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Biden Talks Issues in Campaign; Protests in Hong Kong over Tightening Grip; Coronavirus Pandemic Reports from across the Country; Weather for SpaceX Launch; Stocks Set to Continue Rally; NHL Unveils Plan to Return to Play. Aired 6:30-7a ET

Aired May 27, 2020 - 06:30   ET

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

[06:30:00]

DANA BASH, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Paint a picture of you as somebody whose too old to be president and that you're missing a step. How are you going to combat that?

JOE BIDEN (D), PRESUMPTIVE DEMOCRATIC NOMINEE: Watch me.

Look, I mean talk about a guy whose missing a step. He's missing something, man. I don't know. I don't want to get down into giving him nicknames and -- but this is a fella who looks like he's having trouble controlling his own emotions.

What worries me is, you know, all this stuff about Biden's hiding. Well, you know, the fact of the matter is, it's working pretty well so far doing the rules. He's behind in almost every state. Doesn't mean it's going to be that way come November.

But the idea that he seems to get more erratic the more he feels like he's behind the curve.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: A lot of news, a lot of nuance there, Dana. Look, I've covered a lot of veep stakes. He actually gave you information about the vice president in terms I hadn't heard, that they've conducted interviews and that the background checks hadn't started yet. You never get that kind of information from the candidates themselves.

BASH: Yes.

BERMAN: That aside, Another issue. And he talked about Charlamagne tha God there, his interview with him. The issue of the African-American vote in November will be huge. It's always huge for any Democratic candidate. It will be particularly huge for Joe Biden. These voters carried him through the Democratic primary.

What did he have to say about their support in November?

BASH: Well, he's in trouble because of a remark that he made last week on a show called "The Breakfast Club," where he said off the cuff, if you -- for -- to African-Americans, if you support Donald Trump, you ain't black. You know, he said that that was cavalier at the time, but in the interview that I did with him yesterday, he flat-out said it was a mistake and that he was being a wise guy and that he shouldn't have said that.

But I also pointed out to him, there were other things, including the fact that he said on that same show that he had been endorsed by the NAACP in every election. The NAACP had to put out a statement saying we don't do that. We don't endorse. And so my question to him was, is this going to dampen the enthusiasm that you talked about, John, that he really needs, any Democrat needs, in order to win the presidency. And he said over and over, I will not and I do not take the black vote for granted. That is what African-Americans who are concerned about Joe Biden potentially think and that is what he is trying to reassure them is not the case.

BERMAN: So there were some significant societal and cultural news over the last 24 hours that has a political tinge to it.

BASH: Yes.

BERMAN: Which is that Twitter, for the very first time, has fact checked a tweet from President Trump. It had to do with voting.

Look, they're under enormous criticism, Twitter is, for allowing the president to say things that are reprehensible about Joe Scarborough. They didn't do anything about that. But they are weighing in on -- on what the president's saying on mail-in voting.

What did Vice President Biden have to say about that?

BASH: Well, I asked him about it. It was just before Twitter did what you just explained. And he said that Twitter, other social media companies, need to be more aggressive about taking action. You know he said to me personally, if you, as a, you know, regular citizen did something, Twitter would take action. They should do the same thing when it comes to the president.

Now, as you allude today, the company did change the policy, but the first action they took was about something important, which is that mail-in ballots, you know, cause fraud. They've put a little kind of disclaimer there saying that you need to fact check this.

But the other things that are more emotional and more difficult for people to swallow, like suggests that a cable host committed murder, they're silent on that.

BERMAN: Look, and it was interesting to me the way that Vice President Biden addressed these larger issues, saying the president's having trouble controlling his emotions. That seemed to be a specific way of addressing that I hadn't quite heard that, that way before.

As I said, this interview chock full of news. And we're going to have much more with you and this exclusive interview with Joe Biden ahead on NEW DAY.

Thanks so much, Dana.

BASH: Thanks, John.

BERMAN: All right, overnight, thousands of protesters clashing with police in Hong Kong over China's unprecedented tightening grip. This is historic what we're seeing. Details in a live report, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:38:18]

ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN ANCHOR: Now to this developing story.

Thousands of protesters clashing with police in Hong Kong over a controversial law that, among other things, would make it a crime to mock the Chinese national anthem. President Trump says a U.S. response to China's crackdown could come soon.

CNN's Ivan Watson is live outside government headquarters in Hong Kong with more.

What's happening, Ivan?

IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Alisyn.

We are witnessing a lockdown from the security forces in Hong Kong, the likes of which I haven't really seen before, where the compound has been four to five where the legislative council, that's Hong Kong's parliament, meets. You can see a police presence here. And it has largely succeeded in keeping demonstrators at bay. The police say they've arrested more than 300 people.

The national anthem law, which would criminalize mocking the anthem, has been postponed for now. There's also a great deal of controversy right now over a national security law that is being drafted in Beijing for Hong Kong which would criminalize treason and subversion and sedition. The critics say that this is chipping away at Hong Kong's autonomy, which is supposed to be kept, according to international treaties, until 2047. And you've got lawmakers on Capitol Hill that are pushing legislation that could lead to sanctions against Hong Kong from the U.S. government if that autonomy disappears.

