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Trump Calls Virus Deaths "A Shame, Then Blames China; FDA Considering New COVID-19 Vaccine Rules; COVID-19 Death Toll in the U.S. Surpasses 200,000; U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson Announces Tighter COVID-19 Rules; Israel's Cases Surging as Government Weighs Tighter Measures; Russian Opposition Leader Alexey Navalny Discharged from Hospital; President Trump Set to Unveil His Supreme Court Nominee Saturday; Louisville Braces for Breonna Taylor Case Decision; FBI Warns Against Foreign Disinformation on Election Results. Aired 4- 4:30a ET

Aired September 23, 2020 - 04:00   ET

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

[04:00:00]

ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to our viewers joining us here in the United States and all around the world. You are watching CNN NEWSROOM and I'm Rosemary Church.

Just ahead, a shame. That is how Donald Trump is reacting to another grim coronavirus milestone. More than 200,000 people have died of the virus here in United States.

Countries around the world are tightening restrictions again. Boris Johnson has unveiled a raft of plans for England and warned they could last for six months.

And the FBI is warning that foreign actors could spread disinformation about 2020 election results and warn citizens to be patient.

Good to have you with us. So let's start here in the United States where Donald Trump is making his first public comments about a tragic milestone. On Tuesday, the U.S. surpassed 200,000 people killed by the coronavirus. That's 200,000 people who have left behind grieving families. U.S. President Donald Trump is calling it a shame. But he's blaming China for the deaths.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Well, I think it's a shame. I think if we didn't do it properly and do it right you would have 2.5 million deaths but it's a horrible thing. Should've never ever happened. China let this happen. The original numbers were around 200,000 if you do it right, if you did a good job and the public worked along. And if you didn't do it right, you'd be at 2 million, 2.5 million, those were the numbers. This should never have happened. This should have never come out of China. They should have never let it happen.

(END VIDEO CLIP) CHURCH: And that death toll is expected to rise. A new COVID-19 model is predicting another 180,000 deaths by the end of the year. And U.S. Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden says it's because President Trump failed to handle the crisis.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, U.S. DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: The virus was too big for him. All his life Donald Trump has been bailed out of any problem he faced. And with this crisis, a real crisis, the crisis that required serious Presidential leadership he just wasn't up to it. He froze. He failed to act. He panicked. And America has paid the worse price of any nation in world.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: Meanwhile contrary to President Trump's claims it looks like a vaccine is not going to be ready by November. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is considering new rules that could push out the vaccine timeline past election day. CNN's Erica Hill has more on the troubling trends and dire warnings from health officials.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ERICA HILL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Twenty thousand small flags dotting the National Mall to memorialize 200,000 lives lost.

DR. ANTHONY FAUCI director, NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY AND INFECTIOUS DISEASES: The idea of 200,000 deaths is really very sobering and, in some respects, stunning.

HILL: Stunning because it didn't have to happen.

ANDY SLAVITT, FORMER ACTING ADMINISTRATOR, CENTERS FOR MEDICARE AND MEDICAID SERVICES: It feels like a day for some humility.

HILL: Two hundred thousand lives, that's more than the entire population of Little Rock, Arkansas, gone, families forever changed.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's beyond hurt. It's beyond pain.

HILL: And yet 24 states now reporting an increase in new cases over the past seven days. But look at the same map this time last week, just nine states on the rise, then.

FAUCI: If we don't get that baseline down sharply to a very low level. When you have a lot of cases floating around, it's much more difficult to contain that than if you have a relatively low number.

HILL: Troubling trends in Wisconsin, which has seen a steady, sharp rise in new cases over the past month, steep climbs in North Dakota too. The president sticking to his narrative.

TRUMP: We're rounding the turn. And it's happening. I mean I only can t's happening. (CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)

TRUMP: In some states, thousands of people, nobody young, below the age of 18, like nobody.

[04:05:00]

SLAVITT: And unfortunately, when the President makes comments like that and minimizes the virus and tells people that, unless you're old, you're not going to get it, that encourages more spread. It encourages more reckless behavior.

HILL: The University of Colorado at Boulder moving classes online for at least two weeks in an effort to slow the spread. Texas announcing more than 4,500 positive cases at its public schools, just over half of those in students.

There are positive signs. In California, which struggled over the summer, now has a positivity rate just under 3 percent. But cold weather and flu season loom.

FAUCI: We've got to be in this together. We got to start acting now to do the things that we've all been saying.

HILL: As the President continues to push for a vaccine --

TRUMP: We're developing a vaccine in record time.

HILL: Approval before the election now looking less likely. The FDA is poised to set tough new standards for Emergency Use Authorization of a coronavirus vaccine, according to "The Washington Post". Part of an effort to renewed confidence in the agency and to increase public trust in a vaccine.

