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Protests Erupt Over Decision In Breonna Taylor Case; Trump Won't Commit To A Peaceful Transition Of Power; Poisoned Russian Opposition Leader Navalny Leaves Hospital; Swiss Chef Opens School For Aspiring Egyptian Cooks; NBA Players, Coaches React To Breonna Taylor Verdict; Miami Heat One Win Away From Reaching Finals; Spanish La Liga: Atletico Madrid Sign Luis Suarez From Barcelona; French Ligue 1: PSG Star Angel Di Maria Given Four-Game Ban; The Women Who Changed Tennis 50 Years Ago. Aired 2-3a ET
Aired September 24, 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]
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ROBYN CURNOW, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): Welcome to CNN, I'm Robyn Curnow.
Indictment outrage: a police officer is indicted for shooting into a different apartment but not over the police killing of Breonna Taylor. We'll ask a legal expert why.
Just weeks away from the presidential election, Donald Trump refuses to say whether he will hand over power peacefully if he loses to Joe Biden.
Also ahead, politics versus science. Dr. Fauci tries to set the record straight on Capitol Hill.
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DR. ANTHONY FAUCI, NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY AND INFECTIOUS DISEASES: No, you misconstrued that, Senator, and you've done that repetitively in the past.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (voice-over): Live from CNN Center, this is CNN NEWSROOM with Robyn Curnow.
CURNOW: Good to have you, thank you so much for joining me.
Mass demonstrations are once again gripping the United States. Protesters have taken to the streets, demanding racial justice. Some clashing with police while dozens have been arrested. They are demanding authorities be held accountable after it was announced no Louisville police officers would be charged in the fatal shooting of Breonna Taylor, whose apartment was raided in a drug investigation back in March. Her death is just one of numerous police killings that add fuel to the
Black Lives Matter movement. Protests turned violent in Louisville when two officers were shot and wounded. Shimon Prokupecz has been following the story and he is there.
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SHIMON PROKUPECZ, CNN CRIME AND JUSTICE PRODUCER: Tense moments here tonight in Louisville. Police still out here, enforcing the curfew for several hours now, after two of their officers were shot during -- protesters during a march by protesters here in downtown Louisville.
Police say those two officers are expected to be OK, they do have a person in custody. Moments after that shooting, a lot of it captured on social media, and the police even livestreaming some of those moments.
You can hear the gunshots, police saying one of their officers was down. The curfew went into effect at 9 o'clock, there have been over 40 arrests. All of this happening after the grand jury decision here.
Many people, very upset by what the grand jury decided, what the attorney general announced today and the tension here remains, as police are still, out here, on the streets -- Shimon Prokupecz, Louisville, Kentucky.
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CURNOW: Thanks, Shimon, for that. Let's go to Jason Carroll, he has more on the grand jury's decision that reignited these protests across the country.
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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's not only Breonna Taylor, it could happen to anyone.
JASON CARROLL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): After months of protests and anticipation, a Kentucky grand jury indicted one officer in the police operation resulting in Breonna Taylor's death.
Former detective Brett Hankison faces three charges of wanton endangerment in the first degree. Two other officers who responded that night with gunfire, Jonathan Mattingly and Myles Cosgrove, were investigated, but do not face any criminal charges.
DANIEL CAMERON (R-KY), ATTORNEY GENERAL: According to Kentucky law, the use of force by Mattingly and Cosgrove was justified to protect themselves.
CARROLL: The charges against Hankison are in relation to shots he fired that ripped through a neighboring apartment.
CAMERON: Based on the evidence there is nothing conclusive to say that Detective Hankison, any of his bullets hit Ms. Taylor. CARROLL: In the months following Taylor's death, there has been much speculation surrounding the details of what happened the night on March 13 when police showed up serving a no-knock warrant.
The attorney general says evidence shows Officers Mattingly and Cosgrove knocked and identified themselves before breaching Taylor's door and he says there is an independent witness to corroborate their account.
But Taylor's boyfriend, Kenneth Walker, disputes the claim. Walker says he didn't hear police announce themselves and thought someone was trying to break in, so he fired a shot. Police have said that shot hit Mattingly in the leg.
KENNETH WALKER, BREONNA TAYLOR'S BOYFRIEND: All of a sudden, someone started beating on the door. They refused to answer when we yelled, who is it? Fifteen minutes later, Breonna was dead from a hail of police gunfire.
CARROLL: The attorney general says an FBI analysis determined the shot that killed Taylor came from Cosgrove.
[02:05:00]
CAMERON: The fatal shot was fired by Detective Cosgrove.
CARROLL: Mattingly's attorney says the justice system worked. The death of Breonna Taylor is a tragedy, but these officers did not act in a reckless or unprofessional manner. They did their duty, performed their roles as law enforcement officers and, above all, did not break the law.
The long-awaited announcement sparking immediate anger in the streets of Louisville, the attorney general asking for understanding.
