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One Person Shot And Killed During Portland Protests; Trump To Visit Kenosha, Wisconsin Following Deadly Shootings And Protests; Activists Call For An End To Systemic Racism In America; Trump Supporters Preparing Motorcade Through Los Angeles; Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA) Says, Democrats May Subpoena Intel Officials To Testify Before Congress; Louisiana Governor Warns Of A Decline In Coronavirus Testing In Wake Of Hurricane Laura Devastation. Aired 2-3p ET

Aired August 30, 2020 - 14:00   ET

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

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[14:00:15]

BIANNA GOLODRYGA, CNN ANCHOR: Hi, everyone. Thanks so much for joining me.

I'm Bianna Golodryga, in for Fredricka Whitfield.

We begin this hour with another protest turning deadly as the nation comes to grips with the fallout over racial injustice. Those protests are increasingly becoming a flashpoint in the race for president with the election now just 65 days away.

Last night, a man was shot and killed in Portland, Oregon during protests. A warning, some of the video you are about to see is disturbing.

"The New York Times" reports that the victim was wearing clothing affiliated with the far right group Patriot Prayer. CNN has reached out to Portland police for details on the victim and any additional suspect information but they have not released any details yet.

The victim was apparently part of a group of Trump supporters rallying against Black Lives Matter demonstrators. Overnight President Trump placed his supporters as patriots. All this as we learn that the president is planning to make a trip to Kenosha, Wisconsin on Tuesday.

It was just days ago that two people were shot during protests there. A 17-year-old is charged in those shootings. The president will speak with law enforcement and survey some damage from protests.

Last hour I spoke with "New York Times" correspondent Mike Baker. He was at the scene of the deadly shooting in Portland and here's what he had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOLODRYGA: Walk us through this. Because not only were you documenting it, you were actually hit by paintballs from Trump supporters. MIKE BAKER, "NEW YORK TIMES" CORRESPONDENT: Yes. So we really started

out in the suburbs. There was a huge rally of Trump supporters gathering there. A lot of people with trucks and flags on their trucks gathering and their plan was to drive around the city, on the city's highways, sort of not really get into downtown but drive around the city's highways.

But a lot of that crowd broke off and did go downtown and when they did, when they got there, there was a growing crowd of protesters who were opposed to the presence of this large Trump rally in the city and it really devolved from there.

GOLODRYGA: And we are looking at that video that you filmed last night. Did you see any violence between these two groups escalate as the night went on? Was there any indication that it could end in gunfire?

BAKER: Yes. I mean really, as soon as the -- both groups sort of got together it was increasingly volatile throughout the night. I mean we saw video there of paint balls being fired from the back of pickup trucks and people in the crowd throwing things back.

There were at times cars that were -- vehicles that were blocked and people getting out and fist fights happening in the streets. I mean there was growing tensions there and also this is like kind of scattered throughout downtown with a lot of these vehicles driving down different streets up and down different streets ad you had protesters sort of pursuing them in different parts of downtown and so that -- while police showed up a few times to sort of redirect traffic or to keep the groups apart, really, you know, it's so dispersed throughout downtown that it really became something that they couldn't handle.

GOLODRYGA: And talk about the police presence. How present was it? Was it visible? And what role were they playing if any?

BAKER: Yes. I mean really when the first part of the caravan showed up downtown there were some protesters that went out on one of the bridges to block the caravan from coming through, the police showed up then sort of cleared the streets. And then they were sort of in and out throughout the night sort of trying to keep the caravan off in one direction and the protesters away from them. But it's -- and then after -- they were downtown throughout the night and were there on scene of the shooting pretty soon after it happening.

GOLODRYGA: But they were outnumbered obviously?

BAKER: I mean there's -- I mean we're talking about hundreds of counter protesters and hundreds of trucks with Trump flags on them and going in all different directions so it seemed like they didn't have the capacity to sort of spend the entire time period in downtown keeping all those different sort of factions apart from each other.

