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Lisa Murkowski Opposes Voting on Ginsburg Replacement Before Election; Joe Biden to Deliver Remarks Amid Supreme Court Fight; Crowd Chants "Fill That Seat" at Trump Rally; COVID-19 Deaths in the U.S. Soon to Reach 200,000; Thousands of Airline Workers May Soon Lose Their Jobs; Health Care and Abortion Rights on the Line Amid Supreme Court Fight; Interview with Assemblywoman Eloise Gomez Reyes (D-CA) about Dealing with COVID-19 and the Wildfires. Aired 1-2p ET

Aired September 20, 2020 - 13:00   ET

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

[13:00:00]

JOAN BISKUPIC, CNN SUPREME COURT ANALYST: It had to be -- it was on a topic of civil procedure and how important it was to fundamental liberty. And she had typed up a quote from Felix Frankford that she brought to our interview, and she clutched that piece of paper, and she said she had been so excited to go look this up again.

And there was something about her that was still had a schoolgirl youthful enthusiasm about everything. whether it meant, you know, the underpinnings of Roe or just her own learning experience. She was always -- she was always in the game 100 percent.

JAKE TAPPER, CNN ANCHOR: All right. What a treat to talk to all three of you. Thank you so much.

Fareed Zakaria starts now.

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN HOST: Hello, everyone. Thank you so much for joining me this Sunday. I'm Fredricka Whitfield.

The passing of the iconic Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has ignited a political firestorm in Washington over who will replace her. President Trump saying he intends to fill the seat with a female justice. Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell already vowing to bring whomever the president nominates to the floor.

And then in just an hour from now, vice president -- former vice president Joe Biden will take to the stage in Philadelphia to give his remarks on the Supreme Court vacancy.

And then just moments ago, a key Republican senator weighing in on a possible nomination to replace Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg before election day. Our correspondents are standing by with all the very latest on all of these developments. Let's begin with CNN's Lauren Fox on Capitol Hill.

Lauren, Democrats may have an ally in GOP Senator Lisa Murkowski. Both she and Susan Collins saying they are against taking up a Supreme Court nominee before the election. If two more Republican senators also oppose, then the president's pick could be in jeopardy. Elaborate.

LAUREN FOX, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, that's right, Fredricka. Essentially, Democrats have two allies right now. And you named them. Senator Susan Collins, a Republican up for reelection in the state of Maine. And now just moments ago Lisa Murkowski, a fiercely independent Republican from the state of Alaska who has crossed party lines before, especially on fights over the Supreme Court. If you remember, she voted against Brett Kavanaugh just a few years ago.

So they're certainly lining up. But, remember, McConnell needs to hold his conference together. But Democrats need four Republicans to cross the aisle and vote with them. Right now they only have two. And these statements are really interesting because essentially what these two women are saying is they are not comfortable moving forward with a nominee before election day. And this has always been one of the key questions.

Does McConnell move forward now when he still has momentum, when this could motivate voters to show up in tough Senate races, perhaps in North Carolina or Iowa where there are tough races to be had, or does he wait until after election day? And that carries a lot of risk as well because, if you know, it is a possibility that Donald Trump loses the White House. It's also a possibility that Democrats regain power in the Senate.

And even though they would return for the lame duck with Republicans in power, some moderate Republicans, people like Collins, people like Murkowski, might be uncomfortable moving forward if the voters have spoken and they were to have to take a vote on Donald Trump's nominee. So that's what is at play right now.

Meanwhile you have senators like Tom Cotton, a Republican, a conservative, saying that they are going to be moving forward without delay. I am told that Republicans are trying to convince McConnell, conservatives especially, that this needs to happen fast. It needs to happen now. If you have the votes, you vote. That has always been the rules of the road on Capitol Hill and it has always been the rules of the road for the majority leader.

He's going to be having conversations with his members over the next couple of days. But it is clear that they certainly are supporting McConnell right now even if there are two Republicans who have come out against moving forward right now.

WHITFIELD: And this, Lauren, what the president is saying he's ready to name his nominee of choice this week.

