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Alarming Rise in New Coronavirus Cases Across The U.S.; Trump Administration In Denial As Pandemic Spreads; Coronavirus Outbreak in Latin America Now Rivals Europe's; NASCAR Shows Support For Bubba Wallace; India Records 100,000 New Cases in 8 Days; Virus Outbreak in Germany Centers Around Meatpacking Plant; Global Artists Come Together for 'I'm Standing with You'; Trump Criticized for Racist Term, Comments on Testing; Kentucky to Hold Primary Tuesday. Aired 12-1a ET
Aired June 23, 2020 - 00:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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JOHN VAUSE, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): Hello and welcome to our viewers in the United States and around the world. I'm John Vause.
Coming up on CNN NEWSROOM, the rapidly spreading coronavirus sweeping across the U.S. like a forest fire, according to one official and picking up pace globally as well, affecting more than 9 million people.
To the racist or racists who left a symbol of hate intended to terrorize the only black driver in NASCAR, the response from race organizers, drivers, pit crews and fans made it absolutely clear, you lose, big fail. You're done.
Making America infected again: the U.S. president once again heading deep into pandemic country for a campaign stop risking a superspreader event.
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VAUSE: The coronavirus is spreading across the U.S. and around the world, at what seems like record speed, now topping 9 million cases.
South Korea says it is now seeing a second wave and the U.S. continues to struggle to control the spread, accounting for nearly 25 percent of all cases, with less than 5 percent of the world's population.
According to Johns Hopkins University 23 states are seeing a rise in the number of cases and more young people are testing positive.
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DR. ASHISH JHA, HARVARD GLOBAL HEALTH INSTITUTE: We know that younger people are less likely to get very sick and less likely to die from the virus. But the issue is that, the more the virus spreads, those younger people have parents and grandparents and they're going to spend time with people and get them infected.
So while we may see lower mortality rates -- and I hope that we do -- the more the virus spreads, the more everybody is vulnerable. The more everybody is at risk. So we really have to find a way to curtail the virus spread and not take comfort in the fact that the initial cases are primarily in young people.
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VAUSE: In the Middle East for the first time, Saudi Arabia will restrict the number of people allowed to attend the annual Hajj pilgrimage. South Africa passed 100,000 confirmed cases after reporting nearly 4,300 in a 24-hour period.
Especially disturbing across the United States are the threats of violence against public officials. At least 24 have resigned, retired or been fired during the pandemic, making the efforts to stop the spread even more difficult.
A new study suggests more than 8.5 million Americans came down with coronavirus in March but 80 percent of them were never diagnosed. And we are now seeing the downside of that. Nick Watt begins our coverage.
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NICK WATT, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Florida reopened early, now, paying the price. Fewer than a thousand cases reported the day they began. Saturday, a new record, more than 4,000.
MAYOR DAN GELBER (D-FL), MIAMI BEACH: Right now we know exactly what's happening. Young people are going out because they do think they're invincible. They're getting the virus and they're spreading it into the community and it's just harder to protect people when that happens.
WATT (voice-over): Meanwhile in New York which waited until today to reopen restaurants and retail in the city.
GOV. ANDREW CUOMO (D-NY): We went from the highest transmission rate in the United States to the lowest. Three other places basically did re-opening as a political exercise. It was politicized by the White House and some states ran to reopen and just forgot about the metrics and the science.
WATT (voice-over): Nationally, we had largely flattened the curve of new cases, but they're now rising again, fueled by those early openers in the south and the west. Record high hospitalizations right now in Arizona, the Carolinas and Texas. And the death rate rise says Dr. Anthony Fauci, will follow in a few weeks.
MAYOR STEVE ADLER (D-TX), AUSTIN: I wish we had done this more slowly so we could have seen the data along the way.
WATT (voice-over): Oklahoma where the president just was, set a new record Sunday, nearly 500 new cases.
TRUMP: I said to my people, slow the testing down, please.
WATT (voice-over): And Arizona where the president will be tomorrow, the average new case count has quadrupled in just three weeks.
TEDROS ADHANOM GHEBREYSESUS, DIRECTOR-GENERAL, WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION: The greatest threat we face now is not the virus itself. It's the lack of global solidarity and global leadership.
WATT (voice-over): The U.S. is the global super power and the largest economy on Earth and natural leader. Yet, this country can't even manage its own crisis -- makes up around 4 percent of the world's population, but 25 percent of global COVID-19 cases and deaths. The White House, now prepping for a second wave.
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PETER NAVARRO, WHITE HOUSE TRADE ADVISER: We are filling the stockpile in anticipation of a possible problem in the fall.
WATT (voice-over): And the CDC expected to publish new guidance on masks any moment.
GELBER: The CDC has been late and then haven't been giving us - haven't given us a great playbook, if one at all, frankly. So, we've sort of been on our own trying to write this thing as we go along.
WATT (voice-over): New Jersey chose a cautious path, opened outdoors already, parks, beaches, but only starts some indoors, barbers, tanning salons and such today. And the governor is still preaching caution.
GOV. PHIL MURPHY (D-NJ): We're now going inside. Folks are going to have to be careful. Obey the rules. And this is a big step for us today.
