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A Race For COVID-19 Vaccine; Chinese Hackers Accused Of Trying To Steal Vaccine Data; White House/Republicans Divided On Stimulus Plan; Israelis Frustrated Over Netanyahu's Handling Of The Coronavirus Pandemic; How Rwanda Handle Their Coronavirus Pandemic. Aired 3-4a ET
Aired July 22, 2020 - 03:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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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, President Trump finally conceding to the deadly pandemic raging across this nation.
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DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: It will probably, unfortunately, get worse before it gets better. Something I don't like saying about things.
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CHURCH: The U.S. president held his first coronavirus briefing since April, this time being a little more accurate about the state of the pandemic.
Plus, trials for a vaccine are taking off globally, but in South Africa, finding volunteers to participate is becoming a big challenge.
And China is accused with sponsoring criminal hackers to steal vaccine data, but this could mean for already soured U.S.-Chinese relations.
Good to have you with us.
So, the coronavirus is raging through the United States with more than 1,000 deaths from COVID-19 reported on Tuesday. It is the first time in two weeks the death toll has surpassed 1,000 people in a single day. Data from Johns Hopkins University shows the U.S. on Tuesday, recorded more than 64,000 new cases.
And there's a new study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, it found that in some places infection rates were actually 2 to 24 times greater than the official count.
U.S. President Donald Trump returned to the White House press room Tuesday to hold his first corona briefing since April. It was designed to show off the president's leadership, and flip the narrative of an administration mishandling the pandemic.
Critics say it's a political move to win voters rather than inform the public about the virus. Nearly 142,000 Americans have died from COVID- 19. At one point during his previewing, Mr. Trump appeared to acknowledge the grim reality of the crisis and echoed a prediction he made back in April
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TRUMP: Some areas of our country are doing very well, others are doing less well. It will probably, unfortunately, get worse before it gets better. Something I don't like saying about things, but that's the way it is. It's the way -- it's what we have.
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CHURCH: Well despite his stark assessment, Mr. Trump is also trying to paint a rosy picture about his administration's response to the pandemic.
CNN's chief White House correspondent Jim Acosta has the details.
JIM ACOSTA, CNN CHIEF WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: A scripted President Trump tried to take on a more serious tone in addressing the coronavirus pandemic in a press conference at the White House, the president at one point acknowledge that it's going to get worse before it gets better in the U.S. when it comes to COVID-19, and he urged Americans to wear masks and not to congregate in crowded places like bars.
Here's more of what the president had to say.
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TRUMP: We're instead asking Americans to use masks, socially distance, and employ vigorous hygiene, wash your hands every chance to get while sheltering high-risk populations. We are imploring young Americans to avoid packed bars and other crowded indoor gatherings. Be safe, and be smart.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ACOSTA: One big problem for the president's message at this press conference would be the inconsistencies, for example, on masks. For weeks, the president has scoffed at the idea of using them, and has even ridiculed former Vice President Joe Biden for wearing a mask.
And ask for congregating in crowded spaces, that runs against the president's desire for Americans to attend his political rallies, and even a trip he made to the Trump hotel earlier in the week when he attended a fund-raiser. Many of the people there, including the president, were not wearing masks.
Jim Acosta, CNN, the White House.
CHURCH: Well, the U.S. president did not invite the nation's top infectious diseases expert to Tuesday's briefing. Dr. Anthony Fauci tells CNN he was not asked to attend. And the last time he spoke to Mr. Trump about the pandemic was late last week.
As the White House pushes to reopen schools next month, Fauci said he has not specifically talked to the president or the Education Secretary, Betsy DeVos about their plans. So, the doctor shared some advice on his recommendations.
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DR. ANTHONY FAUCI, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY AND INFECTIOUS DISEASES: As a fundamental principle, I do agree that we should try as best as we possibly can to get the children back to school because of the well-documented, you know, secondary downstream ripple effects that are negative particularly on parents and on the children when you keep them out of school.
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So if you at least agree that the general principle is to try as best as you can to get the children back to school, I think you have to put that in the context that an important issue in that is to make sure you do whatever you can to safeguard the safety and the health of children as well as the teachers, and that should guide your policy.
There is really some key issues. I mean, things like universal wearing of masks, close the bars, stay physically distant, outdoors are better than indoors, particularly if you are going to have restaurants sparsely seat people from each other, wash your hands, the really fundamental things, it's not rocket science.
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CHURCH: Well, the state of California has surpassed New York to have the most confirmed cases of the coronavirus in the U.S. Due to recent spikes in cases. California now has over 409,000 infections, passing New York by over 1,100.
California's health secretary says the slow climb of infections has allowed the state to prove clinical outcomes, but the mayor of Los Angeles says if the city can't control the spike, he may issue another stay-at-home order.
