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Coronavirus Crisis Continue to Rise Worldwide; California Back to Shutting Down Businesses; Indigenous Population Hard Hit in Latin America; England Impose Mandatory Wearing of Masks; Minors Awaits Long Hours for Their Trial in England; Coronavirus Pandemic; Israelis Demand Economic Relief As Restrictions Resume; Prime Minister Netanyahu's Approval Rating Falls Amid Worsening Crisis; Lebanon Grapples With Worst Economic Crisis In Decades Daughter's Scathing Obituary; U.N., More Than 130 Million May Go Hungry Due To Covid-19; IMF Issues Bleak Outlook For Middle East; Uptick In Infections Likely To Set Back Recovery; Quarter Two Expected To Be Worst Since 2008 Financial Crisis; Millions Of American Lost Health Insurance; Uninsured Adults In 2020; Washington Redskins Changing Name And Logo; Black Lives Matter Mural Outside Trump Tower Vandalized; Fighting Racism; New Frida Kahlo Mural Depicts Artist Wearing Mask. Aired 3-4a ET
Aired July 14, 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)
ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, and welcome to our viewers joining us from all around the world. You are watching CNN Newsroom. And I'm Rosemary Church.
Just ahead, one of the biggest states in the U.S. is rolling back its reopening plan as coronavirus cases explode across the country.
Children awaiting trial in the U.K., some of them with mental health issues are spending 23 hours a day in solitary confinement because of COVID regulations. We will hear from one of them.
And after years of pressure, a U.S. football team is changing its name widely viewed as racist.
Well, the world has reached a grim new milestone in the coronavirus pandemic. More than 13.1 million people globally have been infected with COVID-19. And more than half a million have died from the virus. That is according to data from Johns Hopkins University.
Latin America and the Caribbean have surpassed three million cases. And you can see here are the hardest hit countries. The director general of the World Health Organization gave a candid warning Monday.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TEDROS ADHANOM GHEBREYESUS, DIRECTOR-GENERAL, WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION: Let me be blunt. Too many countries are headed in the wrong direction. The virus remains public enemy number one. But the actions of many governments and people do not reflect of this.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: The U.S. is one of those countries heading in the wrong direction. Nearly one out of every hundred Americans has tested positive for the virus.
A top laboratory says that the surge in cases is causing delays in providing test results, the nation's leading infectious disease expert Dr. Anthony Fauci says that the COVID-19 virus is his worst nightmare.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANTHONY FAUCI, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY AND INFECTIOUS DISEASES: Unprecedented in what it is, you know, one thinks about the worst nightmare of an infectious disease person who is in interested in global health and outbreaks. It's a combination of a new microbe that has a spectacular degree of capability of transmitting, and also has a considerable degree of morbidity and mortality. And here it is, it's happening, you know. Your worst nightmare, the perfect storm.
This is a really serious problem. It is truly historic. We haven't even begun to see the end of it yet.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: And after spending days railing against Dr. Fauci, U.S. President Donald Trump appears to be pulling back from a White House campaign to undermine one of the nation's most trusted health experts.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: I have a very good relationship with Dr. Fauci. I've had for a long time right from the beginning. I find him to be a very nice person. I don't always agree with him.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: Well, a growing number of U.S. states are rolling back their efforts to reopen as new infections rise. More on that from CNN's Erica Hill.
ERICA HILL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: California shutting down again, as cases skyrocket.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GOV. GAVIN NEWSOM (D-CA): We are now effectively, rather, effective today requiring all counties to close their indoor activities, their indoor operations in the following sectors. Restaurants, wineries, tasting rooms, movie theaters and the shuddering of all bars. This is in every county in the State of California.
(END VIDEO CLIP) HILL: Houston's mayor asking the governor for a shutdown as an army
medical team arrived in the city to help deal with the surge in cases, now topping 30, 000.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MAYOR SYLVESTER TURNER (D), HOUSTON, TEXAS: I'm proposing two weeks, or at the very minimum, to return to phase one?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HILL: The reality? A majority of the country is moving in the wrong direction.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MAYOR STEVE ADLER (D) AUSTIN, TEXAS: I think the lesson to be learned in Texas is that you cannot open up the economy in ways that look like the economy was open before.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HILL: Florida reporting more than 15,000 new cases on Sunday, more than any state in a single day since the pandemic began.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GOV. RON DESANTIS (R-FL): Our biggest concern is South Florida right now.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HILL: Miami's mayor warning that his city could be next.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MAYOR FRANCIS SUAREZ, MIAMI, Florida: We have to get control of these numbers. These numbers are out of control.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HILL: Hospitals in these new hotspots stretch then.