Lauren Fox, thank you so much.

All right. Now happening in the next hour, the former vice president will be making a few statements. Let's go to Philadelphia where Joe Biden is getting ready to talk. Our Jessica Dean is there with a preview.

Jessica, you know, can we expect, you know, to hear perhaps a list of potential Supreme Court nominees from Biden as the president had challenged him?

JESSICA DEAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Fredricka, they have signaled that that's not likely to happen. What is likely to happen today is that we're going to hear former vice president Joe Biden talking about the Supreme Court vacancy, and we're being told by campaign aides that they really want to tie this to the Affordable Care Act, to pre- existing conditions.

[13:05:04]

They want to say and make the case that the next Supreme Court justice, whomever that might be, that this is going to impact the Affordable Care Act. There is a lawsuit making its way through the Supreme Court right now and Joe Biden has often attacked Donald Trump on the campaign trail for months now about taking away pre-existing conditions from Americans all across the country with this lawsuit that will undo parts of the Affordable Care Act.

And if you kind of zoom out and think about 2018 when Democrats were able to take power back in the House, this was the argument they made across the country. It was all about health care. It was about pre- existing conditions and protections. And the Biden campaign believes that Americans understand this argument, that they are able to understand what this could mean to pre-existing conditions and protections as it applies to their health care.

And the Biden campaign believes that can be a way to really explain to people what this is about, to really frame this vacancy and why it's so important that Joe Biden be the president to select the next Supreme Court justice.

Now we heard from Vice President Biden late on Friday, Fred. He said that he believed that the American people should select the next president and that president should select a justice to be considered by the Senate, so we know where he stands on that. But expect to hear about health care and also the coronavirus pandemic more today as he ties that all to this legacy -- Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right. We'll take his remarks when they begin at the top of the hour as scheduled.

Jessica Dean, thank you so much, in Philadelphia.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CROWD: Fill that seat. Fill that seat. Fill that seat. Fill that seat.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: The sound of President Trump's supporters chanting "fill that seat" at a campaign rally last night in North Carolina. And just hours after the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, President Trump made it clear that he is going to use the open seat as a major campaign issue and he vowed to nominate a replacement in a matter of days.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: So Article 2 of our Constitution says the president shall nominate justices of the Supreme Court.

(CHEERS AND APPLAUSE)

TRUMP: I don't think it can be any more clear, can it? I don't think so. I will be putting forth a nominee next week. It will be a woman.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: All right. For more on this now, let's bring in John Harwood at the White House.

So, John, the president and his fellow Republicans appear determined to get the nomination and confirmation process underway as quickly as possible. What are you hearing about the possible pick for the president?

JOHN HARWOOD, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Fred, as you could tell from the cheers at that rally where the president addressed the issue, he is eager to embrace and his supporters are eager to embrace something to shake up a campaign that has not been going very well for the president, and the way the pick is shaping up, it could have some direct political impacts.

First of all, the president says he's going to move quickly as you indicated probably next week. He's indicated he's going to pick a woman. The president has a big deficit among women and it's logical to replace Ruth Bader Ginsburg with a woman.

There are multiple candidates. Probably the leading candidate most often mentioned is Amy Coney Barrett. She is an appeals court judge appointed by the president from the Midwest, key electoral battleground. Teaches at Notre Dame. Conservative Catholic.

You've also got possibilities including Joan Larsen, also from the Midwest, longtime professor at University of Michigan Law School. You've got Barbara Lagoa, she is an appeals court judge in Florida. Cuban American, that's a key constituency for the president.

Now of course whoever he picks, this is going to be in the hands of Mitch McConnell, the Senate Republican leader. He's been very effective for his party on this subject four years ago when Barack Obama had a replacement 10 months before the election. McConnell came up with a justification for holding the seat open. He said, we shouldn't do it in an election year.

