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Don Lemon Tonight
President Trump Slams Democrats Ahead of RNC; President Trump Again Falsely Claims Mail-In Voting Leads to Fraud; Key Models Predicts Worsening COVID-19 Death Toll in United States; President Trump Wants Live Speeches and Spectacle at RNC; Two Dozen Cases Linked to Sturgis Motorcycle Rally; Postmaster General DeJoy Saying Delivering Ballots on Time is the Number One Priority Between Now and Election Day; NYT Security Guard Nominates Joe Biden For President; Republicans Gear Up for Their Convention Next Week; Kamala Harris and Obamas Deliver Scathing Rebukes of President Trump at DNC. Aired 11p- 12a ET
Aired August 21, 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, top of the hour, 11:00 p.m. here on the East Coast. We are following multiple breaking stories for you tonight. Ahead of next week's Republican national convention, President Trump slamming the Democrats.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Over the last week the Democrats held the darkest, and angriest and gloomiest convention in American history. They spent four straight days attacking America as racist, and a horrible country, that must be redeemed. Joe Biden grimly declared a season of American darkness. And yet look at what we've accomplished. Until the plague came in, look at what we've accomplished.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Interesting, the Republican convention gets away under way Monday night which we expect, we are going to take a look at that. Tonight, though the death toll in the U.S. from COVID-19 passing 175,000. And the key forecasting model now predicts the disease may kill 310,000 Americans by December.
President Trump, citing no evidence, falsely claiming once again, that mail-in voting will lead to massive fraud. And now saying that he's going to send sheriffs and law enforcement officers, to polling stations. Is he purposely trying to undermine the confidence in the election? We are going to break down all these stories and more in the hour ahead for you.
But I want to bring in now, CNN White House correspondent, Mr. John Harwood. John, good evening to you, boy, oh boy, don't we have a lot to talk about. President Trump, rejecting Joe Biden's characterizations of the country is under a season of darkness. He really wants to project positivity going into this convention, but that's going to be a tough sell.
JOHN HARWOOD, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Couple of things about that Don, first of all when President Trump, says that the Democrats had a dark convention, they called America racist and irredeemable and all that stuff. That is the standard rhetorical device for the incumbent president. They say the attacks coming from the other side, they are not attacks on me they are attacks on you, says that to the voters. And he is attacking our country, he's attacking our flag, running down America. That is not what your Biden is doing.
Joe Biden is describing conditions in the country that are in fact very dark. We have got, unemployment over 10 percent, a million people in the last week filed new unemployment claims. 170,000 people plus are dead and that number is rising as you just mentioned a moment ago. That is what Don, the kinds of stuff that Donald Trump called carnage, when he was a candidate, first day of his presidency.
But now he's four years into it. This is carnage on his watch. So, that's one problem. The second problem is, Donald Trump does not want to be positive. That is not who is, that's not what his messages is. What he has been doing while the Democrats have been having their convention, is saying that Joe Biden's America, is going to be cities in flames, immigrants coming across the borders to commit crimes against you, people of color wrecking your suburbs.
And we just heard tonight from a communications specialist at the Trump campaign saying that they are going to bring people on to the convention, to talk about the consequences of brutal socialist regimes like Venezuela and Cuba.
So what they are going to try to say is that Democrats are radical socialist party, and you are going to suffer. That's a pretty dark vision and it is consistent with the way he has portrayed his opponents throughout his presidency. So, he does not have a whole lot of positivity to argue.
LEMON: Here is what CNN is reporting, John, that after closely watching the Democratic convention, the president is urging aides to put an emphasis on live speeches versus taped ones. He wants a spectacle right?
HARWOOD: He always wants a spectacle, and who is the star of the spectacle. It's Donald Trump. I think the live speech that we are talking about, the most important one of course, is going to come from him, but they are going to have all sorts of people, expressing grievances. We know that they are going to have the St. Louis couple that brandish the weapons when protesters march by their house and said they thought their house was going to get burn down.