GOLODRYGA: And it is my understanding that you followed this motorcade that was showing support for President Trump. What did you hear from them? You can hear people exchanging verbal I guess assaults at each other but what was their goal in holding this event during such a volatile time in the city?

BAKER: So in talking to them, they really wanted to just show their presence. They felt like, you know. Portland's been a place that's been controlled by the protesters over the last few months, and you know, they're supporting the president and wanted to go into Portland to demonstrate that.

[14:04:58]

BAKER: And some -- I think for some, demonstrate that there wasn't a fear of going into downtown Portland and having their say. You know? Certainly could see some people who had already brought gun to the protests even out in the suburbs. They were open carrying. They were, you know, shouting down some of the activists who had coming up to demonstrate against the protests.

And then, you know, driving through downtown they had -- you know, had the paint ball guns in the back of the truck. They were ready for some sort of conflict if one arose.

GOLODRYGA: And Mike now knowing that the president will be there Tuesday, do you anticipate that these groups, both those who are supporting Trump and those who are not will only increase their presence with the president there on the ground?

I mean this has basically been the third consecutive weekend where we have had some sort of right wing conflict with left wing groups that has involved guns. And it's two weeks ago one of the right wing demonstrators fired two gunshots out of his vehicle according to authorities and has been charged in that case. You know, last weekend we saw open fighting in the streets between some far right activists who were in town and the same left wing protesters. And in that case you had one of the right wing folks brandishing a gun.

So, you know, this has been three consecutive weekends of this happening and certainly some violence like we saw last night that didn't seem like it's going to be something that will end it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GOLODRYGA: And our thanks to "The New York Times'" Mike Baker for laying that out for us.

Well, as those protests unfolded in Portland, President Trump was tweeting between midnight and 8:00 this morning, he tweeted or retweeted nearly 90 times and that has some officials worrying that he may be fanning the flames.

CNN's Jeremy Diamond is at the White House.

And Jeremy, what is the administration saying about all those protests? Because it's not as if he may be fanning the flames, it appears that that's exactly what he is doing.

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes. And what the president is not doing here is, he is not urging for calm. He is not trying to de-escalate the situation that is happening in Portland or in Kenosha, Wisconsin for that matter.

Instead what we saw is the president in 89 tweets most of them focused on trying to amplify these contents of conflict between the President's own supporters and these Black Lives Matter protesters specifically in the city of Portland.

And the President is also here clearly trying to project strength. He is focusing on talking about law and order, calling the Black Lives Matters protesters thugs and suggesting that once again a federal intervention here with National Guard troops is what is needed, not something that would de-escalate the situation and that is where Adam Schiff the top democrat on the House Intelligence Committee comes in saying that the president here is fanning the flames of division. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. ADAM SCHIFF (D-CA: The president is willfully fanning the flames of this violence. As his adviser Kellyanne Conway said last week, they believe the violence is helpful to them. And the president is only motivated by one thing, what's in it for him. And he sees this violence and the -- his ability to agitate more of it as useful to his campaign.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DIAMOND: And there is no question, Bianna, that the president does see the violence that is happening in some of these cities as useful to his campaign as Adam Schiff just said there.

The president has made no secret of this. You saw it all last week during the RNC, the president talking about law and order. And of course, the irony here is that the president is trying to use the violence that is happening in some of these cities to try and associate that with his presidential rival Joe Biden.

And the White House chief of staff Mark Meadows was asked about that today, asked about the fact that this is all happening ultimately in Donald Trump's America. Mark Meadows' response was to say that most of Donald Trump's America is peaceful and he argued that it's the president who is the one offering the federal support here, not the one refusing it as the mayor of Portland is indeed doing.

So again, there is certainly a dichotomy there and an irony to the fact that the president is trying to use this to paint his rival Joe Biden as weak on crime, weak on law and order even though he hasn't expressed support for the more violent aspects of these protests. In fact he has condemned them. instead the president though clearly trying to use this as an attack line in the next few weeks of this campaign.