CAMERON: There will be celebrities, influencers and activists who, having never lived in Kentucky, will try to tell us how to feel, suggesting they understand the facts of this case and that they know our community and the commonwealth better than we do. But they don't.
CARROLL: In the months since Taylor's death, her mother has wanted just one thing.
TAMIKA PALMER, BREONNA TAYLOR'S MOTHER: Criminal charges. They all four willingly committed a crime, so I don't think it is enough that one person should have to pay for it. It was a group effort, so...
CARROLL: Jason Carroll, CNN, Louisville, Kentucky.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CURNOW: Lawyers for the Taylor family say it's outrageous. No officers were charged directly with her death and here is what attorney Lonita Baker told CNN.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) LONITA BAKER, TAYLOR FAMILY ATTORNEY: This is offensive and it is egregious. There is sufficient evidence, if the grand jury felt it sufficient that Brett Hankison placed three neighbors in danger with his reckless behavior, then they had to have thought and found that he also placed Breonna Taylor at risk with his reckless behavior.
You can't separate the two. Breonna Taylor was unarmed, we know that based on Sergeant Mattingly's own statement in which he said the female that was in the apartment was unarmed.
So if he knew she was unarmed the other officers knew she was unarmed including Officer Cosgrove who Daniel Cameron has said his actions were justified.
However, in Kentucky, it is clear that when using self-defense you cannot -- it's not a justifiable defense when you put other people in harm of the person who you claim to be defending yourself against.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CURNOW: The self-defense argument isn't the only issue here. Our CNN investigative correspondent Drew Griffin, who's followed the story from the beginning, says there are facts surrounding this police warrant that simply just don't add up.
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DREW GRIFFIN, CNN SR. INVESTIGATIVE CORRESPONDENT: The actual target of this whole operation was a petty street drug dealer under surveillance, that could have been arrested at any time for the months they had him being surveilled, in advance.
And none of the surveillance implicated directly Breonna Taylor.
So why did they go to this single woman, they thought was in that apartment alone, at 12:40 at night with a battering ram?
That part of it makes no sense. The officers who were there were ordered to do that.
OK?
So you have to take them away from the decision-making, which, I think, is really the criminal aspect of this.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CURNOW: With us now is CNN legal analyst and civil rights attorney Areva Martin.
Good to see again.
Your thoughts this hour?
AREVA MARTIN, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Yes, I was incredibly disappointed but I can't say that I was surprised. It's been over 180 days since the attorney general has been doing his investigation.
He has failed to provide any information to the public, so the lack of transparency has also been incredibly frustrating with respect to this claim. And some of the comments he made during the press conference, really left, I think, more questions and answers.
We heard the comments about this warrant, so many unanswered questions about the information that was contained in this warrant, whether that information was false, whether it was credible.
And the attorney general said his office took no efforts to even investigate the actual warrant itself that led those officers to Breonna Taylor's home. And when we learned the fact that there were no guns recovered, no cash, no drugs, that she was not, you know, firing a weapon. She wasn't armed with a weapon, it really is galling that there were no charges against any of those officers for her death.
That's why we're seeing this community erupt in the way that we are.
CURNOW: You listed some of those questions that still linger. Drew Griffin laid out a few, why were the police there?
He talked about the warrant, did they knock, did they not knock?
Why did they use a battering ram?
I, mean what, for you, is the one question you still want answered?
MARTIN: I still want to know about this so-called corroborating witness. We heard the attorney general say there was one witness that said he heard the police announce themselves before they entered the apartment.
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MARTIN: But we also heard today during that press conference a "New York Times" reporter talking about how she and other reporters had combed that apartment complex and had talked to at least a dozen or so witnesses that said they did not hear any announcement by the police.
So it leaves you wondering, how is that one witness' testimony was taken as true, when there were a dozen or so others who denied hearing any announcement by the police?
It really begs the question about what evidence was presented to that grand jury.
And was there, going into the grand jury process, an expectation on the part of the attorney general to get the outcome that we see today?
Because what we know about grand jury processes is that there's control that process to a great degree.
CURNOW: That's interesting, particularly for our international viewers. So no officers charged with her killing; one charge, as we heard,
there with wanton engagement, for spraying bullets into the next door apartment. Her family says this is outrageous and offensive.
Is the end of the legal avenues for the Taylor family?
MARTIN: Well, we know there was a civil lawsuit that was filed by the family. That was settled last week and there is supposed to be an ongoing FBI investigation as to whether there were any federal civil rights violations with respect to the conduct of these three officers.
But the attorney general made it clear that, as far as his office is concerned, his work is done. You know, they will move forward with the charges, that were filed against that one officer. But he does not anticipate any other charges being filed or any other investigation with respect to the three officers.
CURNOW: You heard the attorney general there kind of sneeringly talk about celebrities or influences, you know, weighing in on this case, as if this was just a sort of a hometown kind of matter. In many ways, Ms. Taylor's name has become a symbol, as we know, of injustice and equality in the justice system.
