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Japan Prime Minister Shinzo Abe announced Resignation; Trump Promises Vaccine in U.S. By end of Year; Trump Rages Against Radical Left, Pledges Law and Order; Trump Accepts Republican Nomination to Second Term; Trump Appeals to His Base During Speech; More than 20 False or Misleading Claims in Trump's Speech. Aired 4:30-5a ET

Aired August 28, 2020 - 04:30   ET

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

[04:30:00]

ROBYN CURNOW, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back to CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Robyn Curnow.

So, if you are just joining us, the Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in Japan just announced moments ago his resignation citing health reasons. Mr. Abe has suffered for years from a bowel disease called colitis and has been to the hospital twice just in the past week alone. Of course, Japan's Nikkei stock index plummeting on the news of his resignation. It finished down 326 points on Friday that's a 1.4 percent. I want to get more now on Mr. Abe's long political career from Will Ripley -- Will.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WILL RIPLEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Japan's longest serving Prime Minister Shinzo Abe had big dreams of a Japanese comeback. A comeback marred by a series of setbacks. The Tokyo 2020 Olympics, his greatest achievement could become his greatest disappointment. Japan spent billions only to see the games postponed by the coronavirus pandemic. The games were a cornerstone of Abe's plan to revive a struggling economy and transform Japan into a global destination.

Abe promised a brighter future, a future looking bleak after 2011's massive earthquake, tsunami and Fukushima nuclear meltdown. Abenomics was an ambitious plan to overhaul Japan's economy with stimulus and reform. It led to record high government debt and failed to make a lasting dent in decades of deflation. Problems made worse by Japan's aging population and shrinking workforce.

Abe also tried to strengthen Japan's military, reinterpreting the nations pacifist constitution drafted after World War II. The move led to massive protests in the Japanese capital. Abe's visits to a controversial war shrine angered his Asian neighbors. He was criticized for not making a new apology at the 70th anniversary of World War II. Accused of trying to rewrite Japan's brutal wartime past.

Abe began fighting for more military power during his first time at Prime Minister in 2006. At 52, he became Japan's youngest post war leader. Corruption scandals within his party caused Abe's popularity to plummet. He resigned a year later blaming health problems.

Abe had ambition and roots in a powerful political dynasty. Two former Prime Ministers in his family. Reelected in 2012, Abe declared Japan is back. He tried to raise Japan's profile on a global stage developing allies in Europe, India and Southeast Asia, trying to mend frosty relations with China.

Abe made history in 2016, appearing alongside former U.S. President Barack Obama in Hiroshima and later Pearl Harbor. Abe was one of the first world leaders to form an alliance with Donald Trump, taking the U.S. President out for a hamburger in Tokyo.

Will Ripley, CNN, Hong Kong.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CURNOW: In his speech accepting the Republican presidential nomination, President Trump claimed success in fighting the pandemic and promising a coronavirus vaccine by the end of the year or earlier. That as the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is forecasting more than 200,000 Americans will have lost their lives to COVID-19 by September 19th, which is not far away.

Now as part of his reelection effort, the President is also pledging to cut taxes, create 10 million jobs in the next ten months and hire more police officers. Well, law and order was certainly a central theme of his Republican convention speech just as protests for racial justice continue to grip the country.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

[04:35:00]

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: When there is police misconduct, the justice system must hold wrong doers fully and completely accountable and it will. But when we can never have a situation where things are going on as they are today, we must never allow mob rule. We can never allow mob rule. And the strongest possible terms, the Republican Party condemns the rioting, looting, arson and violence, we have seen in Democrat-run cities all, like Kenosha, Minneapolis, Portland, Chicago and New York.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CURNOW: It is more than an one hour long speech. Mr. Trump launched a blistering attack on his opponent saying no one would be safe in Joe Biden's America.

CNN's senior political analyst Mark Preston joins me now from Washington, D.C. Hi, Mark. That was a pretty long speech from the U.S. President. It was wide-ranging. How effective do you think it was?

MARK PRESTON, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, it certainly was effective for those who wanted to hear that message which was I think we can acknowledge a pretty dark message. And for folks right now who are buying into that kind of tone, that's what they wanted to hear. Because what they're saying is their suburbs are being taken over. We saw Donald Trump try to really accentuate that. So, the idea of fear, is that going to be effective. I think that Donald Trump did a very good job of effectively delivering that. I think that it will work well with his base. But I think people that are in the middle might walk away from this speech wondering kind of what is going on here.

CURNOW: Yes, and that's my question, anybody who has watched the last four days of the Republican convention, and of course also last week with the Democrats, who needed to have been flipped or convinced, and do you think that either side, either party, was more effective at perhaps speaking to independents or suburban women or people who needed to be convinced who were on the fence?

PRESTON: So, let me parrot one of our colleagues, Harry Enten, who I asked this same question to just about an hour ago for my Sirius XM radio show. And this is what he said. He said look, Donald Trump needed the bounce coming out of this convention. And there is a chance that he is going to see some kind of a bounce where he could climb up a few points. And if that is the case, then the race could start to turn.

