Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Newsroom
Official: UK Is "Heading In The Wrong Direction"; English Pubs, Restaurants Facing New Restrictions; UK Minister: People Should Work From Home If Possible; Investors Fear Second Wave, New Restrictions, No Stimulus; Novak Djokovic Makes History With Rome Victory; Man City Open Season With 3-1 Win At Wolves; Bryson DeChambeau: The Man Behind The Scene. Aired 2-3a ET
Aired September 22, 2020 - 02:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[02:00:00]
(MUSIC PLAYING)
ROBYN CURNOW, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): Hi, welcome to CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Robyn Curnow.
Coming, up the U.K. has turned out new lockdown restrictions after a surge in COVID cases.
The U.S. goes it alone on Iran again. The Trump administration is reimposing sanctions on Iran without the support of allies.
Plus the political battle for the U.S. Supreme Court, Republicans vowed to push ahead with confirming a new justice, despite their previous stance against doing so in an election year.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (voice-over): Live from CNN Center, this is CNN NEWSROOM with Robyn Curnow.
CURNOW: Any moment now, the U.S. is expected to hit a terrible new milestone. 200,000 coronavirus deaths. Tens of thousands more than any other country in the world. We are also seeing a troubling trend in the number of American cases which have once again soared about 40,000 a day on average. Infections up in almost 30 states.
Also, a number of European countries are experiencing a surge in cases as well. Those in orange and maroon are seeing increases from 10 percent to much higher. Spain is putting new lockdown measures in place for many in the capital of Madrid and admissions in French intensive care units are up by nearly 90 percent.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PASAL MAILHOS, PREFECT OF RHONE REGION, FRANCE (through translator): Events involving more than 5,000 people are currently prohibited. In accordance with national guidelines and as is also the case in Bordeaux, Marseille and Nice, the limit has been lowered to a maximum of 1,000 people.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CURNOW: Britain's prime minister is also expected to announce new coronavirus restrictions in the coming. Hours these measures would require restaurants and pubs in England to limit some service and close by 10 pm each night starting on Thursday.
This comes as coronavirus cases keep on rising there at an alarming rate. On Monday, the U.K. recorded its second highest infection spike in 4 months. We will talk about this in just a few moments' time.
The top U.S. infectious disease expert, Dr. Anthony Fauci, says you can't look at the death toll here in the U.S. that is close to 200,000 people and say that is terrific. The president still claims the U.S. is rounding the corner on the pandemic. But Athena Jones shows us it's not really the case.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DR. PETER HOTEZ, PROFESSOR AND DEAN OF TROPICAL MEDICINE, BAYLOR COLLEGE OF MEDICINE: We may be in for a very apocalyptic fall --
ATHENA JONES, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): As the U.S. approaches another grim milestone, 200,000 lives lost to coronavirus, signs the much feared fall surge in cases is already here.
SCOTT GOTTLIEB, FORMER FDA COMMISSIONER: If you look at what's happening around the country right now, there's an unmistakable spike in new infections.
JONES (voice-over): New COVID-19 cases topping 40,000 a day on average with new daily infections now rising in 28 states, up more than 50 percent in eight states. Wisconsin, Idaho and South Dakota all reporting COVID test positivity rates above 16 percent.
HOTEZ: It's happening because we're forcing schools to reopen in areas of high transmission, forcing colleges to reopen. And we don't have the leadership nationally telling people to wear masks and to social distance and do all the things we need to do.
JONES (voice-over): The startling trend coming as the CDC issues and then removes from its website new guidance showing just how contagious coronavirus is.
The agency noting it can spread through the air in tiny droplets or aerosols, not just when someone coughs, sneezes or talks, but even when they simply breathe. Highlighting restaurants, fitness classes and choir practice as risks. The agency later saying the new guidance was a draft posted in error.
DR. LEANA WEN, CNN MEDICAL ANALYST: It's extremely confusing and that type of whiplash, especially without an explanation directly from the CDC creates confusion and unfortunately leads to lack of trust in the CDC overall.
JONES (voice-over): Meanwhile on the vaccine front, the White House's testing czar, Brett Giroir, arguing -- BRETT GIROIR, ASSISTANT SECRETARY FOR HEALTH, HHS: Vaccine as early as possible even in a few million doses will be a godsend in terms of outcomes, hospitalizations, morbidity and deaths.
JONES (voice-over): Still, Bill Gates warning of a long road ahead even after a vaccine is approved.
BILL GATES, CO-CHAIR, BILL AND MELINDA GATES FOUNDATION: If the vaccine approvals come by early next year, as I expect, then by next summer, U.S. will be starting to go back to normal and by the end of the year, our activities can be fairly normal if we're also helping these other countries. At the end of the epidemic best case is probably 2022.
JONES (voice-over): All this as the influential model from the University of Washington now lowering its forecast for total U.S. COVID deaths by January 1st to just under 380,000, down from more than 415,000 last week, citing steeper than expected declines in deaths in several states.
