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Don Lemon Tonight

President Donald Trump Appoints Vice President Pence To Lead Administration's Response; CDC: California Coronavirus Case Could Be First Spread In A U.S. Community; President Donald Trump Downplays Threat Of Coronavirus Despite Warnings From Health Officials; Democratic Candidates Make Final Pitch Ahead Of South Carolina Primary; Donald Trump Campaign Rolls Out Black Voter Outreach. Aired 12:30-1a ET

Aired February 27, 2020 - 00:30   ET

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

[00:30:00]

MAX BOOT, CNN ANCHOR: That's what we have right now. We have a chaos President that at a time when we need competence and discipline and good order and the President is on top of things. You kind of have the opposite.

LEMON: Scott Jennings, Mike Pence is in charge of the Coronavirus response. Elizabeth Warren blasted him tonight. Listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. ELIZABETH WARREN (D-MA) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: This Vice President has dealt with a public health emergency before. In Indiana and what was his approach, it was to put politics over science and let a serious virus expand in his state and cost people lives. He is not the person who should be in charge.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: So Pence was heavily criticized for his delayed response to an HIV outbreak while Governor of Indiana. Is he really the right person for this?

SCOTT JENNINGS, CNN POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, look I think the President needed to elevate his response to this to the highest level of the government. Secretary Azar is a good Secretary and he is doing a good job. To elevate it to the highest level of the government was the right move because it is a serious issue.

And people do need to know that it could spread in the United States and that the government is dealing with it at the highest level. So I think it was smart to put Pence in the middle of this. I also think it was smart today for the President to put a combination of his political leadership and his medical leadership and his medical experts on the stage together to show the country that the politicians and the experts are working well together.

I thought Azar's priorities that he laid out were good. And frankly I thought it was a good sign that the President said he was willing to accept as Senator Schumer's idea that we need to spend more on this. And that's what the administration asked for.

I have no problem with today's press conference. I thought elevating it to Pence was the right move. And I think anybody right now like Senator Warren who wants to take pot shots from the sideline are doing so because they're struggling in the Presidential Campaign and not because they are trying to make a measured response to what could be a very serious and sober issue.

LEMON: Scott, listen I have got to ask you, holds on. I have got to ask about this. Elevating it to the top of government I understand what you're saying. When Pence was the Governor of Ohio, there was an HIV outbreak between the years 2011 - in Indiana excuse me pardon me between 2011 and 2015.

And at one point he said that he was criticized about resisting a needle exchange. At one point he said he that wanted to pray on it before he ultimately decided to go ahead with the exchanges. And the study show that had he done it, that he could have prevented the out breaks from happening if he had done these needle exchanges if he had not waited to pray on it before doing the exchanges.

Is that the person you want in charge of the Coronavirus outbreak? Someone who needs to pray on something instead of looking at the science? Come on. Let's be real about it. Let's just be honest about it is that the person you want in charge of this?

JENNINGS: Couple things. Number one I'm intimately familiar with the Indiana situation. However, I do know that needle exchanges in some communities had been controversial policy decisions. So I'm not surprised that a Governor of a state Indiana would stop and take a beat on it. It is number one, and number two in this particular case--

LEMON: Scott to pray on it?

JENNINGS: Look to me like today the President and Vice President--

LEMON: He didn't say I want to look at the studies. He said he wanted to pray on it.

KAYYEM: Can I just say--

JENNINGS: Are you saying that our elected official shouldn't say that they're going to pray? It's pretty much a staple of our political leadership in this country dating back to the founding. I don't have a problem if Gov says he wants to pray on it. In fact, I hope he does. I hope they all do.

LEMON: I don't have a problem with anybody praying. I have a problem with someone who is allowing people to die because he doesn't want to look at science and to save lives. I don't have a problem with anybody praying on anything.

JENNINGS: Needle exchange--

(CROSSTALK)

LEMON: People are dying because you're not looking at science. I do have a problem with that.