[23:05:07]
I don't know, if they are going to be speaking live. They don't have in the Republican Party, a roster of elder statesmen and women to testify to Trump. Or there certainly aren't going to be any seasoned Democrats coming on to testify for Trump.
So, I think they are going to go for flash, and Razzmatazz's and you know, Trump was -- reality TV show host. So he's going to try to create that spectacle. The question is whether that's going to work and what he has try to do so far has not worked in these trailing by a Signiant margin.
LEMON: Yes. John Harwood, thank you, I appreciate your time, sir. I'll see you soon.
HARWOOD: You bet.
LEMON: Joining me now with more on coronavirus pandemic is Dr. Jonathan Reiner, the director of cardiac Characterization Program at George Washington University Hospital. Also Andy Slavitt is here. The former acting administrator at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid services. Hello to both.
Dr. Reiner, let's start with you. Washington University forecast is that the U.S. death toll, could reach 310,000 by December 1st. That's about double the death toll now. A staggering number. What accounts for that big jump?
JONATHAN REINER, CNN MEDICAL ANALYST: It is simple math, you know we are averaging anywhere between, 1,100 and 1,400 deaths a day. And, you just do the math and that is where we will be at the turn of the year. But what is maddening is that it did not have to be this way.
We could have been more like Germany. We could have been more like South Korea. You know, Germany has not had an easy time, but they have had 10,000 deaths. Right, so they are country about the quarter of the population of United States.
But they have had, you know, one 17th, the number of deaths. Right? We could had been like that and we should have been. And what we needed, throughout the spring and the early summer, is we just needed simple confidence.
We needed to do the simple things well. But we didn't get that. We got malignant narcissism. We got leadership that put an election ahead of the public's well-being. So, that's where we are now and it didn't have to be this way.
LEMON: Andy, I want to bring you in, because and I want to get your reaction to that projection, that 310,000 deaths total by you know, that's almost 70 percent fewer deaths, if people only -- if people would only excuse me, would adapt these near universal mask wearing. Right?
There would be 70,000, there would be fewer deaths. As Dr. Reiner said, it just doesn't have to be that way. If people would just do what they're supposed to do, wear masks social distance, we wouldn't have to deal with that projection number.
ANDY SLAVITT, FORMER ADMINISTRATOR AT THE CENTERS FOR MEDICARE AND MEDICAID SERVICES: Exactly right, you know, we have the president and we have -- that's not going to change before the end of the year. So, I think we have to decide as Americans, we are not going to let that happen.
Don, when was the last time we had the opportunity to save 130,000 lives. We've never had the opportunity, because they've never lost that many people in our lifetime.
So, we have an extraordinary opportunity. I can't think of a better rallying cry. I'm upset that we don't have a leader that's not using that rallying cry, to get all of us to do the simple things. But the good news, and there is good news, is that we now understand a lot about how the virus spreads. It is respiratory.
That means if we don't breathe near one another, that is what it will take. And if we can't imagine doing that, to save another 140,000 people, that would be a shame. We are going to need a leader that's going to cause that action, but in the meantime I think we can't accept these numbers as our destiny.
LEMON: I don't know if you saw the interview Dr. Reiner, or both of you but Dr. Reiner, I' going to give this question to you. Tonight Joe Biden is saying that he is willing to shut down the country, because of the coronavirus here it is.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOE BIDEN (D), PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: I would be prepared to do whatever it takes to save lives. Because we cannot get the country moving, until we can control the virus. That is the fundamental flaw of this administration's thinking to begin with. In order to keep the country running and moving, and the economy growing, and people employed, you have to fix the virus. You have to deal with the fires.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So, if the scientists say it shut down.
BIDEN: I would shut it down. I would listen to the scientists.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Man, that is the exact opposite of what we are hearing from the administration. You know, this is far -- this far into the pandemic, is that what it's going to take to stop this catastrophe?
