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Don Lemon Tonight

At Least 35 States Seeing A Rise In New COVID-19 Cases, More Than 135,000 Americans Have Died From Virus; Dr. Fauci: We Haven't Even Begun To See The End Of It Yet; GOP Senator Kennedy Claims Some Want To Keep Schools Closed For A Political Advantage; Texas Shatters Daily Record Of New Coronavirus Cases; Florida Has More Than 27,000 New Cases In Two Days; Florida State Representative Whose Family Tested Positive For Coronavirus Speaks Out. Aired 11p-12a ET

Aired July 13, 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]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

DON LEMON, CNN HOST: This is CNN TONIGHT. I'm Don Lemon. 11:00 p.m. here on the East Coast. And tonight, the coronavirus surging across the country especially in California, Texas and Florida. At least 35 states seeing an increase in cases. The death toll in the U.S. from the virus now more than 135,000. California reporting more than 8,000 cases today.

The virus is so bad there that the Governor Gavin Newsom is ordering indoor restaurants, as well as bars, wineries and movie theaters to close. Here's what Florida is reporting, 27,000 cases in just the last two days, including more than 15,000 on Sunday alone. Dr. Anthony Fauci saying this today.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. ANTHONY FAUCI, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALERGY AND INFECTOUS DISEASE: Here it is. It's happened. You know, your worst nightmare. The perfect storm. It is truly historic. We haven't even begun to see the end of it yet.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: And while Dr. Fauci continues to level with the American people about the dangers of the coronavirus. The White House is now actively trying to undercut and discredit him. Let's discuss now. CNN's White House Correspondent John Harwood, he's here, as well as Dr. Jonathan Reiner.

Dr. Reiner is a director of the Cardiac Catheterization Program at George Washington University Hospital.

Gentlemen, good evening. Thank you so much. So, I just want to start with this, I want you to take a listen to what we just heard from Republican John -- Senator John Kennedy of Louisiana on Fox.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) SEN. JOHN KENNEDY (R-LA): There are some people who want to keep our

schools closed because they think it gives them a political advantage. And they're using our kids as political pawns. And to them, I say unashamedly, they can kiss my ass. That's wrong to do that to the kids of America.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: John? This is where we are now?

JOHN HARWOOD, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Don, it is sad that the Republican Party in the Trump era has been dumbed down so much that an intelligent U.S. Senator would be reduced to making an argument like that. Nobody wants to keep schools closed for a political advantage.

Nobody wants to wear -- get people to wear masks for political advantage. Nobody wants a national testing system for political advantage. Nobody wants to close bars and restaurants for a political advantage. They want to do it to keep people from getting sick and dying, 135,000 Americans have died.

And we know from the facts. Florida having more cases in a single day than the entire European Union. Other countries have crushed the curve, that the president has mismanaged the situation. And so you have his allies like Senator Kennedy trying to argue around those facts, pretend they don't exist and cast this as a political thing when in reality, it's a public health thing.

And the other obvious iteration of that is the administration for no good reason at all attacking Anthony Fauci, who is the leading public health expert, who is trying to help them get their response right. But the president is so determined to look past the facts and reopen the economy, even though the coronavirus is hurting the economy now. That he won't pay attention to Fauci.

LEMON: I wonder if he would have the nerve, the gall to say that to the teachers I just interviewed a couple of minutes ago, who lost their friend, another teacher whom they worked with and best friend. Interesting. Dr. Reiner --right, don't think that is a good question? Because both of them said and the husband of the teacher who died, not ready yesterday yet.

Is that for political reasons or is it because they lost a loved one and a colleague who is close to them. They've seen it up close and personal. What do you think of that, doctor? Before I go on and ask you something else?

[23:05:12]

DR. JONATHAN REINER, DIRECTOR OF CARDIAC CATHETERIZATION LABORATORY, GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY HOSPITAL: You know, it doesn't matter what the politicians think about opening the schools. What matters is what the parents think. And what the communities think. Whether the parents and the communities think it is safe to send their kids to the school, and in a lot of communities, the answer's going to be no. In some communities where the virus is in under better control, it

might be possible to bring kids back. But in Florida or Texas, how do you send kids back to school in a few weeks? It's not going to happen, it's a total fiction. So, we need to move on from that.