But the model still predicts more than 3,000 deaths a day by the end of December and says a universal mask mandate could keep total deaths to around 263,000 by New Year's Day.
JONES: This new forecast is really a range. Just like it estimates how many lives could be saved by a universal mask mandate, it also says that if current mandates are eased, the number of projected deaths soars to more than 445,000 by January 1st --
[02:05:00]
JONES: -- Athena Jones, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CURNOW: Sweden, as we know, has gone its own way during this pandemic, opting for voluntary guidelines instead of mandates and lockdowns. It's no surprise the country has no plans to mandate a COVID vaccine, either.
But will people take it voluntarily? Max Foster now reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MAX FOSTER, CNN LONDON CORRESPONDENT: No lockdown and few masks, if any at all. Sweden tends to avoid issuing mandates when voluntary guidelines are usually enough. Many here feel that approach has been vindicated by the latest pandemic numbers. After a spike in coronavirus deaths, mainly amongst the elderly, mortality is now down to normal seasonal levels. Infection rates are also falling as they surge elsewhere in Europe, where local lockdowns are still a part of the strategy. Sweden, increasingly, a shining example for American conservatives who
oppose masks and lockdown. All eyes now on how they handle the vaccine. And we already know their plan. FOSTER (on camera): The Swedish British pharmaceuticals giant, AstraZeneca, is one of the front-runners in developing a coronavirus vaccine. If and when they succeed, adults will be advised by the health authorities here to take it, or the approved alternative and starting with the most vulnerable. There's no real debate here about mandated vaccination.
ANDERS TEGNELL, CHIEF EPIDEMIOLOGIST: We work with voluntary vaccination during the last pandemic and Sweden probably reached the highest rate of vaccination anywhere in the world.
FOSTER (voice over): Chief epidemiologist Anders Tegnell, known as the architect of Sweden's Covid-19 pandemic response.
Children won't be advised to take the vaccine at all, at least at first, because they aren't considered spreaders of the virus.
TEGNELL: We have very little data that they spread the disease at all, so at least in the beginning, to vaccinate children would be not the most relevant action to take. The most relevant action to take is to vaccinate people that are really at risk, which are mainly the elderly and people working with them in health care and in social care.
FOSTER: But members of this family aren't sure they would ever take part in another vaccination program after the last one. Their 13-year- old, who doesn't want to be named, has the chronic sleep disorder narcolepsy, which his doctor says was triggered by the swine flu immunizations of 2009. A vaccine hastily rolled out in Europe at the time has been linked to an increase in cases, leading this family and others wary of vaccination.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: After school, I don't have energy to do stuff. So I just go home and play video games.
FOSTER: His father says he wouldn't take another vaccine unless there was a guarantee of compensation for side effects.
ANDERS, FATHER: Yes, I think I will doubt to take it.
ZERO, STEP-MOTHER: Same. I'm his step-mother. I live with him every other week. And I see what happened to him.
FOSTER (on camera): If a vaccine suddenly appears for the virus, are you likely to take it?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No.
FOSTER: Why not?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm scared of it, though, in the beginning, yes. So I don't -- I feel I'm strong enough without it. UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No, I won't do it.
FOSTER: Why not?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Because I think it's -- it's too early. They can try first on some other people.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think I'll take it.
FOSTER: Why's that?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: If it's safe, then -- if it helps, then why wouldn't I?
FOSTER (voice over): Sweden's national health agency says all the bodies involved in developing a new vaccine are doing everything possible to prevent dangerous side effects ever happening again.
Swedes have a reputation for following official advice on medication, without questioning it. But even here, you'll find plenty who won't be at the front of the line for a brand-new coronavirus vaccine. That raises the question of whether we'll ever be rid of this deadly and endlessly disruptive virus -- Max Foster, CNN, Stockholm, Sweden.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CURNOW: Thanks Max, for that.
Still to come, the fight to fill Ruth Bader Ginsburg's seat in a Supreme Court in the U.S. Donald Trump wants a replacement before the election and he may be making progress. We have that story.
And the U.S. makes another move to punish Iran, even though Security Council members are not going along with it. We have that story as well. You are watching CNN.
(MUSIC PLAYING)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[02:10:00]
(MUSIC PLAYING)
CURNOW: Welcome back. I'm Robyn Curnow.
The push to get a third Trump nominee on the Supreme Court before the election appears to be gaining momentum. The head of the Senate committee in charge of the process promised a vote by Election Day.
Donald Trump got another boost on Monday when Republican senators Grassley and Gardner signaled they're both behind the quick vote. Republicans were against fast-tracking Barack Obama's nominee back in 2016, if you remember that.
What if anything has changed?
Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. MITCH MCCONNELL (R-KY): The American people reelected our majority in 2016. They strengthened it further in 2018, because we pledged to work with President Trump on the most critical issues facing our country. The federal judiciary was right at the top of the list.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. CHUCK SCHUMER (D-NY): This is what leader McConnell said in 2016.
