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Trump Accuses Some In FDA Of Being Part Of "Deep State"; Soon: House Votes To Pause Postal Service Changes Amid Trump Attacks; Sean Penn: This Country Can Be Testing All of Its Citizens; Police Declare Riot Outside Portland's North Precinct; Arizona Man Tuned Out "Political Pandemic" Until He Got Sick. Aired on 4-5p ET
Aired August 22, 2020 - 16:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[16:00:11]
ANA CABRERA, CNN HOST: Hello, again, on this Saturday. You are live in the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Ana Cabrera in New York.
And this hour, the House is expected to vote on a $25 billion bill to shore up the U.S. Postal Service as that agency is swept up in an operational and political firestorm. Recent changes, including cutting overtime pay, removing blue mailboxes and sorting machines that handle large quantities of mail leading to frustration over delayed mail and allegations of an intentional slowdown at the direction of President Trump.
And in an abrupt move, Louis DeJoy, the Trump donor who was recently named postmaster general, now says he's putting a hold on any further changes until after the election and ahead of an expected increase in demand for mail-in ballots during the coronavirus. DeJoy also distanced himself from the president's repeated untrue claims that mail-in voting is fraudulent, telling a Senate hearing the post office is capable and committed to its, quote, sacred duty of handling election mail this November.
But House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who says DeJoy told her he wouldn't replace any machines already removed, is still skeptical of the Trump administration's actions, and she is urging Americans to stay vigilant with regards to their vote.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. NANCY PELOSI (D-CA), SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE: Don't pay any attention to what the president is saying, because it is all designed to suppress the vote. As is the suppressing of the ability of the postal system to deliver on its responsibility, to treat first -- ballots as first class mail and to deliver in a timely fashion and not -- and not ignore the need for overtime, ignore them, make a plan to vote, do so to vote early.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CABRERA: Straight to Capitol Hill now and CNN national correspondent Suzanne Malveaux. Suzanne, the vote on this extraordinary U.S. Postal Service bill happening very soon. You've been listening to the debates. Is this going to be a bipartisan vote as House Speaker Nancy Pelosi predicts?
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Ana, I don't think it's going to be very bipartisan. You might have a few Republicans who are crossing over, those who specifically are in rural districts or really depend on the postal service in a very, very intense way or those who are basically going to be facing tough re-election races, but this, essentially, is a very partisan battle here.
On the one hand, you've got fierce debate that's taking place on Capitol Hill today because the president himself had threatened before to defund the postal service, said mail-in voting was not something that was going to work for the election. The Democrats came back and said, okay, $25 billion, let's infuse the post office and try to stop some of these delays that we've seen with the new postmaster general and some new tactics.
The Republicans are now saying, you're exaggerating, that this is a scam, that they don't actually need those funds after all. So this is how it's playing out on the House floor.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. GERRY CONNOLLY (D-VA): It is an ongoing and concerted effort to disrupt the time limits of mail delivery and to erode public confidence in the postal service, all leading, if successful, to the largest voter suppression in American history since Jim Crow.
REP. ROBERT GIBBS (R-OH): My colleagues on the left are faking outrage over an made-up crisis to score points during an election. The United States Postal Service is under no greater stress than it was before the coronavirus pandemic and well before this election cycle.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: And we saw yesterday, it was Louis DeJoy, obviously in the hot seat before the Senate hearing, and he said, essentially, that they were going to stop some of those tactics and that at least it wouldn't happen until after the election. Well, Speaker Pelosi today saying that was absolutely unacceptable that they were not taking his word for it, they needed legislation to back it up and that if there were any changes that were going to be made, they would have to be made in January or after there was some sort of end to the coronavirus.
Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PELOSI: But I think it's very useful to people to take the pride that it does. Letters to Santa, messages from the tooth fairy, families communicating -- I know people are doing some things on social media, and that's good, but as a grandmother, I can tell you, there's nothing -- no substitute than a drawing or a note from your grandchild through the mail. But more important than that, as important as that is to our culture, our health, 1.2 billion prescriptions sent through the mail.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: So, Speaker Pelosi making a case that it is about our culture, our democracy, as well as voting rights, and that this is important. The president, however, threatening to veto this legislation.