CNN's Stephanie Elam has more.
STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's still too high when you look at those numbers, and the fact that we have surpassed this 400,000 level here in California. Also looking at the positivity rate here in California, it's creeping up, 7.5 percent over the last 14 days.
Also seeing a rise in hospitalizations, seeing the same thing for the number of patients who are using ICU beds. Those numbers could be up as well.
What's also worth noting is that here in Los Angeles County, which is the epicenter of the outbreak in the state, that we have had six days in a row, where the new numbers coming out for hospitalizations have been above 2,100. There are more than 3,000 cases that were announced in the last bit of data that came out of here, but again, this record number of hospitalizations for the 4th time in one week, obviously showing that this is where a big part of it is.
To bring this number down, they are really asking people to stay home, social distance, wear a mask. So much so, and some of the municipalities around here they are telling people they are patrolling and finding them if they don't have their masks on.
This is all going back to what we've heard from Mayor Eric Garcetti, saying that we are on the brink of another shutdown if people do not start doing their part.
CHURCH: And Florida cases are rising at a dangerous rate, and some are still choosing not to follow local safety guidelines. The state's governor insist Florida is moving in the right direction, but the numbers don't agree.
CNN's Randi Kaye has more on the critical situation in Florida hospitals.
RANDI KAYE, CNN INVESTIGATIVE REPORTER: One hundred thirty-four dead here in the state of Florida in the last 24 hours from coronavirus, and we are also getting new information about hospitalizations in the state. They are certainly up.
The state firs started making that information available as of July 10th, and since then, we know that those hospitalizations have jumped more than one-third. On July 10th, there were 6,974 people hospitalized, and as of today, there were 9,520.
Still, the governor says the state of Florida is on the right course. Meanwhile, 54 hospitals say they are maxed out. They don't have any more ICU beds left, and statewide, the ICU availability also is not looking very good. It's at 15.98 percent, so just under 16 percent.
Meanwhile, just yesterday, it was at 18.1 percent. So, the numbers are certainly going in the wrong direction. We're also getting news that not everybody is obeying the rules here and the safety guidelines. We are being told that there was a block party just a few days ago where about 600 people gathered.
This is in Palm Beach County, in an area known as Pahokee, and we are told that law enforcement said that there were not any people there wearing face masks, it also didn't appear that they were social distancing, according to law enforcement, and this is an area where you are supposed to obey the rules and not have gatherings of 10 or more people.
So, this is certainly concerning. It's a breeding ground for the virus. The county administrator is saying, and she said that she's not going to take a curfew for that area, not for the entire county off the table. So, we'll continue to watch it and see what happens. Back to you. CHURCH: Joining me now is Dr. William Schaffner, he is also a
professor at Vanderbilt University's division of infectious diseases. Thank you, doctor, for all you do and for joining us.
WILLIAM SCHAFFNER, PROFESSOR OF INFECTIOUS DISEASES, VANDERBILT UNIVERSITY: My pleasure. Great to be with you, Rosemary.
CHURCH: Now we all witnessed a shift in messaging from President Trump at his first Coronavirus Task Force briefing in 90 days. He said the pandemic will probably get worse before it gets better, and he promoted wearing masks, social distancing, washing hands, and appealed to young people to stay out of bars.
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It is a very different message compared to what he was saying just days ago, but it is a welcome change. So, what impact might the president's words potentially have on the current surge in cases in this country?
SCHAFFNER: Well, the change certainly is welcomed. We need national guidance. We need a national policy. Now, I wonder whether this will be sustained and whether there will be really a forceful follow-up.
For example, a call for everyone leaving their front door tomorrow morning to be masked, and again, to reinforce social distancing. At least I didn't hear a statement that people should stay out of group activities, bars, yes, but there are many other group activities that people should avoid, particularly older people, and obviously people who have chronic underlying illnesses.
Younger people should be careful rather than carefree. We need to hear those messages time and time again. So, that the people who have been skeptical and listening to the leadership until now begin to get the message that there is been a change at the top, and we have to all follow and work together.
CHURCH: And so, doctor, perhaps it is baby steps for the president because he did send out that tweet, him wearing a mask, and now he's saying this. Does his next move need to be a national mandate for wearing masks?
SCHAFFNER: Of course. A national mandate would be so important. You know, the countries that have been successful in flattening the curve, reducing the transmission of COVID have had from the beginning a national program that was clearly communicated. It was very sustained.
And if we could have that sort of beginning now it certainly would help, because at the moment we have a very heterogeneous response across the country. People are really confused about what they ought to do. And I would put the public health leadership in front, and have the political leadership stand in back, supporting the public health leadership. Perhaps that's too much to ask, but you ask me, and that's the way I do it.
CHURCH: Yes. As we learned, Dr. Birx was in the other room, but she wasn't present, and no other doctors were there at that briefing.
