Alec Cabacungan on becoming the face of Shriners Hospitals for Children

close

Video

Alec Cabacungan on becoming the face of Shriners Hospitals for Children

Sixteen-year-old Alec Cabacungan, Shriners Hospitals for Children national spokesperson, tells Fox News Sunday's Chris Wallace how he has grabbed the hearts of viewers, helping children who need specialized care

This is a rush transcript from "Fox News Sunday" March 14, 2021. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated.

CHRIS WALLACE, FOX NEWS ANCHOR:  I'm Chris Wallace.

It's one of the largest stimulus packages in U.S. history, signed, sealed,
and soon to be delivered as the nation marks one year of COVID.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOSEPH R. BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES:  This bill puts working
people in this nation first. It's not hyperbole, it's a fact.

WALLACE (voice-over):  Big promises from President Biden as the rollout of
his American Rescue Plan gets underway while Republicans who all voted
against the package pushed back.

SEN. MITCH MCCONNELL (R-KY):  It was a multitrillion dollar Trojan horse
full of bad, old liberal ideas.

WALLACE:  Is the massive plan COVID relief or a liberal wish list?

We'll ask Republican Senator Bill Cassidy and Democratic Senator Chris
Murphy.

Then --

BIDEN:  All adult Americans will be eligible to get a vaccine no later than
May 1.

WALLACE:  We'll talk with Dr. Anthony Fauci, the White House chief medical
advisor, about what the country has been through this past year and the
president's timeline for a return to normal.

Plus, the calls for New York Governor Andrew Cuomo to resign near a tipping
point. We'll ask our Sunday panel whether he's lost his ability to govern.

And our "Power Player of the Week --

UNIDENTIFIED MALE:  I didn't think I'd get as famous as I have become.

WALLACE:  The face of Shriners Hospital for Children grows up.

All, right now, on "FOX News Sunday".

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WALLACE (on camera):  And hello again from FOX News in Washington.

The processing of those $1,400 direct payments has begun, with the first
deposits hitting bank accounts this weekend. That stimulus part of
President Biden's $1.9 trillion rescue package aimed at getting the country
back on its feet one year into the COVID pandemic.

But Republicans call the plan a liberal, even a socialist, agenda.

In a moment, we'll speak with senators from both sides, Republican Bill
Cassidy of Louisiana, and Democrat Chris Murphy of Connecticut.

But first, let's bring in David Spunt with the president this weekend in
Wilmington, Delaware -- David.

DAVID SPUNT, FOX NEWS CORRESPONDENT:  Chris, after weeks of trying to sell
the plan to Republican numbers of Congress, the president will begin some
heavy lifting as he heads out on the road to try and sell it to a divided
America.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BIDEN:  Help is here and we will not stop working for you.

SPUNT (voice-over):  From the White House to the American people, President
Biden will make multiple trips this week to tout his plan that pumps
billions into vaccine research, small business relief and education. On
Tuesday, he'll visit the swing state of Pennsylvania. On Friday, he'll join
the vice president in Georgia where two Democratic victories in the January
runoffs helped seal the deal for COVID relief.

KAMALA HARRIS, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES:  You had faith that
Congress would pass this plan simply because it is the best thing for the
American people. And you put in the work to make it happen.

SPUNT:  But despite hopes for bipartisanship, not a single Republican voted
for the package, insisting large portions have nothing to do with pandemic
relief.

MCCONNELL:  I think this is actually one of the worst pieces of legislation
I've seen passed here in the time I've been in the Senate.

SPUNT:  Those same Republicans united against relief plan are standing by
for the president's other priorities, most notably infrastructure and
immigration reform.

REP. KEVIN MCCARTHY (R-CA), HOUSE MINORITY LEADER:  We must address this
crisis at the border. It is spiraling out of control.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SPUNT (on camera):  While Leader McCarthy is visiting the border tomorrow,
there are no plans at least publicly yet for the president to do so, though
the calls are growing for him to do so from both sides of the aisle --
Chris.

WALLACE:  David Spunt reporting from Delaware -- David, thank you.

And joining us now, Republican Senator Bill Cassidy.

Senator, welcome back to "FOX News Sunday".

SEN. BILL CASSIDY (R-LA):  Thank -- thank you for having me.

WALLACE:  You voted, along with all of your Republican colleagues in the
Senate, against the Democrats' $1.9 trillion bill. According to the White
House -- well, you tweeted this: Less than 10 percent of President Biden's
spending package is actually related to COVID relief.

Senator, what's your basis for saying that? Less than 10 percent of the
bill?

CASSIDY:  If you look at that which is related to the COVID -- by the way,
I have to dispute a little bit David's presentation. The White House never
reached out seriously to Republicans. We had no input into actually what
transpired.

Now, if you look at the things in that package, $130 billion for education
sounds great. CBO says the amount of money already allocated towards
education is so much, it can't be spent this year. The money that is there
for education will be spent in the out years. That's not related to COVID.
If everybody is vaccinated by June, then it's clearly not related to COVID.