GOLODRYGA: Well, we shouldn't lose sight of the fact that by focusing on this he's not talking about the coronavirus where we have seen now approaching nearly 200,000 Americans who have died throughout this year because of this. The president clearly not wanting to focus on that right now. And Jeremy, the president as we know is planning to visit Kenosha, Wisconsin on Tuesday. And this just days after two people were killed there. What are you learning about that trip? And what does it mean regarding tension on the ground as he approaches?

[14:09:51]

DIAMOND: Yes, the president's going to be answering an extremely combustible situation here and it is hard to see how Donald Trump who is not somebody who has chosen to really step into that consoler in chief role that we see previous presidents play during times of national tragedy and division.

That is not a role the president has chosen to play. Instead as we have been talking about he chooses more often than not to try and amplify the divisions and to put a spotlight on the things that he thinks will help him politically and that is what we expect him to do on Tuesday.

The White House has said that the president will visit Kenosha not to meet with Jacob Blake or his family but instead to survey some of the damage from the rioting that has happened there and to meet with law enforcement officials. And so that is what we are expecting on Tuesday. The lieutenant governor of that state already saying we don't need that. We don't need the president to be showing up in Kenosha, Bianna.

GOLODRYGA: All right. Jeremy Diamond, I know you'll stay on those story for us. Thank you so much.

Well, some officials in Kenosha, Wisconsin say that President Trump's plan to visit might make things worse. We'll have a live report from Kenosha next on CNN NEWSROOM.

And later hear from some New Yorkers who say they were tricked into appearing on tape at the Republican National Convention. We'll explain why.

Stay with us.

[14:11:01]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GOLODRYGA: Officials in Wisconsin are expressing concern as President Trump plans to visit Kenosha on Tuesday. The President is set to survey damage and meet with law enforcement officials as activists call on the White House to denounce the actions of the 17-year-old Trump supporter charged with killing two protesters there.

CNN's Shimon Prokupecz joins me now from Kenosha. And Shimon does the President plan to do anything to try to unite the nation during that visit?

SHIMON PROKUPECZ, CNN CRIME AND JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Yes. and that's the big question. Beyond the purpose of visiting law enforcement here, the White House has not indicated why else the president is coming here.

And as you can imagine, a lot of the local leaders here are not happy. They feel that things here have been quiet, has been peaceful and there is concern that they can ignite something. And they're trying to keep the peace and it's been very peaceful here for the last few days.

One local leader saying that they do not want him here. I spoke to residents here who are mixed about it. One person telling me also they do not want him here.

The lieutenant governor spoke out about this and this is what he said.

LT. GOV. MANDELAS BARNES (D-WI): You look at the incendiary remarks the president has made. They centered in higher convention around creating more animosity and creating division around what's going on in Kenosha.

So I don't know how given any of the previous statements that the president made that he intends to come here to be helpful and we absolutely don't need that right now.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PROKUPECZ: And this all comes, you know, just to give some context to all of this, as the November election approaches. Trump won this county, Kenosha County. He was the first Republican in over 44 years to win this county and, of course, he won this state by less than 23,000 votes.

This is an important swing state so keep that in mind as his visit approaches here on Tuesday, Bianna.

GOLODRYGA: Clearly politics front and center for the president. Shimon Prokupecz, thank you so much.

And joining me now to discuss is Christy Clark-Pujara, a historian and Afro-American studies professor at the University of Wisconsin's Madison campus.

Thank you so much for joining us. She's also the author, we should not, of "Dark Work: The Business of Slavery in Rhode Island".

So let me begin. Some people in this country have the misconception that racism is primarily a Southern issue. We're seeing this play out in Wisconsin this week. How important is it to understand the many ways in which white supremacy can be deeply rooted throughout the country, not just in the South?

CHRISTY CLARK-PUJARA, UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN'S MADISON: I think it's essential that we understand that racism never was just a southern issue. That it was a national one. And the misconception largely comes from the fact that most people think of slavery as being a southern institution, race-based slavery in particular when, in fact, it was a national one.

