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New Day Sunday
Global Cases Of Coronavirus Top 16 Million; U.S. Adds More Than 65,000 New Cases Of Coronavirus; Florida Surpasses New York And Has The Second Highest Number of Coronavirus Cases; McConnell Hopes To Send Next Relief Bill To House Within Three Weeks; Phase 3 Of Moderna Vaccine Trial Begins In U.S. Tomorrow; California Leads Nation With 446,000-Plus COVID-19 Cases; Arizona Hits Its Second-Highest Daily Death Toll On Saturday; CDC Pushes For Schools To Reopen In New Guidance; Senate Republicans Look To Unveil Next Stimulus Bill This Week. Aired 6-7a ET
Aired July 26, 2020 - 06:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[06:00:18]
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CROWD: That's our future.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: As we watch cases and deaths spike nationwide, we're also seeing a massive push to get kids back into the classrooms.
KELLY WILLYARD, MOTHER OF TWO FIFTH GRADERS: We as parents feel like we just got left in the dust.
DR. ANTHONY FAUCI, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY AND INFECTIOUS DISEASE: When you talk about forcing teachers to come back to school. You better be careful about that.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The first of what will be many days of goodbyes for former civil rights icon and congressman John Lewis.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thank you merciful master for the boy from Troy who was the conscience of Congress.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hurricane Hanna made landfall as a Category 1 storm on Padre Island, Texas with sustained winds of 90 miles per hour.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We just hope (ph) that (ph) the next one that's coming in doesn't end up just like this one.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN ANCHOR: It's always good to start a new day with you. It's Sunday, July 26th, I'm Victor Blackwell.
ABBY PHILLIP, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Abby Phillip in for Christi Paul today. Thanks for spending your Sunday morning with us.
BLACKWELL: So, new overnight. The number of confirmed coronavirus cases around the world, now more than 16 million. More than a quarter of those cases in the U.S. and the U.S. added more than 65,000 new cases just yesterday. And Florida, Florida now has the second highest number of cases in the country past New York yesterday and is now just behind California.
PHILLIP: Americans in all 50 states are waiting to know if more economic relief is coming. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell says he hopes to get the GOP's new relief bill to the House in the next two to three weeks. The federal unemployment benefits, however, expired this past week.
And some hopeful news. The first Phase 3 trial of coronavirus vaccine in the United States will start tomorrow. Thirty thousand volunteers are expected to take part in the study at 87 locations across the country.
BLACKWELL: We've got all the angles covered. We're going to start with CNN's Polo Sandoval. He is in New York to take a look at the numbers across the country. Some surges, some plateauing, some numbers even dropping in some areas, Polo.
POLO SANDOVAL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: And the real focus, Victor, right now is not necessarily on some of those areas that are plateauing, but of course you mentioned those areas that are spiking with thousands of more cases yesterday. American medical experts are urging political leaders to shut down the United States to try to contain this pandemic. This as we surpass well over 4 million cases now.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SANDOVAL (voice-over): Florida on Saturday became the U.S. state with the second highest official coronavirus case count passing New York, once the epicenter early on in the pandemic. The number of people being hospitalized in Florida up a staggering 79 percent since the July fourth holiday. Nearly half of Florida's COVID-19 deaths are linked to long-term care facilities. At least 50 Florida hospitals Saturday reporting they reached ICU capacity.
MAYOR DAN GELBER (D), MIAMI BEACH, FLORIDA: Every day in Miami-Dade County right now, about 200 people go into our hospitals because they're too sick. Twenty to 30 of them will likely die. A good portion of them will end up two weeks on -- in ICU and another portion will be on ventilators and survive.
SANDOVAL: Despite that and surging case numbers, there's a push to reopen bars in Florida. We're also learning heartbreaking details about Florida's youngest victim, Kimora "Kimmie" Lynum. She was just nine years old when she died last week. While Florida now tops New York in cases Texas now sits close behind New York with more than 380,000 cases of the coronavirus. Texas Saturday afternoon reported more than 8,100 new cases and 168 deaths.