There is $350 billion for state and local government. California is getting
$41 billion and California has had record tax receipts, record tax
receipts. That $41 billion is not related to COVID. It's related to kind of
helping a blue state.

Those of the things I'm speaking of.

WALLACE:  All right, but let's -- let's talk about other aspects of the
package because as you well know, this pandemic is not just a public health
crisis, it's also an economic crisis and according to the White House,
stimulus payments will go to 91 percent of the adults in your state of
Louisiana and 93 percent of the children. And the child tax credit will go
to the families of 1 million kids in Louisiana.

Senator, are you saying the people of your state don't need that money?

CASSIDY:  First, let me say Republicans offered an alternative which
included that sort of money for the people who needed it. So, yes, economic
health was needed for families as well as for businesses. We're on board
with that. You would have had bipartisan support for that.

But you know what it also includes? It includes $1.9 billion to give
stimulus checks to inmates. Now, inmates are already paid for by the
taxpayer. They can't stimulate the economy unless they're purchasing
contraband.

So here we have $1.9 billion stimulus checks going to inmates. I put up an
amendment to strike that and it was -- it was unanimously opposed by
Democrats. That's the sort of thing which should not be included.

WALLACE:  But you would agree, hundreds of billions dollars go in economic
stimulus to people and the businesses that have been hit hard by this
pandemic?

CASSIDY:  Yes, I agree with that. Now let's put that in perspective. The
Payroll Protection Plan money that was put in the December bill is adequate
for the time being. This -- the additional money isn't so much for now, it
is for going further out except there are some groups in which they
specifically target those which are politically favored.

And so the dollars are there now for the need which is there now. A lot of
this money is actually for the out -- the out period.

Let me say one more thing. The economy is recovering. It is estimated by
CBO that our economy will grow at 4.2 percent this year without this latest
package. And that the stimulus, additional stimulus to this package is
estimated by some liberal economists it may ignite inflation.

There's a danger here, Chris. The danger to that same middle income family
we're concerned about, that their savings evaporate because inflation is
turned on. That's not me, that's people like Larry Summers and Jason
Furman.

WALLACE:  Well, I'm going to be asking Senator Murphy about just exactly
that in the next segment.

But let me come at this one last way. President Biden is going to be
traveling around the country in the next few weeks saying things like this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOSEPH R. BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES:  It provides food and
nutrition, keeps families in their homes, and it will cut child poverty in
this country in half.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALLACE:  He and other Democrats are going to say, look, back in 2017
Republicans and President Trump passed big tax cuts to benefit corporations
and the wealthy. We, the Democrats, he's going to say, are taking care of
working-class people.

CASSIDY:  So, first, let's look at the Trump economy, if you will, in which
there was record -- record employment for those without a high school
education, for high school dropouts, for disabled, for veterans, for
African-Americans, Hispanics, women, fill in the blank, record employment.

Now that was a sort of economy that resulted from the Trump tax cuts.
Indeed, the last time I was on with you, you had somebody from President
Biden's economic council saying they wanted to return to the economy pre-
COVID. He kind of caught himself because that was the Republican Senate and
the Trump economy.

Now they are trying to do it by just pumping dollars in. It may work or it
may ignite inflation, which pulls down somebody into a vortex of losing
their savings. We'll see.

Is it better to let people keep their own money or is it better to take it
from them and give it back? That's the difference between the two parties.

WALLACE:  Meanwhile, there is another crisis, an immigration crisis, on our
southern border. Last month, the largest number of unaccompanied minors was
apprehended at the border, 9,400 since May of 2019. That was 171 percent
increase February of 2021 over February of 2020.

How much responsibility, Senator, do you think President Biden and his
change in policies in these first 50 days, how much responsibility does he
bear for the surge at the border?

CASSIDY:  Empirically, it is entirely. You can't help but notice that the
administration changes and there's a surge.

I saw one of his advisors said in Spanish (SPEAKING SPANISH), which means
the border is not closed, and then in English she said, oh, she misspoke,
it is.

I can tell you, the Spanish version is being heard, not the English, and
that's being reported in national newspapers as well.

And so when people think they can get in, they begin sending their
unaccompanied child on a train ride across Mexico where she may be
kidnapped and traffic on the hope that they're going to be waived through
at the border. This policy is leading to this surge, that is unmistakable.

WALLACE:  The headlines this morning are that the Biden administration is
going to send FEMA officials to the border to help with the handling of the
unaccompanied minors.

Will that make a difference, and what does the Biden administration need to
do to get a handle on this situation?

CASSIDY:  First, the fact they're sending FEMA tells us that the 170
percent they anticipate growing to 350 percent or even a higher number.
They're sending FEMA as reinforcements. Not for today, not for tomorrow but
for three weeks from now.