I just interviewed the second highest official here in the Hong Kong administration and he says that any sanctions against Hong Kong would hurt the U.S. economy even more.

Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MATTHEW CHEUNG, HONG KONG'S CHIEF SECRETARY FOR ADMINISTRATION: It's a double edged sword. Any essential (ph) (INAUDIBLE) any good at all.

[06:40:04] Of course you will hurt Hong Kong, but it would definitely hurt the United States.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WATSON: Now, here's the thing that this official couldn't tell me. He doesn't know if this law means people arrested here can get dragged over for prosecution in mainland China. He doesn't know if you can get arrested for retroactive comments on social media. My take away is that the Hong Kong government doesn't really have a role in drafting this controversial national security law.

Alisyn.

CAMEROTA: Really interesting, Ivan. Thank you very much for all of the reporting from on the ground there.

Back here in the U.S., Los Angeles is taking action to stop coronavirus outbreaks in nursing homes and more universities are sharing their plans for the fall. We have reporters covering these stories and more across the country.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NICK WATT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Nick Watt in Los Angeles, where the county has just announced that they are going to appoint an independent inspector general to oversee the more than 300 nursing homes in this county during this Covid crisis. The remit (ph), prevent any unnecessary deaths. Like elsewhere in the country, nursing homes here have been very hard hit. More than half the deaths in L.A. County, more than 1,000 connected to those nursing homes. The supervisor calls it a pandemic within a pandemic.

BIANNA GOLODRYGA, CNN SENIOR GLOBAL AFFAIRS ANALYST: I'm Bianna Golodryga in New York.

The University of Colorado at Boulder announced plans Tuesday for its fall semester. And they include welcoming students back for in-person classes and on campus housing August 24th. In what's being described as a science-based yet flexible model, the intent is to create as normal of a college-like environment for students. Everyone on campus will be required to wear masks and go through mandatory safety training. Classes will be smaller and students who live on campus will be grouped into teams that will socialize, live and go to class together. The plan is expected to be in place through Thanksgiving, after which students will move to online learning and not return to campus for the remainder of the semester.

PETE MUNTEAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Pete Muntean in Washington.

And more people are flying on commercial airlines thanks in part to the long holiday weekend. The Transportation Security Administration says it screened a million and a half people between Thursday and Monday. The highest traffic, it says, was on Friday. The TSA screening almost 350,000 passengers at America's airports. Even still, that is only about 12 percent of the norm. But it is a welcome sign for the airline industry struggling in this pandemic.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BERMAN: Our thanks to our reporters around the country.

Meanwhile, it is a huge day. The countdown clock ticking toward an historic launch at the Kennedy Space Center. SpaceX will send two U.S. astronauts on a mission to the International Space Station. This ushers in a new era of manned space flight in the United States. The first time there is a launch of humans from U.S. soil in nearly ten years. That is if, if the weather cooperates.

On that front, CNN meteorologist Chad Myers has the forecast.

And how's it looking, Chad?

CHAD MYERS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: John, just you talking about it makes the hair stand up on my arms. So excited about this. I would go 50/50 with the launch today. If we really do have showers and thunderstorms on the ground around 4:30, we're not going to be able to launch. And people have asked me, why would you possibly launch at 4:30 on an afternoon in the spring or summer in Florida? It's like Tom Brady throwing a 60-yard bomb, in your terms, and the running back going out for a screen pass. Well, they're not going to connect because the screen pass is going to be here and the bomb is going to be 60 yards over his head. So we have to put these two things together to make them fly together. And for SpaceX to be able to catch up. And that window today is at 4:30.

So let's get to it right now. This weather is brought to you by Tractor Supply Company, providing pet food, animal feed and gardening supplies for your family.

We will see some showers and thunderstorms today across parts of the south, all because of what we're seeing here with that -- really a tropical low that will move into North Carolina, into South Carolina. And that will be the real threat, I think, for the Carolinas. Of course some flooding and obviously still the tropical humidity down here across the south.

It will begin to warm up across the northeast as well. We'll have that forecast for you for tomorrow.

As we're looking ahead to the weekend, all of us really here in the Weather Center looking ahead to about 4:33 this afternoon.

John.

BERMAN: All right, Chad, 50/50. I wonder if they'll make an early call given the president is headed down there. We will see over the next few hours.

MYERS: That's right.

BERMAN: Thanks for being with us.

So could a bonus check be on the way for Americans who head back to work? Details of new relief measures being considered. That's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:49:49]

CAMEROTA: Let's take a look at the Dow futures. They are pointing to another positive day on Wall Street as the market looks to build on Tuesday's rally.

Joining us now is the CNN chief business correspondent Christine Romans.

[06:50:02]

So what do you see happening here, Christine?

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN CHIEF BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: You know, the market is really pricing in a good recovery. A recovery in the economy. Almost an acceptance that you had to have this shutdown in the economy and now they're watching the economy slowly reopening and they're signaling optimism about what it's going to look like on the other end.

