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Transcript: The 11th Hour with Brian Williams, December 9, 2020

Guests: Lisa Sherman, Irwin Redlener, Eugene Robinson, Tim Miller

Summary

More people died in the U.S. today than on 9/11. Trump ally, Rep. Mike Johnson is lobbying Hill GOP to back Texas' A.G.'s bid to overturn Biden win. Giuliani leaves hospital after COVID treatment. President Joe Biden seeks waiver for General Austin to lead Pentagon. Hunter Biden says he's focused on federal tax probe. National ad group launches COVID-19 vaccine campaign. Ad Council seeks to build trust for COVID-19 vaccine. Senator Duckworth "will not support the waiver" for General Austin to serve as Defense Secretary. Nationwide vaccine distribution plan is ready to be set in motion.

Transcript

LAWRENCE O'DONNELL, MSNBC HOST: Tristan Harris, you can hear more from Tristan on the Netflix documentary, "The Social Dilemma." Tristan, that's where I first heard you. I could listen to you all night. I'm going to watch the documentary again. It's really a brilliant analysis that opened my eyes about this in a way that nothing else has. We really appreciate you joining us tonight.

TRISTAN HARRIS: Thank you so much, Lawrence.

O'DONNELL: Tristan Harris gets tonight's LAST WORD." THE 11TH HOUR" with Brian Williams starts now.

BRIAN WILLIAMS, MSNBC HOST: Well, good evening once again day 1,420 of the Trump administration, 32 days since the election was called for Joe Biden, 42 days until the inauguration of Joe Biden. And we set an awful record today, 3046 people died of the coronavirus just today. That's more than the number killed on 9/11. That news comes just as we are hours away from a pivotal point in the fight to stop the virus that has held the country in its secure grip for just about 10 months now.

Tomorrow, the FDA holds a critical day long meeting that will hopefully end in a vote to approve emergency use of the nation's first vaccine. If approved the first doses from the drugmaker Pfizer could ship soon thereafter.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALEX AZAR, HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES SECRETARY: We expect to have enough doses to vaccinate 20 million Americans by the end of this year 50 million total by the end of January, and at least 100 million total by the end of the first quarter. We will have enough doses for any American who wants a vaccine by the end of the second quarter of 2021.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WILLIAMS: Just a heads up here importantly later in this hour, we're going to show you and tell you how all of that vaccine is going to get to all of us when the time comes. Amid all of this, the current president who still has six weeks left in his term is intensifying his campaign to overthrow the results of the election and somehow stay in office despite being voted out.

The Trump campaign and 17 of our 50 states have filed motions backing the Texas Attorney General and his effort to get the Supreme Court to overturn the results in four states that help Biden win the presidency.

But wait, there's more, according to The New York Times, Trump has asked Ted Cruz to argue the case on his behalf. In the unlikely event that the Supreme Court actually agrees to hear it. One Trump ally in the House Republican Mike Johnson, Louisiana has been lobbying his Republican colleagues on the hill soliciting signatures for a court brief in support of this lawsuit. Johnson sent out an email to his colleagues that reads in part, "President Trump specifically asked me to contact all Republican members of the House and Senate today, and request that all join onto our brief. He said he will be anxiously awaiting the final list of review."

Republican Senator Mitt Romney today spoke about Trump's tactics and this Texas lawsuit.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. MITT ROMNEY, (R) UTAH: It's just simply madness. Of course the President has the right to challenge results in court, to have recounts. But this effort to subvert the vote of the people is dangerous and destructive of the cause of democracy.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WILLIAMS: The Atlanta Journal Constitution reporting that Trump called the Georgia Attorney General warned him not to try to rally other Republicans against the Texas lawsuit.

Meanwhile, Trump's efforts to get Nevada's highest court to overturn Biden's when there was flatly rejected.

Trump Lawyer, Rudy Giuliani has been released from the hospital after being treated for coronavirus.