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[03:04:59]
LEAH CARPENTER, ADMINISTRATOR AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, MEMORIAL HOSPITAL WEST: We're out an ICU capacity of 103 percent, and if you just to carve out the COVID ICU, it's at 180 percent. That's a 26 percent increase from last Monday.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HILL: As cases surge in Georgia, Atlanta is moving back to phase one, which includes a stay-at-home order. The mayor joining New York Governor Andrew Cuomo.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MAYOR KEISHA LANCE BOTTOMS (D-GA): And you told us very clearly that if we didn't do things differently in our cities and states we would find ourselves in the same situation that New York was facing. And unfortunately, you were correct.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HILL: Meantime, in New York City for the first time in months, a day without a single COVID-19 related death.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MAYOR BILL DE BLASIO (D-NY): It's something that should make us hopeful, but it's very hard to take a victory lap because we know we have so much more ahead.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HILL: Erica Hill CNN, New York.
CHURCH: Well some schools in California had decided that students will not return to campuses for the coming school year and will use virtual learning instead. The Los Angeles and San Diego, unified school districts are coordinating to begin their school year online at the end of August. Their goal is to return to campuses as soon as conditions allow.
The superintendent of the Los Angeles district says the health of the school community is quote, "not something we can compromise."
Well at the same time, Florida Governor, Ron DeSantis, says that parents should have the option to send their children back to school, or used virtual learning in the coming school year.
His comments come as Florida continues to report high case numbers and infectious diseases experts label Miami the new epicenter of the pandemic. In a press conference on Monday, the governor was heckled by a person in the crowd.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DESANTIS: So, I think the --
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There are record breaking cases every day, and you are doing nothing.
DESANTIS: So, I think --
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You are falsifying the information and you are misleading the public. Over 4,000 people have died. And you are blaming the protesters. You guys have no plan and you are doing nothing. Shame on you.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: And as CNN's Randi Kaye tells us despite hard numbers and statements from experts, the governor says the state will be fine.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RANDI KAYE, CNN INVESTIGATIVE REPORTER: Bottom line is that today he is saying that those in Florida were going to get through this just fine. Those were his exact words. I'm not sure what he's basing that on. Since on Sunday we had that record number of more than 15,000 new cases. Today about more than 12,000 new cases.
But he did make a point of saying that the number of people testing positive, he says, has stabilized. The fatality rate is about 1.5 percent here in the state. Which is lower than the national average of about 4 percent.
But most notably he encouraged people there in Miami, where he was, you don't hear from him a lot, to wear face coverings. He said if we all do our part it really can make a difference. Which was really interesting to hear him say since he hasn't put out any sort of mandate statewide.
And then he also did touch on the hospital beds. He said that there's 13 to 15,000 f beds available in the State of Florida.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: Let's talk now with Dr. Jorge Rodriguez, and internal medicine and virus specialist joining us from California. Always good to talk with you.
JORGE RODRIGUEZ, INTERNAL MEDICINE & VIRAL SPECIALIST: Thank you. Likewise, Rosemary.
CHURCH: So, California is shutting down some indoor businesses due to soaring COVID-19 cases. And we are seeing surges across other states like Florida, Texas, and Arizona. Should they be considering shutting down as well?
RODRIGUEZ: Absolutely. They should have probably, in my opinion, been shut down already. Because their cases are much higher than California. Their deaths are much higher than California. Now it's kind of morbid to start comparing who is doing worse.
But the truth is that what California is doing, I think it's very smart right now. They are seeing an uptick in the number of people being hospitalized. It's increased by 28, 30 percent. The number of people that are testing positive. So, it is better to do it now than before that snowball has just gotten too large.
CHURCH: Right. And of course, the White House, as we know, has been trying to discredit America's top doctor, Anthony Fauci. But he is still giving out his expert advice based in science, not politics. And on Monday, he said the U.S. hasn't even begun to see the end of COVID- 19 yet.
But he also said we don't necessarily need to shut down again, he says if we all physically distance, wear masks, avoid crowds, and wash our hands, those four simple things could turn this all around. So, if it's as simple as that, why not mandate masks and turn this around? Why is that not happening if we can avoid shutdowns?
RODRIGUEZ: Well, you are singing my song. That's exactly what I have been saying for a while. Listen, this is a huge country. And there are no borders between California and Nevada where Las Vegas is, or Arizona in Phoenix.
[03:10:04]
So, I agree with you. That's because things aren't happening because we do not have clear and concise leadership that is saying this is what we need to do.
Japan, for example, huge country. Their cases are so much less than ours because they do social distancing. They do have a better hand hygiene and they always wear masks. We need clear leadership. Period.
CHURCH: Right. And I want to ask about a new study from the U.K. Because it shows if a person is infected with COVID-19, antibodies begin to decline after 20 to 30 days. Now that is not what any of us want to hear. What does that mean in terms of reinfection? And maybe more importantly, in terms of a possible vaccine?
RODRIGUEZ: Well, first of all, this is a study that hasn't been paired reviewed yet. It hasn't appeared in a journal. But it's by a very credible group of people, both of Kings College in London, and also with the NHS at the U.K.
We know that coronavirus and other ones are difficult to maintain with their antibody status after people get infected. That's why we have sometimes so many colds caused by a different type of coronavirus. What it means is that, people that have gotten COVID-19 do not need to feel comfortable. They can't let their guard down because these antibodies may indeed disappear after a few months.