Where does all of this go?
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell saying they're not coming back from their recess until September when they're going to be dealing with this.
[16:05:04]
But if you listen to what Senator Ron Johnson said yesterday, he did hint at the possibility of another coronavirus package and with that, some aid to the postal service. Before, they had agreed to about $10 billion with the White House and Democrats on board before that all blew up and so, we'll see, maybe there will be some aid in the future.
In the meantime, Monday, expect to see the postmaster general again, this time before the House Oversight Committee and taking some pretty tough questions.
CABRERA: Suzanne, wasn't it the postal service board that gave that $25 billion number specifically, and those board numbers were appointed by President Trump's administration?
MALVEAUX: So, that's absolutely right. I mean, that was something that unanimously they all agreed up. They are all Trump appointees. They said, we need $25 billion to really make things work again.
So that is why when you see Monday's testimony, you are going to actually see the chair of that board also on the hot seat to address that very issue.
CABRERA: OK, CNN's Suzanne Malveaux, thank you.
MALVEAUX: Thanks.
CABRERA: And we will keep an eye on that vote. We will bring you the outcome as it happens, and we'll be speaking with the chairwoman of the House Oversight Committee coming up.
Let me turn to Jeremy Diamond now at the White House because the president and other Republicans continue to state this belief that something else is afoot on Capitol Hill, Jeremy, more than just the concerns for the U.S. Postal Service.
JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: That's right. Look, over the last several days, as you listen to Democrats, you hear them consistently charge that these reforms that are happening at the postal service and the delays that we have seen as a result of that over the last several weeks, that this is all aimed at undermining confidence in the postal service, and also, accusing the president himself of really trying to sabotage the postal service. Republicans in part have countered that these are conspiracy theories being pushed by Democrats.
This has been the line from Republican lawmakers on Capitol Hill as well as the talking points that have been sent out by the Trump campaign and the Republican national committee.
Now, we should note the postmaster general, Louis DeJoy, said yesterday that he has not spoken with President Trump about these changes, about postal service in general, but nonetheless, it's very clear that there have been delays in mail over the last several weeks and ultimately, all you have to do is look at the president's words himself because it is the president himself who said, not the official reasons that the White House gave today about why they are threatening to veto this additional money for the postal service.
The president instead said that he didn't want to give additional money to the postal service because he doesn't want to see an expansion of mail-in votes, and in his words, if they don't get the money for expanded mail-in voting, then they can't have universal mail-in voting across the country.
So, it very much is at odds with this accusation from Republicans that Democrats are simply making things up here.
CABRERA: Meantime, Jeremy, the president, spending considerable time on Twitter today promoting some theories related to the pandemic, and these theories haven't been proven. What is he saying?
DIAMOND: That's right. The president at odds with his own FDA today, not the first time that we've seen approximate president at odds with health experts during this pandemic.
But let me read you what the president says here. He writes: 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. Obviously, they are hoping to delay the answer until after November 3rd. Must focus on speed, and saving lives.
And you see there, he tags the FDA commissioner, Dr. Steven Hahn.
There is no basis to what the president is accusing the FDA of doing here. There is no indication that they are delaying the development of vaccines or therapeutics, and in fact, this whole notion about something coming before November 3rd is only something that the president himself floated as it relates to a vaccine, even though every health expert has said it's most likely this vaccine would be ready no earlier than the end of this year or early 2021.
And the president also suggesting he's not happy with the FDA revoking that emergency use authorization for hydroxychloroquine. Of course, the president's own health experts have said that there are several other therapeutics that actually have proven to work against coronavirus, and that they want to focus on those, rather than something completely unproven like hydroxychloroquine -- Ana. CABRERA: OK, Jeremy Diamond at the White House, thank you.
Joining us now, CNN Medical Analyst and director of the Cardiac Cath Lab at George Washington University, Dr. Jonathan Reiner.
