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Early Start with John Berman and Zoraida Sambolin
Trump Denies Lying About Severity Of Coronavirus; Republican Stimulus Bill Fails To Advance In The Senate; Microsoft: Russian, Chinese, Iranian Hackers Targeting U.S. Election. Aired 5:30-6a ET
Aired September 11, 2020 - 05:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[05:32:41]
LAURA JARRETT, CNN ANCHOR: President Trump stoking fear and deflecting blame as he denies that he misled the American people about coronavirus.
Good morning, this is EARLY START. I'm Laura Jarrett.
BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR: Great to be with you this week, Laura. I'm Boris Sanchez in for Christine Romans. We are 32 minutes past the hour.
And we begin with President Trump desperately trying to convince Americans that he did not conceal the severity of the coronavirus pandemic even though he did. It's on tape, in his own words, he played it down.
He told Bob Woodward, in February, that the virus is five times deadlier than the flu and that he was intentionally downplaying it.
Here is the president getting grilled yesterday by reporters, attempting to rewrite the narrative.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JONATHAN KARL, ABC NEWS CHIEF WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Why did you lie to the American people and why should we trust what you have to say now?
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: That's a terrible question and the phraseology. I didn't lie.
What I said is we have to be calm. We can't be panicked. Of course, I didn't -- of course, I didn't -- no, no, no, no --
KARL: You people you knew that it was deadlier than the flu and you went out and told the American public that this was just like the flu.
TRUMP: Let me tell you something. We've had flu years --
KARL: You told Bob Woodward one thing and you told everybody else something else.
TRUMP: No -- and five times, right, five times. You ever hear the expression five times?
We've had flu years where we lost 100,000 people. The flu is a very serious problem for this country also and we've been losing them. Scott, what kind of a number have we lost over the years with flus -- into the hundreds of thousands?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, I mean, the last five years have been something like 35,000 to 80,000 per year, every year, and it's even with antiviral drugs.
KARL: But you told Bob Woodward --
TRUMP: But just so you --
KARL: -- this is worse than the most -- deadlier than the most strenuous flu --
TRUMP: OK.
KARL: -- and then you went out and said it's just like the flu.
TRUMP: What I went out and said was very simple. Listen, what I went out and said was very simple.
I want to show a level of confidence and I want to show strength as a leader. And I want to show that our country is going to be fine one way or the other, whether we lose one person -- we shouldn't lose any because this shouldn't have happened. This is China's fault.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: Now that so many of those lies about the virus have been exposed, Trump has continued to turn to fear to drum up enthusiasm among his base of supporters. Listen to this.
[05:35:00]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: Does anybody want to have somebody from Antifa as a member and as a resident of your suburb? I don't think so.
Say, darling, who moved in next door? Oh, it's a resident of Antifa. No, thank you -- let's get out of here. Let's get the hell out of here, darling. Let's leave our suburbs.
Oh, I wish Trump were president.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: The president talks about not wanting to cause a panic, yet he speaks about Antifa and makes claims about caravans full of migrants coming to the United States because it boosts his standing among supporters.
This rally last night in Michigan, the 16th the president (audio gap) held, when he confirmed he knew how deadly this virus was and that it (audio gap).
CNN's Jim Acosta has more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JIM ACOSTA, CNN CHIEF WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Boris and Laura, during a rally in Michigan, the president largely steered clear of the Bob Woodward book that captured Mr. Trump downplaying the coronavirus pandemic.
During his speech, the president attacked Joe Biden but also went after the governor of Michigan, saying she doesn't know what she's doing when it comes to the coronavirus.
The president said that during a rally at an aircraft hangar where thousands of people were not practicing social distancing and many were not wearing masks.
The president went on to explain one controversial excerpt from the Woodward book when he tells the author about a top-secret nuclear weapons program, and here's more about what the president had to say about that.
TRUMP: You know, with the fake news today, I said and we have systems, and missiles, and rockets, and military you'll take -- we have systems that you've never even seen before. President Xi has nothing like it, Putin has nothing like it. Nobody has anything like what we have.
And they said is he giving away military information? No. I'm saying we have the greatest weapons in the world. That's what I'm saying.
ACOSTA: During his remarks, the president also claimed that the U.S. is rounding the corner on the coronavirus pandemic. Of course, that is not the case as the U.S. is projected to potentially double the number of dead in this country right now -- Boris and Laura.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
JARRETT: Boris, you know, it's interesting. Jim Acosta actually talked with some of the folks in the crowd last night about why they weren't --
SANCHEZ: Yes.
