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Coronavirus Pandemic; U.S. Sets Record With 52,000 Plus Cases In One Day; Florida Sets One-Day Record With 10,000 Plus New Cases; Chicago Imposes Quarantine On Visitors From 15 States; Masks Mandatory In 19 U.S. States And Washington D.C.; America's Virus Response Further Eroding Respect Aboard; U.S. Economy Added 4.8 Million Jobs In June; Global Stocks Rally Following U.S. Jobs Report; North Korea Covid Response A Shinning Success; Ghislaine Maxwell Charged In Epstein Sex Abuse Case; Saudis On Trial In Turkey For Jamal Khashoggi's Death; World Sports, Man City Thrash Champions Liverpool; Flights To Nowhere; Mixed Messages Confuses People; Brazil Left With no Option but to Reopen Economy; Britain Opens its Bars on July 4th; Music Icon Killed in Ethiopia. Aired 3-4a ET
Aired July 03, 2020 - 03:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[03:00:00]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NATALIE ALLEN, CNN ANCHOR: Setting yet another record, the kind no one wants. The U.S. see its highest number of new coronavirus cases for a second straight day.
She's been in hiding but now a long-time friend and confidant of the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, Ghislaine Maxwell, is now under arrest.
And this hour, a trial gets underway in Istanbul for 20 suspects in the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. So why are none of them ever likely to face justice? We'll have a live report from Istanbul.
We're live from CNN world headquarters in Atlanta. Hello, everyone. I'm Natalie Allen. And this is CNN Newsroom.
And thank you for joining us.
For the second time in two days, the United States has recorded its highest number of new coronavirus cases in a single day. More than 52,000 on Thursday alone. That means more than 100,000 Americans have tested positive for COVID-19 in the past two days. More than half of Thursday's new cases were in just three states. Florida, California, and Texas.
Almost two dozen states have paused or rolled back their re-openings just as the nation heads into the July 4th holiday. Texas and Kansas are the latest states to require face masks in public. Joining 17 other states and Washington, D.C.
Despite the alarming surge, the U.S. president insists the pandemic is under control. Compare that with the grim assessment of America's top infectious disease expert.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANTHONY FAUCI, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY AND INFECTIOUS DISEASES: We are seeing very disturbing spikes in different individual states.
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: We are putting out the virus.
FAUCI: We've got to get that under control or we risk an even greater outbreak.
TRUMP: The crisis is being handled.
FAUCI: Only about 50 percent of the country locked down. That allowed the perpetuation of the outbreak.
TRUMP: We did the right thing, we closed it up, and now we are opening it up, and it's opening up far faster than anybody thought even possible, and more successfully.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ALLEN: The city of Chicago is now ordering two-week quarantines for people arriving in the city from 15 U.S. states where the virus is surging. And in South Florida, Miami-Dade County will try to break the infection cycle with a curfew from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m.
CNN's Jason Carroll has more headlines from across the country.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Say a --
JASON CARROLL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Just today, Florida hit a record high, 10,000 new positive cases in the state. Tonight, this message from Coronavirus Task Force member Dr. Deborah Birx to all young Floridians.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DEBORAH BIRX, COORDINATOR, WHITE HOUSE CORONAVIRUS TASK FORCE: So, we are asking for everyone under 40 that if you were in a gathering, please go and get tested. Please wear a mask.
GOV. GREG ABBOTT (R-TX): Wearing a mask --
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CARROLL: In Texas, Governor Greg Abbott has issued an executive order requiring Texans in counties with 20 or more COVID-19 cases to wear face coverings in public.
Doctors there are overwhelmed by the number of COVID patients, so many in some parts, there are waitlist for ICU beds. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JEFFREY DELLAVOLPE, PULMONARY PHYSICIAN, SAN ANTONIO METHODIST HOSPITAL: I've got 10 calls, all of whom, young people who otherwise would be excellent candidates to be able to put on -- they are so sick that if they don't get put on, they don't get that support, they're probably going to die. I have three beds.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CARROLL: At least 23 states have changed or paused reopening plans due to spikes in COVID cases. The nation's top disease expert, Dr. Anthony Fauci, told the BBC some states may have reopened too soon.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
FAUCI: In the United States, even in the most strict lockdown, only about 50 percent of the country locked down. That allowed the perpetuation of the outbreak that we never did get under very good control.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CARROLL: Another top U.S. health official testified before the House today, and said the increase in numbers across the country is due to new cases, not new testing.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BRETT GIROIR, U.S. ASSISTANT SECRETARY FOR HEALTH, DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES: There is no question that the more testing you get, the more you will uncover. But we do believe this is a real increase in cases, because the percent positives are going up. So, this is real increases in cases.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CARROLL: For now, New Jersey is continuing some of its reopening efforts. Casinos opened their doors today.
[03:04:59]
But Dr. Fauci was bluntly asked today if the U.S. is winning the war against coronavirus.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You've been losing this battle, haven't? Recently?