We didn't see a bounce coming out of the Democratic convention because Joe Biden was so far ahead that there wasn't really a whole lot of room necessarily for him to grow beyond that level of support that he had. But what it did do, is that it did kind of help cement that support among folks who were hesitant about supporting him because of any reasons specifically his age or even his policies. So, the big winner is going to be two weeks from now where they are in the race because that's really going to establish how the next two months are going to end up.

CURNOW: Two months, two weeks. Also, both sides, both parties, painting two visions of America. Starkly different choices that voters will have to make. And again, that was reiterated tonight.

PRESTON: It was. And what I think we saw was Donald Trump basically saying -- flat out saying, not basically saying -- flat out saying that if Joe Biden is elected President, then you are no longer going to be safe. You're going to lose your job. The country is going to turn into anarchy. It going to be absolute chaos.

The week before, you had Joe Biden -- didn't even mention -- didn't even mention Donald Trump by name. Certainly, was critical of him during his speech. But didn't mention him by name and tried to talk about a more prosperous America, more prosperous union, a place where we could all get along. We certainly didn't hear that last night. But again, I think that Donald Trump did a good job of delivering what he wanted to do, and that was fear.

CURNOW: What is the main issue that'll play into voters' choices in the next two months? Is it COVID? Is it the law and order situation? You know, always at these broader themes of the Trump presidency that we've been seeing play out over the last four years.

PRESTON: You know, there's no question it's got to be COVID. Because not only is it going to affect the public health and how people are going to vote and there is such a fight here in the United States or that right now. Over the ability to mail in your vote or not to mail in your vote. So that's number one. But number two is, if COVID continues to explode, which it is, and by the way I didn't hear a whole lot about that in the Republican convention either.

CURNOW: No, we didn't. That was very clear.

PRESTON: Yes, scant discussion of that. But if things continue to be bad, I can't imagine that that's going to be in Donald Trump's favor. He basically tried to act as if COVID was over.

[04:40:00]

Joe Biden basically tried to act like COVID is going to be another year. People don't want to hear that either. But the reality is that it is going to be another year probably before we get it back on track. That is not good news for Donald Trump.

CURNOW: Mark Preston, thanks so much. Always good to speak to you from D.C.

So, coming up here at CNN, we're talking about that final day of the Republican National Convention and who President Trump's message was aimed at.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CURNOW: I am Robyn Curnow live from the CNN Center. I do want to return to one of our top stories. The final night of the Republican National Convention like any other. Donald Trump was singularly focused on attacking the Democrats.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: At the Democrat National Convention, Joe Biden and his party repeatedly assailed America as a land of racial economic and social injustice. So tonight, I ask you a simple question. How can the Democrat Party asked to lead our country when it spends so much time tearing down our country?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

Salena Zito is a CNN contributor and national political reporter for the "Washington Examiner" and a columnist for the "New York Post." And she enjoys me know from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Selena, good to see you. So, what will voters in Pittsburgh and other towns across the U.S. say about this speech?

SALENA ZITO, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Well, I think that overall, the convention leading up to this moment has been very good in that it told small little stories about America. High points, low points and in a world of really interesting fabric that I think pointed to his speech. The President went long. I don't think that bothered people that supported him.

[04:45:00] Because they, you know, they had sort of missed that ability to have those big rallies, have those big campaign speeches. To see him in that place where he shines. It was more like a state of the union address and it went over a litany of things that he has accomplished and the litany of the things that he wants to accomplish.

And he went strong on security in terms of our own homes and within our own communities, and I think that that piece of where voters are sort of on the fence on in terms of what is happening in our country, and he went there strongly and I think that it went a long way in a way to earn new voters. Which is what he needs to accomplish.

CURNOW: This law and order theme has been threaded throughout this convention, again at this speech. But in many ways Biden is saying that if you don't think you will feel safe in a Biden America, you know, take a look at what is around you. Because all of this unsafety is actually happening in Trump's America. And how can voters particularly Trump supporters square the hypocrisy that Democrats are saying that they are exposing here?

ZITO: Well, I think that Biden is underestimating the intelligence and curiosity and the knowledge of a voter. Voters understand that for a president to get involved in these kinds of local situations, that overreaches his powers as the president. These situations that are happening in cities and towns across the country are incidents and situations that have to be dealt with at the local level. It's something that mayor has to take care of or a governor.

Now, they can ask for assistance from the federal government, that's what the president is supposed to do, but that has to be requested. I think that if Trump went in there all guns blazing in every area where there is a problem, people would be far more freaked out by that kind of a situation.

CURNOW: You're in a swing state. How many rural or blue collar voters, the men and women who voted for this president, are still energized by him? He listed his achievements but, in many ways, it was the list of the President breaking norms, breaking international agreements, breaking relationships with allies. Creating chaos to drain the swamp. Is that what Trump voters want another four years of?

