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Don Lemon Tonight

Vice President Mike Pence Felt Confident For Not Wearing A Mask; President Trump Brags Massive Testing; Coronavirus May Come Back Next Winter; More Than 100,000 Businesses Got Emergency Loans On Day One, But Many Are Still Struggling To Apply; American Airlines And United Airlines To Provide Passengers With Masks Beginning In Early May; Governor Newsom Says California Schools Could Re-Open As Early As July. Aired 11p-12a ET

Aired April 28, 2020 - 23:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

[23:00:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

DON LEMON, CNN HOST: This is CNN TONIGHT. I'm Don Lemon.

Eleven p.m. on the East Coast. And we've got have the latest on the coronavirus. The United States has passed an important milestone in the battle against the virus. Now more than one million confirmed cases and more than 58,000 deaths in this country. Worldwide, more than 3.1 million cases and nearly 220,000 deaths.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, one of the top experts on the White House Coronavirus Task Force warning again today that he is, quote, "almost certain the virus will return next winter." While President Trump insisted again today that testing for the coronavirus is going well.

The top Republican in the Senate, Majority Leader Mitch McConnell saying tonight, quote, "we are not there yet on testing."

Also, tonight, the president signing an executive order compelling meat processing plants to stay open during the pandemic. And Vice President Pence visiting the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota today where he chose not to wear a mask despite hospital policy requiring everyone to put a mask on.

Joining me now is CNN White House Correspondent, John Harwood, and our resident fact checker, Daniel Dale. Daniel, we missed you for a couple days. Good to have you back.

DANIEL DALE, CNN REPORTER: Hi, Don. Thank you.

LEMON: John, good to see you as well. John, you first. So, Dr. Fauci is warning the U.S. could be in for a bad fall and winter. President claims though, that experts say the worst of this pandemic is behind us the virus is going away. Who are the experts that he's apparently talking about?

JOHN HARWOOD, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Maybe the ones he sees in the mirror when he's shaving in the morning. Maybe the people he sees hosting evening programs on Fox News.

Look, every expert agrees that the virus is going to be with us. The question is the degree. We are getting to the right side of the curb, the declining side of the curb in the United States. We're making progress. Hoping for more progress over the summer.

But nobody believes that it's going to be gone and the problem is going to be over in the fall. The question is if we get outbreaks and if we get a resurgence how deep, is it simply a few hotspots, is it something more significant like we've had in the spring.

And a lot of the determining of that is going to be what we do. How assiduously we maintain social distancing for a while. And how much we change the way we interact with one another when we move to a somewhat more, open somewhat more normal situation.

LEMON: Daniel, our colleague Jim Acosta asked the president about his previous comments about this virus. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JIM ACOSTA, CNN CHIEF WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Back in late February you predicted that the number of cases would go to zero. How did we get from your prediction of zero to one million?

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: Well, it will go down to zero. Ultimately. And you have to understand when it comes to cases, we do much more testing than anybody else. So, we could go to some of these other countries, you know, as an example, China. If you test, you're going to show many more cases.

So, we're testing, we're doing more testing than any other country in the world by far. Which we just discussed over in the Oval Office. So, we're going to show more cases because we're doing much, much more testing. Double anybody else. Somebody said if you add everybody else combined that would be a number. And it will be at the appropriate time it will be down to zero.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Daniel, what are the facts?

DALE: The testing claims are dubious and incorrect. But I want to focus here on the suggestion that the president was actually correct when he said in late February that we would be down to zero cases.

This is what he said if February. When you have 15 people and the 15 within a couple days is going to be down close to zero. That's a pretty good job we have done.

So, he said a couple of days not a number of months and he did not say we would go from 15 to over a million cases to over 58,000 deaths and that eventually we go down to zero. So, his prediction was wildly inaccurate and the suggestion that now that he was somehow correct is just absurd. LEMON: So, Daniel, the president also tried to rewrite history, the

history of what Dr. Fauci was saying about the coronavirus this past winter. Take a listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: You go back and take a look at even professionals like Anthony was saying this is no problem. This is late in February. This is no problem. This is going to blow -- this is going to blow over. And they're professionals and they are good professionals. Most people thought this was going to blow over.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: So, what's the truth here?