And I always like to talk about specifics when I remind people of that. So in 1827, a man by the name of Henry Dodge moved to the Wisconsin territory then, it wasn't a state yet. Dodge becomes the first territorial governor of Wisconsin and his name is all over monuments, parks, buildings in the state -- very well-known.

What isn't well-known is that Henry Dodge brought five enslaved people with him from his home state of Missouri -- Toby, Jim, Leer (ph), Joe and Tom -- who he held illegally enslaved in the Wisconsin territory for over 11 years. Slavery was supposed to be prohibited in the northwest territories but scholars have been saying for decades at this point that that ban on slavery wasn't worth the paper it was written on.

And Henry Dodge held five people in bondage two years after he became territorial governor. And wasn't contested much in the state, that race-based slavery operated even in places that we don't think it operated like Wisconsin.

GOLODRYGA: And one of the reasons why it's so important to know the history is to understand what's playing out today, right? And it gives us a better sense of what we're seeing on the ground.

We're so familiar with these kinds of protests in major U.S. cities but we talk about a city like Kenosha, for many Americans it's the first time that they have really known much about it and you say that racial tensions and issues with police have existed there long before the Jacob Blake shooting.

How important is it to view the unrest we're seeing through that lens?

[14:19:46]

CLARK-PUJARA: I think it's critical. And when I say long before, I'm not talking ten years, 20 years or even 100 years. I'm talking in that white supremacy has been part of the bedrock of this place that we now call Wisconsin since its very formation. And that is not my opinion. It is just a statement of fact.

We can look at the founding document of the state, the 1848 constitution, that privileges, whiteness above anything else when it came to suffrage.

So if you were a foreign-born white man in Wisconsin and after 1848 and you were not a citizen but you declared an intention to become a citizen, were over the age of 21 and had lived in the territory or state for a year, you could vote. Black men could not.

And this ban on black men voting was ideological. There were less than a thousand black people in the state. But whiteness and citizenship and belonging and worthy settlement and I say "settlement" in quotes because Native people were here and the area was already settled.

But the idea of belonging, of citizenship was so conflated with whiteness that you didn't even need to be a citizen, you just needed to be white. Black men were explicitly banned from voting and that is not overturned until 1866 when Ezekiel Gillespie successfully sued for the right to vote. So white supremacy is something that has been part of the Wisconsin project from the very beginning.

GOLODRYGA: And yet, white and black cohesiveness and living side by side, working together as neighbors, is so important to get us through these next crucial months and years ahead.

And you talk about what we see on the ground now in these protests. You see many white faces. You see black elected officials. What is the takeaway that people who see this transformation and this change and progress that we have made thus far, even though there's so much more work to be done? What should the takeaway be from where we are right now? And should we be inspired by the multitude of ethnicities that we see on the grounds and on the streets?

CLARK-PUJARA: I think that we have to remember that it's complex. So the white supremacy I just kind of laid out there in the race-based slavery and the founding document of the state, it did not go uncontested. So Wisconsin was also a place that refused to enact the 1850 Fugitive Slave Law. It's also a place where a freedom seeker, sometimes they're referred to as runaway slave was broken out of a jail and spirited away to Canada.

These things have always been contested in our histories. The problem is when we don't tell a full story and it seems like things come out of nowhere. We are capable of pulling together. I could go right back do black suffrage which I talked about earlier, when Ezekiel Gillespie went to the polls to vote, he had done this on many occasions. The last time he went he brought a white abolitionist with him by the name of Sherman Booth who was a white abolitionist lawyer, right, who helped him file his suit.

Like we can look to the past to see why we still have such disparities but we can also look to the past to see where we can correct those disparities and that we have always been fully capable of recognizing the humanity in one another and working toward a better union.

GOLODRYGA: And that's why it's so important to embrace that potential perfect union and that's why it's important to have historians like you and professors who keep teaching us about our past so we can learn more about our future.

Christy Clark-Pujara, thank you so much. We really appreciate it.

CLARK-PUJARA: Thank you for having me.

GOLODRYGA: Well, some New Yorkers say they were tricked into appearing on tape for the Republican National Convention. You'll hear from them coming up next on CNN NEWSROOM.