And what is clear, there can be no equivocation when sending a message to
people who are thinking of joining a caravan. It has to be our border is
closed. You can't say in Spanish one thing and in English another, one for
the consumption of those in Central America and the other for domestic
consumption.

It has to be the same message. They're not doing that.

WALLACE:  Senator Cassidy, thank you. Thanks for your time this weekend.
It's always good to talk with you, sir.

CASSIDY:  Thank you, Chris.

WALLACE:  Up next, the response from Democrats. We'll ask Senator Chris
Murphy about concerns the relief package will overheat the economy and spur
a wave of inflation.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WALLACE:  At least in the short-term, Democrats' legislative victory this
week is likely to be politically popular, but what if the economy overheats
and some of the massive new spending doesn't stand up to scrutiny?

Joining us now, Democratic Senator Chris Murphy of Connecticut.

Senator, I just heard, as I'm sure you heard, discussing some of the
positives of the plan with Senator Cassidy. I want to talk to you about
some of the concerns, concerns that he raised.

Here is Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell this week on the $1.9
trillion plan.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MITCH MCCONNELL, (R-KY), SENATE MINORITY LEADER:  This wasn't a bill to
finish off the pandemic, it was a multitrillion dollar Trojan horse full of
bad, old, liberal ideas. President Biden's own staff keep calling this
legislation, quote, the most progressive bill in American history.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALLACE:  The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office says $700 billion,
that's more than a third of all the funding, won't be spent until next year
or later. So Senator Murphy, how does that qualify as COVID relief?

SEN. CHRIS MURPHY (D-CT):  Well, as you mentioned, this bill is wildly
popular amongst the American populace. Seventy-five percent of Americans
support it because they know that this is the moment to go big. Eighty
percent of people out there don't have enough money to pay their monthly
bills, and so that's what you need to put an unprecedented amount of money
into the hands of low- and middle-income Americans.

And I love this argument from Republicans that this is some progressive
wish list. Almost everything in this bill is simply an extension of the
programs that Republicans were wildly enthusiastic about back when they
were in charge of the White House and the Senate. In fact, they were
cheering some of these programs at the end of last year like the $1,400
stimulus payments.

Your question is specific, what about the portion of the spending that is
made eligible past 2021? Well, let me tell you, the crisis in America's
schools is going to last beyond this year. The amount of catch-up the kids
are going to have to do, the amount of work we're going to have to do to
deal with the trauma that has been inflicted on kids who have been out of
school for so long is significant.

And so, yes, some of this money is going to be able to be spent in the next
school year as well, because we know we have a herculean endeavor ahead of
us to try to make sure that kids and families are made whole. But the bill
is popular because it's putting money right now into the hands of families
who desperately need it.

WALLACE:  Then there is the concern, which I discussed with Senator
Cassidy, that it's just plain too much money. The nonpartisan Congressional
Budget Office says the economy is down about $600 to $700 billion because
of the pandemic, not $1.9 trillion, and here's former Treasury Secretary
Larry Summers, a Democrat, on this subject.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LARRY SUMMERS, FORMER U.S. TREASURY SECRETARY:  There's a real possibility
that within the year we are going to be dealing with the most serious
incipient inflation problem that we have faced in the last 40 years.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALLACE:  So are Larry Summers and the CBO wrong?

MURPHY:  Well, they are. We're not going to face an inflation problem,
we're going to be sitting on an economy that is going to grow twice as fast
as it would have without this bill. That is also what economists have told
us.

Listen, Republicans didn't think this exact amount of money was too big
last March when they supported the CARES Act, and by the way, last March
there was one-third the number of people dying every day of COVID-19 as are
dying today. And as you mentioned to Senator Cassidy, Republicans certainly
didn't think that $1.9 trillion was too much when they were passing tax
cuts for their wealthy friends.

Listen, last week as we were passing the American Rescue Plan, Republicans
proposed to eliminate the estate tax for the tiny fraction of millionaires
and billionaires that still pay it. They had no plans to pay for that.

Once again, when it comes to supporting the richest, wealthiest Americans,
Republicans are very enthusiastic about debt-financed tax cuts, but when it
comes to supporting poor people or folks in the middle class, all of the
sudden it's too hot for their taste.

WALLACE:  Senator , let's turn to the surge of immigration at the border,
as I just went over the numbers with Senator Cassidy, the highest since May
of 2019, especially of unaccompanied minors.

President Biden has suspended a Trump policy that asylum-seekers must
remain in Mexico for their hearings. He also halted part of Title 42 so
that unaccompanied minors, instead of having to be turned around
immediately, can stay in the huge U.S.

Haven't those changes in policy sent a clear message to migrants there's a
green light at the border?

MURPHY:  Well, let's go a little bit deeper into these numbers because
Republicans would make you think that this crisis began when Joe Biden
became president. That's absolutely not true. In fact, the surge at the
border began last fall in the last four months of Donald Trump's
presidency.

