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President Trump Double Time Campaigning; Coronavirus in Iran Skyrocketed; Chef Feeds Millions of Indians; Nigerians Fed Up with SARS; Nadal 20th Win in 2020; Trump Back in Campaign Trail; Dr. Fauci Not a Politics Person; U.K. With New COVID Restrictions; Judge Amy Coney Barrett's Day One of Hearing; Europe Hit by a Second Wave; Young Generation Left to Survive. Aired 3-4a ET

Aired October 12, 2020 - 03:00   ET

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

[03:00:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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, the U.S. president is heading back out on the campaign trail less than two weeks after being hospitalized for the coronavirus.

The U.K. is set to unveil new measures for England as a second coronavirus wave hits Europe.

And confirmation hearings for President Trump's Supreme Court pick are set to kick off today. Amy Coney Barrett's fate will be front and center.

Good to have you with us.

Well, a second wave of COVID-19 is striking countries around the world, and as we count down to election day here in the United States, we are also counting a major jump in new infections. Daily cases have been shooting past 50,000 for the first time since August. The virus has killed more than 214,000 Americans.

And former director of the Centers for Disease Control says the U.S. will lose another 20,000 lives by November. But U.S. President Donald Trump's reaction to the virus remains little changed, a week after leaving the hospital, he is downplaying the virus and trying to spin his COVID diagnosis for political gain.

In a tweet he claims he is immune with a clean bill of health. Twitter flagged that as misleading and potentially harmful. The president tried to explain his conditions Sunday on Fox News.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: I have to tell you, I really feel fantastically. I really feel good. I even feel good by the fact that you know, the word immunity means something, having -- having really a protective glow, it means something. I think it's very important to have that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: Well, the president is also gearing up for more campaign rallies as he comes under 5 for a misleading ad.

CNN's Jeremy Diamond has details now from Washington.

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN White HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: President Trump is heading back to the campaign trail, hitting a trio of battleground states, beginning today in Florida. Tomorrow, the president is going to go to the battleground state of Pennsylvania before heading to Iowa on Wednesday.

Now President Trump heading back onto the campaign trail after the president's physician says that he has recovered from the coronavirus, also saying that the president is no longer infectious. Now the president himself claimed that he had gotten a negative test for coronavirus, but the president's physician Dr. Sean Conley didn't exactly say that.

Instead, he said simply that the president's latest molecular test for coronavirus show that he is no longer infectious, that he can't infect other people, but he did not say that the president had tested negative for the virus.

But nonetheless, the president and his campaign are seizing on that letter from Dr. Sean Conley to say that that second debate that had been canceled by the Commission on Presidential Debates after President Trump withdrew from that second debate.

The president's campaigns are calling for that debate to be reinstated, saying the president should be able to participate after he has been cleared by his doctor to resume public activity. But another controversy is hitting the president and his team on Sunday. Dr. Anthony Fauci putting out a statement to CNN after the Trump campaign aired this misleading ad.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: President Trump is recovering from the coronavirus, and so is America. Together, we rose to meet the challenge. President Trump tackled the virus head on, as leaders should.

ANTHONY FAUCI, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY AND INFECTIOUS DISEASES: I can't imagine that anybody could be doing more --

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DIAMOND: Now Dr. Fauci saying in a statement to CNN, in my nearly five decades of public service I have never publicly endorsed any political candidate. The comments attributed to me without my permission in the GOP campaign ad were taken out of context from a broad statement I made months ago about the efforts of federal public health officials.

Now it is clear from looking at that interview which was taped all the way back in March in the early months of this pandemic that Dr. Fauci was indeed referring to the members of the coronavirus task force and other public health officials, but nonetheless, the president and his campaign standing by the ad, the president noting that these are Dr. Fauci's own words.

[03:04:56]

Of course, what is notable here is that the president and his reelection campaign seem to realize that the president is getting bad marks on his handling of the coronavirus. Nearly 6 in 10 Americans have said in recent polls that they disapprove of the president's handling of the virus.

And what's also clear is that the campaign is using Dr. Fauci's image and his words here, because Fauci is far more trusted by the public on this issue of the coronavirus than the president is himself.

CHURCH: Joining me now is Dr. Ashish Jha. He is dean of the Brown University School of Public Health. Thank you, doctor, for talking with us and for all that you do.

ASHISH JHA, DEAN, BROWN UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF PUBLIC HEALTH: Thank you very much for having me on.

