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Police Union, Blake Family Offer Conflicting Accounts; Top Intelligence Office Informs Congressional Committees It Will No Longer Brief Them On Election Security; Black Panther Star Dies At 43 Of Colon Cancer; Trump Visits Areas Devastated By Hurricane Laura; Trump's Niece, Mary Trump Talks About Why She Made Secret Recordings; Trump Rallygoers Boo When Asked To Put On Masks; Trump Promises Vaccine "Before The End Of Year Or Maybe Even Sooner". Aired 3-4p ET

Aired August 29, 2020 - 15:00   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:00:00]

ANA CABRERA, CNN HOST: Hello. You are in the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Ana Cabrera in New York.

We have some breaking news this hour, an unexpected announcement just 66 days before the election. The Office of the Director of National Intelligence says it will no longer give in-person briefings on election security to members of Congress. They will only receive written reports, which means lawmakers won't get to ask the typical questions.

Now, this announcement comes amid warnings that both Russia and China are trying to interfere in the 2020 presidential election. It also comes at a time of racial reckoning for the country with more protests and rallies planned today, nearly a week after the police shooting of Jacob Blake in Kenosha, Wisconsin. Blake's family strongly disputing a new account of what happened by the police union and we should warn you, this video is disturbing.

The union claims Blake fought with officers before the shooting, even putting one of them in a headlock. They say Blake had a knife on him which he refused to give up. Now, Blake's uncle calls their version of events insulting and garbage. The attorney for the Blake family insists Jacob Blake did not pose an imminent threat.

Meanwhile, Blake remains in the hospital where his father says he was shackled to his bed until just yesterday.

CNN's Sara Sidner is in Kenosha where a march planned by Jacob Blake's family is just getting under way. Sara, fill us in.

SARA SIDNER, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: So we are standing here right outside the Regimen Barber Collective, which is where everyone has gathered. The family is also here. We know that Jacob Blake's uncle, Justin Blake, is here. You are seeing a couple hundred people who have already gathered. They are going to walk from here down to the courthouse to continue protests. The details, you know, coming out, you're hearing this back and forth between the police association and the family. We also had details yesterday that Jacob Blake was, indeed, for all this time shackled so his bed, although he was paralyzed. Police were also at the hospital guarding him. That has all changed. His attorney telling us that indeed those shackles were removed Friday afternoon and that the warrants that are out for his arrest have been vacated at this point in time.

We also have new details on the 17-year-old white child, Kyle Rittenhouse, who is accused in two murders and an attempted murder. I'm going to kind of move away from the loudspeaker there, but what you're hearing in that case, there is an extradition fight, he made his way all the way to neighboring Illinois and ended up turning himself in. There is now an extradition fight to bring him back to Kenosha where he faces six charges in that shooting.

His attorney has been very vocal, his attorney saying that Rittenhouse was actually just defending himself. There is video out there showing a lot of what happened, him running down the street with a long rifle. Rittenhouse has said on social media posts that he just came to, quote, protect businesses and to help people.

One of the big issues with that, while his attorney is saying that he is a hero who just came to protect businesses and help people, he came into this town from out of state with a rifle that he is too young to have. In other words, he was illegally possessing a weapon, according to authorities.

So there's a lot of frustration that he was able to walk right past police with his hands up and this huge gun across his chest and Jacob Blake was shot seven times in the back.

There is new information from the police association and their perspective saying that Jacob Blake actually had a weapon on him, a knife. That is being disputed wholly by the family. Police have said that a knife was recovered from the floorboard of the vehicle that he was getting into.

There are so many disputed details. Ultimately, the family is here because they believe an injustice has happened to Jacob Blake. They feel that the officer was not in any kind of imminent danger because Blake's back was turned to him when he was shot seven times and paralyzed. Ana?

CABRERA: OK. Sara Sidner reporting in Kenosha, Wisconsin, thank you, Sara.