LEMON: Doctor, with more than 35 states seeing a surge in cases, the president is discrediting his top infectious disease expert, John just mentioned, also discrediting the CDC. It's more than shifting blame, isn't it? This is dangerous.

REINER: It's dangerous because when the president discredits someone like Dr. Fauci who keeps raising the alarm bells about the path that the pandemic is taking, it creates this false narrative in the community and people think that it's OK to go back into restaurants or to mass gathering and not to mask up and to live life as if nothing is going on, and that costs lives.

If you look at how New York succeeded, I mean, yesterday was an enormous day in New York, New York City had no COVID deaths. In the middle of April, New York City was recording 600 deaths per day. Yesterday there were zero. So how do they do it?

They shut the city down tight. Everyone masked up and then, you know, my brothers and sisters in the hospitals there just did god's work and they treated just an unbelievable number of people at great peril and they put the pandemic down and now the virus is at low enough levels that they can contract trace.

And if you look at the curve in New York City, it looks just like the European curve. Steep up and steep all the way down, now down to zero, right? We have shown we can do it and the curve looks the same in Massachusetts, and in Rhode Island and some other states. We know how to do this. We can do this in the south. If the politicians get out of our way and let us do what we did in other parts of the country, it can be done. It can absolutely be done.

LEMON: Yes, it really is amazing. And when you talk to people from other places, and they not taking it as seriously as folks in New York are doing it, you just say, OK, we have been there before. It's not that I told you so, but it's really -- it's really difficult to see and hear people doing that. Thank you both. I appreciate it. See you soon. Be safe. I want to the get to Erica Hill now with the latest on the state seeing a surge in coronavirus cases. Here it is.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ERICA HILL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: California shutting down again. As cases skyrocket.

GOV. GAVIN NEWSOM (D-CA): We are now effectively -- rather effective today, requiring all counties to close their indoor activities, their indoor operations in the following sectors, restaurants, wineries, tasting rooms, movie theaters and the shuttering of all bars, this is in every county in the state of California.

HILL: Houston's mayor asking the Governor for a shutdown as an army of medical team arise in the city to help deal with a surge in cases, now topping 30,000.

MAYOR SYLVESTER TURNER (D), HOUSTON, TX: I am proposing two weeks, or at the very minimum to return to phase one.

HILL: The reality, a majority of the country is moving in the wrong direction.

MAYOR STEVE ADLER (D), AUSTIN, TX: I think the lesson to be learned in Texas is you cannot open up the economy in ways that look like the economy was open before.

HILL: Florida reporting more than 15,000 new cases on Sunday, more than any state in a single day since the pandemic began.

GOV. RON DESANTIS (R-FL): Our biggest concern is South Florida right now.

HILL: Miami's mayor warning his city could be next.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We have to get control of these numbers. These numbers are out of control.

HILL: Hospitals in this new hotspots stretch thin.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We are at ICU capacity of a 103 percent. And then if you just carve out the COVID ICU, it is at a 180 percent. That is a 26 percent increase from last Monday.

HILL: Cases surge in Georgia, Atlanta is moving back to phase one, which include a stay at home order. The mayor joining New York Governor Andrew Cuomo today.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And you told us very clearly if we didn't do things differently in our cities and states, we will find ourselves in the same situation that New York was facing, and unfortunately, you were correct.

[23:10:03]

HILL: Meantime in New York City, for the first time in months, a day without a single COVID-19 related death.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's something to make us hopeful. But it's very hard to take a victory lap because we know we have so much more ahead.

