Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Newsroom
Another U.S. High: Record Number Of CV Cases In A Single Day; Japan And Hong Kong's Coronavirus Cases Top Previous Marks; The U.K's Black Nurses Struggle With COVID-19 And Racism; CDC Will Not Revise School Guidelines Despite Trump's Push; U.S. Supreme Court: Prosecutors Can Subpoena Trump's Taxes; Seoul Mayor Park Won-Soon Found Dead; Disney World Them Parks Wet to Reopen Saturday; Biden Unveils Economic Plan to Spur American Manufacturing. Aired 1-2a ET
Aired July 10, 2020 - 01:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
PAULA NEWTON, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, and welcome to our viewers joining us from all around the world. I'm Paula Newton.
Coming up on CNN NEWSROOM.
The United States sets a record number of new coronavirus cases in a single day. As President Trump and health officials continue to deliver conflicting messages.
A surge in cases in Hong Kong as well as leaders announce new restrictions to combat a third wave of the virus.
And the second most powerful official in South Korea found dead in the mountains. What he left behind. Seoul Mayor Park Won-Soon, and what he said.
And we begin with another record-breaking day of coronavirus infections here in the United States.
According to Johns Hopkins University, more than 60,600 Americans were diagnosed with the virus on Thursday. That's over 600 more than the previous high reached on Tuesday.
Almost half of all cases in the country are in just four states; California, Arizona, Texas, and Florida.
And several of those states are now reporting record death tolls. New infections are rising in 33 U.S. states now.
Only Maine, New Hampshire, and Connecticut, as you can see there, are heading in the right direction.
Dr. Anthony Fauci says it is clear the country is not doing well. And some states have reopened too quickly.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DR. ANTHONY FAUCI, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY AND INFECTIOUS DISEASES: As a country, when you compare us to other countries, I don't think you can say we're doing great. We're just not.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NEWTON: Now as a stark contrast, President Trump. Who's been pushing for the past three days to get schools reopened.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We've done a great job, whether it's ventilators or anything you want to look at -- testing, we test so many people then we have more cases.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NEWTON: Now, going to have a check of the day's other headlines from right across the United States.
CNN's Martin Savidge has that report.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Three states set new grim records for number of deaths in a 24-hour period due to coronavirus.
California, 149. Texas, 105. And Florida with 120.
Also in Florida, the department of health reporting today an additional 8,935 new cases, as well as their highest positivity rate for coronavirus testing in weeks.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GOV. RON DESANTIS (R-FLA): I know we've had different blips, and now we're in a higher blip than where we were in May and beginning of June.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SAVIDGE: The almost daily record-setting surge triggering long lines of people waiting to be tested and causing officials to question the state's aggressive plan to reopen schools.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ALBERTO CARVALHO, SUPERINTENDENT MIAMI-DADE COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS: At a time when, quite frankly, restaurants have been emptied out, shuttered, it is counterintuitive to mandate students to return to school at full capacity.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SAVIDGE: Despite such concerns, Disney World open today for pass holders.
The president plans to visit Florida himself tomorrow, not to talk corona concerns, but instead traveling to Doral to talk about drug trafficking.
Meanwhile, hospitals in hotspots like Florida, Texas and Arizona officials say are in danger of being overwhelmed with personal protective equipment again in short supply.
10, 000 people are hospitalized in Texas with the state's Republican governor calling it a massive spike.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GOV. GREG ABBOTT, (R-TEXAS): When you look at the number of people who have been hospitalized over just the past couple of weeks, you can see that there may be more fatalities coming.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SAVIDGE: Arizona is reporting a record-high spike in coronavirus emergency room admissions. On top of the shortage of ICU beds.
All three Republican-led states opened early despite the advice of medical experts to go slow.
But it's not the only way politics is encouraging COVID spread.
This weekend, President Trump plans to hold a rally in New Hampshire, triggering fears that the state could end up like Oklahoma. Where health experts are reporting a recent jump in coronavirus cases following the presidents rally in Tulsa last month where supporters ignored advice to wear masks and socially distance.
Getting back to the state of Florida, the governor seems to be backing off somewhat on his hard charging effort to have brick and mortar schools reopen.
He did said that if parents were concerned and wanted to keep their students at home and study online, that should be an option to them.
[01:05:00]
He also seemed to support the Republican National Convention, which is going to be in Florida, in Jacksonville, that they might hold it at an outdoor venue, such as a football stadium.
Martin Savidge, CNN, Atlanta.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NEWTON: Doctors and researchers are learning new things every day about the coronavirus and how it affects patients.
Take a listen to what one pathologist says her team found during their autopsies.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DR. AMY RAPKIEWICZ, NYU LANGONE MEDICAL CENTER: I think one of the important things that we recognized with COVID very early on, both clinically as well as in the autopsies, was that there definitely is a propensity for clotting.
And the clinicians at the bedside recognized clotting in lines (ph) and in various large vessels.
What we saw at autopsy was sort of an extension of that. The clotting was not only in the large vessels, but also in the smaller vessels.
And this was dramatic, because although we might have just expected in the lungs, we found it in almost every organ that we looked at in our autopsy study.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NEWTON: Dr. Shoshana Ungerleider is an internal medicine physician at California-Pacific Medical Center, and founder of endwellproject.org.
