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Trump Threatens Executive Action If No Deal Is Reached; U.S. Nearing Five Million COVID Cases, Death Toll Passes 161,000; Around 260 Students, Eight Teachers Quarantined After Georgia Reopens Schools; Dems, WH Locked In Stalemate Over New Stimulus Plan; Biden's Relationship With Obama Offers A Guide To His V.P. Search; Protests Erupt In Beirut Over Deadly Explosion. Aired 12-1p ET

Aired August 08, 2020 - 12:00   ET

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

[12:00:00]

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Since there are no actual people in the stands for major league baseball games, team have been putting cardboard cut outs of fans in seats, fans getting very creative there.

BIANNA GOLODRYGA, CNN HOST: Hello, thanks so much for joining me. I'm Bianna Golodryga in for Fredricka Whitfield. We begin this hour with disappointment and dismay setting in across the country. Talks of a new stimulus package breaking down without a resolution and at this point, no plans to resume.

Negotiations stalling on Friday after nearly two weeks of discussions between Republicans and Democrats. Now the deal was supposed to be a lifeline for millions of Americans out of work and hurting financially from the coronavirus pandemic. A new study says 40 million Americans face eviction after protections expired two weeks ago.

President Trump telling a crowd of supporters that if the deal is not reached, he will use an executive order to secure a payroll tax deferment and extended unemployment benefits. It's not even clear however if he has the legal authority to do that. All of that as the coronavirus pandemic in the U.S. nears 5 million cases.

Another 1200 people died from the disease on Friday alone, bringing the death - total death in our country to over 161,000. Meanwhile schools are beginning to reopen in Georgia. At least 260 students and 8 teachers are being forced to quarantine following positive test results in just the first week of classes, while in New York once the epicenter of the coronavirus all schools have been cleared to reopen.

But let's first go to CNN's Kristen Holmes in Bridgewater, New Jersey where President Trump is spending his weekend. Kristen, the President is now saying that he will step in with an executive action if no deal is done. What would that even look like and is it possible?

KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: All good questions Bianna. So last night he laid it out as though it would be a series of executive actions that would touch on various things. One would be extending that unemployment benefit. Another would be offering those eviction protections that had lapsed. He also talked about student debt loan and differing the payroll tax and doing some sort of a backtracking, going back through July up until December.

Again, great question on whether or not he can do this. I spent the morning talking to legal experts and lawmakers who say there are some workarounds that could make this work. Remember this, Congress is the one who controls the budget so at the end of the day that stands, that is the way that our system is built.

However there are some loopholes that would allow President Trump to possibly do this temporarily for a short amount of time. Others that say that he could take the money from another federal program and allocate it to these things but again, we still have no idea what it looks like.

Last night, he was asked if legally he had these powers. He said that he did. He had the authority. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD J. TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: If Democrats continue to hold this critical relief hostage, I will act under my authority as president to get Americans the relief they need.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: So clearly there, not a lot of the details. He was asked if there would be legal complications. He said that they would probably get sued but Bianna, this comes at a time when those talks on Capitol Hill have pretty much dissolved. Democrats say that the White House is not willing to meet them halfway.

They say that they agreed to drop $1 trillion on their portion on their proposal and the White House essentially said that they were done negotiating at this point that they were going to walk away unless Democrats had any serious ideas.

Now Bianna, there is a press conference that they have just announced with President Trump in just a few hours. We've asked the White House if he's going to sign these executive orders. They've not heard back yet but we will of course keep you posted.

GOLODRYGA: Yes, some of these executive orders actually alienating not just Democrats but Republicans as well so we will continue to watch news out of the administration and we'll follow that press conference. Kristen Holmes, thank you.

Well, all school districts across New York state are clear to open for in-person classes with safety measures in place. That includes New York City schools, the largest public school district in the country. So far of the largest 101 school districts in the U.S., a majority 63 are starting the school year online.

17 districts will start with either all online or all in-person, leaving the decision up to parents. 11 districts will do a hybrid plan while seven will go with a combination and three districts have yet to make a decision. Classes begin online next week for students in the biggest school district in Georgia but officials in Gwinnett county plan to bring some students back to class by the end of the month.