So how powerful can her death be?
Not just the protesters we're seeing here on the streets but does this decision today perhaps motivate more people to vote, for example?
MARTIN: Oh, I absolutely hope that it does. And I was also very incensed by that comment, that somehow activists had no right to descend on Kentucky and to protest and to demand justice. That's a really offensive statement.
It's because of protesters that we are seeing district attorneys around this country even stand up to police and hold them accountable to the extent that we are seeing any prosecutions of police officers.
But for protesters, I don't think that we would even be where we are today.
So that comment was really tone-deaf and absolutely Breonna Taylor's death is going to galvanize, not just women but people all over this country to take to the polls and vote in record numbers in November and also to continue this call and this demand for criminal justice reform, because this system, our policing system in the United States, is broken.
And without widespread changes, we are going to continue to see the kinds of inhumane actions against people of color that we have seen in the Breonna Taylor case.
CURNOW: Areva Martin, always good to speak to you. I really appreciate you joining us this hour. Thank you very much for your perspective.
MARTIN: Thank you, Robyn. CURNOW: President Trump and Democratic rival Joe Biden have very
different reactions to the news about the Taylor case. The president actually didn't address the merits of the case itself. Instead, he heaped praise on Kentucky's Republican attorney general. And the president also praised himself as well.
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QUESTION: We what is your message to the Black community who believe that, perhaps, justice was not served by the decision that was rendered by the grand jury in Kentucky?
TRUMP: My message is that I love the Black community and I have done more for the Black community than any other president.
And I say with a possible exception of Abraham Lincoln and I mean that with opportunities owns and with criminal justice reform, prison reform. What we have done for historically Black universities, colleges schools, nobody has done more.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CURNOW: Joe Biden did address the grand jury's decision more directly, saying, in part, "In the wake of her tragic death, we mourn with her mother, family and community and ask ourselves whether justice could be equally applied in America.
"I know, for so many people today's decision does not answer that call. We need to start by addressing the use of excessive force, banning chokeholds and overhauling no-knock warrants."
Well, backlash has certainly erupted across social media, from prominent voices like basketball star LeBron James.
He tweeted, in part, "We want justice for Breonna, yet justice was met for her neighbor's apartment walls and not for her beautiful life.
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CURNOW: "Was I surprised at the verdict?
"Absolutely not. But I was and still am hurt and heavy-hearted."
James has long been outspoken about the case.
And former NFL player Colin Kaepernick, whose kneeling during the national anthem sparked a movement for social justice, tweeted this, "The white supremacist institution of policing that stole Breonna Taylor's life must be abolished for the safety and well-being of our people."
And civil rights leader Jesse Jackson had this response.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JESSE JACKSON, CIVIL RIGHTS LEADER: We must fight back in ways that will not destroy ourselves in the process. We must turn the pain that you have -- the pain, the pain, the pain -- turn pain to power. No more being on the sidelines in Kentucky in this battle. Three men conspired to kill a woman in her sleep. (INAUDIBLE) without a real charge, wanton destruction. We are going to fight back, two ways we will not self-destruct.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CURNOW: You are watching CNN. Much more coming up, including President Trump's stunning refusal about a transition of power, with the U.S. election just weeks away. The president also accusing federal vaccine regulators of playing politics, even though he's the one trying to rush the rollout.
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CURNOW: The Asian markets having a rough, rough day after Wall Street's sharp selloff on Wednesday. Investors certainly anxious about a number of issues, including rising numbers of coronavirus infections, slowing economic recovery and election uncertainty in the U.S.
All the indices firmly in the red. We will continue to keep an eye on those numbers.
You're watching CNN but also we are watching the U.K., which is recording its highest number of coronavirus infections since early May. More than 6,000 cases on Wednesday alone. The country has one of the worst outbreaks in Europe. Another government is saying it's considering what are called human challenge trials.
Those people would be deliberately exposed to the virus to see if the treatment works. Now such trials raise ethical concerns and can pose additional risks. But some people, we know, have already signed up.
And also, more than 200,000 Americans have now lost their lives to the coronavirus. Almost half of all states are reporting a rise in new cases.
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CURNOW (voice-over): Many of them, take a look, here in the orange and maroon are on this map, are located in the Midwest region. Infections are on the decline in just 7 states, which are in the shades of green.
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CURNOW: Meanwhile, pharmaceutical giant Johnson & Johnson is beginning global phase 3 trials of its potential vaccine. This is the fourth candidate to reach this point and could be ready for U.S. federal review early next year. This Johnson & Johnson vaccine, unlike the others, requires just a
single dose. But President Trump does not want to wait until next year for a vaccine.
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CURNOW: He is pushing hard to get one approved before the November election. So it's kind of ironic he's now accusing the U.S. Food and Drug Administration of playing politics and threatening to overrule the agency on its vaccine approval process.
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TRUMP: (INAUDIBLE) is extremely political.
Why would they do this?
When you come back with these great results, and I think you will have those great results.