Now that we're two months before an election, he's come up with a new justification, which is the old justification only applies if the Senate and the president are of different parties. And we heard a senior White House official Marc Short echoing that justification today.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) MARC SHORT, CHIEF OF STAFF TO VICE PRESIDENT MIKE PENCE: I reject the notion it's hypocrisy. As I said, historical precedent is when your party is in power and the president nominates, consistently going back to George Washington, that party has continued to confirm those nominees. So I don't think there's hypocrisy.

Regarding the politics of this, again, the people of America elected Donald Trump president in 2016 in large part because he was so transparent and said, here's who I would nominate.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARWOOD: Now, of course, what the president and Mitch McConnell need is for 50 Republicans to buy that argument. We've heard from two, as Lauren Fox indicated earlier, Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski. They don't buy the argument.

[13:10:01]

They can only afford to lose two more but it's not obvious who those two will be so I think at this stage, Fred, you have to say the odds are in favor of President Trump and Mitch McConnell that they will get this done.

WHITFIELD: John, let me also bring into this conversation CNN Supreme Court analyst Joan Biskupic.

So, Joan, you know, the Democrats are vowing to do whatever it takes. Everything is on the table, you know, to slow or stop a confirmation happening this year. With Speaker Pelosi, you know, threatening another possible impeachment, but she says she's not interested at all, you know, in shutting down the government, you know, to slow things down.

Is there nothing or is there something that Democrats actually can do?

JOAN BISKUPIC, CNN SUPREME COURT ANALYST: They really have to count on the political will. They have to count on key senators to make a difference. Mitch McConnell has the math on his side right now. They have to make clear to people that it's not just cases like the Affordable Care Act that Jessica so rightly referred to, but this is a lifetime seat. This is abortion rights, this is affirmative action. This is religious liberty.

Whoever is appointed, and Donald Trump is looking at women in their 40s right now, whoever is appointed will probably serve at least, you know, 30, 40 years. So whatever happens now can affect the law for our children and our grandchildren. So that's the case I think they're trying to make to the public to put some pressure on the senator.

But, Fred, to your most practical question, it's really up to what Mitch McConnell is able to pull off. And back in 2016, when Mitch McConnell first declared that he was going to block President Obama's nominee a full month before President Obama even nominated Merrick Garland, people thought, can he really do this? Will this audacious move work? It worked and I think he's only been further emboldened. WHITFIELD: Right. And that was 10 months before election. Now we're

talking about a matter of just over 40 days here.

BISKUPIC: Yes. That's right.

WHITFIELD: So, John, former president Bill Clinton weighed in. He was, you know, on CNN earlier today. And, you know, he talked about this Republican hypocrisy as he sees it for blocking Obama's nomination of Merrick Garland in 2016 and moving forward with this pick during an election year. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BILL CLINTON, FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT: There is a case to be made for the argument McConnell made that in the middle of a presidential season you should give the voters a say. That's what he said. When it was 10 months away. But when the shoe is on the other foot and he wants a judge, we're fewer than 50 days away and that argument doesn't cut any mustard.

It's a power play, and they think they can do it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: So, John, you know, if Democrats can't do much, you know, to stop this process from going forward, what are the chances of three or four perhaps, you know, Republican senators deciding that they will, you know, refrain from backing an immediate confirmation?

HARWOOD: Fred, President Clinton said it was a power play. That is exactly what it is. And Joan was precisely correct a few minutes ago when she said the only tool Democrats have at their disposal is politics. That is the demonstrated will of the American people. Political pressure on Republican senators running for re-election and the prospect that this would generate a huge backlash against Republicans.

It is notable the strategy that Jessica Dean outlined that the Biden campaign is taking. Many of the key voters that they're targeting in those Midwestern battlegrounds that gave Trump the presidency four years ago, where Biden hopes to win it back, are blue-collar voters. They may be culturally conservative. They may even be pro-life. And what Joe Biden is preparing to do is make a bread-and-butter argument to those voters, not about health care -- sorry, not about abortion which may appeal to younger voters, more liberal voters, but about taking away your health care.

And that kind of practical argument is something that Democratic strategists think may be effective in holding some of those voters that Joe Biden needs in Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania.