Joining us is the former Homeland Security secretary under President Obama, Jeh Johnson. Secretary Johnson, thank you for being here. I do want to ask you about Wisconsin in just a moment. But, first, I want to ask about the breaking news as we learned just this afternoon.

The Office of the Director of National Intelligence has informed Congressional committees that it will no longer brief them on election security, no in-person briefings. they'll just get written updates. Translation, they don't get to ask questions in that kind of setting.

[15:05:00]

DHS defends its decision saying that this was done for clarity and to protect insensitive intelligence from unauthorized disclosures. And that was the ODNI defending its decision there.

What's your reaction to this?

JEH JOHNSON, FORMER HOMELAND SECURITY SECRETARY UNDER OBAMA: Ana, thanks for having me. I cannot imagine any more important reason for Congress to have public hearings involving the intelligence community. The way I view this threat, three buckets.

One, the direct threat to our election infrastructure, hacking into our election infrastructure to change votes, two, stealing communications from campaigns and weaponizing them, we saw that in 2016, and then, three, fake news, extremist views that are being pushed out apparently by foreign actors.

If you believe the ODNI reports from July 24 and August 7, which are quite detailed, they found a way to declassify all of that, foreign actors are up to all three. This amounts to an information op campaign directed at the American people during this election season that is ongoing. And so I cannot imagine a more important reason for Congress to demand public hearings on this topic. If Congress doesn't insist on it, then shame on them, frankly. This is what intelligence oversight in Congress is for.

CABRERA: We are told that other agencies supporting election security, including your former agency DHS, DOJ, DOD, they still intend to continue briefing Congress, and, again, ODNI says they will do written briefings. I mean, could that be sufficient?

JOHNSON: I don't think it is, Ana. I believe that the public, through Congressional hearings, deserves to see their representatives ask questions of the intelligence community. The intelligence community frequently goes up to the Hill to testify in public. I used to give an annual threat briefing alongside NCTC (ph), alongside the director of the FBI about the threats we faced annually.

And so it's not unprecedented for the intelligence community to publicly explain the intelligence they're seeing, particularly when it's something directed at the American people and it's an ongoing campaign. The American people deserve to know what's happening.

CABRERA: Secretary Johnson, forgive me. I'm told we need to break away for a moment to go back to the president who is speaking on an important issue. Please stand by.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE) the cleanup and cutting the trees down, they're distributing food and water and ice and (INAUDIBLE), they're managing warehouses, they're delivering generators. On Monday, they're going to start testing as well. So I appreciate the question. We're going to get right back on it. REPORTER: Mr. President, why is your administration turning on the EPA care (ph) monitors to check for toxic chemicals coming from some of the refineries and (INAUDIBLE) around here?

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Chad (ph), do you want to answer that question?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't know the answer to that. I can get you the answer on (INAUDIBLE) vocally.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I can tell you that we had it on the ground on Friday, it might be on Thursday. I lose track of time. They've been on the ground in the Lake Charles, Westlake, sulfur area monitoring for air quality. So they've been in here since the day the storm hit. I'm quite certain of that.

REPORTER: Also, guys, do you think they're becoming more frequent because of climate change, (INAUDIBLE)?

TRUMP: You don't have to take that. I'll just take it.

REPORTER: Mr. President, do you think storms like this are becoming more frequent because of climate change (INAUDIBLE)?

TRUMP: Well, that was the question I asked these folks, are the storms more frequent, are they bigger? In all fairness, you probably had your biggest storms, I think you said your biggest one was in the 1800s. But who knows, who knows. It might have been a very small storm by comparison. There's no way of really understanding that or knowing that.

But the area has been a storm area. There are tremendous advantages to being here. People love it. That's why they would never leave. They wouldn't even think about it.

I mean, one thing, I have -- I've met a lot of people. Not one person would even think about it, I think, have never even suggested it, that would be the end of them, right? So this is home. This is home.

