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Joe Biden Accepts Democratic Nomination; Biden Vows to 'Overcome This Season of Darkness'. Aired 6-6:30a ET

Aired August 21, 2020 - 06:00   ET

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

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN (D), PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: Great honor and humility, I accept this nomination for president of the United States of America.

[05:59:40]

Our current president has failed. He's failed to protect us. That is unforgivable.

Light is more powerful than dark. This is our moment. This is our mission. May history be able to say that the end of this chapter of American darkness began here.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think we're going to start to see a decline in mortality next week.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Thousands of K through 12 students across the country have been asked to quarantine.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We are going to make sure these schools are safe right here. We don't think they're safe and ready, they won't be open.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

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

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome to our viewers in the United States and all around the world. This is NEW DAY. It's Friday, August 21, 6 a.m. here in New York.

A whole new phase now of the campaign, where the contours could not be more stark. Joe Biden vowing to lead the nation out of the darkness and into the light, in a speech he's been waiting to give for maybe 33 years. Democrats hoping that the wait was worth it and that, given the uncertainty plaguing the country and the pandemic weighing it down, that maybe the moment met the man.

It was an address bookended by messages of hope, quoting a poet that this is a time where justice can rise up and hope and history rhyme. So how will that message contrast with President Trump, who's decried American carnage? What does it mean for what we see next week at the Republican convention?

We have some fresh reviews this morning and new details about what the Biden camp expects to do for the next 74 days.

ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN ANCHOR: Biden also outlined what he sees as President Trump's failure with coronavirus and his own plan to overcome it. Biden spelled out how he would better protect America.

The U.S. just saw another day with more than a thousand deaths. But there are signs of progress. New cases are declining or holding steady in much of the country.

But let's begin with a wrap-up of the DNC. CNN's Jessica Dean is live in Wilmington, Delaware -- Jessica.

JESSICA DEAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you, Alisyn.

On that final night of a totally reimagined Democratic National Convention, Joe Biden, who was first selected to office nearly five decades ago to the U.S. Senate, looked into the camera and promised that he would draw on the best of America to lead this country out of darkness and into the light.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DEAN (voice-over): Joe Biden greeted supporters from a social distance, as fireworks illuminated the sky at the drive-in style finale to the first-ever virtual Democratic National Convention. The celebration after Biden officially accepted the nomination to become its presidential candidate.

BIDEN: The current president has cloaked America in darkness for much too long. Too much anger, too much fear, too much division. Here and now, I give you my word. If you entrust me with the presidency, I will draw on the best of us, not the worst. I'll be an ally of the light, not the darkness. It's time for us, for we, the people, to come together. So it's with great honor and humility, I accept this nomination for president of the United States of America.

DEAN: In his biggest speech of nearly five decades in national politics, Biden explaining why he's for all Americans.

BIDEN: While I'll be a Democratic candidate, I will be an American president. I'll work hard for those who didn't support me, as hard for them as I did for those who did vote for me. That's the job of a president. To represent all of us, not just our base or our party. This is not a partisan moment. This must be an American moment.

DEAN: And why he says it's crucial for voters to go to the polls this November.

BIDEN: This is a life-changing election. This will determine what America is going to look like for a long, long time. And the choice could not be more clear. No rhetoric is needed. Just judge this president on the facts.

DEAN: Without ever naming President Trump, Biden slammed his handling of the crises he says the nation is facing, including the coronavirus pandemic. BIDEN: Our current president has failed in his most basic duty to the

nation. He's failed to protect us. He's failed to protect America. And my fellow Americans, that is unforgivable.

DEAN: The former vice president saying he wants to help heal a hurting and divided nation.

BIDEN: Look, I understand. I understand how hard it is to have any hope right now. I found the best way through pain and loss and grief is to find purpose.

DEAN: Biden also taking time to praise his new running mate, Kamala Harris.

BIDEN: She's a powerful voice for this nation. Her story is the American story. No one's been tougher on the big banks and the gun -- and the gun lobby. No one's been tougher in calling out the current administration for its extremism, its failure to follow the law, its failure to simply tell the truth.

