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Key Model Predicts 310,000 Deaths In U.S. By December; White House Threatens To Veto Democrats' $25B Postal Service Bill; NAACP Sues Postmaster General Over Mail Delays Ahead Of Election; California Firefighters Struggle To Contain 500-Plus Wildfires; Tropical Storms Laura & Marco Threaten Gulf Coast; Former Green Beret Accused Of Giving Secrets To Russia; Outrage Against Government Continues In Belarus. Aired 1-2p ET

Aired August 22, 2020 - 13:00   ET

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

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[13:00:58]

BIANNA GOLODRYGA, CNN HOST: Hello, everyone. Thanks so much for joining. I'm Bianna Golodryga in for Fredricka Whitfield. And we are following breaking news on Capitol Hill where a rare and politically divisive Saturday vote is taking place in the house this afternoon. Right now, lawmakers in Congress are in the midst of considering a $25 billion package to help boost the Postal Service, with a vote expected to follow soon after.

The bill is aimed at preventing delays and interference with election mail. A critical priority now that many Americans are mailing in their ballots because of the pandemic. This debate coming as a grim new projection says that the death toll in the U.S. from the coronavirus could surpass 300,000 by the beginning of December. That model, which is often cited by the White House warns that in a worst-case scenario, as many as 6000 Americans could die every day by December if safety mandates are relaxed.

And as college students return to campuses across the country schools and at least 19 states are reporting outbreaks. But let's begin with that Postal Service vote in the House. We have live team coverage with correspondents on Capitol Hill and at the White House. Phil Mattingly is on Capitol Hill. And Phil, you've been following this. What's happening in the House chamber now? We've just heard from Speaker Pelosi who is expecting to see this vote pass in a bipartisan manner.

PHIL MATTINGLY, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, it will be bipartisan but not with a lot of Republicans. Something I think underscores that this has actually turned into a very divisive issue here on Capitol Hill and between the two parties, but first what the bill actually does itself. Democrats put this bill together emits kind of the wildfire of concern related to the U.S. Postal Service based on delivery delays, based on who the President -- former President Trump donor that's in place a top the agency itself.

And this bill would be $25 billion to help fund the U.S. Postal Service. Again, this is an entity that has had financial issues, not just recently, but over the course of several years. The bill would also ban some of the operational changes that the U.S. Postal Service put into place that had been blamed for a lot of the delivery delays that members in both parties have heard about pretty much non-stop over the course of the last several weeks.

And reverse some of those operational changes as well, why it has become partisan over the course of the last several weeks is frankly Republicans have been blunt, they believe that the ties to the election itself to mail-in balloting are "A conspiracy theory." That's what they have called it over the course of the last several weeks. I think what's worth noting here is that the delays why they happen in the operational changes that led to them were put in place by a Republican that is allied with President Trump.

But I think Democrats are pointing to the President's own words as it relates to mail-in balloting, as it relates to the U.S. Postal Service. But Democrats and Republicans do acknowledge that delays that have occurred, particularly over the course of the last several weeks have been something they have heard about repeatedly from their constituents, have been something that they want to address.

As you noted, there will be some Republicans that vote for this bill, not a lot of them, but it's worth keeping an eye on who votes for it and why. Some of the Republicans that come from particularly rural districts that are extremely reliant on the U.S. Postal Service, you can expect them to consider voting yes. Also, Republicans that are in tougher election campaigns be honest, something to keep in mind. U.S. Postal services have somewhere between an 80 and 90 percent approval rating across parties right now.

So, this isn't necessarily an entity you want to mess around with. As for the future of this bill, it is not expected to be taken up by the Senate at least in -- on its own. But funding this issue itself is not going away anytime soon. It may become a part of broader negotiations for coronavirus relief package. So, keep an eye on those things. We expect the vote on this bill happen in the next couple hours or so.

GOLODRYGA: Yes, Phil Mattingly, so important to point out that as 90 percent approval rating and the house speaker was talking about not only being an issue about voting, but also about many Americans getting their prescription drugs and Social Security checks and what have you. All right. We'll leave it there. And you'll be following the story for us throughout the afternoon, Phil, thank you.