FAUCI: Admittedly, yes, we have. We cannot give up. Because it appears that we are losing the battle.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CARROLL: So many cases nationwide and yet some city officials are looking into and trying to get to the bottom of the so-called COVID parties.
In Rockland County, just about an hour outside of New York City, city officials are investigating a cluster of cases linked to a party. And Tuscaloosa, Alabama, where city officials there are trying to get to the bottom of a COVID party where apparently the first person able to catch the virus wins a cash price.
Jason Carroll, CNN, New York.
ALLEN: That story from Alabama is quite chilling. Just insidious. Dr. Scott Miscovich is a family physician and a national consultant on COVID-19 testing. He joins me now live from Arlington, Virginia. Good morning, doctor. Thanks for coming on.
SCOTT MISCOVICH, FAMILY PHYSICIAN: Good morning. Thanks for having me.
ALLEN: We just went through the statistics, 50,000 new daily cases in the U.S., 10,000 daily cases for Florida, 30 states seeing spikes. Have we reached a tipping point? Can we still turn this back?
MISCOVICH: We can only turn this back if we now start to take it seriously and taking it seriously means we have to start shutting down. And we are not talking just a quarantine here or having people from certain states come in and being quarantined.
We have to go to similar things that we did in Hawaii that made it so successful. We have to go work from home, completely shut down the restaurants, completely shut down the boards, and have people start realizing that they have a personal responsibility to really socially distance and wear their masks to make a difference. We need to take this seriously as a country.
ALLEN: And we know a lot of people really aren't. The Texas governor signed an order mandating masks use in public. Many people given pushback on wearing masks. So, what do you say to people who still aren't taking this seriously, who say, you know, the death rate is down, older people are the ones who are dying, it's just the flu? What do you say to that?
MISCOVICH: Gosh. If they only understood what this disease has meant to us as medical professionals, this is a 100-year pandemic. This is the most contagious respiratory virus that the planet has seen.
And I can tell you we have new data coming out that has talked about a minor mutation that is occurring in the virus. And it's called the G mutation. I want to give you 15 seconds on it. Everybody knows this little spikes that come out.
Well, a little protein has mutated that has allowed those spikes to get a little more connected where they can start latching on and attaching to the cells even in our nose a little more effectively, in our lungs, and in our throat. So, people have to realize just minor breathing of this little virus now can cause infection. It is so contagious. We need to be serious. ALLEN: You instituted a successful pop-up testing plan in Hawaii. I
know that you're there now on the east coast, advising agencies in D.C. about it. We know that Arizona and Texas have seen testing sites overrun. How important is it that they can catch up, and what would you advise, with the experience you've had there in Hawaii?
MISCOVICH: You know, testing is going to be the key. You know, one of the things everybody has to understand is look at the percent of positivity of those tests. We have some states that are right near 20 percent. That means one in five persons tested is positive with the disease. That means there is that many more that aren't being tested.
This isn't -- this isn't random that we are just doing more a testing as the last piece said. The answer is we need to test, you need to immediately quarantine if positive. You need to do contact tracing. And everybody as an American has to take their responsibility that yes, the government can do some things for but it's going to be up to every citizen to literally listen and get tested and quarantined and separate from your family.
That's why Hawaii was so successful. We found people that were positive. And actually, the people of our state listened. They actually would separate, they would go in a room, they would go away from their family. And they would wear masks. And they would only have gatherings of two people. We need to start doing that.
ALLEN: When experts like yourself say at this point this could spiral out of control, it's something we just keep hearing from inside hospitals. At this juncture, what does that really mean? What would that look like?
MISCOVICH: Well, I'm finishing meetings that went up to midnight tonight. I'm meeting with the leadership teams and experts that I'm working with here.
[03:10:03]
This is the same group of individuals that stuffed the emergency pop- up hospital in New York City and Atlanta and sent teams into that are currently in the nursing homes and visiting over 400 nursing homes in California.
And you know what we are doing tonight? We are planning and trying to strategize how quickly we can put pop-up hospitals and pop-up intensive care units. We're already almost already getting a waitlist of cities and states that need to service, because they know their hospitals are going to be overrun.
The tipping point is here. It's here right now, because when you are getting these cases coming in, we are getting a two-week projection into where the hospital will be overrun. So, with the all-time rise yesterday and today, two weeks from now, it's going to happen. We need to be preparing for it.
ALLEN: And we are heading into another holiday weekend. We appreciate your expertise. We get the grim tone, we understand it, and we hope people will be listening. Dr. Scott Miscovich, joining us from Arlington. Thank you so much for your time.
MISCOVICH: Thank you very much for having me.
ALLEN: The country reporting the most cases after the United States, which of course is number one, is Brazil. It is the hardest hit country in Latin America by a long shot, and may not have even hit its peak.