But what's good is, we are learning that some people do maintain antibodies. And this is essential for us to see how to make a vaccine. So, getting it doesn't mean you're going to be cured. Because most people lost their antibodies within three months of the infection.
CHURCH: Right, good to know. And it is now taking multiple days, sometimes as many as eight days to get COVID-19 test results back. Why such a long lag time? How can testing be improved and sped up, and be made more available? Because people are complaining they can't get a test.
RODRIGUEZ: Right. We, the United States fell well behind in the beginning by not having the foresight to make the possibility of tests available. So now they are basically two large companies in the U.S. that are doing almost all of the tests. And it isn't just the swabs, it is actually the actual fluid, the re-agents to make the test.
What can we do? Again, the federal government, in my opinion, needs to incentivize companies to ramp up their production and use machinery that they already have, labs, right, to make to do these tests. American ingenuity has always been successful. And now is the time to put the American people to the test creating tests.
CHURCH: All right, and surging case numbers across the country, hospitalizations, deaths as we've discussed, yet President Trump is still threatening to cut funds to schools that won't open their doors to in-person learning. Some school districts are pushing back and opting for virtual learning instead. But Florida's governor, and others, are forcing schools to open. What are the risks here?
RODRIGUEZ: Well, the risk are that, first of all, that decision is immoral. The children of the United States are not collateral damage. So, the fallout could be that parents choose not to send their children home. The fallout could be that children that do go to school, listen, we can't even control kids as lice. We are going to control them getting COVID-19? Bring it back to their parents when indeed just spread to other people.
Not to mention, those wonderful teachers that are now going to be risking their lives not just with guns in schools, but with the virus that could kill them. Those are the ramifications of that decision.
CHURCH: Dr. Jorge Rodriguez, thank you so much for talking with us. I appreciate it.
RODRIGUEZ: Have a good day. Thank you.
CHURCH: And Brazil remains the worst hit country in Latin America with nearly two million cases confirmed. At least 260,000 were reported in the past week alone. Many infections are now being reported in rural towns where indigenous communities have been devastated.
CNN's Bill Weir reports it's happening as the president continues to downplay the threat.
BILL WEIR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: A long lens found Brazil's most famous COVID-19 patients up in about this weekend. And this Twitter selfie was part of a post that inform the nation there on the verge of recession, as he called for families to depoliticize the pandemic, after so much, quote, "misinformation was used as a weapon."
To his critics, that is outrageous since President Bolsonaro often defied a judge's order to wear a mask in public and pushed out two health ministers who disagreed with him. Now he has a team of doctors, in his own palace ICU at the ready, hospitals across his country are jammed.
Here in the geographic center of Brazil, a husband and wife suffer in adjoining beds. A son comforts his ailing father, and their doctor is still regaining his strength after 10 days in intensive care.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
[03:15:07]
WILSON VILETA, BRAZILIAN DOCTOR: So today, my boss, our boss, is inside with the ventilation with tube.
WEIR: Really?
VILETA: Yes. Be better.
WEIR: My gosh.
VILETA: And does not respond to the chloroquine.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WEIR: Chloroquine is among the cheap, abundant, antimalaria drugs pushed by Bolsonaro as a COVID cure, along with vitamins, steroids, and medication for parasitic worms. Dr. Vileta says he has tried them all with wildly mixed results.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VILETA: I do not know what to do. What do I do?
WEIR: Right.
VILETA: Water?
WEIR: Yes, water.
VILETA: Yes. Yes.
WEIR: You have very little -- you are trying everything you can.
VILETA: Yes. Yes. It is a new disease.
WEIR: Yes.
VILETA: It's a new -- it's a new pandemic. So we don't have things to do it.
WEIR: He says it's even more challenging treating the indigenous Brazilians who once had this edge at the Amazon to themselves but are now surrounded by farms and ranched, a soybean trucker first brought COVID-19 to this region. And it is tearing through a community already struggling with vulnerable immune systems, diabetes, and a deep mistrust of the outside world.
"I would like Jair Bolsonaro to stop talking stupid nonsense," Crisanto Rudzo tells me. The doctors have to prescribe, not the president. His government did not take prevention seriously. It did not prepare.
The indigenous leader was on a ventilator when his mother died of COVID-19.
"We have a very strong spirituality. So she was there. And took my hand and told me I would get out of this to take care of my people. Five days later, my father died.
As the pandemic spread, Brazil's Congress passed a bill that would provide clean water, disinfectant, and hospital beds for this country's 850,000 indigenous natives. Last week, those efforts were vetoed by Jair Bolsonaro.
Bill Weir, CNN, Brazil.
CHURCH: Coming up, new rules in England as the government says it will make wearing face coverings mandatory. We will have reaction to that.
Plus, the British legal system is bogged down by a result of the coronavirus, and children are suffering because of it. We will explain.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHURCH: Well, England is set to make wearing masks mandatory in shops beginning July 24th. Prime Minister Boris Johnson is seen wearing one here. Affirmed his support for face coverings Monday.