CNN's Natasha Chen joins us now and the Natasha, we've seen over the past few weeks, the numbers continue to go up in Georgia but now schools are reopening, the plan to bring some of the students back has not only the students and their parents concerned but teachers as well, correct?

NATASHA CHEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Right and this particular district in Gwinnett county is getting it from all sides because there were parents protesting, a couple weeks back, asking for this face to face instruction and that is the latest announcement that they would phase that in.

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And then you've got teachers protesting because they are highly concerned while they are required to work in the building even as virtual learning starts.

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CHEN: Teachers are sounding the alarm over Georgia's largest school district's new plan to phase in face to face instruction later in August after starting with all virtual classes next week.

BRIAN WESTLAKE, GWINNETT COUNTY TEACHER: Things like standardized test scores matter a whole lot to this county. But COVID test scores don't seem to matter enough.

CHEN: Teachers honked from inside their cars in Gwinnett County outside of Atlanta this week as a socially distant protest in contrast to the one organized by some parents, two weeks ago in the same spot calling for face to face instruction. A district spokesperson said their difficult decisions will not be popular with everyone but say they're committed to students' health, safety and education.

ANTHONY DOWNER, 10TH GRADE WORLD HISTORY TEACHER: But it seems that they keep making the decision milquetoast decisions that placate different parties without considering that we need consistency and we need bold leadership.

CHEN: Toye Powell teaches second grade students who would be back in the classroom at the end of August but no one 's given her any detailed plans of what that looks like.

TOYE POWELL, SECOND GRADE TEACHER AND MOM: I'll be in the room teaching children on top of also teaching online children to I actually have three jobs, a mom, a classroom teacher and an online teacher.

CHEN: Her own children are allowed to go with her to work which alleviates childcare concerns but she says it's not ideal since they have asthma.

POWELL: This is not well thought out at all. CHEN: The fears are real. With about 260 Gwinnett employees already

testing positive or in quarantine before school has even started. In Cherokee county, at least 260 students and eight teachers are quarantined after several people tested positive during the first week of school. In Effingham County, WTOC reports one person tested positive at an elementary school resulting in an entire class being sent home and in Paulding County, this image resulted in a suspension then a reversal of that suspension for the student who posted it on social media.

HANNAH WATTERS, PAULDING COUNTY, GEORGIA HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT: This is some good and necessary trouble so I don't regret posting this because it's - it needed to be said.

CHEN: Watters said she was concerned for everyone's safety. The Paulding county superintendent sent a letter to families, saying crowding in between classes for 5 minutes may happen in a school with more than 2000 students and they're complying with state guidelines.

This kind of anxiety is what Gwinnett teachers say keeps them up at night. Even though special ed teacher Nicole Conway loves her job and her student.

NICOLE CONWAY, SPECIAL ED TEACHER AND MOM: If the students to come back into the building, it's really like a 90 percent chance right now that I'm probably going to end up resigning to make sure that my personal babies are safe.

CHEN: And you saw her there with her daughter. Her daughter has asthma and Nicole told me that she was willing to bring that little girl to work with her which is allowed by the district but now that her special ed students may also be back in the building, there's no way for her daughter to also safely be in the same space with them so she's in a bind there and not knowing what to do. Bianna.

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GOLODRYGA: That's an untenable position for so many families. Thank you so much Natasha. Dr. Marybeth Sexton is an Assistant Professor of Infectious Disease at Emory University School of Medicine. Doctor, thanks so much for joining us this afternoon, it's now afternoon. You're also a former school teacher.

Let me get your reaction to those Georgia school districts that have opened and now we've seen a wave of positive cases that have followed. Does it appear that they may have rushed to reopen and how concerned should parents and students and teachers be about returning to in- class lessons?

DR. MARYBETH SEXTON, ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF INFECTIOUS DISEASE, EMORY UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE: Thanks Bianna. So I think that this is a good example of what we'll see in any school district, what we're having ongoing significant spread in the community because with the degree of cases that we're still seeing in the metro Atlanta area and in a lot of places throughout the United States, it means that on the first day of classes you're going to have a certain percentage of students and faculty who show up who are already infected and so that raises concern then about spread through the student body depending on the safety measures that are in place.

