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Don Lemon Tonight

Medical Supplies Still A Huge Issue In Many States; Kansas Reports An Uptick On The Use Of Chemicals For Cleaning; Mayor Eric Johnson Of Dallas County, Texas Is Interviewed About Whether Their Decision To Re-open The Economy Is Right; JetBlue Announces Use Of Mask Is Mandatory; "All Americans" Movement Working To Get Relief To Marginalized Communities Hit By Coronavirus; NBA May Reopen Facilities Next Week In States Where Stay-At-Home Orders Are Being Relaxed. Aired 11p-12a ET

Aired April 27, 2020 - 23:00   ET

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

[23:00:00]

DON LEMON, CNN HOST: That is a quote from him. That didn't really last long because he was back rewriting history and shifting the blame tonight. He just can't stay awake, can he?

JOHN HARWOOD, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: That wasn't a serious question, was it, Don?

LEMON: No. Rhetorical.

(CROSSTALK)

HARWOOD: Of course, he can't. Television cameras -- television cameras are oxygen to Donald Trump. He was chastened by what happened last Thursday when he made that crazy statement about disinfectants and injecting them into the body and light and all that sort stuff.

He was made a figure of mockery. He walked out on Friday without taking questions. He didn't appear on briefings over the weekend. But Donald Trump's ego is such that he thinks he can talk himself out of these kinds of situations and so he was out there again today having said he wasn't going to be.

And I will say, he was better today than he's been in the recent past. He exerted more effort to try to demonstrate empathy towards victims in this crisis. That's something he's done a very poor job of in the past. And he also had the briefing that was much more focused on the central issue right now which is testing. We'll see how long that lasts.

LEMON: Yes. Drew, let's talk about that. Drew has been tasked with giving us the truth about testing. The White House announced that they are putting a system in place, Drew, to improve testing. You have been covering the truth about testing. Is this more P.R. than an actual plan? What's going on.

DREW GRIFFIN, CNN SENIOR INVESTIGATIVE CORRESPONDENT: I mean, the short answer is yes. This blueprint to fix the testing as one governor told our Dana Bash at least it's a plan to eventually have a plan. But it doesn't seem to address the key issues that we're hearing from the hospitals, from various labs and points of care. That the supplies, that supply line is still not addressed.

It seems like the White House is punching this all down to the states who are clamoring for some kind of federal leadership on this issue.

I want to share with you just a piece of a letter that the Association of American Medical Colleges wrote to Dr. Birx about this very issue.

It's about the supplies. The swabs. The vials. The reagents that they just don't have. And in the letter, they write that not one of these components is readily available in sufficient quantities to each and every lab that needs them.

Which is why this association, like the governors, like everybody says the government needs to take a clearer role, Don, in the assessment and management of the supply chain for key testing reagents and supplies.

I didn't see that happening in any blueprint that was released today. That is what is needed. Some kind of federal program that keep the states and hospitals and medical systems from having to compete against each other for these supplies which are in such short demand.

LEMON: Drew, the vice president was asked about his claim on March 13 that they would have four million tests by the following week. Listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When you said four million tests seven weeks ago, you were talking about tests being sent out not actually being completed? I'm a little confused.

MICHAEL PENCE, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: John, I think the precisely correct. That in my first on this job, we were informed that HHS -- I believe IDT was the vendor, Admiral Giroir, that had distributed a million. Was distributing another four million. And we believe they did.

But again, those were tests that frankly, but for the president's leadership we'd still be waiting on those tests to be done in many cases. Because they were tests that were designed to be run in the old laboratory model.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: What are the facts?

GRIFFIN: Don, I don't know what the vice president is saying today about those tests. I know what he said back then. And what he meant back then is we all understood that four million tests would be performed by the end of that week.

The White House said 27 million tests would be performed by the end of March. We were nowhere near four million by the end of that week. We are nowhere near 27 million even today. We're around five million. So, I think there's some rewriting of history going on here and we still remain behind in testing. Although testing incrementally keeps improving.

