command from richard nixon, the use of nuclear weapons, do not do it. you check with me. so there have been checks in the system.

is it possible, under some rare circumstance, he could do that? i think -- i think it's rare and practically impossible but not impossible. >> it -- i -- it's also, i mean, in your long and -- and distinguished career, did you ever imagine that a general, you know, of -- in the position that milley was in, would be concerned, seriously concerned, about a possible-coup attempt in -- in the united states? and -- and actively, talking with others about, you know, how to prevent such a -- such a thing. and -- and comparing the former president's rhetoric to -- to hitler's and followers, you know, some of the followers. the ones attacking the capitol and -- and elsewhere, you know, from these far-right groups, as nazis. >> i don't think the full story has been told, yet, by those who were in the room with the former president. i have talked to a number of them. the top generals. and that story has not, fully, been told.

you had reporters, two now "washington post" great reporters. and i would, certainly, confirm their legitimacy, as far as their sources are concerned. and what they're reporting. but frankly, there are generals who have yet to speak out and that's because they have been trained not to politicize the military. their goal has been, yes, i'll support the commander in chief, provided what he tells me, commands me is legal, is ethical, and moral. and if he gives me an order, which doesn't meet that test, i have a duty to step up and resign and tell the world why i'm resigning. and so, it's hard to believe we come to this point. but if you go back, for the past four years, and you ask the generals who have been in the room. who have not written a memoir because they're trying, desperately, not to politicize the military. but if you put them under oath and say, tell me what was going on, at any, given time, what was the president saying? how was he reacting? or acting? and what was your concern that he might do?

i think you get a very different story from what -- what we heard today. so i'm hoping that those generals, who have served him, who have listened to him, who have watched him, will confirm, exactly, what this book is telling. >> yeah, secretary cohen, appreciate your time. thank you. coming up next. what is behind the troubling rise in covid case, delta variant. also, what the president plans to do about it and how republican anti-vaccine beliefs are making things worse. we will talk with the former top-vaccine official in tennessee who's now lost her job, when politics got into -- got injected into what should be nonpolitical questions of public health. oh, son of a poppyseed! ah, there's no place like panera. enjoy the cool, refreshing strawberry poppyseed salad. panera. order on the app today.

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well, sadly, there are growing signs tonight that as much as we want to be through with covid, it's not yet through with us. and increasingly, we have no one to blame but ourselves. just two weeks ago, the country was averaging a little less than 13,000 new cases a day. today, it's more than 23,000 and climbing. positivity has also been rising steadily over the last several weeks. more than doubling, in fact. the reasons are simple. the more infectious delta variant is spreading and too many americans are, still, not getting vaccinated. making the surge in cases almost entirely preventable. early data from a number of states only underscores that notion. suggesting that 99.5% of covid deaths, since the beginning of the year, have been in unvaccinated patients. red states, with the

worst-vaccination percentages, they are seeing the biggest surge in cases. and republican resistance to getting vaccinated is an issue. listen to this guy at the conservative political action conference and what the crowd is cheering for. >> the government was hoping that they could sort of sucker 90% of the population into getting vaccinated. and it -- and it -- and it isn't happening, right? there -- there's a -- younger people -- >> that's what the fight against covid is, now, up against. it's what the biden administration, today, began taking on more forcefully. cnn's kaitlan collins, at the white house for us tonight. so the president knows neither he, nor his administration, are in the best position to convince republicans certainly to get the vaccine. what are their -- what are their plans? >> well, that's the issue. and kind of the delicate balance that they have to strike here is because they know that just having president biden go out, every single day, for the next 30 days and give a speech on getting vaccinated is not going to reach some people. and that's the issue that they have with certain audiences that they are trying to reach.