HILL: Erica Hill, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: All right. Erica, thanks. As Erica mentioned, Texas has become a new coronavirus hot spot. Joining me now, the mayor of San Antonio, Texas, Ron Nirenberg. Mayor, thank you so much. I appreciate it. Listen I hate that you guys are having to deal with what's going on the hot spots and so on, the rise in cases. But Texas is seeing a frightening surge in cases. How dire is the situation in your city? MAYOR RON NIRENBERG (I), SAN ANTONIO, TX: It's very dire and I mean,

it's no different in any of the urban centers in Texas where we are seeing hospitalizations increase and accelerates to the point we are now in single digits in capacity, where hospital beds, ICUs and ventilators. So, you know, the whole point about building capacity when we are in shutdown orders has seemed to be lost as we open up the economy very fast and too fast and too soon. And we're starting to see that.

LEMON: So you're worried about your hospitals being able to keep up?

NIRENBERG: We are. And you know, we have seen the hospital cases rise to a point where we are now going through our different surge management protocols, (inaudible) space, reducing elective surgeries, beginning to set up our field hospitals in the event that we have to move, you know, less acute patients out there, and this is a situation that is the last line of defense. And it reminder, I mean, all these urban areas of Texas see much more than COVID cases but in the case of San Antonio, 36 percent of our admissions is now or just COVID-19.

LEMON: Wow. I mean, to hear you say what you say, I distinctly remember the Governor of New York saying, being in a same position months ago, saying we are going to have to have remote hospitals. We are going to have to do this. We are running out of this. It feels like we're back at the very beginning. Am I wrong about that?

NIRENBERG: It's deja vu all over again, and the challenge, Don, is that we are seeing a seesaw effect. As Middle America begins to surge, things get light up on the coast and we go back and forth. And remember, we're in the first phase of this. We're not even in the fall yet. So, if this continues and we don't learn as a country to handle this virus in a different way, we're not going to see the economy back on track any time soon. And unfortunately, the people who suffer the most are those who can least afford to suffer.

LEMON: Yes. You're right about that. So mayor, we were -- this is mind boggling discussing this over the weekend. The San Antonio hospital says a 30-year-old man died from coronavirus in your city after attending a so-called COVID party? I mean, there is a lot of talk about this case. But I mean, we want to stick to the facts here. Is this true? What can you tell us about this?

NIRENBERG: It is unfortunately true, Don, and people need to stop pretending that doesn't happen. And we also need to stop pretending that this is just happening in one location. We heard about this things in more than just Texas and Alabama.

It's happening elsewhere. And it comes from the fact that people have been hearing that -- from politicians that this might be a hoax, and so we saw in this particular case it's actually replicating itself in stories that we are hearing throughout the hospital.

Which is that a young person attended a COVID party with a known positive case because they thought they were invincible, and that this wouldn't affect them as a way to, you know, to prove their point, and unfortunately five days later, this is a memorial day party. Five days later, this young man got sick and again, the last thing he said to the hospital tech, the nurse, is that he was wrong.

And unfortunately, too many young people are wrong. 30 percent, Don, of the admissions that we have in the hospital are people who are otherwise healthy. They don't have any other known underlying conditions and we have got pediatric cases now that are majority that have no underlying cases. So, this is striking anywhere, anyone. COVID-19 is an equal opportunity killer.

LEMON: Is this the one -- I have to go, mayor, but is this the one who said, I thought it was a hoax? The last --

NIRENBERG: It is. It is.

LEMON: Thank you, mayor. Be safe. Good luck. OK. I hope the next time I see you there is better news. Thank you.

NIRENBERG: Thanks, Don.

LEMON: Florida added more than 27,000 new coronavirus cases in two days. If the sunshine state were a country, it would be the fourth highest in the world in reporting new cases. A live report from Florida next.

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LEMON: So Florida, shattering the record for new coronavirus infections in a single day in any state this weekend. Governor Ron DeSantis heckled by someone in the crowd at his press conference today.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. RON DESANTIS (R-FL): So, I think the --

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There are record breaking cases every day and you are doing nothing. You are falsifying information and you are misleading the public. Over 4,000 people have died and you are blaming the protestors. You guys have no plans and you're doing nothing. Shame on you!