Right now, Brazil's number of coronavirus infections is just shy of 1.5 million. And as Shasta Darlington reports, the pandemic is far from being the country's only crisis.
SHASTA DARLINGTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Dining in front of Rio's famed shores, patrons attempt a return to normalcy. As Brazil's second largest city reopens for business.
ALINE DA SILVA, BAR MANAGER (through translator): We just opened after almost four months of being closed. Now we are coming back.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DARLINGTON: On Thursday, Rio de Janeiro entered its latest stage of reopening, allowing restaurants, bars, and cafes to accept a limited number of customers with social distancing rules in place. Residents can also return to the gym.
Rio is joining other cities around Brazil in the phased reopening, as the world's second worst hit country sees coronavirus cases nearing 1.5 million, with a steady increase in new daily infections.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTO MEDRONHO, RESEARCH DIRECTOR, CLEMENTINO FRAGA FILHO UNIVERSITY HOSPITAL (through translator): We have the problem of people who are going to work because the economy is being reopened. If they become infected, they will take this infection to their relatives, many of them elderly, many of them with complex health issues.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DARLINGTON: Despite warnings from experts, many regional leaders are desperate as finances plummet and unemployment soars. Now millions of Brazil's informal workers faced a stark choice. Go to work and risk infection, or go hungry.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MATIAS SANTOS, FOOD DELIVERY WORKER (through translator): We are totally exposed to the coronavirus every day without any protection. And because companies do not deliver masks, we have to make our own masks, or buy them and buy hand sanitizer.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DARLINGTON: As coronavirus wreaks havoc on Brazil's already fragile economy, it aggravates some of the country's chronic problems. In the Amazon rainforest deforestation is surging. Environmental activists warn illegal loggers and ranchers are capitalizing on less oversight, burning more land as the pandemic stretches official resources.
That may be responsible for a jump in fires. The most in June since 2007. Now, fears are rising of a coming dry season with more smoke posing respiratory dangerous.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CARLOS SOZA, JR., MEMBER, IMAZON (through translator): Slash and burn and clearing of land already represent a serious health problem. If we have land clearing and COVID-19 together, this could mean catastrophic consequences for the region.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DARLINGTON: A burning Amazon also adds to threats facing indigenous populations where COVID-19 is sweeping through communities.
Brazil's government has sent medical workers and military to help protect some isolated tribes, but the virus has already infected thousands of tribe members, and killed dozens. That's according to the government's special indigenous health service.
The indigenous population now part of a grim milestone. On Wednesday, Brazil reached more than 60,000 coronavirus deaths. A tribute to those victims lit on Christ the Redeemer, Rio's fame statue acknowledging the morbid toll of COVID-19 as the city reopens amid crisis.
Shasta Darlington, CNN, Sao Paulo.
ALLEN: Britain's education secretary says getting children back to school is critical to the national recovery. On Thursday, Gavin Williamson unveiled the government's plan for fully reopening schools and colleges in September.
[03:15:03]
Some of the measures include keeping whole grade groups separate as well as regular cleaning and handwashing. Williamson also stressed the importance of students showing up.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GAVIN WILLIAMSON, BRITISH EDUCATION SECRETARY: From September, attendance will once again be mandatory. And no child should be out of school unless it has been agreed. This will be crucial if we are to minimize the effect of this pandemic on every child's long-term educational development.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ALLEN: England also is preparing to relax some major coronavirus restrictions this weekend. Pubs, restaurants, hotels, and barber shops are just some of the businesses set to reopen on Saturday, but British Prime Minister Boris Johnson warns Britons to act responsibly. For more, we are joined now by CNN's Scott McLean, he is live for us
in London. Certainly, folks there can look to the United States and see what has happened from people going out to bars and restaurants and not social distancing. So, these will be things to watch there in London.
SCOTT MCLEAN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes. You are absolutely right, Natalie. You know the British public is going to be celebrating the 4th of July this weekend but not because it's America's birthday but because as you mentioned, barbershops, hotels, and even bars and restaurants are going to be reopening beginning on Saturday.
It's not, though, going to be your normal British public experience where you can just belly up to the bar and order whatever you want and sit or stand wherever you want and mingle with the crowd.
In this case it's going to be table service only. Obviously, the establishments are going to have to separate the tables to ensure social distancing or at the very least put up screens between the tables. They are also going to have to record the information of at least one person from each party just in case there is an outbreak.
So, this is not something that's risk free. Not only are you running the risk of coming into contact with the virus in a crowd of people but you are also running the risk that if there is an outbreak linked to that pub, that you might have to quarantine for two weeks, even if you have no symptoms at all.
For the record though, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson says he is going to be going to the pub this weekend. He also planning to get his haircut as are most of us here in the U.K.
Now, Johnson was quoted last month, saying that he is confident that these loosened restrictions would not be to a second spike in cases. At least not a spike big enough to overwhelm this country's national healthcare service, the socialize healthcare system here, but now he is warning people not to, quote, "overdo it this weekend" and reverse the progress that the U.K. has made thus far.