There was an 80 percent increase in apprehensions and presentations at the
border. And as you mentioned, the 11 year high for crossings without
documentation of the border was in the middle of Trump's presidency in 2019
when we had the most inhumane policies possible when we were building a
wall at the border.

So this idea that it's Joe Biden's election that has prompted more people
to show up is belied by the actual facts. And there have actually also been
some pretty significant changes that the Mexican government has made that
has made it impossible in some cases to turn these kids around.

So, listen, this president inherited a mess from Donald Trump when it comes
to immigration. He's trying to fix it in a humane way. And my hope is that
Congress will provide the resources to restart some of these programs in
Central America that provides less incentive for people to flee and come to
the United States.

WALLACE:  But, Senator, I don't think it's fair to say that this is all
Donald Trump's problem. If it was a problem at the end of the Trump
presidency, it's gotten worse under Joe Biden.

Take a look at these numbers. More than 8,500 unaccompanied minors, 8,500,
are now being held in HHS shelters. Almost 3,500 are stuck in border patrol
stations. It's bad, it's getting worse, as we just reported, FEMA is going
to go down there to try and help manage the problem and we're not even in
the peak migration period of April and May.

MURPHY:  Listen, this is a challenge, but the point I'm making is that you
had the 11 year high of presentations at the border in the middle of the
Trump presidency, so this idea that Donald Trump's policies --

WALLACE:  I know, and then it went down after that, sir.

MURPHY:  Then it went down and at the end of Trump's presidency it started
to come back up again --

(Crosstalk)

WALLACE:  It's more than double what it was a year ago.

MURPHY:  Yes, but -- so the point being that the evidence suggests that it
isn't the policy of the U.S. administration that drives migration to the
United States, it's the desperation of the circumstances that these people
are living under.

So let's follow Joe Biden's advice and start putting some money into
helping quell the reasons for migration. Let's restart the program that
allows for kids to apply for asylum in their home country in places like
Honduras and Guatemala instead of waiting until they get here. There are
things we can do to solve for this but it's not simply just the policies of
any administration that creates these crises.

WALLACE:  Finally, this week, the House passed a bill to dramatically
increase, expand background checks for gun sales. You have proposed similar
legislation in the Senate. But I don't have to tell you even after the
horrors of Sandy Hook and the AME church in Charleston, the Senate rejected
those.

What makes you think it's going to be any different this time, sir?

MURPHY:  Well, you know, there's very little that's more popular in America
today than universal background checks. Ninety percent of Americans support
them. The House passed it with a bipartisan majority.

Your question is, what's different? Well, I think the NRA is so much weaker
than they used to be, the gun lobby. The antigun violence movement is
stronger than they have been before and I've gotten a lot of calls from
Republican senators over the past two years, folks that voted against
background checks in 2013, who are willing to take a fresh look. And I
think that's in part because the politics here have changed.

NRA A-rated members of the House and Senate are losing their seats in a way
that they didn't a decade ago. So we're going to bring this bill up for a
vote in the United States Senate. I understand it will be tough to get to
60 but, man, this is one of those few votes in which you have a chance to
save lives. No criminal, no person with serious mental illness should be
able to get their hands on a gun. That's something that Republicans and
Democrats should be able to agree on very soon.

WALLACE:  Senator Murphy, thank you. Thanks for coming in today. Please
come back, sir.

MURPHY:  Thanks a lot.

WALLACE:  Up next, we'll ask Dr. Anthony Fauci about the president's goal
of getting life closer to normal by the Fourth of July.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WALLACE:  Coming up, more big-name Democrats call on Governor Andrew Cuomo
to step down.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAYOR BILL DE BLASIO (D), NEW YORK CITY:  Do something that's decent after
these many, many indecent revelations and simply resign.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALLACE:  We'll ask our Sunday panel about the fate of New York's top
Democrat as more women come forward.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WALLACE:  The head of the CDC says the next two months will be critical in
determining the future course of the COVID crisis in this country.

Joining us now, Dr. Anthony Fauci, the White House chief medical advisor.

Doctor, welcome back to "FOX News Sunday."

DR. ANTHONY FAUCI, WHITE HOUSE CHIEF MEDICAL ADVISOR:  Thank you, Chris.
Good to be with you.

WALLACE:  I want to start with a pretty impressive number. 3 million
vaccinations administered yesterday, Saturday. Not 1 million doses in a
day, not 2 million, but 3 million.

How did that happen, first of all? And secondly, can we keep up that pace?

FAUCI:  You know, Chris, I think not only can we keep up the pace, we might
even do better, and that is because the implementation of the program of
getting vaccines into people's arms is really accelerating greatly. You
know, with the community vaccine centers, pharmacies getting vaccines in,
mobile unites going out and getting a lot more people who can actually
vaccine people, military members, retired physicians, nurses, and health
care providers. So you're seeing two things simultaneously, a lot more
doses available and a greater efficiency in getting it into people's arms.
So I'm not surprised at that number. I think we're going to maintain it and
we might even do better.