[14:24:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GOLODRYGA: We are watching protests unfold across the country over racial injustice and there's a growing movement among some of the president's supporters to meet these protests head on. Right now a group is gathering in Los Angeles and CNN's Paul Vercammen is there with the group. Paul, what are you seeing there behind you?

PAUL VERCAMMEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, I'll show you, Bianna. This is the San Fernando Valley, Woodland Hills to be specific in Los Angeles, considered a very blue city but look over here. We are seeing at least, I would count, 200 cars that are ready to launch just moments from now in a pro Donald Trump caravan. You can see the flags waving. You can hear the horns honking.

We talked to some of these demonstrators. One of them saying they wanted to show solidarity for President Trump after what happened last night in Portland, Oregon. Another man telling me that he's a lifelong Democrat or at least had been, that went to the high school that they're parked in. They're parked in the Taft High School parking lot. He said he is now finding that he supports President Trump.

The line of cars goes way down Ventura Boulevard and this protest is going to continue on into Studio City. So it's going to move down and then across the street we'll show you that, a counter demonstration has popped up among the signs "Trump fooled you" and also "Trump lied". "180,000 dead", "black lives matter".

[14:29:54]

VERCAMMEN: So far we have seen only a peaceful demonstration on both sides. And it looks like the caravan is just about ready to go here in Woodland Hills, Bianna. Back to you.

GOLODRYGA: Let's hope it does stay peaceful. Not a sight you expect to see every day there in the heart of Los Angeles. Paul Vercammen, thank you.

While conversations surrounding race in this country is being amplified by athletes and now we're hearing from the head coach of the Seattle Seahawks who says that when it comes to race, white people need to listen more.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PETE CARROLL, HEAD COACH, SEATTLE SEAHAWKS: The really amazing thing that I have learned is black people know the truth. They know exactly what is going on. It's white people that don't know. It's not that they're not telling us. They have been telling us, the stories. We know what's right and wrong. We just have not been open to listen to it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GOLODRYGA: The demand for racial equality is a message we're hearing throughout the sports world and that includes tennis. Leading those efforts is tennis champion Naomi Osaka. Earlier this week, Osaka announced on Twitter that she wouldn't play in her semi-final match in protest, saying, quote, watching the continued genocide of black people at the hand of the police is honestly making me sick to my stomach.

When asked about her decision, here is what Osaka told reporters. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NAOMI OSAKA, TENNIS CHAMPION: Being more aware of the impact that my voice can have and I feel like this is a really big example but -- and it happened really early on.

And, honestly, I'm more of a follower than a leader. And I like to follow things. So I was just waiting and waiting, but then I just realized that maybe I would have to be the one to take the first step.

GOLODRYGA: Wow, what a revolution there. And CNN Sports Correspondent Carolyn Manno is in New York ahead of the Tennis U.S. Open there tomorrow. And, Carolyn, that was eye-opening to hear Osaka say that she has always been a follower and it's a bit harder to be a leader and she made that step and it was a big step. It's something that the sports world has been talking about almost as much as what the NBA has been doing.

And we know, unfortunately, she suffered a hamstring injury and may not be at full strength for this year's tournament. But following what she did, could we see more protests from other tennis players?

CAROLYN MANNO, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: Good afternoon, Bianna. Well, the sense I get is not at the moment. In speaking with a source inside the bubble behind who is me privy to those sorts of conversations with event organizers, the plan right now is to move forward as scheduled on Monday.

But you raise a great point about Naomi Osaka. She is normally very soft spoken, she is very reserved. It was her actions that spoke very, very loudly last week. The decision to withdraw here was hers. She made the decision alone. And it really shows you the tremendous power that the 22-year-old wields. She is the highest earning female athlete in the entire world and everybody took notice. Even her fellow athletes, including 16-year-old Coco Gauff.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

COCO GAUFF, 16-YEAR-OLD AMERICAN TENNIS PLAYER: We are on a global sport and we can reach people across the world. And I think it's important that people use the platform. And my take on it is just to continue to use sport to build my voice and make it louder so I can reach more people and create change.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MANNO: Bianna, when you consider what's happening across sports leagues, there is this notion from some athletes that there is power in the platform. Barack Obama consoling NBA players, urging them to use their immense platform for the greater good, and there is no bigger platform right now in tennis with the U.S. Open that's scheduled to begin. It's the first major since the pandemic.