Well, the White House is vowing to veto this bill if it gets to the President's desk and the Trump campaign is now accusing Democrats of pushing conspiracy theories about the post office. For more on this let's bring in Sarah Westwood at the White House. Sarah, the President himself has been spreading falsehoods about mail-in voting, calling it fraudulent. Now with this vote unfolding on Capitol Hill, his campaigns accusing Democrats of conspiracy theories, Nancy Pelosi said just ignore it all.

[13:05:09]

SARAH WESTWOOD, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: That's right, Bianna. She did in her press conference just a few moments ago. And that charge of conspiracy theories comes from talking points distributed last night by the Trump campaign and by the RNC.

They framed Democrats concerns about the postal service as conspiracy theories. They argued in those talking points that if there's going to be an issue with the election, it'll be because of the expansion of mail-in voting, not because of any operational issues with the postal service.

And in fact, they claimed the Democrats are trying to paint -- use this sabotage of the postal service, the specter of it as a Boogeyman. That was the words that Republicans use, but keep in mind that that's an association that President Trump made himself. He -- it was his own words, when he characterized his opposition to more postal service funding as a way to prevent mail-in voting. So again, that link is coming from the president.

And meanwhile, the White House made clear last night that the built houses voting on tonight would be dead on arrival, if it ever made it to the President's desk. For starters, that $25 billion number in funding for USPS is much higher than what Republicans in the White House wanted. During those failed stimulus talks, they wanted something in the neighborhood of $10 billion. And the White House also raised concerns about the fact that there are no strings attached to that $25 billion.

They did not want an influx of cash for the postal service. They want it to be earmarked specifically for COVID and for the election. White House officials also accused the Democrats of trying to use the pandemic as a pretext for imposing restrictions on the postal service because Republicans, the White House, they want some of these reforms and changes to the postal service. And keep in, Bianna, also that the White House wanted this bill to be part of a larger stimulus package. They did not want to do standalone legislation on the postal service.

GOLODRYGA: Yes, things are getting ugly. What stood out to me was when Speaker Pelosi was asked how does Benjamin Franklin compare to Louis DeJoy as postmaster general and she responded, I wouldn't use the word compare, I'd use the word contrast. So it's hard to see the two sides coming together anytime soon. Sarah Westwood, thank you so much.

Well, the NAACP is now suing the U.S. Postal Service along with Postmaster General Louis DeJoy. The organization is accusing DeJoy of "impeding the timely distribution of mail implementing crippling policies on postal workers and sabotaging the U.S. Postal Service and an attempt to disenfranchise voters of color who are already more harshly impacted by the coronavirus."

Joining me is the president of the NAACP, Derek Johnson. Derrick, thank you so much for joining us on this busy Saturday. You see, Postmaster General's DeJoy's actions as a direct and deliberate threat to people of color. Tell us more about why.

DERRICK JOHNSON, PRESIDENT AND CEO, NAACP: We are looking at a health pandemic and now we're going to ask voters to choose between their health and their constitutional right to vote. Our goal is to prevent the horrific scenes we've seen in Milwaukee during the primary elections where you have disproportionate impact of the number of prisons that were not open for that elections in the City of Milwaukee compared to whites, forcing African-Americans who at that time we learned had a disparate impact as a result of COVID, stand in line putting their health at risk, so they can exercise their right to vote.

That should not be the case in a democracy, and the fact that this administration would attack an American institution, an institution where so many of our veterans and our seniors depend on the delivery of their medication for their survival. We're done dying, we should not continue with this type of approach is almost treasonous in my opinion.

GOLODRYGA: And obviously, the U.S. Postal Service, as we mentioned, has 80 or 90 percent approval among Americans as well. I'm curious to get your response to what DeJoy said yesterday in the hearing because he said the post office will now wait until after the election to make changes such as hiring freezes, and overtime -- cutting overtime pay. He says he's doing that to assure the American people that their mail and vote will be delivered on time.

Do these changes for you impact your views on the direction that he's taking the U.S. Postal Service?

JOHNSON: The real question is how they're going to repair the injury that has already been done over the last two weeks, we'll remove it, of machines not addressing the possible increase in mail during the period of the elections. It's one thing to say you're not going to make further changes. The real question here is, are you going to make -- are you going to repair the harm you've already done?