John, would you like to answer that question? They're talking about the storms and frequency. Do you see a difference?

SEN. JOHN KENNEDY (R-LA): Well, let me first ask the cooperation with the press. I know what was a 20-foot storm surge, but not fitted with chocolate (ph). It did an extraordinary amount of damage. So far now, (INAUDIBLE), nine feet is devastating. And I flew over yesterday in Lake Charles, there may be (INAUDIBLE) more death and damage but I haven't seen anything (ph).

This time, it's 600 miles wide. Katrina was 400 miles wide.

[15:10:02]

We're they're thankful we didn't get a 20-foot storm surge. But imagine nine feet of water coming through that door right now, we're all dead. And that's -- CABRERA: We are going to continue to monitor this briefing. This is the briefing with the president who is in Louisiana. This is obviously an area that was hard hit by Hurricane Laura just a couple of days ago. We know at least 15 people in Louisiana and Texas are dead from the storm and at least a couple hundred thousand people remain without power at a time when it is extremely hot in the south right now. We'll continue to monitor that briefing.

In the meantime, I do want to get back to our conversation with former Homeland Security Jeh Johnson. Thank you so much for your patience and standing by.

Secretary Johnson, I think what you have to say and the expertise you have, given your role during the last election, the last presidential election in 2016, where we saw Russia's interference, I think you bring a very important perspective to this conversation and expertise and insight.

All of this information, knowing now that the ODNI is not going to be briefing Congress in-person, meaning we will not be briefing the American people in person through that outlet either, it all comes at a time as the president is continuing to hammer away at this message that Democrats, without evidence, are trying to rig the election through mail-in voting.

And I want you to listen to what he has just said recently.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: They're going to mail out 80 million ballots. It's impossible. They have no idea. Who is mailing them? Mostly Democrat states and Democrat governors. Well, supposing they don't mail them to Republican neighborhoods, that means they're not going to get them. So they're going to complain that the election is going to be over and then they're going to complain and then they'll say, oh, well, we didn't get it, big deal. In the meantime, you might lose the election.

This is the greatest scam in the history of politics.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CABRERA: Secretary Johnson, he calls it the greatest scam in the history of politics. How dangerous is this?

JOHNSON: It's an accusation without evidence, Ana. I have completed mail-in ballots myself here in the state of New Jersey. They are secure, they are efficient, and they enable the American people to participate in their democracy while we're still in the depths of this lethal pandemic. It is not plausible to have every American who is eligible to vote and can vote showing up at polling places to appear in person and wait in those lines.

And so it's entirely appropriate, in my judgment, for states, Democrat and Republican, red and blue, to offer voters the option of mail-in voting. That's not a partisan position. That's enabling our democracy to function while we're still in the depths of this crisis. And so I hear the president make that accusation, but we have yet to see any evidence in support of it.

CABRERA: Right. And yet we have seen evidence in support of the idea that there is foreign interference in the election through, you know, disinformation that's been put out there on social media, and, again, the intelligence that we've learned of recently through the Senate Intelligence report from 2016 in which they said that there were ongoing efforts that they were able to identify as well.

Coming back to our breaking news at the top of the hour and this idea that ODNI will no longer be briefing the American people, will not be briefing Congress specifically, and you talked about the importance of getting that information to the American people, can you understand their rationale for not doing this when they say they don't want undisclosed information to get out there?

Let me find the exact words. It says it is to protect sensitive intelligence from unauthorized disclosures and they're concerned about that and the idea of sensitive information getting out there following recent briefings.

JOHNSON: Ana, the intelligence community does this all the time. And I was part of that effort in 2016 when we made the statement we did on October 7, 2016. We felt it very important to inform the American people about what was going on while preserving sources and methods, and so we went through a process of declassifying what we could declassify.

And if you look at the reports from this administration's intelligence community issued on July 24 and August 7, they are quite detailed, they're fairly specific, but there are more questions that need to be answered. So the intelligence community has made a judgment that there is a fair amount that they can declassify and share with the American public.

