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New Report says Trump Called Troops Losers; New Model Projects Covid Death Numbers; Coronavirus Disproportionately Kills People of Color. Aired 6:30-7a ET

Aired September 04, 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]

ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN ANCHOR: To France at -- where President Trump was scheduled to go to the American cemetery, Bellaeu Wood, and pay respects, but then didn't go. And the story was that it was because of the weather, that it was raining very heavily and that that's why he couldn't go.

So in this new report in "The Atlantic," there is reporting, I'll read it to you. It says, in a conversation with senior staff members on the morning of the scheduled visit Trump said, quote, why should I go to that cemetery, it's filled with losers, end quote. In a separate conversation on the same trip, Trump referred to the more than 1,800 Marines who lost their lives at Bellaeu Wood as suckers for getting killed.

Trump, on that same trip, asked aides, who were the good guys in this war? He means World War I. He also said that he didn't understand why the United States would intervene on the side of the allies. Now, a couple caveats, general, before I have you remark on that.

CNN has not been able to match that reporting. And it's just, you know, an open question of what you want to believe. We know that President Trump loves a photo op. So the idea that he didn't go to that photo op is -- has always been a question of why he didn't want to do that.

What do you hear in this new reporting?

LT. GENERAL MARK HERTLING, CNN MILITARY ANALYST: Well, what I hear, Alisyn, he also commented on the fact that the secret Service said that helicopters couldn't fly and it was a long drive in traffic.

I've been to Belleau Wood. It is a -- it's sacred ground, not only for the Marines, but there are Army soldiers buried there too as part of an offensive that took place in 2018 -- or, I'm sorry, in 1918.

But the problem is, if you put a pin in a map and go to Google, from the center of Paris to Belleau Wood is about an hour drive. It's not that far. So I make of it that he is who he is. He doesn't understand service, just like I don't understand complete dedication to money and monetary goods and staying safe, as he does. We serve the country and that's what he's talking about that he doesn't understand. JIM SCIUTTO, CNN ANCHOR: Well, I don't have to tell you where Belleau

Wood stands in the minds of U.S. Marines. I mean that is hallowed ground like the beaches of Normandy. A visit there is like a visit to a religious site.

The fact is, as you know, General Hertling, these comments are not out of character with many of the president's public comments about John McCain, about disabled people. I mean in "The Atlantic" story, there's also comment that the president didn't want wounded veterans, amputees, in a parade because people didn't want the see them. I mean just remarkable.

Let me just play some of the president's past comments about John McCain, about a gold star family, just to -- just to see how that fits in with these comments. Have a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: You know, he lost. So I never liked him as much after that, because I don't like losers.

He's not a war hero.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He's a war hero.

TRUMP: He's a war hero --

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Five and a half years in a POW camp.

TRUMP: He's a war hero because he was captured. I like people that weren't captured, OK.

You've ought to see this guy, ah, I don't know what I said. Ah, I don't remember!

His wife, if you look at his wife, she was standing there, she had nothing to say. She probably -- maybe she wasn't allowed to have anything to say, George.

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS, ABC NEWS: What would you say to that father?

TRUMP: Well, I'd say, we've had a lot of problems with radical Islamic terrorism.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCIUTTO: Just to be clear, if you don't remember, the final comments there were about a gold star family who lost a Muslim son in the war in Iraq, comments on his faith there. The middle one was about a disabled "New York Times" reporter, the president appearing to mimic him, and the first one about John McCain.

You've been speaking to a lot of soldiers I know and former soldiers, General Hertling, in the wake of this story here. What are they saying to you about the president's approach and views of U.S. service members? HERTLING: Well, there's a variety of views, Jim, as you well know. But

the ones I've been talking to, and there have literally been hundreds, have said that this is vile and disgusting. He doesn't understand service and sacrifice.

You know, there's a great movie called "The Bridges at Toko-Ri," where an individual -- a famous line says, where do we get these men? I would say the same thing, where do we get these men and women who dedicate their lives to do the things that they need to do? And for the president to degrade them, to defile them in their service, as he is report to have had done, to me is just, frankly, disgusting. I don't understand it. These are people who put their life on the line.