GOLODRYGA: Yes and I've spoken with experts who say that's to be expected. Some positive cases are to be expected but they can still be mitigated in terms of having the test results immediately within a day or so, so that you can do some contact tracing and the concern is that that's just not what's happening right now and this can get out of control.

SEXTON: I think what's very challenging is that if you look at estimates for a thousand student-high school which is pretty average for most public high schools, in the metro Atlanta area, they were estimating you'd have 10 to 15 students on the first day show up who were potentially contagious.

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And you're correct that if when people develop symptoms, you can test and get a result immediately, it does let you go and say these people were exposed, these people should isolate, we need these people out of the building and then maybe we can continue classes for other students and there are a couple things that affect your ability to do that and one is the speed of the test results.

And because of that degree of community spread and how many people are getting tested right now, we are seeing sometimes a 7 to 10 day turnaround in test results and at that point you could potentially have had two other groups of people get infected who didn't know they were exposed.

GOLODRYGA: Yes.

SEXTON: The other thing is the measures those schools have in place is if you're changing classes frequently and those kids are mixing with multiple other different groups of kids during the day, you will have a tremendously higher number of exposures than if you can really isolate it to one small classroom.

GOLODRYGA: Yes, I'm glad you brought that up because one superintendent I spoke with of a major metropolitan city back in May said that that they were planning along the lines of having children stay in the classroom as much as possible and have the teachers actually transfer and go to and from classrooms, just so you don't have that congestion in the hallways which sounded like a smart idea and yet you see what happened in that photo that went viral tweeted by a Georgia student.

A jam packed hall way, exactly what they wanted to avoid and not many of the students wearing masks. Now I know that the district said that this had only been a 5-minute period but this seems as if it's going in the wrong direction, if this is how we're going to see schools reopen.

SEXTON: I think there are a couple of problems there. I think you're right about the degree to which that hallway is crowded. That number of people in a small space that's not well ventilated is the perfect condition to spread COVID. The fact that there weren't masks on most people in that photograph is concerning. We know that wearing a mask is the single most important thing you can do to protect both yourself and everyone around you from the spread of COVID.

And then the fact that they are changing classes does mean not only do you have congestion in the hallway but you potentially have different groups of students mixing with each other throughout the day, it just may double or triple the number of exposures that everyone is having and it makes doing contact tracing after a positive case that much harder.

GOLODRYGA: Should school districts all mandate that students and teachers wear masks? I know that they encourage it but not all are mandating it. Is that a mistake?

SEXTON: I would favor mandating it because I think that there is so much evidence that this is effective at preventing spread. You just don't put those droplets out in the air around you, that contain the virus, if you've got a mask on as a barrier and there's also been a lot of work to show that unless we're talking about kids under the age of two, this is very safe.

It may be a little bit annoying. No one really loves wearing one for that long but it's so essential to the safety of everyone in those buildings because the students are going home to family members who may be vulnerable and the teachers, the school bus drivers, the school custodians, the people who work in the cafeteria, all of those people are at risk too.

GOLODRYGA: Look, my four and eight-year old, they didn't want to wear a mask at first. They've gotten used to it. Peer pressure sometimes can be a positive thing. If you see your peers wearing masks so that's something I agree with you that should be encouraged at throughout schools as they reopen. Dr. Marybeth Sexton, thank you. Appreciate it.

SEXTON: Thanks so much.

GOLODRYGA: Breaking news overseas. Security forces fire tear gas at protesters just days after a massive explosion in Beirut. we're live with the latest. Plus as many as 250,000 people are expected at a motorcycle rally and get this, no masks are required. So what's being done to stop the spread of coronavirus at this 10-day event? Then later no deal in Washington as stimulus talks break down, we'll discuss the long term effects on Americans and the economy.