ZITO: Oh yes, absolutely. I just (INAUDIBLE) 67 counties in my state of Pennsylvania. I drove through all of them all throughout the back roads and just came back from Ohio. You know, the voters are incredibly energized. People don't have one sign in their yard, they have ten. They don't have just the kind of sign that you buy at the campaign headquarters. They have homemade signs. That tells you -- it doesn't tell you he's going to win, but it tells you the level of intensity that the people that voted for him and the new people that he has brought along have for him going into November.

OK, great to get your perspective, Selena Zito.

ZITO: Thank you very much.

CURNOW: Coming up, the 17 minute speech accepting the Republican presidential nomination, but how much of Donald Trump's speech stands up to a fact check? That is next.

[04:50:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CURNOW: The U.S. President Donald Trump often says things aren't that are true and his remarks at the final night of the convention proved to be no exception. CNN's Daniel Dale gives us a much needed fact check.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DANIEL DALE, CNN REPORTER: This President is a serial liar and he serially lied tonight. I counted preliminarily more than 20 false or misleading claims. I want to go through a whole bunch of them quickly. Because I think that it is all important.

Trump said Joe Biden is, quote, talking about taking down the border wall. Biden has specifically explicitly rejected that idea. He just said he'll stop further additional construction. Trump claimed, as always, that he is the one who passed the Veterans Choice law. Barack Obama signed that into law in 2014. Trump signed a 2018 law to modify it.

Trump said I have done more for the African-American community than any president since Abraham Lincoln. That is ludicrous. Lyndon Johnson, for one, signed the Civil Rights Act and the Voting Rights Act. Trump again touted a, quote, record 9 million job gain over the past three months. he didn't mention as usual that that gain follows a record 22 million job loss over the previous two months. He said he'll, quote, continue to lower drug prices. They've increased during his presidency.

He said that they opened a Jerusalem embassy for less than $500,000. Early documents show it was at least $21 million. He claimed NATO member spending has increased for the first time in about 20 years. Spending in fact rose in 2015 and in 2016 before he took office. He said he will always, and Republicans will always strongly protect people with pre-existing conditions. That plate has already been broken. He and they have repeatedly tried to weaken those protections in Obama care.

He claimed again that he banned travel from China and Europe. No, he imposed partial restrictions with many exemptions. Tens of thousands of people continue traveling over. He boasted about the COVID testing system and about his general response. Experts in universities say the U.S. was fatally slow in its response. Especially slow in setting up adequate testing.

He said that he ended what he called a NAFTA nightmare and signed a brand-new US-Mexico-Canada agreement, the USMCA. That agreement preserves, maintains most of NAFTA.

He boasted about building about 300 miles of border wall. But he didn't say is that most of that is replacement barrier. As of August 7 -- according to official data -- just five miles had been built were none existed before. He suggested that Joe Biden would confiscate guns. That's baseless. Biden is running on nonmandatory buyback of so- called assault weapons.

Democrats want to defund the police. Biden again doesn't, has rejected that.

[04:55:00]

He said he has, quote, very good information that China wants Biden to win because Biden is soft on China or cheerleads for China. The U.S. intelligence community says China wants Biden to win because it sees Trump as unpredictable.

He said Biden vowed to close down charter schools. Biden's plan skeptical on charters but would not abolish them entirely.

He denounced Biden for voting for the Iraq war. Biden did indeed vote for the Iraq war, but what Trump doesn't mention is that he also supported that invasion.

He said Democrats twice removed the word God from the pledge of allegiance at their convention. Two individual caucus meetings outside the main primetime programming did leave it out, but it was uttered in every primetime event.

Trump denounced so-called cancel culture as like an insidious theme. He Donald J. Trump has tried to get dozens of people and entities canceled, fired, boycotted including literally last week Goodyear.

He said he imposed an order to give ten years in prison to rioters, that's a maximum discretionary sentence up to judges in existing laws. His order just asked the government to fully enforce. And he said that the Biden plan would eliminate America's borders. No, just no, it's wrong.

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: Oh, that's it.

DALE: There's more.

COOPER: Wow.

DALE: How much time have you got, Anderson?

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CURNOW: Thanks to Daniel for that. It's quite amazing.

And now the police shooting of Jacob Blake, a 29-year-old black man in Wisconsin, has prompted more boycotts from U.S. professional athletes. Men's and women's basketball, Major League Baseball and hockey all postponing games on Thursday night. And President Trump and other White House officials attacked the NBA over that decision.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: They've become like a political organization and that's not a good thing. I don't think that is a good thing for sports or for the country.

JARED KUSHNER, SENIOR TRUMP ADVISOR: I think that the NBA players are very fortunate that they have the financial position where they are able to take a night off from work.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: In my mind it's absurd, it's silly.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CURNOW: The NBA postponed playoff games Wednesday and Thursday after the Milwaukee Bucks refused to take the court in their playoff game against the Orlando Magic. Other teams decided to boycott their games as well. And members of the WNBA locked arms in another message of solidarity as they boycotted their games on Wednesday and Thursday.

Well, that's our show, thanks for watching. I'm Robyn Curnow. "EARLY START" begins right now.

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