I've been honored over my decades of service to have stood next to these individuals. And to see the kinds of faith they have in our country and what they do for our country and to have someone reportedly say these kind of things and then try and cover it up and lie about it and as Alisyn said a minute ago, that seems to be his modus operandi is to continue to lie --

SCIUTTO: Yes.

HERTLING: We've seen what we've seen. He is who he is. But it's not the kind of individual we should have as a leader and as a commander in chief.

[06:35:01]

CAMEROTA: And, Jim, let me just say that the White House --

SCIUTTO: And --

CAMEROTA: I just want to just be -- give both sides. The White House put out a statement saying this report is patently false. The president holds the military in the highest regard.

SCIUTTO: Yes.

CAMEROTA: They go on to say, this has no basis in fact and is offensive.

SCIUTTO: Well, we should also note, the president is saying this morning he has never called John McCain a loser. That's a lie. We just played the videotape there. And oftentimes you have to do that.

Thanks so much, General Hertling.

A stark contrast in two battleground states this morning. A raucous Trump rally in Pennsylvania juxtaposed with Joe Biden's somber visit with Jacob Blake's family in Kenosha. What the Blakes are saying about their meeting with Biden, coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CAMEROTA: OK, breaking news this morning. The key model used by the White House Coronavirus Task Force has a new

projection out. It projects more than 400,000 Americans will die by coronavirus by January 1st. That's more than double the current U.S. death toll.

Democratic Nominee Joe Biden will give remarks about the pandemic and the economy today. Last night, President Trump mocked Joe Biden for wearing a mask.

[06:40:00]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: But did you ever see a man that likes a mask as much as him? And then he makes a speech and he always has it -- not always, but a lot of times he has it hanging down, because, you know what, it gives him a feeling of security. If I were a psychiatrist -- right? No, I'd say -- I'd say this guy's got some big issues. Hanging down.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CAMEROTA: If President Trump were a psychiatrist -- all right, don't answer that.

Joining us now, CNN political commentator Errol Louis. He's a political anchor for Spectrum News. Also with us, CNN political commentator Bakari Sellers.

Bakari, it's just interesting, I guess, to hear what the president plays as a punch line.

BAKARI SELLERS, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Yes, I mean I think we're at the time in our country -- well, we're beyond the time in our country's history that we need someone to take this seriously. That -- those numbers are just staggering. As we know, we're creeping into flu season. Everyone's getting those phone calls. I just got mine from Walgreens and went down and already got my flu shot. We know that we're about to be on a collision course between the pandemic and flu season and that many vulnerable adults who may have had some respite, who may be going back out now, are going to have to once again quarantine and shut down and not move around nearly as freely as they have been.

But to hear the president not even take it seriously, with these numbers, shows you that with the law and order messaging, shows you that with everything else that may be going on, the economy, the largest issue looming over this election is going to be the president's failure to handle this coronavirus pandemic. And dare I say, these numbers would not be nearly as high if we had a competent leader. These numbers wouldn't be nearly as high if we had, say, Hillary Clinton as the president of the United States. And I expect Joe Biden's going to hammer that home.

SCIUTTO: Errol Louis, of course the issue of racism and protests regarding racism still a major issue. And we see that with both candidates visiting a center of that, Kenosha, this week.

CNN has a new poll out this morning regarding national attitude towards these protests. I want to draw attention to one, peaceful protests of police violence against African-Americans are justified. It came up in June following George Floyd. It's down, not dramatically, but it's down markedly since then. Is this a reaction to folks seeing some of these protests devolve into violence? And, in your view, has that damaged the broader cause here?

ERROL LOUIS, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: I don't read it as it necessarily going down all that much. It had nowhere to go but down, Jim, because these were some of the largest mass movements in American history. A number of different polls tried to sort of put together what we know about the demonstrations, and something like between 15 and 26 million Americans were out in the streets protesting in support of Black Lives Matter. So, again, it had nowhere to go but down.