You know, Jamie Dimon, who runs JP Morgan Chase, had some pretty positive comments overnight about, you know, a v-shaped recovery. Pretty good odds that you'll have a strong recovery into the end of the year. The end of the year. An unemployment rate up by 10 percent, and improving into next year. So there's some optimism that with the reopening, signs the economy is going to come back to life, a strong consumer before all of this. And all of this stimulus, trillions of dollars of stimulus, there's optimism on Wall Street.

CAMEROTA: Let's talk about that stimulus because the Trump administration is considering a plan, I think put forth by Senator Rob Portman --

ROMANS: Yes.

CAMEROTA: Basically to give workers air bonus of $450 a week. They're calling it a back to work bonus.

ROMANS: Yes.

CAMEROTA: Now, you'll recall, you know, a year ago, Andrew Yang called this a universal basic income.

ROMANS: Basic income.

CAMEROTA: And back then, you know, it was considered this wildly progressive idea.

So how did they come around to embracing this?

ROMANS: It's -- what a difference a year makes, that's for sure.

Look, this is why, because right now, if you're unemployed, you're getting $600 extra a week on top of whatever the state pays you in unemployment benefits. And the Republicans who thinks that's a disincentive for going back to work. So they're considering getting rid of that, you know, it expires at the end of July. And, instead, paying people to go back to work.

Here's how Larry Kudlow put it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LARRY KUDLOW, WHITE HOUSE ECONOMIC ADVISER: It may well be. It's something we're looking at very carefully. Senator Portman has a good idea. He understands incentives and disincentives.

The trouble with the $600 plus up, and maybe we needed it in that emergency period. But, frankly, it's a major disincentive to go back to work. And we don't want that. We want people to go back to work.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: Now, the House, of course, Democrats in the House, have passed their own version of a next stimulus plan that includes $600 a week extra for those unemployment benefits I think through the end of the year, but for longer at least. So this is sort of the White House saying, no, no, no, let's pay people to go back to work, not pay people to keep getting unemployment benefits.

CAMEROTA: OK. Thank you for explaining all of that, Christine. Great to see you.

ROMANS: You're welcome.

CAMEROTA: Meanwhile, the National Hockey League outlining its plan to return to play. We have details for you in the "Bleacher Report," next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:56:48]

BERMAN: Ice hockey in August, just how God intended it. The NHL unveils its plan to start playing.

Andy Scholes with the details in the "Bleacher Report."

Andy, I mean this is different. It is unusual. But I guess at least they're going to play.

ANDY SCHOLES, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: Yes, I mean it's what they're going to have to do in order to get this season in. The Stanley Cup Playoffs in, John.

You know, there's still a lot of details to be worked out, but we should have hockey this summer, as you said. NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman outlined the league's return to play plan yesterday. He says the regular season's over and 24 of the 31 teams are going to return to the ice and go straight to the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Bettman did not say when the games will begin, but he did announce that the earliest training camps would open would be July 1st. The plans to host games in two yet to be named hub cities without fans in the stands.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GARY BETTMAN, COMMISSIONER, NHL: As we seek some return to normalcy, this is an important day, particularly for NHL fans. I know I join sports fans everywhere when we say, we cannot wait for our players to hit the ice again.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHOLES: So the NHL now has a plan.

As for the NFL, the plan has never changed. Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross believes the season is going to start on time.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STEPHEN ROSS, OWNER, MIAMI DOLPHINS: I think there definitely will be a football season this year. The real question is, will there be fans in the stands. I think, right now, today, we're planning on having fans in the stadiums. But I think the NFL is looking at, and is very flexible, so that we will be able to start on time and really, you know, bring that entertainment that's really so needed for all of us in this country.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHOLES: Yes, and as for the NBA, there's still a number of scenarios still on the table, John. One of them, according to multiple reports, is a world cup-style format where they would take 20 of the top teams and put them into groups and then two teams would advance from each group and then there would be eight teams left and do the traditional seven-game series.

And I'll tell you what, I'm all for it. These are different times. Why not try a different scenario. Who knows, people might o love it and they -- it's something they could do going forward.

BERMAN: Look, it's something. It is something. I know there are teams -- some of the most elite teams may think they won't get enough of an advantage and that some of the teams on the bottom, the fact that they get in at all isn't necessarily fair.

SCHOLES: Yes.

BERMAN: But I think in the 2020 is just a little bit different, Andy.

SCHOLES: It's different for sure. Yes.

BERMAN: And we all need to just take that into consideration.

Great to have you. Thanks so much, Andy.

SCHOLES: All right.

BERMAN: NEW DAY continues right now.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The trajectory of what's going to happen with a pandemic in each state is really very much in the hands of people in those states.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Please wear the masks. The masks are absolutely critical.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The CDC is saying that those antibody tests are wrong maybe half of the time.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We still have a long way of going to get to where we need to be.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The man in the video pleading for his life.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This was not a sudden mistake or a procedure gone bad, this was over a period of time.

[07:00:00]

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Can no longer just stand idly by and think it's going to go away, because it's not.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANNOUNCER: This is NEW DAY with Alisyn Camerota and John Berman.

END