Mere hours after the death of justice Scalia, quote, his words, "The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court justice. Therefore, this vacancy shall not be filled until we have a new president."
No amount of sophistry can change what McConnell said then. And it applies even more so now, more so, so much closer we are to an election.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CURNOW: A quick vote would solidify the conservatives' grasp on the court. It rules on issues like abortion rights and health care. President Trump is already working through his short list. As Kaitlan Collins now tells us, he should have a nominee within days.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KAITLAN COLLINS, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): President Trump says he will announce his pick to replace Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on the Supreme Court by the end of the week.
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: And I think, in all due respect, we should wait until the services are over for Justice Ginsburg. And so we're looking probably at Friday or maybe Saturday.
COLLINS: Trump telling FOX News that he's waiting out of respect for RBG, before baselessly claiming that her dying wish to be replaced by the next president, which she dictated to her granddaughter, was concocted by Democrats.
TRUMP: Well, I don't know that she said that, or was that written out by Adam Schiff and Schumer?
QUESTION: It was reported.
COLLINS: The president spent the weekend on the phone with staff, lawmakers and advisers, as he narrowed down his list of finalists to several women.
TRUMP: I'm looking at five, probably four, but I'm looking at five very seriously.
COLLINS: On that list right now are Amy Coney Barrett, Allison Jones Rushing, Kate Todd and Barbara Lagoa, a Cuban American judge from Florida that campaign officials believe could provide a political boost.
TRUMP: Well, she's excellent. She's Hispanic. I don't know her. Florida. We love Florida.
COLLINS: Trump making clear his desire to submit a 6-3 conservative majority on the court for generations to come.
TRUMP: These are the smartest people. These are the smartest young people. You like to go young because they're there for a long time.
COLLINS: While it's not clear who he will pick, it is clear that Trump wants to have his nominee confirmed before the November election.
TRUMP: I think the vote, the final vote, should be taken, frankly, before the election. We have plenty of time for that.
COLLINS: Waiting until Friday to announce his pick would give Trump 39 days to get his nominee confirmed.
On average, Senate confirmations for Supreme Court justices take around 70 days.
[02:15:00]
TRUMP: We should act quickly, because we're going to have probably election things involved here because of the fake ballots that they will be sending out.
COLLINS: The president providing no proof that fraudulent ballots are being sent out. But there is new audio revealing comments he made to Bob Woodward about reshaping the courts and working with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to appoint conservative judges.
TRUMP: He will absolutely ask me, please, let's get the judge approved, instead of 10 ambassadors.
COLLINS: CNN has learned that the president met with Amy Coney Barrett at the White House on Monday. He is going through these nominees. He says he is going to continue to speak to those that are on his short list over the next few days.
He says his announcement will likely come on Saturday now. We'll have to wait to see who it is the president selects -- Kaitlan Collins, CNN, the White House.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CURNOW: Let's talk more about this with Leslie Vinjamuri, head of the U.S. and Americas Programme at Chatham House.
Leslie, lovely to see you. As you heard there, the U.S. president very much making this a top campaign issue right now.
What kind of impact do you think that will have on voters? LESLIE VINJAMURI, CHATHAM HOUSE: This is one of the most divisive issue amongst the electorate. It's really what Donald Trump's base has wanted to see the, the appointment of conservative judges.
So for the president to take this moment and move the focus of the campaign to his ability to really stack the Supreme Court with justices from that persuasion, a place to his favor. But it is a very difficult sell.
Remember we are in a context where the United States is about to hit or has just hit overnight, 200,000 deaths, where Americans are struggling with sending their children to school; the future of the economy is highly uncertain. It is a difficult move but it does motivate his base.
It also motivates the Democrats. We've seen campaign donations immediately accelerating amongst Democratic givers. And, in Congress, deep polarization for this issue because there's so much at stake, not least with the future of health care.
CURNOW: We are seeing how Republicans have the vote to push through a nominee, it seems like it, even before that nominee has been announced.
Has this becomes sort of a fast track fait accompli?
VINJAMURI: It does feel that way right now. It's tragic in part because we are recognizing and commemorating the passing of one of the greatest justices who has done so much for equality, for women's rights. She will be lying in state at the Capitol, the first woman, the first Jew.
The fact that it is really being pushed so rapidly -- but he does have the votes. We have seen senators Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski say they would rather wait for an election. Collins would rather wait for the new president.
But whether that will hold and that's not enough pushback. He still has the votes to get this to the Senate. It might come at a cost, especially if the Democrats -- and Joe Biden is leading on this -- link what happens in the Supreme Court to whether 23 million Americans, depending on the Affordable Care Act, will still have that coverage in the context of a pandemic.
It is really hitting lower income Americans, Americans of African American descent and other ethnic minorities much harder than what middle class Americans. So the stakes are high for America. But the president is once again trying to really change the narrative and use this to play in his favor. So far it does look like he has the votes.