That's why we're glad to partner with our companion organization, the NAACP legal defense fund in these efforts, we want to make sure that African-Americans and all Americans are able to fully participate and their vote not be impeded because of partisan considerations.

GOLODRYGA: Derrick, we spend so much of this debate talking about what's happening in Washington and focusing on Washington. I want to ask you what you're hearing from people on the ground who not only have to grapple with COVID, a recession, losing their jobs, worried about putting children in school and now with this focus just months ahead of the election now questioning whether their mail-in ballots will matter, even having this conversation.

[13:10:14]

GOLODRYGA: What are some of the things you're hearing from people on the ground across the country?

JOHNSON: But we hear in fear, frustrations, anger, and an overarching concern about this democracy, fear that their medication would not get there timely frustration that for the simple act of what should be at normal think around the administration of elections, their ability to cast their ballot, anger that this administration has created such division in this nation and forcing people to put their lives at risk. And just concerned that if we don't get past this moment, will our democracy continue to exist the way we have grown accustomed to we cannot be the leader in this -- on this globe, talking about Democratic principles. If we allow an individual and an administration to destroy so much of what we build up to this point.

GOLODRYGA: Are you concerned that this discussion and this debate that we're having over the U.S. Postal Service and mail invalid will cause African-Americans in particular, to think twice about voting and going to the polls and questioning whether their vote matters? Will it disenfranchise people?

JOHNSON: Yes. What I'm seeing is a level of energy out of all of what I just stated that we must do it, yes, it will have a negative impact. But as our role is organizations to continue to foster that channel that energy towards November's elections. We should not force people to choose between their health and their right to vote. But we have to exercise that right to vote so we can address this health pandemic and the dysfunction that we're seeing right now.

As we look forward, we're going to move forward and we're going to do all we can to make sure people cast their ballot but destroying the institution ship of the United States Post Office should not be on a table. And we got to address the administration of elections past this election. This should not be a consideration.

GOLODRYGA: All right, Derrick Johnson, we really appreciate you joining us today and offering your perspective. Thank you.

JOHNSON: Thank you.

GOLODRYGA: And coming up, President Trump attacks his own FDA Commissioner. Why he's accusing Dr. Stephen Hahn of playing politics.

And this just in. Three college football players in Florida are infected with coronavirus. We'll take a look at how the pandemic is changing campus life.

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GOLODRYGA: A new research model shows that 310,000 Americans could die of the coronavirus by December 1st. Doctors at Washington University of Washington say 69,000 lives could be saved if more Americans wore masks. Meanwhile, the Infectious Disease Society of America says hydroxychloroquine should not be used to treat coronavirus patients at all. The group now says doctor should not even experiment with a drug as part of a clinical trial.

The FDA's most recent guidance cautions against the use of the drug outside of a hospital setting or a clinical trial due to risk of heart rhythm problems. All of this as President Trump now take same at FDA Commissioner Dr. Stephen Hahn, who he himself nominated this past November. President Trump tweeting this morning, the deep state or whoever over at the FDA is making it very difficult for drug companies to get people in order to test the vaccines and therapeutics. The President even claiming some in FDA are deliberately delaying vaccine trials so one would not be available until after the election. CNN has reached out to the FDA for comment. Nothing yet. We will bring that to you but House Speaker Nancy Pelosi condemned the President's tweet in a press conference earlier today. And joining me now to discuss is Dr. Edith Bracho-Sanchez, a primary care physician and assistant professor of Pediatrics at Columbia University.

And Dr. Michael Saag, an Associate Dean for Global Health at the University of Alabama at Birmingham and a medical professor in the school's division of infectious diseases. And Dr. Saag, I want to begin with you. I thought we had the sound from Nancy Pelosi, but it was really telling when she said, listen, don't pay attention to or ignore his attacks against male-in voting but really focus on his attacks now against the FDA.

This is something that you expect to happen in third world countries, not in the United States where the FDA is the global gold standard. What is your reaction when you hear this from the President?