WALLACE: I want to show our viewers two charts. Let me put them on the
screen. First, the seven day average of new cases, which spiked
dramatically in January, is down sharply but still over 50,000 per day.
And, second, the number of deaths reported per day, which also is down
sharply, but if you look at that horizontal line, is still higher than it
was during the very concerning spike last July.

So I guess really two questions, is it too soon to say that we are in the
process of beating this virus, and what are the chances that this could
still turn around and we could end up with a fourth wave of COVID?

FAUCI: That's the critical question, Chris. And when you see a plateau,
we're very pleased by the sharp decline that you've shown. But when you see
a plateauing at a level of anywhere between 50,000 and 65,000 cases a day,
that is absolutely no time to declare victory because we know from previous
urges that we've had over the year that when you see that leveling off at a
high level, there's always the risk of a surge back up.

And, in fact, unfortunately, that's exactly what is happening in Europe
right now. They had the same kind of decline. They always seem to be a few
weeks ahead of us in the dynamics of the outbreak. Then they plateaued
because they pulled back a bit. They thought that they were home free and
they weren't. And now they're seeing an increase up.

We have to avoid that, Chris. We're going in the right direction. Vaccines,
as you mentioned, every day we get more and more people vaccinated, which
gets us closer and closer to a better protection. To pull back now
prematurely would be ill-advised.

WALLACE: Well, let's follow up on that issue. I'm going to ask you a
question straight out, I want a straight answer. Given the tenuous
situation we're in, is what Texas did this past week, ending the mask
mandate, reopening 100 percent, is what Texas did dangerous?

FAUCI: I think it's risky and potentially dangerous, yes.

WALLACE: And you say that because?

FAUCI: Well, for the simple reason of what I -- what I just explained. If
you have a baseline of infection that is quite high, and if you look at the
numbers, we are not out of the woods yet. When you pull back on all
mitigation methods, on all public health guidelines, that's when you get
into trouble.

I mean history has proven that, Chris. This isn't just some kind of a
theoretical -- a point that I'm trying to make. It's not theoretical, it
actually happens. Take a look of January, February, March, April, in the
late winter, early spring of 2020. Take a look at the summer of 2020. And
now look at where we are right now. If you look at those numbers, that
plateau bothers me and other public health officials. When you plateau at a
high level, there's enough viral activity in the community that when you
pull back on things like masking and not pay attention to avoiding
congregate settings, it is very risky to get another surge.

If you wait just a bit longer to give the vaccine program a chance to
increase the protection in the community, then it makes pulling back much
less risky. But if you do it prematurely, there really is a danger of
triggering another surge.

WALLACE: President Biden set a number of goals for the nation in his speech
to the country this week.

Let's take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: All adults, people 18 and over,
eligible to be vaccinated no later than May 1.

By July the 4th there's a good chance you, your families and friends will
be able to get together in your backyard or in your neighborhood and have a
cookout or a barbecue and celebrate Independence Day.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALLACE: Doctor, how confident are you that we're going to be able to meet
the president 's goals, May 1 for eligibility, May 30th for actual access
to the vaccines, July 4th for small gatherings? How confident are you we're
going to meet all of those and which of the three do you think is going to
be the hardest to meet?

FAUCI: Well, Chris, I'm pretty confident that we are. Those are quite
reasonable goals and expectations. The first one about what I was referring
a couple of weeks ago on your show about like open season, meaning you
don't have to fall into one of the priority categories. You got those taken
care of and now you can open it up to anyone.

If you look at the number of vaccines that are going into people now, I
think that goal of anybody 18 years of age or older will be able to get a
vaccine by May 1st. I think that's quite reasonable.

The amount of vaccines that are going to be available by the end of May, I
-- clearly that's something that's right on target with the new contracts
that have been made with the pharmaceutical companies to get even more
doses. If, in fact, we do that and we vaccinated people at the rate that we
just referred to a few minutes ago, I think the Fourth of July projection
is really quite reasonable. I don't see any stumbling blocks in that.

The only thing that you always have to be careful of is that if, in fact,
getting back to our conversation a few moments ago, we don't pay attention
to that plateauing and more states essentially pull back all public health
measures, we could have a surge back up. And if the surge back up comes,
that would endanger the goal of getting people much more towards normal in
the beginning of the summer. It's not going to influence the vaccination
program or the vaccination rate, but it could influence how soon we get
back to normal.

WALLACE: Doctor, let me talk to you about another possible concern.

If we were to reach those goals, that pretty soon after that the problem
with vaccines is not going to be supply, it's going to be demand and
whether people are willing to actually get the vaccine.

I want to put up a public service announcement that four of our former U.S.
presidents put out this week.

Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT: So we urge you to get vaccinated when
it's available to you.

GEORGE W. BUSH, FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT: So roll up your sleeve and do your
part.

BILL CLINTON, FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT: This is our shot.