CURNOW: It does, from CNN's reporting, we see. We have both sides acknowledging that the shape of this court will also shape American society, perhaps for a generation.
How quickly could that new balance in fact be tested? President Trump alluded to that in a piece. He talked about the election thing. You could see this new court weighing whether or not Mr. Biden or Mr. Trump actually gets the presidency.
VINJAMURI: It could. If the election is very, very close, if it came down to perhaps weighing up which votes to count, which mail in ballots to count in a state like Pennsylvania, which is certainly plausible under very tight election scenarios.
But even without this additional justice, who would likely vote to support the reelection of President Trump, the court looks like it will probably go in that direction in any case. Whether it actually moves the dial on an electoral outcome, it certainly has a very significant impact on health care, on topics of abortion rights.
[02:20:00]
VINJAMURI: There's any number of questions as we move forward into the next four years and the next several decades, because as President Trump said, he is looking at they're young, they will be on the bench for very long time. It is a very significant moment in America for the whole political and economic plight.
CURNOW: It is. As we look at that historically, we know some conservative appointments over the decades, once they are sitting on the bench, have taken a far more broader, less politically pigeonholed, I suppose, view of cases in front of them.
How likely do you think that is in this current polarized environment?
Obviously there is so much conversation on either side, pulling and tugging at this.
Can we just say, once this justice perhaps sits at the bench, the broader sense of what they are ruling funnels down to them?
VINJAMURI: I think that one hopes -- and I think we've seen so far that justices that have been appointed permanently to the bench for life to the Supreme Court have been extraordinary individuals in their own right. A lot comes down to the case of how it's argued, what the precedence is.
But I think the real issue comes on cases and issues on which values matter and are deeply polarizing for American society and on the bench. So questions -- and whether the American public isn't consolidated on a particular. View I think those are the cases where there is a lot at play for. Where Americans have really come together on a (INAUDIBLE) does tend to reflect (INAUDIBLE) than the values of just (INAUDIBLE) inevitably influence (INAUDIBLE).
CURNOW: Thank you very much for your perspective and expertise, Leslie Vinjamuri. We appreciate it.
VINJAMURI: Thank you.
CURNOW: The United States is imposing new sanctions on Iran ahead of the U.N. embargo, arms embargo ending next month. An executive order on Monday targeting Iranian officials and groups and both nuclear and conventional arms status.
The order comes after the White House announced it was unilaterally reimposing U.N. sanctions, even though the U.S. withdrew from the Iran nuclear deal. Most Security Council members rejected that effort.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MIKE POMPEO, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: The country that is isolated today is not the United States but rather Iran. By these actions we have made it very clear that every member in that state in the United Nations has the responsibility to thwart (ph) these sanctions. That certainly includes the United Kingdom, France and Germany.
We will have every expectation that those nations enforce these sanctions.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CURNOW: Let's talk about this with Jeffrey Lewis. He is the director of the East Asian Nonproliferation at the Middlebury Institute. He hosts the documentary podcast about the Iran nuclear deal called "The Deal."
Jeffrey, lovely to see you.
Who is more isolated here on the issue of Iran?
The U.S. or Iran?
JEFFREY LEWIS, "THE DEAL": Well, fortunately there are things called votes. There have been votes taken at the United Nations Security Council and the U.S. keeps losing those votes, often with only one other country voting with us.
So, I think sad to say, it's the United States and not Iran that is at the moment isolated.
CURNOW: How do you interpret these latest moves by the White House as Trump and his aides are presenting Iran as a dangerous threat?
But what are these latest measures meant to do?
Is this about denuclearization?
LEWIS: I think one of the things that has come through, as I've looked at both how the Trump administration is handling the issue right now but also the way in which they've talked about it from the get-go, in the podcast that you mentioned, is that this has always been about regime change for them.
They were excited that there was the opportunity to put sanctions on Iran, using nuclear issues as a kind of pretext. But the reality is they were unhappy when the nuclear issue was resolved because what it meant was the sanctions would come back off. Fundamentally what the Trump administration wants is sanctions to stay
on Iran in the hopes of collapsing the regime. Any deal for them I think is a bad one.
CURNOW: You heard Mr. Pompeo tacitly saying that Europeans need to get on board here and others. The signatories to the nuclear deal, European opposing a lot of these moves, disagreeing that Iran is extremely dangerous right now and trying to hold on to what is left of the strands of the nuclear deal.
My question is, what next?
LEWIS: I will say, I think my college needs to get on board with giving me a Ferrari, maybe a jetski and a lake house, but that doesn't mean it's going to happen. I think that's fundamentally what we are seeing here.
[02:25:00]
LEWIS: The Trump administration is making assertions of things that need to happen but all evidence indicates that we are pretty much on a steady state path, where Iranian is walking back its agreements on the deal because of U.S. pressure.
And generally the other parties all seem to be placating Iran, because U.S. is playing the role of the unreasonable party. We have an election coming up in the United States and maybe that will change the dynamic.