JENNINGS: Needle exchange programs you know are had been extremely controversial decisions in a number of states. Again I'm not intimately familiar with the Indiana situation. These are not decisions that political leader have made in many places wily nily. Am I surprised that a conservative Republican Governor of Indiana took a beat on it and waited? No I'm not surprised at all. What I saw today gave me confidence. That's what I care about today.

KYYEM: Can I just say. I don't - the needle exchange whatever. Something big is coming. I'm sure it is already here.

[00:35:00]

KAYYEM: What Scott sort of wants the audience to believe is that Pence is actually qualified to run an incident command? Crisis management is actually a skill and it involves an incident commander they're driving resources.

LEMON: Juliette, that's the crux of my question. I'm sure you understand that.

KAYYEM: There's a homeland security is difficult because it's a governance. We have to drive this through 50 states. The federal government is going to be somewhat I don't want to say sidelined but this is going to hit every city and every Governor and is going to require each of those blue states, red states, Republicans and Democrats to have confidence that the person in charge who now apparently is Mike Pence actually knows what he's doing and that the decisions he is making are not political.

And exactly where you were getting to Don and the reason why we don't generally pick political people to be incident commanders when a crisis is coming is because they are too responsive to every criticism.

When you what we do, people hate you. Because bad things are happening and you kind of have to have thick skin and not really care and you're just going to go according to plans. And drive the resources and the needs that the American public have.

And I think the absence of sort of the expertise is actually more significant to me than whether he knows you know what the inner workings of the virus are? You don't need that, and I think that's the point Scott. You're sort of like - you're sort of trying to make this more political than it used to be. It's just competency at this stage.

BOOT: I think it's really Trump who was making it political. I mean in his press conference attacking Speaker Pelosi and Senator Schumer. It's completely inappropriate. It does not inspire confidence at a time when he needs to be bringing the country together.

LEMON: That's got to be the last word. Thank you all I appreciate it. Democrats are making their case to voters at CNN Town Halls in South Carolina days before the primary there. Who got a standing ovation? That's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[00:40:00]

LEMON: And now the state of the race. Saturday is the primary in South Carolina. Tonight Michael Bloomberg, Joe Biden, Amy Klobuchar and Elizabeth Warren had one last chance to make a final pitch at CNN Town Halls in Charleston.

Joining me now to discuss Mr. Mark McKinnon Executive Producer of "Show Time Circus" and Olivia Nuzzi Washington Correspondent for "New York Magazine". So good to have both of you. Mark I'm going to start with you. I want this part of the response when a reverend here who lost his wife in the Charleston Amy Church shooting asked Joe Biden about faith watch this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN (D) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: You may remember after Barack and Michelle and I were there and my family. I came back on the Sunday to regular service because I had just lost my son. And I wanted some hope because what you all did was astounding.

My son Beau is my soul. What I found was I had to find purpose. And what was the purpose every day I get up that I ask myself I hope he's proud of me today. Because he asked me when he was dying, promise me dad, promise me, dad, promise me. I know no one loves me more than you do dad. Promise me you you'll stay engaged.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: That was another level. No one does the empathy.

MARK MCKINNON, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: That's as good as Joe Biden gets. I have seen different versions of that over the course of the last few years. That's the best. It was so powerful and so moving. That is what Joe Biden does best. Empathy, humanity and he defined the purpose. So that he haven't quite gone that far before to talk about how about the purpose the drives and it was beautiful articulated and so compassionate with the reverend who was there who had also lost a child.

LEMON: That's it.

OLIVIA NUZZI, WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT, NEW YORK MAGAZINE: You know what I thought was interesting is ordinarily I find his empathy and it's extraordinary his capacity to connect with other people.

It doesn't really translate on camera for some reason. It doesn't compare to what it is like when you see him in the flash, when you see him with voters putting his hand on a shoulder relating to people. That it really did translate here.

LEMON: You wrote a cover story for "New York Magazine" last year. He's under extraordinary pressure in South Carolina.