MAYOR SYLVESTER TURNER (D), HOUSTON, TEXAS: We have reported 386 people who have died in the city. Not the county, but in the city of Houston. A hundred and fifty-one of those deaths came just in the month of July. We have had more people to die in July than March, April, May, June combined. SANDOVAL: Leading the nation now in confirmed cases of COVID-19, California. And Friday, 159 people died of the coronavirus in California. The most deaths there in a single day.
Arizona hits its second highest daily death toll on Saturday. Meantime, thousands not only in that state face a cutoff in critically needed unemployment benefits as Congress fights over the details of a relief bill. That could cause pain for many people in Arizona and other states.
REP. RUBEN GALLEGO (D-AZ): We're all about making sure that the working class of this country are taken care of. And we're not going to stick to strict ideology and in the process somehow destroy family incomes and family stability.
[06:05:02]
So, of course, we will look at some compromises.
SANDOVAL: As cases and deaths spike nationwide, a massive push to get kids back into the classroom come this fall. The CDC has new guidelines coming down hard in favor of reopening schools. With the new school year just around the corner families and communities are weighing whether to send their children back for in-person learning.
DR. ABDUL EL-SAYED, EPIDEMIOLOGIST AND PUBLIC HEALTH EXPERT: For parents, it's really important to prepare, to know where your kid is going to go every day. If we have to dial back on that, like we did in the spring, this could be really, really devastating for parents. And so we want to forecast with the best possible knowledge of what the future is actually going to look like rather than what administration's political priorities are for what they want them to look like.
SANDOVAL: All this as new CDC analysis showing coronavirus symptoms can stick around for weeks, even in those who are otherwise healthy.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SANDOVAL: Here in New York, testing does continue before the week has started. There were close to 70,000 people who were tested, Victor and Abby, out of those according to Governor Cuomo, about 646 tested positive. So, you're looking still at about one percent positivity rate here in New York City.
But the concern here is that it could rise with more people traveling in from some of those hotspot states and that's why those travel restrictions for dozens of states are still in place. The travel advisory, people who travel into those states to quarantine for a couple of weeks. But of course, the challenge is enforcing that.
PHILLIP: Absolutely. Polo Sandoval in New York. Thank you.
BLACKWELL: Now, Polo talked a bit about schools there and the debate over reopening them. Let go to Georgia's largest school district where some parents, some students are demanding the option of in-person classes in the fall. There was chant to the protest, kids over COVID.
PHILLIP: CNN's Natasha Chen has a closer look at the concerns on both sides of this very contentious issue.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CROWD: That's our future. That's our future.
NATASHA CHEN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): During a typical summer break, children aren't usually running toward a school building demanding to go to class. But in the midst of a pandemic, these students and parent in Gwinnett County outside of Atlanta are protesting the state's largest school district's change of heart on reopening. Going all virtual instead of offering some in class options.
WILLYARD: All of the sudden two weeks before school the rug is getting pulled out from underneath us all and we're scrambling.
CHEN: Kelly Willyard told CNN's Chris Cuomo she understands the health risks and respects parents who wish to keep their kids at home. But she and her husband also need to leave home for work during the day creating a potential child care problem.
WILLYARD: Dollywood is open. The grocery stores are open. The airlines are open. Corporate America is opening up. Gas stations, what have you. And then we as parents feel like, we just got left in the dust and you all just figure it out.
CROWD: Kids over COVID. Kids over COVID.
RUTH HARTMAN, FULTON COUNTY, GEORGIA PARENT: Look, they can protest. And that's their right. However, there's no science behind it. So, even if they decide to keep their kids, you know, make them go face to face, that's on them. I can't back that at all.
CHEN: Ruth Hartman runs an unofficial parent Facebook group for Fulton County schools. She says the argument over in class versus virtual and whether masks should be required has gotten political when it should just be about the science.
DR. DEBORAH BIRX, WHITE HOUSE CORONAVIRUS RESPONSE COORDINATOR: What I can't tell you for sure despite the South Korea study is whether children under 10 in the United States don't spread the viruses as the same as children over 10. I think that is still an open question that needs to be studied in the United States. We certainly know from other studies that children under 10 do get infected. It's just unclear how rapidly they spread the virus.
CHEN: The overall data in Georgia shows a staggering rise in COVID-19 cases with the highest number of them in the red zones including Fulton and Gwinnett Counties. In nearby Cobb County the virus is also spreading aggressively.