JARRETT: -- masks, and their answers were so revealing. They said the virus is fake, that's it's made up. And then even though Acosta confronted them with the fact that even the president has admitted now on tape with Bob Woodward that this virus is real and it's deadly, they still don't believe it.
SANCHEZ: Yes, it's really notable that there's this sort of cognitive dissidence that even though the president has repeatedly come out and acknowledged that this is something deadly, even though he acknowledges to Bob Woodward that he tried to downplay it --
JARRETT: Right.
SANCHEZ: -- there is a belief among so many of his supporters that this is not something to be taken seriously.
We saw very little, if any, social distancing at that rally. As you noted, folks not wearing masks. And yet, the president, instead of saying this is what we can do to avoid those countless deaths going forward, he mocks Joe Biden for wearing masks. He sort of plays coy about the whole thing.
JARRETT: It's just so unfortunate. You just wonder how different this could have been if it was handled differently from the beginning --
SANCHEZ: Right.
JARRETT: -- whether people would still feel that way.
Well, apparently, nobody is more impressed with the president's handling of the coronavirus than the president, himself. He's now comparing himself to the likes of Franklin Roosevelt and Winston Churchill. He said this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: America will prevail over the China virus. As Franklin Delano Roosevelt said, the only thing we have to fear is fear itself. As the British government advised the British people in the face of World War II, keep calm and carry on. That's what I did.
This whack job that wrote the book, he said well, Trump knew a little bit. And they wanted me to come out and scream people are dying -- we're dying. No, no, we did it just the right way. We have to be calm. We don't want to be crazed lunatics.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
JARRETT: The person that he talked to 18 times, he's now calling a whack job.
And a little problem with (audio gap) famously blunt about how bad the war could get for the British (audio gap) people (audio gap) what Trump just said -- listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
WINSTON CHURCHILL, FORMER PRIME MINISTER OF THE UNITED KINGDOM: Nevertheless, our thankfulness at the escape of our army and so many men whose loved ones have passed through an agonizing week must not blind us to the fact that what happened in France and Belgium is a colossal military disaster.
(END VIDEO CLIP) SANCHEZ: Also this morning, a new warning from the nation's top infectious disease expert. Dr. Anthony Fauci says the next few months could be daunting.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DR. ANTHONY FAUCI, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY AND INFECTIOUS DISEASES, NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH: I just think we need to hunker down and get through this fall and winter because it's not going to be easy. We know every time we restrict -- we lift restrictions we get a blip. I mean, it's getting -- it's whack-a-mole.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[05:40:10]
SANCHEZ: More than 191,000 (audio gap) coronavirus with nearly 900 in the last 24 hours.
JARRETT: Well, France just set a new record for coronavirus cases in a 24-hour period. With a (audio gap) reported on Thursday, the total number of confirmed cases in the country now tops 354,000 with nearly 31,000 dead.
Jim Bittermann live from France with the very latest developments. Jim, nice to see you this morning. Any sense of whether the government is going to impose new lockdown measures given this spike?
JIM BITTERMANN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, it certainly looks like it, Laura. In fact, there's a meeting going on right now with the scientific committee that advises the presidency. And basically, the president of that committee said before things got started that, in fact, there's going to be some difficult decisions ahead.
France went through a pretty stiff lockdown here for several months, then they released some of the -- and relaxed some of the restrictions that were imposed. And, of course, just as Dr. Fauci just said, they immediately saw the caseload going up. And over the last few weeks, it's gone up rather dramatically -- 9,000 -- more than 9,000 cases yesterday (audio gap) over the last week.
It should be said that they are now (audio gap) testing people a week here. So, in fact, the tests are revealing a lot of bigger spread of the virus than people thought.
But now, they're going to -- they're talking about perhaps locking things down again -- not overall and not over the entire nation -- President Macron said they didn't want to do that -- but they'll probably do it geographically by hotspot-by-hotspot around the country -- Laura.
JARRETT: All right, Jim. Thank you so much for all of that reporting from France.
SANCHEZ: Coronavirus cases in India are spiking at an alarming rate. More than 96,000 cases reported in the last 24 hours. That is a record high and it makes India the second-most infected country in the world.