She joins me now from San Francisco. And I really appreciate your insights.
And unfortunately, there's another record-breaking day in the United States.
And I have to say, I think some people find the numbers numbing. They can't really put it into perspective.
So for someone like you on the front lines of this, put it in perspective for us.
What does it mean with so many days now that the United States is showing 55,000 plus cases a day?
DR. SHOSHANA UNGERLEIDER, INTERNAL MEDICINE PHYSICIAN, CALIFORNIA- PACIFIC MEDICAL CENTER, SAN FRANCISCO: Well, this country is just in a very concerning place. We have several states, as you mentioned, seeing these large increases in numbers of cases.
ICU beds are filling up with very, very sick patients.
And all the while, far too many people are really disregarding science and sound medical advice to wear masks and distance away from others.
We're absolutely, without a doubt, going in the wrong direction.
States reopened too quickly and haven't followed the CDC guidelines on rolling back their reopening plans.
But I think, for me as a physician, I think the one thing that we can all do right now is recognize that our behavior matters.
Distancing from others and avoiding crowded indoor spaces, wearing a mask. Doing everything we can right now to slow this spread will have an impact on things like returning to work and to school in the coming months. NEWTON: There have been so many health experts and others preaching
about this, celebrities preaching about this, for so many weeks now.
Dr. Redfield, the head of the CDC, was categorical. He said where a mask everywhere in public, and for goodness sake, stay out of crowded places like bars.
The message just isn't getting through. Why?
UNGERLEIDER: Gosh, what can I say. Everyone should be wearing masks at all times outside the home.
We know that wearing them can reduce transmission of the virus by as much as 50 percent. And by refusing to wear one, you're really putting the people you love at risk from becoming seriously ill or dying.
And similarly, with behaviors like continuing to go out in crowded indoor places, we know that that increases transmission.
I think this is a failure of leadership, of accurate, consistent evidence-based public health messaging. These messages are not coming from above.
And therefore, there's a lot of confusion and people just aren't adhering to the guidelines put forth. And it's so troubling to me.
NEWTON: Especially when we are learning that this is a canny virus, right. We're up against a formidable opponent here.
Where you are in California, such an interesting case study. And quite frankly, frustrating for those of us looking on.
California had been quite successful, I know, in some counties, it still is very successful. But today, a record number of deaths, new positive cases still very high.
From where you are, why do you think that's happening, even in California?
UNGERLEIDER: California's an interesting case. And our governor, Gavin Newsom, as well as where I am in San Francisco, our mayor, London Breed, they were very quick to lock down the city and the state.
They acted quickly and followed very evidence-based recommendations.
Why it is that in certain parts of California these cases are going up? It's maybe that we reopened too quickly, too early. And then weren't quick enough to lock things back down.
But I think in the weeks to come, we'll see how things go.
NEWTON: The insidious nature of this virus continues to surprise. And we've had everything from airborne transmission, perhaps, evidence of lasting brain damage, pathology reports indicating that clotting is going on in almost every organ when this virus takes over.
As a physician, as a practitioner, what surprised you?
UNGERLEIDER: Gosh. I think just how ill prepared we all were for this virus.
[01:10:00]
Like you're saying, we're learning new things about it every day. It is a novel virus, we've only really known about this particular coronavirus for a handful of months. And so, we're learning. Again, new science and new data's emerging every day.
But just how devastating this illness is, not just for older adults or people with chronic medical conditions but even for young people, even those that aren't having a lot of symptoms, we know that there are long-term effects of this virus.
And so it behooves all of us to pay close attention and take this very seriously right now.
NEWTON: And what do you think is going to do it? The virus seems to be in control. Really in the driver's seat in the United States.
What is going to do it on two counts; not just to get the public to kind of listen up, but also for you? What's happening in terms of your hospital getting ready? Things like PPE, things like the medical equipment you need?
UNGERLEIDER: Well, each institution has their own sort of way of preparing either through ICU equipment, through personal protective gear that's so necessary.
And so there hasn't been a national concerted effort around preparation which I think is hugely problematic.
And then we're seeing in places like Florida, like Texas, like Arizona, they're running out of PPE. They don't have the equipment they need in order to take care of patients, and a lot of people will die because of it.
So I am happy that, where I work in California, they were very quick to get ready for a next wave. But in other places, they haven't been doing that.
And so it's very hard when you don't have a centralized command or your federal government really pushing hard to make sure that everywhere has good access to the equipment that they need.
NEWTON: Yes. As I said, it's been breathtaking, really, what's gone on in the last few months considering we thought we'd be on the better end of it in many different places in the world.
Dr. Shoshana Ungerleider, thank you so much for joining me. We really appreciate your time.
UNGERLEIDER: Thank you.
NEWTON: Now to Hong Kong where they are tightening coronavirus restrictions as it deals with a new outbreak. Restaurants, clubs and bars are just some of the businesses affected.
Health officials are reporting another surge in cases, almost twice as many as the previous day. You can see it there. They say the overwhelming majority, and this is key, are locally transmitted rather than cases that have been imported.