CHRIS RAGSDALE, SUPERINTENDENT, COBB COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT: And we are in that high spread or high transmission section right now. And we as an organization cannot add to the transmission rate increasing.
CHEN: Parent opinions vary by zip code and if they can afford child care or private tutoring. In a June survey 43 percent of Gwinnett County parents said they want all in classroom learning while just over half of them said they'd be uncomfortable with that. In the urban core, parents in the south and west parts of Atlanta were more likely to strongly prefer virtual learning compared to parents in the north. It's a preference often based on personal experience.
HARTMAN: I have actually attended two COVID-related funerals recently. I mean, it's happening. Even if it's not happening to you, it's happening. And it's terrifying.
CHEN: Natasha Chen, CNN Atlanta.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PHILLIP: And meantime, Senate Republicans could unveil their plans for the next coronavirus stimulus bill this week.
[06:10:03]
BLACKWELL: Now, there was expectation that the proposal was going to be delivered last week, but Republicans could not agree on a range of issues including enhanced unemployment payments for workers.
Let's go to CNN's Sarah Westwood. She's joining us now from the White House. So, are Republicans there any closer to agreement?
SARAH WESTWOOD, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Good morning, Abby and Victor.
Yesterday we saw White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows and Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin on Capitol Hill continuing these talks through the weekend. They have been saying consistently that they have a fundamental agreement with Senate Republicans, but there have been as you mentioned a number of sticking points along the way.
And one of the biggest ones is that unemployment insurance enhancement, the extra $600 a week that some Americans out of work are getting right now. That effectively expired last week. Although it doesn't officially expire until July 31st.
So, Republicans and the White House have been going back and forth about how exactly they're going to extend that. There's an acknowledgement though that it does need to be extended, but Mnuchin suggested yesterday that it's not going to be as large a benefit and that they want to move to a system that replaces specifically the wages that workers are losing up to 70 percent and not just a one size fits all payment. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
STEVEN MNUCHIN, U.S. TREASURY SECRETARY: We're not going to use taxpayer money to pay people more to stay home. So, we're going to transition to a U.I. system that is based upon wage replacement. And we've talked about approximately 70 percent wage replacement. And we're just going through the mechanics of that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WESTWOOD: Now, initially Senate Republicans had wanted to unveil this on Thursday. Now a GOP aide tells CNN that's most likely to be Monday at the earliest.
And keep in mind that this is just the opening offer. The hard part really will be when the Republican and the White House take this proposal to the Democrats and start trying to get to some sort of bipartisan agreement that could pass the House and the Senate.
Democrats have said they want something in the neighborhood of $3 trillion for the stimulus package. Republicans are looking at something that's closer to $1 trillion. So, they're so very far apart. That means Congress is a really long way away, relatively speaking from passing a stimulus bill if there are still disagreements just among Republicans right now, Abby and Victor.
PHILLIP: Yes, Sarah.
BLACKWELL: Sarah Westwood -- go ahead, Abby. I apologize.
PHILLIP: Yes. Sarah, thank you for that. It's also notable, Saturday is August first. Rent is due. So, while they wait a couple of weeks --
BLACKWELL: Yes.
PHILLIP: -- the country is waiting for leadership on that issue. Let's take you to Seattle now where at least 45 people were arrested yesterday after demonstrations turned violent.
BLACKWELL: Yes. So, there were about a thousand people who showed up to support protesters in Portland. Police say the people here threw rocks and bottles and fireworks at officers. And someone set fire to a portable trailer there at a construction site. We've been told that at least 21 officers were injured in the violence. But a lot of them were able to return to work.
PHILLIP: And Hurricane Hanna makes landfall in Texas striking areas that already hard hit by the coronavirus. We're going to take you there for a live update from our weather center next.
BLACKWELL: Plus, the mourning of legendary television host Regis Philbin. We'll take a look at his legacy and his master stroke of the art of conversation. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[06:17:37]
BLACKWELL: The first Atlantic hurricane of the season slammed parts of Texas yesterday. Sustained winds from Hurricane Hanna, 90 miles per hour. Also saw a lot of rain, several inches of rain.