This country is doing reasonably well right now, they are doing more than 150,000 tests a day and getting less than 1,000 positive results, Natalie.
ALLEN: All right, fingers crossed for this to go well. Thank you so much, Scott McLean for us in London.
Much to come here. Most of those arrested in Hong Kong Wednesday under the new national security law are out on bail. But some activists say it's time to leave forever.
[03:30:00]
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ALLEN: Hong Kong police say 9 of the 10 people arrested under China's new national security law are out on bail. One of them, a 15-year-old girl. They were among thousands of people protesting the controversial law on Wednesday. It criminalizes secession, subversion, or terrorism in Hong Kong, and its broad strokes have pro-democracy activists quite worried. Some are closing their organizations; others are just leaving.
Prominent activist Nathan Law says he has left the city to fight for freedom on the international stage.
For more about it, we are joined by CNN international correspondent Ivan Watson, live in Hong Kong for us. Hello to you, Ivan. You know, with more of this rapid, and really quite stunning developments there.
IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes. I mean, it's only been this is the third day that this law has been in place. People have been arrested for carrying flags that say Hong Kong independence, the Hong Kong government has said that a popular chant at protest liberate Hong Kong, the revolution of our times.
That there is a warning that this can note separatism, so they're basically a big yellow warning sign to people not to do that. And there has been a chill with political parties closing down their offices, as you pointed out one activist already has fled the city.
And we've seen a surge in inquiries into emigrating with certainly, a number of Hongkongers interested in the fact that Britain says it will create a pathway to citizenship for hundreds of thousands of Hongkongers who hold British national overseas passports.
Now the Hong Kong government has been trying to temper some of these fears. On the one hand, deter the protest movement that roiled the city for much of last year, while also trying to reassure business, and other communities here that some freedoms will be protected here.
And I spoke with Hong Kong's secretary of justice to try to get some more clarity about this controversial new piece of legislation. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
WATSON: Do you think the majority of the population supports this law here in Hong Kong?
TERESA CHENG, HONG KONG SECRETARY FOR JUSTICE: I think they do. I really think they do because it's -- this --
(CROSSTALK)
WATSON: You know, one of the problems is that popular opinion polls show your chief executive is very unpopular, and that China's policies here in Hong Kong are deeply unpopular. There was no effort to pass a referendum to get any mandate of popular support for this. This was imposed on the people here.
So, it's hard to claim that a majority of the population supports this, especially if opposition activists are closing down their political offices out of fear right now, and clearing their history of social media.
CHENG: Right, there's a whole number of questions there.
WATSON: Sure.
CHENG: Let me start with them, and I think it's important to bear in mind, where I started just now, that as national security is the sovereign right, and in fact, for every state that is one of the most important things.
For every national and in particular in Hong Kong as I said we are very, a very international city, we look at people here as Hong Kong residents who come from all over the world, they still have an allegiance to Hong Kong, because, you know as, a matter of common law there is a concept of temporary allegiance as well. But they all love Hong Kong as a home. They all want Hong Kong to be stable and prosperous. They all want to move forward from the difficult times that we had last year.
The national security law will give us just that environment for us to come down, stop all that, and one of the things that has to be observed and it's worth mentioning that there is no retrospective effect. So, in other words, it's a clean break. Everybody now knowing what should not take place.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WATSON: So, there you have the secretary of justice who was also trying to say that things like freedom of religion will still be protected here. Freedom of the press, as well. She denied that there is a ban on a Hong Kong independence flags even though people have been arrested for carrying them. And insisted that everything would be a matter of context going forward.
Portions of this interview, which were broadcast live on CNN a couple of hours ago, were censored on -- in mainland China, not very far from where I am right now. And that underscores, I think some of the real concerns here, is that Hong Kong has had this bubble of relative freedom.
[03:24:58]
Arguably, modern day China's most free city, and that those freedoms, and that bubble of freedom has no burst, with the passage of this new law. Natalie?
ALLEN: All right. Ivan Watson following it for us in Hong Kong, Ivan, thank you.
Now to a story that we're following in Ethiopia. The country is saying goodbye to a prominent singer and activist who was shot to death. For days, deadly protests have plagued the region as the shooting inflame tensions among the country's largest ethnic group.
CNN's Eleni Giokos has more about it. ELENI GIOKOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: A final goodbye for Ethiopian music
icon and activist Hachalu Hundessa, a moment of reflection in a week filled with anger. Hachalu was shot dead in the capital Addis Ababa. His death sparking protests around the country while the motive for the killing is unclear. For Ethiopians at home and abroad he symbolized an uncensored voice, vital to igniting political change.
Of the Oromo people, his protest lyrics shed lights on the historical plights of the largest ethnic group in Ethiopia. Highlighting economic and political marginalization.