CNN's Will Ripley joins me now live from Hong Kong.
And this virus is really trying to tell us something. Especially when you look at the fact that Hong Kong for so long had done so well, and life was basically almost back to normal.
WILL RIPLEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: What it's telling us is it can sneak in, even when you think you have your borders hermetically sealed.
Hong Kong is one of the places that thought they really had beat this thing. As you said.
Shutting down the borders early on, testing everybody who comes in for COVID-19 at the airport. And they've done a really good job of detecting and isolating these cases coming in from the outside.
But now you have a record daily spike in the number of locally transmitted cases, cases on the inside.
And this is much more dangerous. This is a city densely populated, seven million people. Everybody walking around.
People are wearing masks, almost everybody goes outside with a mask, which is a good step. But restaurants are full, gyms are full, taxis are full.
And these are some of the problem areas that have been identified in these clusters of cases.
They say restaurants and nightclubs have been a problem. Elderly care centers have been a big problem, and also taxis.
The problem is that sometimes people get in a taxi, pay cash, they don't get a receipt and they have no way of identifying who is going in and out of these taxis if a taxi driver ends up testing positive.
Bars and nightclubs, they're going to reduce the number of people who can be at tables together. Four for bars, eight for restaurants. And you have to wear your mask, if you're not eating or drinking.
Senior care centers, they're going to up the amount of testing.
What they need to do right now is try to identify and isolate as many of these local cases as possible. The problem is contact tracing isn't working in a lot of these cases.
So you, undoubtedly, are going to have people walking around Hong Kong, perhaps unknowingly spreading the virus.
And that is a huge concern going into the weekend as these new restrictive social distancing measures take effect.
Will they be enough or will we continue to see these numbers spiking in this third wave, Paula.
NEWTON: Yes. And there's so many of these cases. This isn't just a local issue. We are all keeping an eye on this just to see how they're able to cope.
Will Ripley for us, again, in Hong Kong. Appreciate it.
And now we go, in fact, to Japan. Where there's also been a sudden spike in cases.
More than 350 new cases on Thursday alone, as well as the largest single-day increase for Tokyo since the outbreak began.
Think about how significant that is.
That's actually the first time Japan has confirmed more than 300 daily infections since the end of April.
[01:15:00]
Kaori Enjoji joins me now from Chiba, Japan.
And I'm fascinated by this story because I know, where you are right now, they had really hoped, right, to kind of get on a more normal footing with things like sporting events.
Do they feel that they've turned a corner here in terms of maybe having to pull back on what they've done so far?
KAORI ENJOJI, JOURNALIST: Well, Paula, the government and companies here are just determined to go forward with reopening and gradual steps.
And today is a significant day for that because, from today, you can open up these stadiums, up to 5,000 people at a time. And that is what's happening here tonight.
This is the first baseball game in front of fans that Japan is going to see in four months. And despite the spike in numbers that we've seen, they are determined to go ahead.
I'm looking around here at the preparations, I don't see anyone without a mask. So that is almost pro forma.
The social distancing, I think, is going to be a problem just by looking at people going in here.
But this is a 30,000 capacity stadium but they're only selling 5,000 tickets. So they're going to be seated pretty far apart. They have a long list of rules -- and I have to see it to believe it
-- but they're saying there's going to be no shouting, no loud voices, no jumping up and down in excitement.
So really, Paula, this is an experiment.
I talked to the baseball commissioner and (inaudible) said look, this is a litmus test.
Baseball is coming back to the Olympics next year, and if they do this right, if they can get this right, the social distancing right, open up for businesses and keep the number of cases low, this is going to be perhaps what the Olympics might look like next year.
So everyone is having their temperature taken, even us. We have to write down what our temperature was in the morning. We have to take it again when we're going back in.
There's going to be a lot of restrictions inside as well.
So really, tonight, there was a bit of nervousness among the public, among organizers, about whether this should really happen tonight.
But I can tell you four hours -- three hours ahead of game time, the fans are starting to line up already, Paula.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NEWTON: Yes. I can imagine the nervousness at this point. We'll all be watching. July 10th now in Japan, July 24th we'll know how well this worked.
Kaori Enjoji for us in Chiba, Japan. Appreciate it.
NEWTON: Now coronavirus isn't the only disease confronting healthcare workers in the U.K.
Just ahead, the battle against the virus is spotlighting the struggle for equality among Britain's black nurses.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NEWTON: Australia is trying to stamp out coronavirus by isolating the area where it is now flaring up.
The states of Queensland and New South Wales have closed their borders with Victoria, which has seen a surge in cases.
Australia's second largest city, Melbourne, meantime, which is in Victoria, is now in lockdown mode again. That means more than six million people must stay home for the next six weeks.
Anna Coren is following this for us from Hong Kong.
And, of course, it's just a couple of days in here.
But you can see why they were so alarmed, because the cases continue to rise.
[01:20:00]
ANNA COREN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, they do continue to rise. Victorian health authorities have just announced that 288 new cases were detected today.
That is a significant rise from the record, which was 191, a few days ago.
So obviously, the decision to lock down Melbourne is the right one, as drastic as it is.