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Randi Kaye joins me now. Randi, hello, yeah, you know, people are frustrated there. A lot of feared frustration there. What is the Governor saying about the situation? By the way, good evening to you, what is the Governor saying about the situation that Florida is facing right now?

RANDI KAYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good evening to you as well, Don.

[23:20:00]

The Governor had a lot to say. Bottom line is today he's saying that those here in Florida, we're going to get through this just fine. Those are his exact words. I'm not sure what he is basing it on since on Sunday, we had that record number of more than 15,000 new cases. Today, about more than 12,000 new cases.

But he did make a point of saying that the number of people testing positive, he says, has stabilize, the fatality rate is about 1.5 percent here in the state. Which is lower than the national average of about 4 percent.

But most notably, Don, today he encouraged people there in Miami, where he was, you don't hear from him a lot, to wear face covering. He said if we do our part, it really can make a difference. Which was really interesting to hear him say, since he hasn't put out any sort of mandate statewide, and then he also did touch on the hospital beds, he said that there is a 13,000 to 15,000 beds available in the state of Florida, Don.

LEMON: The governor has really been reluctant to reveal hospitalizations data for the state. We discussed that, right, the last time we talked. Now we are getting more information. The numbers are rising significantly in Florida. What are you learning, Randi?

KAYE: Yes. Well, we now have more than 8,000 people in the hospital here in Florida. You know, as we said, reporters have been pressing the state and the Governor's office to release that information. They finally started doing it late Friday.

But Miami-Dade, Don, is really the one that's in the roughest shape. If you look at the numbers there for hospitalizations in the last two weeks in Miami-Dade County, that's the hardest hit county, hospitalizations are up 65 percent, ICU beds usage is up 67 percent and people in ventilators, that's up 129 percent.

The mayor of Miami-Dade now saying that 200 people are on ventilators. That is the highest number that they had seen. So, one quarter of all new cases in the state of Florida are now coming out of Miami-Dade County. So, it's a real concern there, plus the positivity rate, Don, in just that county is about 26 percent. They want it to be about 10 percent or less. The Governor said the goal is single digits, so certainly not where they want to be.

LEMON: Randi, I -- this is surreal. This is surreal that people -- we have leaders pretending that they're doing a good job and that this is not happening. This is unbelievable!

KAYE: Yes. He just said the other day, there's nothing to be fearful of. I mean, we now have more than 4,000 deaths in the state of Florida, and those getting sick are younger and younger now, 20s, 30s, 40s, 50s. Those 25 to 34 are about -- they are making about 20 percent of the cases statewide. They're not dying at the rate that the older people are, but 50 percent of the deaths are in nursing homes and long term care facilities.

So, it is stunning. But one really stunning fact, Don, is that Florida, which has a population about 22 million, has more new cases of coronavirus than the entire European Union which is approaching 500 million. So, it is just remarkable. LEMON: My goodness, Randi Kaye, stay on top of it. Thank you. And you

be safe down there, OK.

KAYE: Thank you.

LEMON: Thank you, we need you. Thanks so much. I want to bring in Florida state representative Shevrin Jones. He and his whole family tested positive for coronavirus. Thank you, sir. I appreciate you joining us. How are you feeling tonight?

STATE REP. SHEVRIN JONES (D-FL): I feel good, Don. Thank you for having me, this is the best I felt in the last 11 days, I feel good. Thank you.

LEMON: And your family?

JONES: My mom and dad are doing very well and my brother is doing well also. So, thank you for asking.

LEMON: OK. So, let's talk, you tweeted a bit about that over the weekend. You said that coronavirus affected each of your family members differently. Adding if you don't believe science, believe me. You don't want this.

JONES: Correct.

LEMON: So, talk about symptoms that you all experience, and talk about -- because there is a lot of us. As I just talked to Randi there, you know, it's a lot of nonbelievers out there so to speak.

JONES: Yeah, there are a lot of nonbelievers out there, I tell you that my symptoms started out very differently than my parents did. I had chills. I had a fever, I had body aches, I had muscle aches, I had all of the above, whereas my mother and my father, my mother had one day of just not feeling well and now they are doing just fine.