DALE: So, there are a lot of warnings in February that this virus was going to do severe damage. With regard to Fauci, in particular, no, he did not say that this was no problem or this was going to blow over.

[23:04:57]

What Trump appears to be referring to is a late February interview in which Fauci said on TV, he said, there's no need to change anything you're doing on a day-to-day basis. Right now, the risk is still low.

So that's a fair game for criticism, you know. Maybe he shouldn't have said that. But then he went on to say, but this could change. I've said that many times even on this program. When you start to see community, this could change and force you to become much more attentive to do any things that will protect you from spread.

And he also warned that this could be a major outbreak. So perhaps Fauci should have been more severe in his warnings at that point. but, no, he didn't say no problem.

LEMON: Yes. Context is everything. Because I think there was something in there about the current thing but, yes. You gave the context. You gave i perfectly.

John, President Trump continues to brag about testing saying it is the best in the world. Multiple officials though, including Dr. Fauci say the U.S. is nowhere near where it needs to be on testing. Why can't the president ever stay on the same page as his medical advisers?

HARWOOD: Because Donald Trump is a pitch man, a marketing man. He calls himself a cheer leader for the country. He does not like to acknowledge difficult situations or failure or setbacks. That's one of the reasons why he down played the coronavirus from the beginning.

And so, he is trying to portray himself and his administration as being on top of the situation. he talks about how we've done more testing than anyone in the world.

That is not the question. The question is do we have testing adequate for the United States to get out of the situation and restore some semblance of normal life. And all the experts agree that we don't. We're making progress. We're having more testing than we've had in the past. But we are not there yet by the testimony of his own chief expert, Anthony Fauci.

And the president just has a hard time saying things aren't great all the time. But they are not great.

LEMON: Thank you both, gentlemen. I appreciate it.

Governors are trying to plan to get their states back up and running. But their plans are all over the place. Tom Foreman has the story now.

TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The beaches are open and they are closed. Restaurants are bustling and silent too. You can get your nails done or maybe not.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAYOR GLENN JACOBS, KNOX COUNTY, TENNESSEE: You can't keep the economy dormant. A lot of people are suffering.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOREMAN: Amid calls to reopen the American economy states are responding. And a patchwork of rules are spreading as haphazardly as the virus itself making it hard to know what is being enforced by whom and where.

Take Tennessee where counties are getting to decide.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're just glad to be back.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOREMAN: Andy Martial (Ph) is confident social distancing will keep everyone healthy at his grocery and eatery. But a short drive away.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHRISTOPHER HARTLAND, OWNER, COOL SPRINGS BREWERY: Business was down 90 percent.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOREMAN: Christopher Hartland knows about the rules limiting seating and recommendations for masks. But he knows this too.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HARTLAND: Many restaurants who have enforce them which means people will go to the other restaurants that aren't enforcing them and seat thereby and be served by people without masks. I just don't feel comfortable opening up.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOREMAN: In Florida the governor was stung by criticism of over flowing beaches early on. Now he's crowing about ending the lockdown in a few days.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. RON DESANTIS (R-FL): Everyone in the media was saying Florida was going to be like New York or Italy. And that has not happened.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOREMAN: Nearby, Georgia's governor is pushing the most aggressive reopening plan and like some other governors, overriding local rules to the contrary. Happy business owners are promising to follow safety advice.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NJERI BOSS, DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC RELATIONS, WAFFLE HOUSE: You want to be here to make sure that everybody who wants to and has the opportunity to can take care of themselves and their family. That's the American way.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOREMAN: But the move is terrifying those who fear a resurgence of the virus could soon follow and overwhelm hospitals.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAYOR KEISHA LANCE BOTTOMS (D), ATLANTA, GA: What we are essentially saying in Georgia is go bowling and we'll have a bed waiting on you. That's not what our approach should be to COVID-19.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOREMAN: From community sports to elective medical procedures to limited retail sales. It's all coming back here and there in fits and starts. Met with everything from go slow determination in Massachusetts where reopening plans were just delayed.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAYOR MARTY WALSH (D), BOSTON: We can't afford to make any mistakes.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOREMAN: To frontier fatalism in South Dakota where the governor was given a makeshift parade for her efforts to keep the state open come what may.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. KRISTI NOEM (R-SD): This virus will spread more. There will be more positives, which is just a fact that we need to realize will happen.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOREMAN: The rational for all of this is also kind of a mess. Yes, some states are clearly looking for a downward trend in infections before the reopening. Others appear to be nowhere near their peaks but they are reopening anyway. And then there are plenty of others who are just somewhere in that big murky middle, Don.