PHILLIP: Hanna which has now been downgraded to a tropical storm made landfall as a Category 1 hurricane near Padre Island in Texas. It is one of three separate storm systems threatening the U.S. and Caribbean over this weekend.
CNN's Allison Chinchar is in the CNN weather center with all the latest. Allison, what are we seeing down in Texas with this storm?
ALLISON CHINCHAR, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes. I think the key message is even though it's been downgraded, it's not gone away. We still have plenty of rain to get from this storm.
Here you can see right now the live radar. Look at all of this moisture still being funneled in across portions of not only south Texas but also even areas of Louisiana too. So, you still have a lot more rain to go, which is not a good thing given how much rain has already fallen.
Widespread locations have already picked up about six inches of rain. But you have a couple of places that have picked up over a foot. And you still have about an additional two to four inches of rain to fall in some of these locations.
But it wasn't just rain. It was also very gusty winds. Several places reporting those hurricane strength winds and even some tropical storm. Corpus Christi picking up a wind gust of around 68 miles per hour. When you have wind gust that high it is no surprise you are going to get power outages. You have about 250,000 people without power in the state of Texas. And it is going to be slow to get that power back on because the storm isn't yet done.
It will eventually continue to push into portions of Mexico today. But as we showed you, those rain bands are still there. They are going to stay there for several more hours.
Again, notice through much of the rest of the day you still have a lot more rain to go before it finally clears out. In addition to rain and gusty winds, you also still have the potential for some waterspouts as well as tornadoes.
We're also keeping an eye on another system, this is Hurricane Douglas heading towards Hawaii. Right now winds are 90 miles per hour. Very similar to what Hanna was yesterday when it made landfall moving west, northwest at about 16 miles per hour.
You have hurricane warnings and tropical storm warnings in place for this storm. Storm surge, rip current, a lot of that is really going to be the main focus, Victor and Abby, with this particular storm. But you will also have some heavy rain bands at times pushing in through some of the islands.
BLACKWELL: Allison Chinchar watching it all for us. Allison, thanks so much.
[06:20:00]
We have with us on the phone now Corpus Christi Mayor Joe McComb. Mr. Mayor, good morning to you. MAYOR JOE MCCOMB (R), CORPUS CHRISTI, TEXAS (on the phone): Good morning.
BLACKWELL: Before we talk about damage, address life and limb. Any reports of injuries caused by or related to the storm?
MCCOMB: I'm not aware of any at this point, of any fatalities or injuries that -- we're very grateful for that. Our goal was to not have any fatalities and to my knowledge, there is none.
PHILLIP: Mayor, you know, this is coming at a time when the state of Texas is really feeling the brunt of the coronavirus crisis. What is the situation with the resources in Corpus Christi? How are first responders managing any of the fallout from this massive storm that has hit your coast and also dealing with the ongoing coronavirus situation?
MCCOMB: Well, I guess the good news is that we did not have to evacuate, which would have been a nightmare in trying to deal with evacuating the people with COVID because of the, you know, the ICU conditions and all of that. So, we're very grateful that everything got to stay in place.
We did urge people if they did have to move to higher ground or get with family members, in anticipation of the storm, that they make sure they take masks and take additional masks to -- and even wear them while they were in the house if they had a crowded condition where maybe two families are going together to ride out the storm.
So, I think we're pretty good. A lot of the city lost power. Obviously hospitals have their backup generators. So, they kept going. No interruption there. And since we didn't have to my knowledge a significant amount of damage and emergencies, I don't know that we had any additional demand on our hospitals to deal with the hurricane victims. They could just continue to focus on the people inside there with the COVID and their normal hospital patients.
So, that was a good news as far as hospitals go. We did close down obviously our testing facilities and probably won't start those back up until, I think they rescheduled them originally for Tuesday. I think probably today when the sun comes up and we do an assessment of where we are following the storm, once the sun comes out, if it's not too bad, they can get their people back together. They may start them back on Monday. But right now, I think they're going to resume testing on Tuesday. That's the plan.
BLACKWELL: Yes.