LEMON: It sounded good. It sounded really good. He sounded very, very authoritative and, you know, we were just with the --

(CROSSTALK)

GRIFFIN: I don't know. Don, if you wrote that down --

LEMON: -- if you roll a government approach, by this president's leadership --

GRIFFIN: I didn't understand what he's saying --

LEMON: We are -- I'm just saying.

GRIFFIN: All right.

LEMON: Yes. OK. I digress. Multiple states are reporting a spike in people using disinfectants improperly after the president's comments last week. Kansas is reporting 40 percent increase in cleaning chemical cases according to the Washington Post. The president was asked about this earlier. Watch.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I know you said they were sarcastic.

[23:04:59]

TRUMP: I can't imagine why. I can't imagine why. Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do you take any responsibility if someone --

(CROSSTALK)

TRUMP: No, I don't. No, I can't imagine. I can't imagine that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Is there anything he is responsible for?

HARWOOD: Well certainly, nothing bad. He doesn't claim responsibility for negative consequences which you often see leaders do. The buck stops here. You can point to me if you got a complaint. And that's how people lead constituents out of crisis.

The one thing he took responsibility for today was something that wasn't true. He said he built the greatest economy in the history of the world before the coronavirus hit. That is not the case. He of course inherited a solid economy from President Obama. He didn't mess it up for the first three years of the presidency. And he did some things that goofed it along a little bit. But it was fundamentally the same growth path and job creation path

that we were on. Actually, slightly slower, the job creation.

But, no. Donald Trump the nature of Donald Trump psyche is that he calls himself a cheer leader. He likes to take credit for good things that have happened. And if there's something negative that happens on his watch, his first instinct is to look for someone else to blame and that's what he does pretty consistently.

LEMON: Thank you, gentlemen. I appreciate it.

I want to bring in now Dr. William Schaffner. He is a professor of infectious diseases at Vanderbilt University. Doctor, thank you for joining again. Good to see you.

Listen, I spoke with Dr. Chris Murray in the last hour. He is responsible for the model used by the White House to forecast coronavirus fallout. He told me that he is now increasing the predicted death toll to 74,000. Take a listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHRISTOPHER MURRAY, DIRECTOR, INSTITUTE FOR HEALTH METRICS AND EVALUATION: We're just seeing the steady rise. You're seeing it in case numbers as well. There's a lot of signs that we're sort of trending down, but there are some signs here that things are not quite on the same trajectory that they were a week ago or 10 days ago.

LEMON: OK. So then what's the lesson? What is the take away from these numbers going up to 74,000?

MURRAY: Well, you know, we were trying to give some evidence, some scientific basis for thinking about when social distancing might be relaxed. There's always going to be a risk.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Multiple states are -- multiple states are planning to reopen in the next few weeks. How concerning is that?

WILLIAM SCHAFFNER, PROFESSOR OF INFECTIOUS DISEASES, VANDERBILT UNIVERSITY: Well, we're all concerned of course. Because we want to make progress slowly, and carefully and safely. And with states opening up who, and some of those states don't seem to have met the criteria in phase one. That's been laid out in the national plan.

We're of course worried that this coronavirus which cleverly knows how to be transmitted from person to person will have a field day. As people get out and about and get close to each other and get a little more lax in social distancing. And that will result in more people coming in to the hospital I'm afraid.

LEMON: This is -- a White House official is telling CNN that their goal is to help each state reach the ability to test at least 2 percent of its residents. The goal is 2 percent. That's very low. Right? SCHAFFNER: Well, it certainly is very low. And many states are not

anywhere near close to that at the present time. Fortunately, in Tennessee now if you want a test you can get it. And so, we're opening up gently at least in our rural areas. But the metropolitan areas are staying locked down for a while.

LEMON: We know many people with coronavirus are asymptomatic. So, how are states supposed to safely reopen without everyone being tested?

SCHAFFNER: Well, you can't test the whole population, Don. What we're going to be focusing on still is people with symptoms and some of the worried well who come in and then finding those cases, making sure they have medical care and doing contact tracing. That's the key. Testing, finding the people with care -- who are ill, getting them care and contact tracing.