WHITFIELD: Lots on the table. Health care, reproductive rights, equality. I mean, these are the things, you know, that people are now urging folks to be thinking of when they vote, especially as a consequence of the death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg. So, you know, Joan, oftentimes people are thinking about, you know,

the possibility that a president will have an opportunity to put someone on the bench. How is that even more, you know, resonant now?

BISKUPIC: Well, you know, one thing that Joe Biden has going for him in terms of his health care argument is that in November, a week after the election, the justices are going to take up a constitutional challenge to the Affordable Care Act, to Obamacare. So there is a very real possibility of the Supreme Court now, without Ruth Bader Ginsburg, completely voiding that law.

[13:15:12]

Now if she were on the bench, I would say there's no way that's going to happen because back in 2012 the Supreme Court rejected that kind of challenge. Back in 2015, the Supreme Court rejected that challenge, but the Supreme Court needed Ruth Bader Ginsburg to do it. I think it's still going to be a closed case, but it's a very salient example of, as John said, bread-and-butter issues here just because the court is about to take it up.

So it might be a more effective argument because it's right before people right now. President Trump has said that he is not trying to get rid of the part of the law that says that anyone with pre-existing conditions like diabetes or cancer can't be kicked off their health plans. But in the Supreme Court, Fred, his lawyers are arguing for exactly that. His lawyers are saying, we don't pre-existing conditions in this law. We don't want this law at all.

So I think that there's a chance the case could be made. But, boy, you know, when Donald Trump said after 2016 that one of the reasons he won or maybe even one of the leading reasons he won was because of the Supreme Court, the vacancy he was then able to fill, I think that this is what he's counting on to really help him on November 3rd -- Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right. We'll leave it there. Joan Biskupic, John Harwood, thanks to both of you. Really appreciate it.

All right. Next, the U.S. set to hit a grim milestone of 200,000 deaths from coronavirus. This as cases in at least 30 states spike. Are we on the cusp of a second wave?

And empty promises in the race for a vaccine. We fact check the latest claims from the Trump administration straight ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[13:21:19]

WHITFIELD: The U.S. is now nearing 200,000 coronavirus deaths and it comes as more than a dozen states including Florida and Georgia are registering new daily case records. Later today in remembrance of the lives lost, the National Cathedral bell in Washington, D.C. will chime 200 times.

CNN's Evan McMorris-Santoro is with me now from New York. Evan, what's the latest?

EVAN MCMORRIS-SANTORO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Fred, the latest is what we know is some time in the next day, based on projections, the official number of Americans who have died from causes related to this pandemic will cross the 200,000 mark. That's just a jaw dropping number and one that shatters expectations we were given based on what the White House was saying about what to expect from this pandemic.

Let's listen to President Trump back in March 29th talking about what 200,000 might mean.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: If we can hold that down as we're saying to 100,000, it's a horrible number, maybe even less, but to 100,000. So we have between 100,000 and 200,000, we altogether have done a very good job.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MCMORRIS-SANTORO: Fred, there is a lot of news going on, as you know, but the central story in this country, even in places like New York where we brought the numbers way down, remains this pandemic. It's getting in the way of jobs. It's getting in the way of schools, and it's still killing people every day. And as far as we can tell for now, that's not going to change -- Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right. Evan McMorris-Santoro, all very grim nonetheless. Thank you so much.

I want to bring in Dr. Richina Bicette, she's an emergency medicine physician and the medical director at Baylor Saint Luke's McNair Campus Emergency Department.

Good to see you, Doctor. So as we approach this awful milestone, which appears to be inevitable, we're seeing a spike in cases in almost 30 states. Are you concerned this is the beginning of a second wave of this outbreak or are we already in the midst of it?

DR. RICHINA BICETTE, EMERGENCY MEDICINE PHYSICIAN: I'm definitely concerned, Fred. You said it. We hit a milestone, but it's not a good one. What I think people don't understand is how disproportionately the United States has been affected during this pandemic. There have been 30.8 million cases of COVID-19 reported worldwide and over 6.7 million of those are in the United States alone.