But they are definitely trying to contain this latest outbreak which potentially threatens to spread across the nation.
Daniel Andrews, the Victorian premier, in addressing the state, he asked residents to wear face masks.
Now this is a new thing for Australians. It's being debated for some time. Why aren't Australians wearing face masks during this pandemic even though the numbers are relatively low, obviously, compared to the rest of the world?
And the Victorian health minister -- chief medical officer, I should say, said the numbers in Victoria are what the U.S. gets every 10 minutes. So we are very fortunate.
But despite the low numbers, as we know, this has the potential to spiral out of control. So they are now calling on Melburnians to wear face masks when in public.
Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DANIEL ANDREWS, PREMIER OF VICTORIA, AUSTRALIA: It is our request of you, it's not compulsory. We're simply asking that if you can wear a mask where you can't distance, that's exactly what we would like you to do.
That's a relatively small contribution, but one that can make a really big difference.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COREN: And, Paula, as we know, one that can certainly save lives.
Those housing commission tower blocks that were shut down, nine of them containing 3,000 residents, well, eight of them have allowed to go into stage three restrictions. Like the rest of Melbourne.
But one will remain in hard lockdown. They detected 53 cases and those numbers are expected to double, Paula.
NEWTON: Yes. I'm interested -- and, as you said, that wearing a face mask still wasn't mandated and perhaps not in use the way it should have been.
Anna Coren, I know, will stay on top of this for us. Appreciate it.
Now Brazil's president is coping with his own case of coronavirus. Jair Bolsonaro tested positive earlier this week.
His press office reports that he is in good health and progressing well without complications.
Now on Thursday evening, he took to Facebook with what appeared to be a box of hydroxychloroquine on his desk. His office has said previously said he was taking the controversial drug.
Meanwhile, Brazil is reporting tens of thousands of new infections over the past 24 hours. You can see for yourself there. Bringing the total to more than 1.7 million.
In Britain, meantime, the coronavirus isn't the only pressing challenge healthcare workers find themselves confronting. The other is racism.
A societal ill that is deeply ingrained.
CNN's Salma Abdelaziz, talks to black nurses there and discovers the disparities they say they must overcome every day.
SALMA ABDELAZIZ, CNN REPORTER: Racism and coronavirus. Twin pandemics that are forcing a reckoning around the world.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CROWD: Black lives matter.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ABDELAZIZ: Efe Obiakor, a nurse of 12 years, says she's on the front line of both battles. Treating COVID-19, while also fighting for equality.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
EFE OBIAKOR: As a black nurse, it's very important for me to come out today. Because in the system where I work, and in the NHS as a whole, there is racism.
ABDELAZIZ: And what do you face on a daily basis?
OBIAKOR: You just feel you're drowning and nobody's hearing your voice. On the coronavirus, of course, it got worse. Because you had more of the blacks in the forefront.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ABDELAZIZ: Obiakor is not alone. CNN interviewed a dozen black nurses across England. All say they faced systemic discrimination that only got worse when
the pandemic hit.
ABDELAZIZ: We asked NHS England about these testimonies of racism. It says it's doing everything it can to address discrimination quickly and effectively.
But they admitted COVID-19 has shone a spotlight on stark health inequalities in this country.
At her home in south London, nurse Neomi Bennett told us racism is so pervasive that there's a code to warn each other.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NEOMI BENNETT: I've been to wards before and I'll say to the nurse as I'm getting handover what's it like and she'll say just be like (hand gesture) --
ABDELAZIZ: And what does that mean?
BENNETT: It basically means that the staff head, they're not really fond of black people, and there is going to be some forms of discrimination in the shift.
Also with the allocation. Sometimes you're literally allocated to the worst ever place to work. And sometimes you might be given a lot more patients.
ABDELAZIZ: The pandemic coronavirus hits. Does it get worse or does it get better for nurses?
BENNETT: From my experience, it definitely became quite challenging. It just made me feel really undervalued.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ABDELAZIZ: Undervalued and under fire. About 20 percent of England's NHS medical staff are minorities.
But early analysis shows they accounted for 60 percent of healthcare worker deaths from COVID-19.
Ken Sazuze knows the risks. A few years ago, he and his wife, Elsie (ph), went back to school to become nurses.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KEN SAZUZE: I wasn't aware of the discrimination side of nursing until when I started it. Then I saw, boom, it's different, it's dangerous.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ABDELAZIZ: The childhood sweethearts endured racism as a team, and Elsie soon graduated and got a job in the NHS. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SAZUZE: She hated it, in NHS. If I could be honest.
ABDELAZIZ: And you feel she was treated differently because of the color of her skin, because she was black?
SAZUZE: Not only because she was black. But because you're black and you're trying to change the system.
Because the system is designed, black will be the last.
ABDELAZIZ: So she goes through this for four years and then she says it's time to go?
SAZUZE: I can't do it anymore. I'm sorry, I --
ABDELAZIZ: And she says I can't do it --
SAZUZE: She said --
ABDELAZIZ: -- because of the racism and the discrimination?
SAZUZE: Yes.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ABDELAZIZ: She never reported it out of fear of retribution. Instead, Elsie found a new job in a local care home.