LEMON: The mayor of New York, Bill de Blasio, New York City says self- swab testing for coronavirus will be available in New York City this week. Can you really get an accurate result by doing this yourself?

SCHAFFNER: I haven't seen those kits. You know, I was tested and it's not a very pleasant experience. And I don't know whether people are going to put that swab which is what I assume it is, sufficiently high up in their nose to get a good sample. In which case you might get some false negative results. In other words, the patient actually has the illness but the test comes back negative.

And there's that patient out spreading the virus amongst others unaware that they have the disease. That's the concern. I hope this test has been very carefully validated.

[23:10:02]

LEMON: The World Health Organization is warning there simply isn't enough research yet to determine what coronavirus antibodies mean for immunity. How long will it take to get an answer to this crucial question? Even if you have them, is it enough, and how long do they last if they, you know, if they do protect you. You know what I mean?

SCHAFFNER: Well, I know exactly what you mean. The antibodies that are now being tested are in part being determined by tests that haven't been completely validated.

So, first of all, you need good tests. Then what does the test result mean. We think that it does mean that the patient is protected. We haven't identified that yet. And then of course we don't know for how long this protection will last. Will it be relatively short, begin to wane after a year or so, or will the protection last a bit longer? We need a vaccine.

LEMON: I think you're saying we need a vaccine. Thank you, doctor. I appreciate your time. Thanks so much.

SCHAFFNER: Thanks.

LEMON: The governor of Texas announcing his state will reopen this week. He'll allow retail stores, malls, restaurants and movie theaters to reopen on Friday but at a 25 percent capacity.

So, joining me now is the Mayor of Dallas, Texas, Eric Johnson. Mayor, thank you so much. I really appreciate your time. I know it's busy, a serious time for you. And I want to thank the mayors for really stepping into the void here along with the governors. So, thanks again.

Listen, coronavirus cases in Texas continue to rise. Dallas County reported 90 new cases just this morning. Do you think that Governor Abbott made the right call?

MAYOR ERIC JOHNSON (D), DALLAS, TEXAS: Well, I'll tell you this much. In Texas, we have a law that we passed back in 1975 called the Texas Disaster Act of 1975. And it gives these types of decisions in the case of an emergency, a declared emergency to the governor.

So, the reality is we are where we are now. The governor has made that decision, it supersedes any orders that someone like myself as a mayor might issue or anyone at the local level.

So, my thinking now has shifted to how do we make these new orders that are going to take effect on Friday work? And how do we make them successful. Because being successful on this case means saving lives. It means that we are -- we're not going to have people die who don't need to or shouldn't be passing away needlessly.

So, my focus now is on doing everything we can to make sure what the governor said he wants to allow to start opening on Friday actually works. So that's my thinking now. And I'm going to be encouraging my city to do everything we can to continue to socially distance and continue to practice good hygiene.

We're going to try to get everyone to understand how important it is to keep our vulnerable populations at home. So, our senior citizens have been especially hard hit and affected by this. We want to keep those folks who are underlying conditions at who are older at home.

And then we need to make sure that -- and everyone who I know has been on the show for several days now who are saying the same thing. And they're right, we need more testing. More contact tracing. That's something I'm going to be working overtime to try to help us achieve. But at this point my thinking has shifted to let's make this work.

LEMON: OK. Well, let me ask you this. Because, Mayor, Governor Abbott is not mandating that people wear masks. Do you think people who are out and about in your city should be wearing masks?

JOHNSON: Absolutely. I think they should be wearing masks. I think that's something I'm going to continue to encourage people to do. And I think that, you know, what the situation that we're in here now is we have to do everything we can as mayors and folks at the local government level to now make this new statewide order work to protect our people.

And so, yes, I will be telling everyone to continue to do things whether it's - whether someone tells you don't have to wear a mask or not at the state level. I'm going to tell my people in Dallas that they absolutely should do that.

It's not a requirement under the state orders but it's the smart thing to do. And it's the conscientious thing to do to keep your neighbors safe and to keep your loved ones safe. So, we're going -- we're going to continue to encourage those types of things here.

