Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

Statues Toppled, State Senator Assaulted in Wisconsin Protests; Colorado Woman Tests Positive for COVID-19 Twice; Three Defendant in Ahmaud Arbery Case Indicted on Murder Charges; Trump Holds Joint News Conference with President of Poland. Aired 3:30-4p ET

Aired June 24, 2020 - 15:30   ET

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

[15:30:00]

OMAR JIMENEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: One of them for someone who fought for the Union during the Civil War and another statue that symbolized progress.

Now in the midst of all that, that is when we saw Democratic State Senator of Milwaukee, Tim Carpenter, who was there and was said he was taking a picture before he was then assaulted by protesters. In fact, one of the local affiliates, WKOW, said they had to call 911 for an ambulance for Carpenter who again says he not only was assaulted but hit in the head, punched and kicked multiple times over the course of these.

Now you read some of the statement that Governor Tony Evers put out saying that they are not tolerating this type of demonstration and protest. They say there was damage done to multiple pieces of state property. They are currently assessing that portion.

They also say Capitol Police reported multiple people trying to breach the State Capitol as well. And it is part of why as you mention he says they are now prepared to call in the National Guard if necessary to protect the state buildings and infrastructure and they are strategizing with local and state law enforcement over how to deal with similar situations like this either tonight or in the days to come as well.

And, again, at the base of all of this, he said this is has been in stark contrast to what they've seen previously. Both of these statues have been recovered and again they're assessing the damage and what has happened, I guess, from last night.

BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN HOST: Sure. We know you'll stay on the fallout from all of this in Wisconsin. Omar, thank you very much.

And as we mentioned, and we'll get you some live pictures there of the Rose Garden. We're waiting for President Trump who will face reporters there at the White House as coronavirus cases soar, so we'll take that as soon as we see him. And a woman in Colorado, listen to this, tested positive for COVID not

once, but twice, nearly two months after getting it the first time. She'll join me live next.

[15:35:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: All right, listen to this next one because I had not heard of this before. Nearly two months after first contracting the coronavirus, one woman in Colorado is facing the unthinkable, a second battle with COVID-19. Her name is Michelle Hart.

She first tested positive in early May. She thought she was fully recovered after receiving not one but two consecutive negative tests. And then when symptoms persisted, she went back to an urgent care clinic only to learn she once again has the virus.

And Michelle is with me now along with CNN medical analyst Dr. Celine Gounder, she's a former New York City Assistant Commissioner of Health and host of the Epidemic Podcast. So, ladies, thank you so much for being with me. And Michelle, first and foremost, how are you feeling today?

MICHELLE HART, TESTED POSITIVE FOR COVID TWICE: Today is not a good day for me. It's been a bad day. It started with about 5:30 in the morning throwing up. So --

BALDWIN: Bless. OK, we'll make this quick. A couple of questions but I think it's important for everyone to hear that this is possible. Obviously, my heart sank. I have had coronavirus and knocked me on my you know what for two weeks and so many people had so much worse. So just first question is, is it possible that you've had it this entire time and they were false negative test? What is your doctor saying and how could this happen?

HART: You know, It's certainly possible. I think at this point nobody really could say for sure what's happened. But, you know, I had a lot of neurological symptoms in the beginning is how it started for me, I ended up in the hospital being treated for Guillain-Barre. And then, you know, ended up with two negative tests the following weeks after that. Still had a lot of neurological symptoms but told me expect that for maybe even months after --

BALDWIN: And when you say neurological symptoms, what specifically do you mean?

HART: A lot of weakness in my muscles, numbness, tingling and shooting pains like electrical shooting pains just every few seconds zapping everywhere through my body, migraines. You know, just feeling super dizzy. Also, my heart rate and my blood pressure is really off and it still continues to be off. Like 240 over 145 blood pressure when I've never had blood pressure issues. And then also heart rate. I had a tilt table test done at my cardiologist and they had me stand up for three minutes and after three minutes my heart rate was 204. So those are the type of neurological like the autonomic nervous

system issues that are happening for me. But to move forward, the beginning of June I started to come down with a lot of G.I. symptoms that I hadn't been having, you know, vomiting, nausea, you know, no appetite at all, like just not hungry. Days without eating. And so, I went and got tested again and it came back positive. So --

BALDWIN: OK. So, my goodness, my heart goes out to you. And Dr. Gounder, as we listen to her talking about her horrific symptoms for all -- two different times, I've never heard of this before and I thought all right you get COVID, the silver lining is you and end up with antibodies and hopefully you don't get it for quite a while. How is this possible medically?