Life got better. And then things got much, much worse.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
This is the last video Ken filmed of his wife. The mother of two died a few days later of COVID-19.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SAZUZE: I could feel a little bit warmth, but when I saw the machines, I could understand that the life was gone. But I couldn't tell my kids.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ABDELAZIZ: But her passion lives on.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SAZUZE: I want to continue her legacy.
ABDELAZIZ: So, even with everything you've faced?
SAZUZE: It doesn't change my world. I don't let bad people change me, no. I will always help people, regardless where they come from, what color they are, what they say to me. I will still love people.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ABDELAZIZ: The words of a survivor, but just surviving the system is never enough.
SAMAL ABDELAZIZ: CNN, London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NEWTON: New York city employees are painting a "Black Lives Matter" mural, and even Mayor Bill de Blasio is joining in.
The location isn't going unnoticed. As CNN's Polo Sandoval shows us.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
POLO SANDOVAL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, the location of this mural is certainly not a coincidence.
This stretch of Fifth Avenue specifically picked as it runs directly in front of Manhattan's Trump Tower.
Although the president and the first lady relocated officially their residence to Florida last year, this building still is one of most well-known Trump buildings in Manhattan.
So organizers and also, really, the City of New York hoping that at least the former resident of this tower gets that message clearly, that black lives matter.
Now we should mention that I counted maybe four or five people who have walked by here shaking their head in disapproval.
One gentleman told me that he simply does not agree with some of the positions of Black Lives Matter, so he feels that this should not be here.
But largely and for the most part, not only do people support this effort, as spearheaded by the City of New York, they're even getting involved.
In fact, many of them taking those paint rollers, including Mayor Bill de Blasio himself, and making that permanent mark on Fifth Avenue.
This coming after a delay and apparently a heated back and forth between the commander-in-chief and Mayor Bill de Blasio.
You'll recall when this was initially announced, President Trump said this would be quote, "a symbol of hate." That it would only serve to "denigrate" Fifth Avenue, his word.
But as we heard from the mayor and he again echoed it today. If anything, this is the way he described it, "an acknowledgment of the truth."
New York now the latest city to have these three bright words permanently painted in their city.
Polo Sandoval. CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NEWTON: Ahead here on CNN NEWSROOM. Two landmark rulings from the U.S. Supreme Court regarding the president's personal finances. Why he's calling it a political prosecution.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[01:31:37]
PAULA NEWTON, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back.
Despite the U.S. reporting more than 60,600 new coronavirus infections on Thursday, President Trump is continuing to push for schools to reopen in a just few weeks. Meantime, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says it will not revise its reopening guidelines for the schools.
CNN's Kaitlan Collins reports from the White House.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KAITLAN COLLINS, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: With only weeks before some schools are scheduled to reopen, more confusion is emerging from the CDC today.
DR. ROBERT REDFIELD, DIRECTOR, CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION: The guidelines are our guidelines. but we are going to provide additional reference documents to aid, basically communities that are trying to reopen K through 12.
COLLINS: CDC director, Dr. Robert Redfield now says his agency won't change its guidance on reopening schools after President Trump criticized it but will release additional information instead.
DR. REDFIELD: It's not a revision of the guidelines. It's just to provide additional information to help schools be able to use the guidance that we put forward.
COLLINS: Yesterday, Trump said the guidance was too tough and expensive. But officials have struggled to say exactly what Trump has a problem with.
GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS, ABC NEWS ANCHOR: Which guidelines or too tough? Which guidelines are impractical?
DR. REDFIELD: I think it's important, George, to realize when you use the word guidelines, that's what CDC has done. They provide guidance. They're not requirements.
COLLINS: With the President and the CDC on different pages, Maryland's Republican Governor Larry Hogan says it's Trump who's mixed up. GOVERNOR LARRY HOGAN (R), MARYLAND: Well, actually, I'm not confused.
I think it's the President who's confused. The Governors seem to know exactly -- yes, we knew exactly what the CDC was talking about.
COLLINS: Asked how the administration can say that they're not going to tell schools how to open but they will say when, Kayleigh McEnany said this.
KAYLEIGH MCENANY, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: The costs are too high to keep schools shut down.
COLLINS: How can you say you're not going to tell all schools how to reopen but you're going to tell them all when to reopen?
(CROSSTALK)
MCENANY: There are 47 guidelines issued by the states. There's local guidelines that have been put in place. This can be done safely. It can be done well.
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: When you do testing to that extent --
COLLINS: Also today, Trump repeated his inaccurate assertion that there are more cases in the U.S. because there is more testing, claiming if half the people had been tested there would be half the cases.
But again, that's not true even according to his own health experts.
DR. ANTHONY FAUCI, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR ALLERGY AND INFECTIOUS DISEASES: That's an indication that you do have additional infections.
COLLINS: The Trump administration is also being accused of politicizing the reopening of schools by threatening to cut off funding if some of them don't reopen.
Today, the Education Secretary claimed that money could go towards a conservative cause, school choice.
BETSY DEVOS, U.S. SECRETARY OF EDUCATION: If schools aren't going to reopen, we're not suggesting pulling funding from education but instead, allowing families take -- families take that money and figure out where their kids can get educated.