CNN's Vedika Sud is live in New Delhi with the latest. Vedika, we understand the mortality rate in India is relatively low compared to the rest of the world and officials there have used that to try to reopen some parts of the country. But that doesn't really paint a full picture of what's happening.
VEDIKA SUD, CNN REPORTER: Absolutely, Boris. And I'm sure when you read 96,500 new infections and more, you were quite stunned at that number and (audio gap).
Now, what experts here are saying is -- especially in rural areas -- India has a population of 70 percent in rural areas, in fact -- a lot of people are not being tested for COVID-19 but are unfortunately dying of the infection. So what happens is their deaths are not registered under COVID-19 deaths, and that's one main reason why you see that they are not added to the fatality rate. According to the government of India, the fatality rate here in India is relatively less when compared to other countries across the world.
But yes, you're right. The government has been talking about the high recovery rate. According to them, it stands at about 77 percent as of this morning, and its low fatality rate, which is less than two percent to reopen the economy.
But at the same hand -- at the same time, actually, you've had the government come out and say India needs to coexist with COVID-19. There's no other way out.
You know our GDP numbers in the second quarter, it's really been severe. And one of the most severe contractions across the world when past India's economic (audio gap) India reopening. And a lot of cases (audio gap) because of that testing, which has crossed 54 million deaths as of this morning with India testing about a million samples a day.
Back to you, Laura and Boris.
SANCHEZ: All right, Vedika Sud reporting from New Delhi. Thanks so much.
JARRETT: Well, the push to restore enhanced unemployment benefits for millions of Americans out of work right now failing to advance in the Senate. After weeks of debate over the size and the scope of the plan, Republicans wound up supporting the proposal in a largely party-line vote. Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul was the only Republican to vote against the measure.
Democrats, meanwhile, called the plan inadequate, saying it did not provide enough food assistance on top of state and local government support.
SANCHEZ: We are 44 minutes past the hour. And the glass ceiling on Wall Street has been shattered. Details, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) [05:48:42]
JARRETT: Welcome back.
Observances get underway later this morning as America marks 19 years since the September 11th attacks. This morning, a blue tower of light rises from the Pentagon. Ceremonies will be scaled back this year because of the pandemic.
And also, here's a live look at Lower Manhattan in New York.
This evening, a light will rise in tribute from where the Twin Towers once stood. Vice President Mike Pence and Democratic nominee Joe Biden will attend a ceremony there this morning.
Joe -- and Joe Biden will also visit the Flight 93 National Memorial in Shanksville, Pennsylvania later in the day. President Trump and the first lady are expected to be there for a ceremony this morning.
SANCHEZ: Russian, Chinese, and Iranian hackers have all attempted to hack individuals and organizations that are involved in the 2020 presidential election. The news coming from Microsoft.
Top U.S. cybersecurity officials confirming what Microsoft detected -- multiple attempts to compromise e-mail accounts. Those officials say that so far, there is no evidence election systems have actually been affected.
JARRETT: All right, to CNN Business Now. For the first time ever, a major Wall Street bank will be led by a woman.
Let's bring in CNN's emerging markets editor John Defterios. John, a lot of people saw this news and thought well, it's about time.
[05:50:00]
JOHN DEFTERIOS, CNN BUSINESS EMERGING MARKETS EDITOR: Yes, I was going to say exactly the same thing, Laura -- this long-overdue appointment. But it's getting a lot of attention because Citi is so big in the United States but also globally as well, with $2 trillion of assets.
Scotchwoman Jane Fraser is taking over in a very difficult time, though, I have to say. A big challenge with COVID-19, likely to linger in the U.S. economy for a few years.
While the private sector has been slow to respond to gender balance -- let's put it that way -- not so in the public sector. Names like Christine Lagarde, who ran the IMF for years, now at the European Central Bank as president. Janet Yellen, who was vice-chair at the Fed and then became chair four years as well after that.
So, we have another story here of the ouster of a CEO, though, from a major mining company. Jean-Sebastien Jacques pushed out at Rio Tinto because of the blowing up of an indigenous site in Western Australia. This was a sacred site, 46,000 years old. They had court clearance to do it, Laura, but they weren't expecting the public backlash and it went very fast, that's for sure.
Before we let you go let's take a look at U.S. futures above the line today with the Dow and S&P hovering around three-quarters to nearly one percent. And the Nasdaq -- again, the outperformer -- up 1.3 percent right now. If it plays out this way it would have been too down sharply, too up sharply in this very volatile market that we talked about 24 hours ago.