This is an ongoing information op directed at the American people in the depths of this campaign season and I believe the American people are entitled to know a lot more rather than just through written submissions to the intelligence community.

[15:15:00]

This is what Congressional oversight in the intelligence community is for.

CABRERA: So, you're saying that their reasoning doesn't necessarily add up or it's not a valid reason? Is that what I'm hearing you say? Do you think it's political, that that's why they're choosing to go this route, that there's politics at play?

JOHNSON: I can't speculate about the underlying motives of those who have reached this decision, but I know from personal experience that if the intelligence community really wants to get out a fair amount of information that is important and relevant to the American people, they will figure out a way to declassify it. If you get into a hearing with Q&A and you're asked a question that elicits a classified response, you say so and you move on. It's as simple as that. CABRERA: I want to ask you about Chad Wolf. He is the acting DHS secretary right now, one of several acting currently in the Department of Homeland Security, and we saw him today -- or rather this week at the RNC. He was doing a naturalization ceremony with the president in a video that was taped earlier and then played in the evening during the Republican National Convention. And we saw the president in that, as well as in other moments throughout the RNC, using the White House for purely political purposes.

Based on what we saw there, based on what you know of Chad Wolf, do you have confidence in him going on to become the DHS secretary permanently? Because we know the president wants to nominate him to that role.

JOHNSON: I thought what happened was inappropriate, Ana. And I don't care whether there's some legal opinion written by a lawyer some place in DHS that says it was okay for the acting secretary to participate in a naturalization ceremony knowing that it was going to be used for political purposes as part of a political convention.

I think that the Department of Homeland Security, the secretary of Homeland Security should stay as far away from politics as possible. I went to extraordinary lengths myself to do that four years ago during the last presidential election.

The secretary of Homeland Security is responsible for the security of both conventions, by the way. And I made a point, because it was my job, to go to both convention sites, Republican and Democrat, to inspect the security at those locations before the conventions. And I wanted the public to know that the Department of Homeland Security was viewing those two events evenhandedly.

So I think that the Department of Homeland Security and the person who leads it, acting or not, really does need to rise above politics and not be exploited, frankly, in that kind of way.

CABRERA: Former Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson, thank you very much for being here.

JOHNSON: Thank you.

CABRERA: Today, fans are mourning the death of actor Chadwick Boseman. His role as the king of Wakanda in Black Panther inspired millions of people. The Howard University alum spoke in 2018 about having a purpose.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHADWICK BOSEMAN, AMERICAN ACTOR: Purpose crosses disciplines. Purpose is an essential element of you. It is the reason you are on the planet at this particular time in history. Your very existence is wrapped up in the things you are here to fulfill. Whatever you choose for a career path, remember the struggles along the way are only meant to shape you for your purpose.

(END VIDEO CLIP) CABRERA: More on the life and legacy of Chadwick Boseman just ahead live in the CNN Newsroom.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:20:00]

CABRERA: I'm going to take you live to Kenosha, Wisconsin, and you can see a crowd has gathered as part of a rally for Jacob Blake there. We are told we could hear from members of the Blake family momentarily. And if that and when that happens, we'll make sure to bring that to you live, so stay with us here in the CNN Newsroom. We'll continue to monitor that.

In the meantime, a brave superhero on screen, he was a brave fighter off screen as well. And today, family, friends and fans are mourning the loss of Black Panther star Chadwick Boseman. The 43-year-old had been privately battling colon cancer for four years, undergoing surgeries and chemotherapy, all while he kept making movies.

To many fans, he really was King T'Challa, the larger than life figure from a movie that became a defining moment for black America. Boseman also played a number of real life African-American icons, like Jackie Robinson, Thurgood Marshall, James Brown.