COLLINS: And when he was in the Rose Garden, the President repeated that comparison that he made the other day saying that if kids in Germany can go back to school, so can kids in the United States.
However, the President did not know that the case numbers in Germany are much different than what you're seeing in the U.S. and they were more successful at flattening the curve. While here in the United States, of course, cases are still very much rising.
Kaitlan Collins, CNN -- the White House. (END VIDEOTAPE)
[01:34:52]
NEWTON: Donald Trump is also lashing out at the Supreme Court for what he called a political prosecution after it ruled even the United States president is not above the law when it comes to finances. Now, in a seven to two vote, the court cleared the way for New York prosecutors to subpoena Trump's tax returns and personal financial records.
However, this is key, in a separate ruling they blocked Congress from obtaining many of the same documents at least for now. In response, the President had this to say.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: To a certain point I'm satisfied. On another point I'm not satisfied especially this is political witch hunt.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NEWTON: Both cases are being sent back to THE lower courts.
CNN'S Jessica Schneider has the details from Washington.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JESSICA SCHNEIDER, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: The bottom line from the Supreme Court, the President is not absolutely immune from criminal subpoenas while in office. And Congress also has the right to subpoena the President for financial documents. That was the bottom line.
The Supreme Court says there are limits and there is a heightened standard. Meaning that these cases will go back to the lower courts and no documents and no tax returns will be released likely before the election less than four months away.
These were two separate cases, one of them coming out of Manhattan. The district attorney there trying to subpoena eight years of the President's personal and business tax returns for a criminal investigation into those hush money payments that Michael Cohen made to Stormy Daniels in the lead up to the election after she alleged an affair with Donald Trump.
The Court saying that the President is not absolutely immune, but that the President does have some recourse and that the lower court should determine whether or not the subpoena from the Manhattan prosecutor should move forward.
Then on the Congressional side, three committees have subpoenaed the President's banks as well as his accounting firm for financial records for a broad swath of investigations. The court saying today that Congress needs to tailor their requests and that the lower courts need to look at four different factors to determine whether or not those subpoenas can move forward. The Chief Justice writing in both opinions in a seven to two decision joined by some conservatives. And in the congressional case, the Chief Justice putting it this way saying, "but burdens imposed by a congressional subpoena should be carefully scrutinized for they stem from a rival political branch that has an ongoing relationship with the President and incentives to use subpoenas for institutional advantage".
So really they are pointing to the politics at play here, the fact that Democrats control the House and they have been in a very adversarial position against the Trump White House throughout the administration.
So of course, all of this remains to be seen. Will Congress, will the prosecutors in New York see the President's tax returns or his financial documents? That is something that lower courts will determine. The Supreme Court saying that they can, but they have to meet some heightened standards here.
Jessica Schneider, CNN -- Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NEWTON: Joining me now from Washington D.C., CNN economics commentator Catherine Rampell. Catherine, good to see you.
I want to start first --
CATHERINE RAMPELL, CNN ECONOMICS COMMENTATOR: Good to be here.
NEWTON: -- with this issue of -- we have the Supreme Court decision. It doesn't seem to have settled much. I mean if you listen to the commentary since the decision came out, some people say it's a win for the President, some people say it is not. Where do you stand on that?
RAMPELLE: Well, there were two decisions today. One was favorable mildly for the Manhattan D.A. here in New York City, who is trying to get some of Trump's financial records. It looks like eventually that will be litigated.
And Cyrus Vance, the D.A. will get its man most likely. Whether he will get those documents and whether the rest of us in the public will be able to see any of those documents anytime soon, let alone before the election, is a separate question.
On the other ruling, it looks fairly unlikely at this point that members of Congress will be able to get tax returns or other financial documents from the President. The ruling, essentially, said that while the President doesn't have, you know, full immunity here they set up tests such that when it gets remanded to lower courts, it doesn't look like it will eventually be favorable to lawmakers.
So I would not hold my breath for seeing these documents, unfortunately.
NEWTON: You know, most people say, look, that's a win for the President.
RAMPELL: Certainly, it seems to be. I mean he has been orchestrating many of his affairs to try to keep these documents secret. So if they remain secret, I would certainly consider that a win for the President because we don't know what's in them, right.
There has been a lot of speculation about what it is he is so eager to hide. Is it that he is not as rich as he says he is? Is it that he has been cheating on his taxes and he sort of alludes to the fact that, of course, he is very aggressive at the very least on those taxes?
[01:40:01]
RAMPELL: I think the more interesting questions, the more policy relevant questions are, has he been running the executive branch in his own interests or in those of the public? Because we don't know what his financial obligations are. We don't know who he's getting money from. We don't know who he owes money to. We don't know who can call in loans and under what terms.
We don't know who has been placing financial pressure or -- yes, financial pressure essentially on the President, potentially, for particular policy outcomes.
And then there is a lot of other kind of dodgy behavior from his past that has raised red flags. Things that in other settings we would consider red flags for money laundering, for example.
We'd love to know if there's any evidence within those financial documents that sheds light on any of that. But we just don't know. I mean it must be something big or embarrassing or something for him to have invested so many resources over --
(CROSSTALK)
NEWTON: Yes. And I would normally say --
RAMPELL: -- keeping these documents secret.