In terms of deaths, globally there have been over 957,000 deaths and we're nearing 200,000 of those in the United States alone. That means 21 percent of global deaths from COVID-19 are in the United States. This is not a laughing matter. This is not a joke. Yet, for some reason, we still have people who are not proponents of utilizing masks and people who are saying that businesses should reopen without any mitigation strategies in place.

These are not the kind of topics that are going to help us win this war against COVID-19. WHITFIELD: And what are you observing with the patients coming in to

your hospital? Is there a particular difference today versus a month ago or even three or four months ago?

BICETTE: Well, the difference is now is that as the disease progresses, we're learning more and more about it. When COVID-19 first hit the scene back in January, we initially thought that this was primarily a respiratory disease. Now we know that COVID-19 can affect a number of the body systems. It can affect your lungs, your neurological systems, your blood cell lines. It can affect clotting and caused blood clots to the lungs that can then lead to death.

It's causing long-term effects. We've seen celebrities making videos about them losing their hair months after being diagnosed with COVID- 19. So what we're seeing now are the myriad of signs and symptoms that can be associated with this virus.

[13:25:07]

WHITFIELD: And with school back in, colleges as well, are you seeing more younger people?

BICETTE: Yes, absolutely. There have been over 500,000 cases, pediatric cases of COVID-19 worldwide. Children are not immune from this disease. Young people are not immune from this disease. When COVID, again, first hit the scene back in January, we were initially thinking that this was something that primarily affected the elderly and young people were not susceptible. We know now that that is not the case.

WHITFIELD: Let's talk about the big great hope and that's a vaccine, right? President Trump last week promising 100 million doses of a vaccine by the end of this year and enough doses for all Americans by April. His own advisers are saying that isn't realistic at all. Here's what Admiral Giroir told CNN this morning.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ADM. BRETT GIROIR MD, ASSISTANT SECRETARY FOR HEALTH, HHS: From my perspective, even a few million doses early in November or December, if we have 5 percent or 10 percent of the population that we can vaccinate, we can get 80 percent or 90 percent of the benefit. For example, if we could vaccinate workers in nursing homes, we could protect the elderly and the vulnerable from disease, that would make an enormous impact on mortality. If we could vaccinate our teachers and those with pre-existing conditions, or those surrounding those people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Does that math add up to you even with justified percent he said?

BICETTE: Well, I think that what we're doing is we're really hanging our hat on a vaccine right now, and we shouldn't be. Even if a vaccine is approved, the FDA has already said that the vaccine only needs to be 50 percent effective in order for them to approve it for worldwide use. That means only one out of every two people will be prevented from getting COVID-19 if they get the vaccine. It's not going to be the great white hope that we think it is. We're still going to continue to use the mitigation strategies that we already have in place, wearing masks and social distancing.

People, for a while this is going to be our new normal, and it's high time that we get used to that.

WHITFIELD: All right. Dr. Richina Bicette, always good to see you. Thank you so much.

A trifecta of disasters in California. Wildfires, earthquakes and rising cases of COVID-19 in that state. And it is overwhelmed there. I'll ask a lawmaker next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[13:32:00]

WHITFIELD: All right. We're currently in what could be the busiest travel weekend for U.S. airports since the lockdowns began back in March. It might be a glimmer of hope for the air travel industry, but for many airline workers a bounce back may be too little too late.

Here's CNN's Pete Muntean.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PETE MUNTEAN, CNN AVIATION CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Time is running out for the nation's flight attendants and tens of thousands in the aviation industry faced with furloughs that start in just weeks.

JILL COLLINS, UNITED AIRLINES AFA FLIGHT ATTENDANT: We're looking at half of them losing their jobs.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We are being left to dry.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I was just about to be at the peak of my career.

MUNTEAN: Angela Frid of New Jersey is one of 7,000 United States Airlines flight attendants that opened furlough letters earlier this month. She was hired only two years ago.