So, let's just look at the new coronavirus cases comparing past and previous weeks. We brought up this map, the nationwide surge in new cases appears to have stabilized in some parts of the country. Now it's worth mentioning that more states and cities are now mandating masks. Do you think that might be behind this slight improvement?
SCHAFFNER: I think, Rosemary, that might be a bit too early. Let's look at what happens over the next week or so. One would hope that, as we have more mask requirements across the country, we could start to blunt this. But it goes along with the other activities. Masks alone they are fundamental, but masks alone, we need some help. We need to social distancing, and to staying away from large groups. You know, when you have mask orders, we frequently closed bars at the same time.
CHURCH: Right. And President Trump also said at that briefing that the U.S. has done more testing than anywhere else. He talked about his own 15-minute and 5-minute test, but that's not the experience obviously of the rest of the population, and the White House has been pushing back on increasing funding. It doesn't want to increase funding for testing for the U.S. population.
And this is what Dr. Anthony Fauci had to say about testing across the country. Let's bring that up.
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FAUCI: It isn't as uniformed as we would like that every single state, city, every county, every place where we need it is doing it at exactly the same level. As a whole, we need to improve it.
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CHURCH: And doctor, improving testing is going to be difficult if the president stops funding COVID testing across the country, despite being able to get one for himself every single day, sometimes more than once. So, what needs to be done to test better and test faster?
SCHAFFNER: Well, we certainly could use more resources. And the laboratories need to expand their capacities if they can do that. But the other thing that's being done is, particularly, in my state, for example, we are testing high-risk populations more rather than just letting anyone come in who's got no symptoms to get a test.
We are focusing on older people, nursing homes, prisons, manufacturing facilities where there are cases. Seasonal agricultural workers and the like.
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So, we are going after populations that we consider at higher risk, and of course, we are testing people who have symptoms.
CHURCH: Dr. Schaffner, thank you so much for joining us. We appreciate it.
SCHAFFNER: My pleasure.
CHURCH: And the coronavirus is taking an increasingly devastating toll across Latin America. Argentina saw a record daily rise in new cases, more than 5,300 on Tuesday, bringing the total tally to more than 136,000. There were also 117 deaths within the past 24 hours. The highest daily fatality count yet.
In Brazil, there were more than 41,000 new COVID infections on Tuesday alone. The country now has more than two million cases, second only to the United States. And regional officials warn the case count is showing no signs of slowing down. Mexico is also reeling from the virus. The country surpassed 40,000 COVID related deaths on Tuesday.
And as CNN's Matt Rivers reports, other countries in the Americas are seeing significant surges too.
MATT RIVERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The situation across the Americas, North, South, and Central America, is of continued grave concern to World Health Organization officials. That's what the regional representative of that organization said in a press briefing on Tuesday.
The director of the Pan American Health Organization told reporters that in just the last week alone, there have been nearly 900,000 newly confirmed cases, and nearly 22,000 nearly confirmed deaths across the region. Most of them are coming in the United States, in Brazil, and here in Mexico.
But beyond just those three countries, there continues to be concern in Central America with a lot of the countries there, according to officials reporting their highest weekly increases of COVID-19 cases since this pandemic began.
And health organization officials are also concerned about South America, specifically the Amazon basin, with countries such as Bolivia, Ecuador, Columbia, and Peru all seeing a significant surge in cases, particularly in localized hotspots. Again, according to WHO officials.
One bright spot in the region that has been the country of Chile, where over the last week we've seen numerous days where newly confirmed cases in that country were at their lowest levels since mid- May. That's something that health officials are hoping to repeat across Latin America, as so many other outbreaks are not showing signs of slowing down.
Matt Rivers, CNN, Mexico City.
CHURCH: The City of Portland, Oregon wants U.S. forces to leave town. But federal authorities say they are not going anywhere until the violence stops.
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(COMMERCIAL BREAK) CHURCH: Welcome back, everyone. Well, Oregon's top prosecutor is calling for an investigation into the actions of federal agents in Portland. They were dispatched by the White House at the beginning of the month to guard federal monuments. But now protesters want them to get out of town.
Video showing two federal officers detaining a man and placing him in an unmarked van has sparked national outrage. And the mayor of Portland says the White House is to blame for escalating the situation.
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MAYOR TED WHEELER (D), PORTLAND, OREGON: It doesn't de-escalate the situation at all. In fact, it's well-documented that before they got here, the energy was really going out of late-night protests. We were seeing smaller crowds. We were seeing less vandalism. We are seeing much less violence. And all of us expected that it was going to go away.
We had it contained. We are using our de-escalation strategies. We are engaged in limited arrests of people who were engaged in illegal activity. That's modern policing. And then these guys came in like a bulldozer and what it did was, it reenergized Portlanders, it brought people back into the streets.