JIMMY CARTER, FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT: Now it's up to you.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALLACE: Now, conspicuous by his absence in that public service
announcement was President Trump. And here's why that was important.
According to a recent poll, 49 percent of Republican men said they don't
intend to get the vaccine.

Doctor, how much of a difference will it make if President Trump, who was
largely responsible for the success of Operation Warp Speed, how much of a
difference will it make if President Trump leads a campaign for the people
who are most devoted to him to actually go out and get the vaccine?

FAUCI: Chris, I think it would make all the difference in the world. He's a
very widely popular person among Republicans. If he came out and said, go
and get vaccinated, it's really important for your health, the health of
your family and the health of the country, it seems absolutely inevitable
that the vast majority of people who are his close followers would listen
to him. He's such a strongly popular person. I cannot imagine that if he
comes out that they would not get vaccinated. It would be very helpful to
the effort for that to happen.

I'm very surprised at the high percentage of Republicans who say they don't
want to get vaccinated. I don't understand where that's coming from. This
is not a political issue. This is a public health issue. And the history of
vaccinology tells us when you look at smallpox, polio, measles, all the
things that vaccines have been so incredibly helpful in getting us out of
difficulty with those infections, I just don't get it, Chris, why they
don't want to get vaccinated.

WALLACE: Well, let me ask you another question. You know, as we say,
President Trump was largely responsible for the fact that we have all these
vaccines available now. Why do you think he hasn't spread that message,
didn't participate in the PSA, and got the vaccine in private and didn't
make it public in January when he was still in the White House?

FAUCI: Yes. Again, it's puzzling to me. I mean clearly Operation Warp Speed
started in the Trump administration. It was very successful in getting us
the vaccines we have right now. It seems like an intrinsic contradiction,
the fact that you had a program that was started during his presidency and
he's not out telling people to get vaccinated. I wish he would. He has such
an incredible influence over people in the Republican Party. It would
really be a game changer if he did.

WALLACE: Dr. Fauci, thank you. Thanks for taking the time to talk with us.
Always a pleasure. Please come back, sir.

FAUCI: Thank you, Chris, good to be with you.

WALLACE: Up next, we'll bring in our Sunday group to discuss the fate of
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo as more members of his own party push for
his resignation.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAYOR BILL DE BLASIO (D), NEW YORK CITY: And it's not one, it's not two,
it's not three, it's not four, it's not five, it's six women who have come
forward.

GOV. ANDREW CUOMO (D-NY): People know the difference between playing
politics, bowing to cancel culture, and the truth. Let the review proceed.
I'm not going to resign. I was not elected by the politicians. I was
elected by the people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALLACE: New York Governor Andrew Cuomo responding to growing calls to
resign after now not six, but seven women have come forward to accuse him
of inappropriate behavior.

And it's time now for our Sunday group. GOP strategist Karl Rove, Jonathan
Swan from "Axios," and former DNC Chair Donna Brazile.

Jonathan, the Andrew Cuomo saga entered a new chapter on Friday when the
state's two Democratic senators, Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand,
called for the senator to step down, along with 16 of the state's 19
Democratic members of Congress, including Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and
Jerry Nadler.

Jonathan, what do you think the calculation was by the New York
congressional delegation, and is there any chance that President Biden will
join the chorus calling on Governor Cuomo to step down?

JONATHAN SWAN, NATIONAL POLITICAL REPORTER, "AXIOS": Well, part of this is
that -- that Andrew Cuomo doesn't have a lot of friends, doesn't have a lot
of ingrained loyalty and affection for him over the years. He's made a lot
of enemies. And now, in his moment of need, he is finding himself very
isolated.

Him and Chuck Schumer have a terrible relationship. So Chuck Schumer
calling for him to resign won't have any impact on Cuomo's thinking. But
you just mentioned the elephant in the room, it's Joe Biden. He has a long-
term, long, deep relationship with the Cuomos, father and son, Mario and
Andrew, and this makes it extra uncomfortable.

As of yesterday, I'm told that Joe Biden has not discussed the scandal with
Andrew Cuomo, but each day that passes and more Democrats come out calling
for his resignation, the president's silence becomes more conspicuous. I
don't know that it's sustainable as these allegations pile up for him to
remain silent.

WALLACE: Karl, I remember two years ago when just about every national
Democrat called on the governor of Virginia, Ralph Northam, to resign after
a photo appeared in a yearbook allegedly of him in blackface.

Last time I checked, Ralph Northam is still the governor of Virginia. Can
Andrew Cuomo just tough this out at least until we see the results of the
federal and state investigations into both this and to the nursing home
scandal?

KARL ROVE, FORMER BUSH WHITE HOUSE ADVISER AND FOX NEWS CONTRIBUTOR: Yes, I
-- yes, he can, you know, sort of string this out until the investigations
are concluded. But this is significantly different than the incident
involving Governor Northam. This is seven contemporaneous attempts by the
governor to harass women in his employee. And that's a little bit different
than the shenanigans that may have taken place during Governor Northam's
medical school days.