President-elect Biden continued filling out his cabinet today formally nominating Retired Four Star U.S. Army General Lloyd Austin who left the military only four years ago. He would be Biden the Secretary of Defense, if approved by the Senate. Biden and Austin noted the potential pushback in Congress over waiving this requirement that the position be filled by someone who has been out of active duty military service for at least seven years.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, (D) U.S. PRESIDENT-ELECT: He's the definition of duty, honor, country in every step, he challenged the institutions that he loves to grow more inclusive in more diversity. I believe in the importance of civilian control of the military, so does the secretary designate Austin.

GEN. LLOYD AUSTIN, U.S. ARMY (RET.) DEFENSE SECRETARY NOMINEE: I come to this role, this new role as a as a civilian leader, with military experience, to be sure, but also with a deep appreciation and reverence for the prevailing wisdom of civilian control of our military.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WILLIAMS: There is also news tonight about Hunter Biden, the son of the President-elect says he is the focus of a federal tax inquiry. As you recall, Hunter and his dad were the go to Republican attacks during the campaign on a daily basis. Under Biden has issued a statement that reads in part, "I am confident that a professional and objective review of these matters will demonstrate that I handled my affairs legally and appropriately."

It's a lot but with that, let's bring in our leadoff guests on this Wednesday night, Jon Karl, Chief White House Correspondent for ABC News. We get to periodically steal him away from the mothership in his capacity as the author of, Front Row at the Trump Show, available wherever you buy books. Here is Robert Costa as well, National Political Reporter with The Washington Post, and Host of Washington Week on PBS. And Mara Gay back with us, member of the New York Times Editorial Board, former New York City Hall, Bureau Chief for the Wall Street Journal, importantly, a COVID-19 survivor.

Good evening, and welcome to you all. Jon, I'm going to play for you some video of the man you cover for a living. This was shot at tonight's White House Hanukkah party and released by the White House.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, (R) UNITED STATES PRESIDENT: All I ask for is people with wisdom and with courage, that's all. Because if people, certain very important people, if they have wisdom and if they have courage, we're going to win this election in a landslide.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WILLIAMS: So the traditional Hanukkah blessing there, Jon, I'm corrected that that was tweeted out simply by a party goer and not by the White House. What is the president talking about?

JONATHAN KARL, ABC NEWS CHIEF WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, he did a one word tweet today that really gets at exactly what he's doing. It was hashtag overturn. The President is trying to overturn a presidential election. And the context here is important in terms of how he is dealing with Republicans. If you look at the election results, Brian, the election results, frankly, were a best case scenario in the minds of many congressional Republicans, they come within a whisker of winning control of the House, believe they can do it in two years. They maintain control of the Senate pending what happens in Georgia. And they are rid of a president who is increasingly unstable, with a chance to come back and win back the White House in four years.

So a lot of Republicans when they saw the President coming out and saying that he didn't really lose this election, we're saying privately to people like me and to people like Bob Acosta, people, you know, a lot of folks, senior Republican leaders, people at the White House, saying just let him take his time, he'll come around, he needs to act out. He needs to give the impression that he didn't really lose, he can't afford for his brand, to be seen as a loser.

But Donald Trump actually very smart about one thing in particular, he knows when he is being placated. And he is now as you read the letter from Mike Johnson, to members of the Republican caucus in the House, he is now pressuring them saying you better be on my side. I want the list. This is godfather stuff, but it's pathetic because he is getting them to sign on to a cause. It is hopeless. This will go nowhere at the Supreme Court, this will lose essentially the message from Donald Trump is, the Republicans he may be driving off a cliff on this take going until we're going down in flames. But he wants the Republican leadership, the Republican Party to go with him.

WILLIAMS: Robert Costa, your colleagues at the paper reported this way, the President has been calling Republicans imploring them to keep fighting and more loudly proclaim the election was stolen while pressing them on what they plan to do. The request is more can you feel people out if they think the election is a fraud? And are you willing to help us overturn it? Said one person familiar with Trump's calls, who described it as a last ditch effort. Bob, no one needs to remind you here is the fix that Republicans are in. They are so scared of Donald Trump. They're all going along with Donald Trump.