REINER: Yes, that and what Andy was saying, we need universal wearing of masks. We need to social distance. We need to take care of one another. But we need the political will to shut places down, when the virus is out of control.
[23:10:15]
You know, we could have saved a lot of lives in the south, in the southwest over the last two months, if we would have shut those states down. But there was no support from the federal government to do that. And none of the Governors were willing to do it. We saw partial responses in Texas and Arizona, but we need to shut down. Look, look at the New Zealand experience, they had four cases in Auckland and they shut that city down. Four cases. And we have seen that around the world. That is how you extinguish the virus.
So New York made a bunch of mistakes, at the beginning they shut them too late. But when they shut down, they shut down for months. Now look at the positivity rate in New York. It is the lowest in the country. That is how you extinguish the virus. But we need the political will to do that. We need the leadership to do that.
LEMON: Andy, at least 26 cases of coronavirus and three states are being linked to the Sturgis motorcycle rally that happened just two weeks ago. I mean, you know, we all saw the pictures of hundreds of thousands of people gathered, and it's only a matter of time though.
SLAVITT: Yes, in 15 years in our state. I mean, look part of the problem I think, Dr. Reiner says it right, the Vice President Biden, if he becomes president, he's going to ask Americans to sacrifice a bit in behalf of all the rest of us. And I think that's all -- if people are asked to do that and understand the stakes, you know, and I don't think it's as dark draconian, as a complete light out shut down.
I think it means the places like Sturgis, people could ride there motorcycles outdoors, fine. But they can't go indoors at the bars. Because that is where the coronavirus spreads. People who are going to colleges, if they don't have adequate testing, they have to do it online from home. These are sacrifices. These aren't fun. But they have pale in comparison to what prior generations have had to sacrifice. And this is the least we can do to save that many lives.
LEMON: Thank you Dr. Reiner. Thank you, Andy. I appreciate it. More than 5.6 million confirmed cases in the U.S., the death toll topping 175,000 now. More tonight on the battle against COVID-19 from CNN's Nick Watt.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MIKE PENCE, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We think there is a miracle around the corner, because the president called on pharmaceutical companies and we believe it's very likely that we will have one or more vaccines for the coronavirus before the end of this year.
NICK WATT, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Meanwhile in the real world --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No country can just ride this out until we have a vaccine.
WATT: And right now, the U.S. is seeing many more cases every single day than we did in those dark days of April. On average more than 1,000 Americans have died every day, for about a month now.
DR. ROBERT REDFIELD, DIRECTOR, CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION: Hopefully this week, and next week you are going to start seeing the death rate really start to drop.
WATT: His optimism is based upon the nationwide new infection rate, dropping at the moment. But -- DR. AMY COMPTON-PHILLIPS, CNN MEDICAL ANALYST: I think we are going to
see in the fall another spike and I just don't see it not happening given the burden of disease that is circulating in the community today.
WATT: There's a whiff already.
REDFIELD: Middle America right now, is getting stuck. We don't need to have a third wave in the heartland.
WATT: Case counts climbing in Illinois, Iowa, South Dakota. Now looking a little sunnier in the south. Their rate of new cases now falling in Texas, even so, today in Dallas.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All the medical professionals were unanimous, in the recommendation that there should be no in person learning on September the 8th.
WATT: Of the 101 largest districts in the nation, 64 now reopening, online only, despite pressure from the president and some of his acolytes, who are not medical professionals. July 8th, the president tweeted this, in Germany schools are open with no problems. That day, 356 new cases in Germany. Yesterday, more than four times that.
New York crushed the curve, still nervous about schools.
GOV. ANDREW CUOMO (D-NY): But they are still working out with the plan would be. I would have a lot of questions, parents do have a lot of questions. This is a risky proposition no matter how you do it.