MICHAEL SAAG, ASSOCIATE DEAN FOR GLOBAL HEALTH, UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA AT BIRMINGHAM: It's concerning to me personally, but also for all of us. There have been a lot of fatalities already from coronavirus as we know. But another occult fatality within this whole epidemic is the death of trusted voices. We have people in our government who are empowered to give us information trusted that we can rely on.

And one by one They get attacked anytime they say something that goes counter to what the President has to say. And that's disturbing to me as an individual, but also as a public health representative. We're trying to get information out that's accurate and truthful. And if somebody says something that the President doesn't agree with, we end up with this type of character assassination, even within his own administration and I think that's harmful.

GOLODRYGA: And when you hear someone like the FDA Commissioner being attacked, I mean, he is somebody who on this air was asked directly to comment on the president a few weeks ago suggesting that 99 percent of people who have coronavirus have no side effects or they're just fine, or what have you. And it took you could tell that he was in a very uncomfortable position where of course any other doctor would be able to freely say no, that's just not true.

When you hear these attacks time and time again, when Americans once upon a time used to think the FDA approved something that means that it works. What is the message that this sends to Americans when in fact we do get a vaccine, whether it's before they electric which likely won't happen or after?

[13:20:03]

SAAG: The public officials who are within the government are in a tight spot because they feel compelled to maintain their integrity and tell the truth. But if they go to a point where they're going against what the President is saying or thinking, they get caught in a crossfire, oftentimes on Twitter. So, I think that's what Dr. Hahn's been going through. But what we all have to keep in mind is that this is the President's administration.

These are the people who he hired to work with him. And I think that's something we have to keep in mind. And hopefully, they can be freed up to say the truth and speak the truth to the American people over time.

GOLODRYGA: Again, no other administration officials in western countries are having to deal with something like these attacks from their own president but let me move on. Dr. Bracho-Sanchez, because of Florida Atlantic University has now suspended football practice after three players are tested positive for the coronavirus. What have you learned from the data coming from colleges that have welcomed students back on campus?

I covered the speed during the week, we're constantly bombarded by new headlines, new cases popping up. University officials say many of these were expected, but it does seem to be happening rather soon.

DR. EDITH BRACHO-SANCHEZ, PRIMARY CARE PEDIATRICIAN: That's right, Brianna. I'm looking at all of this data. And I was looking at numbers from the New York Times this morning. And it's about 17,000 cases of COVID-19 in college campuses, about 650 campuses. And I'm looking at this and I'm thinking to myself two things. Number one, what did we think what's going to happen here? I mean, we have not controlled this virus in our communities, and we're opening schools.

And the virus is coming with students to the schools, right? I mean, this was expected. And the second thing I'm thinking is we have no idea what the long-term consequences are of this virus yet. We're starting to get some idea. We've seen some young students, young people with something called myocarditis, for example, and inflammation of the heart muscle that is very serious, Bianna.

And I think that's just the beginning and they think we cannot get used to this, because we really have no idea what the long-term impact is going to be.

GOLODRYGA: Yes, schools that I've been speaking with said that unlike K through 12 schools they had prepared in terms of sending out testing kits, that they had the number of tests needed. They had PPE; they clearly had more resources. But you see these cases popping up kids will be kids; kids think that nothing can get to them. And clearly you see the ramifications of that. Dr. Saag, you say the decision to reopen schools quickly will likely reverse the progress that states like Alabama, have made as students will likely take the virus home.

So, you have community spread, lowering, but once students come home, it may start to impact that again. Do you believe leaders have simply accepted the fact that more people are just now going to get sick?

Well, this is a rapidly moving epidemic as we know. An information is coming out. And the reason I'm thinking about especially the K through 12, where there's not routine testing, what I'm worried about is some data that came out this week and in particular, two things. One studies that showed that children get infected at roughly the same rate as adults, they don't have symptoms as much, but they do get infected. But secondly, and this is concerning is that they are expressing or elaborating about twice as much virus as adults. So that means they're likely to be more infectious to others. So, here's the concern. They go to school, they pick it up, they bring it home. And the second study showed that most transmission of coronavirus right now is happening inside households. So, all the -- all the benefits that we've had from our governor making a great decision, a massive order back in the middle of July, we see our cases coming down.