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TRUMP: Why would we be pulling it?
But we are going to look at it, we are going to take a look at it and, ultimately, the White House has to approve it.
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DR. FRANCIS COLLINS, DIRECTOR, NIH: I think the FDA had signaled some time ago they were going to issue some additional guidance about what the safety guidance ought to be for these phase 3 trials.
They previously said what the efficacy limit had to be, had to be at least 50 percent effective but they hadn't laid out what the safety guidelines would be. They have kind of gone with tradition here.
This idea that you are going to ask for 2 months of data when at least half of the people in the trial before you decide you've got a good bit of data about safety. That's not a new idea.
We already have a problem in this country where a lot of people are worried about whether this vaccine is going to be something they want to take. The last thing we need to do is to create another cloud of uncertainty about whether this is being done appropriately, so that we can reassure people this is something that they'd want to take advantage of.
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CURNOW: Doctor Jorge Rodriguez is an internal medicine and viral specialist and he joins me now from Los Angeles.
Dr. Rodriguez, wonderful to see you again. Just listening to that, what do you think when you hear the president
potentially saying that the FDA is playing politics?
DR. JORGE RODRIGUEZ, INTERNAL MEDICINE AND VIRAL SPECIALIST: I think it's probably the other way around. I think the FDA has gone under a lot of scrutiny lately by the scientific community because they seem to be yielding to the will of the president and the administration.
So what they are doing, first of all, it hasn't been specific yet, it's probably nothing out of the ordinary. They are making sure that any product, in this case a vaccine that comes out, is not only effective but it is safe.
That's what I think is going on. But I think that ruffles the feathers of the president, because it appears that they want, come hell or high water, a vaccine available before the election.
CURNOW: But can the White House or administration fast-track a vaccine without the approval of the FDA or try to skirt around it?
I mean, do we -- what kind of situation are we going to potentially find ourselves in here in the U.S.?
RODRIGUEZ: We may potentially find ourselves in a situation that we have never encountered before. Usually, the president does not have that authority. The FDA was created to make sure that pharmaceutical companies and any product that comes out has been tested and isn't released just for the sole purpose of making a monetary profit.
It has to be effective, it has to be better than what's available and it has to be safe.
But can the president sign an executive order to say, hey, this is now available?
Who knows with this sort of evolving imperial presidency?
Really, who knows?
CURNOW: You talk about the clash between politics and science. There's also evidence on display today and I want to just play a little bit and get your take on the other side.
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SEN. RAND PAUL (R-KY): You have been a big fan of Cuomo and the shutdown in New York. You've lauded New York for their policy. New York had the highest death rate in the world. How could we possibly be jumping up and down and saying oh, Gov. Cuomo did a great job?
DR. ANTHONY FAUCI, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY AND INFECTIOUS DISEASES, NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH: No.
PAUL: He had the worst death rate in the world.
FAUCI: No, you misconstrued that, Senator, and you've done that repetitively in the past. They got hit very badly. They've made some mistakes.
Right now -- if you look at what's going on right now, the things that are going on in New York to get their test positivity one percent or less is because they are looking at the guidelines that we have put together from the task force of the four or five things -- of masks, social distancing, outdoors more than indoors, avoiding crowds, and washing hands.
PAUL: Or they've developed enough community immunity --
FAUCI: Right.
PAUL: -- that they're no longer having the pandemic because they have enough immunity in New York City to actually stop it.
FAUCI: I challenge that, Senator, because --
PAUL: I'm afraid -- I'm afraid we're --
FAUCI: -- I want to -- please, sir, I would like to be able to do this because this happens with Senator Rand all the time.
You are not listening to what the director of the CDC said, that in New York it's about 22 percent. If you believe 22 percent is herd immunity, I believe you're alone in that.
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CURNOW: A little bit of a mike drop there from Dr. Fauci at the end.
But what do you make of that and what does that say?
I mean, clearly, about the current discourse when it comes to the coronavirus here in the U.S.?
RODRIGUEZ: Well, first of all, I'm a little embarrassed to say this but I loved it. I love that discourse because people have been saying for a long time now that the NIH is, again, sort of bending over to the administration.
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RODRIGUEZ: And this was symbolic at its best. It was science, represented by the most published scientist in the world, Tony Fauci, Dr. Fauci. And Paul Rand, who is a physician but a politician, maybe not practicing, but a politician.
And at every turn, Dr. Fauci, very steadily, very professionally, knocked down every argument that was brought before him.
He said that, you know what?
Sure, New York had the highest death rate but they are also the most populous city in the United States and basically they were blindsided by this invasion of virus that came out of nowhere. And they have controlled it. He also said that there is absolutely no proof that herd immunity is
happening in New York and that what is called memory immunity but from other coronavirus has helped.
So I was very glad to see Dr. Anthony Fauci standing strong and defending what is science against what is politics. I loved it, actually.
CURNOW: Well, great to speak to you, Dr. Rodriguez. Again, thank you so much.