Former President Obama reacting to news of Boseman's passing, saying, quote, Chadwick came to the White House to work with kids when he was playing Jackie Robinson. You could tell right away that he was blessed to be young, gifted and black, to use that power to give them heroes to look up to, to do it all while in pain, what a use of his years.

Joining me now is CNN Contributor Nischelle Turner. Nischelle, how do you explain the gravity of this loss?

NISCHELLE TURNER, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: I don't, Ana. I don't. I mean, I woke up this morning after getting the news last night, like so many others and being just completely floored by it, trying to put words together to do television last night, waking up this morning thinking maybe I would have a clearer head, but I don't. Because just talking about Chadwick Boseman is the past tense is unreal to me and so many others.

I think the text messages that I've been getting today, the conversations I've been having today, that's the general consensus is that to so many, like you said, he was a king. He was King T'Challa. He brought that vision to the screen so so many black and brown little boys and girls could look up and see a superhero in their image. It meant a lot. It meant a lot to the community. It meant a lot to America as a whole to see these images and to see what he did with this character.

[15:25:05]

He was very proud to.

I mean -- and I interviewed him about Black Panther, and one of the things he was so proud about was that King T'Challa and the people of Wakanda were the smartest people in the Marvel universe and that meant something to him as a black man.

So all of those things that he did while walking this life and fighting this fight that we didn't know about and just showing us greatness every step of the way, it's just really hard to reckon with him being gone.

CABRERA: And it's so painful to know he was so young. I mean, his life had so much more, right? He had so much more he could do with it.

You re-tweeted one reporter who was remembering one of his interviews with Boseman as well.

TURNER: Oh, yes.

CABRERA: And let me just quote it for our viewers as we put it up on the screen here. The reporter asks, you came off of one Black Panther project, did Marshall and then made another Black Panther movie. Did you bulk up, slim down and then bulk up again? And Boseman, apparently, looking exhausted, responded, right, yes, yes.

The reporter said you've been through the wringer. And Boseman laughed while saying, oh, you don't even know. You have no idea. One day, I'll live to tell the story.

Wow, those words now, knowing what we now know, he was just so private, Nischelle, about this horrible health battle he was fighting. Why do you think that is?

TURNER: Well, he was private about a lot of things in his life. I mean, a lot of times you do find that in Hollywood, actors want to keep a little piece of themselves to themselves because they have so much that is public with their lives. But Chadwick always made sure when he spoke to reporters, when he spoke to us, the most kind, humble, generous man. But he wanted it to be about the work because that's what he believed in.

He also believed in the craft. He believed in this art and he believed that art could change how the world looks at things. And so he did that masterfully. But I think that he just -- you know, we can't ever judge how someone walks their walk. We just saw this with Kelly Preston and John Travolta. They kept her cancer battle very quiet. They wanted to do it as a family. They wanted to do it privately.

And, listen, I don't know but I fully believe that he -- the person that he is, thought -- thinking I'm going to beat this and I'm going to do everything I can. He did it while making these movies, Ana. He did it while bringing us Black Panther, while doing Civil War, while doing End Game, all of these Avengers movies, and Marshall and Da 5 Bloods that he was just in.

I will say though, none of us knew what the battle he was going through. He did appear very thin, especially lately. I saw him at the NBA All-Star game in February in Chicago and he did appear very thin. No one knew and it does hurt that some people, you know, surmised other things. I thought he was just taking on another role and I think he was -- he was taking on the role of a warrior in his own life.

But it's just -- I just lose words. I don't know what to say about this one. So many people are gutted behind this loss.

CABRERA: Well, he does have a legacy that he leaves behind, no doubt. Nischelle Turner, thank you for taking the time to share your reporting with us and your feelings about all of this.

Go ahead, one last moment.

TURNER: He does have a new movie out right now on Netflix, Da 5 Bloods. It's Spike Lee's new movie. And he is the central figure in it. He does great work. And so I would encourage everyone if they want to pay a little tribute to just go watch him in this movie.