And now here we are in the middle of a pandemic that their boss doesn't even seem to take very seriously, and we've got thousands of people back on the streets. This is a disaster. But it's a disaster the administration's own making.
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CHURCH: But the acting homeland security secretary says their presence is necessary. At least 43 people have been arrested by federal officers in Portland since July 4th. Most -- mostly for misdemeanors like vandalism. The acting DHS chief says officers won't leave until they know federal property is safe.
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CHAD WOLF, ACTING SECRETARY, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY: I'm ready to pull officers out of there if the violent stops. Portland is unique. There is no other city like it right now that we see this violence at federal court houses. We have no other teams like have been described here in any other city. It's just Portland.
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CHURCH: So, a group of women in Portland formed a so-called wall of moms to protect protesters. I want you to take a look.
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CHURCH: So, these moms stand arm in arm forming a literal human barricade. The moms say they are trying to protect protesters from federal agents. The organizer of the mom said around 200 women were involved. And they say some even got caught in the cross fire and were tear gassed by police.
So, joining me now is Julianne Jackson. She is a mom who helped lead the wall of moms march last night. Thank you so much for talking with us. We appreciate it.
JULIANNE JACKSON, ACTIVIST, WALL OF MOMS: Absolutely. Thank you for having me.
CHURCH: Talk to us about what happened last night, what you have been witnessing. Because we heard there that there's all of this violence and these federal agents have to stay while the violence lasts. What sort of violence are you seeing?
JACKSON: You know, to be really honest, I've been up there protesting, you know, since the beginning of these protests. Quite frankly, what the mayor says is absolutely correct. The crowd started to die down. Things were starting to get organized to where most protesters were kind of starting to do things the correct way. They were finding different avenues to reach out to government and get involved locally.
And truthfully, these troops being deployed here just escalated things. So, the majority of the violence I have seen to be really honest has come from the other side, not so much the protesters. I have noticed that not only police officers, but also the feds that are out there have kind of hair pin triggers. So, it doesn't take very much to activate them. And they don't necessarily go towards the person who is creating chaos. It's everyone.
CHURCH: So why do you think those federal agents are there?
JACKSON: To be really honest, I don't know. I mean, I wish I could, I wish I could tell you that. To me, it seems like an intimidation tactic. We have the right to assemble. We have the right to protest. So, you know, I'm not necessarily sure.
CHURCH: And Julianne, Portland's Mayor, Ted Wheeler, he supports the protesters as you know. And he wants these federal agents to get out of town. But he says the protesters have been heard and it's now time to end this because of safety concerns in the midst of this pandemic. Will you and the other moms encourage these protesters to end this now?
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JACKSON: You know, for me personally, it's something I have been working on to, you know, try to find out what the ask is. And I think, you know, it's very easy for people to say that we've been heard. But we haven't necessarily seen the action or the follow-through to back that up. You know, we did see a small divestment from the police, the Portland
Police Bureau budget, but it was not what was requested to put back into black communities. So, I think, yes, we are being heard, but we're not exactly being taken seriously.
So as far as encouraging people, I would definitely encourage people to continue to try to stay safe. I would definitely continue to, you know, encourage people to try to get involved in local government and to change those things from the inside out. But as far as encouraging people to stop, not really, no.
CHURCH: Right. Do you worry though that the longer the protesters stay there, the longer these federal agents will, and then the more federal agents will be sent to other towns like Portland? Do you -- are you worried about that? It's playing into this whole narrative?
JACKSON: Absolutely. I think that's always a concern. But I think, you know, we're -- we're in a momentous time. There is a lot of momentum here for the black community that has never been there before.
And we have, you know, obviously, as you can tell from the pictures and videos, I mean, we have the numbers now. And yes, I'm concerned. I don't want anybody to get hurt. That's definitely not what we would encourage. We do encourage organization. We do encourage like I said, getting into local government and trying to do these things differently as well.
But, you know, these concepts that we're asking for these are not necessarily new concepts. These are things the black community has been asking for. So, I think, you know, if Ted Wheeler is saying they're listening, you know, I would just like to see some follow- through on that. But yes, I mean, it's concerning, obviously. But don't want anyone to get hurt.
CHURCH: Yes. That is critical of course. Julianne Jackson. Thank you so very much for talking with us here at CNN. We appreciate it.
JACKSON: Thank you.
CHURCH: Well mayors from more than a dozen U.S. cities are asking the Trump administration to withdraw federal agents from their cities. The mayors are also calling on congressional leadership to investigate the administration's actions to deploy and threatened to deploy paramilitary-type forces into American cities.
The mayor of Kansas City said sending federal agents to quash protesters is counterproductive. Take a listen.