DR. CELINE GOUNDER, CNN MEDICAL ANALYST: Well, we actually saw this early in the epidemic with data coming out of South Korea that people were testing positive over a long period of time and I think one thing to emphasize here is we do not think this is reinfection.

[15:40:00]

Many people -- it's sort of like if you think a burglar comes -- breaks into your house and they leave fingerprints all over your house and then they leave, you might still find the fingerprints even though the burglar is no longer in your house.

And that's essentially what is happening with the coronavirus test, the PCR test which is looking for the genetic material of the virus. Now that said, the test and the symptoms she's having are somewhat separate.

So, you know, the problem with coronavirus is even once the virus is gone, it has created a lot of damage so people can end up with additional pneumonias, bacterial pneumonia, strep, staph and so on as a consequence of the damage that's been done to their lungs. A major way this virus causes disease is through a really inflamed up- regulated immune system which an attack the body and then you also have as part of that inflammation of blood vessels.

So, the symptoms that she's having are actually quite consistent with what you might expect in somebody who's having ongoing, you know, issues with the immune system and with the blood vessels.

BALDWIN: OK. And Michelle, I just want to give you the quick last word and then I'm going to say good-bye. You know, it's summertime. There are some folks in parts of the country, we've seen the uptick in a lot of these cases in certain states and people thinking, not that big of a thing anymore. What do you want to say to those people?

HART: You know, I say that it's probably hard if you aren't experiencing it or you don't know anybody going through, it may be easy to try to put out the back of your mind but when you're in the situation, I've been in bed for almost nine weeks. So, it's just completely upended my life as wells as my family's life. And, you know, don't take it lightly. It is not something I think anybody really knows quite yet long-term how this is going to affect people. So, you know, take care of yourselves and take care of other people.

BALDWIN: Take care of you, Michelle Hart, thank you so much. Be well. We're thinking about you, sending prayers to you and of course to your family and Dr. Gounder, thank you so much for just the medical analysis here as well.

Moving on. Bill Gates warned of a pandemic like coronavirus and now he weighs in on the rising number of cases and what we can do to stop them. So, join Anderson Cooper and Dr. Sanjay Gupta for a new "CNN GLOBAL TOWN HALL: CORONAVIRUS, FACTS AND FEARS" live tomorrow night at 8:00 Eastern.

We do have breaking news just coming into CNN on the Ahmaud Arbery case. A grand jury indicting all three defendants on murder charges. We'll take you to Georgia next.

[15:45:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: Breaking news in the Ahmaud Arbery case. A Georgia prosecutor just announced that a grand jury has indicted all three defendants in the case on murder charges. This news coming four months after the unarmed black man was fatally shot while just jogging in a southeast Georgia neighborhood. So, let's go to CNN legal analyst Joey Jackson. And Joey, you're reaction.

JOEY JACKSON, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: My reaction is that we're in a new era of course of accountability. Brooke, good to be with you. And, you know, this case is somewhat strange in as much as this is the fourth prosecutor. And whenever you do something you have to have public confidence. And so, people need to be reminded that this prosecutor specially appointed to handle the case after the shenanigans really went on as to the others.

We saw recusals in the case. We also saw a former prosecutor who cleared the McMichaels and said there's nothing to see here. And so in looking at an indictment, Brooke, just very briefly, what happens is a grand jury convenes, those are members of the community, there's normally 23 of them, 16 of which constitutes a quorum and you need a simple majority. They're not deciding guilt or innocence, we should note, they're just deciding two things, number one, is there reason to believe a crime occurred --

BALDWIN: Joey, forgive me, my friend. I have to cut you off. We have to go to the President.

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Well, thank you very much, everyone. Please. Thank you. Beautiful day in the Rose Garden. And I want to thank everybody for being here with us. We all know what a wonderful country and a great country Poland is.