CABRERA: Okay. Nischelle Turner, thank you.

TURNER: Sure.

CABRERA: And as we go to break, another live look at Kenosha, Wisconsin, where a crowd has gathered for a rally about Jacob Blake's shooting and we could hear from members of the Blake family. If and when that happens, we'll bring it to you live. So, don't go anywhere. Stay with us. You're live in the CNN Newsroom.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:33:22]

CABRERA: The president is visiting areas hit hard by Hurricane Laura. His first stop was Lake Charles, Louisiana. We brought you those live images earlier when he was speaking with first responders and local officials.

The city sustained widespread damage from that category 4 hurricane early Thursday morning. And the death toll in Louisiana and Texas continues to climb, rising to 15 today.

Gary Tuchman joins us from Lake Charles.

Gary, what is the president's goal for today's visit?

GARY TUCHMAN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Ana, after Hurricane Katrina, exactly 15 years ago, when the response from President Bush was widely criticized, other presidents, meaning Barack Obama and Donald Trump, and every future president, I guarantee, in our lifetime, will know the smart thing to do is to show up quickly when there's a large hurricane. And that's what President Donald Trump did.

Even smarter, even more brilliant is delivering some message that is considered that you have a lot of humanity. And that's what Donald Trump tried to do today.

He toured an area that had widespread destruction. It wasn't hard to find. The neighborhood he was in had downed power lines, downed trees, devastated houses. There are 200, 300 more of them and maybe more than that.

We've seen a lot of them over the last few days here in Lake Charles, population 78,000. He toured the neighborhood, saw with his own eyes what's going on.

He also went to a relief distribution center where there's food and water.

And it's desperately needed right now because not only do we have more than a half a million people here in southwestern Louisiana without power, most people here, almost all people in Lake Charles have no water.

The water plants are broken so there's no water. There's no stores. There's no restaurants. There's no gas stations. They need those relief supplies.

[15:35:03]

He also had a round table with first responders, with FEMA officials, with Louisiana state officials, with a U.S. Senator, the governor, talking about what's going on.

The president said a couple of things that were very true. He said this was a more powerful hurricane than Katrina. He said it was the most powerful hurricane to hit Louisiana in 150 years. That is true.

He also said a couple things that are not true, including that it used to be, before it hit, a category 5 storm with winds of 175-180 miles per hour. That was not true.

And it's a good thing it wasn't true because this hurricane never got weaker. It got up to 150 and then it hit the coast causing this devastation.

As you said, Ana, the death toll is at 15. Twelve here in the state of Louisiana, three in Texas. That's very sad. We're hoping it doesn't get higher but it could because there's still search-and-rescue going on.

President Trump is about to leave here in Louisiana. He'll make a 35- mile trip over the border to Orange, Texas, to continue his hurricane tour.

Ana, back to you.

CABRERA: Gary Tuchman, those images behind you are just striking. Our hearts go out to all the people in that community.

Thank you for the reporting.

Coming up, new secret recordings of the president's sister and her not-so-kind words about two of his children. We'll have the president's response next.

You're live in the CNN NEWSROOM. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:40:22]

CABRERA: New recordings of the president's older sister, retired federal judge, Maryanne Trump Barry, talking about her brother and the first family.

The conversations were secretly taped by her niece, Mary Trump, who is also the president's niece, a psychologist and best-selling author of "Too Much and Never Enough, How My Family Created the World's Most Dangerous Man."

In the first clip, you hear Judge Barry talking about president's children, his elder daughter, Ivanka, plus, Eric Trump's place in the Trump family pecking order.

(BEGIN AUDIO FEED)

MARYANNE TRUMP BARRY, SISTER OF PRESIDENT TRUMP: When that damned Ivanka puts this picture of the Madonna and child on Instagram, when the big news of the day was how kids are --

(CROSSTALK)

TRUMP BARRY: -- being ripped from their families, I couldn't blame -- I never heard of Samantha Bee before. I could blame what she said.