RODRIGUEZ: Thank you.
CURNOW: So the Canadian prime minister is not just warning of a second wave of virus, he says it has already arrived. Infections in Canada have nearly tripled over the past five weeks. Paula Newton now has the details on that and Justin Trudeau's response.
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PAULA NEWTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It was a very sobering message from Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and it is incredibly rare for a prime minister in Canada to address the nation in this way. The issue is Canada's exponential growth of coronavirus cases.
Now, just a few months ago, we were talking about Canada crushing the curve. In absolute terms, the numbers still aren't that bad, averaging about 1,100 cases per day and that would be for the last week, at issue though is the exponential growth and that is what is concerning everyone including the prime minister. Take a listen.
JUSTIN TRUDEAU, CANADIAN PRIME MINISTER: It's all too likely we won't be gathering for thanksgiving. But we still have a shot at Christmas. Together, we have the power to get the second wave under control.
NEWTON: Canadian thanksgiving in just a few weeks and really what the prime minister is hoping is that in six to eight weeks they might get this pandemic under control again. An issue here has been young people, about two thirds of all the new cases are from people under the age of 40 and everyone here right now, they are saying should be keeping those social contacts to a minimum.
The problem has been that people have been doing things that they assume are harmless. Dinner parties, having friends over and that has led to a lot of community transmission. The exponential growth is what's really concerning people here. About 1,100 cases on average per day for the last week.
It doesn't seem like a lot, but that trend line could continue to grow and if it does, health experts fear that the caseload could grow four or five times in the next four or five weeks. Trudeau telling Canadians, look, you have done it before, you can do it again. You need to crush that curve -- Paula Newton, CNN, Ottawa.
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CURNOW: Thanks, Paula, for that.
Coming up, protests have broken out over the grand jury decision in the Breonna Taylor case. And now two police officers have been shot.
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CURNOW (voice-over): Take a look at these images from across the United States, you will have the latest on this breaking story.
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CURNOW: Also, throwing more doubt into the upcoming vote. President Trump's remarks on a hallmark of American elections.
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CURNOW: Welcome back to CNN. I'm Robyn Curnow live from CNN world news headquarters here in Atlanta.
So back to our top story. Mass demonstrations erupting across the U.S. as protestants take to the streets there demanding justice after a grand jury in Louisville, Kentucky ruled no officers would be directly charged with Breonna Taylor's death. Dozens have now been arrested, two officers in Louisville though have been shot and wounded.
Kentucky's attorney general said the investigation found two of the officers' actions were justified. A family's attorney calling the decision outrageous.
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DANIEL CAMERON, KENTUCKY ATTORNEY GENERAL: According to Kentucky law, the use of force by Mattingly and Cosgrove was justified to protect themselves. This justification bars us from pursuing criminal charges in Ms. Breonna Taylor's death.
LONITA BAKER, BREONNA TAYLOR FAMILY ATTORNEY: There is sufficient evidence if the grand jury felt it sufficient that Brett Hankison placed three neighbors in danger with his reckless behavior than they had to have fair thought and found that he also placed Breonna Taylor at risk with his reckless behavior.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CURNOW: So, so many people are shocked and outraged by this decision. CNN political commentator Van Jones lays out the paths that, he says, are the most unjust.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VAN JONES, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: This is a case of bad policy, bad policing, and bad prosecution. It's a complete trial factor, it's complete disaster. The policy of no-knock in the first place is suspect, because it's led to so many innocent people being killed. It's led to police officers being killed. So the policy is terrible, then the policing.
They sprayed this place with bullets. Yes, they were returning fire, but they had other responsibilities, including once she is shot, it's 20 minutes before she's given any attention at all. Remember the 8 minutes with George Floyd? Can you imagine 20? And then, the police are engaging in cover-up behavior. That is criminal, and that's not prosecuted.
So listen, you have so much wrongdoing. The policy is terrible, the policing is terrible, and the prosecutor come in and find a way forward here, and instead basically just punts. And the thing that we are not talking about enough, if someone kicked in your door tonight, and said nothing, but they had guns, you have a right to defend yourself, unless you are black.
Everybody can stand their ground, unless you are black. Everybody has the second amendment right, unless you are black. If you are black and you defend yourself, you defend your girlfriend, then you are on trial, she's dead, and the cops get away with it.
So, if you wonder why people are upset, this is why. That said, violence from the left is completely unacceptable. We don't want lawlessness in the police department, we don't want lawlessness from right-wing vigilantes, and we don't want lawlessness from the left either. We got too much lawlessness, too much violence, too many people getting shot, too many funerals. We need to calm this thing down and we need leadership from the top on both sides to get us out of this mess. But this was a disaster today, an absolute catastrophe.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CURNOW: Van Jones there.