As people move back to their regular lives and try and cope with the pandemic and the failures of local and federal government agencies to control it, I think it's natural that people would sort of move on.

But, no, I don't think the narrative that unrest in a couple of places, a few blocks in Portland, is going to turn off all 26 million of those people who took to the streets. I think we've got sort of a fundamental shift.

There is something called compassion fatigue. There are people who have other things to worry about, getting back to school, taking care of their families, dealing with mass unemployment. But I think we're, as a country, in a pretty good place when it comes to where we were before and after this year's demonstrations.

CAMEROTA: What do you see, Bakari, in the dip in those numbers of people who think that the protests are justified?

SCIUTTO: Yes.

SELLERS: Well, I agree with Errol on the top lines, but I also recall sitting here with you and the more handsome Jim Sciutto, whose name is John Berman, most mornings and we would ask these questions. Oftentimes, it was positive. Are we changing? Is this moment any different? And I would always respond that you have to trust but verify, right? We have to have some patience and see.

And it was -- it's amazing to me that -- that for some individuals in this country, black lives matter after George Floyd. Three months later, black lives may matter a little bit, but not so much. And so we still have a lot of work to do on this issue of race. And I -- I don't believe, and I have to remind everyone that I don't believe that the violence in Portland, as Errol said, in a few blocks are really changing people's minds that much. But I do need to remind people that if you want people to stop protesting, remember, you can simply stop shooting us in the back and putting your knee on our neck and people will gladly go home.

SCIUTTO: Yes. Watching Joe Biden there yesterday, and I want to play some sound from his interaction there in Kenosha and just get your reaction as to how he is handling this issue.

Have a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN (D), PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: The underlying racism that is institutionalized in the United States still -- still exists.

[06:45:03]

Has existed for 400 years. And -- and so what's happened is that it -- we end up in a circumstance like you had here in Kenosha and have here in Kenosha.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCIUTTO: I mean, he said, Errol Louis, the words there, "institutionalized racism," for 400 years.

Your reaction to hearing the Democratic candidate say that?

LOUIS: Yes. Well, I thought everything about that appearance really highlighted the difference between the candidates, you know? Here's Joe Biden speaking about institutionalized problems that have gone on for centuries, speaking about it with sort of a tone and a demeanor that convey a certain amount of humility, a certain amount of pain, connecting with the people in the room who are dealing with that kind of pain, deadly pain.

And, you know, the notion that a U.S. president like Donald Trump could do the same thing, we know that he can, right? He couldn't on his best day. It would never even occurred to him to sort of handle that issue.

So it presents for people, I think, a really clear choice between, how do you want to tackle this very big problem? It's not going to be dealt with in one presidential term, it's not going to be dealt with, frankly, in most of our lifetimes. But how do you want to sort of think about it? How do you want to connect with people and try and work through it? Joe Biden gave an example of what, at least, is possible.

CAMEROTA: Errol Louis, Bakari Sellers, thank you both. Great to see both of you this morning.

SELLERS: Thank you. Good morning.

LOUIS: Thank you.

CAMEROTA: As we know, the coronavirus pandemic is hitting minority communities particularly hard. So we explore why, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) [06:50:35]

SCIUTTO: Welcome back.

Statistics show that people of color are more likely to be infected with coronavirus than white people. They're also more likely to die.

CNN's Jason Carroll has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KEITH GAMBRELL, SON OF COVID-19 VICTIM: This is the last picture my parents ever took together.

JASON CARROLL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): It has been five months since Keith Gambrell lost his father to coronavirus. And, over time, his sadness has been replaced with anger.

GAMBRELL: I find myself more temperamental, I would say, over my dad. I don't think it's fair how he was treated. So it makes me very, very, very upset.

CARROLL: Gambrell says days before his death, his father had all the telltale signs of coronavirus, high fever, cough, so much trouble breathing he slept sitting up in a recliner. He says his father, Gary Fowler (ph), went to the emergency rooms of three Detroit metro area hospitals but was turned away. All three of the hospitals saying they do not discriminate, two adding they were following CDC guidelines, only admitting the sickest patients.

