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Kansas City Mayor: Put On A Damn Mask; Trumps Continues Claims Of Mail-In Voting Fraud, Without Evidence; College Football Star Opts Out Of Senior Season Citing Deep Concerns Over Coronavirus. Aired 10:30-11a ET

Aired August 04, 2020 - 10:30   ET

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

[10:30:00]

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JIM SCIUTTO, CNN ANCHOR: As coronavirus cases rise, top health officials are warning about a surge in Midwestern states now. Over the weekend, Dr. Deborah Birx said the US was entering a new phase of this pandemic. Dr. Anthony Fauci says that new phase refers to insidious community spread, which is harder to fight than contained outbreaks.

Our next guest has a very clear message, put on a damn mask. Joining me now, the Mayor of Kansas City, Quinton Lucas. Mayor, thanks for taking the time this morning.

MAYOR QUINTON LUCAS (D), KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI: Good to be with you.

SCIUTTO: So, you have the health side of this, you have the financial side of this. I want to begin on the financial side if I can, because your finance department, city finance department sent a memo to you yesterday outlining a potentially $200 million deficit through 2026. Democrats and Republicans, one of the many things they're debating in the next stimulus bill is aid to states and local communities. Can your city survive without federal help?

LUCAS: At this point, it's very unlikely. So far, we are already going into deficit spending to provide funding for things like COVID-19 tests, for first responders who have been front and center throughout this battle, and we are already tens of millions of dollars in debt. When you look at the economic harm that's been sustained, tax revenues that are down in every major American city, and the fact that CARES Act only went directly to 38 American cities, excluding places like Kansas City and Cincinnati, it presents a real challenge.

SCIUTTO: No question. Let's talk about the health side of this, because I know that you spoke with Dr. Deborah Birx from the White House Coronavirus Task Force, with several other mayors last week about mitigating the spread. I wonder when you see White House health experts like Birx and Fauci say, we're in trouble right now.

We've got to do something. But then you see the President, really in a state of denial, denying that things are that bad, saying that we're doing an outstanding job here. Do you have confidence that the administration, not only accepts the gravity of the crisis, but is going to do what's necessary about it to help cities like yours?

LUCAS: You know, I'll say it this way. I have confidence in Dr. Fauci. I actually have confidence in conversation with Dr. Birx. I think they are trying to get a message out to American cities about how important this is. They were trying to get ahead of problems here in the Midwest, so that we didn't repeat the experience in the Southeast and the Southwest.

The challenge, of course, has been all along, in many ways, the President's rhetoric. I'm glad to see that now he supports wearing a mask. It took months too long. I'm glad to see that now, at least, there is some reality that things are serious and challenge in much of the country. But I do shudder to think of the fact that there were weeks and weeks where more people got infected, more people will have died because of inaction at the top federal levels.

And that's why I just hope removing all partisanship, that people recognize our cities need help, people need help. We need to get ahead of, I think, of further spread.

SCIUTTO: Yes. Schools reopening, I mean, listen, it's a challenge for every city. It's happening right now in the city that I live in. And a lot of parents are watching this very closely, as are students. Do you believe schools will be able to open safely with some in-person instruction? Schools in your city, they postponed the start of the school year until September 8th. When that date comes, is in-person schooling possible? Safe?

LUCAS: I asked Dr. Birx that question. And although she gave us fairly clear advice on direction with bar closings, among other things, it wasn't as clear with schools. There's an extra politicized conversation, which is unfortunate. Because I think the answer right now is largely, no.

We are not prepared yet, particularly with not having enough funding to support schools opening, quarantining, contact tracing, to make sure that we're where we need to be. So I have grave concerns with schools reopening, as they are in much of the country.

SCIUTTO: To your credit, you mentioned masks. You put it in no uncertain terms, put on a damned mask. I mean, we're months into it, and as you said, the President, finally, yesterday put out a word in a campaign email that this is necessary.

Is it a hurdle to get over now, still, convincing people, in light of all the disinformation they've heard about this, even from President Trump sharing it himself, questioning whether masks make a difference. Are you having trouble still, to this day, convincing people to take that simple step?

LUCAS: Yes, yes. I mean, it's one of the most frustrating things, because it is so easy. It is so simple to put on a mask. And by the way, I will say, a lot of people have complied and more people every day are complying. But the fact that there is still this anti-mask sentiment, the fact that I think we continue to give too much currency to those that are saying, oh, to heck with it, this is just restricting our freedoms.

Or the folks that are saying, we talk about the money, all of the issues that COVID-19 is fake, or that there are these medications that fix it, create real concerns for those of us on the ground, mayors throughout the country.

[10:35:00]

SCIUTTO: Yes, yes. I mean, we lead the world in disinformation, sadly, as a country in some of these things. Mayor Quinton Lucas, we wish you the best of luck and the people of Kansas City, even though they got the Royals there. But, you know, we still wish you the best of luck.