NEWTON: -- yes. I would normally say, "we shall see". But perhaps, we will not.
So we'll leave that issue there right now. You know, I've always made the point that whether it's die hard supporters or even the people that vote for the President because they believe he is best capable in terms of handling the economy, don't care. And we've seen this a million different times over a million different issues.
And that dovetails into Joe Biden coming out with a big economic speech and basically saying his slogan is -- I'm not even sure if I can get this right -- build back better. And the point is he is trying to say look, I'm your guy for the economy too. The President isn't the only one who can have a winning economy here.
I mean what did you think of his message? And why is it so crucial? RAMPELL: Well, it's crucial in the sense that the economy is virtually
the only issue that President Trump pretty consistently beats Biden on if you look at polling data. So this has historically been President Trump's strength. Of course, the economy is right now somewhat in tatters. So there should be an opportunity for a competitor to try to challenge him on that particular issue.
And I think Biden has actually been pretty smart in the particular way that he has challenged the President on this issue. If you look at what is in his plan, it's a lot of, you know, buy American rhetoric and policies. Invest more in infrastructure, invest more in R&D, A.I., other kinds of things that are considered the industries of the future.
And that is broadly popular. I think there's sense in which these kinds of policies are intended to appeal to the left flank of the Democratic Party, the Bernie followers, the Warren followers, who might have been skeptical of Joe Biden. But there is also a sense in which these kinds of ideas are pretty broadly popular.
And Joe Biden is very deliberately trying to steal not only Trump's popularity on this issue but his sort of populist bona fides, right by saying that President Trump claims he's a man of the people, that he's been working for the common man, for the forgotten man.
If you look at his actual policies, he's not delivering for them. And that's what Biden is really trying to achieve here to say, no, I'm your populist.
NEWTON: Right. So here's --
RAMPELL: I'm the one who's going to revive the economy for everyone.
NEWTON: -- here's the thing. I don't have a lot of time left, Catherine. But here's my point. It's that at a certain point in time, Joe Biden has to give Americans a reason to vote for him, not just a reason to vote against Trump.
And many commentators will say this just looks like warmed over Obama, you know, policies that didn't work then, and are unlikely to work when, as you say, the economy is in tatters.
RAMPELL: I would actually argue that there are some key ways in which they're a little bit different from the messaging of Obama. You know, in terms of the scale for one, but also remember that Joe Biden when he was vice president, he was a champion of pro trade agreements, free trade agreements. He was a champion of the Trans-Pacific Partnership, for example.
You don't see a lot of that sort of globalist rhetoric within this policy package that was announced today. It is much more nationalist. It is much more, you know, sort of in the America First vein that Trump has been tapping into.
So in some ways, I think it actually does deviate, thematically in any event, from the Obama message. Even if you look at some of the particular policies that are being produced, you know, you could easily have imagined them within an Obama administration had there been the votes.
NEWTON: Ok. Catherine, we might actually have a campaign on our hands now. Less than four months to go. And we will talk to you again.
Catherine Rampell there for us from Washington D.C. Thank you.
RAMPELL: Thank you.
NEWTON: So coming up, Seoul's mayor has been found dead after an intense seven-hour search. We'll tell you what investigators are saying about his cause of death.
[01:44:45]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NEWTON: The mayor of Seoul, South Korea, considered the second most powerful official in the country, has been found dead. Now Park Won- soon had been missing for several hours. After an intense search, a rescue team found his body early Friday on a mountain side in the city. Police say his death wasn't due to foul play.
Now on Wednesday, a legal complaint involving Park had been filed and submitted to police. But the case is now closed. That is what needs to happen in one of those cases under South Korean law.
Ivan Watson is in Hong Kong with latest. Incredibly tragic events and I'd imagine pretty shocking for South Koreans as well?
IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes. I mean here is this well-recognized politician who'd been elected three times to be the mayor of the South Korean capital, a city of some 10 million people who goes missing for hours, triggering a big man hunt and then a rescue dog finds his body in a Seoul park on the side of a mountain side.
Just for a politician of this stature to go missing is pretty remarkable in its own right. The government officials in the city of Seoul and the administration, they say that they found a handwritten letter by the mayor, Park Won-soon, on his desk in his official residence. And it seems to be an apparent suicide note.
He apologizes several times to everyone and to his family for causing them harm and pain. He requests that his body be cremated and scattered over his parents' graves. And then writes, his last words are "goodbye everyone".
So this comes as a shock because not only was this a politician with a long history as a human rights lawyer and a civic activist, but he also was being discussed and speculated about as a possible future presidential candidate.
And he was clearly a big star in the ruling Democrat Party of Korea, the party of the South Korean president, Moon Jae-in -- Paula. NEWTON: Yes. I mean as far as South Koreans are concerned, I mean
there is sometimes this kind of, you know, sordid undercurrent to South Korean politics. And it must be frustrating, especially at this inflection point. You know, they are dealing with obviously the continuing issues of North Korea, a very fragile economy, and of course, the pandemic itself.
I am just wondering what the response has been there?