DEAN: And before viewers could send in their applause online, Biden made this pledge to the American people.

[06:05:05]

BIDEN: May history be able to say that the end of this chapter of American darkness began here, tonight, as love and hope and light joined in the battle for the soul of the nation. And this is a battle we will win, and we'll do it together. I promise you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

DEAN: So now we have 74 days until election day. A Biden aide telling CNN this is when the real hard work begins.

But this virtual remote convention, this reimagined convention has given them new confidence, this person said, to really campaign in this new way. So expect to see more of the same of what we have been seeing from the Biden campaign. And that's virtual events, small events kind of in this area.

No expectations right now, Alisyn, for Joe Biden to be hitting the road in any traditional sense of campaigning.

Of course, the RNC picks up on Monday, passing the baton to them. So we'll see the festivities begin there on Monday -- Alisyn.

CAMEROTA: Yes, we will, Jessica. Thank you very much for setting the table for us.

Joining us now, CNN political commentators Bakari Sellers and Jen Psaki. Jen is the former communications director for the Obama White House.

Good morning. Great to see both of you!

JEN PSAKI, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Good morning.

CAMEROTA: Bakari, let me just start with you. I know that Joe Biden wasn't your first choice of all of the candidates, and so how do you think he did last night?

BAKARI SELLERS, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: That was a -- that was a pretty loaded question there. He did great! He's awesome. He was -- you know, he got his groove. And what we saw last night was passionate Joe. And what we also saw last night is a clear contrast between the man right now who's occupying the White

House. I thought the setting was amazing. I thought that this was a very, very difficult convention to pull off, but they did. Each night, you had individuals who were able to break through the screen. I mean, it's hard to really do that well on Zoom, but you had Michelle Obama the first night, Jill Biden the second night. You had Kamala Harris on night three, and then Joe Biden capped it off. I mean, it was a -- it was a great convention. And everybody, I know, is so excited for the next 75-day-or-so sprint.

BERMAN: My question was going to be, Bakari, you know, why is that man smiling? You were on with this giant grin this morning, which I think, at least based on what I'm seeing on social media, a lot of Democrats have this morning, Jen Psaki.

And you have noted, because you worked in the White House with Joe Biden, that you've seen a lot of Biden speeches, and this was the best, if not the best you've seen him give. My question, we heard that last night, too. But why? What about it did you find so effective?

PSAKI: Well, you know, I think what he did effectively was he told the story of who he is. I mean, that was partly through the video that led into his speech, but he was able to weave in his own tragedies, his own journey, his childhood, you know, his life as the kid from Scranton who survived the loss of his wife and daughter and rode Amtrak back and forth to the Senate, with -- and connect that to what he would do as president.

So, that's hard to do. And it's hard to do in a moment when the expectations are incredibly high, but he did that while also lifting us up and giving us a vision of what a future could look like.

You know, a lot of people knew, of course, knew who Joe Biden was. He's the Democratic nominee for president. But they only knew that he was Barack Obama's vice president and that he wasn't Donald Trump. And he gave us a lot more to work with last night.

A lot of Democrats, like Bakari and others who may not have supported him in the primary, you know, something to wrap their arms around and get excited about. And that's pretty important for this period of time, just over 70 days out from the election.

CAMEROTA: Bakari, he also talked about coronavirus, and basically said it didn't have to go this way. It didn't have to become the catastrophe, the national catastrophe that it is. So here's that moment.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BIDEN: After all this time, the president still does not have a plan. Well, I do. If I'm your president on day one, we'll implement the national strategy I've been laying out since March. We'll develop and deploy rapid tests with results available immediately. We'll have a national mandate to wear a mask, not as a burden, but as a patriotic duty to protect one another. In short, we'll do what we should have done from the very beginning.

Our current president has failed in his most basic duty to the nation. He's failed to protect us. He's failed to protect America. And my fellow Americans, that is unforgivable.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CAMEROTA: Bakari, has coronavirus kind of preempted or eclipsed every other policy announcement he would make?