LEMON: All right. Mayor Eric Johnson of Dallas, thank you. Good luck. I appreciate it. Stay safe.

JOHNSON: Thank you.

LEMON: Life under the coronavirus is changing everything even as states begin to reopen. Tonight, a major airline says you will need to wear a mask to fly. More on that, next.

[23:15:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: JetBlue announcing tonight it will require passengers to wear a face covering when traveling starting May 4th. And states like Texas are moving to reopen certain businesses but only at a limited capacity. So, what will life look like as the rest of the country begins to reopen.

Let's discuss, CNN Medical Analyst and former CDC diseases detective, Dr. Seema Yasmin.

Doctor, good to see you. Thank you so much. So, when you see what JetBlue is doing --

(CROSSTALK)

SEEMA YASMIN, CNN MEDICAL ANALYST: Good to see you too, Don.

LEMON: -- do you think we'll see measures like this across airlines and even for travel on trains and buses?

YASMIN: My question though, if you're telling passengers and others that they are going to need masks is where is this PPE going to come from? So, I don't think it's not enough to tell the public these might be the new measures.

We need to hit every point how the public will be supported to follow those guidelines. And I think we're going to have to really radically reimagine what this new normal will look like.

Because, Don, the question I get asked the most every day now is when can we go back to normal? And I have to tell people that if normal was the set of circumstances and systems that got us into this mess I don't want to go back to that normal.

[23:19:59]

Normal was us not being prepared and not having enough PPE. Not being quick enough with the testing. So, as we look forward, we have to really think about a new normal. One where yes, maybe restaurants and bars starts to reopen at the right time and allow half the people in that they normally would.

Maybe schools think about reopening but in a radically different way with physical distancing, with the disinfectant use frequently and with masks as well.

LEMON: Well, I'm glad you brought up schools. Because the president suggesting that schools could open during this school year. Listen to this.

YASMIN: Yes.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: You're seeing a lot of governors get out and they want to open it up. Many are thinking about their school system. Not a long way to go in the school system right now for the season, for this year. But I think you'll see a lot of schools open up even if it's for a very short period of time.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Is that a smart idea especially if young people maybe unknowingly spreading the virus?

YASMIN: Just a couple months ago, Don, we were saying it's so good that kids don't seem to be affected. It's great kids don't seem to be dying. And how quickly we have learned that that is not the case.

Just a few hours ago, the National Health Service in the U.K. tweeted out an urgent alert that they are seeing an uptick in kids with Kawasaki disease which is a disease where their blood vessels get swollen and leaky that might be linked to COVID-19. Also, an uptick in kids presenting with toxic shock syndrome and other immune system conditions, again, that might be linked to COVID-19.

So, I'm really concerned that we are rushing to reopen to go back to normal and that frankly, we are not learning the lessons that history has taught us. A 100 years ago with the Spanish flu pandemic we dropped the containment measures after the first wave. Ten of millions more people died in a deadlier second wave.

LEMON: I had the Dallas mayor on and we talked about this just before you just a moment ago. But the Texas Governor, Greg Abbott letting some businesses like movie theaters reopen but only at 25 percent capacity. But at least two theater chains tell CNN that they're not planning to open. Safe to say businesses, patrons and the government may not all be on the same page about readiness to reopen.

YASMIN: We are really being sold a false dichotomy, though, Don. That's it's the public health versus the economy, that it's human lives versus the economy. And again, going back to pandemics in history. In America those cities in the last Hispanic flu pandemic that closed earlier, that stayed closed for longer. Guess what? Their economies bounced back in a much more robust way than those cities that didn't shelter in place early enough or for long enough.

And no surprise it's because you have good containment measures. You have fewer deaths. Your workforce isn't as affected. And we've seen in workplaces the virus gets in to those kinds of facilities where workers are closely together. And you can start new clusters very quickly even once you've seen that first wave end.

So, whatever we say about reopening we are going to have to do it gradually, methodically, and with an eye for future waves, future second wave that could be far more dangerous than the first.