WATSON: Well, there were well-wishers who were waiting to greet his body which has recovered in the predawn hours on Friday, who some could be heard screaming and crying and wishing for him to get up. There is some controversy where there is a petition online with tens of thousands of people who have signed up who said do not give this man an official funeral.
[01:50:06]
WATSON: You mentioned in your lead-in that there had mean a legal complaint filed against him. When police were asked Thursday night about this complaint and whether it had anything to do with allegations of sexual harassment, the police did not respond and specify what the complaint was. But they did say that there was a legal complaint filed against this man on Wednesday.
Whether or not that contributed to him and his apparent decision to take his own life, we don't know. But there has been a kind of reckoning taking place in society in South Korea, its own Me Too Movement where you have had a number of powerful men in politics, in culture and entertainment who have either faced criminal prosecution for allegations of sexual harassment, or who have been forced to resign from their jobs.
Interestingly Park Won-soon, the mayor here is attributed with having prosecuted successfully a police officer in South Korea's arguably first-ever sexual harassment case and had a history of defending women's rights and LGBT rights.
One other element to this is South Korea's problem with suicide among OECD countries, 37 countries, South Korea has the highest rate of suicide and there are other cases of prominent politicians who have taken their own lives in cases of scandal. The most famous being the former president, Roh Moo-hyun who threw himself to his death after facing corruption and bribery allegations in 2009 -- Paula.
NEWTON: Well, Ivan, you certainly described many reasons why certainly his death will have resonance there for South Koreans for some time to come.
Ivan Watson for us on the story. We really appreciate it.
Now coming up, Disney World is set to reopen and bring some of its magic back to Florida even though the state is, of course, suffering a massive outbreak of coronavirus.
We will talk about it. That's next. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NEWTON: For more than 100 days Walt Disney World has been silent and empty. Its magic gone thanks, of course, to the coronavirus.
Now on Saturday, the resort will reopen its theme parks. But it's in Florida, of course, where coronavirus cases are soaring. The question is how can Disney keep tens of thousands of employees and millions of visitors safe?
John Defterios has been looking at this issue. He joins me now from Abu Dhabi.
I mean look, Disney is a formidable company. They will have taken absolute precautions to make sure this goes right. There is incredible pressure to make sure it goes right.
What are the implications about whether they get it right or whether they get it wrong?
JOHN DEFTERIOS, CNN EMERGING MARKETS EDITOR: Well, I thought the head of the labor union representing normally 43,000 workers, many of whom have been furloughed, said Disney just has to get it right, kind of there is no option, Paula. That's the word on the street and word for workers as they go back in.
And as you suggested, this was closed for nearly four months. The doors were locked. But Bob Chapek who's the CEO of the Walt Disney Company said they're not going to throw them over. This is very calculated, measured reopening.
[01:55:00]
DEFTERIOS: But there is concern because of the 220,000 cases that you see in Florida. So school is out. Americans are staying closer to home. Disney World is the destination. They thought this was the right time to open.
The other thing I find very interesting is the role of Disney World within the Disney group. It's a conglomerate for entertainment, right -- theme parks, movies, television, ESPN Sports, for example. A myriad of other things.
But this represents $11.6 billion of revenue, about 16 percent of the total company bottom line. So it is important to get it right.
And Chapek suggested when they reopened Shanghai they were able to do it with greater protocols on hygiene and the disinfecting of all products. The cast members or the employees will wear shields and all business will have to wear masks.
But they did say we got it right elsewhere, we can do it this time around in Disney World. But the backdrop is a complicated one because of what's taking place in Florida which is such a populated state, right and very important to the economy at the same time.
NEWTON: Yes, but we have coronavirus cases surging, something that was not happening in Shanghai.
DEFTERIOS: Yes.
NEWTON: Now before I let you -- I don't have much time left but I do want to get your take on Joe Biden launching his new industrial policy, more of a made in America approach. How would you define it?
DEFTERIOS: I would say a centrist Joe Biden, right. This is kind of a rebuilding of America, almost like a Marshall Plan for the 21st century. Renewing infrastructure, which is a good idea. A lot of emphasis, not on coal like Donald Trump, but clean energy, and really targeting the working class and the middle class. He says he is the real deal.
Wall Street actually feels pretty comfortable with him, Paula, which I think something extraordinary because Donald Trump said the market's going to be in a panic if Joe Biden gets elected. He is performing well in the swing states.
I would also suggest this is a very low risk strategy where business may have a problem. He is asking the government to kind of invest, not only in America, but actually make purchases to make sure that the economy gets re-started in the right direction.
Keep in mind, this is a platform for the Democratic National Convention that's going to take place in August. He wanted to get it right. He is not going to be shocking the world with this strategy. It seems pretty sensible and centrist at this time.
NEWTON: Yes. And we will see how it goes over and such a good point, right. Some people have been panicking before saying well, you know, Joe Biden won't be good for business and the market and it might cause some votes. It seems they have gotten over it.
John Defterios for us in Abu Dhabi, thanks so much. Appreciate it.
And thank you for watching.
I'm Paula Newton.
The "CNN GLOBAL TOWN HALL: CORONAVIRUS FACTS AND FEARS", that's next.
[01:57:37]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
END