And my brother has had constant days of up and down temperatures. I call it the yo-yo virus because one day you're fine and one day you're not. It was like that for 11 days, but for me, whereas again, my parents, they experienced something totally different.

And my brother, he's experienced something totally different. And like I've said in my tweets and I've said it in Facebook, that people who think this is a hoax, I don't wish it on my worst enemy. It's not a good feeling. The worst cold that you can ever think of.

LEMON: OK. I'm glad you said that, and I hope people are heeding the warning that you are giving right now and listening to your words. Florida is reporting a record single day increase of more than 15,000 cases this weekend.

[23:25:12]

You said the Governor, and you saw the heckle right there, and you saw what the Governor had to say, and what he's been saying. You said the Governor has been negligent. Why? JONES: Yes. Well, listen, when we look at the cases that we currently

have, Don. The governor is the governor of 22 million people within the state of Florida. The (inaudible) stop with him. He can't play it up to the mayors. You can't play it off to anyone. What are you going to do, as a governor to ensure that people are safe?

Yes, there is a sense of responsibility that everyone have, but the Governor has the power in his hands to do a couple of different things. One, he has the power to put mandatory masks on. Has that happen? No. Have we asked for it? Yes, we have.

The Governor also has the responsibility for 67 counties but not allowing this patch work of policies that is coming about right now, where we have right now is the total circus of chaos that is taking place in the state of Florida, where the hospitalizations are up, where we have the amount of deaths that are happening.

And no one seems to be leading the state of Florida and everything is being placed on mayors and telling them to do as you please, while communities are constantly saying, Don, that we need someone to lead us. Because no one trusts the leadership that we have right now.

LEMON: In his press conference today, Governor DeSantis encourage Floridians to follow their local official's guidance including on face coverings, right. Too little too late? Should there be a statewide order?

JONES: There should be a statewide order. The science has already showed us that what face covering do and how it prevents the spread. The Miami-Dade County and the Broward County, they have required face coverings. But as you know, Don, in south Florida, it's a regional community. It takes nothing for individual to leave from Broward County to go to Palm Beach or to leave Miami-Dade County to go to Broward County.

And so, if everyone is creating their own rules in across the state of Florida, what do we have? We have what we have right now, we have the numbers that are escalated. We have the hospitalizations that's escalated. And again, I go back to the beginning, everyone is asking questions on who is leading in the state of Florida?

LEMON: Wow, that's a good question. Thank you, Representative Jones. My best to you and your family. OK, be safe. Thank you.

JONES: Thank you so much, Don.

LEMON: Thank you. Tucker Carlson commented tonight about the racist and sexist comments made by a former senior writer for his show, but he didn't address the on-going problem his show has, with its coverage of race and then he announce a vacation, that's next.

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[23:30:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) LEMON: Fox News host Tucker Carlson is addressing his former staff writer's designation for having secretly posted racist and sexist comments on an online message board. Carlson says that the post by Blake Neff were wrong, but went on to rail against what he called "ghouls" for celebrating the resignation.

Joining me now is CNN Chief Media Correspondent, Brian Stelter and CNN Political Analyst, Kirsten Powers, as well. OK, good evening to both of you. I'm not sure who is celebrating. I think this is awful all the way around. So what happened, you know, is terrible. But Carlson -- Tucker Carlson addressing, Brian, this resignation, but he struck a somewhat defiant tone at the end. I understand -- what did he say?

BRIAN STELTER, CNN CHIEF MEDIA CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, he seemed angrier about the reporting than about the races tirade by his former top writer. The story was broken on Friday by our colleague, CNN's Oliver Darcy. Tucker Carlson has more than 24 hours advanced notice. At least Fox News did, Fox News knew the story was coming.