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GOLODRYGA: Some 250,000 people are expected to roll through South Carolina over the coming days for the 80th annual Sturgis motorcycle rally. Bikers traveling from all over the country to attend the mass gathering despite the ongoing coronavirus threat. CNN's Ryan Young is there. Ryan, I'm not surprised. You're hearing some concerns from people who live there.

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RYAN YOUNG, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, look, absolutely. If you do have those concerns. But this is such a huge shock to the economy. As far as the eyes can see, you can see bikers are just rolling into the city and this is really turned up in terms of millions of dollars to the local economy each year.

What we're told is, they believe that some of these bikers were going to sue to make sure they would have this weekend and this is playing out for everyone to sit. Any other year and the Sturgis motorcycle rally is a novelty.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Everything's cool. You guys should come out.

YOUNG: A pilgrimage.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We came 2000 miles to work.

YOUNG: A celebration.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're just the happiest people in the world.

YOUNG: But this year some fear could be deadly. 250,000 people expected to crowd a town of 7000, making it the largest public gathering since the start of the pandemic.

LAURA ARMSTRONG, PRESIDENT, RAPID CITY, SD, COMMON COUNCIL: They're not going to be able to handle any kind of social distancing. There's a significant amount of alcoholic involved. It's a huge party.

YOUNG: Total coronavirus cases are low but rising in South Dakota. The state's testing positivity rate is between eight and nine percent. The WHO recommends locations be at five percent or lower for at least 14 days before opening but South Dakota never closed so the rally isn't breaking any laws.

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ROD WOODRUFF, OWNER, BUFFALO CHIP CAMPGROUND: I was looking here as being you know false evidence appearing real and I think that's what has happened.

YOUNG: Rod Woodruff owns the Buffalo Chip Campground. With 600 acres, he says there's plenty of room for social distancing and common sense.

WOODRUFF: Ride free, take risk, that's our motto, right? That doesn't mean you don't calculate. I mean these people calculate their risk every time they get on a motorcycle.

YOUNG: A city survey of Sturgis' residents found 60 percent wanted the rally canceled at this time but the city leaders say bikers were coming anyway.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't care if it's closed down, I'm going. They can all (EXPLETIVE PHRASE) I'm going.

YOUNG: So the city council allowed it with fewer official events but no mask requirement. For those afraid to leave home, the city will deliver supplies.

MAYOR MARK CARSTENSEN, CITY OF STURGIS: We've been doing that the entire time. We're actually expanding the program during the Sturgis motorcycle rally to include anything that can be bought in Sturgis basically.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Our economy benefits when people come and visit us.

YOUNG: South Dakota's Republican governor Kristi Noem welcomes the crowds and says events like the Independence Day celebration at Mount Rushmore prove the state isn't drastically affected by large gatherings.

GOV. KRISTI NOEM, (R) SOUTH DAKOTA: So we know we can have these events and give people information. Let them protect their health but still enjoy their way of life.

YOUNG: That's what vendors like Ted Smith want to hear. He came all the way from Florida.

TED SMITH, OWNER, THE RAT'S HOLE: We can't do any work in Florida. It's no shows, no bike shows, it's all canceled.

YOUNG: But others worry that 250,000 people crowding bars and restaurants could spread the virus and then send it home to others.

ARMSTRONG: They can infect our native American populations, our law enforcement and potentially our bar staff.

YOUNG: Look, we've seen license plates as far away as Florida here, New Jersey. A lot of people telling us they were not going to miss this but no matter where you look, you just see bikes all the way down the streets. The bars and the restaurants are packed. This is like pre-COVID times where people just had a good time and walked around.

Not a lot of masks being worn around this area. I can tell you though, a lot of people are staying in campground so a lot of space. Some of these campgrounds 600 acres as you can imagine so they can spread folks out but when you see people coming down the main street like this, they say they want to ride free. That's all part of being someone who loves to ride a motorcycle.

It will be interesting to see how this has an impact on COVID cases and whether all of these out of state visitors may spread it. That is a big question but right now the folks that we have talked to say they are not concerned about that just yet.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GOLODRYGA: Those images are stunning, Ryan. I understand the economic damage that canceling would cause but look, the Houston rodeo was canceled as well other big events were cancelled and postponed in lieu of safety concerns. We'll see what happens there. Ryan Young. Thank you.