CHURCH: So, President Trump's physician has medically cleared him to return to his public schedule after being infected with COVID-19. Let's just look at the wording of his doctor's memo. In addition to the president meeting CDC criteria for the safe discontinuation of isolation, this morning's COVID PCR sample demonstrates by current recognize standards he is no longer considered transmission risk to others.

So why doesn't the doctor just say the president tested negative for COVID-19 if that indeed is the case? Because President Trump himself trick claimed on Sunday that he tested totally negative, those are his words. Is there a difference between not the being a transmission risk and testing negative?

JHA: Yes, so, you know, the messages from Dr. Conley, the president's physician are consistently convoluted and difficult to decipher. My best read is that the president is still testing positive which is actually pretty common and people well after they have stopped being infectious.

So, we always have to turn to other factors and make a determination whether somebody is infectious or not. But again, it's not completely clear from Dr. Conley's note. And of course, you know, the president contradicting his own physician models the picture even further.

CHURCH: But a doctor would say he tested positive if he tested positive, or negative? JHA: You would think a simple thing like whether his PCR test was

positive or negative would be reported as such. That is not what Dr. Conley did. Again, there has been this pattern from Dr. Conley to try to be as evasive and confusing as possible, which unfortunately actually opens up for a lot of conspiracy theories and a lot of -- I don't think he intends for that to happen, but a straightforward answer on what the president's tests result are, would have been very helpful.

CHURCH: Right. And now President Trump plans to hold rallies in Florida, Pennsylvania, and Iowa this week. What are the potential risks posed to those attending these rallies? But of course, the president himself, because he will be standing for some time. And it's going to be pretty hot in Florida.

JHA: Yes. You know, I understand the desire for rallies in the weeks leading up to the election. But at the end of the day, public health has got to come first. And what we are seeing, we are seeing data emerge from his Minnesota rally, that there were new infections. People were hospitalized from that.

These rallies are frankly dangerous, because you've got large numbers of people gathering. They are stationary together. Most of them don't wear masks, and there is very little social distancing. So even when the president was well, these were dangerous. And of course, right now, when we don't have clarity about the president's infectious status, it adds just more confusion and more concern to these rallies.

So of course, as a public health person I would not recommend the president hold them, and I would not recommend that people attend them.

CHURCH: Right. And the president's medical team still refuses to answer the question when he last tested negative. Why are they not telling us that, do you think? And do we have the right to know that information?

JHA: I do think we have a right to know. He is a public figure. And when he goes and travels places, it's often on public expense, and of course, if he traveled to the debate after testing positive, or if he traveled to Minnesota or New Jersey after testing positive, and people who are there have a right to know.

So, there are all sorts of good reasons why the president's team should be forthcoming. This is not a privacy issue. This is just a transparency issue. And it's also a public health issue, to make sure people might have been exposed to get adequate care of themselves.

CHURCH: Dr. Ashish Jha, always a pleasure and an honor to speak with you. Many thanks.

JHA: Thank you for having me on.

CHURCH: COVID-19 is on the rise in Europe. And you can see several countries on the continent in dark red on this map tracking week on week cases. [03:09:59]

France posted a record over the weekend, nearly 27,000 new cases Saturday. That came down Sunday when numbers are usually low due to less testing. Russia has just reported three days of record high cases. Their latest report is well over 13,000.

And the United Kingdom is about to take action. Prime Minister Boris Johnson is now set to announce new coronavirus alert levels designed to curb infections rising in certain locations.

And our correspondents are tracking developments across Europe. Nic Robertson is live in London. He joins us now. And Scott McLean is standing by in Berlin. Good to see you both. So Nic, let's start with you. And the prime minister will soon outline new COVID restrictions as cases surge. What is expected?

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Well, one idea behind what the prime minister is doing is really to simplify the picture across the country so that people can understand what the restrictions in their areas are. Up until now there has been a patchwork of different lockdowns in different areas. So, what the prime minister is expected to do today is to announce these three different tiers, medium, high, and very high.

Now we don't know precisely what restrictions will come into play with each of those tiers, or what the criteria is to be in one of those particular tiers, how high the infectious rate has to be in your area, for example. We don't know those specific levels yet.

But what the prime -- what we do know is that the city of Liverpool is expected to be in the highest tier and they are expecting to have their pubs, their casinos and their gyms shut down. But there still seems to be a question for Liverpool whether or not their restaurants will be shut down. And it does seem that the government at this moment is still fine-tuning precisely what being one of those tiers implies.