So, with the election just weeks away, President Trump is refusing to guarantee a peaceful transition of power and dismissing a cornerstone of American democracy. Mr. Trump repeated his false claim that mail-in voting leads to fraud.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mr. President, real quickly. Win, lose or draw in this election, will you commit here today for a peaceful transfer of power after the election? And there has been rioting in Louisville, there has been rioting in many cities across this country, your so- called red and blue states. Will you commit to making sure that there is a peaceful transferal of power after the election?
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: Well, we are going to have to see what happens. You know that I have been complaining very strongly about the ballots, and the ballots are a disaster.
[02:35:00]
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I understand that, but people are rioting. Do you commit to making sure that there is a peaceful transferal of power? TRUMP: We will want to have get rid of the ballots and you will have a very - you will have a very peaceful - there won't be a transfer, frankly. There will be a continuation. The ballots are out of control, you know it, and you know who knows it better than anybody else? The Democrats know it better than anybody else.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CURNOW: Well, CNN's Chief Legal Analyst Jeffrey Toobin says, President Trump's comments on the transfer of power is unprecedented.
Here is Jeffrey.
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JEFFREY TOOBIN, CNN CHIEF LEGAL ANALYST: Not only has no president ever said anything like that, as far as I'm aware, no president has ever thought anything like that. One of the touchstones of American democracy is when the two presidents, the incoming and outgoing president take the limousine together from the White House to the capital for the swearing in, including the defeated president, Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan; George Herbert Walker Bush and Bill Clinton, they sit there together in the limousine as a symbol of the peaceful transition of power.
I don't see any scenario where Donald Trump agrees to participate in that sort of ceremony, even if he loses this election. And I think it's tragic but revealing about his character in his presidency.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CURNOW: So, out of the hospital, but not quite out of the woods, Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny has been released from impatient care at a Berlin hospital. But the effects of his poisoning need lots of rehabilitation ahead.
As Matthew Chance now report from Moscow. Matthew?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, after 32 days in a German clinic being treated for Novichok nerve agent poisoning, 24 of them in intensive care, Putin critic Alexei Navalny has now been discharged after doctors treating him said, his condition had sufficiently improved.
They finally post a picture of himself on a park bench with a message saying, doctors have told him a complete recovery is possible, but he said he still need a daily physical therapy and it's still not regained complete control of his body, saying he couldn't throw a ball, for instance, with one of his hands.
Well, Russia's leading opposition figure had been campaigning in Siberia last month, when he was suddenly taken ill on a flight back to Moscow, forcing the aircraft to make an emergency landing so he could get urgent treatment. He was later medifact to Germany, where doctors said he had been poisoned with a Novichok chemical nerve agent. Russians have denied any responsibility, and rejected international calls for an investigation into the poisoning.
In a statement, announcing his discharge as an impatient, doctors at the Berlin clinic say, that it was still too early to gauge the potential long-term effects of what they called his severe poisoning. Navalny's team say the opposition figure intends to return to Russia to continue his work. The Kremlin says, he is welcome to come back, and that they wish him a speedy recovery.
Matthew Chance, CNN, Moscow.
CURNOW: CNN continues in just a moment. Stay with us.
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CURNOW: Welcome back.
The town of Faiyum is about 2 hours south of Cairo and home to some of Egypt's freshest produce. As part of our "Feast on Egypt" series, we would like you to meet a renowned Swiss chef with a taste for Egyptian cuisine.
He is teaching the country's next generation of chefs the basics of cooking and running their own restaurants.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARKUS ITEN, CO-FOUNDER, IBIS RESTAURANT & COOKING SCHOOL: If you are not prepared to work hard, you will not survive me. Because then after that this is the reputation of the school, it's not an easy school. We are not here on honeymoon.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Despite the coronavirus pandemic, Markus Iten opened Faiyum's first cooking school this summer. The Oasis town about two hours south of Cairo is famed for farming and fast becoming one of Egypt's top foodie destinations.
Markus' expectations come from four decades of experience.
ITEN: We start now. 25 minutes. Jalapeno.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The Swiss chef ran restaurants and five-star hotels across the world. And here in Egypt, he has helped start several education initiatives like establishing the Egyptian Chefs Association.
ITEN: If you don't start giving back what you gained, well, why are you here? And that's why I wanted to have the cooking school, culinary education.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Students gather in Markus' restaurant Mondays through Wednesdays for 10 weeks. Not to learn specific recipes, but to master foundational skills, chopping vegetables, cooking meat, mixing batter.
Visitors can book private classes, but this school is meant for beginners hoping to enter the food industry.
ITEN: It was 40 minutes, too early, because we added the egg white. You are missing 15 minutes.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: His ultimate aim, empowering Egypt's next generation to go into business for themselves and advance the country's culinary scene.
ITEN: I checked here.
DOHA ELWAZIR, STUDENT: We did, yes.
ITEN: No, you didn't. You folded the egg in after 40 minutes.
ELWAZIR: This industry, it has a lot of opportunities, and I have started to think maybe, one day, I can open my small restaurant.
