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Trump to Visit Kenosha; Fatal Shooting during Protests in Portland; ODNI No Longer to Brief Congress on Election Security; Trump Stokes Fear ahead of Election; New Zealand to Enforce Masks on Public Transport; Trump Tours Hurricane Laura Aftermath; Migrants Evacuated from Banksy-Funded Rescue Boat; LeBron James Salutes Chadwick Boseman. Aired 12-1a ET
Aired August 30, 2020 - 00:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): Hello and welcome to our viewers here in the United States and all around the world. I'm Michael Holmes. Ahead here on CNN NEWSROOM:
Protesters take to the streets of Kenosha, Wisconsin, calling for justice in the police shooting of Jacob Blake. President Trump will soon be headed their way.
With 65 days before the presidential election, a major change in how U.S. intelligence officials will brief Congress on potential foreign interference.
And resentment over masks and social distancing growing in parts of Europe despite concerns about a second wave.
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HOLMES: Welcome, everyone.
We begin in Kenosha, Wisconsin, the latest U.S. city to see anti racism protests after the police shooting of a Black man.
A high-profile visitor expected on Tuesday, U.S. president Donald Trump. He's expected to meet with law enforcement and tour the damage done by recent protests. No word whether he will meet with the man shot by police seven times in the back.
On Saturday, Mr. Trump focusing on the violence after the shooting and again took credit for calling in the National Guard, which was actually done by the state's governor.
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DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The success as you know, we were finally able to get the go ahead from the local authorities to send in a National Guard. We sent in the National Guard and within a few minutes of the guard, everybody cleared out and it became safe.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
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PROTESTERS: No peace.
HOLMES (voice-over): The family of the man who was shot, Jacob Blake, held a rally in Kenosha Saturday night. Blake is still in the hospital, paralyzed from the waist down. The marchers demanding an end to police violence and systemic racism. CNN's Sara Sidner was there.
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SARA SIDNER, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Here in Kenosha there was about 2,000 people who came out in support of Jacob Blake and Jacob Blake's family. His family was leading the protests here in Kenosha, several blocks, that ended up at the courthouse where they then. Spoke we heard from Jacob Blake's uncle and his sister.
We heard from Jacob Blake's father as well, all speaking about a couple of. Things one, asking for peaceful protests but two, telling people that they must vote. That is the next thing after protesting in the streets.
We also talked to Jacob Blake's father about what happened in this case and what he sees should happen going forward after the police association here in Kenosha made allegations against Jacob Blake that he was armed and he was fighting with police, that he had a police officer in a headlock any had to be. Tased his father reacting saying what he sees certainly did not prove a intimate threat to the officer who ended up shooting him in the back seven times.
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JACOB BLAKE SR., JACOB BLAKE'S FATHER: How can you be an imminent danger when a person has nothing in their hands?
What was he, Superman?
He could see the knife through the walls of the car?
The police union means nothing to me. It's a bunch of caps that pay a bunch of dudes to have a title, a union. They do nothing but support their bad cops.
He's a bad cop. It didn't take seven shots to find out. That -- the first shot told you, the second one was coming. The third shot should've told you that the fourth one, he's trying to kill him. The fifth shot damn, how many more times you going to shoot?
By the time the seventh shot got there, that's attempted murder.
(END VIDEO CLIP) SIDNER: But no officer at this point has been charged in this case. We do know, of course, there is an investigation underway.
The State Department of Justice is investigating and saying that they are going to be doing an impartial investigation and that the police association does not speak for anyone, other than the defense of the officers. They are very adamant and clear in that they are the investigating agency in this case -- Sara Sidner, CNN, Kenosha.
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HOLMES: And let's talk with the Kenosha County Board supervisor about President Trump's visit. Zack Rodriguez, joins us on the line.
Appreciate that.
What would you want from the president, what would what do you want him to do or say while he's in Kenosha?
ZACK RODRIGUEZ, KENOSHA COUNTY BOARD SUPERVISOR: Thanks for having me. I'll start with that.
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RODRIGUEZ: And I think what's most important with having the president here in Kenosha is him letting the people of Kenosha know that he heard our cries for help, he received a letter hopefully that myself and my colleagues sent to him that was asking for help from the federal government.