WATT: And here at the international terminal at LAX, they are trialing thermal imaging cameras that will scan everybody coming into the terminal from outside or off a plane and, if your temperature is 100.4 or above, boom, you are flagged.
The mayor of Miami also just made face masks mandatory on Monday. It's clear our leaders are planning for the future and it's looking like a long haul -- Nick Watt, CNN, at LAX.
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VAUSE: Dr. Joe Gerald is associate professor and program director of public health policy and management at the University of Arizona, he is with us from Tucson.
Thanks for taking the time to speak with us, Doctor.
DR. JOE GERALD, UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA: Thank you.
VAUSE: The president of the United States will be heading into the epicenter of the epicenter of the pandemic, if you like and here's how the U.S. compares to the E.U. over a seven day average with new cases.
The green line at the top is plateauing quite nicely and not going anywhere is the U.S. The dramatically falling white line is the European Union. The reason why the national numbers in the U.S. are not coming down is because of states like Arizona.
Over 7 days, there's been a big surge in the number of new cases, you can see it there. So politics to one side, forget about whether he should do the rally or not, assuming that there will be 3,000 people packed indoors at a venue, can you quantify how many cases of COVID-19 will be the result of this?
Or is it too difficult?
Or can you say with confidence that there will be an increase in the number of cases once the president leaves town?
GERALD: We can't say with any confidence how many cases are going to result from the rally. But as public health professionals, we know when you put a lot of people together in an indoor space and closed them up tightly and keep them together for a long period, those are the perfect conditions to have a superspreader event, where one individual would infect many individuals, who then throw fuel onto the fire.
VAUSE: Is that a situation which the hospital facilities and health care facilities in Arizona can deal with at this point, an increase in COVID-19, as a result of a rally tomorrow?
GERALD: Yes, we do, currently we have the capacity to handle critically ill patients and we are looking at a smaller safety margin than we've had in quite some time, so we are projecting somewhere in mid July to bump up our capacity to care for critically ill patients. So anything that adds to that is a problem.
VAUSE: In response to the surging numbers across the state, the mayor of Phoenix said it's now required for everyone in the city to wear a face mask when in public but not everyone will be treated the same. Listen to this.
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MAYOR KATE GALLEGO (D-AZ), PHOENIX: Look, we're not going to cite the president of the United States but we would ask all our elected officials and every other type of leader to lead by example and say we need to take this seriously.
One of the reasons we have this growth in Arizona is complacency. We've had elected officials say that the worst was over a month ago; that was not the case and we are seeing records of the type we don't want.
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VAUSE: Some officials are being called on to lead by example but yet the leader of the country is expected to break the rules and there'll be no attempt to hold him accountable.
GERALD: I understand the challenge with doing that. But I would agree with the overall assessment that the communication or the appearance, the message is running counter to the public health messaging that we're trying to get out.
For mask wearing to work, we have to have a high degree of adherence, with upwards of 80 percent. So every bit matters. And if our elected officials are not indicating through their behaviors that this is an important issue, it does weaken the message.
VAUSE: The president was asked on Monday to explain the remark he made, telling his people to slow down the rate of testing, that's what he said.
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QUESTION: Just to clear up, there wasn't a direct order to staff to stop the testing?
TRUMP: No, but I think we put ourselves at a disadvantage. I told my people, we've gotten so good at testing, number one, we have the best tests. Number two, we have the most tests. We test much more than any other nation.
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TRUMP: So you hear about all these cases. So instead of doing 25 million tests, let's say we did 10 million tests, we'd look like we're doing much better because we'd have far fewer cases. You understand that.
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VAUSE: Clearly the president does not understand what he's talking about.
His position seems like if there were fewer pregnancy tests, it would result in a lower birth rate. Tests just reveal reality. The reality will be there, regardless of testing.
GERALD: Correct. There may be some small effects from doing an additional number of tests but certainly not enough to account for the changes that we are seeing here. And not testing does not make the problem magically go away. So testing is incredibly important in the strategy against COVID-19.
VAUSE: Dr. Joe Gerald, thank you so much, I appreciate you being with us.
GERALD: Absolutely, thank you.
VAUSE: The outbreak in Latin America is also spreading at an alarming rate, Mexico confirmed almost 5,000 new cases on Monday with a daily death toll of 750, the second straight day Mexico has reported more fatalities than Brazil, the worst hit country in the region. More than 1 million infections, that's more than half the confirmed
cases in Latin America. And the outbreak is yet to peak. According to Brazilian health officials, almost a fifth of all Brazil's total cases were recorded in the past week alone. CNN's Shasta Darlington has details.
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SHASTA DARLINGTON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Brazil reported more than 21,000 new cases of coronavirus on Monday, with the total now well over 1 million and rising. The health ministry also reported 654 additional deaths.
For the week ending on Sunday, Brazil averaged more than 1,000 deaths a day and over the weekend, the total death toll surpassed 50,000. Nonetheless, several Brazilian cities have continued to relax quarantine measures. Rio de Janeiro is now allowing residents to frequent beaches for physical activity.