WATT: Kicking up to college level, cases now confirmed on campuses in at least 19 states. Some reverting to remote learning. Gatherings like this, proving a problem. Pence states, president asking the question, do you want to be the person responsible for sending everyone home?
Nick Watt, CNN, Los Angeles.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: All right. Nick, thank you so much.
[23:15:00]
The president still railing against mail-in voting, but has the damage already been done, as he cast doubt on the outcome of the election?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: So take this, President Trump added again today railing against mail-in voting.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: This will be the greatest catastrophe, one of the greatest catastrophes in the history of our country, that's how serious it is. And they also think that I'm trying to steal an election, just the opposite. I want the fair results of an election.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Well, if you truly want a fair election, he should stop his unrelenting campaign of falsely claiming that voting by mail is rife with fraud. It is not. CNN has done extensive reporting on mail-in voting and there is no evidence of massive fraud as Trump claims. He is trying to cripple the postal service's ability to successfully handle millions of ballots this fall. He admitted that, in an interview.
[23:20:00]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: They want $3.5 million for something that will turn out to be fraudulent. That is election money, basically. They want $3.5 billion dollars for the mail-in votes.
OK, Universal mail-in ballots. They want $25 billion, billion, for the post office. Now they need that money in order to have the post office works so it could take all of these millions and millions of ballots. Now, if we don't make a deal, that means they don't get the money that means they can't have universal mail-in voting. They just can't have it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Well he said it, three weeks ago at the funeral for Congressman John Lewis, a civil rights fighter whose skull was cracked open while marching for voting rights in the 1960s. Former president Barack Obama powerfully denounced moves to suppress the vote.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARACK OBAMA, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We may no longer have to guess the number of jelly beans in a jar in order to cast a ballot. But even as we sit here, there are those in power who are doing their darndest to discourage people from voting. Even undermining the postal service in the run up to an election. That's going to be dependent on mail-in ballots, so people don't get sick.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: And tonight, the White House issuing a veto threat to a Democratic bill aimed at providing the postal service with an additional 25 billion dollars. If anyone is trying to rig the election, it's President Trump. Time to discuss, now. Former Governor of Massachusetts is here, Deval Patrick, Governor, thank you. Good to see you.
FMR. GOV. DEVAL PATRICK (D-MA): I wish we had more positive news to talk about.
LEMON: Yes, well. You know, here we are. As the former first lady said, it is what it is. So, when you look at -- go ahead. Get it out. PATRICK: I said, it is what it is.
LEMON: It is what it is. When you look at what the president is doing around mail-in voting. Is this voter suppression? Do you see it that way?
PATRICK: Well, I do, and I see it as a part of a pattern that goes back well before this president, you know, for decades now. The national Republican Party has had a strategy that starts with hyper partisan gerrymandering, it's about attacking limitations on money and politics. It resulted in the citizens united decisions by attacking the voting rights and its restraint on these kinds of gains which went on to the Supreme Court.
Now, big parts of the voting rights act has been gutted, it's about the voter or I.D. laws and the purging. This whole notion of taking registered voters off the list, so people show up thinking that they are qualified to vote. That they are fully registered and they discover there that they can't. It's about closing the polling places, you saw what happened just recently in Wisconsin.
I think it was 145 polling places in Milwaukee. Reduced to five, right before the primary and most of those that were closed were in neighborhoods were black and brown voters live. You see poll taxes brought back in Florida, where the citizens overwhelmingly voted to restore the franchise to former felons and then the Republican Governor, Republican legislation the first thing they do.
When they take office is to impose new conditions, insurmountable conditions in many, many cases on most felons being able to act and exercise the vote. And now, he's trying to undermine the ability of the post office to deal with the extraordinary circumstances brought on by pandemic which his own incompetence or indifference has made harder to manage.
LEMON: I want to point out -- as we're speaking here and part of the reason, a big reason we have you on is because you wrote an op-ed in the Detroit Free Press, and it said voting by mail is safe and easy. That is why Trump doesn't want voters to do it. You say. But you tie it into Trump's attacks into what you call a broader effort by Republicans to make the vote more difficult.