MCCOMB: But we're just kind of wait and see. It's 5:15, 5:30 here in Corpus Christi. It's still dark so we really -- not even had a chance to go out and assessment the damage other than what we've seen through different people. E-mailing or Facebooking different pictures of whatever they were around, whether it be water on the shoreline or sinking boat or something. But -- the city managers called a meeting today, about 9:00, 10:00, once we see what the weather conditions are. Looking out in the window now the wind still blowing pretty good. BLACKWELL: Mr. Mayor, pardon me for interrupting. What do you know about Bob Hall Pier? Some reports that that was damaged.
MCCOMB: Well, it was. Bob Hall Pier is I think about a 500 to 700 foot. It's owned and operated by Nueces County. But it's about a 500 or 750 feet pier that goes out in the Gulf of Mexico which is popular. And it goes out and then it's got a big T on the end so people could do their fishing.
And the way of action it just took the T off of the end of the pier. Just collapsed it and then the entrance to the pier where the water was hitting up against the shoreline, the ramp that you would get from the parking lot up to the pier, that was also -- had the concrete knocked out from under it because of the wave action.
So, that was probably -- like I said, I haven't seen or -- opportunity to go around but at least from the news reports, that seems to be the biggest surprise and the largest piece of damage that we had because it survived Harvey and it survived a lot of other big storms. But the surge just got it this time.
BLACKWELL: Yes.
PHILLIP: Yes. Well, we are grateful that there have been no other injuries that we know of so far. We wish you and the people of Corpus Christi the best of luck and cleaning up after the storm. Mayor Joe McComb of Corpus Christi, Texas, thank you so much.
MCCOMB: Thank you very much.
BLACKWELL: Thank you, Mr. Mayor.
MCCOMB: Appreciate it.
BLACKWELL: For decades, we laughed at some of his jokes and he was in our living rooms and then the big hit with who wants to be a millionaire. Regis Philbin died overnight at the age of 88.
[06:25:01]
We'll take a look at the legacy of his career.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIP: And today we're remembering the life of the legendary TV host Regis Philbin. He died of natural causes according to a family statement.
BLACKWELL: Yes. Philbin co-hosted so many television shows. Of course, people remember "Live with Regis and Kathie Lee" which was eventually became "Live with Regis and Kelly."
PHILLIP: And over the years, Philbin also hosted Miss America pageants and game shows like ABC's "Who Wants to be a Millionaire." CNN's Richards Roth reports on the reactions to his passing.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KATHIE LEE, TV HOST: Reg --
REGIS PHILBIN, TV HOST: Yes?
LEE: -- your lips are chapped.
PHILBIN: That's right, Frank. Take the tight close up.
RICHARD ROTH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Blessed with the gift of gab, Regis Philbin spent his career in the spotlight. He co-hosted TV's long running "Live with Regis and Kathie Lee" and later "Live with Regis and Kelly."
[06:30:06]
PHILBIN: I won one, a big, best host, daytime host, when I was in between co-hosts, ironically enough.
We have a malfunction here.
KELLY RIPA, AMERICAN T.V. HOST: We're having a wardrobe malfunction. And --
PHILBIN: Yes. And it's fun. I've been enjoying it.
ROTH: His quick wit and spontaneous adlibs charmed T.V. audiences for decades, a talent he credited to his Irish-Italian upbringing.
PHILBIN: My mother had a lot of sisters and brothers and nephews and nieces, and they all would converge at our home in the Bronx.
I think that gave me whatever talking ability I had, because if you didn't talk with them, you weren't going to get a word in edgewise.
ROTH: Philbin was born August 25, 1931. Despite his parents' large extended family, Regis Francis Xavier Philbin was an only child until he was in college when his parents had another son. He graduated from Notre Dame with a sociology degree then served in the U.S. Navy.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's wild to wear it like that.
PHILBIN: What does that mean, Sam? Does it have any special significance?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, it's like a thing, man. That's his thing.
PHILBIN: I'm glad he finally got one.
ROTH: The Bronx native eventually landed a spot as comedian Joey bishop's sidekick on the Joey Bishop show. The gig gave him access to the Rat Pack, Hollywood's royalty in the late '60s.
More co-hosting jobs and other television roles came along. He even shared a spotlight with his second wife, Joy, who often filled in as co-host on his live show. Philbin racked up some huge camera time morning and night. In 2011, he broke his own Guinness World record for the most on camera hours on U.S. T.V.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A Guinness Record, 16,746.5 hours.