HOLMES: If he's going to meet with law enforcement and survey damages as the White House says but does not meet with the Blake family, would that be of concern?
RODRIGUEZ: I'm not going to comment on that. I don't know what communication the White House has had or has not had with the Blake family and I don't want to go out on a limb.
HOLMES: Would that help with the healing in the community though?
RODRIGUEZ: I think it may for sure but like I said I don't know if there's been communications or if one side or the other is willing to meet.
HOLMES: Speak to the mood in the community right now. I mean, we saw the march today, it was peaceful.
What is your sense of how things are in your community?
RODRIGUEZ: The community is hurting right now. But at the same time, I walked the streets of Kenosha downtown today, uptown, and I volunteered as much as I could passing out water, feeding people.
What we're seeing now is Kenosha is starting that healing process. Kenosha has come together, worked together, to try to rebuild and move forward. HOLMES: What is the -- what does the healing process look like?
How do you think that should take place?
What needs to happen?
RODRIGUEZ: I think first of all, we've got to come together and recognize what happened here. But we don't know if it was justified or not. The state's division of criminal investigations is working on that and from there it is going to go on to our district attorney, who would decide whether or not to charge that cop.
I'm not going to comment on that. But right now we've got to start rebuilding our businesses and putting people, who've been put out of work, put out of their homes, getting their sense of normalcy back to their everyday lives.
HOLMES: All right, Kenosha County board supervisor, Zack Rodriguez, appreciate your time.
RODRIGUEZ: Thanks for having me.
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HOLMES: Well, the Trump administration is changing how it handles information about foreign interference. Now that change means that lawmakers won't be able to question the Director of National Intelligence, John Ratcliffe, whose own office warned that Russia, China and Iran are actively working to slay (ph) the vote. CNN's Jeremy Diamond with details from the White House.
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JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, on Saturday we learned that the office of the Director of National Intelligence informed congressional leaders that they will no longer be receiving in-person briefings on this critical issue of election security and foreign interference in the 2020 presidential election.
Of course, this coming 66 days before that presidential election. And as this issue really comes to more to the forefront, certainly a perplexing decision that is really drawing a ton of condemnation from Democrats on Capitol Hill.
But first the president on Saturday was asked why this decision was made. Here's his. Answer
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TRUMP: Director Ratcliffe brought information into the committee and the information leaked. Whether was it was Shifty Schiff or somebody else, they leaked the information before it gets in.
And what's even, worse they leaked the wrong information and he got tired of it. So he wants to do it in a different form because you have leakers on the committee. (END VIDEO CLIP)
DIAMOND: Now the president did not provide any evidence to back up his claims that members of Congress leaked information from previous and recent intelligence briefings. Of course the president there suggesting there were leaks while also saying that the information was false. So something there does not add up.
But again, Democrats on Capitol Hill reacting with extreme condemnation on. Saturday the House Speaker, Nancy Pelosi and Adam Schiff, the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, calling this a shocking abdication of the administration's responsibility to brief Congress on intelligence matters.
Let me read the part of the statement.
They say, "This is shameful and, coming only weeks before the election, demonstrates that the Trump administration is engaged in a politicized effort to withhold election-related information from Congress and the American people at the precise moment that greater transparency and accountability is required.
"This keeps both the American people and Congress in the dark when both are in need of the information."
Now also in the statement, they also revealed that the Office of the Director of National Intelligence had actually suggested briefing Congress in mid September on election interference in an in-person briefing and then they canceled that briefing.
Now we have this announcement that they will no longer be briefing Congress in person on this matter, instead only providing a written statement of some kind on the latest conclusions of the intelligence community.
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DIAMOND: This is, of course, notable because we know President Trump has repeatedly been sensitive about this issue of election interference, particularly as it pertains to Russia interfering in the 2016 election, something that the president has never come to fully acknowledge.
Of course, there is this other issue about the mail-in ballots. The president recently suggested that mail-in ballots present an election security risk, that foreign countries might seek to interfere and take advantage of that situation, to twist the results of the election.