I'm worried that opening schools and this is just this week is going to start, going to coming back up. And that's what I'm afraid we might see by mid-September. So, I think we're going to just take a little pause, start testing, doing what we call sentinel testing to see how much spread there might already be happening in the K through 12 environment.

GOLODRYGA: Yes, New York's dealing with this now, we've got a positivity rate of under one percent. But schools are starting to reopen, universities as well. And a lot of people are concerned about that positivity rate rising. Dr. Bracho-Sanchez, let me ask you. Massachusetts is now the first day that's going to require children over the age of five to get flu shots in order to stay enrolled in public schools and daycares.

A lot of concern about the convergence here of both flu season and COVID. You wrote a piece for cnn.com saying that the time has come for all schools to require the flu shot. Talk about how this would help address the pandemic and how realistic that would be actually.

BRACHO-SANCHEZ: Bianna, the school mandates are so powerful. Just to give you an idea, I see this in my office all of the time. I have a parent who has two kids, right? One kid will be 6 years old, and the other one will be 3 years old. For New York City where I practice, the school mandate for flu stops at 5 years old. And so, for the 3-year- old, the parent will say sure, of course they need it for school. And then for the 6-year-old, they'll say, actually, I don't think the flu shots necessary anymore.

[13:25:00]

BRACHO-SANCHEZ: 1So for a long time in this country, what the mandates that schools have put in place they've sent very clear messages to parents of what's needed and what's not needed. Now we have in our hands a COVID-19 pandemic, and the potential bad flu season. If we don't take the measures now, Bianna, both things are going to happen at the same time, and we simply cannot handle them. And the school mandate helps us. It really helps us.

GOLODRYGA: I agree with you, especially in so many of the symptoms are very similar, right? If kids sneezes and people are going to be panicked, not knowing whether it's the flu or COVID. Very interesting conversation, Dr. Edith Bracho-Sanchez and Dr. Mike Saag. Thank you so much for joining us. Have a great weekend.

SAAG: Thank you. GOLODRYGA: Coming up. The Gulf Coast is on alert as a pair of tropical storms inch closer to the U.S. We have details on this rare tropical threat coming up.

Plus, apocalyptic scenes out of California as a number of wildfires burn out of control. We'll take you live to the firing winds coming up next.

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[13:30:26]

GOLODRYGA: Right now, in California, thousands of firefighters are battling wildfires across the state. More than 500 fires are burning following a blitz of lightning strikes, including two of the biggest blazes recorded in state history.

The fires have charred nearly one million acres, forcing 120,000 evacuations and killed four people.

CNN's Paul Vercammen is in Napa County, California.

Paul, what are you seeing? I see the images of the charred car behind you.

PAUL VERCAMMEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's exactly right, Brianna. That car is a reminder of the cruelty, the whimsey of fire. It probably survived five decades by all accounts here.

My experts on the ground say this was a Pontiac Firebird, about a 1969. And in one fateful night, the homeowner couldn't get it out. He lost his home and classic car.

And, Brianna, let's give you a sense for what this swath of devastation is like here in the Berryessa, the highlands in Napa County.

This is the lightning fire. You alluded to the two biggest fires, or two of the biggest fires in state history. This is now the second largest, 314 acres burned. Four fatalities here. More than 560 structures destroyed in this lightning complex alone.

What absolutely haunted firefighters is these lightning strikes, dry lightning strikes, 12,000 of them starting off fires all over northern California.

And tomorrow, there's a forecast for the possibility of more of these dry lightning strikes.

So they are on pins and needles here in California just hoping and crossing their fingers that we don't get another recurrence of these strikes that caused so much misery in California right now.

Reporting from Napa County, I'm Paul Vercammen.

Back to you, Bianna. GOLODRYGA: That wide shot is jaw dropping. Everything there

obliterated. Of course, we'll be covering this story close.

Paul, please stay safe. Thank you.

We're going to turn now to the gulf coast where we are tracking two tropical storms moving through the Atlantic.

The first, Laura, is impacting Puerto Rico right now. And the second, Marco, is moving north toward the U.S.

Both storms could make landfall along the gulf coast in the coming days.

CNN's Allison Chinchar is tracking those storms for us.

Allison, what do we know about the path of these two storms right now?