Workers are back in offices and shopping malls across the country have opened their doors. Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro has repeatedly insisted that Brazilians should go back to work, or he says hunger and unemployment will kill more people than the virus itself.
On Monday, he warned that the government was running out of money and would not be able to afford emergency unemployment benefits, all over $100 a month, much longer -- Shasta Darlington, CNN, Sao Paulo.
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VAUSE: Nearly A month after George Floyd's death and calls for police reform are growing louder.
But what does that look like and what is keeping it from happening?
More on that when we come back. Also ahead, NASCAR rallying behind black driver Bubba Wallace after a noose was found in his team's garage. The organization is making a stand like never before.
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VAUSE: Protests continue around the United States. Just hours ago, demonstrators gathered in Lafayette Park across from the White House and attempted to topple the statue of former president Andrew Jackson. That led to police trying to push protesters back amid the yelling and chaos.
Members of the White House press corps were told to immediately leave the grounds. Oddly, there was no official reason given for the order and we are following this developing story. In Atlanta, tensions are high, after a district attorney charged two
police officers in the recent shooting of Rayshard Brooks. One of them is facing 11 charges, including of felony murder.
That's not sitting well with many members of the Atlanta police force and a Georgia congressman says the charges are politically motivated. All this as Brooks' family lays his body to rest this week. CNN's Natasha Chen has details.
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NATASHA CHEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Some of the people who paid their respects to Rayshard Brooks today may not have known him personally but they say they're all too familiar with his experience.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I feel like the soul of America is really sick, that they have desensitized when it comes to crimes against people of color.
CHEN: Outside the church today, not one police officer in sight.
A spokesperson for the historic Ebenezer Baptist Church said the Brooks family asked Atlanta police not to be involved in the security for the event. Streets the city planned to shut down to traffic were opened and a private security team escorted the hearse carrying brooks to the church followed by his family.
A few hours earlier a full report from the Fulton County medical examiner officially determined his cause of death as homicide. It described two gunshot wounds to the back and said toxicology results are still pending.
Also pending is the Georgia Bureau of Investigation report on what happened the night he was shot to death even as the Fulton County District Attorney's Office has done its own investigation and charged the two officers he encountered last week.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We are being attacked. These guys are our brothers. We're being attacked by Paul Howard. We do the job to protect. We expect to be protected by our leaders and they've all failed us, all of them.
CHEN: Critics including Congressman Doug Collins questioned the felony charge against former officer Garrett Rolfe seen on surveillance video shooting Brooks after Brooks aimed a Taser over his shoulder when he ran away.
GOV. DOUG COLLINS (R-GA): What has happened over the past couple of weeks has been wrong. It is time for the district attorney of Fulton County to step aside and have someone -- and to allow the attorney general to appoint an independent prosecutor. You cannot prosecute cases until the investigation is over. You don't do it for politics.
PAUL HOWARD, DISTRICT ATTORNEY: I think what those protesters and all over the country, they're not demonstrating because they thought Paul Howard did something political. They're demonstrating because citizens in our country continue to die and a high number of those citizens are African Americans.
CHEN: But attorneys for Rolfe insist that not only were his actions justified under Georgia law because he was acting in self-defense but that the D.A.'s, quote, "choice" to charge him is justified only by his hopes to improve his performance in the upcoming run-off election.
A private funeral will be held Tuesday and the police are being asked not to be involved in security for the event. The family has invited the Atlanta mayor, along with district attorney Paul Howard, to the funeral -- Natasha Chen, CNN, Atlanta.
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VAUSE: And we are learning more about the New York City officer suspended without pay after apparently using a chokehold over the weekend. Chokeholds were banned in New York City last week.
This latest incident was recorded on video. And a warning: some viewers may this find this disturbing.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Stop choking him, bro! Yo! Stop choking him! Yo, he's choking him. Let him go, bro. Let him go!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Look, look.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Back up.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Back up.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Back him up.
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VAUSE: Sources tell CNN the officer has been on the police force for 15 years and, according to the Civilian Complaint Review Board records, he is described as Hispanic and has eight civilian complaints on his record. He was exonerated in seven of those. One case where he allegedly used a gun to hit someone in the mouth there was a settlement with no admission of liability.
Well, fans and drivers came out to support NASCAR's Bubba's Wallace on Monday after they found a noose hanging in his crew's garage. Before the race, Wallace drove onto the track surrendered by the other racers, a powerful display of support for the only person of color in NASCAR's top circuit.
Wallace's car was placed symbolically ahead of the other racers and led for one single lap.
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VAUSE: He finished 14th after running low on fuel -- it was in Florida, I believe.
In the U.K. the English Premier League Club is strongly condemning an offensive banner that flew over Monday night's football match at Etihad Stadium in Manchester. CNN's Don Riddell has the information for us.
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DON RIDDELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In the English Premier League, Black Lives Matter. Around the world, those three words have come to represent an awakening. A powerful movement in response to racial injustice, police brutality and oppression.
Those words, Black Lives Matter, are on the shirts of the players and on the minds of many. Before Monday night's game at the Etihad Stadium, all players from Manchester City and Burnley took a knee in support of the movement.