Back to you.
JARRETT: All right, John. Nice to see you this morning. Thanks so much.
SANCHEZ: A police officer in Hartford, Connecticut is quite literally watching over his community. Officer James Barrett makes regular check-ins on the city's homeless population going beyond the call of duty.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DESTINY RYAN, FORMERLY HOMELESS RESIDENT: He is just one of those officers who became a police officer but didn't forget that he's still a human being. So he knows what it's like to struggle and be in the streets and not have anybody there to help you.
OFFICER JAMES BARRETT, HARTFORD POLICE DEPARTMENT HOMELESS OUTREACH: I have approximately over 850 homeless that I monitor and maintain in the capital city here in Hartford.
When they see my truck pulling around the corner it's like the ice cream truck. When they see the big police mobile van, they know that Officer Barrett is coming --
You just need clothes, right?
BARRETT: -- with any supplies that they need. I'm there to take care of them.
You need socks, underwear?
They will spread the word and within 10 minutes I would have at least 30-plus people migrating towards my location.
All right, take care of yourself. All right, you want a t-shirt?
I made a pact to myself when I joined the police force is to protect the community and serve it. You know, I did 21 years in the Army. I try to use that core value as living the NCO creed --
You're welcome.
-- you don't leave a man or woman behind. So I kind of incorporate that with the leadership that I developed in the military and I try to bring that into the streets.
Yes, I got your socks. You want some more socks? I go out in the streets, see their concerns, see what they need. I address the critical needs, such as basic hygiene equipment, t-shirts, pants, food, water.
You're welcome.
Just the basic stuff. To you and myself, it's not much. But for someone that doesn't have it, it's something huge.
Due to the pandemic, it's hard because most of our social services and our programs and churches are closed, so doing what I'm doing is very critical.
You've got my card, right?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, yes.
BARRETT: See if you can get in that shelter.
RYAN: He's doing a lot more than just standing out here doing only waters and t-shirts. He's really giving the homeless community and the addictive community a chance.
BARRETT: I give them a sense of hope. I give them moral support. I'd be a mentor -- a positive mentor in their life.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This is my favorite truck. Officer Barrett, he looks at us as people that are in need and he has helped a lot of people.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Not everybody cares like he does. He'll help you mentally and physically, you know. He'll just give you that advice, that motivation to keep going.
BARRETT: Thank you.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Thank you, Officer Barrett.
BARRETT: When I see either a woman or a man that I've been working with that got out of the homeless and they have their own life now, they have their own careers, you can't put a price tag on that.
Good talking to you. Hey, hang in there.
That's what it's all about being a police officer, to give them a sense of hope and belief.
See that smile? It's all -- it's all worth it.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
JARRETT: Wow, what a radically different way of looking at your job of law enforcement.
SANCHEZ: Yes.
JARRETT: And it's not just about policing but actually public safety and a public service.
SANCHEZ: Right. Officer James Barrett, a hero by any measure.
JARRETT: Well, that's for sure.
Boris, it's been such a pleasure to have you in this week.
SANCHEZ: Thanks for having me, Laura.
JARRETT: Thanks so much for joining us. Have a great weekend, everyone. I'm Laura Jarrett.
SANCHEZ: And I'm Boris Sanchez. "NEW DAY" is next.
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[05:59:18]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: I didn't lie. What I said is we have to be calm.
ACOSTA: One day after bombshell recordings revealed the president intentionally downplayed the COVID-19 threat, and Trump is claiming it was all about keeping Americans from panicking.
TRUMP: Bob Woodward, he didn't think it was bad and he said he didn't think it was bad.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: If you're the president, you don't get to spin Woodward.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A new poll shows the majority of Americans believe political pressure will impact the approval of a vaccine.
DR. FRANCIS COLLINS, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH: It is moving forward at a pace that the world has never seen, but I will say not in a fashion that allows cutting corners.
DR. MIKE RYAN, EMERGENCIES PROGRAM DIRECTOR, WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION: It's a race against this virus and it's a race to save lives.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANNOUNCER: This is NEW DAY with Alisyn Camerota and John Berman.
JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: All right, welcome to our viewers in the United States and all around the world. This is NEW DAY. It is Friday. It is September 11th -- obviously, a day that means so much to so many. It is 6:00 here in New York.