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MAYOR QUINTON LUCAS, KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI: I think in the same way that you are seeing people on the streets making noise, we need to as elected officials continue to make it clear to the White House, to the Department of Justice, the Department of Homeland Security, that we are not interested in just an outside occupying force that is actually supplanting our of police.
I mean, this is the interesting part. At the time people are complaining about police who may not know communities, bringing that law enforcement agents from a 1,000 miles away is not the cure, necessarily, particularly when it's dealing with protest activity. I have talked to lots of people who have been protesting, lots of younger black folks protesting. And I think they've said they want to make sure their voices are heard, not just taken over by other forces.
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CHURCH: Donald Trump has dubbed himself the law and order president and has threatened to send federal agents to many U.S. cities and their mayors.
Well ahead on CNN Newsroom, how South Africa is playing a prominent role in the global race for a COVID-19 vaccine. We are live in Johannesburg, that's next.
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DR. ANTHONY FAUCI, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALERGY AND INFECTOUS DISEASE: I would not wait to see if one was better than another, because the very fact that it gets approved by the FDA means that it's good enough to protect you. The relative percentage of how good is going to be, you may get one vaccine that's a bit better than the other. But I would say that some protection by a vaccine is certainly better than no protection.
So, I like the idea about there being multiple candidates in the queue. And I hope that we do get approval of more than one candidate, because we need a lot of vaccine, not only for people in the United States, but for the rest of the world.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: And that was Dr. Anthony Fauci speaking to CNN earlier, as he mentioned. The world isn't just waiting on one specific vaccine. Nearly two dozen different trials are going on around the world at the moment. And you can see where they are taking place on this map there.
One is in Brazil, where a phase three vaccine trial is taking place in the state of Sau Paulo, which has been hit hard by the virus. A vaccine was made by Chinese companies Samovar. Phase three is considered the step where the vaccine is tested on humans in a larger sample size.
And there is a lot of hope riding right now on a coronavirus vaccine being developed at the Oxford University. But its fate could be determined in South Africa. Scientists there are trying to enroll 2,000 participants in a trial in the middle of the pandemic. And CNN's David McKenzie joins me now from Johannesburg with more on that. So, David, what is happening exactly and how are they getting people on board with this?
DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, this Oxford vaccine, Rosemary is seen as very promising. And just this, week there are provisional results announced that showed that it is safe. And it is not necessarily effective. We don't know that yet. That key question is still open. And the answer to that question could be answered just a few miles from where I am sitting here in Johannesburg. But it's a challenge because South Africa is right in the middle of the peak of its pandemic.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The oxford vaccine produces a strong immunity response in patients.
MCKENZIE: It was the announcement he was hoping for.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This isn't it, right?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is far from it.
MCKENZIE: But the head of South Africa's arm of the Oxford study is far from comforted.
SHABIR MADHI, VACCINE TRIAL HEAD: That's what keeps me awake at night now. That we're doing to study first on the African continent, but we bring it in the midst of a pandemic.
MCKENZIE: Madhi's team is testing the same experimental vaccine in the middle of a COVID-19 storm. We are even finding enough negative volunteers to make up their 2,000 participants study is a challenge.
MADHI: It might be all that we fail, not because the vaccine doesn't work in protecting people, but simply because the force of exposure is so tremendous, so this is really going to test the mettle of this vaccine.
MCKENZIE: South Africa's number of confirmed cases out ranks among the highest in the world. What happens here over the next few weeks the WHO warns is a troubling marker of what the rest of the continent could face.
MADHI: We could experience multiple waves of an outbreak for the next two to three years, so to think that it is going to probably break the back of this pandemic at the end of the day, not just in South Africa but globally is a vaccine.
MCKENZIE: In just the last few weeks, Neliswa Zozi has seen colleagues fall ill, family to.
NELISWA ZOZI, VACCINE TRIAL NURSE: So, by doing this, for me, it means a lot. Because we are not only trying for the community, we are trying for our lives also, for our families also. MCKENZIE: Her hours here at the trial site are long, same for the
team inside the lab, working seven days a week, 16 hours a day. But no one is doubting their sense of purpose as cases surge. All the potential payoff when the South African results are expected to be released in November.
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MADHI: If this vaccine works, under these circumstances in South Africa, then those vaccine would work anywhere.
MCKENZIE: Its high risk, high reward.
MADHI: Exactly.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MCKENZIE: Well, they could move that lab to 24 hours a day as they rush both to help test. Just the general population and doctors and nurses working in that hospital, but also to try and push this vaccine trial through. They say those results could come in the next few months if they show that this vaccine has efficacy. If it protects people significantly. It could be a major step, Rosemary, into getting this vaccine approved.
But, you know, Professor Madhi told me that only a small percentage of potential vaccines ever get through to the final stage. But this is a different scenario. The pandemic of corona, of COVID-19, is so serious and so earth shattering that it's like they are running a marathon at the speed of a sprint. Rosemary?