ANGELA FRID, UNITED AIRLINES AFA FLIGHT ATTENDANT: It's very emotional. And, you know, I'm scared for myself. I'm scared for my friends who, you know, we're in a crazy place right now.

MUNTEAN: In March $25 billion federal bailout dollars went to payroll for struggling airlines. That bailout barred layoffs but only until October 1st. A new CNN analysis finds that's when at least 50,000 airline workers will be furloughed. The majority are flight attendants, says union president Sara Nelson.

SARA NELSON, ASSOCIATION OF FLIGHT ATTENDANTS: This is going to have a ripple effect that is going to be very far-reaching in our economy at just the wrong time.

MUNTEAN: Unions and some airlines want Congress to extend payroll support by six months. They say that could save jobs until travel demand returns. Industry groups stress the loss of one airline job impacts even more down the line.

Layachi Hacene owes four months' rent after he lost his job as an airport security guard.

LAYACHI HACENE, FORMER AIRPORT SECURITY GUARD: Our situation right now is not good. We are suffering. Right now we are suffering.

MUNTEAN: Airlines like American and United say furloughs are the only option, and more could be coming after October 1st. Southwest says enough employees have left on their own, so it has dodged a bullet for now.

GARY KELLY, SOUTHWEST AIRLINES CEO: We're down to the bitter end in this. With real people, real jobs.

MUNTEAN: Union leaders say a legislative delay has damaged the industry beyond repair. Countless airline veterans have already taken buy-outs and early retirements. But its junior employees like Angela Frid whose future could be grounded for good.

FRID: It's a dream job. I don't know if I'm going to be able to find a new job soon with the job market that we're working with. It's crazy times.

MUNTEAN: Pete Muntean, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Much more straight ahead in the NEWSROOM right after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[13:38:41]

WHITFIELD: We're waiting to hear from Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden. He is scheduled to speak in Philadelphia about the high court and the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and what her loss means for the future of the country as Republicans vow to nominate a replacement before the election. If Republicans succeed, the court, the high court would likely have a conservative majority for decades to come putting the Affordable Care Act and abortion rights at risk, not just in the immediate future but for generations.

And then just moments ago, key Republican Senator Lisa Murkowski weighed in saying she opposes taking up the nomination before election day, but doesn't go as far as saying the winner of the election should be the one to select the next justice.

Joining me right now is Alexis McGill Johnson, the president and CEO of Planned Parenthood Federation of America.

Good to see you, Alexis.

ALEXIS MCGILL JOHNSON, PRESIDENT AND CEO, PLANNED PARENTHOOD FEDERATION OF AMERICA: You too, Fredricka. Thanks for having me.

WHITFIELD: So as you assess, you know, the days forward after the death of Ginsburg, is the vacancy left by her the greatest threat "Roe v. Wade" has faced since it was decided in your view?

MCGILL JOHNSON: Well, look, I mean, there's no question that we -- you know, there are 17 cases that are just a case away, a step away from the Supreme Court.

[13:40:07]

And, you know, and each of those cases could undermine access to abortion or gut Roe in a way that might be incredibly harmful. But, you know, you have to know that we have been organizing and preparing for this moment for quite some time and organizing in the states to ensure that no person seeking abortion should have to go outside of their state or much less outside of their zip code.

So, you know, it's obviously an incredibly concerning, you know, turn of events and we lost a huge champion for reproductive freedom in Justice Ginsburg, but, you know, we are out here ready to continue in dissent and resist as she would have.

WHITFIELD: You know, perhaps a lot of people don't realize that, you know, abortions -- access to abortions make up a small percentage of the total services of Planned Parenthood. And, you know, you offer a number of things. I mean, we go through a short list, I'm sure you could add to it, you know, from health, you know, care examines, cancer screenings, birth control, STD, testing, treatment and prevention as well as HIV services.

And this is for both men and women, correct? So, you know, how concerned are you about the access to health care if indeed the Affordable Care Act is struck down. I mean, the Supreme Court is to take it up in November. A decision may not come until, you know, shortly thereafter, but what are your concerns?