DR. JAY VARKEY, ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR MEDICINE, Emory UNIVERSITY: I think mentally the soon the general public realizes that this is likely to push well into 2021 and that introduction of this vaccine is only a beginning of the end game to this pandemic, I think the better,

HILL (on camera): As for when a vaccine may be available, the head of the world's largest vaccine manufacturer telling CNN it will likely be 2024 before 90 percent of the world is vaccinated.

In New York, I'm Erica Hill, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: The British Prime Minister has a stern warning for people in England. Follow the new COVID-19 rules now or risk another lockdown. The new restrictions include working from home if possible, a strict enforcement of the rule of six, it's closing pubs early and mandating masks in certain settings. And these rules are not going away any time soon. Boris Johnson says the measures could be in place for six months.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) BORIS JOHNSON, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: We must rely on our willingness to look out for each other, to protect each other. Never in our history has our collective destiny and our collective health depended so completely on our individual behavior.

If we follow these simple rules together, we will get through this winter together. There are unquestionably difficult months to come, and the fight against COVID is by no means over.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: And CNN's Scott McLean joins me now live from London. Good to see you, Scott. So it's a matter of follow the rules or go into lockdown. How are the new rules being received?

SCOTT MCLEAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, well the Prime Minister is having to sell this plan, Rosemary, to a British public that's become quite accustomed to its relative level of freedom over the summer months as restrictions have been ease. But the bottom line is he had to do something to try to tamp down this second wave of virus where new infections are doubling every seven days. And in fact, just yesterday the U.K. saw the highest single day case count that it has had since May.

So these new restrictions that he announced include, closing the bars early at 10:00 p.m. There were plans to bring fans back into soccer stadiums. Those are being shelved for the time being. What used to be guidelines for wearing masks in shops and stores will actually become legal requirements. And he wants people who work from home if they can. Which is a reversal from messaging that the Prime Minister was putting out just a month ago.

He's also planning to give more money to police forces to actually enforce these rules much more strictly than they have been in the past. Which have not been, you know, not so strict to say the least. And they're doing similar measures in Northern Ireland, in Wales and in fact in Scotland, they're going a step further. Here's the First Minister yesterday.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NICOLA STURGEON, FIRST MINISTER OF SCOTLAND: So after careful consideration we have decided that from tomorrow to be reviewed every three weeks, and with exceptions I will come on to, visiting other households will not be permitted. There will be exceptions for those living alone or alone with children who form extended households. For couples in non-cohabiting relationship. For the provision of informal childcare by for example, grandparents and for tradespeople. But for everyone else visiting each other's houses will for now not be permitted.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MCLEAN: So the government for the last few weeks has been talking about, you know, being at a bit of a fork in the road. This country can go in the direction of France and Spain where they are seeing new infections rising and also starting to see big numbers in terms of hospitalizations and deaths as well. Or go the way of a country like Belgium which has put in place new stricter rules which seem to be having somewhat of an impact on the coronavirus and keeping it relatively at bay.

[04:10:00]

These rules though could be in place for six months though, the Prime Minister said in the absence of a big break through on a mass testing scheme which they are working on or a vaccine which, of course, drug makers are racing to get through. But the bottom line is with this rule of six that they brought in last week, this limit on social gatherings it can make for Christmas or Hanukkah where you're only celebrating with your immediate family or you're resorting to an illegal family dinner which is sort of a bizarre concept to think about -- Rosemary.

CHURCH: Definitely, six months though, that's a long time. Scott McLean, many thanks. Joining us live from London.

Israel just hit a new daily record for coronavirus cases there with more than 6,800 reported on Tuesday. And this comes as the government considers even tighter restrictions, including limitations on prayer and protests.

CNN's Oren Liebermann joins us now live from Jerusalem. Good to see you, Oren. So why haven't earlier restrictions had any impact?

OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Rosemary, there were plenty of critics of the restrictions in the second general lockdown. Who said they weren't tight enough, that there were too many exceptions and loopholes to truly begin containing and reducing the number of new coronavirus infections. And it seems like the government is set to act on that later on today and impose stricter lockdown restrictions in its second general lockdown, specifically for that very reason.

Too many exceptions, too many loopholes, for example, public prayer, public demonstrations, as well as public and private-sector workplaces are open. All of that could be restricted as the government here tries to get these numbers under control. Because right now they are certainly not under control and the government's policy at this point looks like an abject failure. According to the ministry of health 6,861 new cases of coronavirus yesterday. That is surging past the record set one week ago of 5,523. That's indicative of how poorly this country is faring with new infections.