But Tucker didn't say anything about it on Friday night, except taking a little jab at CNN and cancel culture. Now, over the weekend, Fox News executives deplore this former writer, condemn him, said of course he resigned, what he said was abominable, and they promised Tucker would address the story tonight. Tucker did, but like I said, he was angrier about the reporting than he was about the racism. Watch.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TUCKER CARLSON, FOX NEWS HOST: What Blake wrote anonymously was wrong. We don't endorse those words. They have no connection to the show. It is wrong to attack people for qualities they cannot control. In this country, we judge people for what they do, not for how they were born.

But we should also point out to the ghouls, now beating their chests in triumph for the destruction of a young man, that self-righteousness also has its costs. We are all human. When we pretend we are holy, we are lying. When we pose as blameless in order to hurt other people, we are committing the gravest sin of all and we will be punished for it. There is no question.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

STELTER: So that was Tucker's commentary, briefly addressing this matter. I think he was trying to address it because Fox wanted him to address it, maybe to smooth things over with corporate sponsors. It's a bit unclear exactly why he was put out there to say anything at all because he did not say what he needed to say.

But look, the reality is, Don, this show has been criticized for years. Tucker Carlson and his show had been criticized for years for being in a hot bed of white nationalist content.

[23:35:00]

STELTER: Tucker denies that. He denies it all day long. Those denials don't change the fact that, you know, this is a show that pedals and profits from white identity politics. And what his top writer was saying in online forums, racist sexist garbage, it lines up with the rhetoric that airs on Tucker's show. That is not going to show even though this writer has resigned.

LEMON: Listen. There is one point but I'm not sure what it has to do with this. I agree with him on one point that no one should take glee in someone else's demise.

But it seems to me, Kirsten, that -- it seems to me that he is not understanding what happened and maybe he is trying to separate himself from this by saying it has nothing to do with the show, because as I understand, maybe I'm wrong, that this writer said whatever comes out of Tucker's mouth -- he wrote the first draft of it, right? Maybe he is, you know, he is exaggerating. Who knows?

But it seems like he is trying to (INAUDIBLE) this sort of racial division. It's something that he's done on his show repeatedly. Listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CARLSON: This may be a lot of things, this moment we're living through, but it is definitely not about black lives. And remember that when they come for you. At this rate, they will.

If you are to assemble a list, a hierarchy of concerns, of problems this country faces, where would white supremacy be on the list? Right up there with Russia probably. It's actually not a real problem in America. White supremacy. That's the problem. This is a hoax. Just like the Russia hoax. It's a conspiracy theory.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: OK. So, he says he doesn't endorse what the former writer did, OK? But does that hold any weight after what he has said on his own show?

KIRSTEN POWERS, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST, COLUMNIST FOR USA TODAY: Well, no, I don't think it does, especially because I don't think what he said on his show in response to this leaves any of us feeling like, or any person who would watch it, feeling like he is actually not offended by what this person did.

And if you read through all of the things that he was posting, I mean, as (INAUDIBLE) horrific. That is the appropriate way to describe what this person was doing. That is not the way Tucker was talking about it. In fact, while calling other people self-righteous, he himself was sort of taking a posture of being self-righteous. He had a very self- righteous tone, lecturing other people about how they should be responding to this.

You know, like self-awareness is not obviously one of his top skills because self-righteousness is definitely something that you see over and over again on his show, of him holding himself up as, I am the good person and everybody else is the bad person. And, you know, instead of saying, this person did something wrong and they were held responsible, other people celebrating. I don't know. Probably Twitter. People on Twitter are always acting badly. But I think most people are just saying this is a person who did some really awful things and harassed people and treated people really badly.

And losing your job is actually an appropriate punishment for that. You know, I am all for grace, like, trust me, I am all for grace, but you know who isn't? Tucker Carlson.

LEMON: Interesting. Thank you both. I really appreciate it. Sixty-four people shot, 11 killed, all in one weekend, in one city, Chicago. But it's not the only city facing a rise in gun violence. It's happening across the country. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[23:40:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: So here is something very important that our Ryan Young is going to do for you. It's about deadly gun violence spiking in cities all across America. What is behind the increase in this bloodshed? Here is Ryan with some answers.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LATONYA GORDON, MOTHER OF TERRANCE MALDEN: He had his phone in his hand, and I saw his arm go like that.