a lot of them are not biden voters. if you look at some of the states that have some of the lowest-vaccination rates, including my home state of alabama, those are states that voted for donald trump in the election and it's not just all politics. of course, there are other levels and layers to this. but they know that that is going to be a struggle for them is how to get this message out if they can't always be the messenger. >> do they have an answer for that? >> i think the -- what they are trying to do is not just implore republicans, of course. they point to people, like senator mitch mcconnell, who has been telling a lot of people to get vaccinated. citing his own, personal experience with polio and saying that, yes, vaccines do work. but they know it's not just republican lawmakers. they also have to deal with conservative voices. and things like happening at cpac and dallas just a few days ago. that is also helping sow doubt about this. and, anderson, i think they are even looking beyond that because a lot of this has to do with social-media platforms, as well. where they feel like that is where a lot of people are getting their misinformation from and the chief of staff, ron klain, even recently told "the new york times" that when he spoke to mark zuckerberg in may.

and he told him that every time we ask people, where are you getting this misinformation about vaccines? these misconceptions that you have about what they are going to do to you given we have been pushing how safe they are. he said, time and time again, they say facebook, which, of course, is a massive social-media platform. and so, that's another question that it's raising for them is how to handle misinformation on social media. >> yeah. kaitlan collins, appreciate it. thanks. joining us now is dr. michelle until monday when she was fired, she was the tennessee government's top-vaccine official. she lost her job it appears for simply doing her job. she joins us now. doctor, appreciate you being with us. um, i -- i understand, so just last week, before you were fired, you received a disturbing amazon package at -- at your office. what -- what was in it? and what did you think when you received it? >> hi, anderson. thank you so much for having me. yes. the week before i was terminated from the department of health, i received a package that contained a dog muzzle.

and at first, i thought that was a joke and contacted a few friends. and then, when no one claimed it, realized that that was something that was sent to me, as -- as some kind of a message, i suppose. >> i understand, i think it was your husband who said -- or you said something to your husband that he recounted. what was it, you said? >> i said that -- that they obviously didn't know me because they sent me a size three, which is for beagles and i'm obviously a pitbull, which requires a size six. >> so, just for people who haven't been following what happened to you. it's -- it's really extraordinary. i read your account of it. and what -- what you say, essentially, is that -- um -- you sent out a directive to other health officials in the state. which was just restating what procedure was, and what the law was in -- in the state of tennessee. a law, for some-30 years, that was backed by the state's supreme court about people under the age of 18 being able to get

medical treatment, without a parent's consent, in some cases. and that became politicized and spun, by politicians in the state, who made it seem like you were out at nursery schools. you know, with a van trying to inoculate children. when their parents weren't looking. >> yes. and so, what you are referring to is tennessee's mature minor doctrine, which was -- was -- is tennessee case law from tennessee supreme court ruling in 1987. 34 years ago. that has been in place since then. and i sent a memo to the physicians that were providing covid vaccines across the state. um, because they asked me what to do when minors showed up requesting vaccines, if they weren't accompanied by a parent. and if it was within, you know, their ability to provide vaccines or -- or not. so i reached out to our legal counsel, at department of health, who provided me with the language that i put into the

memo. said that it was public facing on the tdh website. that it had been blessed by the governor's office. and that i was free to use it, in any way that i saw fit. so i put it into a memo. sent it to those providers to answer the questions that they had asked. and what resulted was some blowback with accusations that i was, actually, trying to subvert parental authority. and -- and target children. which, you know, this was never public-facing messaging, until the people who objected to it made it public. >> and the -- the -- what's happening, now, in -- in the state? because i, also, read that, basically, there was a memo going around and i think, correct me, where it was from. but essentially, the health department there is now saying well not just about don't be pushing vaccines for covid. but also, you know, don't work with schools right now to do outreach about, you know, getting ready for flu season. and getting flu shots in schools. or hpv outreach. >> that's right.

so, you -- in the days up to -- leading up to my termination, we were given the directive by the -- the commissioner of health that we were no longer to not only not conduct any kind of outreach to adolescents to get covid-19 vaccines. but to stop messaging even to parents about the need for back-to-school vaccines, to teenagers who are missing hpv vaccines and are, therefore, vulnerable to hpv-related cancers. cancelling school-based flu vaccination clinics that were done in partnership with local departments of health that we've done for years. even not allowing us to even acknowledge that august is national immunization awareness month, which is a platform that we often use to remind parents of the importance of vaccination. >> this is nuts. that this is a statewide mandate is -- is pretty incredible. i mean, i -- just on a personal note, can you describe what this experience has been like for