And it's my honor to have a friend of mine here, President Duda of Poland, who has done an incredible job and I do believe he has an election coming up and I do believe he'll be very successful. So, thank you very much and all of your representatives, thank you very much for being here.

This is the third time that we've hosted President Duda. The first lady and I also cherish our remarkable visit to Poland three years ago. That was an amazing event. We had an event because it was a speech and a lot of people watched that speech. But it was a very historic moment and an important moment for our two countries.

The American and Polish people enjoy one of the world's oldest, strongest and most enduring friendships. Polish patriots battled by our side to secure American independence. American and Polish warriors fought and died together to defeat the Nazis in World War II, the United States stood shoulder to shoulder with Poland in its courageous struggle against communist oppression.

Our bond has been forged in battle, sealed in blood and strengthened by our shared cultural values. The United States and Poland are united by our firm conviction that western civilization is advanced. Really very much advanced -- I think I have to add -- the cause of human progress beyond measure and that it must be strongly defended and will at all times be strongly defended and we will defend it together.

In our meeting today President Duda and I reaffirmed the vital alliance between our nations.

[15:50:00]

Last year we signed two joint declarations to increase our security collaboration and we look forward to signing a Defense Cooperation Agreement. Poland recently purchased 32 brand new state-of-the-art F- 35 fighter jets, the best in the world. And Poland is one of only eight NATO members.

The others, some of them haven't done so well in terms of what they're supposed to be paying to NATO. I tell them all the time, and we've gotten them up a lot but not enough. But Poland is one of only eight that is current with the money that they are supposed to be paying. That's the 2 percent. 2 percent's a very low number.

But we have a large number of countries that haven't paid. They're delinquent, let's put it that way, they're delinquent with respect to their dues, the money they're supposed to be paying for defense. So, the United States is defending a lot of countries that are delinquent on what they're supposed to be paying. And I never feel too good about that. But I will say I spoke with the Secretary General, and he said we've done a great job. But I said we haven't done good enough job. We haven't done a good enough job.

We have secured though over $400 billion in new pledged defense spending from NATO members, which is something that no other administration has come even close to. I would say they're off by many, many hundreds of billions of dollars. Something the newspaper doesn't like writing about, that the media doesn't like talking about. But we will be only satisfied when all members are paying their fair share. Again, only eight members plus the United States is paying what is considered a fair share. I also applaud Poland and the Polish people for its devotion to

safeguarding their country's borders -- very strong borders. And I just left our border, by the way. The wall is moving along rapidly. And our border is about as strong as it's ever been, our southern border.

Last year we were able to add Poland to the visa waiver program. And they wanted that very badly. And we gave it to them because they really deserve it. It's a testament to Poland's vigilant efforts to uphold the rule of law. The United States and Poland have recently signed several long-term contracts for U.S. liquified natural gas. They're a big purchaser of our energy to enhance Poland's energy security.

And we're working to conclude an agreement that would facilitate Poland's development of nuclear energy plants throughout the purchase. They are going to be purchasing with one of our very big, very good companies, technology to do civilian nuclear energy. I want to congratulate Poland for its leadership in the Three-Seas Initiative, a crucial energy partnership that will provide a reliable source of energy for Eastern Europe. And it will be free from the threat of foreign extortion.

Poland understands foreign extortion very well. The Three Seas Initiative relies on fairness, transparency, and mutual benefit. Our nations have also collaborated on protecting our critical infrastructure in technology. That's why we've signed a 5G joint declaration. And Poland is leading the way in Europe by using trusted providers and provider equipment and supply chains for its 5G network. And we're working along with them. And they're using our companies.

The United States and Poland cooperate across the truly wide range of fronts that we're both very much involved in. Here today is the head of a Polish medical team, very advanced team, very brilliant team, fighting the coronavirus alongside of American doctors, Captain Siewiera.

Captain, thank you very much for being here, Captain.

And we're making great progress. I hear we're making great progress and we're working together. But we are making great progress on therapeutics and vaccines. Thank you very much. Appreciate you being here.

The American and Polish people have been true friends and trusted partners for almost 250 years. We are forever united by our shared belief in family, faith, law, liberty, democracy, and justice. As the old Polish motto goes, we will stand together in the name of God for our freedom and for yours.