As we just heard from Jeremy, doctor, the president is on Twitter today accusing the FDA of being part of the deep state for not moving fast enough, as he sees it, in vaccine trials and he tweeting support for hydroxychloroquine yet again.
What's your reaction to this?
DR. JONATHAN REINER, CNN MEDICAL ANALYST: The president seems a little paranoid today, a little bit disordered.
Look, a vaccine typically takes a decade to develop. The fact that many vaccines have gotten deep into clinical trials so quickly is a testament to the brilliance of our scientists and the ingenuity of the companies that are manufacturing these vaccines.
[16:10:05]
We heard today that Moderna, one of the leading vaccines right now in development, has enrolled fully half of their intended 30,000 patients for their RNA vaccine, which is really spectacular.
So, you know, the notion that we can even think about creating a vaccine from scratch, from basically the genetic blueprint of the virus, in a year to 18 months is amazing. You know, the president somehow thinks that if the vaccine isn't released to the public before his election, then it's somehow a deep state conspiracy. It's really troubling. The president needs to stop it.
The other thing I want to emphasize to the public is that the FDA is run by scientists and career professionals. They will not approve a vaccine if it's not safe and effective, no matter what the president says. People will resign.
We heard that earlier this week, senior officials at the FDA threatening to resign if they are pressured to release a vaccine before it's ready. It will not happen. When the vaccine is released, it will be safe and effective.
CABRERA: And that's such an important point because we know people's confidence in the vaccine, at least at this time, is not, you know, 100 percent and it's far from it with, I think, now up to about 40 percent of people saying they aren't sure if they would get the vaccine if it was available to them right now.
Let me ask you about what we heard from Joe Biden, who just sat down from a new -- for a new interview with ABC. He was asked about how he would handle the pandemic. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
INTERVIEWER: If you're sworn in, come January, and we have coronavirus and the flu combining, which many scientists have said is a real possibility, would you be prepared to shut this country down again?
JOE BIDEN (D), PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: I would be prepared to do whatever it takes to save lives, because we cannot get the country moving until we control the virus. That is the fundamental flaw in this administration's thinking to begin with. In order to keep the country running and moving and the economy growing, and people employed, you have to fix the virus. You have to deal with the virus.
INTERVIEWER: So if the scientists say, shut it down?
BIDEN: I would shut it down. I would listen to the scientists.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CABRERA: Dr. Reiner, do you see scientists recommending that, another shutdown?
REINER: Scientists have recommended shutdowns. When the virus was raging in places like Florida and Texas and Arizona a month and six weeks ago, that's what should have happened then. People were advocating that. There was no political will to do that.
We have to be ready to do that going forward when the virus runs out of control in parts of this country, but again, we don't have the political leadership willing to do that.
But look around the world at places that have successfully suppressed the virus, places like New Zealand as the perfect example. You know, last week, when they had four new cases in Auckland, they shut the city down -- four new cases -- understanding that if they're detecting four, there are many more.
We don't have that political will to do that. And we need that. The key statement from Vice President Biden was, I will listen to the scientists. How refreshing.
CABRERA: We're hearing what the vice president, the president's challenger, says he would do in terms of handling this. And we're seeing, in real time, what the president is doing in handling this.
He's been on the campaign trail. He held an event in Yuma, Arizona, this week with very few masks and little social distancing and then just yesterday, he was in Arlington, Virginia, speaking to a crowd in a ballroom.
On top of all that, Trump aides have told CNN they don't expect next week's Republican national convention to focus as heavily as the Dems did on the coronavirus.
What would you expect from an incumbent president in addressing this once in a century pandemic during what may be his most important political event of his re-election campaign?
REINER: Well, I would expect him to say what he should have said six months ago, which is, I will do whatever it takes to suppress this virus and protect American lives. I will place American lives before anything else, before myself, even before the economy. I will place lives first.
But the president expressly hasn't said that, and I don't expect he will. That's what -- that's what we need to hear.
CABRERA: OK. Dr. Jonathan Reiner, thank you.
REINER: My pleasure.