LUCAS: Thank you.

POPPY HARLOW, CNN ANCHOR: Jim loves his baseball team, all right.

President Trump attacking mail-in voting again, making a lot of claims, saying it could lead to massive cheating in the presidential election. That's not true. There are important facts you need to know. He's also threatening executive action.

SCIUTTO: And Anderson Cooper's digital show is back. Tune in for his coverage of today's top stories in "Anderson Cooper: Full Circle" every Monday, Tuesday, and Friday live, 6:00 Eastern Time on cnn.com and through the CNN app.

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[10:40:25]

HARLOW: Welcome back. The President is ramping up his assault on mail- in voting, this time claiming during a White House briefing just yesterday that he has the right to sign an executive order addressing the issue, but he says, "We haven't gotten there yet."

SCIUTTO: Does he have that right? Let's ask Elie Honig, former Federal and State Prosecutor and CNN Legal Analyst. Eli, I mean, as Congressman Kinzinger said just moments ago on this broadcast, states do run elections here. What can the President do with an executive order and anything substantial to restrict mail-in voting?

ELIE HONIG, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: So, Jim, the congressman was right. The primary power to regulate elections and how they run sits with the states and with congress. And if the President were to issue an executive order on elections, it would essentially be worth the paper it's printed on. An executive order does not allow the President to simply tell anybody to do anything. An executive order is not a magic wand.

It's an important tool that the President has, but there's limits on what an executive order can do. One, it only applies to the executive branch, the white House, the departments, the agencies. And two, it only applies to the federal government, not to the state governments. And like the congressman said, the states are really where the legal power lies when it comes to elections. HARLOW: OK. And then on the money, Elie, because, you know, the President has threatened, he did it recently, it threatened Michigan back in May quote, in a tweet, "I will also hold up funding to Michigan if they want to go down this voter fraud path."

I should note, there's no evidence of widespread voter fraud from mail-in voting. But, you know, that important note aside, I mean, isn't most of the federal money at the door anyway in this election?

HONIG: Yes, Poppy, that's also a legal dead end. I mean, there are circumstances where the federal government can withhold federal funds. But this isn't one of them, first of all, the President has to go through Congress. You have to request that Congress holds back money. It's called an impoundment, if that rings a bell. It was an issue in the Ukraine scandal which led to impeachment. But the President cannot withhold money on his own.

Second of all, as you said, Poppy, the vast majority of federal money for elections is already out the door, it's already allocated. You can't pull it back. You cannot attach new conditions once the money has already been allocated. So that's just talk as well. That's really a dead end road.

SCIUTTO: So here's a question, Elie, though. Because you watch, for instance, primary election in New York now, where, you know, it's weeks past Election Day there. They're still counting and there are disputes about which ballots you accept, which you do not. I mean, it's bringing back memories of hanging chads in Florida, 20-some-odd years ago.

Legally, does this country have a standard? I mean, to measure what counts as a legal mail-in ballot? Or are we set up for the kind of legal dispute, but times 10 or 100 that we saw in Florida in 2000?

HONIG: The short answer, Jim, is we have 50 legal standards. I mean, each state really measures these things differently. And we're already seeing litigation. We've seen it in Texas and Wisconsin about how people vote, what's going to be lawful, what's not going to be lawful. And I think the New York situation is raising some of the issues that other states should contemplate.

Now, Congress could pass a nationwide law, but you would need the Republican Senate and Democratic House. That seems very unlikely. But now, there's not one uniformed standard for balloting in elections that applies across the country.

HARLOW: Given that you are a former federal and state prosecutor, can you just set the record straight for us on, you know, to what extent the Department of Justice has actually prosecuted voter fraud in this country from mail-in? I mean, when Attorney General Bill Barr was asked under oath about it a week ago, he was not able to provide substantive evidence of widespread voter fraud.

HONIG: Yes, Poppy. I think Bill Barr said, it's common sense. Well, common sense is nice but you need facts. If you're going to go into court and bring a lawsuit, one of the great things about court is you need facts. There is next to no evidence.

And look, just look at what the Justice Department itself has done. They make their stats public. They charged over 60,000 cases in 2019. They break them down by category to the point where some categories have two or three or four cases. There isn't even a category. There isn't even a line item in DOJ's own stats for mail-in ballot fraud or election fraud. So I think that tells you something about how uncommon this is.

HARLOW: Tells us a lot. Elie, thank you. Good to have you.

HONIG: Thanks, Poppy, you too. Thanks, Jim.

HARLOW: Quick break, we'll be right back.