MCGILL JOHNSON: Yes, absolutely. Look, we're also living in the time of a pandemic. Right? We have seen the impact that COVID has in just laying bare the systemic racism across this country, particularly in health care. And so, you know, so we should be thinking how we are expanding access to health care in this moment, not thinking about how we are going to take it away.

And in the same vein, I think the Senate Republicans should be focused on how they're going to expand relief under the next COVID CARES bill as opposed to trying to ram through a Supreme Court nominee knowing that Justice Ginsburg's most fervent wish was that we wait until after election day, as Senator Murkowski has also noted.

WHITFIELD: Is it enough to you that Senator Murkowski and Collins, while they are both saying, you know, don't, you know, vote on a nominee before election day, they're not quite saying, you know, that it should be up to the winner of the election who should make the selection of a nominee?

MCGILL JOHNSON: Look, we need to have -- you know, we need to wait until January 21, '21 to start this process. And, you know, we will have hopefully a new president and a new administration and that the winner of the election should make that determination. It's not enough just to have Senators Murkowski and Collins, as much as we appreciate their voicing their concern, we also need additional senators.

We need, you know, Senator Grassley. We need Senator Alexander. We need folks who, you know, will step up and ensure that they are also adhering to not just the justice's wishing but the wishes of the American people. We can't continue to weaponize and politicize the Supreme Court. We need to make sure that they are -- that we are doing all that we can to make sure that we are ensuring democracy and not just, you know, changing the rules just to suit what happens, you know, for Mitch McConnell's power needs.

WHITFIELD: Planned Parenthood has endorsed Joe Biden. To what extent does Planned Parenthood try to ensure his victory?

MCGILL JOHNSON: Right. You know, Planned Parenthood Action Fund has endorsed Joe Biden. We have committed to $45 million to spend on not just winning the White House but also flipping the Senate and making sure that we are doing everything we can, as you said, not just to protect sexual reproductive health care but health care broadly. And, you know, we want Biden to continue to reaffirm his commitment to protecting access to health care, affordable health care, access to safe and legal abortion.

And we know that having Senator Harris on his ticket who I think has been a very bold champion as well in her vision of codifying Roe I think is really important. So we will be doing everything we can both to push back on trying to seat a new justice during this term when we have people who are already voting right now. It is already election day right today and, you know, and making sure that we're also doing everything we can to transform our government in a way that actually reflects the wishes of the American people.

WHITFIELD: And while we all mourn the loss of Ginsburg, do you see that her death has now galvanized the vote unlike anything prior to her passing?

MCGILL JOHNSON: Look, I mean, we are fired up. You've seen the clips in front of the Supreme Court, the vigils that are being held by our partners across the -- you know, across the country, self-organized.

[13:45:02]

I have one amazing supporter and donor who is in her 70s today who asked, you know, what was the civil disobedient strategy because she wanted to just go and lay her body in front of the Supreme Court. People are fired up. We have 16 million supporters of Planned Parenthood who are taking actions, they're engaging our networks and they're ready to do everything they can to lay it all on the line for this election.

WHITFIELD: Alexis McGill Johnson, of Planned Parenthood, thank you so much.

MCGILL JOHNSON: Thank you for having me.

WHITFIELD: And we'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Sadly America is fast approaching 200,000 deaths from COVID-19. And it has been an especially tumultuous week for California. On top of the pandemic there have been deadly wildfires and even an earthquake.

Democratic state assembly member Elle Louis Gomez Reyes is joining us right now from San Bernardino, California.

[13:50:01]

Good to see you.

ELOISE GOMEZ REYES (D), CALIFORNIA STATE ASSEMBLY: Good to see you, Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right. So your state has been among the states hit hardest by the virus. But there is some perhaps should we call it encouraging news that we're now learning that Saturday's hospital patient numbers were at their lowest since April? What do you credit to that?