[03:19:59]
Masks have been mandatory on public transport in England since the middle of last month. And they are already required in shops in Scotland, which has its own powers over public health.
So, let's go live to CNN's Anna Stewart. He joins us from London. Good to see you, Anna. So why has it taken this long to mandate mask for English shops? And of course, how is going to be enforced? It's the big question, right?
ANNA STEWART, CNN REPORTER: I'm sure the U.K. government would point back that the WHO themselves only update their guidance on face coverings last week. But there is no doubt that England has been very slow on this front. It follows in the footsteps now of Germany, Spain, Italy, Greece, and even its neighbor Scotland in making masks and coverings mandatory in shops.
It will be implemented and enforced with a potential police fine of $125. It's starts on July 24th. There's been such an about turn here, Rosemary. Not just in terms of political thinking, a little of mixed messages from the government about civil liberties, but also on the sides of face masks themselves.
Back in early March, one of the top medical offices in the U.K. said that actually they thought that face masks could help spread the virus as people will touch their face more. So a real about turn. It will be interesting to see how it's actually taking up though in England.
CHURCH: Absolutely, because of course, Anna, Americans have had a really tough time with the concept of wearing face coverings. How are the English coping with this big shift? Because they have been doing it on public transport, haven't they?
STEWART: Well they have and haven't, Rosemary. Just in the weekend I was in the bus and I'd say, I was one of four people wearing a mask, the others, one had it sort of slung down the chin and two people didn't at all. And that's mandatory already on public transport.
So, it will be interesting to see. It has been a pretty low take up in England compared to other countries. Polls and reports suggest around 25 to 35 percent of people do wear them in England at the moment.
Of course, if there is a fine of $125 in a shop if you don't wear one, perhaps that's what will do it. Perhaps take up will be stronger. But then we have to talk about enforcement. Will this actually be enforced?
You and I have spoken about all the other measures that the U.K. government have introduced, particularly in England like the quarantine, which is already being ripped up. But so little enforcement that you have to question whether people will really take it seriously. Rosemary?
CHURCH: Yes, a fine might be a good incentive. Of course, you know, we've seen a lot of reluctance here. So, we can't speak.
Anna Stewart, thank you so much for joining us live from London. I appreciate it.
Well, the coronavirus pandemic is creating log jams in the British prison system. Right now, minors are being held in solitary confinement for up to 23 hours a day against U.N. guidelines. But English and Welsh prison officials say it's necessary to help save lives.
Our Phil Black investigates.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JUDE LANCHIN, LAWYER: Start a conversation, God.
PHIL BLACK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The wills of English justice are grinding painfully slowly because of COVID-19. Lawyer Jude Lanchin and a colleague are trying to establish a video call to a client's prison.
LANCHIN: Miracle, wow, very frustrating as you can imagine.
BLACK: After all these 30 minutes they finally bring in the client.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hello.
LANCHIN: Hello.
BLACK: COVID-19 prison rules made Lanchin and the person she's representing have never met or even seen each other until this moment.
LANCHIN: Nice to meet you properly and see you. Wow, baby face. Honestly. Gosh.
BLACK: We can't identify him. He's only just turned 16. In custody since early April, his trial is postponed indefinitely because of a vast legal backlog created by the pandemic. And COVID-19 prison restrictions mean he must wait alone in his cell for 23 hours a day. Little education, exercise and support, no visitors, including lawyers and family.
LANCHIN: How was your, just for final thing, how is your mental health? How is this all impacting on how you are feeling?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Before I'd say I'm very stable in that sense but now it's like this yes, I can be fine in one second and then the next second it's just, I would say it's deteriorating and I realize it's myself, that's what's kind of the worrying part like, I see it myself.
I can be fine one second and then I'll think of something and then my whole mood just changes. I struggle to sleep
BLACK: He is not alone. The latest figures from May show 614 children in custody in England and Wales. This is what some of them have told their lawyers.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Being stuck in prison is awful, never mind coronavirus, now it's even worse.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You're in your room 23 and a half hours a day. I'm used to it now, but it's depressing.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm bored, stressed out that it's just alone.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Stressful behind my door all day getting to my head.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BLACK: They've all been living through what the United Nations guidelines define as solitary confinement, 22 hours a day without meaningful human contact and those guidelines say it should never be used on children.
[03:25:04]
The prison service for England and Wales hopes to begin relaxing that confinement in the coming weeks. It says it knows the restrictions are difficult for children but they are based on expert advice and it says that's helped save lives.
Not good enough says lawmaker David Lammy.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DAVID LAMMY, BRITISH LABOUR M.P.: On report, coronavirus is a challenge for the system but it is not a call for Democratic countries like our own to abandon norms that we have fought hard for in this country. It's very disappointing and worried that we're treating young people in this way.