I think the key moment was not Friday when the members of the congressional
delegation came out in favor of the governor's resignation, it was Thursday
when a grand total of 118 of the 213 members of the state senate and state
assembly came out in favor of either his resignation or his impeachment.
And that day the house -- the assembly in New York, began an investigation
into this. I don't see how he hangs -- hangs on much beyond the end of that
investigation. It's -- I think Jonathan was absolutely right, he made a lot
of enemies on his way up and they're exacting their revenge on his way
down. And I think he's toast. It may last until the investigation gets
finished, but I suspect we're going to see a move by the assembly to
impeach him and we'll see if he either waits for the inevitable, or
gracefully departs the scene after finishing the state budget.

WALLACE: Donna, should Andrew Cuomo resign, will Andrew Cuomo resign?

DONNA BRAZILE, FORMER DNC CHAIR AND FOX NEWS CONTRIBUTOR: I'll take the
second one first. No, he's defying (ph). He's -- he's not going to listen
to the music no matter how loud it plays in and around him. He is going to
follow his own instincts, which is to try to tough it out, because that's
the kind of person he is. This is a drip, drip, drip situation and,
unfortunately, he's not going to be able to govern effectively for the
people of New York who really need leadership at this moment.

Of course, the investigations, I think, will conclude what we've heard from
these women who should be respected and protected, that he created a
hostile workplace.

WALLACE: Meanwhile, let's switch subjects.

President Biden has been in office for 53 days. This is day number 53. And
he still hasn't held a press conference. Instead, we've had a lot of this.

Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

QUESTION: Mr. President, can you pass voting rights with a Senate
filibuster in its current form, do you think?

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I can talk to you about that
later.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALLACE: The Fox newsroom (ph) went all the way back to Herbert Hoover, who
held a news conference the day after his inauguration in 1929, the slowest
to meet with reporters since then our Eisenhower at 28 days and George W.
Bush at 33.

So, Jonathan, we are at 53 days and counting with Joe Biden. How come?

SWAN: Well, it's no surprise. It's an extension of what he basically did
throughout the campaign, which was very minimal -- he basically didn't
subject himself to extended, tough questioning.

Now, you know, obviously I, you know, would love him to do a press
conference every week, but we should also be clear-eyed about what these
press conferences do and don't achieve. I mean they're largely performance
art. You get very little chance to actually ask follow-up questions. It's
actually quite easy for a president to do a press conference.

What I would love to see Biden do, not just press conference, but serious,
sit down one-on-one interviews where he can actually -- not for the benefit
of the interviewer, for the public -- answer serious, depth questions with
follow-ups because that's where you actually test their thinking and you
actually get a sense of whether there's more understanding from them or you
get insight into their thinking of how they made decisions. You don't get
that from press conferences. So, you know, he's doing the same strategy he
did during the campaign. It worked for him in the campaign. And, you know,
they're betting internally that the public doesn't care. They might be
right, but it's important for the public interest that he does this sort of
thing.

WALLACE: Yes, and I think, Jonathan, you and I may have our own ideas about
with whom he should do that first in-depth interview.

SWAN: Yes, that's not self-serving at all, right!

WALLACE: (INAUDIBLE). No, no, not at all.

Karl, you were one of the people in a White House having to make this
calculation. What does it say that it's been close to two months now and
Joe Biden hasn't held a news conference? Does it -- in -- and as Jonathan
rightly points out, he didn't hold them a lot during the campaign -- does
it indicate that the people around him have questions about the president's
ability, discipline to stay on message?

ROVE: Yes, that could be one of their concerns and he's just not up to it,
that at the age of 78 he's lost a few steps and he's not going to look go
in a news conference. And there's --

WALLACE: Well, wait, wait, I'm -- I'm not --I'm not really saying -- I'm
not saying -- I'm not saying -- let me just make it clear, I'm not saying
that, I'm just saying, you know, we know he can make gaffes, he can go off
on tangents. Are they -- you know, is that a concern that he just doesn't
stay on message?

ROVE: Well, I think that's one of them, but I -- I think the other one is,
is that they got away with it in the campaign, why subject them to tough
scrutiny when he's in office? I mean they -- they got -- from essentially
March until November they got glove treatment by the press and I suspect
they think they can get away with it.

I think this is a mistake, though, because they're raising the
expectations, not only of the media, not only is it people like you and
Jonathan who are desperate for that first major interview with him, but the
ordinary Americans are looking at this and saying, why is the guy not able
to hold a news conference, why is he not able to do an interview?

And then we focus in on things like the other day when he couldn't remember
the name of his secretary of defense who was standing about five feet to
his left. So the White House -- you know, give him an easy day, have it
happen early enough in the day that he's sharp and at his best, and get it
over with. Otherwise, they're simply raising doubts and raising the stakes,
if you will, for the first time that he goes out and ultimately does this.

WALLACE: Donna, we've got less than a minute left. I mean is it
counterproductive for the White House, because they have delayed so long,
that now suddenly this is going to be a big deal and instead of being
routine there will be a lot of scrutiny about Joe Biden does (ph)?