Meanwhile, Eric has become the moron publicly. Ivanka, gives a (EXPLETIVE DELETED). It's all about her.

MARY TRUMP, NIECE OF PRESIDENT TRUMP: Yes, she's a mini Donald.

TRUMP BARRY: She's a mini Donald. But, yet, he's besotted with her. He always has been. She's always been his favorite.

(END AUDIO FEED)

CABRERA: In this next clip, you hear Judge Barry talking about her brother's approach to money and his church attendance.

(BEGIN AUDIO FEED)

TRUMP BARRY: And then you get Donald, who won't do anything for anybody unless it's going to inure to his -- I mean --

(CROSSTALK)

TRUMP BARRY: -- he won't do any -- publicly. I mean, if you -- anything he did, he says, "Look what I've done, aren't I wonderful."

(CROSSTALK)

TRUMP BARRY: And he's as tight as a duck's ass, just like dad was.

(CROSSTALK) TRUMP BARRY: The only time Donald went to church that I know of, you know, at least when dad wasn't bringing us was --

(CROSSTALK)

MARY TRUMP: When he got married.

TRUMP BARRY: Yes. And over the last several years when the cameras were at the church.

MARY TRUMP: Exactly.

(END AUDIO FEED)

CABRERA: CNN's Anderson Cooper spoke to Mary Trump, the niece, about why she made these recordings.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN HOST: You secretly recorded her saying these things. Your aunt didn't know she was being taped. Have you faced any backlash from her -- from the family since you've released some of these?

MARY TRUMP: No, I haven't heard from anybody.

COOPER: Why did you decide to record your aunt?

MARY TRUMP: Originally, it was for personal reasons. I had no intention of ever releasing them publicly. That was not the purpose of them at all. It was essentially for my protection.

So it wasn't until extremely recently that I made the decision to make the tapes, the recordings public.

COOPER: When you say for your protection, what do you mean?

MARY TRUMP: Well, you know, in conversations with her, certain discrepancies arose in the context of past litigations that we had that I found disturbing.

And I just wanted to have that on record in case I ever needed to. Because I understand how this family operates and, you know, you need to bring the receipts.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CABRERA: In response, President Trump described Mary Trump as an unstable niece, who is now rightfully shunned, scorned and mocked her entire life, and never even liked by her own very kind and caring grandfather.

Coming up, the president holds another crowded rally. And this is what happened when supporters were asked to put on their masks.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) [15:44:13]

ANNOUNCER: Please wear masks.

(BOOING)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANNOUNCER: Ladies and gentlemen, in accordance with New Hampshire Executive Order 63, please wear masks.

(BOOING)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CABRERA: You heard that right, folks. Those were Trump supporters in New Hampshire booing when they were told to put on their masks at a Trump rally because there's this deadly pandemic still going on.

Joining us now, Dr. Celine Gounder, the former New York City assistant commissioner of health and host of the "Epidemic" podcast.

Dr. Gounder, that event last night, along with the crowd we saw on Thursday night at the White House with the RNC, involved more than 1,000 people packed together for hours.

Did we just see possibly to back-to-back super spreaders?

DR. CELINE GOUNDER, CNN MEDICAL ANALYST: Well, Ana, we know that crowding lots of people together, close together indoors without masks are basically the fodder for spreading of coronavirus.

[15:49:59]

Now, a couple things going for this not being a super spreader event, either one of them, is that these were events held outside. That said, people were not wearing masks. And they were packed close together.

So, there certainly is a risk that transmission could have occurred in that setting.

CABRERA: A study out of the University of Washington found that if wearing a mask in public increased to 95 percent, more than 67,000 lives could be saved.

Right now, they estimate mask wearing has declined to less than 50 percent of the population.

Do you think it's a realistic possibility to see 95 percent mask wearing in public?