GAMBRELL: He was like, just take me home. He's like, they're not going to help me. They keep turning me away. They keep telling me it's bronchitis. I keep telling them that it's not. They won't listen to me.

CARROLL: And Gary Fowler died at home on April 7th. He was 56.

That would not be the only life the virus took from the family. Gambrell's grandfather also died from Covid-19.

GAMBRELL: It's very frustrating. It's heartbreaking. It's bitter. It's America.

CARROLL: In the United States, the numbers show communities of color have been hit particularly hard by Covid-19. African-Americans are dying at a rate nearly two and a half times higher than whites. Latinos and Native Americans are dying at a rate more than one and a half times higher.

DR. ESMAEIL PORSA, CEO, HARRIS HEALTH SYSTEM: There is an inequality, a social injustice, if I may describe it as, that has existed in country -- in this country for -- for several decades. All of Covid-19 has done is really just brought it to light.

CARROLL: Dr. Esmaeil Porsa is the CEO of Harris Health System, which serves a predominantly minority population in Houston. Health experts say a number of factors put communities of color at greater risk when it comes to Covid-19, including exposure at work, living conditions, and chronic health conditions.

PORSA: And the solution is improving the economic conditions of the populations, because when you do that it -- by doing that, you really are addressing everything else that befalls that population.

CARROLL (on camera): How does this feel walking like this now?

CHRISTELL CADET, COVID-19 SURVIVOR: A 150 percent improvement compared to before.

CARROLL (voice over): Christell Cadet, a paramedic with the New York Fire Department, suffered from asthma. She contracted the virus in March and ended up on life support.

CADET: Everybody pushed to make sure that I was given all the care possible.

CARROLL: Cadet says were it not for her mother, who is a nurse, and the fire department, her outcome could have been drastically different.

CADET: I think without that support, there would have been a level of ignorance and blindness of what I needed.

CARROLL: Gambrell says he knew what his parents needed. The day his father died, he said his mother, Cheryl Fowler (ph), was turned away at one hospital.

GAMBRELL: The nurse looks at my mother and tell her, ma'am, there's nothing we can do for you here. Go home, drink tea, take Tylenol for your fever, get to a hospital if you feel like you really need to go to the hospital. Like, we're here for a reason, lady.

CARROLL: Gambrell drove to another hospital across town where she was admitted and soon needed a ventilator. She survived. He and his brothers also ended up testing positive for Covid-19.

GAMBRELL: One day I can have my taste buds, one day I won't.

CARROLL: Gambrell says he has comes away with the experience with a belief that if his parents had been white, they would have received better treatment.

GAMBRELL: They wouldn't have been sent home to infect everyone in the household if they were of another race.

CARROLL: Now Gambrell says he is speaking up for his community and his family.

GAMBRELL: I took my sadness and kind of made it into anger, but pointing that anger in the right direction, trying to get this story out there as best as I can for my mom, my dad, and my siblings and just trying to make a change.

CARROLL: Jason Carroll, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SCIUTTO: One more family affected.

Well, we have so much more on the sobering, new projections about the number of Americans that could die from coronavirus this year, more than doubling the figures we've seen so far.

[06:55:03]

Dr. Sanjay Gupta, he joins us next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.

CAMEROTA: We want to welcome our viewers in the United States and all around the world. This is NEW DAY. John Berman is off, Jim Sciutto is with us.

Great to have you on this Friday, Jim.

SCIUTTO: Nice to be here.

CAMEROTA: OK, so we do have breaking news right now.

There's a new projection for the coming death toll and it is dire. The key model used by the White House Coronavirus Task Force now finds that more than 400,000 Americans could die by January 1st. That is more than double the current U.S. death toll. The model also projects that in December 3,000 people a day will die. The scientists say that the numbers will spike in December because of the flu and the declining vigilance of Americans. The U.S. is currently averaging about 1,000 deaths a day.

[07:00:00]

SCIUTTO: Well, President Trump does not want to talk about this worsening pandemic. Instead, last night, the president mocked Joe Biden for wearing a mask.