President Duda, let me express once again our gratitude for your visit and friendship. We have had a very, very special relationship. Our alliance is powerful. And a very powerful testament to what free people can achieve together. And I believe that the greatness of our relationship lies ahead.

[15:55:00]

Thank you very much. President, please, thank you.

ANDRZEJ DUDA, PRESIDENT, POLAND: Thank you very much, Mr. President.

DUDA (through translator): Ladies and gentlemen, first and foremost, I would like to thank very warmly, I would like to thank very warmly to President Donald Trump to the President of the United States of America, thank you very much for inviting me here to Washington to the White House to take part in this very important meeting to us.

This meeting is important for many reasons. To me as President of the Republic of Poland, this meeting is important because Poland is the first country after the coronavirus pandemic which has been invited to the meeting in the White House to discuss the most important matters concerning the future.

Concerning how the relations will look between the United States and Poland in terms of economy, what those relations will be like in the military sphere, and what those relations will be like in this sphere of health protection, all those elements which are of key importance today.

A very big part of our discussions today with Mr. President and our collaborators, we are dedicated to the coronavirus to what the situation looks like in Europe and on the global stage, as concerns fight against the coronavirus, also in the United States.

But first and foremost, we are also thinking about what measures to take in the future. But first and foremost, thank you so much Mr. President for your declaration that we are going to cooperate. That also our scientists are going to cooperate and collaborate on conducting research concerning the vaccine and therapy drug against coronavirus. Everything that will be conducive to fighting the coronavirus.

So, I do believe thanks to this collaboration those therapeutic medicines will be available also for Poles, for my compatriots as soon as possible. Thank you so much, President, for that because all of us know very well how high level of medical research is in the United States. And this declaration and the will of cooperation on part of the United States, on part of the President of the United States is of crucial importance to us. So, thank you very much for that.

But, ladies and gentlemen, we also discussed the cooperation in the sphere of economy and military. Let me first mention our economic cooperation. As the President has just mentioned we are developing it both in the sphere of energy in building energy security. Today we can say that the United States is cooperating in the sphere of creating energy security, not only the energy security of Poland but also the energy security of Central Europe.

The President has just mentioned the Three Seas Initiative. Yes, all the investments that are being carried out in Poland today, the extension of the capacity of Swinoujscie. We're increasing its capacity by 2.5 billion cubic meters. We also

plan to construct another LNG terminal in the point of Gdansk. All of that is conducive to being able to receive LNG gas and provide its deliveries not only across Poland but also for the countries of Central Europe.

The vast majority of those countries of Central Europe are still dependent on Russia and creating a true alternative. In other words, diversification of supplies is of key importance of their security.

Thank you, Mr. President, for this cooperation. I do believe that we're going to further develop it. Today we have got those supplies guaranteed until 2023, by the end of 2023. But I know that we are also going to enter into further contracts in this respect. Even more so that for sure our demand is going to increase.

But, ladies and gentlemen, we also discussed conventional energy and nuclear energy cooperation. In the nearest future an agreement will be signed between the governments of the United States of America and the Republic of Poland.

And thanks to this agreement we'll be able to start designing the large design of introducing conventional nuclear energy for the production of electricity in Poland. The entities which will participate in this project have already been selected. And the agreements are very advanced on the Polish side.

We have got Minister Piotr Naimski who is in charge of those negotiations right now and the appropriate inter-governmental agreement is about to be concluded, finalized. We can expect that to happen in the near future.

But, ladies and gentlemen, I also want to mention the contribution of the United States into the Three Seas Initiative. And first and foremost, the financial contribution to the fund of the Three Seas Initiative. Mr. President got interested in the fund some time ago. This is an element, a vehicle which enables the development of this corporation.

Thank you, Mr. President, you're your activity and thank you for appreciating this cooperation which takes place in Central Europe within the framework of the European Union. And the goal of this cooperation is to develop, extend the infrastructure. Thank you for noticing the possibility of developing cooperation in Transatlantic zone between the countries of the European Union and the United States.

And of course, for my point of view, this corporation with Poland is extremely important to me. But also, in the economic sphere where it's speaking about increasing military cooperation between Poland and the United States. It is also of primary importance.