REYES: I think it's the leadership, the governor and so many others who have asked us to stay home, to wear a mask, to stay six feet away from each other. There's so many things and I think the fact that the people are actually doing it is making a difference. We all want to see the economy to reopen. But we also want it to be safe.

WHITFIELD: You know, Dr. Anthony Fauci says the measures being taken against COVID actually may have an impact on the flu season. Listen.

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DR. ANTHONY FAUCI, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY AND INFECTIOUS DISEASES: We still should be getting our flu shots, for sure, the way we always do, but it is entirely possible that despite the fear that we were going to have a double whammy, namely flu season super imposed upon a continuation of COVID-19, that may not be the case.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Flu shots, mask wearing, all making an impact. Why does this, you know, perhaps give you a sense of hope for the fall?

REYES: Well, we want to be able to -- we want to be able to reopen the economy. So it gives me great hope to know that there's more than to be done to keep us moving forward, quite frankly.

WHITFIELD: Now let's talk about the other thing, you know, that is hitting your state very hard. You know, we're talking about these wildfires unfolding across the West. The California Department of Forestry and fire protection said today that, I'm quoting now, containment continues to increase, the 27 wildfires in California. So where do things stand right now? How is this impacting everyday life for so many?

REYES: Well, I'll tell you, here the El Dorado Fire in my community is about 59 percent contained. Yesterday we suffered a loss of one of our firefighters. This is something serious. We have to deal with this with climate change and so many other things that are happening here in globally. It's not just in our area but it's happening globally, and so we have to do more but a part of that is providing more firefighters. We have more and more wildfires, but we need those men and women to help fight the fires.

WHITFIELD: And to assist the firefighters, you actually sponsored a bill that allows inmate firefighters on the front lines to become, you know, professional firefighters after they are released from prison. Explain how that would work and why you support this.

REYES: I think that sometime California and other states have been rethinking criminal justice for quite some time. We want ways to improve the outcomes for those who make mistakes, serve their time and have reentered society, and when we view the commitment and determination of those inmate firefighters that turned their lives around, that's what motivated me to create a pathway to help them get on the right track and to use the skills that they learned to get back to the community.

It took a lot of work with lots of the stakeholders, both the firefighter union and those in criminal justice reform to try to come up with the best way that we can deal with this situation. AB 2127 provides that for individuals that have successfully completed their duties as an inmate firefighter that they can apply for an expungement. It's an expedited expungement of the criminal record and if it's granted by the court, it would allow them to pursue employment as a firefighter or in any other profession that requires California license because now they won't have to disclose that felony conviction when they apply for the license.

And we have about 200 separate licenses through the state of California but one of those very important one is the EMT license that up to now has not been available to many of those who have those skills that they acquired in the California conservation camp, the fire camp for the county, as well.

WHITFIELD: Let me ask you, too, about President Trump, you know, blaming bad forest management for a lot of this and of course we're talking about you have this forestry as both state and federal land but 60 percent of it, right, is federally managed, so what do you see ahead, you know, as lessons learned from this moment?

REYES: There is so much we have to do but I'm glad you made that point. It surprised me when the president would say something about the management of our forests when the majority of the forest land here in California is federal, so it is a federal requirement that they maintain them but I will tell you that here the state has been doing a much better job.

[13:55:04]

I know we've had a number of hearings with our utilities, PG&E and Southern California Edison and San Diego Gas and Electric to have them work on their areas as well. But it's going to take lots of work and I think the fire crews, both the inmate fight crews and others who will pursue this particular profession, it's their work that's going to help us to clear the land, to harden the land. We have to work as neighbors not only for our own land but for those -- the land of the others, as well.

WHITFIELD: We'll leave it there for now. Of course, we're wishing everybody out there the best in just an onslaught of tough times.

Assemblywoman Eloise Gomez Reyes, thank you so much.

REYES: Thank you so much.

WHITFIELD: At any moment Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden will take to the stage in Philadelphia to give remarks on the U.S. Supreme Court seat left open by the death of Justice Ginsburg. This as two key Republican senators join Democrats in opposing a new nominee before the election.

We're live next.

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