LEMON: So, Tom, if some of these states develop problems, how soon will they know?

FOREMAN: That's another part of the problem. Because if you look at the incubation time on this, when you start seeing the symptoms, you'll probably going to have two weeks before they know that opening a restaurant or opening a club was somehow a mistake.

[23:10:04]

And then at the end of that two weeks, remember, there are new people being infected all along the lines, so then you have another two weeks before you know how many were involved.

So, Don, you can talk about states that lose essentially an entire month in their fight to overcome this virus. Sliding back. and if you think people are angry about being locked down now. Try letting them go for about a month and them lock them down again and see how they respond.

LEMON: Yes. Thank you, Tom. I appreciate your reporting.

So, now I want to bring in Dr. Howard Markel, he is a professor of the history of medicine at the University of Michigan. Doctor, I appreciate it. Thank you so much. What are you going to be --

(CROSSTALK)

HOWARD MARKEL, PROFESSOR OF THE HISTORY OF MEDICINE, UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN: Thank you.

LEMON: -- what are you going to be watching as these states open up while the model is increasing the number of deaths, and we continue to see hotspots pop up across this country?

MARKEL: Well, I'm going to be watching their epi curves, their epidemic curves. And your reporter was right. There may be a 7 to 14- day lag time. But I fully expect those places to go up in cases. Particularly those that have only had a slight reduction of cases. The virus is still circulating.

And so, places like Georgia, for example, I expect to see an uptick but it might take 7 to 14 days. And then they'll have to respond to that.

LEMON: Listen, I want to play more of what Florida's Governor Ron DeSantis said at the White House today. Here it is. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DESANTIS: You go from D.C., Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, Illinois. You name it. Florida has done better. And I'm not criticizing those states. But everyone in the media was saying Florida was going to be like New York or Italy. And that has not happened.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: OK. I don't remember saying that and I'm one of the people in the media. But anyway, I digress. Florida has a huge elderly population, plenty of big cities and the governor was -- you know, was late to the issue to stay at home. The stay-at-home order. So why did they fair better than so many other states when it comes to this virus?

MARKEL: Does the word luck mean anything, Mr. Governor? You know. I was listening to him as you played the clip and there was an amazing amount of confident in epidemiology and infectious diseases.

Well, so I've been studying this for 30 odd years and I am not sure what will happen and when it will happen. So, I think there was some luck. There is a huge elderly population in Florida with a great many of these comorbid conditions. Diabetes, heart disease, hypertension, obesity. It is a very risky process and not one I would recommend. I wish he would listen more to doctors than to politicians.

LEMON: You know, as I mentioned earlier Dr. Fauci also said that the U.S. could be in for a bad fall and winter. What do you expect from a second wave of this virus?

MARKEL: Well, I don't know. I don't have a crystal ball. But I will say this. Anthony Fauci is one of the smartest infectious disease doctors in the world today. And so, if Dr. Fauci says it, I believe it.

It could be bad. It could be not so bad. But we don't know. But it's not going away. The virus is still circulating. It is a novel coronavirus. So, we are learning as we go along.

But I do agree that social distancing measures are good idea. We are flattening the curve. But we are not at the point where there's so few cases that we can merely do contact tracing and testing. And even if we could, Don, we don't have enough tests. We don't have enough accurate tests to do that.

So, we're not there yet. And as your reporter just said in the segment before, if you think people are upset now, try letting them go free for a month and then have to lock them down again. And that is what our data and research shows will happen. That you'll get a double humped curve once you release the brakes too early. And the cases will go up again and so too are the deaths.

LEMON: Dr. Markel, thank you so much. We appreciate it. The Vice President Mike Pence who heads up the coronavirus task force

by the way, visiting the Mayo Clinic today and not wearing a mask even though they are required and everyone else was wearing one. Why didn't he? That's next.