It's also worth pointing out that we're standing right in front of Arthur Ashe Stadium. He continues to be the only black man to have ever won a men's singles title in both the U.S. Open and Wimbledon. But on the women's side, particularly in American tennis, there is a group of star diverse women who are coming together, creating change and urging everybody to kind of join this narrative. And Coco Gauff and Naomi Osaka are certainly among them.

GOLODRYGA: And it's so important to point that out, not only in the world of basketball and baseball and football but now tennis as well. Carolyn Manno, thank you so much.

Well, W. Kamau Bell has not one but two episodes of United Shades of America tonight on CNN and he joins me now live now from Oakland.

Kamau, we need to hear from you more than ever right now, so I'm glad you have these two episodes coming up. And before we talk about them, let me just get your thoughts on what's transpiring in the country once again these past few days.

W. KAMAU BELL, CNN HOST: And to be honest, this week has been very hard for me and a lot of other people and we are not even directly affected by what happened in Kenosha but just the idea that we're having the same conversations now that we had a few months ago after George Floyd was killed. And it seems like nothing has changed in those months.

And so I think this has been a very difficult week to have to process all of that stuff again and to hear people once again say, what should we do differently? Well, we told you months ago what you should do differently.

GOLODRYGA: And yet it's continuing. You're right to be frustrated right now. And I know you have two episodes, as we mentioned, of United Shades of America tonight. The first is a look at what it's like for Iranian immigrants in the U.S.

[14:35:01]

Such an important issue, we haven't heard much about it. Let's take a listen to the clip.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Can you say something?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Say what?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She wants to --

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, I have to say a joke?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Okay, I get it. Okay, what do you call a cool mushroom?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A fun guy.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I understood but I don't think it's funny. UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You know what, Kamau knows more jokes than me.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I have a joke.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GOLODRYGA: So, what, Kamau? Did that joke bomb? I saw the look on your face. It was a very sweet interaction. Tell me more about what you learned with this episode.

BELL: Well, I think a lot of times, most times in the news when we talk about Iran, we're only talking about it is an enemy of the United States. And I think what we forgetting is that there are large population of Iranian-Americans here who left Iran to pursue the dreams of freedom of the United States, things that they couldn't get in Iran.

And those people -- it is a story of patriotism, of immigrant stories, of assimilation, of trying to hold on to your culture. And I'm glad we played that clip because too often times in the media, we frame Iran as only an enemy and not stories like that.

GOLODRYGA: Look, as someone who came to this country as a young child from the Soviet Union, I can completely relate. That's why it's so important that you have pieces like this. I will definitely be tuning in. I hope everyone does as well.

W. Kamau Bell, thank you so much.

And don't miss United Shades of America tonight starting 9:00. And we will be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[14:40:00]

GOLODRYGA: A top Democrat says it's possible the House may subpoena intelligence officials to testify before Congress on election security issues. The threat comes one day after the nation's top intelligence office informed Congress that it will not deliver in-person briefings on election security issues. It's a decision sparking outrage among many Democrats, including House Intelligence Chairman Adam Schiff, who was asked about the controversy today on CNN.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DANA BASH, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Will you subpoena intelligence officials to appear in public in a hearing before the election?