But before the game had begun, their eyes were drawn to the sky. And the sight of a banner being towed by a plane. The message, white lives matter Burnley.
The players could hardly believe what they were seeing. Afterwards, Burnley's captain, Ben Mee, told Sky Sports of the team's disgust.
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BEN MEE, BURNLEY CAPTAIN: I am ashamed and embarrassed that a small number of our fans have decided to pull that on the stadium and completely miss the point. People are ashamed and embarrassed to see that.
And it's not what we are about at all. Missed the point of the whole thing trying to achieve, trying to do. I think these people need to come into the 21st century and educate themselves.
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RIDDELL (voice-over): Burnley Football Club condemned the banner and the stunt in a strongly worded statement, saying the side strongly condemns the actions of those responsible for the aircraft and offensive banner that flew over the Etihad Stadium.
"We wish to make it clear that those responsible are not welcome at Turf Moor."
For the record, two goals each help Manchester City to a 5-0 win. The result will extend the title race for at least a few more days. Liverpool, denied the chance to clinch their first Premier League title on Wednesday.
RIDDELL: But none of that really seemed to matter on Monday. And while the game and the positive protest movement were only briefly upstaged by a banner in the sky, it goes to show you the extraordinary lengths that some will go to try and silence their voices -- Don Riddell, CNN. (END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: Isaac Bryan is director of public policy at the UCLA Ralph J. Bunche Center for African American studies, he's with us from Los Angeles.
Thank you for joining us.
ISAAC BRYAN, DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC POLICY, UCLA BUNCHE CENTER: Thank you for having me, John, good to be with you.
VAUSE: I just want to pick up the conversation, with reaction to the two racially inflammatory incidents that we've seen, first being the noose left in the garage of the only African American driver at NASCAR, Bubba Wallace.
I want you to listen to his reaction and the support he received from race organizers, from pit crews and fellow drivers and fans. Here he is.
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BUBBA WALLACE, NASCAR DRIVER: All in all, we won today. The pre-race deal --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE), Bubba.
WALLACE: -- the pre-race deal was probably one of the hardest things I've ever had to witness in my life. From all the supporters, from drivers, from crew members, everybody here, the baddest fan base -- thank you guys for coming out here.
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WALLACE: This is truly incredible and I'm proud to be a part of the sport.
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VAUSE: And then there was the plane flying a banner, that said white lives matter. It was over an English Premier League match and there was a definitive statement from Burnley captain Ben Mee.
He said in part, I'm ashamed and embarrassed that a small number of our fans have decided to fly that around the stadium. It does not represent what we are about, the club is about, the players are about and the majority of fans are about.
There is always that moment when black society will no longer tolerate something that's been tolerated for a very long time, the N word and desegregation. It could be difficult to judge how genuine the sentiment is. But nonetheless, when it happens, it becomes the norm and those moments tend to be a signpost of cultural shifts.
Are we there now? BRYAN: I think that we are and first of all I would like to call out Bubba's professionalism. He's a standup guy and the way he has been leading that sport, the only black man in the top circuit, has been admirable. He wore an "I can't breathe" T-shirt. He pushed for the Confederate flag, to not just be requested not to be brought to events but to be banned by NASCAR.
And I think athletes in general are finding this moment to speak out and they are becoming a catalyst for the change that we would all like to see. I think the National Basketball Association, the NFL, Colin Kaepernick and others that really have led this push, laid the platform for others to be vocal.
And that is really a special thing, so my heart goes to Bubba seeing that noose but the way he is reacting and the sport behind him is definitely something that inspires us all.
VAUSE: And that is the key I think, the leadership within the African American community as well, how they deal with these incidents as they come up and the examples that they set.
BRYAN: Yes, I mean the grace of black folks, in the United States and around the world, is unmatched.
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BRYAN: Especially in moments like this. We really find a way to overcome and we are hoping -- I think that there is enough solidarity in this moment to push for the change that we all deserve.
VAUSE: On Monday there were hundreds of people that turned up at Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta and there was a public viewing of Rayshard Brooks. But I want you to listen to part of the service, here it is.
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RAPHAEL G. WARNOCK, EBENEZER BAPTIST CHURCH: It is a tough moment but it is only when it's dark that you can see the stars shine. And in a moment like this, I am seeing a coalition of conscience, of people of all races, who are rising up and saying that we are one people.
We're one American people, we are all children of God and we have to not simply say it with our lips but we have to see it lived out through our public policy.
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VAUSE: And that is the key. There is this movement and then an understanding within the general population but in terms of public policy and lawmakers, especially Republicans in Congress, they seem to be way behind here, way behind the changes which are being demanded.
BRYAN: You know, I think that is for sure true. And I think especially at this moment, historically, you heard a lot of, you know, it's time for us to change our heart and change our minds. But now people are really talking about the systemic issues and the public policies that need to be addressed.
Republicans are behind for sure. Their are all lives matter in Congress refuse to acknowledge the need for black lives.
But even more important than that, is that it is bipartisan, the lack of support, for black lives, are bipartisan. We have a Democratic candidate for as president who adopted the crime bill but he still has not apologized for it. So I think we should call on all of our elected officials and to step up to the plate and give us policies we deserve.