Awol Allo who has documented Hundessa's role in the political landscape says his funeral doesn't reflect the influence he's had on the country.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
AWOL ALLO, SENIOR LAW LECTURER, KEELE UNIVERSITY: This is a towering musical genius of the Oromos hold so dear, and most people would have liked to see Hachalu get the proper send offs that he deserves as a national icon.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GIOKOS: Awol says his funeral was impacted by the intimate shutdown Alp Toker, the CEO of internet monitoring NGO, NetBlocks, rarely sees the scale of information blackouts.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ALP TOKER, CEO, NETBLOCKS: What you are looking at is really this total suppression of news, media, of public opinions, criticism and it's absolute, it's total. And all the while you still have state media sharing certain vision, a certain image which is in line with the prime minister's own vision of what democracy should be, and the reality is this isn't democracy.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GIOKOS: Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed also of Oromo people was seen as the man who would usher in a new era. He received the Nobel Peace Prize for ending a decades' long war between Ethiopia and Eretria. But criticism towards him has escalated. Some say his efforts to reverse ethnic tensions at home have been slow.
In a live broadcast, Ahmed condemned the killing of Hundessa. He also spoke of the continued persecution of the group.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ABIY AHMED, PRIME MINISTER OF ETHIOPIA (through translator): What our enemies want, is that we don't finish the work that we have started. That the Oromo people for this reason fight, are killed, that blood is spilled, that the journey that we have started gets derailed.
(END VIDEO CLIP) GIOKOS: A fight that Hundessa took on a 2015 through songs like
Maalan Jira, which means, what existence is mine?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ALLO: It would not have happened without Hachalu's controversial role.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GIOKOS: For the fanning frustrations is the indefinite postponement of national elections due to the pandemic. A man with the ability to draw hundreds of thousands of fans into a stadium, his voice echoed during times of change. Now a somber goodbye.
Eleni Giokos, CNN, Johannesburg.
ALLEN: Next here, while many areas of the world appeared to be recovering from the coronavirus, in the U.S., the numbers keep rising. We will show you how the Trump administration's response to the virus is further eroding respect for the United States around the world.
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[03:30:00]
NATALIE ALLEN, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back to our viewers around the world, I'm Natalie Allen, you're watching CNN Newsroom, live from Atlanta. As the United States gets ready for the July 4th holiday, more than 52,000 Americans tested positive for covid-19 on Thursday. That's the highest one day total to date.
Florida set its own record with more than 10,000 new cases on Thursday. An 11-year-old boy in Miami is believed to be the youngest person to die of the disease in the U.S. And the city of Chicago is trying to block people from virus hotspots. The city has identified 15 U.S. States that pose a risk, and ordered visitors from those places to quarantine for two weeks. Texas and Kansas are the latest states to require face masks in public, joining 17 other states and Washington D.C.
The country's failure to contain the pandemic is having a ripple effect worldwide. As long as the world's largest economy is reeling from the virus, so will the rest of the world. And as Nic Robertson reports from London for us, the virus is further eroding what little is left of Donald Trump's, and America's, credibility, and leadership, worldwide.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: America's covid-19 infection rate is putting it on an exponential path to pariah. This week, U.S. citizens barred entry from Europe, as a recent poll shows Europeans trust in Trump's America is tanking.
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We must protect our borders from the ravages of other countries.
ROBERTSON: From his inauguration, Trump's America first has accelerated the U.S. along a road from international respect, to unreliable ally.
TRUMP: We've been talking about this for a long time.
ROBERTSON: Within days, shutting global trade deals. Banning citizens of seven Muslim majority nations from travel to the U.S. E.U. leaders, meeting in Malta soon after sounded the alarm. On his first overseas trip to NATO H.Q., a few months later, Trump bullied his peers, manhandling one leader, yanking the hand of another, capping at all, refusing to endorse NATO's founding principle, Article 5, an attack on one, an attack on all.
And now, three years later, concerns at NATO run so deep, but some senior officials fear that if President Trump is reelected, it could render the transatlantic alliance irrelevant. But Trump's decision to pull 9,500 troops from Germany, without telling Angela Merkel is emblematic of a bigger problem for the United States as an unreliable ally, and not just about NATO. Whether on Syria, North Korea, trade, or NATO, he is unpredictable. Perhaps most so on China.
TRUMP: I think our relationship has never been better.
We are very much involved with them right now on the virus that is going around.
ROBERTSON: In January, he backed China. By April, he wanted them castigated for failing to contain covid-19 and withholding information. At WHO's annual meeting in May, all of Trump's E.U. allies effectively sided with China. Sweden's former P.M., an experienced global diplomat, Carl Bildt tweeted, observing the post American world, a confident and (inaudible) China, with a clear strategic approach. And E.U. trying to rescue what is left of global cooperation and a disruptive U.S. more keen on fighting China than fighting covid-19.