REP. ADAM SCHIFF (D-CA): That is certainly one of the tools that we may use. I can't speak for what decision ultimately we'll make. That's a decision that will have to go to the speaker. But we will compel the intelligence community to give Congress the information that we need. We'll compel the intelligence community also to speak plainly to the American people because, Dana, this information, this intelligence paid for by taxpayers doesn't belong to Donald Trump, it doesn't belong to the intelligence agencies. It belongs to the American people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GOLODRYGA: John Ratcliffe, the director of National Intelligence, is defending the decision to stop in-person election security briefings and he's accusing members of Congress of leaking classified intel and distorting the threat Russia poses to the U.S.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN RATCLIFFE, DIRECTOR OF NATIONAL INTELLIGENCE: I reiterated to Congress, look, I'm going to keep you fully and currently informed as required by the law, but I also said, we're not going to do a repeat of what happened a month ago when I did more than was required at the request of Congress to brief not just the oversight committees but every member of Congress.

When I did that, Maria, I said, my only condition is that you treat this information with the respect that it deserves and you keep it private. And yet within minutes of that, one of those briefing ending, a number of members of Congress went to a number of different publications and leaked classified information, again, for political purposes, to create a narrative that simply isn't true, that somehow Russia is a greater national security threat than China.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GOLODRYGA: Meanwhile, we should note that all the available intelligence does suggest that Russia is more sophisticated and a greater threat to national intelligence than China is on U.S. elections.

Well, the president on Saturday expressed support for the decision to end in-person election security briefings.

A video that played during the Republican Convention is stirring controversy. Several of the New York public housing tenants who were featured in an RNC video criticizing Mayor Bill de Blasio and New York Housing Authority now say that they were misled about their role in the video. Those people claimed they had no idea that the video would be used as part of a GOP convention and their upset that the video made it appear that they support President Trump's re-election.

CNN's Evan McMorris-Santoro is following this for us. And, Evan, I know you spoke with some of these tenants. What are they saying now?

EVAN MCMORRIS-SANTORO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Bianna. I spent some time with them this morning up in East Harlem. This story's a little complicated so I have written it down. I'm going to read a little bit of it as we go through this.

At the Republican National Convention on Thursday night, Republicans showed a video featuring elected members of tenant boards at New York housing projects. The video was pro-Trump but many of the people in it tell CNN they do not support the president. They say the video was selectively edited in a way they don't like. And they're blaming a top member of the Trump team, former Eric Trump aide and current HUD official Lynne Patton for what they say is a deception.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MCMORRIS-SANTORO: Who deceived you?

CLAUDIA PEREZ, NYC HOUSING TENANT, UPSET ABOUT BEING FEATURED IN RNC VIDEO: Lynne Patton, the HUD regional director of New York City Housing Authority.

MCMORRIS-SANTORO: Do you feel like she owes you an apology? But what is your feeling towards her right now?

PEREZ: I have no comment for her because, again, I do feel that I'm owed an apology because of the impact that it has had on me personally. And at this point I just have no conversation for her because I was used this manner.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MCMORRIS-SANTORO: Now, Patton is pushing back on this. She tells CNN, all the people in the video knew they were making a video for the Republican Party.

[14:45:01]

But people in the video said they asked to see the edited clip, the one that aired on Thursday night before it aired.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MANUEL MARTINEZ, NYC HOUSING TENANT, UPSET ABOUT BEING FEATURED IN RNC VIDEO: They have the tape. Tell them to show it. Tell them to show them me confirming that I said, yes, I agree. They will find you on that tape and see, no, my confirmation is based off the edit. And if they didn't cut off the tape, you would hear Lynne say, don't worry about it, y'all. You are all going to see the edit.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MCMORRIS-SANTORO: So let me talk about the bigger picture here. The people in the RNC video took a lot of heat in their community for appearing at it. We were up at the Washington houses today. We heard stories about threatening phone calls that came in after this video appeared. A lot of people don't like the president very much.

Patton says that these people on this video were all in on it from the start. But the tenants say they were words were twisted to make it sound like they support Donald Trump. Bianna?

GOLODRYGA: Evan, clearly, this has raised a lot of questions. I'm glad that you're staying on this story and breaking it down for us. Thank you so much, Evan McMorris-Santoro. Well, it could be months before thousands of people have power restored in parts of Louisiana after Hurricane Laura. And the state's governor has a new concern about the consequences of the storm. The story is just ahead on CNN Newsroom.