But at least for the foreseeable future, I think what you're going to see is a Trump administration that is increasingly unhappy that it just cannot get its way.
CURNOW: We've seen some reporting, some intelligence reports as well that Iran is taking a calculated decision to be restrained. That is their strategy right now, because of the pandemic and before the U.S. election.
Does that matter and would you agree with that assessment?
LEWIS: I think it matters tremendously and I would say that all the public evidence we have at the moment suggests that Iran has been restrained. It is a very fortunate set of circumstances.
I also studied North Korea and that is a case study and a country that has not been restrained. So I think the international community is still extremely lucky that the slow-motion collapse of the Iran deal has not led to an Iranian nuclear weapon.
But I would caution that, can this really go on forever?
Can we have an indefinite situation of U.S. hostility and indefinite continuation of sanctions?
Will Iran remain restrained for the foreseeable future?
Maybe for a while but maybe not forever.
CURNOW: What does these latest sanctions net mean for Iranians?
LEWIS: When I'm a skeptic when it comes to sanctions leading to regime change. I think we saw President Rouhani, the current president, was elected in part because ordinary Iranians wanted him to go out and trade the nuclear program for sanctions relief.
But the reality is that when you have biting sanctions like this, it's the people at the bottom will get. Hurt the elites find ways around it and, in fact, when things like smuggling become very profitable, it's the people on top who get richer.
In my experience these kinds of sanctions don't lead to regime change; what they tend to do is strengthen the regime at the expense of ordinary citizens.
CURNOW: Jeffrey Lewis, always good to speak. To thank you so much.
LEWIS: It's a pleasure.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CURNOW: Still to come, the Trump administration's rosy outlook for the economy is at odds with a lot of the experts. We will look at the different forecasts -- back in a moment.
(MUSIC PLAYING)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(MUSIC PLAYING)
[02:30:00]
CURNOW: Welcome back to CNN newsroom. I'm Robyn Curnow here in Atlanta.
So we've been telling you about these new coronavirus restrictions. Coming soon for restaurants and pubs in England, starting first day they will be required to close by 10 pm each night and limit some service and it comes as the UK is seeing a major spike in infections.
Well, Sterghios Moschos is an associate professor of molecular virology at Northumbria University. He joins me now from Newcastle in England. Good to see you, sir.
So the data in the UK is heading in the wrong direction. We are getting that from authorities. How much of a critical point is the UK facing?
DR. STERGHIOS MOSCHOS, ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR, NORTHUMBRIA UNIVERSITY: Well, the data at new levels are starting to show exponential growth of cases, hospitalizations as well as death. And to prevent any further increase of these numbers, it is quite clear we need to intervene now. CURNOW: And there is a sense, we understand that the Prime Minister Boris Johnson is going to make an announcement in the coming hours, closing of pubs, for example, closing at 10 pm. Is that enough for you as a doctor, as somebody who studies viruses? Do you think kicking people out of the pubs at 10 is going to be enough to stop this virus and the data that you're seeing?
MOSCHOS: Well, the hospitality community says that about 60 percent of the takings happen around 10 o'clock at night, so on the run up to about 11 o'clock previous closing time that we used to have, the 11 o'clock has disappeared over the last few years. So people tended to get drunk around 10 and they continue onwards.
So I think the idea here is to try and reduce the alcohol fueled closer social interactions that would happen later at night to, therefore, try and reduce transmission. My gut feeling, though, is that we are not looking at something that can be contained beating that way. People can continue socializing outside, at home even worse, after that. And I'm not convinced personally, it is a pub-driven phenomenon. I think we have a lot more diffused transmission in the community starting from schools all the way up to adults and older elders, just the adults getting fatigued with a whole idea of having to self-isolate, segregate, maintaining distance, et cetera, just getting back together early.
CURNOW: And of course, also universities pretty much starting as well. So we know that the prime minister is warning of these tougher measures to come, and there is concern and suggestion that there should be a national lockdown for 2 weeks, for example. Do you advocate something like that, or do you think that this can be managed with localized restrictions and also masks? Do you need a circuit breaker, as the health minister imposed?
MOSCHOS: Yes. So starting with masks, I'm absolutely a fair bit of supporter of the idea the data that have come out showing again and again and again that mask reduce transmission. And now we are having also data come out showing that masks produce your chances of picking up the infection.
And whatever we can achieve, whether it is a bandana that we wrap 3 times around our mouth and nose or a surgical N95 mask, we need to intervene to try and reduce that transmission.
Now with regards to whether two weeks will work, the question is what are you trying to achieve? Are you trying to achieve continue transmission in the community, or are you trying to achieve basically a New Zealand style elimination of the virus? The Taiwan style reduction of transmission, or even China style reduction of transmissions.
China is just starting to see new cases arise and it's possible to achieve that. Two weeks, though, won't cut it.