[03:35:09]
Worse, Trump's own words on covid-19. Whether on ingesting bleach.
TRUMP: By injection, inside, or almost a cleaning.
ROBERTSON: Or use of the ineffective virus drug hydroxychloroquine, have rendered his opinions almost worthless.
If covid-19 were Trump's only crisis, U.S. allies could be more forgiving. But he has jangled so many nerves, threatening war with North Korea, almost starting one with Iran, while apparently being in the troll of dictators. Helping create an unstable global environment that they have seized upon.
On his watch, Russia's Putin has effectively become president for life, as has China's Xi, who has also floated international norms, snatching control of Hong Kong. This independence day, the United States will be more alone than in decades. As covid-19 spikes from state to state, old allies will be watching, helpless and transfixed, knowing that their fate is still tied to Trump. Until the world's biggest economy recovers, everyone is at the mercy of the pandemic. Nic Robertson, CNN, London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ALLEN: The U.S. is clawing back some of the jobs lost during coronavirus lockdowns adding 4.8 million jobs in June. It's the second month of gains after 20 million jobs were lost in April. The U.S. president is claiming victory.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: Today's announcement proves that our economy is roaring back, and is coming back extremely strong.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ALLEN: That roaring economy may be coming at a cost in the fight against coronavirus. Look at the 7-day average of new cases. The U.S., which is adding 50,000 new cases a day is in green. Compare that to Germany, Italy, and China, who kept lockdowns in place until they flatten the curve.
However, there is much more to the story given the economic hole the nation is in, because of the pandemic and the recent surge in cases. CNN's John Defterios joins me now from Abu Dhabi. Hello to you John.
JOHN DEFTERIOS, CNN EMERGING MARKETS EDITOR: Hi, Natalie.
ALLEN: Well, a very promising U.S. jobs report there, but do tougher times for American still lay ahead there?
DEFTERIOS: Yes. We cannot erase the headline number. It's nearly 5 million jobs. For those who are looking to get back into the workforce quickly, I think it will be a longer haul. That overall number, 11.1 percent, is three times what we saw in February which was a 50 year low. And if you take a snapshot of what we've seen over the last four years, it tells a broader story, a very important one.
It took those four years to add 10 million jobs that is a really record pace of about 2.5 million a year. It took two months for us to lose nearly three million jobs and another two months to add 7.5 million jobs. But the overwhelming majority believe that we are going to still see double digit unemployment, even by the end of the year. And you talk about the snapback in cases. You just take three large economies on their own in the United States, Florida, Texas, and California.
If they have this lockdown for a prolonged period of time here in the summer, it will erode consumer confidence, of course, and it will erode rehiring of those -- sorry -- that are furloughed at this stage. What we do know though is that trying to re-hire these people at a faster pace is going to be difficult, and the jobless benefits right now, still are rising, with 30 million Americans receiving unemployment checks, still at this time, about one fifth of the U.S. workforce.
ALLEN: And in some states, those checks have been slow to come as well, causing more angst for people. How was the jobs report, John, digested in Asia and is the number two economy on the mend?
DEFTERIOS: Yes. Number one being the United States of course, and that was digested well, because of the big job headlines number that we're talking about here. And hopefully that will be sustained. We saw a very promising survey out of China, the (inaudible) survey, looking at services and that showing that China -- because it responded quickly to the pandemic, is now getting some payback here.
They're still hoping to grow 3 percent on the top site in 2020, which is extraordinary, if the U.S. drops negative 6 percent. And this was like a pixie dust over the stock markets and Asia. We saw Shanghai as the best performers, as a result of that survey. Hong Kong up nearly 1 percent, but you can see Tokyo and Seoul enjoying the rally as well.
[03:40:03]
U.S. markets, by the way are closed today, Natalie, for the long Independence Day weekend, as you know. But, we saw that the S&P 500 had its best 100 days in nearly 90 years because of the stimulus package and so much money funneled into Wall Street over the last two months. Back to you.
ALLEN: All right. John Defterios in Abu Dhabi, I always appreciated it, John. Thanks.
North Korean leader, Kim Jong-un is calling his country's response to the coronavirus pandemic, and here's a quote, a shining success. State media reports he made those comments at a worker's party meeting on Thursday, but he is also warning people not to get complacent. For more about this, I'm joined by CNN's Paula Hancocks in Seoul South Korea for us. Paula, hello to you. And what do we really know about what's going on inside North Korea?
PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Natalie, as far as the North Korean leader is concerned, he still claims there are zero cases of coronavirus within the country saying that the way they have manage the virus is the right way. But also warning of complacency, interestingly waring of complacency at a meeting where the images show that none of the individuals were wearing masks, and there was very little social distancing going on as well.
But what I have heard from diplomatic sources within Pyongyang is that life is effectively returned to normal there. The fact that construction sites are open, once again, the shops, the hotels are open. Schools I believed have been opened back in June once again. And so, there is a sense certainly within the capital city that officials believed they have coped well with the pandemic and that they believe they have it under control.