ROTH: He proved he could charm nighttime audiences hosting the ABC's quiz show, Who Wants to be a Millionaire.
PHILBIN: Let's play millionaire right now.
ROTH: Philbing was a frequent guest on The Late Show with David Letterman, even filling in for him when the late night hot underwent quintuple bypass surgery.
PHILBIN: You've stiffened (ph) at 10:00 and worked out at 1:00, right?
DAVID LETTERMAN, HOST, THE LATE SHOW: What do you think Einstein?
PHILBIN: Excuse me? The guy calls this morning, Regis, you know, please come. It will be co-host, it will be something new. Please, please, Regis.
ROTH: Philbin often said it was his work, the exchanges with numerous co-hosts and guests that gave him lasting satisfaction. For a man with so many questions, he spent his life sharing the answers with us all.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PHILLIP: What a life and a legacy.
Let's bring in CNN's Chief Media Correspondent and Host of CNN's Reliable Sources, Brian Stelter. Brian, he was known as the hardest working man in show business. And you can see from that lengthy career why that is. I mean, he's a mainstay in so many people's living rooms. What a loss.
BRIAN STELTER, CNN CHIEF MEDIA CORRESPONDENT: Yes, a 60-year career on television, tracing the history of the medium of television as a broadcast tool. And that is why Regis was beloved. He brought joy to the lives of millions of people through his broadcasts, first on local radio and T.V. and then nationally on Live with Regis and Kathie Lee.
And we've seen tributes this weekend from people like Kathie Lee Gifford who wrote on Twitter very simply and very poignantly, there will never be another. That was Kathie Lee's message this weekend.
We've also heard from the current hosts of the program that Regis and Kathie Lee started. Of course, Regis co-hosted with Kelly Ripa for many years. He left that program in 2011, went out on top about a decade ago. And now that program is co-hosted by Ryan Seacrest.
Here is what Kelly Ripa and Ryan Seacrest said in a statement overnight. They said, we are beyond saddened to learn about the loss of Regis Philbin. He was the ultimate class act, bringing his laughter and joy into our homes every day on Live for more than 23 years. We were beyond look I to have him as a mentor in our careers and aspire every day to fill his shoes on the show.
Kelly and Ryan concluded in the statement by saying, we send our deepest love and condolences to his family and hope they can find some comfort in knowing he left the world a better place. So that's a statement from the current hosts of that program.
But it's a testament to Reg -- I want to call him Reg still -- to Regis Philbin's career and his success that sometimes I still turn on the T.V. at 9:00 A.M., I still think he's going to be there. He left a real mark on morning television and helped to define the morning talk show format. And, I think, ultimately, it's about companionship and he was the ultimate companion, someone you wanted to spend time with through the television.
[06:35:06]
BLACKWELL: Yes. And we saw that in that transition from when Kathie Lee Gifford left the show and Kelly Ripa when won that Emmy, still being that companion to this list of (INAUDIBLE).
He also had this influence, and I don't know if you rocked (ph) it, Stelter, but I did, the monochromatic shirt and tie from who wants to be a millionaire, when that was hot. I mean, I don't know if it was silk or satin. Mine was probably some man-made chemical version because I didn't have much money. But, yes, we saw the former president there wearing it. I think --
STELTER: I love it, so many influences.
BLACKWELL: Yes, he did.
STELTER: If you think about, Who Wants to be a Millionaire was the biggest show in the world, and that was partly thanks to Regis Philbin. He made it so entertaining and so interesting. It really -- he made it look easy, but it can be hard on television to keep a conversation going, to make people comfortable, to make a stressed out guest feel relaxed in the chair. He had all of those qualities. He was an extraordinarily charming conversationalist.
I notice David Letterman who -- as Richard Roth mentioned, Regis would be on David Letterman's show, the two of them were friends. Letterman put out a statement overnight saying, Regis was always my best guest. He was in the same category as Johnny Carson. He was charming, lovable and could take a punch.
And when you're a talk show host, like David Letterman, that's all you want. You want someone who can be there and make the show better and Regis made every show he was on better.