VAUSE: We are also hearing from the lawyer for the officer who shot Mr. Brooks. And the defense seems like the officer had feared for his life and the lives of other people, as he was running away without any kind of weapon.
It's a pretty standard defense and in the past it would almost be a guarantee to get out of jail, right?
BRYAN: Right, we are seeing way too many of these murders, let's call it what it is, these murders on camera, on video, livestreamed, for our entire conscious to be shocked over and over again.
I think at this point we are past that. We are sick and tired of being sick and tired and it's time to hold folks accountable and shift the systems to ones that are more equitable that don't result in these lethal outcomes, especially for black people.
VAUSE: You know one of the arguments we hear of reform of the police, in terms of the funding, you know, because there are good cops, good guys, just a few bad apples. That doesn't really say why there's a protest in Atlanta, where police are refusing to go to some 9-1-1 calls.
In Buffalo, the rest of the riot response team walked out in solidarity when two of their members were suspended after they knocked that 75 year-old protester to the ground. This is, you know a few bad apples but they also have their support with these acts.
BRYAN: We are past the individual officer analyses and conversations. This is a systemic problem and it is rooted in the formation of our police departments here in United States. It is rooted in slave catching, in the protection of property rights at the same time as black folks were considered as property.
This has been maintained for over 400 years. To the officers that refused to do the job they claim that they are doing, that speaks more broadly to the chokehold that our police unions have on our public officials, our public conscience and our municipal budgets.
And we need to hold folks accountable and we need to think at a system level about how we not only reform but divesting from law enforcement and reinvesting in systems of care and opportunity for our communities.
VAUSE: We are out of time but I'm curious as to how long this will go on before there has to be some type of real change for the people on the streets. But I guess that's a conversation for another time. Thank you for being with us, I really appreciate it.
BRYAN: Thanks for having me, John.
VAUSE: Pleasure.
Well, days after the U.S. president said he ordered a slowdown in coronavirus testing, White House officials have been downplaying those remarks and saying he was joking. Health experts say the crisis is nothing to laugh about.
Then India's dramatic surge, over 100,000 new coronavirus cases have been reported, in just over the last week. More on that in a moment.
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JOHN VAUSE, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: South Korea's warning that a 2nd wave of the coronavirus is already underway in that country. The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says there was a lull between the two outbreaks at the beginning of last month. More regional outbreaks are expected.
According to Johns Hopkins University, close to 12 and a half thousand people have now been infected in South Korea.
And coronavirus cases are dramatically spiking in India. Nearly half a million people are infected there, again, according to Johns Hopkins University. That's the fourth highest total worldwide. Now they've added more than 100,000 cases in little more than a week.
CNN's Vedika Sud joins us now, live from New Delhi. So do we know what's driving this surge in numbers?
VEDIKA SUD, CNN PRODUCER: A lot of reasons, John, here. And it's really worrying, because we're inching closer to the half million mark as we speak.
Now, I have spoken to doctors over the last few days. There are a number of reasons they attribute this to. They say the unlocking down of India -- that is termed by the government of India for unlocking of the country after several lockdown phases, is one of the main reasons for this. It was not phased out well, is what doctors tell CNN. They're worried that, in the coming few days, also, the numbers are going to spike. This is not the peak yet for India.
The worry being Delhi, the capital city especially, because why we're talking about India, the overall numbers, the tally, India hitting the half a million mark soon. The Delhi government has come up with their own prediction, and they say that the capital city itself would hit the half a million mark by the end of July.
These are very worrying numbers, and we don't have enough beds here. I've spoken to families across the national capital who have family members who are suffering from coronavirus. They found it extremely difficult to find beds in hospitals via private or government hospitals. When you speak to the hospitals, they say they had enough beds for the time being, but the situation is quite dire. Because of which, very interestingly.
The Delhi government has also now started to converge a spiritual center, a massive one, thought to be the biggest in the world as far as the COVID temporary facilities are concerned. We believe 10,000 patients can be housed there.
Also, another interesting factor as far as the capital city is concerned, there will be trained cultures (ph) that are being stationed at a particular railway station in New Delhi, where the cultures (ph) have been converted into COVID-19 facilities to house patients there, as well.
But that leaves us with a big question that we're tracking every day here at CNN in New Delhi. Are there enough beds, and will there be enough healthcare workers for Delhi, since the government here in the capital city are worried about these numbers increasing to half a million by the end of the month of July -- John.
VAUSE: I guess the big concern, though, is once they get to the exponential increase where, you know, each day just doubles and doubles and doubles, you know, they're still -- well, a long way from that. Are they getting close to that point?
SUD: Well, the numbers, like you said, are just increasing exponentially. And the central government, interestingly, has also stepped in this time for Delhi.
Maharashtra, where we all know about the capital city Mumbai, has been the worst hit till now. And the numbers that I have also talk about the total number of cases being one-third of the number of cases in India in Maharashtra.
But when you see the capital city, the numbers are increasing very steadily. And that's the worry. While you have Maharashtra at the top and then Delhi, and then the south Indian state of Tamil Nadu, that's also seeing a number of cases. A huge chunk of the top number of cases is coming from these three states.