LEMON: Well, you mention that. Tyson Foods chairman putting out a full-page ad in several newspapers this weekend. Warning that meat could disappear from the supply chain and consumers could be limited in their options.

I mean, how can we keep the food supply safe and reliable for everyone and also, I mean, the workers, honestly. That's the first priority. It should be.

YASMIN: Absolutely. And speaking of Tyson Foods, there were 150 workers in a Tyson Food plant in Iowa who were infected with COVID-19. There was another meat packing plant Smithfield one in Sioux, South Dakota that became the epicenter of the largest COVID-19 outbreak in the U.S. very recently.

And that's why advocacy groups (Inaudible) in houses in meat packing plants have been saying close these facilities down. Once the virus gets into them it spreads like wildfire. And the staff and workforce are really vulnerable to infection.

There's been some great reporting from agricultural journalists and big food journalist saying that companies like Tyson and the meat industry as a whole has more frozen meat stockpiled than since 1960. And they think that that will oversee us even in terms of temporary closure. So, the priority has to be on the workforce. Making sure that we're not putting businesses ahead of people.

LEMON: Thank you, doctor. I appreciate it.

YASMIN: Thank you.

LEMON: With coronavirus ravaging communities with fewer resources, what do underserved communities need most right now?

Doc -- Andrew yang -- excuse me -- Van Jones, Lisa Ling. I'm sure he would like to be a doctor, but they are joining together for that mission. They are going to tell us about that. They are next.

[23:25:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: The coronavirus is really devastating communities that were already struggling. Now a group of athletes, political leaders and artists are coming together working to get relief where it's needed mostly.

All Americans movement is aiming to unify people to stand together against racism and in support -- and support marginalized communities hit hardest by the coronavirus.

Joining me now some of the people behind all Americans, Andrew Yang, Van Jones, Lisa Ling. You guys are the good guys. Wow. They're like superheroes. Thank you all for joining and thank you all for doing what you're doing. This is really great.

let's see who I want to start with. Andrew, I'm going to start with you. We know the need is out there. It is so great, particularly among marginalized communities. How did the all-Americans movement come together? We lost Lisa. So. We're going to get Lisa dial back in and then I'll talk to you guys as we get Lisa back. So, how did this come together, Andrew?

[23:30:04]

ANDREW YANG, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Well, I was talking to the CEO of Crisis Text Line and she shared with me that Asian Americans were using the Crisis Text Line at two and a half times the rate of the rest of the population.

And so many of my friends and family members that experienced racism that was hand-in-hand with the coronavirus crisis where unfortunately many people think that Asians are more viral in terms of carrying the disease, of course, we can see very clearly that it's black communities around the country that are getting devastated by this virus because of lower levels of health care access and higher levels of pre-existing condition.

So we said we have to do something about this and say that we're all in this together. This virus does not know race and it's not going to discriminate against us. It should not divide us unless we let it.

LEMON: Yeah. You know, Van and I did a special. We talked about, you know, how it affected Asian communities as well as part of "The Color of COVID." I mean, it is really terrible to think that Asian communities are more viral. It's really a disgusting, you know, trope out there.

Van, listen, part of the All Americans' mission is getting to help black and Latino communities that have been disproportionately affected by coronavirus. What kind of help do you need with that?

VAN JONES, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATORL: Well, I think the main thing is, you know, we have this PSA that is out there. We love people to share it. It shows people of all the different races and backgrounds coming together to point out that we're all Americans, we're all in this together.

You know, this virus is trying to teach us something about wellness and oneness. That's the message from this virus. Try to make sense of what's going on. You know, we got sick people because we have sick systems. And so we are going to have to do a lot better in terms of making sure that everybody has access to health care and good food, and we are all making the right decisions in that regard.

But we also have to deal with the fact that, you know, there is no away. The idea that, you know, I don't care about that group over there, I can spit on them, guess what? This virus doesn't care. It jumps from person to person. It doesn't care about race or gender or ideology. We are going to have to look out for each other, be good to each other, and take care of each other. Otherwise, this thing is going to be around for a very, very long time.