Meantime, the Trump base, i.e. their own voters is frothed up about this. And there could be a price to pay if they don't -- if they aren't seen as fighting hard enough.

ROBERT COSTA, MSNBC POLITICAL ANALYST: That's true, Brian. They do have 2022 and their own primaries top of mind as they approach this entire episode. At the same time to build on what Jon was saying. So many of my Republican sources are just waiting until the Electoral College formally certifies the election, they think the President is going to go to the brink now, legally, but mostly politically, to try to challenge the election result to Jon's point to underscore his own brand, or at least his own perception of his brand.

After the Electoral College, there's going to be more of a focus, I'm told from top Republicans on the Georgia Senate runoffs in January. And it's a balancing act right now because they look at the President's ego and his own pressure campaign versus their own priorities and their desire to hold power in the Senate.

WILLIAMS: Mara, I check in with you periodically to see how much danger our democracy is in, Michael Beschloss on this broadcast. Just in the media days after the election, said that our democracy has survived a close call, though he urged vigilance in the days ahead. I suppose that's where we are right now?

MARA GAY, THE NEW YORK TIMES EDITORIAL BOARD MEMBER: That's right. I think vigilance is extremely important. Unfortunately, what we've seen since the election is a vivid example of just how many good public servants it takes to make a democracy. It's not enough to rely on a single person, in this case, a president and doing the right thing or holding up norms.

Really, this democracy has been saved not only by the voters, but then afterward by public officials in Detroit, in Nevada, in Georgia, who have both parties who stood up and did their jobs. And they stood up in the face of immense pressure from a White House. I think in the early days after the election, there was a sense, even among some Democrats and some folks and media, I think, frankly, that, you know, what Donald Trump was doing was simply for show, of course, there's an element of this. He knows he lost the election, and this is about his brand and his post presidency, to be sure. But that doesn't mean that the stakes aren't very real. And they are.

And all the while, of course, the President is doing the dirty work right now of delegitimizing not only the next president of the United States who will follow him, but also invalidating the votes and the citizenship of what is it? Yeah, millions of Americans who voted for Joe Biden, and it's really no mistake, also that those Americans look a certain way and, you know, the divide in his country is only growing larger because of him.

WILLIAMS: Boy, dirty work is exactly the phrase to use here. If you didn't already write for a living, I might recommend it. Jon, let's pick up on two more points that Mara made. Number one, he knows he lost. But number two, let's go to the post presidency, with the proviso that we in the media may well control the spigot of oxygen, starting January 21 and thereafter, is there any preview you can give us of what you've learned, what your gut may be about what his post presidency may look like?

KARL: Well, he's already preparing. He's already set up the -- his own pack, he's likely to declare he's going to run for president perhaps as he's heading out the door. But, you know, his hold on the Republican Party right now is, in part, he has that still incredibly solid support among the Republican base voters. But there's also fear of what he'll do over the next 42 days that he is in power.

And, Brian, if you look at what he has done, he's been so jealously guarding that notion that he is not a guy who loses that he is the ultimate winner. That's the brand. But he is going down in a pretty spectacular fashion as a loser. And it's not just the election results. That's obviously the big thing. But look at his behavior vis-a-vis the National Defense Authorization Act, the big defense bill, he has threatened to veto. This is something with, you know, wide support among the Republican rank and file Republican leadership and Democrats as well.

And he may lose that fight. I mean, that bill is likely to pass over his veto threat and may well be overridden. So what does it say about the invincible Donald Trump, if you can't win in court, he can't win with the voters. He can't get state legislators to overturn election results. And he can't even get Republican members of Congress to do what he wants in the face of a veto threat. He starts to look not just like a loser, but somebody who is impotent.

WILLIAMS: So Robert Costa, we have that audio of Mitt Romney with the elevator pinging in the background, in which he says this is all nuts and affect any other Republicans with recognizable names or do we just wait it out until they get the all clear symbol and then they all rush to tell us they were never really on board anyway?