PHILLIP: And he was funny to boot, which helps a lot. Brian Stelter, thank you so much for that.
You can catch more of Brian later today on Reliable Sources at 11:00 A.M. Eastern Time later this morning. BLACKWELL: Well, celebrating a hero, family members and politicians, civil rights leaders in Alabama to remember and honor Congressman John Lewis as they prepare to see him across the Edmund Pettus Bridge one final time.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[06:40:00]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROSA MAE TYNER, JOHN LEWIS' SISTER: He lived with a never ending desire to help others. He often told us, if you see something wrong, do something. His actions showed us just that. In a time when going to jail was perceived as trouble, he reminded us that it was good trouble, necessary trouble. See something, say something, do something.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLACKWELL: That was Miss Rosa Mae Tyner, the late congressman, John Lewis' sister. We know that this morning, memorial services will continue to celebrate his life. We've seen the service yesterday at Troy State University there.
Congressman Lewis will be honored again with a short prayer and a song at Brown Chapel AME in Selma. And after that, his casket will be carried through the streets of Selma to the foot of the historic Edmund Pettus Bridge, and then military honor guard will lead a horse- drawn hearse carrying Lewis across the bridge for a final time.
PHILLIP: Later this afternoon, his body will be taken to the Alabama State Capitol in Montgomery. Alabama's governor, Kay Ivey, is expected to participate in a short welcoming ceremony, and Lewis will then lie in state inside the capitol.
BLACKWELL: And we know that there will be more services throughout the week on Monday and Tuesday. Lewis will lie in state of the Capitol rotunda in Washington, D.C.
PHILLIP: And on Wednesday, there will be a special ceremony before Lewis lies in state at the Georgia State Capitol rotunda.
And on Thursday, a celebration of life will be held at the Ebenezer Baptist Church Horizon Sanctuary in Atlanta, Georgia. Lewis will be then laid to rest at the South-View Cemetery in Atlanta.
BLACKWELL: Well, still ahead, a lockdown and state of emergency in North Korea after the country reports its first suspected case of coronavirus. How leaders think it may have gotten into the country.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[06:45:00]
BLACKWELL: North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has convened an emergency meeting after reports of the country's first suspected case of COVID- 19.
PHILBIN: The patient is in isolation and under quarantine. Isolation measures are in effect for the border area near the town of Kaeson City.
CNN's Paula Hancocks has the latest on this story.
PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: This is the closest that North Korea has come so far to admitting the coronavirus is within the country. Now, we know from state-run media KCNA that Kim Jong-un, the leader, convened an emergency politburo meeting. And within that, he and his elite agreed to enact a maximum emergency system.
Now, according to KCNA, Kim Jong-un said that there have been a, quote, runaway, what we know as a defector who had left North Korea about three years ago, and then back on July 19th, had crossed back in North Korea, across the DMZ.
Now, the South Korean military say that they are looking into this, to try and confirm whether or not that was the case. But, according to KCNA, this particular individual did show symptoms, uncertain results was from a medical checkup. And so the individual was put into strict quarantine, as were many others, according to this article, Kaeson, which is a border city just along the DMZ.
Now, up until now, North Korea has claimed they have zero cases within the country. This is something that authorities and officials around the world simply did not believe. They did close off the border very early on and they're one of the very few countries in the world that can completely isolate in this respect. But this is really the first time that we have heard any indication and it's coming from the top, from Kim Jong-un, the coronavirus is in North Korea.
Paula Hancock, CNN, Seoul.
PHILLIP: And a quick programming note for you. Tonight on CNN, join Fredericka Whitfield for a look at the countless ways unconscious bias impacts our lives.
[06:50:02]
Here is a little preview.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We're dealing with the issue of COVID-19 right now all over the country and we're also in the midst of that trying to deal with racial bias because we know bias is more likely to come forth when we're living in situations of scarcity. So when there's scarce resources, so like, for example, when not everyone has access to testing for COVID or not everyone --
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Tempers flare.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Tempers flare, and, yes, and you could show up at the hospital and how do you know who is going to get tested and who isn't, who is going to be turned away, who is going to be given a bed, who is going to be given a ventilator, so, all of those situations, when there's scarcity, bias could be more likely.