CABRERA: He's an award-winning actor, director, screenwriter, and producer whose organization is now helping communities battling the coronavirus pandemic. Sean Penn will join us live here in the NEWSROOM when we come back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[16:18:49]
CABRERA: Listen to this. A new projection from the University of Washington says 310,000 people could be dead from coronavirus in the U.S. by December 1st, more than 300,000. Even for those who survive, we know the virus can cause some serious side effects and some lingering illnesses for survivors.
A case in point, woman in Miami who has been hospitalized for months and a note before we bring you this report by Randi Kaye. Some images may be disturbing.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RANDI KAYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (on camera): Rosa, so nice to see you.
ROSA FELIPE, FLORIDA HEALTH CARE WORKER WHO SURVIVED COVID-19: Nice to see you too.
KAYE (voice-over): This is the only way we could see Rosa Felipe, the 41-year-old mother of two young boys has been hospitalized in Miami since early march after testing positive for COVID-19.
She's fighting to survive inside the very same hospital where she worked for more than 15 years as an electroencephalograph or EEG technician, testing brain activity in patients.
FELIPE: I do all of the EEGs where we need it, whether it's in the emergency room or trauma or in separate floor.
KAYE (on camera): So you would travel around the hospital quite a bit and possibly got exposed?
[16:20:03]
FELIPE: Quite a bit, quite a bit.
KAYE: You were seeing a lot of patients.
FELIPE: A lot of patients, yes. KAYE (voice-over): Rosa has two underlying conditions that put her at
even greater risk, asthma and diabetes. It got so bad, doctors put her on a ventilator to help her breathe.
FELIPE: I actually asked the doctors for a piece of paper before being intubated and I wrote on the paper to my children, I wanted them not to give up and not to be upset with God because this was -- if something were to happen to me, this was his will, and I didn't want him to be upset with God. I wanted them to be loving and happy that god allowed us to have the time that we did have. And then after that, I just gave it all up to God.
KAYE: Rosa spent two months on the ventilator. It saved her life.
FELIPE: I am still grateful that I'm alive. I'm grateful that I made it.
KAYE: But now, Rosa has another problem. While on the ventilator, she may have developed blood clots. Her hands were likely starved of circulation and oxygenation, so her fingers turned black.
FELIPE: My fingers are going to fall off. Let me see if I can show you my hands.
KAYE (on camera): Yeah. And that -- and that's because they weren't getting any blood?
FELIPE: Exactly. That side is in better shape.
KAYE (voice-over): Rosa's hands may have to be amputated. At the very least, she says, she will lose many of her fingers. Rosa's family wasn't sure she'd even survive. Her sister told me she was already planning her funeral.
What keeps Rosa going is the thought of seeing her children again, who she hasn't seen since she was hospitalized in March.
(on camera): When do you think you'll be able to see your children again?
FELIPE: For me, it can't be soon enough. For me, it can't be soon enough. But I know -- I know that in the end, I'm going to be with them. I know that. So that's what keeps me focused and it keeps me wanting to heal and wanting to get out of here, fully restored.
KAYE (voice-over): Alone in her hospital room for more than five months now, Rosa admits she's had some dark thoughts. So more than ever, she treasures life's sweet joys.
FELIPE: Please congratulate Anderson Cooper on his baby.
KAYE (on camera): I certainly will. These are the things you think about when you're laying in the hospital bed.
FELIPPE: Yeah. I'm happy that he has a baby and that he's so cute.
KAYE: Well, I will share your blessings with Anderson and Wyatt.
FELIPE: Thank you so much. Have a great day.
KAYE: Be well.
(voice-over): Randi Kaye, CNN, Palm Beach County, Florida.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CABRERA: What a strong woman. To still be smiling after all she's been through.
I want to bring in someone you'll immediately recognize, actor Sean Penn is the founder of the emergency relief group CORE and he's been working nonstop to help people in communities all over the country get tested, especially those in remote and underserved communities.
Sean, we're so excited to have you here with us. Thanks for taking the time.
It's stories like the one we just heard that really highlight what people are going through and why testing, of course, is so important. What's been the biggest inspiration for you and your team?