That is a concern that U.S. intelligence officials have repeatedly dismissed in recent weeks. And, of course, the lack of these in-person briefings for members of Congress means they won't be able press those intelligence officials on claims like that by the. President -- Jeremy Diamond, CNN, the White House.
(END VIDEOTAPE) HOLMES: Now Jeremy mentioned there the opposition to the White House move. Mark Warner of the Senate Intelligence Committee said this, quote. "Russia interfered in our elections in 2016 and they are doing it again in 2020.
"One, the lessons we should draw from what happened in 2016 is that Congress and the American public need to know more information about the election interference threat, not less."
Another lawmaker on the committee says, this should not be a partisan issue.
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SEN. ANGUS KING (I-ME): We, the people, should have the benefit, the knowledge that that intelligence. Brings learning about it next February or March doesn't do much good. We're talking about interference with our election this year, which we know is going on. The intelligence community has already told us that.
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HOLMES: CNN senior political analyst David Gergen has been a presidential adviser to, Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton. He joins me now from Cambridge, Massachusetts.
It's always an honor when we can get you on, David. I wanted to start though talking about the Trump narrative, which seems to be, at the moment at least in part, law and order, something the campaign has chosen to be a theme.
First I just wanted to play part of the ad that was made by the anti- Trump Lincoln Project after the president's RNC speech. Let's listen to that and we will talk any other side.
DAVID GERGEN, CNN SR. POLITICAL ANALYST: Sure.
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TRUMP: Rioting, looting, arson, violence and danger in the streets, anarchists, rioters and criminals, anarchy and mayhem, vandals, arson, anarchists, looters and rioters, rioters and looters, rioters, looters and flag-burners, anarchist, agitators, violent crime, violent crime, radical Left.
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HOLMES: You know, it goes on for about a minute but you get the idea. It really illustrates how the president is hammering that narrative -- anarchists, thugs, rioters, agitators, fascists -- even though what's happening on the street is under his leadership.
Why do you think he has chosen this route?
Is it likely to be an effective strategy? GERGEN: It has been for presidents in the past, starting with Richard
Nixon in modern times. He ran on law and order in 1968. And he (INAUDIBLE) pretty easily. So it is a potent weapon.
What Trump has seen is that he has lost a lot of suburban voters, especially women and women can get -- he's trying to scare those women. For some women who actually sort of liked Trump but are not sure they should vote for him, this also gives them permission to vote for Trump.
So one understands why he's doing it. But, Michael, he's running his campaign on two big gigantic lies. One lie is that the pandemic is almost behind us. That's what Larry Kudlow was arguing at the convention, his top economic adviser.
The second lie is that we are engulfed in violence. You go to New York City, you go to all these other cities and you're going to find looting and burning and one thing and another.
Both are lies. Let's give you one example. Rudy Giuliani, former mayor of New York City, got up and said at the Republican convention that there's been a huge rise in crime in New York City, much more violence, much more death.
So far this year, there has been an increase; so far this year, the total number of people in New York City who have died from violence is about 300. The total number of people in New York City who have died from the pandemic, nearly 20,000.
That's the disparity between the two. And yet the president is trying to convince people the crime problem is really more serious.
HOLMES: Yes, it's a narrative of fear. The other thing that was obvious from the convention, there's also a narrative of utter devotion to Trump, the man. The RNC didn't even introduce a policy platform; it just spoke of support for not party, Trump.
GERGEN: Yes. Well, it is the Trump party now. It's not the Republican Party as we have known it for some 200 years, over 100 years. It is his, lock, stock and barrel.
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GERGEN: If he loses, there's going to be one hell of a fight within the Republican Party for who should control the future of the party.
But there are going to be a strong number of Trump people out there, even if Trump loses, who will continue on and that may make Mike Pence, for example, a very serious contender the next time around.
But I've been around Republican politics and worked for three Republican presidents in the White House. The Republican presidents I've known must be spinning in their graves about Trump taking over this party. That's why you see two former presidents, Republicans -- a president and a former nominee -- who didn't bother coming to the -- Romney and George W. Bush decided not to come at all. So you see in the party now, there are people breaking away, there are
people trying to rescue it, because they think it's going down unless it's rescued. All that could turn around. If Trump was ahead and wins the election, I will tell you, as of this hour, there are a lot of anxious Democrats about whether this crime issue can take off, even though it's fraudulent, can it take off?