Now, one of the problems the government is facing at the moment is that the worst cases of rates of infection are in the north of the country. There has been huge pushback from the councils in the north of the country who say that the government is getting it wrong. That local lockdowns there at the moment aren't bringing infection rates down sufficiently. They want more detail about the rules that the government has been imposing.

So there has been this pushback from the councils. There is anger in the north of the country, that they feel that this is something that is being imposed by the south of the country, that they may face their pubs being closed while in London the pubs will be open. So, this is a time again where the prime minister is trying to gain the confidence of the country with a simple message. It's not going to at all be easy. Rosemary?

CHURCH: It certainly won't. Nic Robertson, many thanks to you.

And turning to Scott now. Scott, Germany France and other European nations are struggling with restrictions and increasing case numbers. What is the latest on that across Europe?

SCOTT MCLEAN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Rosemary. So here in Germany, first off, almost every large city is now a coronavirus hot spot. Stuttgart has even called in the military for help. And it is not just Germany seeing big problems when it comes to the coronavirus.

This weekend, France, Czech Republic and Poland all recorded record new daily case counts. In fact, Poland saw four straight days of record new case counts. Paris has closed bars and restaurants. Meanwhile some hospitals in northern France are canceling non-COVID related procedures to make way for the influx of coronavirus patients.

Meanwhile, the U.S., India, and Brazil are undoubtedly the worldwide hotspots. They though are starting to see case counts slowly declining or perhaps slowly rising, but in Europe, the case counts are only going in one direction, and that is straight up.

The worst affected country here in Europe is the Czech Republic. And when you add them to that same graph, per million people, their case counts have absolutely skyrocketed. Which is interesting, because the Czech Republic is really an early success story when it came to getting a handle on the virus, they immediately moved to closed borders, requiring negative tests for the people that it did allow into the country.

Now the Czech prime minister though, is calling on all health workers across the country to contribute to the effort to tamp down this virus after a large number of doctors and nurses tested positive for the virus. He is also warning people that there could be a second nationwide lockdown if things don't turn around.

And across Europe countries are really trying everything that they can to avoid that second lockdown. Italy is now requiring masks to be worn in public spaces even outdoors. Here in Germany there are already stringent controls for people coming into the country from high-risk areas when it comes to testing. There is also a nationwide mandate to wear masks in shops and in stores and on public transit.

But this weekend Berlin in particular where cases have been exceptionally high also required pubs and restaurants to close their doors at 11 p.m. And that's a big deal for Berlin. It's famous for its night life.

[03:15:06]

In fact, normally the bars here don't have to close at all. They can go right through to the morning. Later today, though, Rosemary, German officials will give an update announcing new testing procedures or new testing strategy, I should say, and also new rules for quarantine.

CHURCH: Yes. And masks, of course, they are the key, can't label that message enough. Scott McLean, many thanks for that live report. I appreciate it.

And still to come, confirmation hearings begin today for President Trump's Supreme Court nominee. Amy Coney Barrett, Republicans are moving forward and they are not letting the coronavirus get in their way.

Plus, the pandemic's severe impact on young people in the U.S. How millennials and members of generation Z are struggling to get by.

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CHURCH: Now in Washington, the first day of confirmation hearings will begin for President Trump's Supreme Court nominee, Amy Coney Barrett. Senate Republicans are pushing ahead with the proceedings. That is despite uncertainty surrounding key members who have recently been diagnosed with the coronavirus.

[03:20:05]

Democrats fear Barrett's appointment to the high court could jeopardize abortion rights and access to health care.

CNN's Lauren Fox has a preview.

LAUREN FOX, CNN CONGRESSIONAL REPORTER: Those critical hearings beginning on Capitol Hill on Monday. And first day of hearing is going to be lawmakers getting to make their opening statements as well as Amy Coney Barrett, the nominee making her opening statement, which CNN has obtained.

We expect that she'll say quote, "there is a tendency in our profession to treat the practice of law as all-consuming, while losing side of everything else, but that makes for a shallow and unfulfilling life. I worked hard as a lawyer and as a professor. I owe that to my clients and my students and myself, but I never let the law define my identity or crowd out the rest of my life."

Now, also looming over this hearing is going to be the fact that coronavirus is still very much a factor in these proceedings. Remember, two lawmakers, both Republicans on the judiciary committee tested positive for coronavirus just more than one week ago.