And then you mentioned tempers flaring. If you think about bias in terms of healthcare workers who are working in these overwhelming conditions, where they're tired and they're overworked, they're having to work long hours, make all these split second decisions, those decisions under which bias can come alive as well.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PHILLIP: This will be a must-watch. Unconscious Bias, Facing the Realities of Racism, airs tonight at 8:00 P.M. Eastern Time.
BLACKWELL: And we watched the Yankees and the Nationals. Many of them kneeled before the season opener, a couple of days ago, soccer players around the world kneeling as well. And players in the WNBA, what they chose to do made a pretty big statement as well. We will show this to you after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[06:55:00]
BLACKWELL: On Thursday, we watched the Yankees and the Nationals kneel before the game, not during, but before the national anthem.
PHILLIP: But over at the WNBA, they seem to be a little bit past that conversation once the season tipped off yesterday. The players didn't kneel. They actually walked out.
Coy Wire is with us right now. Coy, the message they sent was loud and clear. At the WNBA, they are not new to this issue of standing up for social justice.
COY WIRE, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: Yes. Good morning, Abby and Victor.
Long before it became more of a norm for athletes to protest, WNBA players were out in front fighting for social justice. Several players opted to sit out this season to focus on social justice initiatives, including one of the league's biggest stars, Maya Moore, who is doing so for a second straight season. This is, as you said, Abby, nothing new to these players.
Before tipoff in Florida, the WNBA, holding a 26-second moment of silence for Breonna Taylor, she was 26 years old. Her name will be on every player's jersey this season as part of the Say Her Name campaign. And there you have the New York Liberty and the Seattle Storm walking off the court as the anthem played, saying afterwards that, look, this isn't a political issue, it's a human issue that we're shining light on.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) SUE BIRD, SEATTLE STORM: Today in this season is about honoring Breonna Taylor's life and it's about bringing awareness to the fact that her murderers have not been brought to justice.
NNEKA OGWUMIKE, L.A. SPARKS/WNBPA PRESIDENT: This is certainly an evolution for many. And for us, I feel as though our evolution has more to do with the eyes and the ears that are on us and the prominent figures that could really help us be progressive and expect (ph) change while we express ourselves as powerful women on the court.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WIRE: Powerful message from powerful women.
Now, for the games, here is the first pro bucket of number one overall pick by the New York Liberty, Sabrina Ionescu. The star rookie had her moments but scored just 12 points shooting under 25 percent in an 87- 71 loss to the Seattle Storm.
Play of the day though goes to L.A. Sparks star Brittney Sykes standing just 5'9', get that out of here, rising up, flying high, rejecting the shot of 6'9", Brittney Griner. Sparks beat (ph) out Phoenix by 23 in that game.
Now, the National Women's Soccer League doing something today we haven't seen since February. They're holding a championship. The Chicago Red Stars and Houston Dash playing on the finale of the month- long challenge cup from their bubble in Utah at 12:30 Eastern, leading the way as the first U.S. pro team sports league to return to action last month. The NWS is also going to help so-called double leagues. No reported positive tests during the tournament.
All right, Rockies pitcher Daniel Bard hasn't pitched in the Majors in 2,646 days, more than seven years, battling a case of the mythical yips (ph), his long journey back now complete. The 35-year-old getting a win against the Rangers yesterday in his home state coming in, in relief in the 5th and holding to give the Rockies their first win of the season.
After the game, his manager, Bud Black, said that Bard simply walked off the mound and said, that was fun. Daniel Bard, welcome back.
OK, here we go. We have first cardboard cutout calamities of the baseball season, the Braves' Adam Duvall hitting a rocket right into a canine cutout. This is the Mets' one-year-old doggie, Willow McNeil, the doggie daughter of all-star of Jeff McNeil 5-3.
And how about the Dodgers' Will Smith, nearly decapitated this poor cutout during the ninth inning of their 5-4 loss to the Giants. That left a serious mark. (INAUDIBLE) filling anywhere from $30 to $500 to see themselves on cardboard.
[07:00:01]
Now, Victor, Abby, I too have my cardboard cutout. I'm a huge fan. As you see, I ran out of ink.