But there is still that bickering and squabbling over what to do, where to do it, and how to bring these numbers under control. The cabinet -- the coronavirus cabinet that is -- met for hours yesterday and wasn't able to come to any conclusions. Meanwhile, the coronavirus czar said today on Jerusalem radio that he expects in the meeting today that they will pass tighter restrictions on coronavirus.

Israel began its second general lockdown this past Friday. Two recently to have had any effect on the current numbers. But the expectation is, especially for critics, that if these restrictions aren't tightened Israel's numbers will continue to go the wrong way. Meanwhile, we see it from hospitals that on a daily basis more and more hospitals are taking internal medicine wards and turning them into coronavirus wards who handle what is expected to be an upsurge in not only patients, but in serious cases and patients on ventilators as well.

CHURCH: All right. Many thanks to Oren Liebermann joining us live from Jerusalem there.

And we continue tracking breaking news out of Germany where Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny has been discharged from a Berlin hospital. His statement from the hospital says his condition improved enough to send him home after nearly a month in intensive care. Navalny was poisoned while campaigning in Siberia.

So let's bring in Matthew Chance. He joins us live from Moscow. Matthew, what more are you learning about this story?

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, there's been this statement, Rosemary, from the clinic in Berlin, the German capital where Alexey Navalny has been treated now for some 32 days he's been inside that clinic, 24 of them in intensive care. He came out of intensive care several days ago.

The statement says he's been discharged from inpatient care which implies, of course, that he's still going to be treated but as an outpatient. And there's some good news. It says that the doctors who have been treating him believe that a complete recovery is possible. So that's extremely encouraging for Alexey Navalny.

Of course he's been posting pictures on his social media accounts over the past week or so, basically looking at himself in a very sort of weakened state but, you know, looking increasingly better. Pictures of his family, with his wife who were there in Berlin, sort of at his bedside and of course walking with him as well.

But there's some bad news as well in that statement. The doctors say it remains too early to gauge the potential long term effects of his severe poisoning. And of course that's a reference to the fact that with this chemical nerve agent, Novichok, that doctors in Germany and elsewhere have assessed he was poisoned with, yet we don't know what the consequences will be for Alexey Navalny's long term health. He certainly says through his spokes people that he wants to come back to Russia and continue his work here. But we don't know how long it will be before he's able physically to do that -- Rosemary.

CHURCH: Can we expect to hear anything from Russian officials on this?

CHANCE: Well I expect there will be, you know, more denials because ever since this apparent poisoning took place last month, I think it was August the 20th, the Kremlin has been absolutely consistent in their denials. Saying this has nothing to do with them.

[04:15:00]

Saying that there's doubt about whether Novichok, which has been identified as the substance use by German military scientists as well as scientists from other countries as well. There's no evidence that's been presented to them that that was indeed the source of this condition for Alexey Navalny, he was the Kremlin's most vocal sort of opposition figure in this country.

The Kremlin has refused to open an investigation saying they won't do that until the German authorities have presented evidence of poisoning to them -- which the Germans have not done. And you know, there's been, you know, all sorts of other denials posted in various media outlets. With the Kremlin essentially saying, look, you know, as they often do when they're accused of maligned activity, this has got absolutely nothing to do with us -- Rosemary.

CHURCH: All right, Matthew Chance, many thanks. Live from Moscow there.

And still ahead, President Trump is set to announce his Supreme Court nominee Saturday. We will take a look at who is topping the President's short list. That's next.

[04:20:11]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[04:20:00]

CHURCH: President Donald Trump is set to unveil his Supreme Court nominee during an event at the White House this weekend. Mr. Trump held a rally in Pennsylvania Tuesday where he told the crowd he would nominate, quote, an incredible woman. Speculation over who he might pick is coming down to just a few names. Kaitlan Collins has this look at the front-runners.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KAITLAN COLLINS, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: At this rally in Pennsylvania the President once again teasing the Supreme Court pick that he now says he's going to make at 5:00 p.m. on Saturday at the White House. Of course, that's just a few days away. But we already seem to know who is his favorite.

And that's Amy Coney Barrett, a judge who met with the President at the White House earlier this week and then returned to the White House yesterday for more meetings. Of course, this is a very lengthy, laborious process. And Amy Coney Barrett has been making multiple appearances. Because we have not yet determined if any other candidates have been interviewed at the White House.

One other candidate we do know that they are considering is Barbara Lagoa. She of course is a Cuban-American judge, your hometown is in Miami, which is where the President is going to be on Friday. So were still waiting to see if they do ultimately set up a meeting between the two of them.