NUZZI: He is. He was polling with a significant lead for the duration of this primary. That lead has narrowed a bit in recent weeks. But he had a very good poll for the campaign today. And I think he really has to perform here in order to still be considered a real contender in the race. He hasn't performed in Iowa, New Hampshire and Nevada. It is crucial for the campaign.

LEMON: But he had one of the best days of the campaign today. I mean, he had a good debate performance last night. He had great polling that came out today and he had the endorsement today which was really key of Jim Clyburn.

MCKINNON: The Clyburn endorsement was very emotional too. He talked about his wife that who he lost a year ago.

LEMON: So let's talk about--

MCKINNON: A lot of human connection.

LEMON: The Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg a lot of pressure on him. His first Town Hall, he covered a lot of issues. What did you think of his performance here in the Town Hall?

MCKINNON: Better. That's not saying a hell of a lot. This is a testament to what it means to be a candidate. You got to be out there and do this a bunch of times to get good at it. You can't just walk at him, he was better. And by the way the stuff on the Coronavirus I think is significant. He threw the first marker down on that issue and he's good on that issue. He is good on public health. So he threw good wedge on that but--

LEMON: So I think the pundits are hard on him. The folks at home are--

MCKINNON: Well, the audience responded well.

LEMON: I think the audience and I think the people at home watching are responding different than the political press. And I think it was similar to Trump in 2016.

NUZZI: He hasn't really contested yet though, right? We haven't seen him in a contest--

LEMON: But I think in 2016 or 2015 during the folks came watched Trump and Clinton.

[00:45:00]

LEMON: Everyone is like Clinton wiped the floor with him and people at home had a different experience.

NUZZI: Not necessarily she won the popular vote.

MCKINNON: I think there was some sympathy for him too when Elizabeth Warren I think that folk did - the felt she crossed the line. LEMON: I agree with that. Stop and frisk. How do you think he did on stop and frisk because he apologized again but he does that empathy thing that Joe Biden has Bloomberg doesn't have.

NUZZI: He doesn't have that.

LEMON: Bloomberg doesn't have that.

MCKINNON: He doesn't have that gene.

NUZZI: And he also seems like these are obvious questions. A lot of the questions that he really struggles to answer are questions that any campaign operative even if they were a beginner would prep their candidate for. That he should have responses for those are coherent. People at least in the moment can nod their head even if later on they say wait a minute that didn't really makes sense and we don't see that from him.

MCKINNON: Yes, the stop and frisk is the most obvious liability he has.

LEMON: Warren says she told me she would go to the convention even if she doesn't have--

MCKINNON: --that was big news.

LEMON: The majority of it is other delegates what do you think of that Olivia?

NUZZI: I think it's big news. I would congratulate you on it. I think that she is really trying to make the case that she's still a serious contender that she is not considering dropping out and she hasn't been discouraged by the performance so far.

MCKINNON: Well, her answers to the Bernie supporter about you know - who just had it wrong about how this delegate thing works? In fact that Bernie was fighting for - always fighting against now - largely changed the rules to they are today. So she said I want to play by the rules at Bernie and Sanders set up.

LEMON: But it was interesting. It was obviously a Howard Stern set up because when he goes hey, now and I'm like oh, that's a Howard Stern guy and then he goes baa baa boo. I kind of knew that. I don't know if anyone else in the audience.

MCKINNON: But you know it was a good format. I love these town halls because I mean the debate was so messy last night and nobody really got. So it was good to hear Mike Bloomberg get to be in a format that was coming from. Elizabeth Warren I thought was terrific tonight.

LEMON: Yes.

NUZZI: But all the candidates do better in this type of format that--

MCKINNON: It was just so much more thoughtful and the way that they really lead them. Give them some air. LEMON: We'll see but somebody has got to - they're going to end up--

MCKINNON: Hear and fear tickets out of here.

LEMON: Yes.

NUZZI: I can't wait to watch.