SEAN PENN, ACTOR & FOUNDER, CORE: I think that, well, certainly, the volunteers and staff of CORE have been an extraordinary inspiration, from the beginning, the watching in the media, all of the commitment from frontline (ph) workers and in some cases, some of the leaderships.
All of these things and the people who have fought through and survived and the people who are fighting through it, having lost people and doing it under circumstances where, you know, there's no cavalry being offered, no sense of either national guidelines or national united strength from Washington.
And so I think that, you know, where we do see leadership, it's to be valued. You know, I -- but -- you know, our organization, which is just sort of a little engine that could, it's very inspiring --
CABRERA: Yeah.
PENN: -- to think about our group and those who have supported us, that we have tested now 1/50th of all tests across the United States. It's also extremely disappointing and alarming to consider that.
CABRERA: It's amazing.
PENN: Yeah.
CABRERA: Last week, the White House testing czar said the administration was doing everything it could to ramp up testing capacity.
As someone who's on the ground day in and day out, what advice would you give about improvements that need to be made? PENN: I -- I don't have faith in giving advice to the White House
testing czar or to the president of the United States. I -- the former is a flat out liar and an incompetent pawn.
[16:25:05]
I am telling you this not as a Democrat or a lefty. I'm telling you this as somebody who sees it every day, sees what we are capable of, even just on the strength of what CORE is doing time and time again.
This country can be testing all of its citizens twice a week, but what we need to know -- I think the really important thing is that where and when groups or individuals are -- or leaderships are able to establish testing, tracing, and quarantine components, those just alone and, of course, other wrap-around services are necessary, but is that all of the -- from testing to notification throughout the contact tracing period, that -- that is useless if it doesn't all happen within a five-day period.
CABRERA: Yeah.
PENN: And so, one of the things that we really want to have people consider is the way that we in Los Angeles would have a go-bag or have a rendezvous point with family, for example, if we're there in earthquake. The same is the case with quarantining, so that if you do get notified that you have a positive test, immediately participating with contact tracers. Then you already have sorted out -- either sorted out a place to be isolated or have been put in touch with navigators who can help you do that for people who don't have access to that.
So, this is really not a complicated thing, but it's going to happen on local levels not because it should, not because that is what will be successful, but at least until an inauguration of a new leadership, that's what I believe -- we are going to be chasing this dragon. That's the reality.
CABRERA: You talk about being the little engine that could, your team, in working so hard to get people tested because you care so much about this country and these individuals, and so I'm afraid this is probably going to really upset you to learn that what we're learning from the "Wall Street Journal," reporting that billions of federal dollars authorized by Congress back in April for COVID testing and contact tracing have not been spent or allocated, billions of dollars.
What enters your mind when you hear that, when nonprofit groups like yours are bending over backwards to raise funds so people can get tested?
PENN: Yeah, we're killing ourselves, and we wouldn't be able to do what we're doing without private donors, without Jack Dorsey's start small that was -- gave us a major stimulus. But this is money -- without the Rockefeller Foundation and some others.
But this is -- this is something that we all have to know, and it also has to be understood that until there are national guidelines, there won't be an equitable spending of that money. We won't know how implementers get it, which implementers get it, how to target the high-priority areas and the vulnerable populations that are getting hit so hard with this. It may be easy for people to say, oh, well, this isn't affecting me.
Well, it's affecting not only the spirit of our country, the lives, but it's really affecting our marginalized populations in a way that, in some cases, feels like an actual war, and they're wondering, where are you?
You know, often we hear about countries scream out, America, where are you when we're in such need? Now it's America screaming out for itself, and it's getting no answer.
CABRERA: As an award-winning actor, I do want to ask you about movie theaters, because on one hand, we're in the middle of a devastating, deadly pandemic in this country. People are afraid to go out there. But movie theaters are opening. And the major chains are phasing in their reopenings.
Do you think going to the movies will be what it once was?