Also, the sources telling me that there were boxes of PPE, the personal protective equipment that was seen piling up on the border with China, on the Chinese side, back in late May. That was because North Korea was not letting anything into the country, although does believe that they have started to trickle in now on those supplies -- have trickled in. Diplomatic sources also mentioning that they have not heard of anyone, and didn't know anybody, who had actually had a coronavirus test within the country. Natalie?
ALLEN: All right. Paula Hancocks for us there in Seoul. Paula, thank you.
Coming next here, a year after the late Jeffrey Epstein's arrest for sex trafficking minors, his longtime friend, Ghislaine Maxwell, is under arrest herself. Accused of luring girls for him. We'll have the latest on the case and where she was hiding out.
Also, 20 Saudi nationals, accused in the killing of Jamal Khashoggi, are being tried in Turkey, but they may never see the inside of a prison cell. We will go live to Istanbul, as the trial gets underway.
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ALLEN: A British socialite faces federal charges of conspiring to sexually abuse minors with the late financier Jeffrey Epstein. Ghislaine Maxwell made her initial court appearance from New Hampshire, via teleconference, shortly after her arrest. But she is being transferred to New York, where the charges were filed.
[03:45:17]
One official says Maxwell gain the trust of teenage girls, and delivered them into a trap. As Max Foster reports, the cases being watched around the world, because of its connections to the rich, powerful, and royal.
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MAX FOSTER, CNN ROYAL CORRESPONDENT: She is the figure that keeps reappearing in images associated with the Epstein scandal. Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago Party in 2000. On the front row of Chelsea Clinton's wedding. And here, right behind Prince Andrew, and then 17 year old Virginia Roberts Dufresne, who claims in (inaudible) documents, that Epstein kept her as a teenage sex slave, and that he was assisted in his efforts by a British woman, Ghislaine Maxwell.
In the court filings, Dufresne alleges she was forced to have sex with the royal, under Epstein's instructions, including in Maxwell's London apartment and that she acted as a madam. All of these allegations against Andrew are being denied. Any suggestion of impropriety with underage minors was dismissed by Buckingham Palace as categorically untrue.
No one in his right and left hands, Epstein described Maxwell in 2003, as his best friend, in this profile for Vanity Fair, not a colleague, or an employee. The revered daughter of immediate baron, Robert Maxwell. She grew up in their vast country estate in the idyllic Oxford shire countryside.
After her father's mysterious death at sea in 1991, falling from his luxury yacht, named in her honor, Maxwell reportedly moved to New York to start a new life. So, how did she go from highly educated and connected in British high society, to an accused figure in the background of investigation into underage sex trafficking?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'll do my best.
FOSTER: Footage of her is as elusive as she is. Here, she is speaking on oceans sustainability at the United Nations in 2014. Under her role as founder of the The TerraMar Project, a nonprofit.
GHISLAINE MAXWELL, SOCIALITE: It's a pledge, there's no taxes by the way, it's all free. And know that you're signing is you love the ocean, that you will spread your love of the ocean, because we are a digital platform.
FOSTER: Out of public view though, Epstein's accusers claim Maxwell was sourcing teenage girls for him, and directing them to have sex with Epstein and his friends. Unsealed court documents from a 2015 defamation case, refer to her as one of the main women, primary coconspirator, acting as a madam for Epstein. Assisted in internationally trafficking Dufresne, and numerous other young girls for sexual purposes.
Dufresne says, Maxwell recruited her when she was 15 years old. In her court deposition, Maxwell said Dufresne claims are untrue. I know that Virginia is a liar, and I know what she testified is a lie. So, I can only testify to what I know to be a falsehood. I can categorically deny everything that she has said, I have no knowledge of anything else.
The case was settled in 2017. Maxwell hadn't been seen in public since August last year, when she was spotted in Los Angeles. She hasn't responded to numerous requests for comment, over the past year. Now that she has been charged with enticement of minors though, prosecutors and alleged victims alike, hope to finally hear a fuller version of events, from a person most closely associated with Epstein and his alleged crimes. Max Foster, CNN, Berkshire England.
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ALLEN: Prince Andrew's team is responding to these comments from U.S. prosecutors on Thursday.
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AUDREY STRAUSS, ACTING U.S. ATTORNEY, SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK: I am not going to comment on anyone status in this investigation, but I will say that we would welcome Prince Andrew coming in to talk with us. We would like to have the benefit of his statement.
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ALLEN: A source says the princess team is, quote, bewildered, because they have communicated with the U.S. Justice Department twice in the last month, and claimed they never received a response. Again, the Duke of York has strongly denied the allegations against him. In Istanbul, turkey, the trial of absentia of 20 Saudis is now
underway in connection with the death of a journalist Jamal Khashoggi. The Washington Post columnist was a critic of the Saudi government, and was allegedly murdered and dismembered in October 2018. Khashoggi was last seen entering the Saudi Consulate right here in Istanbul, a few days later, Turkey said he was dead and that his death was premeditated.