ALLISON CHINCHAR, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Right. Really the big question is, which one goes where, do they interact, do they make the same landfall point. There's a lot of questions regarding both of these systems.

Marco just around the Yucatan Peninsula. Laura basically hovering around Puerto Rico where we're really starting to see some of those heavier rain bands begin to push in, especially on the south side there, where you can see yellows and oranges, indicating the heavier rain pushing in.

Keep in mind, mudslides are going to be a big factor with this because of the amount of rain we expect. Not just in Puerto Rico but Hispaniola, in general.

This entire area, both of these islands, likely to get widespread amount of four to six inches of rain. There could be some spots that could pick up as much as a foot of rain before this system finally moves out.

When it does, then the question becomes, where does it go. It's expected to head toward the Gulf of Mexico.

But look at this. When you look at all of the models, landfall trajectories range from Corpus Christi to Apalachicola, Florida. There's a lot of wide variety of where they anticipate landfall to be.

It's not much better with Marco. Right now, most of the models predicting Texas or Louisiana. But notice there were a couple of them that overlap.

Houston, Beaumont, Texas, Lake Charles, Louisiana, are actually inside both cones. Meaning they could get hit by Marco, perhaps on Tuesday, followed by Laura, the very next day on Wednesday. Laura is trending about a day behind as of this point.

Both of them are forecast to get up to hurricane -- category 1 strength hurricane. If that happens, and they are both in the gulf as a hurricane, it will be the first time in history we have ever had two hurricane-strength storms simultaneously in the Gulf of Mexico.

GOLODRYGA: Not the kind of history the gulf wants to make there.

Allison Chinchar, you'll be covering both of those for us. Thank you so much.

[13:34:47]

Ahead, with just three months until Election Day, a federal response to a massive windstorm in the Midwest is making some Trump voters think twice. We'll take you to the battleground state of Iowa, coming up next.

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GOLODRYGA: The president has approved more aid for the state of Iowa following a massive storm there. The funds are still just a fraction of what many Iowans say they need. And they say the decision on those funds could directly impact their vote.

Here's Ryan Young with more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

STEVE SWENKA, IOWA FARMER: Unfortunately, the ear is on the part of the stalk that's dead.

RYAN YOUNG, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A massive windstorm's destruction still seen all over Steve Swenka's cornfield --

SWENKA: Wow.

YOUNG: -- nearly two weeks after it swept across Iowa with 100-mile- an-hour winds.

SWENKA: Wow.

It just kept going. And you know, 45 minutes into it, and it's still blowing. And we're seeing the trees and the limbs. And of course, the power's off.

YOUNG: In Cedar Rapids, one of the hardest-hit cities, more than 800 buildings suffered some sort of partial collapse. More than 20 school buildings damaged.

NIKKI WIMS, BARTENDER: It was like the whole storm that was 70 miles across was a tornado. And I've never seen anything like it.

[13:40:01]

YOUNG: Nikki Wims works at a Cedar Rapids bar.

WIMS: We just rebuilt from the flood of '08. And now, we're going to be doing it all over again, with no support.

YOUNG: President Trump visited Iowa Tuesday, one day after signing a major disaster declaration. But the $45 million in aid only covers a portion of the almost $4 billion that Republican Governor Kim Reynolds requested.

But the president also approved additional funding for the Cedar Rapids area Thursday, according to Governor Reynolds' office.

Not nearly enough, says Wims.

WIMS: He came by, what, for a picture, for a photo op at the Cedar Rapids airport?

No. I want to see boots on the ground, like, you know, people -- he needed to see this.

YOUNG: Other Iowans in the bar are pleased with the president's support.

Brian Reeves says Trump can count on his vote.

BRIAN REEVES, TRUMP SUPPORTER: I really think he means well. I mean, there's some things I wish he would, you know, some of his tweets and stuff like that, you know?

He's not a politician. I mean, he never was. And he's always admitted that he's never been a politician.

So I think, deep inside, I think he's doing what he thinks he needs to do to help.

YOUNG: A Monmouth University poll taken one week before the storm, showed Trump leading Biden 48 percent to 45 percent within the margin of error.

Losing Iowa's six electoral votes may not cost Trump the election but voter sentiment in the red-leaning state may signal trouble for Trump in other key states on Election Night.