They aren't sure, they're unsure how to combat it. They don't have much time.
HOLMES: I want to ask you, if the polling on Trump's popularity continues, he will be the first president to never reach 50 percent in any live interview poll, in either his first campaign for president, approval rating, election bid, reelection bid. So this would be Biden's election to lose.
How then does Biden seize the narrative, prevent Trump from framing that debate, whether it's law and order or anything else?
GERGEN: I think the first thing you need to, do is get the violence under control. I think this is an opportunity for the Biden people to show they can work with Black leaders on legitimate issues and legitimate grievances and do it in a peaceful way.
If Joe Biden can get them to sit down with him and come up with a way that is more united, that would show that there are two paths to dealing with these issues on civil rights now. There is the Biden path, one of working with the grieved Black community or the Trump path, which wants to run over the Black community and use it as a prop to show how powerful, strong and muscular he is. He can take care of these people and protect you out in the suburbs, good women of America.
HOLMES: CNN senior political analyst, David Gergen, a pleasure. Good to see you. Thank you so much.
GERGEN: Thanks, Michael. It's good to talk to you.
HOLMES: We will take a quick break. When we come back, the U.S. is not the only country having a hard time convincing people to follow coronavirus restrictions. Protesters gathered across Europe to call out the rules that are likely savings thousands of lives. That is when we come back.
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HOLMES: The United States is very close to reaching 6 million coronavirus cases and the country has more than 182,000 deaths now. According to Johns Hopkins University, the biggest hotspots are still in the South. Meanwhile, cases are flaring up on college campuses across the
country. The University of Alabama says that more than 1,000 students, on just one of its campuses, have tested positive since classes resumed less than two weeks ago.
There were some concerning coronavirus numbers outside of the U.S. as well. South Korea and Spain struggling to keep cases down even though they had managed the pandemic quite well until now. In Berlin, London, Zurich and even Paris, people are protesting COVID-19 restrictions, as you are about to see.
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HOLMES (voice-over): A day to defy science, protesters, weary or even skeptical of lockdowns, face coverings and social distancing, crowding together by the thousands in Berlin to say, they've had enough of the coronavirus infringing on their liberties.
"The reason for demonstrating is quite simple," one man says. "It is about freedom."
It was a rallying cry heard around Europe. In London, protesters gathered in Trafalgar Square to demonstrate against COVID-19 restrictions. Likewise, in Zurich, where some people said they turned out because they wanted to condemn politics, they say, is based on fear and panic.
Paris, too, the center of similar gatherings. But police were on hand to dole out fines to people not covering their faces, which angered some in the crowd.
"It is for the wearing of masks," one woman says. "I do not think it is right that it is a compulsory decree. I do not want to have vaccines be compulsory."
But in other areas of the world, the spread of the virus, too real to dispute. South Korean officials say they are running out of hospital beds, with just 4.5 percent of critical care beds available in Seoul.
Health care facilities are already strained by a strike of about 16,000 doctors over reforms in the government health care plan.
Spain is fighting a second fierce wave of the virus, with cases skyrocketing in the past week. Government officials announced that drugmaker Johnson & Johnson, will begin phase 2 trials of a vaccine there next week.
"As soon as it is approved, I will have, it," one woman says. "We must use a lot of protection, as much as possible and as fast as possible."
But others are not so reassured. Another woman says, "I distrust that, given the rare and mysterious characteristics of the virus, we can have a vaccine so soon."
JACINDA ARDERN, NEW ZEALAND PRIME MINISTER: And then we're just going to tuck it in and then you have a face covering. HOLMES (voice-over): A more practical moment from New Zealand prime
minister Jacinda Ardern, whose country is also seeing a resurgence of the virus. She made a video presentation on how to make a homemade mask, which will be mandatory on public transport, come Monday.
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HOLMES: Dr. Jonathan Reiner is a CNN medical analyst and professor of medicine at George Washington University, joining me now from Washington.