[03:50:00]
Let's bring in CNN senior international correspondent, Arwa Damon, she's live for us there in Istanbul. This is a long time and coming, what is expected from this trial Arwa?
ARWA DAMON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It's important to point out Natalie, that this is largely symbolic. Turkey has long been asking the Saudi government to extradite those it is accusing of being responsible for the murder of Jamal Khashoggi and Saudi Arabia has repeatedly refuse to do that. In fact according to Turkish officials and many others have been trying to get to the bottom of this has been largely uncooperative.
The trial did just start, and Jamal Khashoggi's fiance Hatice Cengiz, is testifying, right now, talking about the conditions, the conversations, that led to Jamal even going to the consulate in the first place. Remember, he was going to try to get papers that would then allow them to get married. Now, these 20 suspects, two of them are members of the Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman's inner circle. One of them Hassan Mohammad Asiri is a former Deputy Head of Saudi Arabia general intelligence and then you have Saud al-Qahtani, who is a former adviser to the crown prince.
Now, the special rapporteur, the U.N. special rapporteur, Agnes Callamard is also present at these trials. She led the only independent investigation into this killing, and concluded, that the Saudi government was, in fact, responsible under international law for the killing of Khashoggi. And she also said that there was credible evidence that merited further investigation into the direct role of the crown prince himself.
Now these are allegations of the Saudi government has repeatedly been denying. Turkey really wanting at the stage to ensure that this murder, this killing of Jamal Khashoggi, on its own soil, does not end up fading into the shadows. They really want to continue to put pressure on Saudi Arabia, and to keep this trial in the light.
Now, according to the indictment, those two members of the crown prince inner circle. Are being accused of instigating, premeditated, tortures, murder with monstrous intent. The remaining 18 are being charged with premeditated tortures, murder with monstrous intent. It's also worth noting, Natalie, that Jamal Khashoggi's body, his remains, have not yet been recovered at this stage.
But again, this largely symbolic, and part of an effort being led by Turkey, at this stage to ensure that those responsible for this murder are not allowed to get away with it. ALLEN: All right. We know you'll be watching it for us as it begins.
Arwa Damon for us. Thank you, Arwa. And CNN Newsroom will be right back.
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ALLEN: In sports, Liverpool's first match is English Premier League champions did not go exactly as planned. CNN world sports Patrick Snell has the story for us
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PATRICK SNELL, CNN SPORTS REPORTER: Since England's top football division resumed last month, we have seen players, managers and officials alike showing their support for the black lives matter movement. On Thursday, that show of solidarity front and center again as nearly champions Liverpool, and last season's winners Manchester City met at the (inaudible) stadium, taking a knee ahead of kickoff.
[03:55:06]
This in a week that saw the premier league continuing its commitment to fight racism, but adding it does not endorse any political organization or movement.
The match itself a rude awakening for the (inaudible), who is given a guard of honor by the city, but that's where the hospitality was abruptly ended. It opposed Champ strolling through victory with three first half goals in 20 minutes. Their second as superb free-play moves that saw a hint sterling finishing with delight when his first goal against his former club.
20-year-old Phil (inaudible), made it three after linking up impressively with Belgium stark, Kevin (inaudible), who grabbed the opener from the penalty spot, and chasing experience this to say the least for Liverpool, who last week sealed a first top flight title in three decades. Sterling almost grabbing a second, only for the Jamaican born star to see his shot deflected into his own goal by Alex Chamberlain.
In the end, for the final dropping for European Klopp's team, city with an early warning they want the title back and this now the joint heaviest defeat for team already crowned champion since Arsenals demise by the same score line at the hands of, guess who? Liverpool, back in 1998.
Well, cities rock up with 100 points is still under threat, though Liverpool would need a somewhat challenging now, 15 points from the remaining 18 available to eclipse them. Patrick Snell, CNN, Atlanta.
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ALLEN: All right, curious to see what you think about this story. An airport in Taiwan is offering a noble way to satisfy the wonder less of would be traveler to all stuck at home. Songshan Airport is running fake flight experiences. Visitors past of security, and immigration, before boarding an air bus A330. Destination? Well, nowhere. More than 7,000 people applied to take part, but just 60 lucky winners, if you call them lucky, were selected at random.
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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): I haven't been abroad for so long. Before, I'd go two or three times a year. It's such a pity that this year, because of the coronavirus epidemic, I haven't been able to go abroad at all. I feel very lucky to have my name drawn out of the hat.
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ALLEN: The airport is planning more flights to nowhere over the next few weeks. All right then. OK, please don't go anywhere I'm Natalie Allen. I'll be right back with our top stories, another hour of CNN Newsroom, just ahead.
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