LEMON: Thank you and so good to see both of you. All right, the Trump Campaign has a new plan for reaching out to black voters. What they're doing and what communities they're targeting, next?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[00:50:00]

LEMON: Trump Campaign is courting black voters, and they're rolling out 15 black voices for Trump. Community centers in major cities in Florida, in Georgia, in Michigan, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and North Carolina. We're told that they will be similar to Trump Campaign offices but focus specifically on the black community.

Will it work? Joining me now, Angela Rye she is a Former Executive Director of the Congressional Black Caucus and Tara Setmayer, she's a CNN Political Commentator. Hi, you all.

TARA SETMAYER, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Hi, Don.

ANGELA RYE, FORMER EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, CONGRESSIONAL BLACK CAUCUS: What's going on?

SETMAYER: I'm a CNN Political Commentator, too.

LEMON: Oh, okay. Hey, CNN Political Commentator, too. So, Tara - Tara, we know the President will be - will have an uphill climb with the black voters - with black voters, but what do you think of his approach? I think he only needs like 12 percent of black voters to actually put him in a position to win the election. He may already have that. But what do you think of this approach?

SETMAYER: Well, I think it's smart of them to do this. They think - it's true, he only needs a couple of percentage points. He over performed last time with black voters that people didn't see coming. He had better numbers than McCain did or Romney. So it's - it's a smart play for them politically. They have the money to do it.

How much impact it actually has remains to be seen? You know, how you do this and how - the way you message things makes a huge difference, and the President does have Criminal Justice Reform, at least as something tangible that he can go into these communities with.

But that's about it. Although the black unemployment, which we hear constantly over and over again, but I don't know that black America's looking at this saying, yes, we want four more years of this guy when all the other transgressions, racial transgressions that come out of his mouth and this White House are just too much. So I hope they're not going to give away money like some of these offshoots of people that support the President, they're giving money away in these kind of like game show contestant-type events, which I think is pretty tacky and also someone should investigate it.

LEMON: Yes.

SETMAYER: But, you know, I think that they think they can make a play again and they're going to try for it.

LEMON: Yes. So, Angela, Senior Trump Campaign Adviser Katrina Pearson called this strategy a "Woke Concept". They're using - they're going to use woke--

SETMAYER: How would she know?

LEMON: --as part of their marketing. I think, you know, instead of saying - you know, using Democrat and Republicans, instead of saying, you know, very fine people in both parties, they're going to say woke. What do you think?

RYE: I think that I'm asleep, and I think that the good news is that a number of us have kind of stopped saying woke, so welcome to the party, you all, but now we're asleep on that. And I think the reality of it is, just to go back to what Tara was just saying, is Donald Trump does not have a tremendous record to stand on as it relates to Criminal Justice Reform.

He has one bill passed. And a strategy that has not served black and brown people for years from before his election, right? I think Donald Trump does not have a strong record to stand on as it relates to black unemployment.

[00:55:00]

RYE: He has Barack Obama's record to stand on with that, and I think that at some point black folks have got to look themselves in the mirror and say, hey, do I want to follow Mark Burns? Do I want to follow Katrina Pearson? Do I want to follow diamond and silk? Who the hell are these people, right?

Instead, you want to give Donald Trump kudos for throwing cheese-it bits at you and then criticize the people who have spent their careers doing things for the betterment of black people and black society. And I would just say at that point, if you still go over to Donald Trump after that, shame on you.

SETMAYER: But pay attention to a couple of things that they're going to do. I'm telling you right now. They're going to have opportunity zone rollouts and things like that. They're going to trot out the two or three black folks that actually work for this administration and try to make it look like they're doing things to invest in the black community to try to paint the facade. So, you know, the Democrats need to not take this for granted.

RYE: I agree with that. I'm just simply saying-- (CROSSTALK)

LEMON: Well, as Tim Scott said - I got to run, you all, because we're at the end of the show. But 12 percent of the black vote and Tim Scott said "Game Over," and he predicts that he's going to get it. I got to run. Thank you both. Thanks for watching, everyone. Our live coverage continues.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

END