[23:15:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Vice President Mike Pence paying a visit to the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota today. While -- while there he stopped at a facility blood and plasma donation center thanking workers and meeting with hospital administrators.

As you can see, he did it all, he did all of that without wearing a face mask. That's spite his office being informed of the Mayo Clinic's policy that everyone must wear a mask.

According to reporters everyone else in the building was doing just that. And our reporting at CNN is that the vice president and the team with him were offered masks when they arrived.

So, let's discuss now with CNN Medical Analyst, Dr. James Phillips, and CNN National Security Analyst, Juliette Kayyem.

Good evening. I can't believe we have to discuss this. OK. So, we are.

So, doctor, I'm going to start with you first. So just looking at this video with everyone wearing a mask except for the vice president in the middle of a pandemic at a hospital, it's pretty astounding, don't you think?

DR. JAMES PHILLIPS, CNN MEDICAL ANALYST: I'm not sure what they're trying to accomplish here. So, you know, I think of -- I think the mistake that he's making is maybe they're thinking that it's a sign of strength or show of force.

Now I think back to like what President Reagan achieved in 1985, I believe, when he met Gorbachev for the first time in Geneva, he came bounding down the steps with no overcoat, no hat. November in Switzerland. And Gorbachev gets out looking slow and cold. And that helped end the Cold War.

[23:19:59]

That is not what's happening here. This is not a sign of strength or show of force against this virus. In fact, it's just -- it's preposterous.

Now two of my residents are sick at home right now with COVID despite wearing PPE meticulously at work. And so, it just goes to show that you never know the risks. It's 100 percent all the time and you have to be careful.

LEMON: It would be so simple, Juliette, to wear a mask and set a good example. JULIETTE KAYYEM, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: Yes.

LEMON: So, why not do that?

KAYYEM: That's exactly right. I mean, that is the -- regardless of whether he was going to infect anyone or they were going to infect him. He needs to start modelling behavior.

And we're -- this is a, it's been a community effort. And if our leaders, including the head of the task force can model good behavior you are more likely to get good behavior out of -- out of citizens which is what we need.

Most states and many cities are going to be moving to all masks. And it's sort of, the contract we have made with each other to protect each other.

I want to say I think there's something -- I actually think this is a big story not because he didn't wear a mask. But there's moments in a presidency or vice presidency that matter.

If you think back to 2005 when President George Bush flew over New Orleans. Yes. Another crisis, another disaster. Never landed. So, they're looking over an African-American city that was -- that had drowned. And it wasn't that if President Bush had landed, he was going to, you know, stop the levy.

It was just a reflection, I think, of what people were feeling. Which is that these are leaders who are not getting it. That they sort of wink and nod about this crisis. That they are not sort of, you know, absorbing the number of people dead. And that's how I took what Pence was really sort of reflecting in a bad way.

LEMON: This is how he explained his decision not to wear a mask.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAEL PENCE, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: As Vice President of the United States, I'm tested for the coronavirus on a regular basis. And everyone who is around me is tested for the coronavirus.

Since I don't have the coronavirus, I thought it would be a good opportunity for me to be here. To be able to speak to these researchers, this incredible healthcare personnel and look them in the eye and say thank you.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: OK. So, as I said earlier at the beginning of the program, this is not an eye mask. Right? It doesn't go over your eyes. It goes over your mouth and your nose if you wear it properly. And they can see your eyes clearly.

He -- doctor, he is tested regularly. But that doesn't matter. I mean, he could have recently been exposed to COVID unknowingly and spreading it.

PHILLIPS: So, you're absolutely right. And the way I'll explain this is that I don't know what regular means. We haven't established what regular testing means. If we did, we would have a better pathway forward for opening up the country economically.

You know, what I think is concerning is that we don't know the latency period between the time you're infected and the time your test comes back positive, you know. If you compare this to something like HIV you can test negative and still be infected. You just haven't demonstrated yet. That yes, it just depends on how long it's been since you got the virus. Sometimes six weeks.

We don't know what that is for this virus. Certainly, it's not that long. But who is to say he didn't shake hand with somebody a couple of days ago and have the problem? Now I'm not suggesting that he's infected but it's an irresponsible behavior that he's modeling to the rest of the public. Which, between that and what the president said about wearing a mask is just an abject failure of crisis leadership.