GOUNDER: I think the problem is that masks have become a political symbol, a sign of your allegiance to a certainly social group.

And so you're really going to have to have political leaders from both sides of the aisle message clearly to their constituencies that this is an important measure to take to prevent transmission and they need to role model that behavior themselves.

And so, absent that, I think some people will feel stigmatized by their family and friends for wearing a mask because they're not showing the appropriate allegiance to their political party or social group.

CABRERA: I mean, it could also be complacency, you know, people feeling a little bit more comfortable, getting out and about. It's been summer, outdoors, lot of people are hot wearing those masks.

I mean, I suppose that could also be one of the reasons people aren't wearing masks all the time.

But again, the numbers say it could save thousands of lives. So such an important data point there for people to know about and just doing that simple thing.

I also want to ask you about, you know, what we witnessed and heard during the president's RNC acceptance speech. This is what he said about a coronavirus vaccine.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We are delivering life- saving therapies and will produce a vaccine before the end of the year or maybe even sooner.

(CHEERING)

TRUMP: We will defeat the virus and the pandemic and emerge stronger than ever before.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CABRERA: Dr. Gounder, if that's true, that they will produce a vaccine that fast, does that raise any red flags for you?

GOUNDER: Well, we may well see FDA regulators reviewing data on some of the vaccine candidates as early as this fall, late fall.

However, it's really important that that process of reviewing the data, vetting these vaccines, is done in a nonpolitical way. Unlike what we saw, for example, with the convalescent plasma emergency use authorization in this past week.

When you bulldoze through the scientific process, you're going to, one, approve things that are not proven safe and effective.

And, two, you're going to have a lot of people nervous about accepting that treatment or that vaccine. And that's really going to shoot us in the foot long-term if we don't

get people vaccinated with what is eventually an effective and safe coronavirus vaccine.

CABRERA: And Dr. Gounder, I have to ask you about the two cases of possible coronavirus reinfection we're hearing about, a 33-year-old man in Hong Kong and a 25-year-old man from Nevada.

The man from Hong Kong suffered symptoms the first time but then he was asymptomatic the second time around. And they were 142 days apart.

The man from Nevada was believed to be reinfected a little over one month after his first fight against the virus ended. And he was hospitalized and required ongoing oxygen the second time around.

What do you make of these two very different cases?

GOUNDER: Well, what we don't know right now is how common is it for somebody to have a coronavirus infection. Maybe they never developed immunity at all, maybe that immunity waned, and then to be re- infected, is that common? Or is that a one-in-a-million fluke, kind of strange occurrence?

And the thing is that we are seeing millions of cases of coronavirus around the world. So you will eventually see those odd one-in-a- million cases that may not be the general rule.

So, that's something that we really need to drill down on and better understand the general immune response to coronavirus infection.

CABRERA: Dr. Celine Gounder, I always appreciate your expertise. Thank you so much for joining us.

When COVID-19 first hit, animal shelters across the United States emptied out quickly as people wanted to quarantine with their four- legged friends.

And "CNN Hero" Sherri Franklin, who finds homes for senior dogs, has been working hard to find new ways to safely place as many as possible. And it's as adorable as ever.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(BARKING)

SHERRI FRANKLIN, "CNN HERO": When we got the shelter-in-place order for the COVID-19, we moved 86 dogs into foster homes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Good morning, everyone.

FRANKLIN: We are having meet and greets, virtually, so that new doctors can meet their dogs before they actually touch them.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: How's that feel?

[15:54:59] FRANKLIN: It's really been so heartwarming to actually see the first time the new adopter actually gets to meet their dog in person.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Look.

(CROSSTALK)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There's your mama.

(CROSSTALK)

FRANKLIN: It's a great time if you've been thinking about adopting a dog. It's nice to be able to wake up and not focus on the bad news.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CABRERA: To see her full story, go to CNNheroes.com right now.

Stay with us.

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