Well, still ahead, working mothers putting their careers on hold because of the coronavirus.

SARAH PARRA, TEACHER: It didn't really make sense for me to go to work and pay somebody else to be home with my own kids.

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GOLODRYGA: The effects of the coronavirus pandemic on the employment picture in the U.S. goes beyond job losses. For some working moms in particular, the concern is that they are now putting their own careers on hold.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PARRA: It didn't really make sense for me to go to work and pay somebody else to be home with my own kids.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: For the first time in four years, Sarah Parra won't be able to meet her new class of preschool students when the school year begins at Smyrna First Baptist school, just outside of Atlanta.

PARRA: I'm constantly thinking about my students and what they need. So it's going to be hard.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Instead she'll be teaching and taking care of her own young children. When the Cobb county school district announced that the school year will begin online, Parra was forced to rethink her working life.

PARRA: We have always organized our finances to where we could live off of one salary.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Pre-COVID, women made up half of the U.S. work force but as noted in a recent report from Goldman Sachs that participation rate is directly tied to accessible childcare.

With millions of children starting the school year virtually, coupled with fewer day care options, an enormous number of Americans are now forced to come up with child care solutions before they can return to work.

PARRA: When I'm home, I'm a wife and I'm a mother and I feel like a teacher is just another part of my identity and that's really what's going to be missing.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Turns out many of those solutions involve working moms putting their careers on hold. JOSEPH ALLEN, ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF EXPOSURE ASSESSMENT SCIENCE,

HARVARD: There are enormous societal and individual costs to school closures that are not being discussed. It has to be an absolute priority to get kids back to school for their own good and also to get the economy re-going.

Piedad Sanchez had to leave the cleaning company she worked for in order to take care of her three children, ranging in age from eight to 11.

PIEDAD SANCHEZ, MOM WHO QUIT JOB: I had to quit because at this time for me, my kids are more important.

[12:30:00]

We are more tight with the money.

GOLODRYGA (voice-over): Sanchez is also investing her time within her own community, helping families navigate language barriers to online learning, which is disproportionately set back Hispanic students.

SANCHEZ: They may be don't understand the language, but I help them.

(voice-over): As Congress continues to debate another stimulus bill, the school and child care crisis is one of the few areas that has bipartisan support. For moms like Piedad and Sarah, it's too late.

SANCHEZ: There is no option, because I have to maybe ask somebody come to watch them, but there is not - no option for me.

SARAH PARRA, TEACHER: They can't hold my place for me for when school goes back, which makes it a little unsettling not having an end date for all of this.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GOLODRYGA: I want to bring in Betsey Stevenson. She is a professor of Economics and Public Policy at the University of Michigan and a former member of the President's Council of Economic Advisers under President Obama and Justin Wolfers, he's also a professor of Economics and Public Policy at the University of Michigan. Welcome, both of you. Thank you so much for coming on. I appreciate it.

Betsy, let's begin with you. You heard that piece. It's a story that many mothers can relate to across the country. What is the longer-term impact of working moms having to give up their careers right now?

BETSEY STEVENSON, PROFESSOR OF PUBLIC POLICY AND ECONOMICS, UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN: So this is such an important topic. First of all, women got hit hard early on in this recession. You know, normally men make, you know, face the brunt of a shutdown or of early on in a recession because they tend to be more cyclical careers. But in this recession, you know, as jobs in education and health services and hospitality and leisure, these are all industries that are dominated by women, so women saw their unemployment rates soar. Now that wasn't even the gendered part -- that wasn't even the childcare part that you were just talking about. You know, what we're seeing is women as we turn into the fall having to decide whether they can afford to pay someone for child care for perhaps their school age kids that aren't going back to school or whether they should cut their hours, change their job, or step out of the labor force entirely.

You know, there's a whole body of research that shows that when women do take time out of the labor force, it puts them on different career trajectories, which means they never quite earn what they would have earned if they had stayed connected to their job for really the rest of their lives.