LEMON: You know, Andrew, you helped -- you talked about it on my show during the campaign when you were running. You helped mainstream the idea of universal income when campaigning for president. This crisis has brought the idea even more attention. Here is -- this is Speaker Pelosi today. Watch this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. NANCY PELOSI (D-CA), SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE: Others have suggested a minimum income for -- a guaranteed income for people. Is that worthy of attention now? Perhaps so, because there are many more people than just in small business and hired by small business as important as that is to the vitality of our economy, and other people who are not in the public sector, you know, meeting our needs in so many ways that may need some assistance as well.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: How could that, Andrew, help the hardest hit communities?

YANG: Well, if you can imagine everyone having, let's say an extra $1,000 or $2,000 a month, people would be able to adhere to public health guidance and stay home and not feel like they need to go out in order to get enough money to put groceries on the table or to keep a roof over their head.

The fact is the people that are able to shelter in place are people who are affluent, who can just afford to take a week or two off and can perhaps work remotely. But the majority of the blue collar workers out there, they work in environments where working remotely is not realistic. If we had money in their hands, they would be much more able to keep themselves and their families safe.

LEMON: Yeah. Lisa, I'm so glad you're back. We have your connection back. So, Lisa, we have talked about it on this show. We have talked about it, Van and I, on our special "The Color of COVID." We've heard so many stories of anti-Asian racist incidents related to coronavirus. I want you to listen to part of the PSA released by the group today that addresses that. Here it is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A person of Asian ancestry is not the cause of COVID-19.

YANG (on camera): We don't have the virus more than anyone else.

JONES (on camera): And all Americans are susceptible.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Every one of us. No matter who we are.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We know it's disproportionately affecting African Americans as well as all of our communities.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Lose the bigotry, ignorance.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Finger-pointing and assaults.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're all in this together.

LISA LING, CNN SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT (on camera): And we will rise out of this.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: So talk to us about how this project is going to help fight that, Lisa.

LING: Well, Don, thanks so much for having me on to talk about this. You know, unfortunately, this virus has unleashed so much vitriol and hatred, targeting the Asian community, and it's been really disheartening, I have to tell you honestly.

[23:35:09]

LING: I got a message from an Asian doctor today, saying that she is more afraid of being attacked when she's with her family than she even is of COVID. The number of attacks against Asians online has increased 900 percent. I have on a daily basis been hearing of people of Asian descent getting attacked or harassed and taunted.

I myself, I have been the recipient of a number of extremely hateful messages, one even wishing harm on my kids. And so I want to be part of this campaign just to ignite dialogue around this and because this issue is going to continue to be part of this presidential campaign that we're in the midst of.

China is sure to be a huge issue for both parties, and I have concerns that people are going to conflate the actions of the Chinese government with Asian people in this country and around the world.

LEMON: Mm-hmm. Lisa Ling, Van Jones, Andrew Yang. Not all heroes wear capes but certainly three of them are on CNN right now. It is called the All American Movement. They are all three part of it. Thank you so much for doing this. Thank you for appearing on this show tonight. Good luck. OK?

JONES: Thank you, brother.

YANG: Thanks, Don. Stay safe.

LEMON: Thank you very much. This crisis is telling us a lot about who exactly the essential workers in our country are, and my next guest is one of them. She works at the Dollar General store and she is raising her voice about workers like her whose lives are on the line every single day.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[23:40:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: We know that first responders and front line medical workers are putting their lives on the line every day during the pandemic. But let's not forget that those who are now considered essential workers everyone from transit workers to building and cleaning staffers to employees of stores.

I want to bring in now Kenya Slaughter, a lead sales associate at Dollar General in Louisiana, my home state. She wrote an op-ed piece in New York Times. "I Never Planned to Be a Front-Line Worker at Dollar General." Kenya, thank you so much. Looking good.

KENYA SLAUGHTER, LEAD SALES ASSOCIATE, DOLLAR GENERAL: Thank you for having me.

LEMON: We appreciate you coming on. So, let's talk about this. You know, you work at the Dollar General right now. Describe to me what that is like for you.