A pleasure as always to see you.
It was interesting today in Europe. We saw thousands of people protesting coronavirus restrictions. Here, in the U.S. this past week, we had booing crowds when asked to put on a mask at a Trump rally that followed the Republican convention, where you had 2,000 people in close quarters and no masks.
Why does such a common sense measure cause so much outrage?
DR. JONATHAN REINER, CNN MEDICAL ANALYST: Because it has been politicized. From the outset, wearing a mask should have been presented to the public as a patriotic duty, the way certain things were presented to the American public during World War II, when there were shortages and people really pitched in for the war effort.
So as part of the war on the virus effort, masks should have been pitched to the public as our patriotic duty. But rather than doing that, they were politicized. And that has resulted in probably tens of thousands of unnecessary deaths.
HOLMES: That is the slap in your face comment, too. It's killed people.
I wanted to ask you, too, speak to the damage done to the public faith in what our core public health institutions -- I'm talking about the FDA and the CDC -- and what we've seen in the last week or two.
Political pressure, pretty much, apparently, has seen them make some pretty bewildering moves.
What does that tell you?
What is the damage caused by that?
REINER: Yes, Michael, the CDC and FDA have, over the years, been the jewels of the American health agencies, independent, reliable, tasked with preserving the health and safety of the country.
On Sunday night, we saw this really inexplicable political event on the eve of the RNC to provide an EUA for convalescent plasma despite really the interjections of people like Anthony Fauci and Francis Collins, the head of the NIH, clearly, bending to the political will of the president.
Then the unfortunate misstating of the data by the head of the FDA, Stephen Hahn, and followed just two days later by the CDC walking back strong recommendations to test asymptomatic people.
Very, very, curious, again, suggesting political rather than scientific pressure was used to form that recommendation.
HOLMES: Yes, and very damaging.
One thing I wanted to get to with you, because I know you've dealt with the so-called long haulers, people who suffer ongoing impacts from this virus, very serious impacts, neurological and so, on and something that I've been following closely with interest.
How concerned are you that over the course of time, we will see this as being a serious and ongoing, public health issue?
REINER: I am concerned about it. Look, I think the vast majority of people who are infected with the virus will certainly survive and do very well long term. But as the months have gone on, we have seen people with chronic effects of the disease.
Young people with illnesses that sort of mimic chronic fatigue syndrome after recovering from this. There have been some well publicized data concerning heart damage and scar found on MRI imaging months after infection.
So this is a very new disease. It's a brand-new disease. So we are learning as we go. But the notion that we can go for herd immunity and people will do fine, particularly young people, is not based in fact. In fact, we know that some people will be sick for a long time with this disease.
HOLMES: Yes. It's incredibly worrying. Dr. Jonathan Reiner, really appreciate your time, thank you so much.
REINER: My pleasure, Michael. Good night.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: We'll take another break. When we come, back hundreds of thousands of people without power along the U.S. Gulf Coast. Just ahead, President Trump tours the storm-ravaged area and weighs in on how federal agencies are handling recovery efforts. Stay with us, we will be right back.
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(MUSIC PLAYING) HOLMES: Welcome back to our viewers here in the United States and
around the world. I'm Michael Holmes. You are watching CNN NEWSROOM. Appreciate your company.
The storm-stricken U.S. Gulf Coast is beginning to clean up after being hit by that category 4 Hurricane Laura last week. President Trump toured some of the most damaged areas on Saturday, talking about how he thought federal agencies were handling the disaster.
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TRUMP: FEMA has delivered 2.6 million leaders of water and 1.4 million meals. That's a lot of meals. Pretty busy, I guess, hey?
That's incredible. Great job. You people are incredible. I've haven't had one complaint, with all of the storms we've had in Texas and here, I've not had one complaint. You've done a hell of a job.
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HOLMES: More than 465,000 homes and businesses are still without power in Louisiana, Texas and Arkansas. Some areas are so devastated, the energy infrastructure will have to be completely rebuilt before power can be restored. CNN's Gary Tuchman with the latest.