So these are really big impacts that will accumulate over these women's lives. And, you know, but a lot of women really don't have any other choice. So I do want to say like, they're in a really tough situation.

And I think it's going to be really important that as a society and government works to try to help bring these women back and back at the same level they would have been when this whole thing is over. Because, you know, as you heard some of this woman, it just doesn't make any sense for them to do something differently than take some time out. But it will hurt them in the long run and the short run.

GOLODRYGA: Yes, you heard from Sarah saying that part of her identity was now gone as being a teacher. We can all relate to part of our identity linked to our professions. But also that her spot was going to be taken. The school can't hold her spot. So she's going to have to start back from square one. So that's a really important factor to talk about. And I'm glad that you were on to discuss that.

But let's move on to other economic issues. Because Justin, we saw the slowing of rehiring in July. And Congress now can't agree on a new stimulus package. It's been weeks. The President says that he will step in and unilaterally extend the enhanced unemployment benefits through the end of the year, though, I'm not sure how he can do that without Congress, but that's another issue. But right now, those additional $600 are gone for jobless Americans. What are the economic fallout from that?

JUSTIN WOLFERS, PROFESSOR OF ECONOMICS AND PUBLIC POLICY, UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN: I think the big economic fallout, number one, we should never lose sight of is, is the human one. We've got 30 million people right now relying on unemployment insurance. They're not working because they can't work. Workplaces are closed or workplaces are unsafe. And they need that money to put food on the table.

So for a lot of families, it's going to be very, very grim economic circumstances going forward. In terms of the broader macroeconomic impacts, as those families are forced to cut back. We're already at a point where the economy is in very dangerous waters.

And if there's a big cutback in spending, you know, that's going to cause a second round of bankruptcies and a whole lot of firms and a whole lot of jobs are going to disappear. So it's not just the economics. It's also making sure people can get through this thing.

STEVENSON: Bianna, I just want to add, if you think about the jobs report we just saw yesterday, I think it really showed that if people can't go back to work, they will go back to work. And so these unemployment checks, these $600 checks, so many people were worried they would prevent people from going back to their jobs. You know, I think that what we're seeing is it's the opposite is true is that it's supporting their spending which is supporting the businesses, which is allowing people to go back to work.

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GOLODRYGA: Yes. And a lot of concern now on small businesses in particular, and whether they can sustain staying open and intact as Congress continues this debate. Let me ask you, though, quickly Justin, Betsy, feel free to weigh in.

Wouldn't it be in republicans interest, especially that we're going into an election right now for them to come forward and pass legislation to move this, to get the economy turning as Americans are starting to early vote in just a few weeks?

WOLFERS: I got to say Bianna, I'm baffled. I took calls from journalists throughout the last two or three years saying, what is it Trump is going to do in late 2020 to artificially boost the economy in order to get reelected? And people were thinking of all sorts of ideas. The Democratic-led Congress has sent him a $3 trillion bill and he refuses to sign it.

It's not just that if you look at what's happening to state and local governments, they all have balanced budget rules, which means as their tax revenues are falling right now with the recession, and as the spending needs are rising, their balance -- their budgets are out of balance.

It's almost certain that we hear a lot of stories through September, October, and early November of state governments firing police and firefighters and teachers. And I got to say, that's not the sort of story I'd want to hear if I were the president trying to get reelected in early November.

GOLODRYGA: Perhaps that's why he's come forward with his own executive order. We'll see if there's any teeth to that. Betsey Stevenson, Justin Wolfers, thank you so much. We love having you on, come back.

WOLFERS: Always a pleasure, Bianna.

STEVENSON: It was great talking with you.

GOLODRYGA: Bye.

Well, time is running out for Joe Biden to name his running mate. And last night, he met behind closed doors with a serious contender. We have new information including when Biden will finally reveal his vice-presidential pick. That's coming up.

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GOLODRYGA: Presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, Joe Biden, is expected to name his running mate any day now. Sources say Biden has begun holding personal discussions with some of the top contenders as he works to make a final decision. CNN senior Washington correspondent, Jeff Zeleny, joins me now. Jeff, how close is Biden to picking his running mate at this point?