PENN: Well, I -- I don't know what going to the movies will be. I do feel that the movie business, the theater chains as well as -- like all businesses that have been opening are not doing enough to be part of the information campaign. I don't think that it will benefit them, as I don't think it benefits many other businesses when we need -- when you don't make it clear how you're going to keep people safe.
I think there's a lot of concern. People are still processing what the reality of this virus is on this country, and I think -- and until they really take on the awesome nature of it, the devastating nature of it, they're not going to recognize that by tying information to your product is not putting a black eye on your product. It's not making it harder to visit. It's making it easier to visit and safer to visit.
[16:30:00]
So, I'm still looking for, for example, when we see movie trailers on TV, I think they should be immediately accompanied by the way in which those theaters are going to protect people that come.
CABRERA: Well, Sean Penn, thank you for the conversation. Thank you for all you're doing to help people in need.
Again, his organization is CORE. And you can learn more by going to coreresponse.org.
Thank you.
Coming up, the president sowing doubt about the 2020 election and threatening to deploy law enforcement to the polls. Can he do that? CNN'S Elie Honig is next with "CROSS EXAM."
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) CABRERA: President Trump continues to raise the alarm about what he says could be massive potential voter fraud in the upcoming election, despite no evidence to back that up.
[16:35:05]
And during an interview on FOX News, with Sean Hannity, the president says he's contemplating sending law enforcement officers to polling locations on Election Day.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEAN HANNITY, FOX NEWS HOST: Are you going to have an ability to monitor, to avoid fraud, and cross-check whether or not these are registered voters, whether or not there's been identification to know that it's a real vote from a real American?
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES (voice-over): We're going to have everything. We're going to have sheriffs and we're going to have law enforcement and we're going to have hopefully U.S. attorneys and we're going to have everybody, and attorney generals.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CABRERA: CNN legal analyst, Elie Honig, is here for "CROSS EXAM," to answer your questions. He's a former assistant U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York.
Elie, let's dive in because one viewer asked: Can the president even do this, legally? Can he send sheriffs and other police officers to monitor polling sites? Who legally can serve as a poll watcher?"
ELIE HONIG, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: So, Ana, this is a scare tactic, and it echoes of voter suppression and intimidation.
The president simply does not have the legal power to do what he's threatening here.
First of all, the states, not the federal government, not the president, determine how we vote. Every state has its own set of laws determining how these polling place monitors are appointed.
Generally, they are chosen by state, local, and county political candidates, political committees and political parties.
Some states even specifically outlaw law enforcement officers or people in uniform or who are armed from serving as polling place monitor.
Also, the president cannot deploy sheriffs or local law enforcement. He has no direct authority over state, county, local police.
Also, we have federal and state laws against voter intimidation. And we have a federal law and some state laws that specifically prohibit sending military or what the law calls armed men, meaning civilian law enforcement, into polling places. So if the president actually tried to do this, expect to see legal challenges, and expect to see the courts stand up and block it from happening.
CABRERA: Another Trump associate and former advisor is facing charges. New York federal prosecutors on Thursday charged the president's former chief strategist, Steve Bannon, and three others with defrauding donors of hundreds of thousands of dollars.
They say it was part of a fund-raising campaign aimed at supporting Trump's border wall.
And so another viewer wants to know: What are Steve Bannon's options now that he has been indicted, and can he try to save himself by giving up others?
HONIG: It does not look good for Steve Bannon right now.
He's got three options at this point. One, anyone can go to trial. That's a major risk. The vast majority of federal trials end in conviction.
The evidence looks very strong, the indictment mentions forged documents. This is a brazen fraud scheme.
If he goes to trial and gets convicted, he's looking at seven to nine years behind bars if you look at the advisory sentencing guidelines.
Option two, he can plead guilty without cooperating. He'd do a little better. He'd be more in the range of five to seven years there.
And option three is cooperation. Now, that is his best chance to get himself the lowest possible sentence but it's not easy.
In the SDNY, where I used to work, cooperation is all or nothing.
A defendant like Bannon has to admit everything he did and everything that anybody else did, even if it goes beyond what's in the indictment itself.