ITEN: Not everybody is to be made a chef. Our job carries a lot of responsibility, it carries a lot of stress, but also a lot of pride. We as chefs appreciate this gift to be gotten from farmers, from the growing, from the seeds, water.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Markus capitalizes on these gifts, so abundant in Faiyum, but he also incorporates in other regional specialty because every meal is served on these handmade dishes. And soon his village, renowned for its pottery, dedicated craftsman mirror Markus' work ethic, creating the perfect compliment to his cooking.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CURNOW: Well, thanks so much for watching CNN. I'm Robin Curnow.
World Sport starts after the break, and the news of course continues after that with Rosemary in about 15 minutes time. So enjoy.
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PATRICK SNELL, CNN HOST: Hi, there. Welcome to CNN World Sport today. I'm Patrick Snell. We begin right here in the United States.
Well, once again, it's athletes taking a stand against social injustice that is front and center. Athletes speaking out after a grandeur in the U.S. state of Kentucky on Wednesday decided not to charge officers with the killing of Breonna Taylor, a 26-year-old African-American shot to death in her own home.
NBA superstar LeBron James tweeting, "I've been lost for words today! I'm devastated, hurt, sad, mad! We want justice for Breonna, yet justice was met for her neighbor's apartment walls and not her beautiful life. Was I surprised at the verdict? Absolutely not, but I was and still am hurt and heavy hearted." Meantime, some of LeBron's Lakers teammates along with others from the world of basketball having their say.
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DANNY GREEN, L.A. LAKERS GUARD: It was disappointing. And we feel like we have taken a step back but we haven't made the progress we were seeking for. Our voices aren't being heard loud enough. But we're not going to stop, we're going to continue. We're going to continue to fight, we're going to continue to push, we're going to continue to use our voices.
But yes, after today's verdict, it seems like every time we turn around and look at the news, it's always something disheartening or disappointing, and that's from all standpoints of what's going on in our country. And we're not happy about it, but can't give up hope, can't quit, got to keep fighting and try to make things better, not just for us, but for our future children.
ALEX CARUSO, L.A. LAKERS GUARD: I try to imagine if that was one of my sisters, or one of my parents. Those people are a lot stronger and a lot more professional with the way they handle themselves than I think I would have if it happened to somebody I knew.
MICHAEL MALONE, DENVER NUGGETS HEAD COACH: Just tragic. I know that we have been using our platform down here to teach and to try to bring about education and a voice in a lot of players on our team, especially who have also spoken out on justice for Breonna Taylor, and we have not gotten that justice.
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SNELL: Meantime Wednesday night, seeing the Boston Celtics and the heat going head to head in Game 4 of the NBA's Eastern Conference finals in the Orlando bubble in Miami. Shall we say, cranking up the heat on their opponents here. Stand-out night for that rookie, Tyler Herro, who is going to career height, 37 points off the bench. The 20- year-old inspiring his team to a 112 points to 109 victory meaning Miami, who now lead 3-1 within just one more victory of a place in the NBA finals.
What a night for the youngster! The game of his life! Quite the hero, in fact, you might say, young Tyler.
All right. We are again seeing the continuing impact of COVID-19 on football. Highly significant developments too, disconcerting the Saudi Arabian team, Al Hilal, defending champions of the Asian Champions League, and seemingly right now out of the tournament as it stands.
It comes after the club could not name, they require 13 players for a group match. Again, Shabab Al-Ahli of the UAE due to reported coronavirus outbreak in the Al Hilal, score out in a statement the Asian Football Confederation saying, as a result, they were "deemed to withdrawn from the competition". We will certainly keep you updated on all the fallout from this particular story. Meantime, big news from Spain's top flight, Uruguayan striker Luis Suarez leaving Barcelona for La Liga rivals Atletico. The Catalan say he is heading to Madrid in a deal that could eventually total ?6 million. Suarez netted a 198 times for Barca. The club paying tribute on Twitter. Luis, you will always be part of our history. Thank you so much and good luck. He's got a farewell presser later on today.
Last week Brazilian superstar Neymar handed a 2-game ban. This was for the red card he got. Remember that tempestuous match between PSG and Ligue 1 rivals Marseille. Now his teammate, Angel Di Maria, has learned his fate. A four-match suspension for his role in that brawl that saw five sent off.
Three more matches on a slate today in the English League Cup, both Liverpool and holders Man City in action in their respective matches later on. On Wednesday though, Chelsea hitting second here Barnsley for 6.
And what a moment for the Blues' new German sailing, Kai Havertz, just 21 years of age, yes, he was expensive, but he is already paying it back. The former Leverkusen youngster looks a really class act. Doesn't need Chelsea strolling to the 6-0 win.
Kai taking to Twitter afterwards, "So happy about my first goals." I bet he is. He certainly should be.
Alright. It's been half a century since women's tennis changed forever. We, in fact, should be in speaking to 2 pioneering greats of whom all female athletes the world over, surely, owe one huge debt of gratitude.