COSTA: The person who sets the pace inside of the Republican Party beyond President Trump. I'm talking about rank and file lawmakers on Capitol Hill is Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, and he keeps saying that everyone's going to wade into the Electoral College makes it makes its own move constitutionally. And you saw Senator Lamar Alexander, who's retiring, probably McConnell's closest confidant said today that he believes President Trump should congratulate Joe Biden as President-elect once the electoral college steps forward. So that's kind of the Republican line at the moment.

In the House, it's a little bit of a different story. With this petition being passed around member to member and Minority Leader McCarthy sees Democrats being plucked for the biting cabinet, he sees his majority, his minority inching closer to the Democratic majority. So that House group of Republicans is much more inclined to rally around President Trump at this point.

The key thing to remember from my reporting is this is a Republican Party, though they have lost The White House does not feel humble. And that is informing this moment, and also the moments to come in 2021.

WILLIAMS: Mara, a final word from you. The disease you survived, killed over 3000 of our brother and sister citizens today, not a word from the President of the United States. What should he say?

GAY: I think instead of what he shouldn't say, I wish that he would spend more time actually doing the hard work of getting as much help to the American people as possible. And that really means economic help right now, so that people can actually shut down nonessential businesses and stay safe at home with their families.

What he should, of course, say is give some solace, some hope, and some encouragement to the American people. But we cannot expect that from him, obviously. My best hope is that we just remember that while there is a vaccine now, and thank God, there are several, this is not over yet. And we really need to be vigilant and keep up our guard because this is a disease that is still claiming lives. And it's very -- it's just not an experience that you want to have even if you survive it. It can do enormous damage to your health.

WILLIAMS: Well, I celebrate along with you. Your recovery, which I know is still underway. While we grieve for those we lost just today and have lost since the start of this. Jonathan Karl, Robert Costa, Mara Gay, three friends of this broadcast, our great thanks for starting us off on this Wednesday night.

Coming up for us, getting the vaccine was one thing, convincing all Americans now to get not one but two shots. That's something else entirely. We will talk live here with the head of the National Campaign to get shots into arms.

And later, more on the unusual power that Trump holds over this Republican Party. They are scared to death of him even as his presidency comes to an end. THE 11TH HOUR is just getting underway on this Wednesday eve.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: As a sister --

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: -- and entertain.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: As a champion for my people.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You will see me finding a light and a dark time.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: To unlock our creativity and push our craft.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You will see me demanding the space to tell stories that not.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: As a man who knows that tough times don't last but tough people do.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Join us in wearing a face covering to help stop the spread of the coronavirus.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WILLIAMS: Back in the 1950s, The Ad Council even before the time of Don Draper was urging Americans to get the polio vaccine. Now that same good organization wants to convince Americans the coronavirus vaccine is safe. They hope to recruit trusted influencers to boost their trust. That was the thinking back in the 50s when Elvis Presley received the polio vaccine backstage at the Ed Sullivan Show. Those pictures were meant to show an anxious nation. The vaccine was safe. It was good enough for Elvis.

We are fortunate to have back with us tonight, Dr. Irwin Redlener, the founding Director of Columbia University's National Center for Disaster Preparedness with an expertise in pandemics. And we're happy to welcome to the broadcast Lisa Sherman, she's a 35 year veteran of business media advertising, who happens to be President and CEO of The Ad Council, the folks who have made the very best public service commercials of our TV watching lifetimes from seatbelts to drug abuse to disease prevention.

Welcome to you both. And Lisa, no pressure, all you need to do is convince the majority of Americans to get vaccinated, tell our audience watching tonight how you intend to do that.

LISA SHERMAN, AD COUNCIL PRESIDENT & CEO: Well, thanks, Brian, it's great to be here. You know, I think we would all agree that this is the biggest issue of our lifetime. And it clearly requires the most significant public education that I think we've ever undertaken.

And we're thinking about it in a couple of ways. Number one, it's not a one size fits all proposition. We envision multiple distinct campaigns that will reach different audiences, especially communities of color, where we know they've been hit hardest by the pandemic, and where the levels of hesitancy are greater.