BLACK: Lammy's review into English and Welsh prisons confirmed a well-known suspicion, black and other minority children are disproportionately represented. They now make up just over half of children in prison, while minorities are only 14 percent of the U.K.'s general population. Lammy says that means they're also suffering disproportionately in solitary confinement.
LAMMY: Many children will have experience trauma in different aspects of their life and many of them will have been pinned or abused by adults and have put them in this criminal setting. And that's why it's hugely serious to treat them in a way that further damages them and further impacts on their own well-being and state of mind.
BLACK: But Jude Lanchin and her colleague are still working to get their client bail.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LANCHIN: OK. Yes, take care.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLACK: The U.K. has made many difficult decisions to stop the spread of COVID-19.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LANCHIN: My God, he's so young, I mean, he really is a child.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLACK: Few should be more difficult that depriving vulnerable children of freedom and support.
Phil Black, CNN, London.
CHURCH: Shocking situation for those young people. And French healthcare workers are getting a pay raise. Prime Minister Jean Castex and union representatives signed the deal reportedly worth $8. 5 billion dollars. It's said to boost salaries on average by more than $200 a month for nurses and care workers.
There's also a package to increase doctor's wages in the public sector. Some unions haven't signed the deal. So, tensions may not be over just yet.
Healthcare workers took to the streets last month to protest poor conditions medical workers have faced battling this pandemic.
Well, coming up, angry Israelis hit the streets as their government loses its grip on the coronavirus outbreak. We will have a live report from Jerusalem.
And Lebanon's economy is in crisis. How the country that survived wars, and famines in the past got to this point. We will take a look at that after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[03:30:00]
ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: Thousands of Israelis protested over the weekend as the economic hardships of the coronavirus pandemic set in, despite getting an early handle on the virus, cases in Israeli are spiking now. Meaning restrictions are back in place. CNN's Oren Liebermann is in Jerusalem with more on the growing anger there. So, Oren, talk to us about what these protesters are asking for. What sort of economic relief they might get in the midst of this pandemic?
OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN CORESPONDENT: Well, a lot of these protesters voice, a simple frustration that they have not gotten financial help in the middle of an economic meltdown, as unemployment hit 21 percent this week. In terms of coronavirus numbers released today from the ministry of health, there are now more than 44,000 cases in Israel, and more worryingly perhaps, a quarter of those cases according to the ministry of health numbers, have come within the last 10 days.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LIEBERMANN: On the streets of Tel Aviv, the numbers are going up. First, there is the number of protesters. Police say more than 10,000 people filled the square to demonstrate against the government's handling of the coronavirus crisis. Demanding economic aid, they held signs that read economic war, and free the money.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I do not feel that they are doing enough to support us. We need our savings, we do not get any money.
LIEBERMANN: Then there is unemployment, which hit 21 percent this week according to the Israel unemployment service. Over the weekend, 1,250 citizen's return to work, more than twice that number filed for unemployment.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I can't train, I can't prep, I can't work, I cannot get money from the country, my clients can't come and train. And I had enough of it.
LIEBERMANN: And there is a coronavirus which has surged to record numbers of new cases a day. Israel is struggling to contain in July when it thought it had it under control in May. The numbers have all put pressure on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who promised up to $2,170 and soon to unemployed and business owners who qualify.
BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER: This support, this grant, is not dependent on legislation. And we ordered that will be acted already today. The (inaudible) so the money will arrive in accounts in the next few days.
LIEBERMANN: One number that is falling, Netanyahu's approval rating in the handling of the coronavirus crisis. From 74 percent in May to 46 percent now. Last week, Netanyahu held a Zoom call with business owners trying to placate their fears, instead he became the target of their anger.
My husband and I, we do not know what to do. How are we going to live? This woman tells the Prime Minister. We never got anything in the first round or the second round, there is nothing that we can do, we need a serious solution.
Politically, Israel's longest serving Prime Minister faces no real threat from the right or the left. But he has to contend with a second wave of coronavirus on a tide of economic hardship.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LIEBERMANN: A survey released today by the Israel Democracy Institute suggested 75 percent of Israelis feel a sense of anger, frustration or disappointment, meanwhile according to that same survey, public trust in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, now down to 29 percent. Rosemary.
CHURCH: All right. Oren Liebermann joining us live from Jerusalem. Many thanks.
Well, Lebanon is facing its most severe economic crisis in decades, the economy has come to a standstill with unemployment and skyrocketing prices, and the coronavirus pandemic is making things worse. CNN's Ben Wedeman looks at whether a country that has endured famine, for an invasion, and civil war has finally ran out of luck.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Protesters outside Lebanon state electricity company light candles and curse the darkness. Today, how many hours of electricity have you had today?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Four hours.
WEDEMAN: Flowers marked the spot were 61 year old Ali Mohammed (inaudible), shot and killed himself, apparently in desperation as the Lebanese economy goes into a tailspin.
My people are hungry, chants this man at a demonstration that gathered after Ali killed himself on Beirut once fashionable Hamra Street. Others have taken a more violent approach to express their anger at plummeting living standards.