And that's what the central government is looking at to fight currently, because the peak is yet to hit India, according to medical experts, John.
VAUSE: Yes, that's a problem. Everything looks fine until it doesn't. Then it just explodes, and I guess that's what they're bracing for now. Vedika, thank you. Vedika Sud there, live for us in New Delhi.
Germany also seeing a spike in the coronavirus cases. Health officials are linking this to an explosion of cases at a meat processing plant in the country's west. More than 1,300 workers tested positive.
Authorities are struggling to impose local lockdowns. Increase could mean more restrictions. According to Johns Hopkins University, Germany has had more than 190,000 cases, nearly 9,000 fatalities.
Well, for more on that outbreak and why some plants are so vulnerable, here's CNN's Fred Pleitgen. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice- over): Germany has called in its army after more than 1,300 workers at the Tonnies meat processing plant in the city of Gutersloh tested positive for the novel coronavirus.
Local authorities ripped into management, saying in many cases, the firm failed to provide the addresses of employees, even as health officials were urgently trying to trace those who may have been in contact with the virus.
"I want to say clearly that the trust we have in the Tonnies company is zero," the crisis team leader says. "I have to say this clearly."
While the company says German data protection laws slowed the information-sharing process, the owner says he's sorry the outbreak occurred in his business.
"I can only offer my complete apologies and give my apology because we are the cause of this issue and carry full responsibility. Me as a businessman and the company as a whole," he said.
The outbreak in Gutersloh is one of the main reasons the reproduction number for the novel coronavirus in Germany has soared, the country's Center for Disease Control said.
But it also spotlights what many activists and politicians say are unacceptable working conditions in German abattoirs, with employees often laboring and living in very close quarters.
Germany has seen a series of outbreaks in its meat-processing industry, and the government says it will take action to improve conditions.
The federal government is determined not to be guided by the interests of lobbyists, but by the interests of a public, Germany's labor minister said. At its core, this is a decision between public well- being or egoistic interests.
Meanwhile, in the town of Gutersloh, state authorities say they might have to put the entire region around the Tonnies plant under a blanket lockdown.
"The source of this outbreak can be found at this specific company, so it is still the case that we are unable to rule out a wider lockdown," the state governor said.
While Germany has often been praised for its strong reaction to the coronavirus pandemic, politicians acknowledge they need to do more to make sure the meat industry here does not remain a source of heightened infections.
Fred Pleitgen, CNN, Berlin.
(END VIDEOTAPE) VAUSE: Great expectations in England as Boris Johnson looks set to further ease coronavirus restrictions.
In the coming hours, the prime minister expected to announce a review of the two-meter social distancing rule. And after three months on lockdown, pubs, museums and galleries will be able to reopen in England from July 4. Strict safety guidelines will be in place.
Well, more than 170 music artists from around the world have come together, kind of, to raise money and awareness for those impacted by the coronavirus.
I'm Standing with You features some of the biggest names in music and a 160-piece orchestra. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(MUSIC: "I'M STANDING WITH YOU")
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: The song was written by the iconic Diane Warren, with the video created and produced by Sharon Farber and directed by the award- winning Gev Miron. It was a monumental undertaking, but the creative team says it all fell into place.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DIANA WARREN, AWARD-WINNING SONGWRITER: I thought the message of the song would resonate, but I never could have imagined that, you know, singers from every continent on the planet would be, you know, singing and playing on it. So it's just -- it's mind-blowing.
VAUSE: It just seems like a perfect song for the perfect time.
WARREN: Yes, I mean, it just has that message, that message of unity and in such divisive, divided times like what you were talking about, and here's a -- here's a message of, I'm standing with you, no matter, you know, what you go through, what you are. You know, like I'm there for you. And it's a powerful message.
[00:40:31]
VAUSE: It really is. When you put the musicians and the performers, suddenly you and, what, dozens of volunteers and musicians who are also medical workers, and knowing that, it seems there's just something extra to all of this. I don't know really how to describe it. How do you sort of describe what they brought to this project?
SHARON FARBER, FILM, TV AND CONCERT MUSIC COMPOSER: Well, Gev called me one day, and he could tell you about it a little bit. But he was like, you know, let's do something for corona. And of course, I was game, because I wanted to do something, as well. And we wanted to do a song, and the best person to call when it comes to songs is, of course, Diane, who got excited about it. And at the beginning, we thought it's going to be something small for
the music community here in Los Angeles, but at one point, we realized that this is -- really needs to be a global thing. And so the arrangement that I originally did for a smaller sample, I had to make it huge for a full orchestra and choir and, you know, sort of --
WARNER: You didn't sleep for, like, three weeks?
FARBER: I didn't sleep for about two months, because it was -- it was huge. I mean, the amount of music and the preparation and to send it out and do the memo, everything, took so long.
But the minute that -- that we've got one yes from Rene Fleming, everything started to really go in the right direction. And at one point we understood that we have basically every continent.
And we wanted to be very inclusive. So I called my friend Patrick Balton (ph) with the gospel choir. And I called my friend from the medical center orchestra, Texas Medical Center Orchestra, and they were on board. I mean, there were over 75 musicians in about two hours, so it was amazing. And everybody said yes. Everybody wanted to do something.