BRAZILE: Well, I think he's heard the music. The White House has said that
the president will talk to all of us before the end of this month. So I
take him at his word.

Look, as you well know, Joe Biden preferred to talk to voters and right now
voters want to know when the -- when will the check arrive? So I'm
confident that there will be a press conference. He will have a lot of pep
in his step. And we will learn more about how the Biden-Harris
administration is defeating this virus. That's with the American people
elected him to do, defeat the virus.

WALLACE: Well, reporters would like him to answer some questions, and
Jonathan and I would like him to sit down with us.

Thank you, panel, see you next Sunday.

Up next, our "Power Player of the Week." You'll meet a remarkable young man
who has spent years trying to help other kids facing the same challenges he
does. You don't want to miss this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WALLACE: You may not know his name, but you definitely know his face, and
you've watched him grow up on camera and, yes, touch your heart.

Here's our "Power Player of the Week."

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ALEC CABACUNGAN, SPOKESPATIENT, SHRINERS HOSPITALS FOR CHILDREN: I didn't
think I'd get as famous as I have become. But the commercials, they do a
lot of good for the hospital and that's honestly all I really care about.

Imagine a kid who's told his disability will be a lifelong struggle.

WALLACE: Alec Cabacungan was 12 when he filmed his first commercial for
Shriners Hospital.

CABACUNGAN: But Shriners Hospital is for children, helped kids like me.

WALLACE: A philanthropic fraternity known for their red fez hats, the
Shriners run 21 facilities in North America, treating children who need
specialized medical care.

CABACUNGAN: When the director, he first recorded with me, he was like, you
know, I see something in this kid.

We will send to this adorable love to the rescue blanket as a thank you.

WALLACE: Donations skyrocketed as viewers responded to Alec's appeal. He
became the face of Shriners.

CABACUNGAN: And all of a sudden people are coming up to me, and I'm like 12
at the time, Mr. Wallace, I was panicking. I was like, who are all these
people? How do they know me?

WALLACE: Alec was born with brittle bone disease. His parents took him to
Shriners at age two months.

CABACUNGAN: I go there for physical therapy, for clinic visits, for x-rays,
surgeries. Shriners Hospital for Children in Chicago has been extreme
helpful in my life.

WALLACE: Still, there's no cure, so Alec lives with his disease.

CABACUNGAN: I've broken over 60 bones in my lifetime. I use my wheelchair
daily, 24/7, so I can't walk. I can't reach for things on a high shelf or
anything like that. But, you know, I -- I figure out ways I can live my
life very happily.

Welcome back to my show. It's a good day to have some fun.

WALLACE: Despite his condition, Alec is a sports fanatic. He hosts his own
YouTube show talking with athletes.

CABACUNGAN: You played in the NFL and then you made the switch to
Hollywood.

WALLACE: And he plays wheelchair basketball. The Shriners Hospital he goes
to named it's court after him.

CABACUNGAN: It's a contact sport. I've gotten injured a couple of times.
But I love it so much. It's a passion for me. Every weekend I'm shooting
hoops with my friends. I'm pushing my chair just as fast as anyone else.

WALLACE (on camera): Have you got a game? Have you got a shot?

CABACUNGAN: Oh, of course, Mr. Wallace. Of course. Yes, sir.

WALLACE: You've certainly got the trash talk down.

CABACUNGAN: Oh, yes, no, it's part of the game. It's a lot of fun.

This is a special place. Come with me.

WALLACE (voice over): Now, at age 18, Alec is no longer a Shriners kid.

WALLACE (on camera): So, I've got to say, Alec, that over these years
you've grown up, now you're the elder statesman. You're not the cute little
kid anymore.

How do you feel about that?

CABACUNGAN: No, I'm not the cute little kid anymore. I'm like the big
brother, like the mentor to the kids in the commercials now.

WALLACE (voice over): Today, Alec is a college freshman studying journalism
at Northwestern with dreams of becoming a sportscaster.

CABACUNGAN: I have a great support system around me. Whenever I'm down,
they always pick me back up. And I appreciate them for it. I'd be lying to
you if I said that it doesn't, but it gets to me every now and then.

WALLACE (on camera): But it doesn't sound like you're two down for too
long.

CABACUNGAN: I'm not. I'll never be down for more than ten seconds.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WALLACE: If you'd like to make a donation to Shriners Hospitals, go to LoveToTheRescue.org.

And that's it for today. Have a great week and we'll see you next FOX NEWS
SUNDAY.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

Content and Programming Copyright 2021 Fox News Network, LLC. ALL
RIGHTS RESERVED. Copyright 2021 ASC Services II Media, LLC.  All materials
herein are protected by United States copyright law and may not be
reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast
without the prior written permission of ASC Services II Media, LLC. You may
not alter or remove any trademark, copyright or other notice from copies of
the content.