We are going to have a significant error game and a ground game. And by that, I mean, we're going to go broad, and we're going to go deep. So you can expect nationally, the traditional media you've always come to expect from the Ad Council as social and digital platforms, all traditional media. But at the same time, we need to be in the communities where people live.

And we plan to have a significant effort, reaching out to community-based organizations, faith-based organizations, grassroots organizations, who are day to day in contact with the folks we're trying to talk to. And then trust we know is at the core of the hesitancy issue and so the message that we're going to deliver is important but at the end of the day, the messenger who that trusted messenger is, is equally important. For some it's your pharmacist could be your doctor, it could be your minister. And our goal is to work with these folks to have them help us deliver these messages.

And then finally, I'll just add that we're building a very big coalition, a very big tent. And so we welcome everybody who wants to help us play a role in getting this education out to the public.

WILLIAMS: Irwin, we turn to you and right on cue with the first breaths to get the vaccine, we have the first reports of completely predictable in your line of work allergic reactions. And this is the kind of thing that everyone needs to be careful about, because what we don't need is a tick of 1 to 5% more people being anti-vaxxers, or having vaccine anxiety. So in your end of public health, how do you handle this kind of thing?

DR. IRWIN REDLENER, EXPERT ON PANDEMIC INFLUENZA: Well, it's difficult, Brian, but I'll tell you something, having the Ad Council on board now is extraordinarily important, almost as important in an odd way, as the development of the vaccine itself, because we develop it and no one's taking it. And we're not getting the message across that you should. Where are we? So welcome to the Ad Council's phenomenal news.

As far as the complications, these are almost inevitable, Brian, as we start vaccinating more and more people. We're going to see this. This is a warning though, that is significant that if you have allergies, especially significant allergies, you really need to avoid getting the shots, especially the ones that are that are now showing the allergic reaction, which is a Pfizer vaccine. We'll see what happens with the other ones.

But overall, you know, we're going to have a really big challenge here. And by the way, great picture of Elvis, but I think for right now and for our day in time, having the Ad Council behind really what they're going to be doing is to restore the credibility in government and public messaging that the Trump administration, Donald Trump personally dismantled, bit by bit over the four years he's been in office, so in many ways, the Ad Council antidote to that. But we are going to be watching carefully for the kinds of complications that may be popping up as we move forward further along in the campaign.

WILLIAMS: So Lisa, there is no Elvis for you, but you're hoping there will be 50 to 100 Elvises in all languages aimed at all audiences, correct?

SHERMAN: You know Elvis really was an influencer of his time. And so our job right now is to understand who those people are for the audiences that we're trying to reach. I mentioned a few already they could be folks in the community, faith-based communities, pharmacists, doctors, nurses. But then we also know and have gotten tremendous outreach from athletes and musical artists. And I think the key is that the messenger has to really resonate and be culturally relevant for an individual audience. And so our job is to really make those matches.

WILLIAMS: And Irwin, this is a tougher thing to get around. That is that black Americans are in a vise. They have been way over indexed in terms of the harm, the hospitalizations, the deaths in their community, and yet even a cursory reading of American history explains why, for generations, they have had a hard earned distrust of vaccines. How do you get your arms around this conundrum for all of us?

REDLENER: Well, first thing we have to do is we have to acknowledge that in fact that disparities and inequities you're talking about, Brian, are real, they're true. And this is going to be a major challenge. And one of the things that Lisa has already been talking about is getting people from the committee that's going to be relevant to every different kind of demographic in the United States.

But in particular, we owe a lot of special attention to the African American communities, they have been behind the eight ball, you know, for 400 years, and now we're just seeing the manifestation of a tremendous amount of mistrust, distrust that has been generated by these last few years and everything else has been going on in terms of Black Lives Matter and all the other social movements now that that have been expressing distrust and concern about their lives and what they're getting out of the American Dream here.

But I think it's really important that we spend a special amount of time focused on African Americans and black community in general and the Latinx communities as well. We owe them that. We owe them that. They've been left behind and they've died as a result of it. And the least we could do now is hyper focus on the needs of those particular communities, Brian.