My question always is, is if you are doing the right thing and you believe that you are your party or you as a president or as a leader if you're doing the right thing and people like what you're doing, why make it more difficult for people to vote? Shouldn't he be making it easier because people would want to come out and vote for your ideas and your plans and your policies?
PATRICK: Well, it's a rhetorical question but the one I would ask is, or the point I would make is, it's more and more apparent that the president and the National Republican Party do not think they can win a fair fight.
And I think all we want, and all that democracy should assure is a fair fight. Let's have a contest of ideas. And then let people come in and express how they feel about those ideal ideas, whether they support them or not, based on their access to the ballot.
[23:25:07]
But we have a pattern that goes back a while, and by the way, it's not coincidental. This is intentional. And so even the president's, you know, the -- is it Postmaster DeJoy.
LEMON: Postmaster general, yes.
PATRICK: Yes, the postmaster general, and you know, he promised that he would be attentive to the sacred right to vote, and respects the delivery, the timely delivery of the ballots.
Now, what was it, two or three weeks ago, that same postmaster wrote to 46 states in D.C., saying that they couldn't assure that ballots would be delivered on time, and in the hearing today, he said he was doing nothing different or reversing none of the decisions that caused the raising of the alarm two or three weeks ago.
So, you know, you remember how after the outrage, justifiable outrage, to, that was raised in response to the separation of children from the refugee parents, and we were assured in Congressional hearings and in the public, that this was a terrible idea and the administration would stop. And the noise settled down and they kept right on doing it, and they are doing it now.
And so I feel why should we simply trust the postmaster general's assurances? We need some way to verify and we need the resources in the postal service to assure that they can handle these extraordinary circumstances.
LEMON: It was a pleasure, Governor. It's good to see you, you'll be safe. Thanks so much. Thanks for coming on.
PATRICK: Thanks for having me. Take care.
LEMON: A New York Times security guard, who had a big moment at the Democratic convention, tells me about her chance meeting with Joe Biden. That's next.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm great. I love you. I do. You're like my favorite (inaudible)
BIDEN: Thank you so much. What's your name?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (inaudible).
BIDEN: You got a camera? As we get out we'll take one. OK.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You are awesome, oh my gosh.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) [23:30:00]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: Jacquelyn Brittany is a security guard at The New York Times who played a key role at the Democratic National Convention. She was the first of three people given the honor of nominating Joe Biden to lead the democratic ticket.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JACQUELYN BRITTANY, SECURITY GUARD, THE NEW YORK TIMES: I take powerful people up on my elevator all the time. When they get off, they go to their important meetings. Me? I just head back to the lobby.
But in the short time I spent with Joe Biden, I could tell he really saw me. That he actually cared, that my life meant something to him. And I knew even when he went to his important meeting, he take my story in there with him. That's because Joe Biden has room in his heart for more than just himself.
We've been through a lot and we have tough days ahead, but nominating someone like that to be in the White House is a good place to start. That's why I nominate my friend Joe Biden as the next president of the United States.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(LAUGHTER)
LEMON: Can you imagine? There she is. Jacquelyn Brittany is here to talk about how she met the former vice president and how she ended up nominating. I'm waving right back at you. Thank you, Jacquelyn, for doing this. I really appreciate it.
BRITTANY: Thank you for having me on the show. I'm very honored.
LEMON: Well, we are honored to have you. My goodness! I mean, not many people get to do what you did. I got to tell you, you've escorted a number of influential people. But you say --
BRITTANY: Yes.
LEMON: I heard you say there in the video, the day you met Joe Biden, that he saw you. So, what did you mean by that?
BRITTANY: I felt as if he put me in his shoes. I was a regular person. I was -- I didn't have to be high profile. I didn't have to have a lot of money. It didn't matter about my skin color, my sex. He just seeing me for the everyday person that I am to other people in my life.