LEMON: Well, I'm just paraphrasing. A couple weeks ago he said something like when someone ask him if he's going to continue to shake hands. And he said yes, that's just how we do it in these kinds of this job. Or something, something to the effect. Again, it's not a direct quote.

Juliette, I mean, around that time the president had previously said he won't wear a mask. Here it is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: I just don't want to wear one myself. Somehow sitting in the Oval Office behind that beautiful Resolute desk. The great Resolute desk. I think wearing a face mask as I greet presidents, prime ministers, dictators, kings and queens. I don't know. Somehow, I don't see it for myself.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: I feel like I'm watching a sitcom.

KAYYEM: I know. Is it a --

(CROSSTALK)

LEMON: I'm like, is it, I feel like I'm watching curb your enthusiasm sometimes. I'm like, is this actually happening? So, the Mayo Clinic's policy -- I mean, listen, listen, guys.

KAYYEM: Yes.

LEMON: I don't know that people who are sitting at home saying, my gosh, he is (Inaudible) the vice president and they are going after him.

KAYYEM: Yes. LEMON: It's not like he went for a walk outside and forgot his mask at home. Or he went through in the building and my God, I left my mask at my desk.

He went to the Mayo Clinic where there are sick people. These are his policies. Where he's been telling people to follow the rules, everyone around him all the experts, Juliette, have been telling him to -- for everyone to act as if you have the virus yourself so that you don't spread it. And you don't catch it and that's what you should be doing.

Yet, he shows up at a hospital with very sick people. He's the head of the task force and he doesn't wear a mask. Come on.

[23:25:03]

KAYYEM: Yes. I know. It's a -- it's a --

(CROSSTALK)

LEMON: Where people donate plasma. I mean.

KAYYEM: Yes, I know. No. But let me just say something. I think it's not only bad for today, but I think this -- I think the president and the vice president have so poorly prepared the American public for the years, and I say years ahead. Until we get a vaccine that's distributed our lives will be different.

We talk about opening up. It's not going to be the same. Even the states that are opening up are doing somewhere at 25 or 50 percent. Masks. Not hugging, not shaking hands. Limited air travel. Limited restaurants that are at half capacity. Major sporting events more limited. Maybe no movie theaters.

This is the world that we're entering. It is hard. It is darker than the one that we exited. But we can do it if we sort of accept that that's where we're heading. And masks will be a huge part of how we protect ourselves and protect our children and protect our communities.

And they are just -- I don't know what they think. If it's like, if it's just ending by May 1. I mean, it's ridiculous. We've got years of this. And I know, and I don't mean of it. I'm not trying to be gloom and doom. I just want people to be sort of aware that we can do this. We'll adapt to it in the same way. Every time I go out now who could have thought that I would have thought, you know, that a mask would feel normal.

LEMON: Yes. Just in case I wasn't clear enough for my correction there where I said people were donating plasma. They weren't very ill.

KAYYEM: That's right.

LEMON: So again, they were donating plasma. But yet, still, that's a policy of the Mayo Clinic. Thank you. I appreciate it.

Another round of government-backed small business loans underway right now. But there are already problems as the president's senior economic adviser warns there will be more shocking numbers ahead of tomorrow's GDP report.

[23:30:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: President Trump addressing the rollout of the phase two of the SBA's Paycheck Protection Program loans.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We're processing loans at a pace never achieved before. The first 24 hours of the second round of funding, we have handled over 30 percent more loans than any previous day of the program. So far, we have processed an amazing 450,000 loans totalling over $50 billion. That's in phase two.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: But the reality is many small business owners are reporting difficulties in getting their loan application submitted, and experts worry this newest round of funding, well, it could run out in days.

Let's discuss now with CNN Senior Global Affairs Analyst, Bianna Golodryga. It's so good to see you. I wish we had better news to tell people when I do see you --

BIANNA GOLODRYGA, CNN SENIOR GLOBAL AFFAIRS ANALYST: I know.

LEMON: -- but it's so good to have you on. Let's talk about this demand for loans from the Paycheck Protection Program. It is overwhelming, Bianna, and small business owners are really frustrated. Sadly, a lot of them might not get money this time either.