BERMAN: I wonder about the video, because it's very reflective of this sort of pandemic world we now live in. The performers are on computer screens or are seen as images on buildings. You remember Australia's Tina Arena, who I met and remember watching on television, projected on the white sails of the iconic Sidney Opera House.
And then there's this really unexpected moment in the score, with the Israeli pop singer Rita, who just kind of takes it up a notch, and here she is. Listen to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(MUSIC)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: Explain just how complicated and difficult was shooting and editing and bringing everything together when it was done remotely.
GEV MIRON, DIRECTOR: Well, from the get-go I told her Sharon, and we all agreed that it shouldn't be just another Zoom video, because we realized that, you know, there's -- we're all sitting at home, right? And we're all sort of experiencing this pandemic all around the world.
And when I first saw the footage that, you know, came on every news channel, the abandoned city centers and cities around the world look like, you know, post-apocalyptic scenes from -- from a movie, I immediately thought that this needs to be somehow part of the video.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: The entire interview with the creators of "I'm Standing With You," that's coming up the next hour of CNN NEWSROOM. Now, despite multiple warnings by multiple health experts, Donald
Trump on the move again, preparing for another large political gathering at one of the worst coronavirus hotspots in the U.S.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
[00:46:14]
DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The socialist dictatorship of Nicolas Maduro has inflicted terrible misery and suffering on the good people of that country.
I just want to see Venezuela straightened out. I want the people to be safe. I want to take care of Venezuela.
The dictator Maduro is a human puppet, protected by human body guards, hiding from his own people.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: Well, for, it seems, the past three years, the U.S. president has an unfavorable opinion of Nicolas Maduro, the embattled Venezuelan president. But he now says he is willing to talk with Donald Trump.
Maduro says he would meet respectfully with his U.S. counterpart, like he's done previously with former Vice President Joe Biden during the Obama administration.
President Trump has previously said the only meeting he'll have with Maduro will be to discuss a peaceful exit from power. But in an interview over the weekend, the president said he was never opposed to meetings, whatever that means.
In the coming hours, Donald Trump is expected to attend several public events in Arizona, where the number of daily coronavirus cases has been steadily surging. It comes days after he held a rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma, where two more members of his campaign staff tested positive. That's a grand total of 10 now.
Mr. Trump is under fire for telling the crowds there that he ordered a slowdown in COVID testing, and for using an offensive remark to describe the virus.
Details from CNN's Kaitlan Collins.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
TRUMP: By the way, it's a disease, without question, has more names than any disease in history. I can name Kung Flu --
KAITLAN COLLINS, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: After the president used that phrase to refer to coronavirus on Saturday night, the White House defended it, despite criticism that it's racist and anti- Chinese. KAYLEIGH MCENANY, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: He is linking it to its
place of origin.
COLLINS: The White House said it's not racist and that Trump doesn't regret using that phrase, despite civil liberties groups arguing that terms like that can inspire racism against Asian-Americans.
Instead, the press secretary claimed it's just like when the media referred to it as the Chinese coronavirus, though no major outlet has referred to it as the Kung Flu.
(on camera): The media has never called it the Kung Flu. Calling it the Chinese coronavirus and calling it the Kung Flu are very different things.
MCENANY: The media and your network specifically --
COLLINS: -- called it the Kung Flu?
MCENANY: The media and your network specifically have repeatedly used the term China virus and Wuhan virus, and then gone on to deride the president as somehow using a term that they themselves have never used. So we can go through CNN's history.
COLLINS: Not that term, Kayleigh.
(voice-over): It wasn't the president's only comment from Saturday night's rally that has gone scrutiny. The White House faced questions after Trump said he instructed his staff to slow down coronavirus testing.
TRUMP: You know, testing is a double-edged sword. When you do testing to that extent, you're going to find more people. You're going to find more cases. So I said to my people, slow the testing down please.
COLLINS: At first, White House officials said Trump was just kidding.
PETER NAVARRO, WHITE HOUSE TRADE ADVISOR: Come on now, Jake. You know it was tongue in cheek.
JAKE TAPPER, CNN ANCHOR: The president --
NAVARRO: Come on now. That was tongue and cheek. Please.
COLLINS: But when the president himself was asked Monday whether he had directed officials to slow down testing, he paused.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Did you ask to slow it down?
TRUMP: If it did slow down, frankly, I think we are way ahead of ourselves, if you want to know the truth. We've done too good a job.
COLLINS: The White House didn't explain why the president didn't say he was joking.
MCENANY: The president instead used that opportunity to extol the fact that we've done more than 25 million tests, and that we're finding more people because we're doing more testing.
COLLINS: Trump addressed a partially-filled arena in Tulsa on Saturday night, and sources later said he was seething over the rows of empty seats. Though his aides claimed he was in a great mood.
[00:50:04]
MCENANY: These media reports that he was somehow furious on the plane, there is no grounding in fact to that. I was with him on Marine One on the way there, on Marine One after. He was very -- very pleased with how the rally went.