you? i mean, as a pediatrician with a career dedicate to the health and the welfare of children. what has this been like? >> you know, it's -- it is maddening and disheartening and frustrating and, you know, this is politics getting in the way of public health. and um, and political agendas, whatever they may be, that is obstructing our ability to prevent disease in this state. and -- and as you mentioned at the start of the segment, covid-19 is a vaccine-preventable disease. there is no reason why anyone should be dying from covid-19, at this point. and yet, we're going to see increasing deaths because we have 38% of the state of tennessee vaccinated, at this point. compare that to vermont, that's sitting at -- in -- in the 70s. we are surrounded by other states that are surging in delta. missouri. mississippi with kids in the intensive-care units. arkansas. it is only a matter of time,

before that takes over here, as well. and, you know, it's like a bad-disaster movie. the -- the scientists are warning the politicians and the people that there's bad things coming. and -- and it's just falling on deaf ears. >> yeah. doctor, i appreciate what you have done in your career and appreciate you speaking out now. thank you. up next. >> thank you so much. president biden traveled to capitol hill today to meet with democratic senators amid a whole host of pressing issues from voting rights to the much heralded infrastructure bill. coming up, i will talk with one of the senators who sat in on the meeting. ♪ when technology is easier to use... ♪ barriers don't stand a chance. ♪ that's why we'll stop at nothing to deliver our technology as-a-service. ♪

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just before the news broke with that new information about the traumatic final days of the trump presidency, an updaet president biden sat down with democrats -- democratic senators today on capitol hill. this, as they grappled with concern over voting rights and massive spending bill totaling around $3.5 trillion. the party leaders say they want to pass. among those senators in the meeting was virginia's tim kaine. he joins me now. senator, thanks for being with us. first, i want to ask you to begin, about jamie gangel's reporting. the idea in this new book coming out from phil rucker and others,

some of the top generals in the former president's administration made informal plans to protect against such an outcome. does that surprise you? >> um, no, anderson, it -- it shocks me but it doesn't surprise me. as you pointed out, i was on the ticket in 2016 and i spent 105 days trying to tell america that donald trump, the man, pre-2016, would be a disaster, bigoted, narcissistic bully, anti-science guy as a president. and america wanted to take a chance on, you know, donald trump and they did. and we've got 600,000 dead and we had an attack on the capitol. and we had a big lie perpetrated against the 2020 election that goes on, to this day, in state legislature around the country that are passing anti-voting laws. so, no, it -- it didn't surprise me, at all. what -- what saddens me is the way this guy was able to

bamboozle so many americans, into thinking he would do a good job. many of whom, still, want him to return. >> what happens, now, on -- on -- on voting rights? i mean, you know, you have this case of the democrats from texas who -- who fled the state. who have come to d.c. they say what they hope to do is talk to -- to, you know, democrats in the senate. and -- and talk to anybody, who will listen, in the senate. to try to push for -- to change the filibuster. there doesn't seem to be a possibility of that. i mean, do you believe this whole effort on voting rights is dead in the senate? >> i -- i don't, anderson, and i don't agree that there's no possibility of change of the filibuster. i do think it would be very, very difficult to eliminate the filibuster. but what if we were to return the filibuster to its historic, kind of, mr. smith goes to washington filibuster, rather than mitch mcconnell filibuster? if somebody wants to get in the way of a senate majority doing

something for the good of the country, let them stand on the floor. and try to convince the country and their colleagues that the senate's about to take a bad step. but if they -- if they tire and they can't continue, then we'll go to majority vote. the voting rights issues are -- are fundamental. you know, i -- i -- i realized, on january 6th, i've been in public life for a long time. my own job description is battling for virginians and increasing economic opportunity. i never thought my job description was my oath of office. protect in that oath of office, we have to take steps for it on voting rights. i was proud to play a role in getting all 50 senate democrats to be on board with really big, bold steps forward in protecting voting rights, but we can't be done with this. we've got to make it happen to