LEMON: Mm-hmm. OK, so, I have to ask you, when the campaign asked you to nominate him at the DNC, what did you think?
BRITTANY: I don't think I was actually thinking. I was very ecstatic, very honored, overwhelmed in a good way.
LEMON: Mm-hmm.
BRITTANY: I just couldn't believe it. Even until today, I still don't believe that it happened.
LEMON: What was that night like for you, Jacquelyn?
BRITTANY: It was a great night. It felt like I was free. Like I could do anything I really wanted to. I had a voice for many people who do not get the opportunity. And it was very humbling to me.
LEMON: Mm-hmm. I think it's interesting that you say Joe Biden reminds you of yourself. That he could walk in your shoes. Why do you say that? Do you come from a completely different background?
BRITTANY: You know, I've had a lot of tough times. You know, I've been through a lot. You know, I'm able to help kids that are struggling. It's a lot I've been through emotionally. I have lost people, including a best friend in 2012, and, you know, that's still -- carries with me every single day.
[23:35:04]
BRITTANY: I know he's had a lot of loss. And one thing about him and I is we smile and we laugh and we enjoy people, regardless of what we may feel when we're alone. We know that we're a comfort to many other people.
LEMON: Mm-hmm.
BRITTANY: And that's just a genuine side and a natural side to us.
LEMON: So, you know, obviously, we have a sitting president, we have someone in the office. Why does the country need Joe Biden instead of who we have now?
BRITTANY: They need empathy, compassion, someone to care. You know, to change -- to make things change or to bring a comfortable environment for people, all types of people, you have to be someone that genuinely cares. If you don't genuinely care, you know, it's just another job to you and things won't get done.
LEMON: Mm-hmm.
BRITTANY: We need to be heard. And when I say we, I don't mean, you know, my race, I don't mean my sex. I mean multiple people, immigrants, you know, people that are struggling financially need to be heard, people that feel scared to make a statement, they need to be heard, as well.
And, you know, you don't want to be -- you want to be just like the everyday person because if you understand that, then you're able to make change throughout for other people, as well.
LEMON: Well, Jacquelyn, I'm very proud of what you did, because again, regardless of who you're going to vote for, what you did is something that is extraordinary, doesn't happen to a lot of people. So congratulations. Keep on keeping on.
BRITTANY: Thank you.
LEMON: And hopefully, I get to ride on the elevator with you one day, you know, at The New York Times or somewhere else.
BRITTANY: Oh, I promise you, you will, yes.
LEMON: You be well, and thank you.
BRITTANY: Thank you. Take care.
LEMON: Democrats showcasing Joe Biden's empathy this week as the Republicans gear up for their own convention. Why the RNC could be a whole lot different and way more combative.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[23:40:00]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: This week, Joe Biden and the Democratic Party made their pitch to the American voter, focusing on themes like empathy, unity, the country and racial justice. So how will the president and the Republican National Convention try to counter the Democrats' messaging next week?
Let's discuss now. Mark McKinnon is here. He is a former advisor to George W. Bush and John McCain, the executive producer of -- well, present shows not included -- my favorite show, "The Circus," on Showtime.
(LAUGHTER)
LEMON: Shows that we're on. Don't get included on that, all right, Mark? Good evening. Good to see you, brother. Are you doing OK?
MARK MCKINNON, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Doing great, just no lack of material as usual at times. I was in Scranton yesterday with the president --
LEMON: Yeah.
MCKINNON: -- and I was in D.C. a lot of the week. Lot is cooking.
LEMON: So let's talk about that. You know, this -- about the convention. This -- I mean, this convention was unlike any in history. How did it go? How did the Democrats do?
MCKINNON: Well, first of all, Don, I had a lot of responsibility for the 2000, 2004 convention, and we had conversations then about how anachronistic the conventions were, how they really needed the change, they were really out of step with the time. But tradition just -- the physics set in and you never changed it. So, COVID has finally forced those changes. I know there was a lot of trepidation about it and understandably so.