SELLERS: Yes, I think that what we're seeing is this is going to be -- among the many issues, I think the No. 1 issue is a referendum on the handling of coronavirus.

It's going to be very difficult for Donald Trump, plainly speaking, to overcome 150,000 dead Americans; to overcome an economy that has cratered and millions of individuals jobless because of his inaction, incompetence, and ineptitude.

And I think that it's fascinating last night, that -- to watch what a president should really look like, versus the flailing that you will see from Donald Trump.

Also to Jen's point about the oratory, I think that Jen and I both, we sit back and kind of are wonked when it comes to these speeches and try to see who gave a good speech and their settings and how they delivered it. Not mentioning Donald Trump last night was purposeful. Very intentional. And it played extremely well. Because what it looked like was Joe Biden was the adult in the room.

And so, I'm interested to see the Republican convention in the future coming up, because it's difficult to pull these off. So a shout-out to all of the staffers on both sides, who are working endless hours to give us the production, to show the better angels of our nature in this country.

BERMAN: You know, I'm curious, though, if you're a plant worker in Michigan or Pennsylvania or -- or someone at home around the country, who's lost a job because of coronavirus, and you watched this, Jen. What's in this for me, you might be asking? What is it that Joe Biden is proactively offering me?

I see weaponized aggressive empathy, and that's a thing. I mean, caring, in and of itself, is a thing, but is that enough? What else was there? PSAKI: There was a lot of substantive policy ideas in his speech. You

know, it was packed into his emotion and packed into his appeal for higher angels.

But he talked a lot about what he would do on COVID to help recovery. Not just on the health side, but including on the education side, on the economic side. He talked about building on the Affordable Care Act.

You know, what I heard a lot thematically from the convention last night was an effort to also reach out. Right? An effort to build a bridge. And that's pretty controversial, because a lot of Democrats felt frustrated that they didn't hear more red meat.

But at the end of the day, the reason Joe Biden is here is because he's somebody who can not only speak to the empathy but speak to kind of what -- what's hurting people and how he's going to fight for them.

And I thought actually when Vivek Murthy, the doctor, spoke and said Joe Biden would, you know, listen to the briefings, and he would ask tough questions or ask smart questions. That's something that sits with you, if you're a factory worker, if you're a teacher, if you're a mom, if you're a parent. And that's a stark contrast, unfortunately, to the president we have sitting in the White House today.

CAMEROTA: There was a touching moment last night. This 13-year-old, Brayden Harrington, who suffers with a stutter, talked about meeting Joe Biden and how Joe Biden told them they are members of the same club. So let's listen to this speech from Brayden.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BRAYDEN HARRINGTON, 13 YEARS OLD: Hi, my name is Brayden Harrington, and I'm 13 years old. And without Joe Biden, I wouldn't be talking to you today.

About a few months ago, I met him in New Hampshire. He told me that we were members of the same club. We stutter. It was really amazing to hear that someone like me became vice president.

He told me about a book of poems by Yeats he would read out loud to practice. He showed me how he marks his addresses to make them easier to say out loud, so I did the same thing today.

And now I'm here talking to you today about the future. About our future. My family often says when the world feels better before talking about something normal, like going to the movies.

We all want the world to feel better. We need the world to feel better. I'm just a regular kid. And in a short amount of time, Joe Biden made moving more confident about something that's bothered me my whole life.

Joe Biden cared. Imagine what he could do for all of us. Kids like me are counting on you to elect someone we can all look up to. Someone who cares. Someone who will make our country and the world feel better. We're counting on you to elect Joe Biden.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[06:15:07]

CAMEROTA: Future White House press secretary right there. That was so touching and moving. Bakari --

PSAKI: He was a star.

CAMEROTA: Yes, go ahead, Jen, what are your thoughts?

PSAKI: I mean, look, I am a mom. I have two little kids. And I get choked up just watching that, because what a brave little boy. And it tells you so much about how who Joe Biden is, and everybody has stories like that of him -- you know, he's late to events and meetings, because he spends time with a child or the mother who lost a son. That's the core of who he is.