Those individuals, Thom Tillis of North Carolina as well as Senator Mike Lee of Utah, both tested positive, and while we know that Tillis is expected to attend the hearings in person later this week, we still don't know whether or not Senator Mike Lee will attend the hearings in person.

It's critical whether or not they show up. That's because the top Democrat in the Senate, Chuck Schumer told reporters on Sunday, that if those two members, and it has to be both of them being absent, are not there on Thursday, the day of a critical vote in the judiciary committee, he will not provide the critical number of Democrats necessary to get a quorum. That essentially could slow down this entire nomination process.

So, while the first order of business is going to be what lawmakers say in their opening statement tomorrow, what Amy Coney Barrett says in her opening statement on Monday, it is also important to remember that the health of individual members in this committee will be closely watched over the upcoming days.

For CNN in Washington, I'm Lauren Fox.

CHURCH: Be sure to tune in to CNN for the latest from Amy Coney Barrett's confirmation hearing. It all gets underway at 9 a.m. Eastern, that's 2 p.m. in London.

Well the White House economic adviser says he believes there is still hope for another stimulus package to help Americans and businesses hit hard by the pandemic.

Larry Kudlow told CNN's jake tapper, negotiations between Democrats and the White House will continue this week. He says Treasury Secretary of Steve Mnuchin may offer a deal price even higher than the $2.2 trillion dollar offer House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is proposing. And it would target key areas like unemployment assistance and small business loans.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LARRY KUDLOW, DIRECTOR, U.S. NATIONAL ECONOMIC COUNCIL: Look, I don't want to get into the specific legislative strategy, Jake, but I will say, from the president's remarks late last week, he is happy on the key targeted areas that I mentioned. He would actually go beyond with some of the Democratic numbers are.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: Last week, you might recall President Donald Trump did an about face on negotiations by first unilaterally putting a stop to the talks, and then signing off on a $1.8 trillion dollar proposal that Pelosi called insufficient.

Well for millions of young people in the U.S., the pandemic has affected so much more than their financial stability. It's also had a devastating impact on their health, families and future.

Our CNN's Kyung Lah reports.

KYUNG LAH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hannah and Joseph Kim knew growing up would be tough. But the siblings never imagined it would be like this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HANNAH KIM, LOST PARENTS TO COVID-19: Towards the end of April, they consecutively went to the hospital. It was my grandmother first, and then my dad. The next day, and the next day was my mom.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LAH: COVID 19 took them one by one over just a few months, leaving the 22-year-old and 17-year-old Joseph alone.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KIM: My parents are gone, and for the last three months we did not even have the capacity to think about our futures. You know, we are just scrambling to save our parents.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LAH: She has no time to grieve. No time to show her loss. Hannah is in college now, Joseph in high school with no extended family nearby or clear path for how to make a living.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KIM: This is a memorial that we made for our parents. Just to remember them. And you know, we look in every day.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[03:25:00]

LAH: They are part of the hardest hit age group in the COVID economy. Young people. Generation Z and millennials have America's highest rates of unemployment, about half say they or someone else in their household have either lost a job or had a pay cut since the pandemic began.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOSUE MARTINEZ, SURVIVED 45 DAYS IN COVID-19 COMA: You don't have a choice.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No.

MARTINEZ: I work if I get sick or I end up in the streets.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LAH: Twenty-nine-year-old Josue Martinez is the sole breadwinner in his household. Paying the rent for the small converted garage he stares with his mother and girlfriend. He kept working at his job at CBS during the worst of the virus in California. Martinez says employees were notified that COVID positive patient had visited the store in March.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARTINEZ: That's when I started getting all the symptoms. I started getting the fever, the cough, and at the end I was like I couldn't breathe at all.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LAH: This is what happened to Martinez. For 45 days he was in a medically induced coma nearly losing his life in intensive care. Weeks later, he survived. But he is dependent on a walker before the age of 30.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LAH: Do you think that this will impact your ability to make money or to work in the future?

MARTINEZ: Yes. I do. So, any activity -- any activity I was doing normally, like now, I'm like, they make it like I can't do.

LAH: Young Americans with no choice but to deal with the hand they have been dealt with.

KIM: My brother is still alive. We are healthy and so, you know, I think that's just pockets of joy is what I'm looking for. It's what keeps me going.

LAH: Kyung Lah, CNN, Los Angeles.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Shocking situation for those families.