YOUNG (voice-over): There's this conversation that Iowa may be a swing state.

Do you buy that or --

(CROSSTALK)

WIMS: Absolutely. Absolutely, yes. This is -- I mean, I talk -- I work in a bar. I talk to people of all walks of life, all different political and religious backgrounds. And I've heard people, Republicans even, saying -- I had a guy on the patio just yesterday say, listen, Nikki, I have always voted Republican. This will be the first time that I don't.

YOUNG (voice-over): Back on Steve Swenka's farm, the fourth-generation farmer says he's still on the fence about who he will vote for as he waits to see how the federal and state assistance will help farmers pick up the pieces.

SWENKA: Come on, now.

I guess that I have to believe that our elected officials will get their heads together and get us some help in some way.

YOUNG (on camera): In 2008 and 2012, President Obama was able to win Iowa. But in 2016, President Trump was able to flip 31 counties. A lot of those counties are in the damaged area.

I can tell you, farmers have been having a very tough year. They are hoping for more assistance, especially with everything that's been going on.

Ryan Young, CNN, Chicago.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GOLODRYGA: So many people's lives have been uprooted.

We should note that we've asked for an interview with Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds. We have yet to hear back from her office.

The Republican National Convention kicks off on Monday. All week long, we're covering the big speeches, important moments and, of course, President Trump. It all starts Monday night with special coverage beginning at 7:00 p.m. Eastern live on CNN.

And we'll be right back.

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[13:47:17]

GOLODRYGA: The Department of Justice says a former Army Green Beret has been arrested and charged with espionage. They say he knowingly leaked U.S. national defense secrets to members of Russia's intelligence service over more than a decade.

CNN Pentagon reporter, Ryan Brown, is following today's developments.

Ryan, my jaw dropped when I read this news last night. What are we learning about the specific charges here?

RYAN BROWNE, CNN PENTAGON REPORTER: Well, it's quite a lengthy list of charges that the U.S. attorney has filed against this former Army Special Forces officer.

They say that he traveled to Russia, met with Russian military intelligence agents from the GRU, the same organization that has been accused of a number of activities in the United States and Europe.

He met with those members, was assigned a code name, and they were the ones who actually encouraged him to join the Special Forces. He had initially been in a different specialization in the Army.

The Russian intelligence officers allegedly were the ones who encouraged him to go through the rigorous training program that is the Special Forces program, went in the Green Berets.

And he used that position to provide Russian intelligence with detailed information about the identity and operations of his fellow Special Forces members.

Now he served as a captain. We're told by the Army he did not have any combat deployments. But he has been deployed to multiple locations around the world, including Korea, South Korea.

So there's a lot of potential information he could have been able to provide to Russia.

He visited Russia. He'd been providing them, as you said, over a period of multiple years, from 1998 to 2005.

So a lot of concern about how much information he may have provided the Russians -- Brianna?

GOLODRYGA: Yes. And to quote this report, he considered himself a loyal son of Russia. It's unbelievable.

Ryan Browne, thank you so much.

Meanwhile, in Belarus, anti-government outrage continues. Demonstrators say the country's recent elections were rigged.

CNN's Fred Pleitgen is there.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FRED PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A human chain to demand change. The opposition was out in force again Friday night in Minsk, calling for new elections and an end to longtime dictator, Alexander Lukashenko's rule.

(HONKING)

PLEITGEN (on camera): Belarus' opposition is trying to maintain the momentum it's been gaining over the past couple of days.

At the same time, Lukashenko is also trying to reassert himself and his grip on this country.

(HONKING)

PLEITGEN (voice-over): From her exile in Lithuania, the opposition's leader called on those organizing strikes to pressure the government not to back down.

[13:50:03]

SVETLANA TIKHANOVSKAYA, OPPOSITION LEADER (through translation): Strikes are absolutely legal and a powerful weapon against the regime. They know it and, therefore, they intimidate you.

PLEITGEN: But in many places, the government's tactics seem to be working.

We went to Salihorsk, home to Belarus's giant potassium mines, a key export. Many workers are been striking here. But when we arrived, only a few were left. Most back at work after threats from management, they said.