JEFF ZELENY, CNN SENIOR WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: Well Bianna, we do know that the former vice president is entering the final weekend of decision making here as he talks with his wife, Jill, and other very close advisors as he nears this decision, which could come as early as Monday, we are told.

But one of the people on the finalist list is Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer. We've confirmed that she had a conversation in fact flew to Delaware to have a face to face conversation with the former Vice President within the last week.

Now we caught up with her earlier this summer to ask her about these vice-presidential aspirations. Take a listen to what she said then, and the context of what it means now.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. GRETCHEN WHITMER (D-MI): I've never had the call to Washington D.C. But the fact that there's even a conversation about what the future of our country looks like and that I'm included in a conversation that has some phenomenal women leaders across this country is truly an honor. But very candidly, I'm really happy to be right where I am here in Michigan.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ZELENY: So she clearly grew into prominence with her leadership on the coronavirus issue. Of course, Michigan very hard hit. That's what attracted Biden to her in the first place. So we didn't know she is one of the finalists on the list, certainly not the only one.

But Bianna, we are also told that the former Vice President, as he finds his own Biden, if you will, is following a different guide. How he was picked 12 years ago by Barack Obama.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BARACK OBAMA, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The best Vice President of America's ever had, Mr. Joe Biden.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ZELENY (voice-over): It was a roll Joe Biden loved playing.

OBAMA: He's been unafraid to give it to me straight, even if we disagree. In fact, especially when we disagree. (voice-over): As the former Vice President enters the final stages of finding a running mate of his own, it's the relationship with Barack Obama that's enlightening in complicating his search. When they left the White House, Obama and Biden were friends and trusted allies. But it didn't start out that way. It was a surprisingly easy bond, even to them.

JOE BIDEN, PRESUMPTIVE DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: In about six months in, the President looked at me, he said, you know, Joe, you know what surprise me, we've come such good friends. I said, surprised you?

(voice-over): Friends of Biden, tell CNN his partnership with Obama offers one of the most instructive guides for how he's making his decision.

BIDEN: It's been very orderly. There's -- every one of the women I've we've interviewed is qualified. And I've narrowed it down. You'll find out shortly.

(voice-over): Five months ago, Biden set the parameters of his search during the final primary debate with Bernie Sanders.

BIDEN: I would take a woman to be my vice president.

(voice-over): Since then, aids tell CNN, 11 women have undergone vetting of financial records, personal backgrounds, and medical histories. People close to the search believe California Senator Kamala Harris and former Obama National Security Adviser Susan Rice are among those he's most seriously considering.

With steep challenges from coronavirus to the economy awaiting the next president, friends of Biden tell CNN he's intent on finding a governing partner, not simply a campaign one. Yet one moment from the campaign trail still reverberates loudly. When Harris questioned his Senate record and fight against federally mandated busing to desegregate schools.

SEN. KAMALA HARRIS (D-CA): You know, there was a little girl in California, who was part of the second class to integrate her public schools, and she was bused to school every day. And that little girl was me.

(voice-over): Privately, Biden's friends and family including his wife, Jill, were furious. Publicly, Biden is brushed it aside.

BIDEN: I don't hold grudges. And I made it really clear that I don't hold grudges. I think it was a debate. It's as simple as that. And she's very much in contention.

[12:45:00]

(voice-over): And that's another lesson from this time with Obama who in 2007, Biden once referred to as clean and articulate. He apologized and went on to serve alongside the nation's first black president. As Biden searches for his own Biden, the dynamic is different. She will be a history making choice. But above all, his friends say, he's looking for someone who can ultimately say this.

OBAMA: That's why my family is so proud to call ourselves, honorary Bidens.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ZELENY: So the former Vice President is in the final hours of his decision making. If he has already made a decision, he has not told even his closest advisors. We do know that this is part, you know, certainly the biggest decision he will make in his presidential campaign. It's going to be rolled out next week. His campaign is already teasing this. They're going to have a fundraiser on the very first day.