And there is new polling just out from key battleground states. Three weeks before election day. And we will discuss the numbers with our panel. That's next. Plus, India is second only to the U.S. for most coronavirus cases. Now, one celebrity chef is doing his best to help the needy during the pandemic. We will have more on that after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[03:30:00]

ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back, everyone.

We do want to recap one of our top stories.

The U.S. president is returning to the campaign trail 10 days after announcing he had COVID-19. The latest poll showed Donald Trump trailing Democrat Joe Biden ahead of November's election.

They also show most voters are critical of the president's pandemic response. The Trump team wants to change that with this campaign ad. But it may have backfired, already. It uses a clip from Dr. Anthony Fauci out of context in an effort to falsely suggest he is praising the president's handling of the virus.

Let us talk now with CNN political commentator, Dr. Abdul el-Sayed. He endorsed Bernie Sanders for president this year. Also, CNN political commentator, Alice Stewart, she is a former communications director for Senator Ted Cruz. Welcome to you both.

ALICE STEWART, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Hi, Rosemary.

ABDUL EL-SAYED, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Hi, Rosie.

CHURCH: So, Alice, I do want to start with you. President Trump talks a lot about fake news, and yet his latest ad uses a quote from Dr. Anthony Fauci taken out of context. Dr. Fauci said he did not give permission for his words to be used and has never endorsed a political candidate. It's exactly this sort of behavior that adds to the distrust many voters are feeling right now, with the Trump administration. Polls showing 6 in 10 voters disapproving with the way he is dealing with the pandemic. What do you say to that?

STEWART: Well, Rosemary, it is pretty clear that for quite some time, the last couple months, the administration has considered Dr. Fauci the bogeyman when it came to the coronavirus, really downplayed a lot of the advice and information he was portraying. But they realized that he certainly had the support and fate of the American people, and the information and the warnings that he had been giving were actually helpful and correct.

So, I understand why the campaign would want to use his comments and advice that he was giving, because people do support him. These are the kinds of things from a campaign standpoint, you generally do run it by the person that you are using, but this was just a situation where they clearly saw that COVID is a situation that they need to get in front of. They need to show someone that has strength and confidence in the American people. And that's exactly why they did this.

CHURCH: Doctor, what is your reaction to that?

EL-SAYED: It is the height of cynicism. Right? They have to the point where the White House actually released a number of times, a sheet of indications of where Dr. Fauci got it wrong, as if to downplay him. Despite the fact that as you noted, he is one of the country's most trusted experts on COVID-19.

And then they turn around and cynically use his likeness and his words taken out of context in a campaign ad. I just think it is such a cynical ploy on the part of the campaign that is clearly drowning right now.

CHURCH: And Alice, the president's physician gave him the all clear to do upcoming rallies and then in a call to prayer, Mr. Trump said he tested totally negative for COVID, but that is not what his doctor said.

In fact, his physician avoided stating directly that the president had tested negative, but instead said he is no longer considered a transmission risk. Why the play on words here? And why is it OK to put people at risk at these rallies?

STEWART: Right, Rosemary. I don't believe that the president has tested negative for coronavirus when the doctor looked squarely in the camera and acknowledges as much. The reality is just because it is OK for him to go out and conduct rallies again, doesn't mean that that's what should be done.

I think it's imperative, especially given the fact that he is just recovering from COVID that they need to use caution. They need to socially distance. They need to avoid large crowds, encourage mask- wearing. That is the advice moving forward.

Look, he does need to get out there. He does need to get his message out there. He had the perfect opportunity to do so this week, and in the debate with Joe Biden, and he decided that he didn't want to participate in that when it was being done virtually.

[03:34:53]

That was a tremendously huge missed opportunity, but he is moving full speed ahead, going out there to meet face to face with voters, which is very important, because the poll numbers, not just nationally but in a lot of these key battleground states, he needs to make up some ground. And this is the best way, obviously they feel they need to do so by holding rallies.

CHURCH: Doctor, what's your reaction to finding out that the president will be going to Florida, Pennsylvania, Iowa in the coming week?

EL-SAYED: It's quite clear given what his physician said that they were looking for a test that they could use that wouldn't say that he is positive for COVID-19 to give him some kind of fig leaf for the wantonly irresponsible choices that him and his campaign are making, to take a clearly sick man who could be shedding virus out onto the campaign trail, to potentially infect many other people after having already been a part of a super spreader event.