I mean, they were making changes. I mean, they are going to do it in Milwaukee as recently as a week ago or 10 days ago. So what they did was phenomenal. The challenge, it was a high wire act of astonishing challenge.
And really, you think how many things could have gone wrong and didn't. And now, they're not -- they did not go wrong. I think in almost every way, this was a better convention than other conventions we've had.
LEMON: Yeah.
MCKINNON: The speeches -- the speeches are great because you don't have those tons of people on the floor applauding and doing standing ovations for a minute after every paragraph, much more intimate and much more connected.
And I just have to say that, you know, overall, Stephanie Cutter and the rest of the gang just did an outstanding job of pulling off the technical aspect of the show and made it really entertaining, and then, you know what, none of that would have mattered if Joe Biden hadn't delivered on his speech and he did it.
LEMON: President Trump is firing back at Joe Biden, the Democrats today. Listen to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: Over the last week, the Democrats held the darkest and angriest and gloomiest convention in American history. They spent four straight days attacking America as racist and a horrible country that must be redeemed. Joe Biden grimly declared a season of American darkness. And yet look at what we have accomplished until the play came in. Look at what we have accomplished. And now, we are doing it again.
(APPLAUSE)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Here is the question. Is the RNC -- do you think they're going to claim that things are going well in the country and could that backfire?
MCKINNON: Well, I think what they're going to say is they were going really well and they're only going to go well again if we us back because we know how to run this economy, we had a really good run.
[23:45:04]
MCKINNON: And the Democrats are just going to -- the Democrats are going to make America South America again, specifically Venezuela. But it is a very dark dystopic view that they portray about the Democrats. That's really not the speech that Joe Biden gave, but that's the speech that Donald Trump will give.
Basically, what he's going to say is that we're going to have chaos, anarchy on the streets, and it is going to be an America that nobody wants to live in, and then look at what we've done before COVID.
LEMON: Yeah. You talked about the convention. How well, you think, they pulled it off, especially technically? Your show, "The Circus," on Showtime has a new episode out this Sunday. It takes a look at just what goes into making a convention like this happen. Here it is.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: How many conventions have you done?
STEPHANIE CUTTER, DEMOCRATIC CONVENTION PLANNER: Ninety-two, '96, 2000, 2004, 2008, 2012. But now, this is different. We cannot recreate the balloon drop. We can't recreate the cheering crowds. We've got some risky things happening. We see if they pan out. This will either be a raging success or -- I guess this will be my last convention.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(LAUGHTER)
LEMON: Can you imagine the pressure on her? I mean, how does a pandemic complicate the job of the parties trying to woo voters in this way?
MCKINNON: Unbelievable. They had to do what had never been done before. As I said, you now, just think about how many things could have gone wrong. And other than the few minor glitches, everything went really well, and as I said, not only well but in many ways better than the traditional convention.
And here is the thing. You know that Donald Trump was watching that. You can just imagine him on the phone with his producer, just like, oh, man, you better be better than this. What are we going to do on the roll call?
(LAUGHTER)
MCKINNON: And, you know, I'm sure -- it's you got to be chaotic. You know, they are trying to change everything now. It was already chaotic enough. So, it is interesting to see if the Republicans can meet the bar because they have set it really high, I got to say.
LEMON: Yeah. Listen, I'll see you this weekend because I'll be watching you on "The Circus," and also I'll see you next week. Thank you very much.
MCKINNON: I'll see you next week. Thanks, Don.
LEMON: See you next week. When I said, see you next week, all week long, we're going to be covering the Republican National Convention, the biggest speeches' important moments, and of course, President Trump. mIt all starts on Monday night with special coverage beginning at 7:00 p.m. Eastern time, live on CNN. We'll be right back.