CHURCH: Yes. I understand and we will watch closely to see what happens in November. David McKenzie, many thanks to you joining us live from Johannesburg.
And as we have heard, Dr. Anthony Fauci is urging Americans to get a coronavirus vaccine, even if isn't 100 percent effective. But many Americans are skeptical. Here is Brian Todd.
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BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's what millions of us have been hanging our hopes on to get past this crushing pandemic, to return to work, to school, to go back to our favorite restaurants and bars. To work out at a gym. A deployable vaccine for coronavirus, which experts say could arrive late this year or early next. But experts are now worried that when it comes, many Americans will reject the vaccine.
DR. VIVEK MURTHY, FORMER U.S. SURGEON GENERAL: Already surveys are showing us nearly half the people are not inclined to take a COVID-19 vaccine, even if it was available today. That's a shocking number and that is deeply concerning.
TODD: In May, one poll from the Associated Press and the NORC Center for Public Affairs Research showed only about half of Americans said they would get the vaccine, 20 percent said they wouldn't, 31 percent weren't sure. Other polls from CNN and the Washington Post and ABC News showed about two-thirds of Americans said they would get the vaccine. Still, experts are worried about any significant numbers of people rejecting the vaccine.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If it's a large percent chose not to get a vaccine, then we would never get herd immunity.
TODD: Experts say there are several reasons that people don't trust a potential coronavirus vaccine.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Lots of people are going to resist the very idea of getting it because they've been told for months, years now not to trust experts.
TODD: Until recently President Trump went against the advice of his own task force experts and rejected mask wearing. And during the pandemic, his question the guidance of America's top scientists on reopening the country.
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Doctor Fauci made some mistakes, a little bit of an alarmist.
TODD: But the mistrust of a vaccine cannot be place only at the president's feet. Expert say the very name of the project to push the vaccine through fuels skepticism.
DR. PAUL OFFIT, VACCINE EDUCATION CENTER, CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL OF PHILADELPHIA: I think when people hear the term warp speed they assume that steps are being skipped, they assumed that they are corners that are being cut and therefore this may be a vaccine because it's being made so quickly that is less than optimal. It may have the poor safety qualities or effectiveness quality.
TODD: Doctors acknowledge the vaccine likely won't be a magic bullet for coronavirus, that even after it comes out, it could be several months before we know how effective it is. But they have a simple stark message for those who are rejecting it.
OFFIT: The choice not to get a vaccine is a choice to take the real and very serious risk of being infected by this virus and being as to suffer and be hospitalized or die from this virus.
TODD: The Dr. Paul Offit says a crucial part of this vaccine program is for the president, the task force, any leaders involved in this to be as transparent as possible with the public about the vaccine even before it rolls out and that means being honest with the American about what our leaders know and don't know about the vaccine every step of the way. Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: And speaking of transparency, hackers are accused of trying to steal coronavirus vaccine research. Was China's government in on it? A live report from Hong Kong, next.
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CHURCH: Two Chinese nationals now face charges in the U.S. that they tried to steal coronavirus vaccine research with the support of Chinese government. The charges were unsealed Tuesday, even though the defendants are believed to be still in China. They are accused of trying to hack the computer networks of several U.S. based firms working on coronavirus projects. And CNN's Kristie Lu Stout joins me now live from Hong Kong to talk more on this. Good to see you, Kristie. So, the U.S. accusing these hackers of trying to steal COVID- 19 vaccine data and saying the action was state sponsored. So, what's the evidence linking this to China? And how much intel did they get?
KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: They got a lot of intel. The details, Rosemary are incredible in the United States. Two Chinese hackers have been charged in a sweeping cyber espionage in crime campaign that U.S. prosecutors say was supported by Beijing and was aiming at COVID-19 research institutions in the United States, organizations that we're looking into the development of COVID vaccines as well as treatments.
That according to the lengthy indictment is that this was the 10 year long cyber campaign that amass terabytes of data with hundreds of millions of dollars. It involved two former electrical engineering students believed to currently still be residing in China. It also targeted an astonishing, long list of victims including American biotech companies, engaged in COVID-19 research from Massachusetts, Maryland, to California, also targeting hundreds of firms in 10 countries around the world including a solar energy company in Australia and an artificial intelligence company in London also targeted dissident and human rights activists. In China, the United States, and here in Hong Kong.
Now, for months now, senior security officials in the United States have been warning of Chinese attempts to steal COVID-19 data from research institutions. This is something that China's ministry of foreign affairs have recently commented on. In fact, let's bring up a statement for you from a spokesperson (Inaudible) Yang. She said this, quote, the confrontational mindset reminiscent of the cold war will only poison the atmosphere for cooperation and not be conducive to peace and security of cyber space.