CURNOW: And also, as you were talking, we were just hearing, Michael, one of the cabinet ministers was speaking on local media in the UK saying the people need to stay at home to work, that they need to be working from home.
So this certainly looks like there is going to be an intensification of measures. How does the UK, though, compare with the rest of Europe, rather than, say, Taiwan or New Zealand?
MOSCHOS: Sure. So we have France and Spain, we have already seen the exponential growth on us back in March, they led and we followed. So we know where this is heading. We are heading to an increase in transmission, an increase in cases, an increase (inaudible), even Hungary has the same situation.
Other parts of Europe, even Greece are seeing an increase in cases. So we need to do containment and we need to do it now.
CURNOW: OK. We will see what happens in the next few hours there in the UK. Sterghios Moschos, thanks so much. Appreciate it.
[02:35:00]
MOSCHOS: You're welcome.
CURNOW: So fears of a second wave of the coronavirus and diminishing hopes for another U.S. stimulus bill that are really, really weighing on stocks.
So I want you to take a look at these numbers. The Dow closed nearly 2 percent lower on Monday. It's worst day in about 2 weeks. Both the Dow and the S&P 500 are close to falling into correction, which is a 10 percent drop from their peaks. And then the Dow Futures are pointing to a low open in the hours ahead as well as you can see from this.
So John Defterios is in Abu Dhabi with more on all of these numbers.
John, hi. There suddenly seems to be a number of factors at play here.
JOHN DEFTERIOS, EMERGING MARKETS EDITOR, CNN: Yes, certainly. There are a number of factors at play here, Robyn. For those who are looking for some signs of stability, you can find it in Asia. Let's take a look at the markets.
We have red across the board, the Nikkei index is close on this Tuesday. The biggest seller is Seoul down just over 2.5 percent. Authorities there are asking people during the autumn holiday break here to stay at home even though the caseload is just rising 60 to 70 a day. Not alarming, but very cautious. Something we haven't seen in Europe and the United States, obviously.
Shanghai down 1 percent, Hang Seng index in Hong Kong down about the same. It is the COVID-19 uncertainty. There is even a debate within the U.S. Federal Reserve with, Jerome Powell, the chairman saying, "This is going to carry on until 2021". A regional bank president for the Federal Reserve will say, Louis said, no, we are done with stimulus. So there is the uncertainty.
Should we have more stimulus? And there is a logjam on Capitol Hill. The Supreme Court choice, this is creating again uncertainty about what's going to happen to healthcare stocks, what happens to Obamacare? Then even the voting procedures, unclear the way Donald Trump has set the outline for November 3 and what happens to the mail- in ballots.
Again, investors don't like these clouds on horizon when valuations are very high. Let's take a listen to Susan Schmidt, a financial strategist.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SUSAN SCHMIDT, HEAD OF U.S. EQUITIES, AVIVA INVESTORS: The markets, I think, are going to continue to be volatile right up and essentially through the election. And really, it's all about looking forward and trying to make a call on how the economy fares through the end of this year; and then importantly, through 2021.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DEFTERIOS: And we are looking at stimulus in the United States, depending on the size of this next package, Robyn, of about $4.5 trillion. There's going to be a debt overhang, higher taxes, budget cuts, to follow in 2021 and 2022.
The outlook is uncertain and the valuations that we have talked about over the last couple of months remain very high despite the selloff we saw on Wall Street, and a near correction on the major indices.
CURNOW: OK, John. Thanks so much for that update.
So global warming could be responsible for an environmental tragedy unfolding, well that has unfolded in southern Africa. More than 300 elephants were found dead in the wild. You remember these pictures?
Now officials in Botswana think tainted water actually killed the elephants. They say bacteria growing in water holes became toxic in high heat. The climate change could make that danger persist. But conservationists say farmers could have poisoned the elephants for encroaching on their crops.
The government doesn't think there was any human involvement, because the animal tusks were not removed. We will keep you posted on that story.
You are watching CNN. We will be back in a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[02:40:00]
CURNOW: In Egypt, to an oasis south of Cairo has some of the nation's freshest produce. It also has one of its first agritourism resource. Here's a look at a new Egyptian culinary trend that has very old roots.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Far from the bustling city, Faiyum emerges from
the sand like a mirage, home to what the pharaohs called the country of the lake. Produce from this fertile basin has fed and nourished Egypt for millennia. Today, this ancient landscape is shaping some of Egypt's newest culinary trends.
AHMED EL MOFTY, FOUNDER, KOM EL DIKKA AGRI LODGE: I was about 14 years old the first time I came with my father. The amazement that I feel, I've never seen a lake in Egypt before. It never gets old.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Ahmed El Mofty became fixated on Faiyum, eventually quitting a decade long career in hospital management for this, a 45-acre estate with a farm, restaurant and hotel called Kom El Dikka. It's one of Egypt's first agritourism resorts with a fast- growing reputation for some of the region's freshest produce and cuisine. 80 percent of the food here is harvested on site.