[03:35:00]
DIMA KRAYEM, ECONOMIST: What you're seeing right now is not a crisis, it's a collapse.
WEDEMAN: Economist Dima Krayem is following Lebanon's so far fruitless negotiations with the International Monetary Fund for a bailout. In October last year, nationwide protests erupted as Lebanon's banking sector began to fall apart. It was based on what economists had called a Ponzi scheme whereby Lebanese banks offered sky high interest rates to mostly Lebanese diaspora depositors and then used those deposits to finance ballooning government deficits. KRAYEM: It's a collapse of a whole model, it's a collapse of a model
that has accumulated losses for three decades and right now, the majority are bearing the brunt of this collapse as opposed to the 1 percent that have made use and have made an infinite amount of dollars out of the system.
WEDEMAN: In recent months, crisis and unemployment have skyrocketing. The currency the Lira has lost much of its value.
All day, I've been working, and I've only earned 9,000 Liras says this taxi driver. On this day, that was only about $1, a year ago it was $6. Zuhair Taqoiush can't make ends meet. I'm a close down, he says. There are no sales. Everything he says from the plastic bags to the paper he wraps the meat in has become too expensive.
Across Beirut, stores have shuttered, no business, no power, no hope.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Two days we have more than -- almost 20 hours of power cuts per day, and that was very brutal on us.
WEDEMAN: Keeping the lights on at Beirut's main state hospital is just one thing that keeps Director Dr. Firass Abiad up at night. Covid-19 cases are mounting here while sources evaporate.
DR. FIRASS ABIAD, DIRECTOR AND CEO, RAFIK HARIRIUNIVERISTY HOSPITAL: If the situation gets more difficult and the appearance is are at the moment is that it might become more difficult, whether we will be able to keep finding solutions? And my answer at this moment is, I do not know.
WEDEMAN: For those who reached rock-bottom, the dumpster is the last refused. In Lebanon, no one has answers. Ben Wedeman, CNN, Beirut.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: The International Monetary Fund is downgrading its forecast for the rest of the Middle East. Why these oil producing nations are so vulnerable. And how they might impact the global economy. Plus, a grieving daughter's message to those who still think the coronavirus is virtually harmless. Here her emotional obituary for her father, and scathing remarks for her government.
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[03:40:00]
CHURCH: A U.N. report says the coronavirus pandemic could mean 130 million people around the world are left with chronic hunger by the end of the year. Hunger was already on the rise because of economic slowdowns and the climate crisis, and now the pandemic is making things even worse. Africa has been hit the hardest, followed by Asia, Latin America, and the Caribbean. This all means the world is not on track to reach the U.N.'s goals for reducing hunger by 2030.
And covid-19 is deepening the recession all across the Middle East and causing the International Monetary Fund to slash its forecast for the region. That is due in large part too much of the world staying home and not using as much oil. And that affects so many aspects of these economies from fighting poverty to stimulus plans. CNN's John Defterios is tracking this from Abu Dhabi. He joins me now live. Good to see you John. So, the IMF issued this bleak outlook for the Middle East, the pandemic and lower oil prices combining to deepen the recession across the region. So, what are the numbers and what is the fallout here?
JOHN DEFTERIOS, CNN EMERGING MARKETS EDITOR: Well, it is one of the worst regions in the world. The drop is severe. If you look at some of the categories, by as much as 3 percent from April and in terms of negative drop in terms of the recession, Rosemary. And we are covering an area that we are talking about between Morocco and all the way stretching to central Asia, in Kazakhstan including the region I'm sitting here, bang in the middle of the Middle East.
So, if you take a look at the overall numbers here, between the Middle East, central Asia and parts of South Asia, negative 4.7 percent, that's down 2 percent from where we were in April. The worst is, the Middle East, North African oil exporters are at a negative 7.3 percent, down another 3 percent and not much better for the gulf states here in the Arabian Peninsula. Down another 7 percent.
The advantage for them, in the Gulf States, they have $2 trillion of sovereign wealth that has been dropping because of the pandemic. But nevertheless, a pretty sizeable cushion. But that's not the case for countries like Iraq, Iran, Libya, Angola, you know, they are suffering severely right now. Ben Wedeman talked about Lebanon where they don't have the oil and gas on stream right now. And as the IMF is suggesting, it is very hard to gauge when demand will be robust enough to help these countries. Let's take a listen to the IMF regional Director, Jihad Azour.
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JIHAD AZOUR, IMF REGIONAL DIRECTOR: The recovery in oil price will be dependent on various factors. The first is the demand. The demand is being plain and important (inaudible). And the uncertainty about the recovery globally is affecting the expectations about the demand. Especially that trade is expected to drop this year by more than 12 percent globally.
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DEFTERIOS: That is an amazing number, 12 percent globally. And these are the three key factor that the IMF singled out in its report. You have that double whammy, Rosemary, that you were talking about between oil demand dropping and then also the recovery and the lockdowns that may come here in the second wave. $270 billion of lost revenue over the last year. That's extraordinary.