SLAUGHTER: It's chaotic. It's a lot. It's a whole lot. Typical day can vary from having homeless customers come in to irate customers to people leaving the store to seniors concerned about not being able to get certain products. It's a lot.

LEMON: And you often work in the store alone, right? It's crowded and lines are long. You're there by yourself?

SLAUGHTER: Yes, sir. At least 10 hours a week.

LEMON: Really? How do you control all that chaos? Are you masked up? Are you gloved up? What's going on?

SLAUGHTER: Ah, yeah. Before we received masks and gloves in the store, I was bringing masks from home. I had kind of keeping certain supplies and I had some masks handy, luckily, and I was bringing them from home. They did supply us some last week. I'm just really good at what I do. I keep calm and I treat the customers the best I can. But I am masked and gloved up and use Lysol and wiping things down as often as I can.

LEMON: Do customers obey the six feet apart thing?

SLAUGHTER: Not really.

(LAUGHTER)

SLAUGHTER: Not really. We have no one there to enforce it. I try to like crack jokes, hey, we have a one cough maximum, you know, and make light of the situation. Sometimes, it works. Sometimes, it doesn't. Some customers are irate and don't want to hear the six feet rule.

LEMON: Are they wearing masks? Are they wearing gloves or masks or anything like that?

SLAUGHTER: Not all customers. It's 50/50. Some customers do, some customers don't.

LEMON: Are you worried that you contact with customers, that you have the contact, that you might get sick or that you may bring the virus home to your partner or your daughter?

SLAUGHTER: Definitely. It's a constant worry. Every day, that is definitely a constant worry, sir. Yes, sir.

LEMON: Do workers at the Dollar General receive paid sick leave?

SLAUGHTER: No, we're not receiving paid sick leave. Unless you actually contract the coronavirus is the only that you're going to get paid sick leave.

LEMON: Are you getting -- have you guys been tested? Do you -- what happens if you -- no?

SLAUGHTER: No testing. Testing isn't available. We have to be at work and we have to be at work. So they're not making sure that we get tested. There's no temperature check. There's nothing like that. Just come to work. Put on a mask and gloves if there are any available and do your job.

LEMON: How do you feel about that?

SLAUGHTER: It sucks. I have to do what I have to do to provide for my family.

LEMON: You got to go to work.

SLAUGHTER: I have to go to work. I got to be a big girl.

LEMON: Dollar General is planning on giving a one-time bonus of $300.

[23:45:02]

LEMON: It is part of workers -- part-time workers will get half of that. You said that's insulting. What do you think they should do instead?

SLAUGHTER: We should be receiving hazard pay. Our pay rates should increase at least $2 like everywhere else.

LEMON: Yeah. Well, look, you're an essential worker. You're on the front line. It is unbelievable what some people have to deal with and people who -- the folks who are considered, you know, front line workers and essential workers now. The rules are changing for everything. Kenya, listen, we appreciate what you do. You continue --

SLAUGHTER: Thank you.

LEMON: -- to provide for your family. Be safe. OK?

SLAUGHTER: Yes, sir.

LEMON: And you do your thing. Handle your business. That's all I have to say.

SLAUGHTER: Will do. I appreciate you.

LEMON: Thank you. I'm proud of you. I just want to say that we reached out to Dollar General to see if they'd like to come on the broadcast, respond to Kenya, and let us know what they're doing to keep workers like Kenya safe as well as their customers. At this time, they are welcome to come on with me and discuss any time they want.

In the meantime, the NBA was the first professional league to announce big shut downs. But today, they are announcing plans to reopen some team facilities as early as next week. We're going to dig into those plans, next.

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[23:50:00]

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LEMON: The NBA is announcing today they are hoping to open some team facilities for practices as soon as May 8. The reopening would only apply in areas where local stay-at-home rules have been lifted and would come with some serious restrictions.

Let's discuss now. Shams Charania is here. He is the senior NBA insider for Stadium and The Athletic. And Dr. Michael Chang, a professor of infectious diseases at UTHealth's McGovern Medical School. Both join us. Thank you, sirs, appreciate you joining us.