Some U.S. politicians seem to be alleging that China is waiting cyberattacks to steal U.S. research on COVID-19 vaccines. It is just absurd, unquote. Now, Rosemary that statement came four days ago. The indictment was released this week. The ministry of foreign affairs is speaking right now. We should get a fresh statement very, very soon. Rosemary?
CHURCH: Just very quickly, Kristie, of course, relations between the U.S. and China are not great anyway. Where does this leave that relationship?
LU STOUT: It was very telling in that statement that I just shared from China's ministry of foreign affairs that (inaudible) used the words cold war. A number of people have compared the plummeting relations between U.S. and China to a new cold war, not necessarily an ideological struggle, but a confrontation on multiple fronts. And now, cyber warfare with this new revelations. The strong allegations coming from U.S. prosecutors that China has been (inaudible) COVID-19 espionage. Back to you.
[03:45:05]
CHURCH: All right, a real worry there. Kristie Lu Stout, joining us live from Hong Kong. Many thanks.
Well, a new report from a British parliamentary committee says the U.K. took its eye off the ball when it came to investigating allegations of Russian interference and its politics, including the 2016 Brexit referendum. The report goes as far as saying Russian influence is the new normal. The Kremlin is denying the allegations. CNN's Nick Paton Walsh has our report.
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NICK PATON WALSH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: A long awaited report here that critics say is essentially nine months late from when it could have been published. And to some degree, points a finger of blame at the U.K. intelligence community for simply not looking into the scale of the potential for Russia to influence Britain's democracy before the key moment here, which in 2016 referendum to leave the European Union, that eventually will lead to Britain leaving E.U. later on this year.
The report says that had the threats been assessed ahead of that referendum, it would have quote had been inconceivable for Britain not to have acted to reduce Russian influence. But it also says it's impossible to gauge whether or not Russia did in fact impact that referendum results. They do say in the same report that there are quote credible open source. Reporting suggest that perhaps Russia was able to impact the Scottish referendum for independence in 2014.
But more broadly, it points to the scale of this report of Russian influence in the U.K. It calls that the new normal. It also points to an intelligence community that dealt with the issue of who should be responsible for containing Russia's influence as quote a hot potato. Something which neither MI5, in charge of domestic security MI6, in charge for intelligence or GCHQ that do sort of this droppings cyber security abroad, necessarily wanted to have entirely on their plate.
It asked for greater legislation perhaps to tackle the Russian threat and that posed by hostile state actors. And also to it's critical of some of the recent governments over the past decades decisions to allow large amounts of Russian wealth into the country, often against what they think may have been national security interests.
But essentially the big question, did Russia influence or change the results of the 2016 referendum, not really answered by this report because simply it seems the intelligence gathering may not have been done before that referendum. But a call, it seems for reform, for change, for greater focus amongst Britain's intelligence community, certainly delivered by this long-awaited and intensely politicized report. Nick Paton Walsh, CNN, London. (END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: Well, millions of Americans are set to lose some of their unemployment benefits at the end of the month. And Republican lawmakers and the White House are divided over the situation. We will have a live report for you, next.
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CHURCH: Welcome back everyone. Well, enhanced government benefits that millions of unemployed Americans rely on to pay their bills are set to expire at the end of the month. The timing couldn't be worse of course, as COVID-19 cases surge across the U.S. And as the deadline looms, Senate Republicans and the White House remain at odds over what should go in the next stimulus package to help Americans amid the pandemic. And they are divided on everything from a payroll tax cut to funding for reopening schools and how much money to roll out overall.
[03:50:06]
Eleni Giokos is here to explain from Johannesburg. Good to see you, Eleni. So, even with these enhanced benefits ending soon, the White House and Republican Senators still can't agree on what to include in the next stimulus package. And then of course we have the Democrats. So, where does all of this leave people struggling to make ends meet? Some who may end up homeless as a result of this?
ELENI GIOKOS, CNN MONEY AFRICA CORRESPONDENT: I mean, it is such a good point, right. You have millions of Americans that have been relying on the enhanced aid package that we have seen since the start of the pandemic. It basically ensure that these people, very vulnerable had an extra $600 a week in their pockets. Now that expires at the end of the weekend. And the reality is that there was hope that there would be some kind of clarity and decision made on a stimulus.
Make no mistake here, Rosemary. It's not about whether the U.S. should do a stimulus 2.0 but rather the size of it. So, the Democrats are saying $3 trillion is what needs to be put on the table. And then you have Republicans talking about $1 trillion. So the wish list, the priorities here, the disbursements of any kind of stimulus needs to be, of course, decided on. And the within the Republican Party itself, you also see major disagreements and I want you to take a listen to what Senator Ted Cruz yesterday said after a meeting with Republicans.