And the fact that the stimulus packages is outside of the Gulf States, (inaudible) that sovereign wealth are very small. So, if we get that second wave, it's going to be difficult for the medical systems to hold up. And keep in mind, Rosemary, we've talked about it over the last year. Social unrest arrived in many of these countries before the pandemic. And the IMF was warning it could happen again because of the scale of the unemployment in the region, in the poorest states.
CHURCH: Yes. It is a scary combination of really grim factors there. And John, Wall Street shares spiked up. Then wiped out the gains, its second quarter earnings seasons starting in earnest. Are investors finally getting worried about the banks and their falling earnings?
DEFTERIOS: Yes, outside of the airline sector and hospitality, or restaurants are on the front line of the pandemic. As you know, Rosemary, the banking sector is under pressure because of the number of bankruptcies we have seen, and the lock down, hurting many of the loans that are out by these banks, they call it banking Tuesday, from JP Morgan chase, Banks of America, Wells Fargo, City Group, you will hear from them in the next 24 to 48 hours, not going to be pretty. A (inaudible) profit earnings down by 50 percent as a result.
They set aside about $35 billion for toxic loans. That probably will not be enough. And that is what the investors are looking for. As you suggest, the NASDAQ was down nearly 2 percent. The S&P 500, the broader index, down about 1 percent. But the futures are holding their own. This is off the high during the Asian trading session, and as we move into the European trading day.
[03:45:03]
But no panic whatsoever. We see oil prices, if we circle back to the Middle East as a result, down about 1 percent to 2 percent on the session so far so far, because OPEC may put some more oil back on the market. They think that the worst is over. But the market is telling them a little bit differently as we go below $40 on the U.S. benchmark. Back to you.
CHURCH: All right. John Defterios, always good to chat with you, although very grim news, I'm sad to say.
DEFTERIOS: Thank you.
CHURCH: I appreciate it however. Well, the coronavirus has stripped millions of Americans of their access to health care. A new study shows that a record 5.4 million people lost their health coverage during the pandemic. The report from families USA looks at covid-19's impact among workers under 65. Nearly half of the coverage losses come from just five U.S. states, California, Texas, Florida, New York, and North Carolina. It also found that the rise in uninsured workers was 40 percent higher than the previous high, which was recorded during the recession of 2008 and 2009.
Well, a grieving daughter is lashing out at politicians after her father died from the coronavirus. Kristin Urquiza wrote an emotional obituary that expressed both her love for her father Mark, and her anger over what she says was his unnecessary death. She says Arizona Governor, Doug Ducey, failed the people of his state by opening up too early. Just take a listen to Kristin reading part of what she wrote.
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KRISTIN URQUIZA, DAUGHTER OF CORONAVIRUS VICTIM: Mark, like so many others, should not have died from covid-19. His death is due to the carelessness of the politicians who continue to jeopardize the health of brown bodies through clear lack of leadership, refusal to acknowledge the disparity of this crisis, an inability and unwillingness to give clear and decisive direction on how to minimize risks.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: Kristin says her father only left the house for work during the stay-at-home order. But he began going out more when the Governor encourage people to resume their normal lives.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
URQUIZA: My father, I believe, was robbed of life. And I have endured a living nightmare over the course for the last three weeks that he was sick and passed. And I knew if I didn't speak up, who would? And the best thing that I could do to continue to fight for my father was to fight for other families out there and to make it known that these deaths are preventable as long as we are focused on a coordinated response that minimizes risk, and puts people first.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: Well, the Governor's office has responded. A spokesperson said this. And I am quoting. Our hearts go out to the family and loved ones of Mark Anthony Urquiza. We know nothing can fully alleviate the pain associated with his loss. And every loss from this virus is tragic.
We will be taking a short break, still to come, better late than never. After years of controversy, the Washington Redskins are changing their name. Why now? And what this means for other NFL teams with racially offensive names. That is next.
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[03:50:00]
CHURCH: Workers are repainting the black lives matter mural in front of Trump Tower in New York after it was vandalized on Monday. Police say someone dumped red paint over the mural and ran off as oncoming traffic spread the paint even further. U.S. President Donald Trump has called the praise a symbol of hate. While New York Mayor Bill de Blasio says 5th Avenue has never looked better.
Well, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau discussed the black lives matter movement on the phone call with U.S. President Donald Trump, Monday. The two leaders talked about many topics, including the coronavirus pandemic, relations with China and systemic racism. Mr. Trudeau says that the black lives matter movement has made a great impact in Canada and in the United States. And supporters are looking to their leaders to combat the issue.
Well, the American football team, the Washington Redskins, it's finally retiring its controversial name and logo. Redskins is considered an ethnic slur and has long been denounced by Native American groups. The team's head coach tells the Washington Post the new name, which has not been announced, will honor both the military and Native Americans. The team's owner had long resisted any name change. But corporate sponsors and racial justice protesters, have been heaping on the pressure.
Joining me now is Christine Brennan, a CNN sports analyst, and a sports columnist for USA today. Great to have you with us.