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[23:50:00]
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LEMON: So the democratic convention is over. Joe Biden is wasting no time going after the president, calling Trump incompetent.
I want to bring in now W. Kamau Bell, host of CNN's "United Shades of America." You know I like to call you W. Hello, W. Let's talk about the convention, shall we? Joe Biden had a good --
W. KAMAU BELL, CNN HOST: Hey.
LEMON: Hey -- had a good night. But I want to hear your thoughts on Kamala Harris, specifically, and the Obamas. They delivered scathing rebukes of the president. It was really unprecedented. How'd they do?
BELL: I mean, I think, you know, that's what they were there to do. You know, they -- whatever Joe Biden is, he is not the power speaker that the Obamas are, Kamala Harris is. So, I think that's what they were there to do.
I think one thing that's clear from the convention is that although people will be voting for Joe Biden, you are really voting for this entire group of people, and Joe Biden is sort of following these people into the White House. He is not -- we will not be following him into the White House.
LEMON: So, let's talk about your show. It's called "United Shades of America."
(LAUGHTER)
BELL: It's a new show on CNN. I hope people enjoy it.
LEMON: No, it's not.
BELL: Hope you watch it sometime.
LEMON: But in your latest episode, you head to South Florida, home of the largest number of Venezuelans in the U.S. Watch the clip. Here it is.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I will give you a bill of 10,000 bolivar.
BELL (on camera): Ten thousand bolivar.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Right now, that worth like a quarter.
BELL (on camera): When your country's money has like thousands on it -- UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yeah.
BELL (on camera): -- and regular people are holding a 10,000 note, that's never a good sign. So this is --
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (voice-over): That's origami.
(LAUGHTER)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's origami.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You know, a restaurant in Maracaibo, they put like this, like a napkin.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (voice-over): Yes. Yes.
BELL (on camera): As a napkin?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (voice-over): Yeah.
BELL (on camera): That it's worth more as a napkin, than it is as currency.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: Currency worth nothing. So, there's been a mass exodus in Venezuela in the past 10 to 15 years. Give us a bit of a lesson on the political situation there. Why are so many people forced to leave?
BELL: I mean, as many people say in the episode, it's a humanitarian crisis. People can't get food. People can't get electricity. Their people are fighting in the streets for the little thing -- and I -- the thing is, right now, in South Florida, in Doral, in Miami, there is a huge Venezuelan American community.
And our country could be doing a better job of asylum by granting asylum for people who are coming from Venezuela. And we're not doing enough. Our asylum system has been further broken by the Trump administration.
LEMON: Yeah. The Venezuelan community in the U.S. has a complicated relationship with President Trump. Some people oppose him. But many others are big supporters. Why?
BELL: You know, early on in his tenure, President Trump said that, like, all options were on the table, something to that effect about Venezuela. And that was the first time they felt they had heard from an American president in recent years about helping Venezuela. So I think he got a lot of credit for that.
[23:54:57]
BELL: But as we know, President Trump says a lot of things, does not follow up. So I think they're hoping that that big talk will lead to some sort of action, although many Venezuelans, they don't want that to lead to military intervention, but it is such a humanitarian crisis down there, people just need help.
LEMON: I've seen a lot of you this week, a sneak preview of the new podcast, "Silence is Not an Option," should I tell them what we're discussing or should I just --
BELL: Sure.
(LAUGHTER)
LEMON: We're discussing interracial relationships. We're both in one, and we're going to talk about that. And --
BELL: Not with each other. Not with each other.
LEMON: No, no, no. Kamala Harris and her husband. Again, I thought that was an interesting moment with them on the stage, an interracial couple. But anyway, it drops next week. There's one this week. It's different. But I want to tell.
Thank you, W. Kamau Bell. I want to tell everyone to check out W. Kamau Bell, the all new episode of "United Shades of America" with Kamau, Sunday night at 10:00 p.m., right here on CNN.
Thank you for watching, everyone. Our coverage continues.
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