Basically, the White House that left 37 people and counting sick. And so, this is just in keeping with the level of cynicism and lack of honesty with the American people. And a disdain for the well-being of the folks around him, that the president is making these choices.

CHURCH: And Alice, as you mentioned, President Trump is trailing in national polls behind his rival, Joe Biden, and some battleground states. A CBS News poll shows Biden ahead in both Michigan and Nevada, 52 percent to Trump's 46 percent and then in a tie in Iowa at 49 percent.

Now Trump -- Trump won Iowa back in 2016 by nearly 10 percentage points. How worried are you and the party that he will lose in that state? And is your party listening to messages sent by these polls? Because Cindy McCain and other high-profile Republicans are endorsing Biden right now. How worried does that make everyone?

STEWART: Whether they say it or not, it is certainly a concern. Look, I don't put any stock really at the stage of the game and national polls, but as you mentioned, those battleground states, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Florida, North Carolina, these are states that he absolutely has to win. He is right now not doing very well.

And the polls, understand, it's not just about the popular vote. It is the Electoral College votes. And these electoral votes in these key states are what is going to make the difference, and the key right now for this president is to go out there and make the case for himself. He needs to shift the focus from COVID because that is not a winning message for him.

CHURCH: Doctor, you will get the final word. Your reaction to all of that.

EL-SAYED: Well, I mean, the truth of the matter is you can talk about freedom all you want, but how many of us actually feel free to go about and do what we normally do in a beautiful fall day like this one? Almost nobody. And the fact is the president doesn't feel free because of course he just got COVID-19 because of his irresponsibility in the middle of a pandemic that he and his policies have helped to give oxygen.

And so in this moment, the reality of this is that he is underwater because this presidency has failed. And he has failed to explain to the American people early on what we were dealing with, what could have been done. He failed to act in response to this pandemic.

And now he is figuratively and literally failing when it comes to keeping people safe. And so, we are in this situation right now, we've got 23 days left into this election, and I know that there is a real focus right now on trying to tell the story, but it's really hard to tell the story about failure that isn't just about failure.

CHURCH: Alice Stewart and Dr. Abdul el-Sayed, many thanks to you both. I appreciate it.

STEWART: Thank you.

EL-SAYED: Thank you.

CHURCH: Well, Iran reached two sobering milestones in just 24 hours. On Sunday, the country reported almost 4,000 new COVID-19 cases. Breaching the half million mark in total. Iran also reported a record daily death toll with 251 lives lost over 24 hours. The health ministry says that 26 out of the 31 provinces in the country are categorized as red zones.

Well for more, I'm joined now by CNN's Sam Kiley. He joins us live from Dubai. Good to see you, Sam. So what is the latest on the situation across Iran? And what are health authorities doing in terms of testing, isolating and of course wearing masks?

SAM KILEY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Iran was the first country really outside of China to have been really badly hit right at the beginning of this pandemic just as it was beginning to cede itself and spread across Europe. We were seeing very high caseloads indeed in Iran.

But though they -- and they moved very quickly to try to test, they were obviously behind the curve in a brand-new virus in capacity to do that, but they did impose widespread lockdowns. They went into street cleaning, right, in the beginning of famous Cajuns.

[03:40:03]

We saw trucks spraying the streets with disinfectant and so on, but now the health ministry is saying that they are deeply in the second wave of infections, particularly in the capital of Tehran. There is compulsory mask wearing in most public places. People have been discouraged from attending mosques and other social gatherings, but inevitably during this process they have released a degree of lockdown here and there. And where they have done that or it's been ignored. They have seen

very profound increase in cases. And also, the health ministry there, Rosemary, warning that the staffs in these hospitals are on the verge of being personally overwhelmed through overwork and infection themselves. Many of them have been sent home after testing positive and dealing with the coronavirus in quarantine.

But they are not alone, Rosemary. Across the Middle East, particularly in Iraq where they are close to the 400,000-infection mark. There has been an increase in cases. Jordan, over the weekend has imposed indefinitely a Friday and Saturday a 48-hour curfew lockdown on the entire nation. That is clearly intended to prevent people circulating and meeting even in masks and that those over the weekend period there as it is in that country.

We've seen in Lebanon record cases also last week with the health ministry they're saying they are in danger of being completely overwhelmed in the context of economic collapse and political paralysis. Israel has got very heavy levels of lockdown. It has been reimposed there after they have seen very significant spike in infections.