GOLODRYGA: Yeah, a lot of them are hoping for the money and we have seen more steps up and this is a significant amount of money. So, let's give credit where credit is due. Three hundred and ten billion is not pocket change. Remember, we have 30 million small businesses in the United States, it's really the backbone of the U.S. economy, and you have so many small business owners who are desperate to pay their employees.

They don't want to have to lay them off. They don't want to have to furlough them. And whether it's them being delayed on phone calls with their banks, on the website, every single day that goes by without them getting that money means that they may not be able to pay those employees and, of course, you see the ripple effects if people not bring their paycheck home from that.

LEMON: Yeah. The Los Angeles Lakers are the latest -- just the latest in a list of big businesses with bad judgment that applied for the -- and got the money for the SBA. They have since returned it. But, I mean, what does that tell us about how this money is being approved, Bianna?

GOLODRYGA: Well, it tells us on the one hand that this was approved, the plan was put together quickly to get the money out. That is a good thing. But, of course, these companies that did not need the money and yet still took it and were shamed and thus gave it back did nothing technically that was illegal.

There were just no provisions in place that made sure that it was companies that could only get a line of credit from the U.S. government as opposed to banks and having relationships elsewhere. So you're going to see situations like that.

What I'm concerned about is, again, none of this was illegal. Was it in terrible taste? Yes. But now you're going to have another round where people are going to have to come back to the U.S. government and you're going to see backlash from that.

And unfortunately, you're going to see some really bad and perhaps illegal behavior and there's going to be more tension about whether that money should be doled out. And it is needed. It is desperately needed right now.

LEMON: Yeah. Let's talk about the economic damage from this coronavirus. I mean, it's catastrophic. Consumer confidence is hitting a six year low today. Over 26 million people filing for unemployment. Here's one of President Trump's senior economic advisers today on the unemployment situation.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KEVIN HASSETT, SENIOR ECONOMIC ADVISER TO PRESIDENT TRUMP: I think by June, you know, I think we're looking at numbers between 16 and 20 percent. The unemployment rate at that point will be something that is about as high as something that we haven't seen since 1930s. I think GDP growth at the second quarter is going to be a big negative number. We are looking at the biggest negative shocks we have ever seen.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: SO he is talking about numbers we haven't seen since the Great Depression. It's almost hard to fathom.

GOLODRYGA: It is hard to fathom.

[23:35:00]

GOLODRYGA: You can see it in real time when the president is speaking. And he's saying in out loud the shock that he's feeling in once again reiterating that this was his economy, the best economy in the world, all of a sudden this enemy came along, and now we have seen this economy in the froze, terrible recession perhaps approaching depression level numbers.

We're going to have to deal with the really bad GDP report tomorrow morning. That is after 23 consecutive orders. We are going to see our first decline. That decline is going to range anywhere between four to even 11 percent in the first quarter of this year. That is just the beginning of the coronavirus.

Look at the retail sales we saw in March, a drop of 8.7 percent. That is the worst we have seen on record. Consumer spending is the backbone of this economy. And that is just the beginning of this epidemic and pandemic here. The effect it is going to have on the U.S. economy is going to be painful.

Now, it's a matter of is it a few more quarters, when are we going to have a vaccine, and it is very easy to turn off the light switch. The president and many of his advisers seem to think it is going to be easy to turn it back on. I think we have to get used to a dimmer. Imagine, as much as employers want to get their people out there into their offices, they want them to be healthy. They want them to be safe.

Life has changed as we know it. And think about the consumers. Are they going to be going to the malls? Are they going to be trying on jeans that somebody else just tried on? Are they going to be going to movie theaters? Are they going to be going to restaurants? All of this is going to be changing in real time, and we are seeing this numbers coming out and they are jaw-dropping.

LEMON: Bianna, thank you so much. Appreciate it. Stay safe.

GOLODRYGA: All right. I wish I had better news.

LEMON: Yeah.

GOLODRYGA: We'll get through this. We will.

LEMON: Thank you. Debby Downer. Thank you very much, Bianna. I appreciate it.

