| "I think as we get into April, the situation around the country is going to look markedly better," - Former FDA Commissioner Dr. Scott Gottlieb on the road ahead in COVID-19
Welcome to "Face the Nation"'s Five at Five newsletter. Scroll down for your five takeaways from today's broadcast of "Face the Nation" with Margaret Brennan on CBS. Did someone forward you this? Sign-up at cbsnews.com/email. 1. COVID equity chair sees no evidence of migrants spreading virus at border  Dr. Marcella Nunez-Smith, chair of the White House's COVID-19 Health Equity Task Force, said Sunday she has not seen evidence to support claims that undocumented immigrants crossing the southern border into Texas are spreading the coronavirus. What we asked: "The governor of Texas has said that some of these undocumented migrants who are crossing into his state are spreading the virus. Have you seen any evidence to support that?" What Nunez-Smith said: "I have not seen any evidence to- to support- to support that at all. I mean, I- I think that it's very important for us, you know, again, as we talk about our goal to vaccinate an entire nation, that we not divide ourselves in this process. You know, it's key. Vaccinations are free. We need to make them easy and convenient. And we need to make sure everyone knows that regardless of documentation, status or anything else, quite frankly, that you are eligible for a vaccination here." Why it matters: The Biden administration is facing an influx of unaccompanied migrant children and families crossing the U.S.-Mexico border in recent weeks, presenting significant humanitarian and logistical challenges for President Biden. Abbott disputed Nunez-Smith's assertion after "Face the Nation" aired saying she was "just flat out false," pointing to reported comments by a Texas Democratic congressman about immigrants who have been released testing positive for the virus. 2. De Blasio blasts Cuomo: Resign or risk more lives  New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio lambasted embattled Governor Andrew Cuomo as he faces calls to resign amid accusations of sexual misconduct, saying the Democratic governor is "literally in the way of us saving lives" by remaining in office. What de Blasio said: "I think he is used to getting things his way, and- and it's been almost an imperial governorship. But I got to tell you, the folks in this state and the political leadership don't believe him anymore. He doesn't have any credibility. So I think an impeachment proceeding will begin, and I think he will be impeached and perhaps right before that he'll decide to resign. That's probably the most likely outcome right now. But I've got to tell you something. He should resign right now because he's holding up our effort to fight COVID. He's literally in the way of us saving lives right now." We posed the same question to Arkansas Republican Gov. Hutchinson: "It's very important to take any allegations by the women who've come forward seriously. They have credibility. They need to be heard. I understand there's an investigation by the attorney general that should proceed. Beyond that, you know, he's a- the chairman of the NGA right now, selected by the Democrats. And so that's within their bailiwick to deal with that issue and the people of New York." Why it matters: While initially praised for his handling of the coronavirus crisis in New York, Cuomo is now battling claims his administration covered up the scale of deaths in nursing homes in the state and enacted a policy that exacerbated the spread of COVID-19 among residents of group homes and long-term care facilities. The governor is also facing a series of allegations of sexual misconduct. De Blasio last week called for Cuomo to resign, and the chorus of calls for the governor to step down has continued to grow louder. A majority of House Democrats from New York's congressional designation believe Cuomo should leave his post, and New York's two senators, Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, on Friday said he should resign. But Cuomo has rejected those calls and denied the multitude of allegations against him. 3. Gottlieb: Virus trajectory in U.S. "continues to look good" despite variants  Dr. Scott Gottlieb, the former commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, said Sunday the path of the coronavirus pandemic in the U.S. looks promising as the number of new cases continues to decline and more Americans receive their vaccinations. What we asked: "One of the hedges at the end of President Biden's very hopeful speech about COVID was these new variants. He said, we're watching them. But he did put that July Fourth date on the calendar for gathering. Is that a realistic timeline?" What Dr. Gottlieb said: "I think it is. I think most of the country is going to look much better well before that. I think you're seeing cases decline all around the nation, even in parts of the country where 1.1.7, that UK variant, is becoming very prevalent. You're still seeing continued declines, albeit more slowly. I think the combination of a lot of prior infection and the fact that we're vaccinating aggressively now is enough to keep up with that and hopefully get ahead of it. So I think as we get into April, the situation around the country is going to look markedly better. But there will be pockets of outbreaks and there will be pockets where some of these variants become more prevalent that could look bad even though the rest of the nation is going to look very good. And New York is one of those parts of the country right now that if you look at New York, there is some concerning trends there. Even while the other parts of the country are improving, New York does seem to be plateauing. So I think overall, the trajectory for the nation continues to look good." Why it matters: While the U.S. passed the grim milestone of more than 500,000 deaths from the coronavirus in late February, there have been promising trends over the past few weeks as the nation experiences a decline in new daily cases, hospitalizations and deaths. President Biden has already surpassed his goal of at least 100 million vaccinations in his first 100 days in office -- doing so in roughly half that time -- and he directed states to make all adults eligible for their shots by May 1. The president predicted that by July 4, Americans will be able to gather in small groups with friends and family. 4. An Irish welcome: Ahead of Biden talks, Taoiseach talks COVID  Ahead of slated talks marking the St. Patrick's Day holiday this coming week, Irish Prime Minister Micheál Martin gave a preview as to what the two leaders would discuss in their first virtual bilateral meeting. What we asked: When you meet with President Biden this week, will you ask him for vaccine supply from the US stockpile, since that's a big issue? What Martin said: "I think I'm not aware of too many countries that are giving their vaccines away. I think more critically, we will obviously discuss COVID and we'll discuss vaccination. The critical point, I think, for all of us to- to bear in mind is the fact that this is a joint enterprise in terms of vaccine development and vaccine production. These companies, J&J, Moderna, Pfizer BioNTech and AstraZeneca, they're all partnerships between US and European companies and- and involved companies that have global- integrated global supply chains. So different component parts of vaccines are- are developed in different parts of the world." Why it matters: Discussions with a US-friendly Ireland mirror just about what every global leader wants to hear from the Americans: How can we defeat this virus together? On Biden's role in Brexit: Asked if he would ask President Biden to intervene or appoint an envoy to help with rising tensions in Northern Ireland, Martin said he thanks Biden for his support of the Good Friday Agreement and that "we want to see a continuation of the president's interest in Ireland "and upholding the Brexit agreement itself." Martin added: "I'm under no illusions about the significance of the American involvement and engagement with all sides and all traditions and all perspectives on the island of Ireland and with the United Kingdom." When asked if the President would visit this summer, Martin said the White House had not committed to a date, but Biden did add, "Try and keep me out." 5. Take a listen: Ellevest's Sallie Krawcheck on women in the workforce  In this latest episode of Facing Forward, Margaret Brennan interviewed Ellevest Founder and CEO Sallie Krawcheck as one year after COVID-19 hit the U.S., millions of American women still remain jobless or unable to return to work due to the pandemic. How do we lift the burden off women in the workforce? Hear more of the conversation here.
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