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GOLODRYGA: Louisiana's governor is warning that in the aftermath of Hurricane Laura, the state could face a decline in coronavirus cases. Governor John Bel Edwards says residents of the hard-hit southwest area of the state have now scattered and warned residents and warned residents not to lose sight of crucial testing. Hundreds of thousands of customers also remain without power in parts of the state and the governor also said it could take weeks or even months for it to be fully restored because utility poles have been destroyed.

So let's talk more about some of those challenges ahead. Rebekah Gee is CEO of LSU Health Care Services Division and the lead -- led previous disaster recovery efforts as the former secretary of Louisiana Department of Health. Thank you so much, Rebekah, for joining us. We really appreciate your time.

Let's pick up on what the governor's warning and that the aftermath of the hurricane could create testing issues for some of those hard hit areas. How worrisome is that?

DR. REBEKAH GEE, CEO, LSU HEALTH CARE SERVICES DIVISION: It is worrisome. And let's remember, this is the 15th anniversary of Katrina.

GOLODRYGA: Right.

GEE: And the state has prepared more than any state in the nation for future disasters but this simply was the largest storm ever to hit landfall in Louisiana with the strongest winds in our history. And so there are incredible challenges despite the fact that we have bolstered our preparedness.

The storm lashed winds all the way from South Cameron Parrish 200 miles up through Louisiana until it exited into Arkansas and lashed communities cutting out power for half a million people nearly and nearly a quarter of million people without water. And so that makes it very challenging to implement testing strategies. And for the past week-and-a-half, we have had to slow down testing just to prepare for the storm and make sure people are safe.

And so we're flying blind. Louisiana has been in the top in the nation in testing. But for the last few weeks, we've been flying blind in many areas simply because people cannot get to testing centers nor staff them because of the weather event.

GOLODRYGA: And so when do you think you're going to be able to get things up and running there? GEE: Well, it's hard to say. We're still surveying the damage. There are at least 6,000 people in shelters and congregate shelters which are normally our go-to for this type of situation are not the go-to for COVID because we can't put people together in large groups. And so we're using hotels, and 30 hotels are being used to shelter evacuees. People are coming to Shreveport, Baton Rouge and New Orleans to escape the hot conditions and the lack of water.

And so we're just still unclear as to when the water will be back on, estimated that at least a week for Lake Charles for the generators to get back on. The largest hospital in Lake Charles, Lake Charles Memorial, has been evacuated. 22 nursing homes or hospitals have been evacuated. And so we'll have to make sure that those facilities are stable, that critical infrastructure is up and running before public health authorities are able to go back into communities and these hospitals are able to start testing again, so, really unclear at this point.

And two weeks ago, a quarter of our state went back to school in some form or fashion. And so the knowledge of the rates and the impact of school reopening on COVID is extremely important for our students and teachers and, of course, that's all going to make it more challenging with Hurricane Laura.

GOLODRYGA: Of course. And President Trump toured some of the damaged areas yesterday. Is there more that the federal government can be doing right now?

GEE: Well, look. We've had a very mature relationship with the federal government, most notably in 2016 when our capital city flooded and 100,000 structures were damaged or destroyed. And we've had a great relationship with FEMA. They have been very responsive and have approved the federal disaster declaration. And the president coming here certainly is an example of the priority that the administration makes of Louisiana.

But still it's hard to say what will be needed until all the damage is surveyed. I think right now, the state is getting what it needs from the federal government and the governor has -- is always quick to ask.

[14:55:06]

He's a veteran and very capable disaster leader.

And so, typically, I've noted that those relationships work pretty well with the federal government and state, unlike in Katrina, by the way, where there were delays, significant delays in federal response. That has improved since Hurricane Katrina.

GOLODRYGA: That relationship is very important. Dr. Rebekah Gee, thank you so much. Our thoughts are with you and keep us posted on the developments there.

GEE: Thank you. Thanks, Bianna.

GOLODRYGA: And I'm Bianna Golodryga, thank you so much for watching. CNN NEWSROOM continues with Ana Cabrera, coming up next.

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