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GARY TUCHMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: This is Orange, Texas, a small town on the border of Louisiana, this area was hit by Hurricane Laura, behind me, a grocery company, HEB, a large company in Texas, doing something wonderful. They are feeding thousands of people.
Stores and restaurants are closed because of the hurricane. Many people are without water. So what they are doing, is they are giving hamburgers, French fries, salads, water and ice to hundreds of people coming in cars. The cars are lined up for blocks to get this food and water. And they are very grateful. It is good to see this.
Right near where we are, President Trump was here earlier in the day. He had a meeting with officials here in Texas, emergency officials. Before, that he was in the state of Louisiana right across the border only about a 40 minute drive away.
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TUCHMAN: In the city of Lake Charles, some 78,000 people that may be the most hardhit area from this hurricane. The fact is, hundreds of homes have been totally demolished, thousands of homes have been damaged and right, now there is no power in the city and no water. It makes it very difficult.
A lot of hurricanes we cover, power goes out; that's very common and it'll take weeks to get back. That's what will happen this time. But it's unusual to have everyone without water. But water plants were demolished so it's a very difficult time for people, in this very hot weather, they have no water, they have no power and many people right now, are homeless.
The president toured an area in Lake Charles, saw some of the devastated homes, saw the trees down, saw the power lines. He got an idea, he also talked to politicians in Louisiana. He praised the work of his emergency officials, emergency funding is on its way to Louisiana and Texas.
What we can tell you is this. It is tragic. The death toll, 12 people in the state of Louisiana, three in Texas. But it is relatively low considering that this was the strongest hurricane to hit the state of Louisiana in 150 years. It was even stronger than Hurricane Katrina, 15 years ago, exactly 15 years ago, which caused so many deaths between 1,200-1800 people were killed in Louisiana and Mississippi, from Hurricane Katrina.
So this was a stronger storm, people took it very seriously, they are still searching for missing people, we hope, we just hope that the death toll doesn't go much higher than this -- this is Gary Tuchman, CNN, in Orange, Texas.
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HOLMES: Democrats are slamming the Trump administration's new policy for handling information on election interference.
The Office of the Director of National Intelligence, John Ratcliffe, is scrapping plans to brief Congress in person about any interference. Officials will give written updates instead.
That means, of course, they will not face any questioning. Democratic presidential nominee, Joe Biden, says the change is, quote, "not how democracy works." He says it violates national security and American sovereignty.
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HOLMES: I am joined now by CNN security analyst, Samantha Vinograd.
Always a pleasure. Samantha. You served under two presidents. Explain how extraordinary it is that these intelligence officials are saying they will no longer brief Congress on election security, three months out from an election, where foreign interference is an issue.
Have you ever seen anything like that?
SAMANTHA VINOGRAD, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: I've never seen anything like this in my entire government career, even during my study of intelligence before that.
This is extraordinary for all of the wrong reasons, Michael. Let's remember why oral briefings are provided to Congress in the first place.
Written briefings are not sufficient unto themselves to keep lawmakers fully and currently informed about intelligence activities or intelligence assessments. Oral briefings have a history of providing lawmakers with more context and allowing lawmakers to ask questions.
The only reason why a Director of National Intelligence would cancel or largely cancel these oral briefings is because there is something he does not want lawmakers to hear. There is no other reasonable explanation for why this action has been taken.
HOLMES: The president, I guess, is already laying the groundwork in many ways to claim foreign interference in mail-in voting by blocking briefings.
Is he, perhaps, wanting to keep the lack of evidence of that away from lawmakers and the preponderance of evidence, among other, things away from lawmakers?
As you point out, in a written briefing, you cannot quiz the briefer.
VINOGRAD: Yes. There is a history here. Remember, the annual worldwide threat assessment and briefing that is delivered orally and in written form, to Congress, every year, was canceled this year. That was after last year's briefing upset the president because the briefers said things the president found politically or personally, inconvenient.
In February, a DNI briefer gave an election security oral briefing, in response to a question, told lawmakers that Putin prefers POTUS, which, we've now learned from a written statement, continues to be true.