WILLIAMS: After the negligence we've seen from some public officials you're indeed right, we owe them that and more. Dr. Irwin Redlener and Lisa Sherman can't thank you enough for this conversation. Thank you very much, Lisa, again, no pressure. Good luck with the campaign.

Coming up for us, the latest desperate attempt of an outgoing president trying to hold on to his office.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STEVE SCHMIDT, FMR. REPUBLICAN STRATEGIST: We've watched Trump and his loony attorneys. We've watched the declarations of fraud. We've seen United States senators, members of the House of Representatives, they all knew -- they all know that Biden has won the election. What they're doing is for no purpose other than power. The Republican Party is an organized conspiracy for the purposes of maintaining power for self interest.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WILLIAMS: As we mentioned, 17 states have now joined this long shot lawsuit from Texas trying to overturn the results of the election. That means 17 Republican attorneys general in those 17 states, the chief law enforcement officers in these states deciding they want in on this case to overturn the results of the election.

Most lawyers with the ability to fog up a mirror give the case zero chance they say it's dead on arrival. It's an unserious document, but not these 17 attorneys general. Let's talk about it with the best political minds we know Eugene Robinson, Pulitzer Prize winning columnist for The Washington Post and Tim Miller. He's a contributor to the Bulwark and the former communications director for Jeb Bush.

Tim, I'd like to begin with you. Here are 17 AG's, they all have careers and reputations and families back home in these states. Why do you reckon they have signed on to this case, which again, a reputable lawyer said to me tonight, he's been looking at it's just not a serious document.

TIM MILLER, FMR. COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR TO JEB BUSH: Brian, the answer to that is that they care more about their reputation with Donald Trump's base in the Republican electorate in their states, and they care about their reputations with their in the legal profession or with their families or with whoever else.

And that's it and what Republican voters want right now is for their elected officials, their representatives to go along with this clown coup, that the President and these attorney generals are trying.

And I just -- I want to put a finer point on this. This is not just a, you know, joke of a lawsuit it is that, it is also the most undemocratic action of my lifetime. And probably going back into Jim Crow territory, for the last time we had an action is this undemocratic.

I mean, these 17 attorneys general are not just trying to suppress the vote. They're trying to cancel the fair and free votes that were cast by American citizens in four other states. They're not trying to get rid of just illegal votes and keep legal votes. They're trying to get rid of everybody's vote in Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Georgia and Arizona who voted by mail, as the law in their state stated, that is unconscionable and far outside the realm of some of these other, you know, voter suppression and other debates that we've been having.

WILLIAMS: Eugene, it brings us to this at some point, Joe Biden's going to put his hand on a Bible, take the oath and be President of the United States, starting that day, the day after he's going to have to govern. He continues to offer a sunny, optimistic view of his chances of cooperating with Republicans in the Senate. But I quickly remind you, most of those Republicans are so scared to death of Donald Trump. They dare not call Joe Biden president-elect. So how's that going to work?

EUGENE ROBINSON, THE WASHINGTON POST COLUMNIST: Well, look, I mean, Donald Trump is salting the earth for Joe Biden. I mean, in let's be clear, despite what Leader McConnell and others have said, President Trump does not have every right to pursue legal evidence. Consistent, ridiculous. These are not legitimate legal avenues to contest on legitimately disputed votes.

This is vandalism. This is, as Tim said, a profoundly democratic act, the whole sequence of events, but especially this recent lawsuit, it is outrageous. It is infuriating. Yes, it is laughable. But it has real consequences. It has consequences, not just for Joe Biden as he comes in and tries to be the president for all Americans.

I fear it has longer term constant consequences for our democracy. You know, as a foreign correspondent, I covered littoral banana republics, where this would have been beyond the pale. And I watched as nations that had had been subject to military dictatorship, came back to democracy and tried to regain the democratic habits and procedures and etiquette that they had before and it's very difficult. It's hard to do. It doesn't happen automatically.

This is doing what potentially lasting damage to American democracy and it's unforgivable, absolutely unforgiving.