So, if Bannon tries to go that route, that's his best chance to save himself. But he's also going to have to implicate other people as well.
CABRERA: You mentioned that the unit that is specifically looking at Bannon's case caught your eye. Explain.
HONIG: Yes, so, ordinarily -- this is a fraud case. Ordinarily, we had a unit in the SDNY called the Complex Frauds Unit that -- this is a straight-up fraud and embezzlement scheme.
Ordinarily, this case would be in that Complex Fraud Unit. But this case is actually charged out of the Public Corruption Unit, which tells me there could be some angle implicating some public official of some nature.
CABRERA: OK. Well, stay tuned, obviously, for more to come in that story.
But also this week, the president took a hit in the legal battle over his tax returns. And that story, that case continues.
Viewers asking: Now that a federal judge -- district judge has rejected President Trump's latest effort to block the Manhattan district attorney from getting his tax returns, is this case finally over?
HONIG: Almost over. Almost over, but not quite yet.
So, last month, the Supreme Court, by a 7-2 vote, rejected the president's claim that he was absolutely immune from the Manhattan D.A.'s subpoena. They sent the case back down to the district case to consider all the other claims.
This week, a district court judge, who I have appeared in front of, firmly rejected those other claims, threw it out of court. It doesn't mean it's over just yet.
What's next? The president has already appealed to the Second Circuit Court of Appeals. I've argued in front of that court. I do not expect them to take this case.
And if they do, I expect they will uphold the subpoena, say the president's tax returns have to go over.
After that, theoretically, the losing side can try to get this back to the Supreme Court. I highly doubt they will take this case.
[16:40:02]
We're almost at the finish line but not quite there yet.
CABRERA: Do you think it will happen before the election?
HONIG: I don't think this happens before the election. And if it does, we, the public, won't see those tax returns before the election, no.
CABRERA: OK, thanks for setting our expectations.
(CROSSTALK)
CABRERA: All right, Elie, good to have you here. Good to see you, my friend.
HONIG: Thanks, Ana. All right.
CABRERA: From the Deep State to the Russia hoax, CNN is exploring the conspiracy theories that have defined President Trump's time in office. CNN's special report, "DONALD TRUMP'S CONSPIRACY THEORIES," airs tomorrow night at 11:00 Eastern, right here on CNN.
We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) CABRERA: Now to Portland, Oregon, where protesters are starting to gather once again after a demonstration prompted officials to declare a riot overnight.
Officers moved in when protesters got too close to the North Precinct building. Our crews were there as officers tossed canisters of white smoke and flash bangs to force the crowd back.
[16:45:00]
Nine people were arrested, adding to the more than 500 who have been arrested over the last two and a half months of these ongoing protests.
CNN's Omar Jimenez is in Portland, Oregon.
And, Omar, this demonstration was going on for a while. What caused this situation to escalate? And I know it seems to happen every night. What is going on?
OMAR JIMENEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, right now, we're seeing during the daytime is a little different than what we have been seeing at night. There are a lot of dynamics at play.
What you're looking at right now is essentially a standoff between some of the similar protests that we have seen happen in the overnight hours as they are shooting paint balls across.
I'm going to duck down here.
We're seeing some counter-protesters on the right side.
This is similar to what we have seen in the nighttime hours. On the left, these are far-right protesters that represent groups like the Proud Boys. They have called themselves, quote, unquote, "patriots." They are President Trump's supporters, many of them waving banners as they marched in.
Both sides have been throwing things back and forth, launching projectiles. Paintballs being shot back and forth as well.
Police are also on the scene here. And they have been on the outskirts of the situation yelling over a loudspeaker for people to self- monitor.
And they have threatened to declare this situation a riot or an unlawful assembly. We know once that category is given to this event, that is usually what prompts police to move in and clear the actual area.
Now, to give you an idea, again, of how we got to this place, this is now an 87th day in a row of protests here in Portland.
And the group that showed up here, as you see them with the shields, they took it personally or they have taken it personally that people have been protesting against police night in and night out since the death of George Floyd. So, they made it a point to come out here and show up.