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SNELL: Welcome back.
Well, earlier this year, Forbes revealing tennis superstar Naomi Osaka had become the highest paid female athlete in history over the course of a calendar year. The now three-time Grand Slam champ from Japan banking just under $37.5 million.
Now just reflect back some half a century when nine women led by the iconic Billie Jean King forged a break away tour held as a massive risk at the time. The move was courageous, and fair to say it has paid off handsomely.
Rosie Casals won that first tournament in Houston. Don Riddell has been speaking with her and Billie Jean about that historic moment.
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ROSIE CASALS, ORIGINAL 9 MEMBER: To think that nine women got together and had this vision that this was the right thing, to break away from the old establishment to make some changes because this was something that was very important to us. Of course, we were suspended. We were ostracized by the other players. So it was something that was very meaningful to each of us individually, as well as a group. And I'm so proud to be a part of that Original Nine and to see what women's tennis has become 50 years later. It's my grand slam, let's say, and it is great for women, and not just women in sports, but all women.
DON RIDDELL, CNN HOST: Can you tell me the significance of the $1 contract? What was that all about?
BILLIE JEAN KING, ORIGINAL 9 MEMBER: We wanted Gladys Heldman to publish our world tennis magazine to be basically our boss, and to go out and try to get sponsorship. And so she said, well, I don't have a lot of money to give to you. And I said all we need is $1, it's just as binding as trillion dollars.
She said, well, you guys would do that for $1? I said, yes. We know this is high risk. We know this may fall flat. We know you may never be able to give us proper sponsor. We know all that, but we are betting on you and we are happy to do that.
RIDDELL: Billie Jean, if you could go back to 50 years ago and do anything differently at that time, would you have done anything differently?
KING: Yes, I would have done. I think that the nine of us should've owned part of the tour and I think we probably should have gotten 1 percent or 2 percent of the gross revenues. And that way we would be getting a big check as well. We were too altruistic at the time. And women need to think about money, we need to - so I would do that differently.
RIDDELL: Is that someone's playing?
CASALS: I think that's (inaudible) and I turned it off.
KING: What's that?
CASALS: Music. Background music.
RIDDELL: It is very pleasant.
KING: I don't know what's going on there. Good luck editing this. Good luck!
RIDDELL: When players now are asked about their inspirations and their role models, female tennis players often recognize you guys.
KING: Are you kidding?
CASALS: I don't think so? No. Usually (inaudible) and maybe if I wore my glasses they might mistake it. (inaudible) but I don't think that probably a lot of the players know who the original nine are.
KING: No, they don't.
CASALS: And what they did for women's tennis. I would like them to know more. I would like to get to know them a little bit more as well.
RIDDELL: Yes.
[02:55:00]
CASALS: But no, I don't think enough of the history of women's tennis is something that they are aware of. It's a legacy that needs to be left by every generation and I feel this is a little bit lacking. And maybe today is young generation with Osakas and Jennifer Brady, what have you and the gauge is changing.
They are looking at things the way we looked at things 50 years ago that, hey, they have a voice, they have a platform, and they should speak up.
KING: Yes. And it's fantastic to see this.
CASALS: Yes.
KING: Because--
CASALS: We haven't seen it in a long time.
KING: No, but I think--
(CROSSTALK)
KING: I think it's because of COVID, I think we thought about what we are grateful for. I think there has been time to think. And it's also with Black Lives Matter, and the kids today, the millenials and the Gen Zs speak up. And because of technology, Don, that's the reason you can mobilize quickly and communicate quickly.
That dream for us was, any girl in the world would have a place to compete. And that's why you have your Serenas, that's why you have your Venus. Also, when women lead, we don't lead just for women by the way, we lead for everybody. And that is why we don't have a woman president in the United States.
CASALS: Unlike that. Yes.
KING: Because every time a woman does something, they go, oh, thanks for doing this for women's tennis. No, no, no, I thought we fought for tennis, I fought for (inaudible) I got in trouble, but the men did not want us. But I like it when we are together. Because I know together we are stronger, we are better and make the world a better place.
RIDDELL: How does it feel when you stand there and take it all in and know that you guys were responsible for starting this?
CASALS: I don't know if I look at it, but of course because of the 50th anniversary of the Original 9, we keep getting hip to that question and you keep looking at that and saying, wow, we did this, we made this happen, because we believed in it and we believed in ourselves, we believed in our leadership. So yes, I am proud. I'm very proud to have been a part of that Original 9. KING: I think relationships are everything. And I'm so happy we stayed connected. But I also know and this was our dream for the future generations. So when I see them getting big checks and winning matches and seeing all the attention they get, then our dreams have come true. They are living our dream.
CASALS: And I love it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SNELL: It's wonderful stuff.
Groundbreaking pioneers. And to learn more about the impact they made, you can read it at cnn.com/worldsport. Thanks so much for joining us today.
Later, Thursday edition is coming your way only if you stay with CNN, though. Bye for now.
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