And even looking back, you know, just on the theatrics of the convention, the stars and the people we will remember are less the political speeches, aside from, of course, the ones Bakari talked about, but more the people, the videos. Estella, the little girl whose mother was deported. Brayden Harrington last night.

That was such a brilliant way of really scripting and telling the story of who Joe Biden is and the contrast this week. And you know, I would just echo, Bakari, that the convention team deserves a lot of credit for that. It was hard, and I count myself as a skeptic going into this week, but I feel good right now.

BERMAN: Bakari, very quickly.

SELLERS: No, that was -- to quote an American hero of mine, John Berman, that was aggressive empathy. And -- and I think that what you saw last night -- and I think that we can say this with some accuracy -- that there are individuals in this country who do not feel welcome in Donald Trump's America.

But Joe Biden is, with that empathy, is showing that we have open arms and showing us what a leader should look like. And so I think that he -- Brayden was a star last night. Brayden was a star last night. And so it was very emotional, and I'm glad we were able to get through this convention. And the next 75 days is going to be a sprint for all these Democrats.

BERMAN: Look, and I think you're supposed to, as a viewer, ask the question, who could do that with Donald Trump? Where's the 13-year-old kid in America who would vouch for that moment where Donald Trump lifted him up and changed their lives? There were a lot of moments like that, too, with the family, Biden's family talking about him. How Joe Biden talked about his wife. There were moments, I think, where you were, as a viewer, meant to ask that question. CAMEROTA: Well, we'll see. I mean, we'll see next week. I'm sure that

they're going to take some cues from what they saw. The RNC will take some cues from the DNC.

Bakari, Jen, thank you very much.

And coming up in our 8 a.m. hour, John Berman's going to have an opportunity to ask that very question of Vice President Mike Pence about next week's Republican convention, as well as, of course, the latest on coronavirus.

OK, so where's the presidential race go from here? We're going to break down what we know about the Republican convention and Joe Biden's strategy going forward, which is unusual. That's next.

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[06:21:45]

BERMAN: So new this morning, with 74 days to go until election day, a senior adviser tells CNN that they are unsure if Joe Biden will ever get to campaign in person. But that the convention has given them new confidence that they'll able to get their message out, despite the pandemic.

Joining us now, CNN political commentator Terry McAuliffe. He's the former governor of Virginia and the former chair of the DNC.

Governor, thanks so much for being with us this morning. Interesting to hear that Joe Biden might never travel, might never go to swing states to campaign there.

I'm curious as to what you think we're going to hear next week from the Republican convention. They've already previewed some of the things they're going to talk about. Joe Biden, you know, four-decade Washington insider. Donald Trump would be tougher on China than the -- than Joe Biden. Crime on the streets. That's something that they continually lean into. Any of those where you think the vice president is vulnerable?

TERRY MCAULIFFE, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Well, first of all, John, he may not campaign in the fall. Health, safety, No. 1 issue. So we've got to determine where we are with the COVID crisis.

I think several months ago, if you said Joe Biden wouldn't go to the convention, wouldn't speak at the convention, Oh, that can't happen. We actually had a great convention, and real people got to talk about real issues; and it worked out. So we'll see where we are in the COVID crisis.

I think next week for the Republicans, it's -- they're going to have a hatefest on Joe Biden. I think that's very hard for them after what you just saw the last four days. The compassion, the empathy. You saw the story, which you showed earlier of Brayden. You saw Estella talk about her mother being deported. You saw Kristin talk about her father who died because Trump had not done what he needed to do in the COVID crisis. So four days of setting up who Joe Biden is: compassionate, a leader, got things done, Violence Against Women Act. I think a lot of people didn't know that Joe Biden, you know, that was his signature issue. When he campaigned for me in Virginia, that's all he talked about.

So we've laid the predicate there of who he is. I just think it's going to be hard for them next week. They can't talk about their record. That's the interesting thing. So all they can do is attack Biden. I just don't think that works.

CAMEROTA: Well, President Trump, as you know, is holding rallies around the country. Do you think that it will hurt Joe Biden politically, not to be out on the trail?