That statement, back in February during the oral briefing, really upset the president. So it sure looks like the DNI wants to avoid having anything said to lawmakers that could risk upsetting President Trump, because again, he finds it politically inconvenient.
The DNI needs to get his priorities in check.
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VINOGRAD: He appears more focused on placating the POTUS and not protecting Americans.
HOLMES: Does it make you feel like his interest is more in protecting the president?
He is a longtime supporter.
VINOGRAD: It certainly looks like this DNI is censoring information to avoid upsetting the president. The DNI has a statutory obligation under various legislation to keep certain parts of Congress fully and currently informed.
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VINOGRAD: And, going into the election, to brief lawmakers on election security threats. There is no reason why he would not give you an oral briefing, again, other than not wanting to upset the president by pointing out the honest assessment from the international community, which is that Putin still prefers POTUS and is interfering to try to denigrate Vice President Joe Biden as part of active Russian influence operations to support Donald Trump's candidacy in 2020.
HOLMES: Samantha Vinograd, good to see, you thank you so much.
VINOGRAD: Thank you.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: U.S. military officials, saying two Russian fighter jets made a, quote, "unsafe and unprofessional" intercept of a U.S. B-52 bomber on Friday. Extraordinary video, this U.S. flight was taking part in the show of solidarity with NATO, flying over 30 countries in all. The close encounter you see there, happening over the Black Sea. Barbara Starr explains.
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BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: What apparently happened is two Russian pilots, their fighter jets, crossed within 100 feet of the nose of the U.S. B-52 bomber, multiple times. That caused turbulence, making it difficult, the Pentagon says, for the B-52 to actually correctly maneuver.
The Pentagon, calling this unsafe, unprofessional action, by the Russians.
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HOLMES: That was CNN's Pentagon correspondent, Barbara Starr.
Irish politics has been plunged into chaos after dozens of current and former politicians, attending a parliamentary gulf society dinner. It violating COVID-19 measures. CNN's Salma Abdelaziz with more on this.
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SALMA ABDELAZIZ, CNN PRODUCER: Like many in Ireland, Padraig Byrne knows the heartbreak of losing a loved one to coronavirus.
PADRAIG BYRNE, COVID-19 VICTIM'S BROTHER: It was dreadful. As brothers, we were all very close. We were there for him every day. We couldn't say our goodbye, we couldn't hold his hand, we couldn't be in the room with him or anything like that.
ABDELAZIZ (voice-over): Padraig told his story to RTE's "Liveline" show. He last saw his brother through the hospital window.
BYRNE: I will always have that memory. Even though he had passed away, I felt I was there. It was just -- it was very sad. You are gazing through a window at your brother, just dead in the bed and his wife and daughter there.
ABDELAZIZ (voice-over): But while he was carefully observing coronavirus restrictions, it has emerged some of the country's leadership did not. Around 80 gathered at this upmarket golf course a week and a half ago,
followed by a dinner at a nearby hotel in County Galway. The event sparked widespread anger in Ireland, because it breached coronavirus restrictions on the size of public gatherings.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Absolutely think it was disgraceful. There are people losing loved ones and family. And they are off playing golf.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I just think it's one rule for them, one rule for us.
ABDELAZIZ (voice-over): Soon after the story broke, Ireland's agriculture minister, Dara Calleary, resigned. He was followed by Jerry Buttimer, who quit his senate leadership position.
And then, finally, E.U. commissioner Phil Hogan. He had initially tried to weather the storm of controversy.
PHIL HOGAN, FORMER E.U. COMMISSIONER: It was completely wrong. And I'm embarrassed about it, I'm very sorry about it and I know many families that have been suffering.
ABDELAZIZ (voice-over): His apology was not enough for Ireland's prime minister.
MICHEAL MARTIN, IRISH PRIME MINISTER: We made it very clear. Our anger, our annoyance, the extent to which the commissioner has undermined public confidence and adherence to the guidelines.
ABDELAZIZ (voice-over): But the scandal is not over. There is now pressure on others who also attended the dinner.
EOIN O'MALLEY, DUBLIN CITY UNIVERSITY: We still have to see whether there is a supreme court (ph) judge, whether he might be asked to resign or might be censured in some way. So it's probably not the end of the controversy in the short term.