RYAN YOUNG, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A mother in grief telling her son's teacher that 15-year-old Terrance Malden is dead.

GORDON: What is it that I did that God is putting all this on me? There's only so much I can take.

YOUNG (voice-over): A high school sophomore and mentor to other kids, Malden's death marks the fourth straight weekend a child was lost to Chicago violence.

DAVID O. BROWN, SUPERINTENDENT, CHICAGO POLICE DEPARTMENT: Police alone is not and cannot be the only solution for the gun violence faced by so many throughout Chicago.

YOUNG (voice-over): In all, 64 shot, 11 killed this weekend. Families have had enough.

ERIKKA GORDON, AUNT OF TERRANCE MALDEN: I'm tired of it. You know, we talk about Black Lives Matter. But I'm sick and tired of what is going on in the streets.

YOUNG (voice-over): And it is not just Chicago, another weekend, another tally of the dead in American cities.

(GUNSHOT) YOUNG (voice-over): In New York, a 1-year-old child shot and killed when someone opened fire near a playground.

MAYOR BILL DE BLASIO (D), NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK: It's not acceptable. It's not something we can ever look away from. It's something we have to address and stop.

YOUNG (voice-over): In all, there were 35 gunshot victims this weekend in New York. Last year, there were only six. On Thursday, the White House highlighted the names and faces of children lost to gun violence.

KAYLEIGH MCENANY, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: Let's make sure we have peace in our streets this weekend.

YOUNG (voice-over): But the grim trend continued. Even smaller cities were immune. In Charleston, South Carolina, five shot, one dead in three separate shootings Saturday night.

[23:45:02]

YOUNG (voice-over): In Wilmington, Delaware, a 10-year-old boy and four other teenagers were shot when someone fired more than 30 shots into a basketball court.

RASHIDA WILLIAMS, WILMINGTON RESIDENT: I wasn't shocked because this is what we are used to. This is going on around here.

YOUNG (voice-over): A new study from the Council on Criminal Justice links the violence to the pandemic with spikes tied to the reopening.

THOMAS ABST, COUNCIL ON CRIMINAL JUSTICE: The two major shocks to the system in terms of crime rates right now are the coronavirus pandemic and the unrest that has followed the tragic death of George Floyd.

YOUNG (voice-over): Both incidences have strained public services, including the police. CNN has learned, at the NYPD, retirement filings in early July surged 411 percent over last year. The union says some officers feel abandoned by elected officials.

Nearly two dozen Atlanta police officers told CNN affiliate WSB they fear being proactive to stop violence. One officer said, because it involves arresting gang members and drug dealers. "And in those cases, people resist. Right now, if we use force, we're going to be terminated."

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YOUNG: Don, you may often hear sometimes that there are no protests against violence in the city of Chicago. I can tell you, just this weekend alone, there were three anti-violence protests.

Mothers and fathers taking to the streets, begging for change, because obviously, they want to keep their children safe and it's the children who have been losing their lives that is really hurting these communities. They want to see change and they are hoping to see it before the end of the summer. Too many have been lost.

LEMON: Ryan, thank you very much. I agree with that. Listen, we're going keep talking about this. It is a summer of COVID, it's a summer of protests, and now a summer -- summertime surge in crime.

What happens in America when the police and the people both come under fire? Well, tomorrow, we are going to take an in-depth look at crime, policing, and your safety right here at 10:00 p.m. Make sure you tune in for that.

Health care workers on the frontlines are facing a dire shortage of personal protective equipment. CNN investigates, next.

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[23:50:00]

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LEMON: With coronavirus surging across the country, there are new calls tonight for the Trump administration to use its power to produce more protective equipment for the nation's doctors, nurses, and hospital workers.

Months into the pandemic, there is still a shortage of that equipment, especially masks. Here is CNN's Senior Investigative Correspondent, Drew Griffin.