MOFTY: The farm for concept is really a very simple one. In a big way, it is going back to the roots of how we used to always dine. You get to really enjoy the product they produce in its essence.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Kom El Dikka was originally an olive farm three decades ago, and it's no coincidence that it is near Lake Qarun. In prehistoric times, water was diverted here from the Nile, making Faiyum one of the first places in northern Egypt to practice agriculture, a custom Ahmed is proud to carry on.
MOFTY: That is what we are very keen on is to really not change anything. We are really just harnessing the beauty of the place.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This lush ecosystem is also home to over 80 bird species, which is why pigeon and duck dishes evolved into regional specialties. Inline with that tradition, Ahmed raises poultry for his restaurant's signature meal.
MOFTY: The duck dishes in its most basic form, that's the part of the beauty. It is the taste itself.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The duck is boiled with a handful of spices and vegetables for over an hour, and then quickly roasted, like every aspect of Kom El Dikka, the dish channels Faiyum's pure favors, a devotion to simplicity derived from Ahmed's very first trip here with his dad.
MOFTY: The name Kom Ad Dikah is the Arabic name for bench. The idea is really relates back to my father. His biggest dream was to come to Faiyum and just sit on the bench and have serenity. That's always inspired me.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CURNOW: Thanks so much for watching. I'm Robyn Curnow.
World sport continues after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) [02:45:00]
PATRICK SNELL, CNN HOST: Hi, there. Welcome to CNN World Sport. It is Tuesday, as we countdown to the 3rd and final tennis grand slam of 2020, the French Open will start Sunday.
Tournament that will also see top rank Novak Djokovic hoping to continue his own kind of sporting redemption in this COVID-19 impacted here. There was no Wimbledon, of course, but there was a U.S. Open recently and that is where we saw the Serbian eliminated from the 4th round of the inadvertently hitting a line judge with a ball, while the Italian Open is first tournament since then and he's back to doing what he does best and that is winning, beating the argentine Diego Schwartzman straight in Rome.
Duly recording in our record's 36 ATP Masters crown, Nadal in his 287th week as the number one men's player in the world. Djokovic fully focused on trying to win Korea major number 18 at the French.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NOVAK DJOKOVIC, SERBIAN TENNIS PLAYER: Now we are turning to Paris, obviously I couldn't ask for a better tournament here in Rome. Another big title and super pleased with it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SNELL: Meantime, the number one seed, Samantha Halep, has sealed her first ever title in Rome, after defending champion Karolina Pliskova was forced to retire due to injury. The Romanian world number 2 was in control at the time having won the first set 6-0. She was also 2-1 up in the 2nd, as Pliskova was forced to deal with a left thigh injury, she needed medical treatment before the second set and shortly thereafter deciding she cannot continue. Halep will be looking for a 2nd Roland Garros title at the forthcoming French in Paris.
All right. To the English Premier League now, Man City are up and running after winning their season opener Wolves as they try and wrestle back the city from Liverpool. Already 1 up in this game and man, it was superb team effort seeing 20-year-old Phil Foden applying the finishing touch to a free flowing move.
And at that point, it looked as though citizens would be coasting to the victory, but Wolves really pulled one back before there (inaudible) was sieved when Gabriel used putting the game to bet in stoppage time. 3-1 City, the final score. Pep Guardiola likes it.
Now there just seems to be no stopping Swedish superstar Zlatan Ibrahimovic right now. He continues to prove age is but a number. The Milan star will be 39 next month. He ages veteran later told Italian media, he is like Benjamin Button scoring twice here in Serie A. the (inaudible) took control of business against Bologna. His first was not great ahead of a 2nd of penalty as Milan win it 2-0.
Here in the United States, NBA legend Michael Jordan is to become a NASCAR team owner with Bubba Wallace, the only black driver in the sports top circuit, signing up to drive on a multi-year deal. Jordan becoming the first black majority owner of a full-time race team since Hall of Fame inductee Wendell Scott. Wallace says, "He's been an outspoken advocate of the black lives matter movement.
As well Jordan saying, "Historically, NASCAR has struggled with diversity and there have been few Black owners. The timing seemed perfect as NASCAR is evolving and embracing social change more and more. In addition to the recent commitment and donations, I have made to combat systemic racism. I see this as a chance to educate a new audience and open more opportunities for Black people in racing".
Now the fame, 24 Hours of Le Mans is one of the most prestigious motorsport races in the world. It's the ultimate endurance challenge, a contest that really steeps in history. Now this past weekend, more history as to all female teams took part and the last time that happened was back in the 1970s.
Columbia's Tatiana Calderon was part of the Richard Miller racing team, alongside other recognizable names, Sofia Floersch, who won of Germany; and the Netherlands Beitske Visser. Tatiana has been speaking with our own Amanda Davies.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TATIANA CALDERON, 24 HOURS OF LE MANS FINISHER: A lot of people have told me about Le Mans, and of course it was one of my dreams. But to actually be here, see the craziness that it is to drive at night with the traffic. Nobody is leaving the mechanics (inaudible) the whole week. It has been incredible. So I'm happy to be a finisher in our first attempt.