COLLINS: Video of Trump returning to the White House Saturday night showed a president who appeared deflated, with a loosened tie around his neck after campaign aides had assured him that nearly a million people had requested tickets.
(on camera): And after that briefing at the White House on Wednesday, then you saw protesters gather in front of the White House, in front of Lafayette Park, trying to topple a statue of Andrew Jackson, of course the seventh president. They put ropes around his statue, were trying to pull it down.
When they were cleared from Lafayette Square, from the park police, the same officers who cleared protesters so aggressively for the president's photo-op not so long ago. They pushed them back to a barrier, to the street behind that park. And instead, have closed off the park in the hours since as protestors have been chanting, "Hey, ho, Andrew Jackson has got to go."
Kaitlan Collins, CNN, the White House.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: Well, the U.S. presidential election is still months away, but it's already hit high gear in Kentucky, where Democrats are just hours away from choosing a candidate to challenge Senate Leader and Trump enabler Mitch McConnell.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VAUSE: Bringing Donald Trump to one side, there is one other Republican leader who Democrats would dearly love to see out of a job this November. That would be the Senate leader, Mitch McConnell.
CNN's Jeff Zeleny shows us what's at stake now as the party chooses the right candidate to become a dragon slayer.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHARLES BOOKER (D), CANDIDATE FOR KENTUCKY SENATE NOMINATION: This is happening in Kentucky right now. We are in a moment, y'all. We're in a moment.
JEFF ZELENY, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A sleepy Senate private race suddenly electrified in Kentucky. BOOKER: This time has to be different, for my cousins. For my little
ones, for y'all, this has to be different. For Breonna, for Mr. McAtee, for everybody that's a hashtag.
ZELENY: A national reckoning racism and police brutality is resonating loudly here, where Louisville police killed 26-year-old Breonna Taylor, an EMT, in March, and David McAtee, the owner of a barbecue restaurant, in June.
Weeks of protests have ejected fresh uncertainty into the campaign over who Democrats will choose to take on Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell in November.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She's Kentucky's best chance to move on from Mitch McConnell.
ZELENY: Amy McGrath, a former Marine pilot, is the hand-picked choice of party leaders in Washington. Her primary victory was seen as a foregone conclusion, but state Representative Charles Booker is now riding a wave of momentum.
BOOKER: From the hood to the --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Holler!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Holler!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Holler!
BOOKER: From the hood to the --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Holler!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Holler!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Holler!
ZELENY (on camera): You've said that you are campaigning from the hood to the holler. Explain that.
BOOKER: Well, I'm trying to build a movement here by speaking to our common bonds. And there's a reality that there are so many similarities in the hood that you would see in places in the hollers of eastern Kentucky and in the mountains that, if we realize our common bonds, we can change the world.
ZELENY (voice-over): With the political awakening underway, McGrath has struggled to find her footing.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Have you been on the ground in Louisville with the protesters the last three days, or in Lexington or elsewhere, Ms. McGrath?
AMY MCGRATH (D), KENTUCKY SENATE NOMINATION CANDIDATE: I have not.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And why? [00:55:02]
MCGRATH: Well, I've been with my family, and I've had some family things going on this past weekend. But I've been following the news and, you know -- and watching.
ZELENY: Booker turned that moment into a TV ad. While she's dramatically outspending him, $14 million to his 1 million on advertising alone, the closing momentum is on his side.
The race is playing out here in Trump country, where the president won the state four years ago by nearly 30 points.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: President Trump and Mitch McConnell, delivering for Kentucky.
ZELENY: From the streets of Louisville, to small towns like Campbellsville, Booker is making the case for progressive change. His policies closely aligned with Bernie sanders and Elizabeth Warren, both of whom have endorsed him.
BOOKER: We've got to be that change. We've got to bend that arc.
ZELENY (on camera): Do you wonder if he's too progressive for Kentucky?
BRUCE WHALEY, KENTUCKY VOTER: Sometimes I think about that, but it's time for a change. Everything is evolving, man.
ZELENY (voice-over): A more urgent test is the mechanics of voting. While tens of thousands have voted early, only one polling place will be open tomorrow in Louisville, with precincts consolidated because of coronavirus.
BOOKER: It's been hard to vote in Kentucky for a lot of us for a long time, and what we're seeing now is really a continuation of that. It's just naturally going to disenfranchise people. And that is a concern.
ZELENY (on camera): And it will be another test of how elections are conducted during an age of a pandemic. Thirty-seven hundred polling places normally around the state have been reduced to just 170, including only one polling site here in the largest city of Louisville, as well as in Lexington, Kentucky, certainly raising questions about how the votes will be cast and counted, never mind the ideological divide inside the Democratic Party.
Jeff Zeleny, CNN, Louisville, Kentucky.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: A famous statue of President Theodore Roosevelt from -- which stands outside the American Museum of Natural History in New York City may not be standing there for much longer.
The 26th president on horseback with a Native American and a black man on either side was commissioned in 1925 to show Roosevelt's love of nature. Many say it's racially demeaning, and the museum and the city agree. Time to go. No date has been set for its removal.
Thank you for being with us. I'm John Vause. I will be back after a very short break with another hour of CNN NEWSROOM. You're watching CNN.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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