MICHAEL CHANG, PROFESSOR OF INFECTIOUS DISEASES, UTHEALTH'S MCGOVERN MEDICAL SCHOOL: Happy to be here.

LEMON: Good to see you. Shams, you were on, like, a month, a little over? It seems like a lifetime ago. Good to have you back. Let's see. The NBA sent out a list of guidelines for players. We've got them. Let's put them up on the screen right now. And you can walk us through these new rules. What are they? OK, we don't have it, but what are these rules?

SHAMS CHARANIA, SENIOR NBA INSIDER, STADIUM AND THE ATHLETIC: Yeah. So, I mean, essentially, players are not going to be allowed to go to any other -- any other local gyms. You know, this -- these rules were all made so that teams are going to be able to hopefully have control of their players, being allowed to go to their team's facilities at some point, and all of that varies.

But you see the mandates on the screen now and these rules would go into effect as soon as May 8th. But it all depends on the local government of each player, and, you know, whatever the team is prescribing. And so, you know, as I reported today, it was a lengthy memo that teams got. It was a 16-page memo, Don, and it was -- it was intense. It was very strict and the guidelines that were given were, you know, players have to wear face masks at all times. You have to have social distancing, physical distancing of 12 feet, at least 12 feet.

You know, coaches or anyone that works with the players has to be wearing gloves. You know, everything needs to be disinfected. You're going to need to have cardiac tests essentially, ECGs, resting ECGs, and different tests to monitor their heart. So, it's very extensive.

For a player to be able to go into a gym just to get shots up in their own facility, it's a daunting task in terms of the list of things. But, listen, this is just one step. One step, of many, that needs to come in order for the NBA to resume play. They don't have a timetable for any type of resumption of play.

LEMON: Yeah. Sorry, we didn't have those up. But, you know, doctor, he is saying they need to go to their local gym, face masks, physical distancing, that they need to wear gloves, they need to be disinfected, cardiac tests, temperature checks, and on and on. So what do you think about the NBA's plan to reopen some of these practice facilities? Do you think it could cause some virus to spread among players and staff?

CHANG: Well, I think the NBA has a little bit of unique situation. You know, the practice facilities are relatively more controlled than other public places they could go, and the population that we are talking about is also relatively limited, so players, staff, and coaches.

And so you have a little bit better ability to control access, as well as, hopefully, you know, control the social distancing and all the hygienic processes. So I think, you know, they do have an opportunity because they have a little bit of a unique situation. I think it's different than trying to open, like, a salon or a barbershop in other parts of the country.

LEMON: Because they're always together. These people will always be together like a family somewhat. Yeah.

CHANG: Yeah. And so, I think, again, you know, their exposure to the general public is also somewhat restricted. And so I think they're also a little bit less likely to spread it to other people.

But, that said, you know, opening up these practice facilities is not just the players and the staff and their coaches. There's going to be like security and custodial staff and other workers that need to come in and open up these practice facilities and help keep them open.

[23:55:02]

CHANG: So I think, you know, the teams really do need to consider the other people that may be involved in opening a practice facility as well. LEMON: Hey, Shams, listen. I wonder what you think about that because I remember you were on. Didn't you tell us about some of the first players who contracted this? How do the players feel about this? We have about 20 seconds, if you can do it in that time.

CHARANIA: Listen. Players don't know what to believe about this because this -- there is a lot of things that need to go into order for you to even go to a gym. You know, I think players are confused.

How can teams in Georgia or Texas or, you know, Florida, be allowed to go and practice in their facilities, you know, on an individual basis, but players in L.A. or New York or Chicago can't, Milwaukee? You know, the Bucks are a major contender.

So teams that want to be able to go into practice facilities are not going to be able to. So there is a different competitive disadvantage for some teams.

LEMON: Yeah. Shams, doctor, thank you very much. Interesting. We will see what happens. We'll have you back. Appreciate it.

CHANG: Thanks.

LEMON: And thanks for watching, everyone. Our coverage continues.

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