(LAUGHTER)

LEMON: JetBlue announcing all passengers will be required to wear face masks as two more airlines say they'll provide masks for passengers but won't make them wear them. What flying will look like living under coronavirus? That's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[23:40:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: American Airlines and United Airlines both announcing tonight they will begin providing masks for passengers in May. Let's bring in CNN correspondent Pete Muntean. Pete, good evening to you. So tonight, two more major airlines are now providing passengers with masks. JetBlue started this last night, correct?

PETE MUNTEAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, United and American both really following JetBlue's lead here. The CEO of JetBlue is saying this is the new flying etiquette. You know, flight crews have been calling for this for a while now. The American flight attendants association wants a requirement of masks across every airline. They applauded JetBlue's announcement. Now, American and United are following suit to a degree. They are supplying passengers with masks although not requiring to wear them.

LEMON: So Pete, you did some traveling today. A lot of it, I heard. So tell us what you saw.

MUNTEAN: Well, I went from Washington to Atlanta and back. I can tell you that the approach airport to airport is the biggest thing on the airlines. You see people wearing masks on and off flights, social distancing in the waiting area, on the jet way, even on board. It's pretty easy to get your own row. None of those middle seats are really filled.

When you get to a place like Atlanta in a state like Georgia that is sort of relaxing its restrictions, you see people a little bit closer together, more businesses are opened, compared that to Reagan National where things are pretty much shuttered. So it's different place to place although the airlines seem to be putting in policies in place and passengers seem to be following those policies.

LEMON: Wow! That is Atlanta. I used to live in Atlanta. Look at that airport. I have never ever seen it like that. Not even on a holiday. It's interesting. I haven't travelled in so long. This is the longest I have gone without traveling. What is the mood for travellers right now, Pete?

MUNTEAN: Travellers range from reluctant to flying to ready to fly right now. You know, I talked to a few today in Atlanta, and they simply told me they just have places to go right now.

LEMON: That's it. Not really that worried about it.

MUNTEAN: Well, yeah. You know, folks said that, you know, one family was going down to Florida to try and vacation in the sunshine in Florida, leaving Atlanta. One woman was grabbing her granddaughters from her daughter's house in North Carolina.

So, the missions vacillate. It's interesting here. The TSA numbers show that folks are actually starting to fly a little bit more. The numbers have ticked up in the last few days after they cratered early this month around April 3rd.

LEMON: Is there some -- do we have some sound right here?

MUNTEAN: Yeah, I do.

LEMON: Let's play it. Let's play it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm just going to try to get out and spend a couple days on the beach, walking, some fresh air, and get some sun. They say that sun helps kill it. UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think the people who are traveling are probably healthy. They are not ill or critical or in a bad situation. So, very few people are traveling as I can look around and see.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: If you can stay home and you don't have to, don't.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[23:45:00]

LEMON: It seems to be an optimistic view.

MUNTEAN: You can hear that -- yeah. You can hear the different approaches there, you know. Some folks are saying they are ready to go. Some folks are saying they are afraid of going right now. It seems that fliers are taking the precautions seriously.

Pretty much everyone I talked to had a mask. Pretty much everyone I talked to was washing their hands regularly. A lot of hand sanitizer out there. So, folks are trying to be cautious.

You know, one approach I heard was from a woman who you heard in that sound bite. She said that, you know, she didn't really feel at risk on the airlines because she -- her rationale was that folks who are sick aren't going to be gravitating to the airlines, aren't going to be traveling, anyway.

LEMON: Yeah. Pete Muntean, thank you very much. Welcome to CNN. Appreciate your reporting.

MUNTEAN: Thanks, Don.

LEMON: So I want to bring in now Sara Nelson, international president of the Association of Flight Attendants. It is good to see you again. Thank you so much.

SARA NELSON, INTERNATIONAL PRESIDENT, ASSOCIATION OF FLIGHT ATTENDANTS: Thanks to you, Don.

LEMON: This whole idea of flying is so foreign to me now. It's very odd. I am someone who used to fly almost every week. It's interesting to be in this position now. You can see it's down 97 percent people going flying. How are you dealing with this?

NELSON: Well, it was down all the way to just three percent. We had to make sure that the industry didn't completely fall apart. We had to get funding to stabilize it. But what we have seen now is that with demand falling so low, of course, the airlines have pulled down flights and have continued that essential service because that was part of stabilizing the industry.