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DREW GRIFFIN, CNN SENIOR INVESTIGATIVE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is a face mask nurse Judith Laguerre will use in a Massachusetts hospital this week: dirty, reused, one of three she has to recycle, disinfect on her dashboard.

JUDITH LAGUERRE, NURSE: And the sun will hit the mask and will leave them there for a few days and then use them again.

GRIFFIN (voice-over): Hardly sanitary, but health workers say there just aren't enough masks. Out on Cape Cod, Michelle Brum says it is one re-cleaned mask a shift.

MICHELLE BRUM, NURSE: They want you to reuse that mask multiple times and they send it for cleaning.

GRIFFIN (on camera): And how often are you reusing the same mask?

BRUM: They do this process five times.

GRIFFIN (voice-over): Across the country, nurses, doctors, some state health officials contacted by CNN say the lack of personal protective equipment or PPE is their most dangerous challenge with N95 masks the toughest to find.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This is something that we were talking about four months ago. GRIFFIN (voice-over): The American Medical Association has been begging the federal government to direct the manufacture, acquisition, and distribution of PPE.

LEANA WEN, PHYSICIAN, GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE: It's a national shame that we run out of masks and other PPE to protect our health care workers. There was no excuse in March and even less of an excuse now.

GRIFFIN (voice-over): This month, a democratic congressional House Oversight Committee concluded lack of leadership from the Trump administration is forcing state and local governments, hospitals, and others to compete for scarce supplies.

The National Nurses United Union just endorsed Joe Biden because of what it calls "Trump's abandonment of public health and safety."

JEAN ROSS, PRESIDENT, NATIONAL NURSES UNITED: It's not just N95s. It's everything. We really need the president to fully invoke the Defense Production Act so he can mass produce the things that will keep us safe. And, to this point, he has refused to do so.

GRIFFIN (voice-over): The Department of Health and Human Services disputes that account, telling CNN it has moved with deliberate and determined speed to ensure we secured supplies and equipment needed by frontline U.S. health care workers.

HHS listed 19 companies that have received orders under the Defense Production Act or DPA to acquire emergency supplies, including 600 million N95 masks. But experts say it's not enough and it started far too late. Only half of the masks ordered will be delivered by the end of this year.

KELLY MAGSAMEN, FORMER DEPUTY ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: This is going to be a really serious, serious, and persistent challenge for the United States for several months, if not longer.

GRIFFIN (voice-over): Kelly Magsamen, a former Pentagon official under the Obama administration, says the Trump administration hasn't used the full power of the Defense Production Act.

MAGSAMEN: The administration listened a little bit too much to corporate interests early on in the crisis. The DPA was not used early enough nor aggressively enough to put us in a position to get the kind of equipment and PPE we need in time.

[23:54:58]

GRIFFIN (voice-over): Some major hospitals tell CNN they are making their own deals to buy ever-scarcer supplies, some even stockpiling PPE. But smaller hospitals, nursing homes, and doctors' office are left out of the supply chain, jeopardizing even routine medical care, according to the AMA.

SHIKHA GUPTA, DIRECTOR OF MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS, GETUSPPE.ORG: A few months ago, we're in this really dire, emergent situation. And our hope was that that situation would change and improve. And it's really unfortunate that here we are in the middle of July and things look more or less the same as they did in mid-March.

GRIFFIN (voice-over): Early on in the pandemic, Dr. Shikha Gupta helped start an organization to do what the federal government has not, trying to fill shortages of PPE where health care workers were going without. Today, she says her group has 13,000 requests. They can fill just 10 percent.

GUPTA: It shouldn't be seen in the United States. We had the opportunity to do a better job of preparing ourselves and preparing the people that we're trusting to care for COVID patients, and we didn't do that. We really fell short as a country.

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GRIFFIN: Don, I wish I could tell you the situation is going to improve, but we have been talking with a medical supply chain expert, who is predicting in the next weeks and coming months, this competition is only going to get worse for this protective gear, especially as school systems enter the market. Don?

LEMON: Drew Griffin. Thank you, sir. And thank you for watching, everyone. Our coverage continues.

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