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SEN. TED CRUZ (R-TX): We will see where this ends up. We still don't know the details of this initial proposal. But as it is written right now, I am not only in no, I'm a hell no.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GIOKOS: Yes, I mean, this is a hard no -- a hard no to what the proposition is right now. So, disagreements coming through and it really does pertain as to whether you should see money going into the hands of the consumer to the extent that we have seen over the lockdown and the pandemic. And the reality is here, that the Republicans are saying, look it is a disincentive to get people back to work if your giving, you know, checks on a weekly basis.
On the other side of the spectrum, you have the U.S. economy so very much firmly in place during a crisis. And really the recovery depends on a stimulus package that is going to work for the consumer, the lifeblood of the U.S. economy.
CHURCH: Yes, good point. Eleni Giokos, many thanks. I appreciate it.
Well, coronavirus and corruption claims against the Prime Minister are drawing Israelis into the streets. Israel is experiencing a recent surge in the virus. And there's a lot of confusion and anger about the countries restrictions. CNN's Oren Liebermann has our report.
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OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN CORESPONDENT: This was forbidden at 5:00 Tuesday morning, but allowed by noon. It was forbidden, Friday at sunrise, but OK by sunset.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If it wasn't so frustrating and sad, it would have been funny.
LIEBERMANN: Israel's coronavirus restrictions have become a mixed plate of rules that sometimes change by the hour. Itamar Navon says he was determined to open his restaurant, Mona, even if it meant open defiance of the latest government restrictions. He wants a long term solution, not patchwork rules and regulations.
ITAMAR NAVON, CHEF AND OWNER, MONA: We are businessmen. We know how to work our business. We know how to calculate our models, but we need some answers. We can't have it that the government plays with us all day. And it really feels like they're playing with us and they are playing with each other instead of taking this crisis seriously.
LIEBERMANN: The government instructed restaurants to close Tuesday morning, a decision that was reversed a few hours later in the Knesset with some lawmakers saying data showed restaurants were not a major source of infection. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has tried to show he's in charge of leading the country through the coronavirus crisis. But in the midst of a rise in the new confirmed cases, public trust in Israel's longest serving leader has plummeted.
It's been in revolving door protests outside the Prime Minister's residence here in Jerusalem. There's the black flag protests against corruption, the economic protest against the government's handling of the coronavirus crisis. We've seen pro annexation protests, anti- annexation protest and now there is a restaurant owner's protest to express their frustration with the government's handling of all of this.
Restaurants owners prep meals from their surplus stock, foods they say would have otherwise been thrown away, because of the changing rules around restaurants. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The idea behind it is that because the government
and the state does not take care of the people, then instead of us just throwing food away, we can just serve it to people who cannot afford to themselves in this situation that we have in right now in the country.
LIEBERMANN: The confusion has spread beyond the kitchen. The special Knesset committee to deal with coronavirus started with a simple goal.
Let's give rules that the public is able to understand, said the committee head, but it ended up producing more confusion about what is open and with what restrictions because of major disagreements between the Knesset committee and the government.
[03:55:03]
Much of the country, their beaches, gyms, pools and more all stuck in this limbo of limitations. Oren Liebermann, CNN, Jerusalem.
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CHURCH: Rwanda has a population of about 12 million people, but is home to fewer than 1,700 coronavirus cases and it has a death toll you can count on one hand. Stephanie Busari reports on what Rwanda is doing right.
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STEPHANIE BUSARI, CNN PRODUCER: Although Rwanda is the most densely populated country in mainland Africa, with limited resources as a low income country, it is emerging as one of the few nations that is effectively managed coronavirus and contact tracing. Rwanda has implemented randomized testing, enlisting health care workers to ask drivers, cyclists, and pedestrians if they would like coronavirus swabs.
The swabs are then sent to a lab immediately where pool sample testing has helped to traumatically boost the country's capacity to identify and contain coronavirus cases. Anyone who test positive also receives free quarantine and treatment at government run clinics.
But Rwanda's success in dealing with the global pandemic began long before the virus emerged. Over the last decade, the nation has steadily improved its health care system, making it better prepared than neighboring countries when the virus hits.
Now, Rwanda is also using cutting edge technology to combat coronavirus and keep health care workers safe. The East African nation enlisted the help of robots donated by the U.N. development program, which are being used to conduct mass temperature test screenings, keep medical records of coronavirus patients, and to limit physical contact between patients and health care workers.
One company in Rwanda is even using drones to deliver medical supplies to clinics in areas that suffer from poor road infrastructure. Officials here hope that random testing and tracing with strict measures will continue to keep those figures low. Stephanie Busari, CNN.
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CHURCH: And thanks so much for joining us. I am Rosemary Church. I will be back with another hour of CNN Newsroom in just a moment. Do stay with us.
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