Certainly the Trump campaign Republicans also looking to pick apart whoever he chooses. But Bianna, above all, we are told, looking for a governor partner, someone he can have a strong rapport with, he's looking beyond November should he happen to win? Bianna?

GOLODRYGA: Yes. Jeff, so many strong candidates but chemistry really is so important. Thank you so much. We appreciate it.

Well, we're following breaking news from Beirut at this hour. Protesters clashing with security forces injuring more than a dozen people. And it comes just days after a deadly explosion rocked the capital city.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[12:50:52]

GOLODRYGA: Protesters in Beirut now occupying Lebanon's foreign ministry as they violently clashed with security forces there. We're told, there are now dozens of injuries and of course this is over that massive explosion earlier in the week which left nearly 160 people dead and more than 6,000 injured. The people there are now blaming the government for its negligence.

Let's go now to CNN's Ben Wedeman. And Ben, the situation there does seem to be escalating. And we're learning that Lebanon's Prime Minister has addressed protesters. What can you tell us about this frustration over -- it's something that can't be described as anything other than sheer government incompetence?

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Right. That's really why so many people are so angry because of as a result of what appears to be incredible incompetence and negligence by the government. More than 150 people were killed, thousands wounded, and 300,000, according to government estimates, have been made homeless.

And today was declared to be the Day of Judgment, judging people, judging their rulers, the oligarchs who run this country. And so we've seen since about the last five hours, there have been running battles between protesters and the security forces.

Now, according to the Lebanese Red Cross, at least 100 protesters have been injured. We saw many of those injured. Some from tear gas inhalation, others seemed to have been hit by rubber bullets. There is a report on some of the local Lebanese media that one member of the riot police has been killed in this area not far behind me.

But what this anger that we're seeing, which is these -- are the biggest protests we've had in Beirut in months is the results of people going from the state of shock in the aftermath of that huge explosion to now pointing a finger and saying, somebody needs to be accountable. And for them, it's the entire ruling class of this country. Bianna?

GOLODRYGA: It's happening when the country has been dealing with years of instability and economic turmoil. And now ineptitude in dealing with another catastrophe that the people of Lebanon are having to suffer through. Ben Wedeman, thank you so much.

[12:53:24]

Well, to find out ways to help those impacted by this explosion, visit our website CNN.com/impact. There you can also find ways to help people affected by COVID-19. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GOLODRYGA: He is one of the most recognizable and politically vocal faith leaders in the country. But now Jerry Falwell, Jr. is facing another controversy, this time, forcing him to take an indefinite leave of absence as President and Chancellor of an evangelical college, Liberty University. A new and bizarre photo is also raising a lot of questions. CNN's Tom Foreman has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JERRY FALWELL JR., LIBERTY UNIVERSITY PRESIDENT: So she couldn't get her, she couldn't get her pants zipped. And I was like, trying to like, I had on a pair of jeans that haven't worn in a long time, so I couldn't get mine zipped either. And so I just put my belly, I just put my belly out like her.

TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The picture of Liberty University President Jerry Falwell, Jr. with a woman he says is his wife's assistant caused instant outrage for some tied to the staunchly conservative school. And while he expressed regret for posting the image on Instagram, his explanation didn't help.

REP. MARK WALKER (R-NC): I just think that there is a code that leaders have to live by, especially when you are leading the largest Christian evangelical university in the country.

(voice-over): Earlier this year, Falwell posted an image of a person wearing blackface standing next to another wearing a Ku Klux Clan hood and robe. He apologized then to, but it triggered another outcry. Now, the school board of trustees has asked them to take in indefinite leave of absence, and they say Falwell has agreed.

Falwell has been a chief cheerleader for President Donald Trump among white evangelicals, just as his father, Jerry Falwell, Sr., was for Ronald Reagan decades ago when he founded the Moral Majority.

FALWELL, JR.: We must unite behind Donald Trump and Mike Pence.

[13:00:00]

(voice-over): But in recent years, Falwell, Jr. has drawn sharp criticism over how deeply he has dabbled in politics.

FALWELL, JR.: My boys always have guns in their hands.