CHRISTINE BRENNAN, CNN SPORTS ANALYST: Rosemary, great to be with you as well.
CHURCH: So, given the controversy that has swelled for years around the name and logo of the Washington Redskins, why did it take so long and require the pressure of corporate sponsors to make this happen at this time? And just how significant is this move?
BRENNAN: It took so long because the owner of the team, Daniel Snyder, told -- actually told a colleague of mine, USA Today's Eric Brady seven years ago, that he would never change the name of the team. And he said, used all caps, never. And it is really one of the most famous quotes in sports, in Washington D.C., and really even throughout the country over the last seven years. I mean, that is a pretty strong adamant statement. Never, no way, no how.
And as much as I covered the team, I have been in this town, I thought that Dan Snyder was going to be able to pull it off for at least a while longer. You know, he is the owner, so, it's his call at the end of the day. What of course has happened in the last two months is really changing everything. And it has changed much more than just the Washington NFL team named of course as you know. But with the murder of George Floyd, the emphasis on black lives matter, Washington NFL team actually tweeted out, as in many, obviously that bloc that day is signifying by a price manner.
And the pushback was extraordinary, including from AOC. From people, you know, people in Congress and from all over, saying how dare you, Washington NFL team, talk about racism when you consider the name of your team? And that basically started the dominoes falling. And money talks, the corporations, FedEx, Pepsi Co., Bank of America, Nike, when all of them basically told Dan Snyder enough is enough.
That is when years, and years, of pressure finally led to a decision that I believe is a great day in Washington. Finally, a racist, awful name for a team is now gone. And I think that is a cause to celebrate.
CHURCH: Yes, so they have met the moment. Christine, what is the next step in finding a new name and logo that is going to make the team, fans, and sponsors happy? And are there any viable names and logos being consider right now?
BRENNAN: Certainly, everybody has an idea. If you have one, send it in. People are talking about it. You have made an important point. They said that it's over. I don't even want to say the name, because it's so terrible. The r-word is gone. They have not said what they are replacing it with yet. There are thoughts of the Washington monuments, the Washington Americans, the Washington Warriors, playing up the military theme that obviously many people like to talk about. The Red Tails, which would go back to the (inaudible) airman, and the African American pilots during World War II.
There are many ways that they could go. But when you look at the name of the baseball team, the Washington Nationals, if you look at the name of the hockey team, the Washington Capitals, there is that sense of Washington as the nation's capital as part of the story of those teams. So, I would not be surprised if it's something like Americans, or monuments, or even Senators, which was the baseball team years ago.
[03:55:07]
It's something that plays on Washington as the capital of the United States. But there are still ways to go. And that decision, we would presume would happen before the season starts, if there is a season due to the pandemic, and that of course would be in September.
CHURCH: Right, and while they considerate that, some fans are vowing never to come back because of this name and logo change. How can they be convinced that this needed to be done?
BRENNAN: You know, I have often said, tried to explain the name, the r-word, to a 12-year-old. Just try, you can't. If you started a new sports team now, in a different league or a different sport even, could you name that team what this team has been named? Of course not. You couldn't. It is racist, its offensive, obviously native leaders in this country has spoken out in a huge way over the last 10 to 15 years.
I have been on panels with some of them, Rosemary. They have talked about the hurt that dressing up as a, quote unquote, Indian, as a Native American, with a head dress, and even the music, and the drumbeat, and the idea of all of the trappings of, quote unquote, the Native American that so many of us in this country have turned into some kind of Halloween costume party. It is outrageous.
And so if you think of others, if you think of our other fellow Americans, they were here first, the Native Americans, the native community that has been so vocal. And the children who were harmed by seeing these caricatures of their heritage, as we have seen not just with Washington, but the Cleveland Indians, Atlanta Braves, Tomahawk Chop. We have seen -- I think that's all going to be gone soon.
CHURCH: Right.
BRENNAN: You know what? It's not politically correct, really. It is just correct. And so that would be my answer to those who are upset. My guess is that they are going to be buying up the jerseys, the old stuff, the retro stuff, and the new things that will be coming. If Washington starts winning football games, they will show up. And this will be forgotten relatively quickly.
CHURCH: Christine Brennan, always great to chat with you, thank you so much.
BRENNAN: Rosemary, thank you very much.
CHURCH: An iconic mural in Mexico has turned into somewhat of a public service announcement. This image of world famous painter Frida Kahlo now has one obvious 2020 edition, a face mask. Officials are hoping to get a not so subtle message across during the coronavirus pandemic. Here is painter Julio Ferra.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JULIO FERRA, PAINTER (through translator): The ideas that given the popularity up Frida Kahlo, she's well-loved across society, with her using a face mask we can then raise awareness on its usefulness in preventing covid-19.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: The mural was painted to mark Frida Kahlo's birthday on July 6, and her death on July 13th. And thank you so much for your company. I am Rosemary Church, I will have another hour of news after this very short break. Do stay with us.
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