Well, then, it was the protesters that have been out here that said, well, you need to be out there and defend our freedom and defend our message.
And so the simplest way I can denominate or delineate between these two sides is one side is chanting Black Lives Matter. The other is chanting Blue Lives Matter.
And those have sort of been the back and forth arguments drawing shoving matches, again, things thrown back and forth over the course of this day.
But I cannot stress enough, this is different than what we have seen in the overnight hours where there are clashes with local police and with federal police as well.
And it's a situation we're going to have to continue to monitor over the course of the day.
But even just over an hour, it has escalated very much so in number and size and aggression as well -- Ana?
CABRERA: Thank you, Omar Jimenez. We will be checking back. Stay safe, my friend.
After dismissing the danger of coronavirus just as politics, one Arizona family now has this simple message.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RYAN SANDSTROM, COVID SURVIVOR: The virus is real. I'm a healthy guy, and it really beat me up.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[16:52:27]
CABRERA: One family in Arizona wasn't convinced about the true dangers of the coronavirus. They thought the debate had become too political. That is, until the father was diagnosed with COVID-19.
CNN's Miguel Marquez is in Phoenix with their story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SANDSTROM, COVID SURVIVOR: Bit of a fever.
MIGUEL MARQUEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Ryan Sandstrom, husband and father of four, got so sick with the coronavirus --
SANDSTROM: My fear when I was in quarantine is I don't know if I've hugged my wife for the last time, which is really hard to think about. And I was really grateful when I got to be with them again. Life's good.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Go give him a hug!
(CROSSTALK)
MARQUEZ: For 17 days, Sandstrom held up in a room in their home, meals served on paper, trash piled up. When he finally emerged, he hugged the kids.
SANDSTROM: Oh --
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hi.
MARQUEZ: He hugged his wife and son.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It was terrifying to think there was sometimes -- it was like a five-hour stretch where you slept in the middle of the day. And I just kept poking my head in the door, like is he still breathing? Is he still OK?
MARQUEZ: Early on, the Sandstroms took the virus seriously, then, like many Americans, stopped paying close attention when they felt the virus became political.
SANDSTROM: I think my mistake was assuming that just because people had made it political, that, therefore, it was wrong. So, what I realize -- you know, that this is genuine, this is real. This is not some made-up thing.
MARQUEZ: The virus attacked Sandstrom's lungs.
SANDSTROM: Every time I would breathe in, it felt like there was an ice pick just stabbing in my lungs.
MARQUEZ (on camera): You thought you were having an heart attack?
SANDSTROM: A 100 percent, yes.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes --
SANDSTROM: So I had radiation down my left arm and a little bit of numbness down my left arm and chest pain.
MARQUEZ (voice-over): Sandstrom, only 36 years old and healthy, no underlying conditions, he still has lingering health effects from the virus he thinks he gave to his wife. But she suffered only mild symptoms.
(on camera): Why do you think you got so sick?
SANDSTROM: That is the million-dollar question.
MARQUEZ (voice-over): Cases like Ryan's still a mystery.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, yes, we're seeing it in young, healthy patients and it's setting it off and we're not sure why? Prevention is the best way to treat this. The best way to not worry
about it is to not get it.
MARQUEZ: The Sandstroms speaking to us in the hope others will avoid what they suffered.
SANDSTROM: I feel like there're still some that don't believe it's as bad as it can be. I feel like there are some that just blame the politics of it.
The virus is real. I'm a healthy guy, and it really beat me up.
(CROSSTALK)
[16:55:06]
MARQUEZ: A hard lesson.
The Sandstroms today, closer, stronger, more alive than ever.
Miguel Marquez, CNN, Mesa, Arizona.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CABRERA: Some breaking news right now. We've just learned that Republican Congressman Dan Meuser, of Pennsylvania, has tested positive for the coronavirus.
And as a result, will not be voting on the House bill today to provide more money to the U.S. Postal Service.
We should note the House has implemented some new protocols for voting to keep numbers down on the floor due to the pandemic.
Quick break. We'll be right back.
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