ABDELAZIZ (voice-over): The judge in question, Seamus Woulfe, was until recently Ireland's attorney general, advising the government on lockdown laws. He has apologized but not resigned.
The so-called Golfgate scandal exposed deep anger within the Irish community at the perceived hypocrisy of some of the country's leadership. The question now is, whether it will have any long term impact on the government's coronavirus message -- Salma Abdelaziz, CNN, London.
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HOLMES: A tense rescue in the Mediterranean, a boat funded by the British street artist Banksy, so packed with refugees it couldn't move. The story of what happened next, when we come back.
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HOLMES: A rescue boat in the Mediterranean, funded by the British street artist, Banksy, was so overcrowded with migrants, it needed help itself. After several tense hours, the migrants were transferred on to 2 other boats.
The question now, where will they find safe harbor?
CNN's Kim Brunhuber reports.
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KIM BRUNHUBER, CNN HOST (voice-over): A ship in need, loaded with the most needy of people. The rescue boat, Louise Michel, requiring help itself Saturday, after it became so overcrowded with migrants, picked up in the Mediterranean, it was unable to move.
The Italian Coast Guard evacuated dozens of the most vulnerable people. Rescuers said there were many women and children, some of them extremely traumatized.
These are photos of a humanitarian ship called the Sea Watch IV, making the final rescues of the remaining people on board. It also answered the call to help the Louise Michel, which is unlike other rescue boats. It is funded by the British street artist, Banksy.
The signature mural of a migrant, with a heart shaped lifebuoy, is on the ship's side. The Sea Watch IV was fairly close by since it, too, had rescued migrants and was waiting for permission to dock in a safe port since many countries are wary of receiving migrants because of the pandemic.
So far, the U.N. says more than 40,000 migrants have crossed the Mediterranean to reach Europe this year. Many of them are from Tunisia and Libya.
On the other side of Europe, patrols have been set up on the beaches of Calais to stop migrants from making the 30 kilometer journey across the English Channel to Dover. British reports say nearly 5,000 migrants have come ashore in small boats since lockdown began. Many recently, because of incentives like warm weather and deceptively calm seas.
"You can cross from a beach or from a port, with your sailboat," one activist says, "starting out with calm seas and no wind. And in an instant, you pass through a cape, you find yourself in rough seas, with violent winds."
Across the U.K. and Europe, what to do with the migrants and how to stop them from coming, is an increasingly politically charged debate, with many conservative politicians, calling for stronger border enforcement. A political debate that cannot be heard on the high seas by migrants, risking their lives for a better life. [00:50:00]
BRUNHUBER (voice-over): And the people, trying to help them -- Kim Brunhuber, CNN, Atlanta.
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HOLMES: Formula 1's only Black driver, playing tribute to a superhero. Lewis Hamilton, in the perfect position to salute the late actor, Chadwick Boseman. We'll be right back with that.
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HOLMES: Tributes continue to come in for Chadwick Boseman, who died on Friday after battling colon cancer.
On Saturday, Lewis Hamilton, Formula 1's only Black driver, dedicated his Belgian Grand Prix pole position lap to Boseman. He also did the Wakanda forever salute from the "Black Panther" movie.
That impact felt, too, just a few hours ago in the NBA bubble in Orlando, Florida. The best known active basketball player on the planet, LeBron James, paying tribute to Boseman with the Wakanda salute ahead of the Lakers playoff game, as you can see there.
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HOLMES: In fact, the NBA resumed playoffs on Saturday after postponing nine games in response to the shooting of Jacob Blake. And this powerful moment at the NBA bubble in Orlando, Florida, this afternoon.
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HOLMES (voice-over): The Milwaukee Bucks and Orlando Magic, kneeling during the national anthem. Also, kneeling in unity, players, coaches and game officials as well.
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HOLMES: Now remember, in normal times, the Milwaukee Bucks arena is in Wisconsin, less than 50 miles from the scene where Jacob Blake was shot by police seven times.
Thank you for watching CNN NEWSROOM, spending part of your day with me. I am Michael Holmes.