counter the big lie president trump preached that's still having credence in republican states in this country. >> i understand the idea of, you know, not getting away with filibuster, amending it, you said returning it to its original format. but that still takes convincing of joe manchin and kyrsten sinema and others. have they shown consideration to you, because obviously that's not a new idea, it's been out there and floated and yet they haven't grasped it. >> when you say they haven't grasped it -- >> they haven't accepted it. >> -- we didn't have all 50 democrats on board for a robust voting rights bill until two and a half weeks ago, but we worked really hard and we got 50 out of 50 to promote an expanse of protection of voting rights, and every republican voted against it and stopped it. but we were able to get democrats on board with it. so the next thing we need to do,

having gotten everybody on board with the content of a bill to protect people's voting rights, is to convince people that this is what the oath of office demands. nobody takes an oath of office to arcane senate rules that we can change. but we do take an oath of office to protect the constitution, and that's what this voting rights battle is all about. >> i'm almost out of town, but i want to ask about the infrastructure reconciliation package. some in your party are concerned about the $2 trillion figure. are you convinced you'll have the number you need? $3.5 trillion >> together with a bipartisan infrastructure bill, 6 billion, gets us where we need to be to climb out of a pandemic-filled economic catastrophe and build an economy back not only better than it was before but certainly

attainable. >> i appreciate your time. thank you. what britney spears said earlier about her father in the battle for conservatorship. why she wants charges against him brought. e to do anything? what she says, when we return. gg with farmers policy perks. see ya. (kid) may i have a balloon, too? (burke) sure. your parents have maintained a farmers home policy for twelve consecutive months, right? ♪ we are farmers. bum-pa-dum, bum-bum-bum-bum ♪ (burke) start with a quote at 1-800-farmers. up here, success depends on the choices you make. but i know i've got this. and when it comes to controlling his type 2 diabetes, my dad's got this, too. with the right choices, you have it in you to control your a1c and once-weekly trulicity may help.

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breaking news tonight from los angeles. the singer britney spears told a judge that she wants her father charged with abuse over his control of the conservatorship that runs her career and her multi-million-dollar estate. she spoke in the hearing by phone as her fans gathered outside to lend their support. >> when i tell them the way i feel, it's like they hear me but they're really not listening. >> reporter: angry. traumatized. unable to sleep. that's how britney spears says she's feeling with her father in control of her life and her $60 million fortune. her desire to now press charges against her father comes as britney called the conservatorship if-ing cruelty. if this isn't abuse, i don't know what is. i thought they were trying to kill me, she told the judge.

all of this comes after a hearing last month where she painted a troubling picture of her life under the conservatorship run by her father, alleging emotional abuse, financial manipulation and forced isolation and medication. all i want is to own my own money, britney told the court, saying anyone involved in the conservatorship, including her father jamie spears, should be in jail. perhaps most disturbing, britney's claim that she can't get married or remove her birth control and have a baby without the conservatorship signing off. the so-called team won't let me go to the doctor to take it out because they don't want me to have any more children, she told the judge. britney spears was 26 when she entered the conservatorship. that was in 2008 after she had been hospitalized, shaved her head, and attacked a paparazzi's car with an umbrella, all fueling concern about her mental health. jamie spears' lawyer told nbc last year that he rescued his daughter from a reckless situation.

life threatening situation. >> she knows her dad loves her. conservatorships are designed for people who can't take care of themselves. yet since hers was set up, she released several albums and head aid tour that brought in $30 million. now 39, now she wants out of the conservatorship, calling it abuse. britney spears has sold 30 -- 77 million albums. the conservatorship limits her allowance to $2,000 a week. britney was made to. perform when she was sick with a temperature of over 100 degrees. >> i'm sad. >> reporter: earlier this month,

britney's mother, lynn spears, signed a petition to allow her daughter to find her own attorney, which was denied by the conservatorship. the judge granted her the right to choose a lawyer. now britney obtained a lawyer, and she got alan rosengarten, to represent her. meanwhile, across the country, the movement free britney is growing and celebrities are taking notice. called a violation of human rights. on instagram, it was said, give this woman her live back. >> what does her lawyer say about this? >> the judge is asking him to step down as her conservator. he says his firm is going to do what he called a top to bottom review of what britney spears has been through in the last decade or so. as you know, this conservatorship has been in place for 13 years