Actually, the airlines are providing a really important service to fight this virus, moving essential personnel around to hot spots to help fight it, moving goods and services to all of our communities to keep people safe and those who are sheltering at home. So we know when we go to work, we are providing an essential service. What has happened more recently as people are talking about returning to normal is that there has been a slight uptick in the amount of demand, not enough to support the industry.

But just a slight uptick and because the flights have been pulled down, we're seeing more and more full flights without policies that really address proper social distancing or a required wearing of masks to make sure that aviation is not spreading the virus further.

LEMON: Yeah. Well, listen, we're going to have you come back and talk more about this as we see those numbers go back up. Sara Nelson, thank you so much. We really appreciate your time, as well.

California Governor is announcing that he is looking into restarting schools as early as July. But what precautions will they take to keep everyone safe? The California superintendent of schools joins me, next.

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[23:50:00]

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LEMON: So, with states planning their reopening strategies, the big question is: What will happen with schools? California Governor Gavin Newsom says he may reopen schools as early as July. But can you practice social distancing in a school?

So joining me now is Tony Thurmond. He is the California State superintendent of public instruction. So we are so glad that you are here, Tony. Thank you very much. Businesses --

TONY THURMOND, CALIFORNIA STATE SUPERINTENDENT OF PUBLIC INSTRUCTION: Thank you.

LEMON: -- can't reopen unless schools do. But the very nature of schools, our kids are all together, they are in the classroom, cafeterias, gyms, and so on, how can this work?

THURMOND: Don, thanks. You know, I think we heard from our governor some optimism because we have seen fewer cases of diagnosis, and our governor has been signalling that we got to start to think about how we reopen schools, how we reopen businesses. Clearly, if we're going to be open for school, it's going to have to still be in a social distancing kind of way.

So imagine students wearing masks, smaller number of students in a classroom. We're going to have to have a lot of sanitizer and ability to wash down classrooms and make sure our schools are safe. Most important thing driving this decision is safety and a signal from our public health officers that we can move forward. Our governor is giving us a call, thinking forward about how schools might reopen as early as July or August. LEMON: What about teachers, though, and students who have underlying health issues? I mean, what can you do to protect them from this virus?

THURMOND: Unless something changes in terms of what we're seeing about the virus, we're going to have to continue to do all the things that we've known, that those who have underlying health conditions need to be away from places where they may be at risk. We'll be having conversations with educator groups, with administrators, you know, with parents and others, with the Department of Public Health and our Office of Emergency Services.

Tomorrow, I'll be meeting with the heads of many of those agencies. I've even convened a task force with superintendents from other states so that we can all talk about best practices as we anticipate what opening might need to be. Our first call has to be safety for our students and for the people who serve them.

LEMON: So what about ours -- sorry to cut you off. There's a delay here. What about shorter school hours? Would you consider that?

THURMOND: There is some thought that given that -- for us to have smaller class sizes, say, if we ended up with, you know, 10 students in a class, there's some consideration that we may have to have shifts in how school operates, that there may need to be a morning shift and an afternoon shift.

This is not easy work. We've got 6.2 million students who right now are all learning at home through distance learning. And I want to commend our students and their teachers and their parents for the great work they're doing through distance learning. As we think ahead, we have to think about how we might be able to open schools safely. That means smaller class sizes, sometimes in tight spaces.

[23:55:02]

THURMOND: So we've got to give a lot of thought to how we're going to do that and how we're going to do that safely.

LEMON: Good luck with getting students go back to school in California in July and August --

(LAUGHTER)

LEMON: -- when the weather is absolutely perfect and beautiful. It is all the time but it's going to be tough.

THURMOND: Yeah. It's a real consideration. I think we're all -- no one expected that we would be in this situation. There are uncharted waters. Again, I just commend our students for their resiliency. You know, if it's not safe to return, we will continue to use social distancing and distance learning.

But, you know, for the reasons that you said in some of your earlier segments tonight, we understand that we've got to look at when it's safe for businesses to reopen, when it is safe for parents to go back to work, and when it is safe for kids to go back to school.

LEMON: I've got to go, superintendent. I'm out of time. Thank you so much. We appreciate you joining us. Come back and be safe.

THURMOND: Thank you.

LEMON: And thank you for watching, everyone. Our coverage continues.

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