WILLIAMS: A scary and thoughtful note and just this segment on thankfully, both gentlemen are staying with us. When we come back, some early pushback for an early choice by the president elect.

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(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

AUSTIN: I recognize that being a member of the President's Cabinet requires a different perspective and unique responsibilities from a career in the uniform. And I intend to keep this at the forefront of my mind.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WILLIAMS: More from Joe Biden's pick for defense secretary today retired four star US Army General Lloyd Austin. Back with us Eugene Robinson and Tim Miller. Eugene, along with suburban housewives, another phrase locked in 1961 that our president is fond of using as central casting. General Austin is indeed central casting. He has the bearing, the look, the tone, the being of a four star U.S. Army General.

Here's the problem though, for members of our audience who may not know because we have civilian command at the Pentagon. If you're former military, it's an arbitrary number, but you need to be seven years out, seven years retired to qualify. So there would need to be a vote on a waiver.

I want to play this for you, Eugene, this is Senator Duckworth obviously heavily decorated grievously wounded paralyzed veteran whose voice on defense matters is sought after and important. She was asked about the general today by Andrea Mitchell.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. TAMMY DUCKWORTH (D-IL): I will support general Austin, but I would not support the waiver. I suspect that he will -- that the waiver will pass. I will not vote for the waiver. I believe very strongly that there needs to be civilian control, civilian oversight of the military.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WILLIAMS: So Eugene, what's your reaction to the senator's comment and to the general's nomination writ large?

ROBINSON: Well, look, I think the principle of civilian control of the military is important. It's something that I believe in and support. I, look, I did not have a big any problem. In fact, with the general President Trump's naming of General Mattis, who required a waiver in order to become defense secretary. I thought he was retired. I don't get the difference between retired four years as opposed to retired seven years. That's a distinction. I'm not sure it's a real difference.

So I played gadgets didn't say that I don't see a problem here. I understand that on principle. Some members of the Senate will vote against the waiver. But they're reserving the right to support the general's nomination, if and when it gets to the floor. And I suspect and he's a very impressive candidate, and he was incredibly impressive. Today, I thought, and I think his chances of being confirmed are pretty good.

WILLIAMS: And Tim, about Biden's nominees thus far, if we can group them together, his stated aim was a cabinet and staff that looked more like this country we inhabit. It has been striking to see their introductory remarks to hear their modesty coupled with their expertise. I mean, there's no Jared among them, but maybe they can strive for that. What is your reaction to the group assembled thus far?

MILLER: Look, I think that General Austin might have some trouble with confirmation for the reasons that are laid out. I just think that President-Elect Biden has a high bar to pass on making sure that he's reinstituting the norms that have been shredded for the last four years, like there was a good reason to have a waiver for Jim Mattis because, you know, the President, the time was a toddler, and everybody was relieved of, you know, somebody competent in there. I don't know if that same excuse is true now.

I'll say this, though, about the cabinet writ large. Joe Biden has done exactly what he said he was going to do. He's nominated a cabinet that represents what the country looks like. It's been a cabinet that if there are any Republicans left that want to work with this administration, I think are the types of people that will. You know, I'm looking at Mayorkas at the Department of Homeland Security.

I mean, what a contrast between having an administration that wants to take the refugee levels down to zero, and replacing that with the Secretary of Homeland Security, who is a Cuban refugee himself. Just a truly inspiring story there, you know, the first woman at the Secretary of Treasury.

So I think that Biden has lived up to his promise on that, even though he might run into a speed bump with the defense nomination.

WILLIAMS: Couldn't do this without you gentlemen, greatly appreciate you both joining us on this Wednesday night. Eugene Robinson, Tim Miller, two friends of this broadcast, greatly appreciated. Thanks.

Coming up for us, it's getting real. We can finally afford to feel good about the arrival of a vaccine. But how does it get here? How does it get everywhere it's supposed to be. There's a lot you should know about the effort. We'll show you right after this.

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WILLIAMS: We are all wondering when will the day come? When will we get the call or the text to head to our local school gymnasium or a military tent or the doctor's office or the drugstore for the first of two vaccine injections on which our hopes for a return to normal life are writing.