MCAULIFFE: No, I think it will hurt Donald Trump if he's out on the trail with large rallies. We've already seen this, the rallies where people have gone to in Tulsa, where people got COVID after they went to it. Herman Cain is not alive today. He had gone to that rally.

You know, Trump at the convention, he was in North Carolina. Then he moved it to Jacksonville, and then he was forced to cancel it. So he looks like a fool as it relates to a convention.

Joe Biden looked like a president. Leadership, came out and said, No, we're not going to do it. I'm keeping people safe.

So Alisyn, the more they do that is really the contrast, which you saw last night. Joe Biden will lead on the COVID crisis. He will get our economy back. And Trump and Pence will just flail around and if they want to put people's lives in jeopardy, you know, that's their choice, but it's a huge mistake.

CAMEROTA: Governor, there was something unusual that happened last night at the DNC, and that was that Julia Louis-Dreyfus, who's an actress, of course, and a comedian, sort of did a bit of a stand-up routine. I mean, she made some kind of biting jokes about President Trump. Let me play a little montage for you.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

[06:25:03]

JULIA LOUIS-DREYFUS, ACTRESS/COMEDIAN: When Donald Trump spoke at his inauguration about American carnage, I assumed that was something he was against, not a campaign promise.

We can help you find the best and safest way to vote in your state. Simply text "Vote" to 30330 to learn more. 30330. It's actually not that hard to remember. Watch: person, woman, man, camera, TV, 30330. Anyone can do it.

Just remember, Joe Biden goes church so regularly that he doesn't even need tear gas and a bunch of federalized troops to help him get there.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CAMEROTA: What did you think, governor? Was that appropriate for the DNC?

MCAULIFFE: Sure. I mean, you know, she was the star of "Veep." Everybody knows who she is. I mean, you have a mixture of four days of programming, very serious, heart-wrenching.

I mean, watching Brayden talk about his stuttering issue, I'm telling you. I mean, you want to talk about something that really gets to your heart, I mean, that was it last night.

But you know, and then, on the other hand, you're going to have comedians. But sure, I mean, it's a convention. There's something there for everybody.

And the point they're trying to make is, these are things that Donald Trump has actually done or said. I mean, he's a comedian's -- you know, they love him because of the things that he has actually said, which is almost unbelievable.

But, you know, once they get highlighted, you're responsible for the actions and the things that you say. I mean, he's had many racist statements since he's been in office. I've dealt with him. I was governor of Virginia during Charlottesville when he said there were good people on both sides. I mean, this is who Donald Trump is.

BERMAN: The criticism was that it was jarring, emotionally jarring, because that joke about going to church came right after about a video testimonial about Joe Biden's faith, which was, as I said, emotional, moving. And then you came out with that joke.

And I will say, Twitter was up in arms. There were -- all the checkmarks on Twitter were up in arms about Julia Louis-Dreyfus, saying the jokes weren't working.

I will say this, on the other side of that, is that Joe Biden for the duration of this entire campaign, has done the opposite of what Twitter wanted him to do. So maybe if Twitter doesn't like it, it means it did land. I don't know.

MCAULIFFE: Yes. There's a big much bigger, broader audience, John, as you well know.

But clearly, I say Charlottesville was his worst moment as president. Right up there is when he went to St. John's Church in Washington and held up that Bible. I mean -- so listen, they were trying to highlight.

But listen, four days very -- of who Joe Biden is. Very important. People walked away saying, I know this guy. But guess what? Joe Biden is going to fight for me. He's going to fight for my job. He's going to keep us safe. And that was what came out of that convention.

BERMAN: Terry McAuliffe, thank you so much for being with us.

MCAULIFFE: John, Alisyn, great to be with you.

BERMAN: Look forward to seeing you soon.

CAMEROTA: Great to see you, Governor. Thanks so much.

MCAULIFFE: Thank you.

BERMAN: So a new study this morning finds that nearly 75 percent of coronavirus survivors struggle with symptoms for months. More on the long-term effects of the virus, next.

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