But basically sources have conveyed to us that Amy Coney Barrett is seen as the safest choice. These well-liked by Republicans. So unless something dramatic happens, at that is the general thinking. And of course with President Trump and this White House things could change and do often change at the last minute. But for right now the President says he will make his pick on Saturday at 5:00.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: And that is 5:00 p.m. Eastern time, 10:00 p.m. in London, 5:00 a.m. in Hong Kong. Kaitlan Collins with that report.

Well tensions are high in Louisville, Kentucky as the city awaits a grand jury decision on possible charges in the death of Breonna Taylor. The 26-year-old was shot and killed by police in March in her own apartment when officers executed a no-knock warrant in a drug investigation. Jason Carroll has the latest.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JASON CARROLL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Louisville on high alert, a state of emergency declared. Streets closed and while police say the city is not on lockdown, that's not how it feels to some of those who work and live here.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This is unnecessary. They come out in riot gear when we protest, peaceful protest they come in riot gear.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I want to be safe and I want others to be safe, too. But you know, I don't think it a good idea for guys to come out and do stuff to other people's property.

CARROLL: Downtown businesses boarded up or closed, streets leading to Jefferson Square Park, the site of a Breonna Taylor memorial and gathering place of demonstrators close to cars.

ROBERT SCHROEDER, LOUISVILLE INTERIM POLICE CHIEF: The following steps were put in place both to protect the public and to facilitate First Amendment activities.

CARROLL: Protesters who were demanding the officers involved in Taylor's death be prosecuted, say all of the precautions are creating a sense of unease so says Pastor Timothy Findley. Who has organized past demonstrations including one that led hundreds to peacefully protest outside Churchill Downs during the Kentucky Derby early this month.

PASTOR TIMOTHY FINDLEY, PROTEST ORGANIZER: We have not had the level of protests that I think would demand those kinds of preparations and I think it's very, very provocative.

CARROLL: Adding to tension, an email sent today by Jonathan Mattingly, one of the three officers that served the no-knock warrant when Taylor was killed. The email sent to his police colleagues and first made public by "Vice News," calls protesters thugs and he writes that he and the other officers in the Taylor raid, quote, did the legal, moral and ethical thing that night.

Mattingly, who is on administrative leave, said he wanted to support police during a difficult time. Saying, we aren't better than anyone. This is not us against society but it is good versus evil.

Mattingly's attorney confirmed to CNN his client sent an email, no mention of Taylor by name in the lengthy email.

Last week, the city agreed to pay a $12 million civil settlement to the Taylor family and agreed to changes in police policy, including commanders approving search warrants before it goes to a judge seeking approval. But in the eyes of Taylor's mother, true justice comes when all of the officers involved that night are criminally charged.

As for the protests, here is what she told us during our interview late last month.

TAMIKA PALMER, BREONNA TAYLOR'S MOTHER: I think there will be protests every day until justice is served.

CARROLL (on camera): And if justice is not served?

PALMER: I don't know. I just -- I hate to even think about that.

CARROLL: Late Tuesday the city's mayor released a video statement saying he still has not been given any indication from the state Attorney General's office in terms of when there might be a grand jury decision. The mayor says whatever that decision may be he says the city will get through it together.

Jason Carroll, CNN, Louisville, Kentucky.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

[04:25:00]

CHURCH: Experts say voter turnout for the U.S. Presidential election could exceed anything the country has seen in past hundred years and now federal agencies are warning the public to be patient come election night. We'll explain why.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHURCH: On National Voter Registration Day in U.S. federal authorities warned Americans to be on guard for false information on election night. The FBI and the nation's cyber security agency say foreign actors might spread disinformation about election results. The government is encouraging voters to be patient with results as officials count an expected avalanche of mail in ballots.

The U.S. is just 41 days away from the election, but multiple crises could affect how many voters actually cast a ballot. CNN's Brian Todd has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Long lines for early voting in Fairfax County, Virginia.

KATE HANLEY, ELECTORAL BOARD SECRETARY, FAIRFAX COUNTY, VIRGINIA: It is very exciting to have all these people turn out, far more than we expected.

TODD: With voter interest off the charts and the stakes so dramatically high, many indications point to a massive turnout at the polls this fall.

BERNARD FRAGA, PROFESSOR, DEPARTMENT OF POLITICAL SCIENCE, EMORY UNIVERSITY: Frankly, this year, many election experts are predicting we are going to see voter turnout that exceeds anything we've seen in the last hundred years. This could really be a tidal wave of voter turnout.

TODD: The coronavirus pandemic, though, could throw a wrench into that if voters feel it is safer to stay home and don't want to rely on mail-in ballots. But President Trump's divisive personality and his handling of the pandemic, experts say, could drive more Americans to the ballot box, fans and foes alike.

JAN LEIGHLEY, PROFESSOR, AMERICAN UNIVERSITY: Many individuals are suffering.