[10:44:51]

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HARLOW: He was one of the top college football players in the country, largely talked about as a potential first round NFL draft pick. But Virginia Tech's Caleb Farley is opting out of this, his senior season. He says he is deeply concerned about the way the school is handling safety procedures during team workouts, and he is not willing to risk his safety or the safety of his loved ones during this pandemic. Watch this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CALEB FARLEY, STUDENT ATHLETE, VIRGINIA TECH FOOTBALL: I am opting out due to uncertain health conditions and regulations, and all the other opt-outs going on in football right now. I tragically lost my mother, Robin, January 2, 2018, to an illness, and I cannot afford to lose another parent or loved one. Though, the competitor in me badly wants to play this season, I cannot ignore what's going on in my heart and I must make the decision that brings me the most peace.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[10:50:05]

HARLOW: Well, Caleb Farley is with me now. I know it was an impossible decision to make, but good for you, for as you say, making what has been a moral decision for you. Can you tell me a little bit more about how you made the call?

FARLEY: You know, I just had to talk with my father and be honest with myself and how I was feeling at the time. And like I said, it was a moral decision. I just had to be true to myself and go with how I was feeling. And I didn't feel comfortable and I did have a lot of worries and doubts, you know, maybe giving it to my father, you know, who's always with me and always is around.

And I just was so nervous and so scared to contract the virus, from just the uncertain times with the guys I was being around. And I just had to go with what was in my heart. HARLOW: Yes. And I know losing your mom just a few years ago from illness made this, you know, even more clear for you. We're looking at a picture of you with her right there. How much was she a decision of your choice to opt-out, Caleb?

FARLEY: It was huge. You know, that was everything. Just having that persistent and constant voice in my head, you know, of worry, of what could happen or what may happen. You know, once I got past the outside influences of, you know, what People may think about me or what, or how it might be perceived, you know, I just had to make the decision that I felt comfortable. And I felt comfortable in that decision.

HARLOW: So let's talk a little bit about why, because you went there, by the way. You went to school. You were beginning to train, et cetera. And I wonder what happened that made you feel like this isn't safe, because you've got a whole lot of other teammates who are playing.

We did reach out to Virginia Tech and they gave us a statement. And they said, all of Virginia Tech student athletes are tested for COVID- 19, screened before being cleared to participate in any other athletic activities. And they said, they're, you know, following the guidelines of the CDC and NCAA. But you didn't feel safe.

FARLEY: Yes. And, you know, and I'm not here to knock Virginia Tech in any type of way or fashion.

HARLOW: Yes. No, I know.

FARLEY: And what I might be uncomfortable with, you know, somebody else may be comfortable with. But the honest truth is, you know, the protocol that's going on in the NFL is, and the way they're taking care of guys is completely different than the NCAA. And I just didn't, you know, I didn't feel comfortable with how things are being handled or what's going on, so. And, you know, my family had to come first.

HARLOW: And I understand your reticence to criticize your school, that means a lot to you, I get that. But I'm also thinking about the safety of your fellow players and their families, and their grandparents, right? And so, could you just elaborate a little bit more on what made you feel unsafe? And maybe any recommendation you have for the NCAA before the season starts.

FARLEY: I felt unsafe just off of the uncertainty of what's going on and the future of what may happen or what could happen. And the times we're, you know, I didn't have, you know, clear answers or clear views on what might happen. And the uncertainty is what made me feel uncomfortable.

HARLOW: So what do you think? Everyone has been talking about you as a first round draft pick. You know what team I hope you would go to. We talked about that in the break. But do you think this hurts your draft prospects?

FARLEY: You know, it could, it could. Not getting extra film in what going on. And that's why I always say, you know, this was a moral decision and not a business decision. Because if you're looking at it from a business side, you know, it could potentially hurt me.

But, you know, I gained the courage seeing guys in NFL, you know, large-name guys walking away from millions of dollars, millions of dollars. So that even gave me the boost and the courage to do what I felt is right, even more seeing guys make, taking the decisions in their own hands and doing what they felt was right at that level.

HARLOW: Let's end on this. I know you talked with your head Coach, Justin Fuente. What was that like?

FARLEY: You know, it was great, it was great. You know, Coach Fuente told me he loved me, shook my hand. He looked me in the eye, he told me he would be pulling for me, rooting for me, that he was a fan of mine. And, you know, that was great. That was very genuine to me that he addressed me in that way and felt that way, and gave me that Support. You know, that meant the world to me how he handled the situation.

HARLOW: I'm really glad you got that from him, and so many of us out there are rooting for you. You'll do great at the combine, I have no doubt. Good luck in the draft, and good for you for putting your family first. Thanks, Caleb.

FARLEY: Thank you.

[10:55:05]

HARLOW: And thanks to everyone for joining us today. We'll see you back tomorrow morning. I'm Poppy Harlow.

SCIUTTO: And I'm Jim Sciutto. "NEWSROOM" with Kate Bolduan will start after a very quick break.

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