AMANDA DAVIES, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: We talk about the excitement of Le Mans, we know it's the pinnacle for so many drivers in terms of their career. How difficult is the balance between focusing on the job in hand and not getting too carried away with the fact that you are driving at Le Mans?
[02:50:00]
CALDERON: You have to learn to -- but you don't feel that pressure, of course. I did start, I finished the race. If you look at the starting line up, for example, I was racing Montoya who I grew up watching when I was 9 years old in Formula One and to be competing against him and starting the most incredible race in the world together was incredible. So I really love to get in the zone.
Also, this track is not forgiving. So your attention, it's 2 hours in the car in the night. It was really, really difficult. So I'm pretty sure I will sleep the next 3 days straight. It was a lot of stress, but I'm really happy with the team. Everybody did a fantastic job. And to finish with 3 rookies in Le Mans in the top 10, we would have signed that at the start of the year for sure.
DAVIES: Should it be up to the women to be fighting this cause for women in motorsports? So do we still need more of the male community to get on board? CALDERON: Yes. I think that's -- and sometimes I have been given
opportunity like when I started as a development driver a couple years back, it was (inaudible) same principle in the team and she gave me my first opportunity and I think we sort of tend to help each other, because we know what we have been through and what it takes.
So times are changing, but I think we still need their support from the male part to believe fully and to give us the opportunity to show. That's what we are missing, those opportunities and I think that is why this project is so nice in that way of giving us the best tools to perform. And that is what I have always wanted. I don't want to be treated differently, I just want to have the same opportunities as the guys.
SNELL: A groundbreaking weekend, indeed. And a history-making weekend for the American golfer Bryson DeChambeau. Fair to say, a major champion like no other, as we profile the man behind the science. Stick around.
CNN returns in moments.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SNELL: OK. Let's reflect more now on Bryson DeChambeau's U.S. Open triumph. Now the justice starting to settle on his breakthrough victory. The 27-year-old Californian, whose physique has been totally transformed in recent months, is doing it his way.
He may have detractors, his style is quirky, his self belief, though, utterly unshakable. A uniquely fine-tuned lab-built swing with made to measure single length clubs. And that's just for starters.
Alex Thomas now with more on the man known as the scientist, the Physics major, who is now a major champion.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ALEX THOMAS, CNN HOST: Bryson DeChambeau's U.S. Open win wasn't simply his first major title. It was historic, record-breaking and vindicating, because his unusual methods have, at times, been questioned since his first full season on the PGA tour back in 2017.
Over the years, he's made headlines for his unique swing, and putting style, his irons being all the same length, his mind training and breathing techniques. But it was Bryson's physical transformation from this to this that has grabbed the golfing world's attention.
[02:55:00]
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think he's taking advantage of where the game is at the minute. And look, again, whether that's good or bad, it is just the way it is. I'm not saying that's right or wrong, he is just taking advantage of what we have right now.
THOMAS: DeChambeau has revealed his new typical daily food plan, lots more protein and carbs, helping him put on an extra 40 pounds of muscle in less than a year.
BRYSON DECHAMBEAU, AMERICAN PROFESSIONAL GOLFER: I feel like I'm inspiring people to try new things and do anything they want, they think they can do. For me, that is getting strength, getting distance, where I think there is a tremendous advantage there.
THOMAS: The coronavirus lockdown earlier in the year actually helped him as he worked with his coach Chris Cuomo at a purpose built lap in his home.
CHRIS CUOMO, BRYSON DECHAMBEAU COACH: Bryson was over here quite a bit and it was still -- the PGA tour wasn't going, but we did quite a bit of training. We would evolve the swing stuff and just kept ramping up the club at speed during this little downtime. And then once things started getting going again, he was physically very different.
DECHAMBEAU: And we started going after it. I started seeing massive improvements really, really quickly, stressing this into a whole new level. I gained some strength in the first 3 months. I said, you know what, I'm going to keep going, I kept doing it. Then unfortunately, quarantine hit. But fortunately for me, it gave me an opportunity to hone in my body and make it even stronger. And that's what I was able to do and I came back even stronger and better than ever.
THOMAS: Compared to his rookie season, Bryson hasn't just piled on the pounds, but he is swinging faster, hitting the ball further and winning more tournaments. At the famously tough winged foot course, he was the only player to finish under par and he is now only the 3rd person to win the U.S. Open, U.S. Amateur, and individual NCAA titles, the other 2, Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods. They were also pioneers, but no one is doing it quite like Bryson DeChambeau is.
Alex Thomas, CNN.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SNELL: Thank you, Alex.
Well, do join us for later Tuesday. This is the World Sport. By the way we are going to leave you with more on the man, DeChambeau, as well as this year's 24 Hours of Le Mans race.
Here is our latest Rolex minute.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