The Pfizer vaccine for starters could be approved for use here by next week. And so, additionally, we're all wondering how on earth so many shots get into so many arms, only to be followed by a second round. Our report on the logistics of this massive effort from NBC News correspondent Tom Costello.

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TOM COSTELLO, NBC NEWS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): As soon as the FDA gives its emergency use authorization, Operation Warp Speed will kick into high gear rushing vaccine doses to every state and territory. General Gustave Perna is the commander.

(on camera): How do you equally divide up the vaccines for all 50 states.

GEN. GUSTAVE PERNA, U.S. ARMY OPERATION WARP SPEED COO: So what we did is we went by population of all persons over 18 years old and then last week they were able to enroll their sites by location and quantities and so we know where it's going accordingly.

COSTELLO (voice-over): The military has already laid out the distribution network with FedEx and UPS splitting the country in half. FedEx takes the West ups takes the east, likely under police escort trailers will leave Pfizer's freezer farms in Kalamazoo, Michigan, and Pleasant Prairie, Wisconsin, carrying special iceboxes headed to the FedEx Memphis hub and the UPS Louisville hub, then loaded onto cargo planes and eventually onto delivery trucks to every corner of the country.

Command centers will monitor the temperature of every shipment real time. Each vaccine box getting priority handling on the same trucks that carry holiday packages.

KATE GUTMANN, UPS HEALTHCARE AND LIFE SCIENCE UNIT SR. VP: At the same time. This very small but very powerful chip is on every vaccine package. And it tells us GPS exact location throughout the whole path.

COSTELLO: Tomorrow UPS will start shipping 150 million kits containing syringes, PPE and sterile water. Local authorities are in charge of putting needles in arms.

(on camera): General should the military be involved in more than just logistics? Should it also be actually giving the vaccinations?

PERNA: The governors and their health executives have laid out great plans for their states. I think they're going to incorporate hospitals, doctors offices, pharmacies, such as CVS, Walgreens and others well trained personnel to do this.

COSTELLO (voice-over): Governors could deploy National Guard troops if needed. HHS expects to have doses for 20 million Americans by year's end, 15 million by the end of January with health care providers and the elderly getting priority. Tom Costello, NBC News, Washington.

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WILLIAMS: Fascinating stuff. Think of it this way those delivery drivers were already essential. Now they are in a life changing role. Coming up for us, spectacular entertainment. It's COVID friendly. It's free of charge. But it does depend on where you live. Details when we come back.

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WILLIAMS: Last thing before we go here tonight, we thought this might be a good opportunity to feel completely insignificant. Now I'm not talking about those of us on the night shift and cable or you the nice people who make up our loyal viewership each night.

I'm talking about all of us because this next story is about the sun, and the sun gets to be the boss of us. If the sun ever decides to do something else, take some time off, do some traveling, if it ever stops shining and goes dark. We'd have hours to live if that. Dermatologist wouldn't even have time to find a new line of work.

So it's probably useful that every so often the sun reminds us that it's up there and pretty much responsible for all life on Earth. So here's how the sun will get our attention this week. Find where you live on this map. And if you're in the green, there's a good chance you can catch the Northern Lights the aurora borealis if the skies are clear where you live these next few nights.

The bad news is sun storms solar flares, known officially as coronal mass ejections. Even the name sounds awful. We are in fact in the midst of some relatively small ones, but we are entering a phase of increased sun activity that's going to likely last a few years. These flares can disrupt satellites and their function and bearing as they orbit our planet. They can disrupt electronics here on Earth, including cable and satellite TV, and they often do.

And here's where we got to give a tip of the hat to the public servants who get no attention for their critical work the men and women of the NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center in Boulder, Colorado. You never want to hear them issue a warning, but if and when they do, it's time to pay attention. You can take it to the bank just as sure as the sun coming up tomorrow morning.

And that is our broadcast for this Wednesday night. It comes with our thanks for being here with us on behalf of the men and one at the network's of NBC News, good night.

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