The mine's management didn't respond to CNN's effort seeking comment.

"This strike is over now," this worker says. "The production is back on and that's pretty much it. Each worker was called in for a talk. They talked to them comprehensively several times."

Alexander Lukashenko himself basked in loyalist support as he visited a chicken schnitzel factory on Friday.

He now openly claims the U.S. and Europe are instigating and steering the uprising and says he'll bring it to an end soon.

"So does she look like a president," Lukashenko said. "You saw. Now they admit they didn't have a program, nothing. They had nothing and they want to get in riding the wave of emotion. But they failed."

At the village, known for staunch Lukashenko support, we got a less than warm welcome when we asked about the challenge to Lukashenko's rule.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translation): Why are you sticking your nose into Belarus? What do you need? What? Leave, Satan.

(CHEERING)

PLEITGEN: Lukashenko supporters are also coming out, putting on their own rallies, praising the long-time leader as he tries to dance around his challengers and maintain his iron grip on power in Belarus.

Fred Pleitgen, CNN, Belarus.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GOLODRYGA: Our thanks to Fred Pleitgen in Belarus. We'll continue to follow that important story.

This just in, the House has begun debate on a $25 billion funding package for the postal service. We'll have live reaction from the White House coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[13:56:52]

GOLODRYGA: This week was a historic one for women in America. And coming up later tonight, CNN takes an expansive look at the women's rights movement in America from the suffrage movement to today. It's a brand-new special report by our own Erin Burnett.

Hi, Erin. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ERIN BURNETT, CNN HOST, "ERIN BURNETT OUTFRONT": That's right, Brianna.

And we tackle it all, from the history of the suffrage movement that is often left out of the history books, to why we have not yet elected a woman president in this country when so many other countries have.

We talked to an impressive group of women leaders across fields, from Hollywood, business, politics, about what they have faced as they have tried to break gender and racial barriers in America.

Here's a preview.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(MUSIC)

(CHANTING)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What is amazing to me is how much progress women have made, despite trying to fit into a system that wasn't ever built to have us.

(MUSIC)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We've come quite a long way, but we're 208 years away from gender equality in our own country. Wow!

(MUSIC)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We've got to finish the business that was not finished 100 years ago.

(MUSIC)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: #metoo made everybody stop and pay attention and listen.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Part of the legacy of the Harvey Weinstein story is we all need to see these problems.

(CHANTING)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's all right at the surface.

(CROSSTALK)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's sort of been happening for a long time. And it's not just in Hollywood. It's across many different communities and cultures.

(MUSIC)

BURNETT: So you are part of a very small group of women in the history of the United States who have actually run for president.

BARACK OBAMA, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Carly Fiorina.

CARLY FIORINA, FORMER CEO, HEWLETT-PACKAGE: We all knew what was going on.

(MUSIC)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Senator Kamala Harris is Joe Biden's running mate.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The first black woman in the United States Senate.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm going to be very candid. I don't think I've ever said this publicly.

(SHOUTING)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A lot of black feminists, myself included, are very bitter about this suffrage anniversary.

(MUSIC)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The history for black women is one of perseverance and diligence, but also deep racial oppression.

(MUSIC)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Typically, we think that history is what happened. History is not what happened. History is who tells the story.

(MUSIC)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BURNETT: So today, Bianna -- and you know this because you've covered business so much as well -- only 37 of the fortune 500 CEOs are women. That's incredible. And the number is much smaller for women of color.

So it is pretty stunning the work that we still have left to do as we look back at the 100-year anniversary from suffrage.

So in this special, we talk about that unfinished business with some really fascinating women.

It's an important conversation. I hope that everyone will tune in with your daughters, your sons, and everybody.

Back to you -- Bianna?

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GOLODRYGA: So important. Women, once again, taking a disproportionate hit during the coronavirus recession as well. Must-see television there. Erin, thank you so much.

[13:59:56]

And join CNN's Erin Burnett as she talks with Jessica Alba, Melinda Gates, Roxane Gay and much more about gender equality in America. This new CNN special report, "WOMEN REPRESENTED, THE 100-YEAR BATTLE FOR EQUALITY," begins tonight at 10:00 Eastern.