So, the pattern across the Middle East has been remarkably similar to what we have seen in Europe and the United States. Here in the United Arab Emirates where the rules have worked very, very strict to the get-go and remain very, very strict, they are seeing an increase in infections but not a catastrophic level.

CHURCH: Yes. We are starting to understand those patterns, aren't we, as we keep seeing them repeated across the globe.

Sam Kiley, many thanks for bringing us that live update.

Well India's health minister is urging people to stay home from upcoming festivals as the country topped seven million coronavirus cases. On Monday alone India reported almost 67,000 new cases. Officials also reported over 800 deaths. One chef has taken it upon himself to bring hope and food to those who are struggling in India.

CNN's Vedika Sud has more.

VEDIKA SUD, CNN PRODUCER: Rekindled for millions of India's the underprivileged who have been struggling to survive the COVID-19 pandemic, this massive food drive is the brain child of Indian chef Vikas Khanna.

For the last six months, Khanna has been planning every step of his project from his home in New York City. After India implemented its first lockdown in March, Khanna donated to charities. But images of Indians in need stayed with the chef who decided to take direct action.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VIKAS KHANNA, INDIAN CHEF: We started getting sharp listing different cities. So, on my room I had this ball. We will put the name of the city and start putting the name of the places who need food.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SUD: Khanna soon realized that managing logistics from over 7,000 miles away wasn't easy. So, he collaborated with India's National Disaster Response Force to deliver food and amenities to remote areas of the country. He says they have distributed food to sex workers, seniors, HIV AID stations, flood victims, and migrant workers.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

S.N. PRADHAN, DIRECTOR GENERAL, NATIONAL DISASTER RESPONSE FORCE: And even if it was a one man show up there from there, I said OK, we can be your arms, and ears, and legs.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SUD: Khanna who cooked for President Obama in the White House is one of the first Indians to have been awarded a Michelin star. He has written 35 books including what's been called the most expensive cookbook "Utsav".

He is also filmmaker but his mission to feed millions of his fellow Indians remains closest to his heart.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KHANNA: It didn't start here. It started here. This was stopping the project. Brain was thing that you have too many pending projects.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SUD: There are days when Khanna feels overwhelmed by the magnitude of the project. His mother back home in India doesn't let him give up.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BINDU KHANNA, VIKAS KHANNA'S MOTHER: I convinced him by saying that you are going out of India. You should do something for your country. Why not bring everybody something?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SUD: The 48-year-old Indian says he was born with clubbed feet. For 11 years he walked with the support of braces and then wooden shoes. For Khanna, supporting millions of fellow Indians will always be a bigger moment than the day he first run.

[03:45:02]

Vedika Sud, CNN, New Delhi.

CHURCH: Great story there.

Up next, Nigerians took to the streets demanding an end to a controversial police unit and it worked. But is the fight against police brutality actually over? We'll look at that.

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CHURCH: Anger on the streets of Nigeria has led to change. The Nigerian inspector general and the entire world have heard those chants of end SARS and now the country is dissolving its controversial special anti-robbery squad known as SARS after accusations of police brutality and nationwide protests, but the fight against excessive force may not be over just yet.

Protesters in Abuja say police use water cannon and live ammunition during a march on Sunday.

CNN's Stephanie Busari joins us now live from Lagos. Stephanie, what is the latest on the situation in Nigeria?

STEPHANIE BUSARI, CNN PRODUCER: Good morning, Rosemary. The campaigners here are calling the decision to abolish SARS a hollow victory and they say that they will continue protesting there out on the streets this morning. They say these are just words and they are demanding action.

This is after all the fourth time that this very same unit has been disbanded, and nothing has changed, they said. In fact, the very moment that the inspector general was announcing the dissolution of this unit, protesters were being dispersed by officers with water cannons, tear gas, live ammunition.

We've had one confirmed death and several others unconfirmed, and they are saying this is not what we want. Enough is enough. We want action to back these words that this unit that has been harassing us will stop.

[03:50:07]

And Amnesty International tells CNN that the government seems to lack political will to really in that far reaching reforms needed to stop police brutality here. We went along to protest here in Lagos over the weekend and we spoke to one of the protesters. Take a listen to what she said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They are coming after us. They are not going after our (Inaudible). They are not going after (Inaudible). They are going after hardworking youth. We do not have to work in communist that you were.

Many of us are entrepreneurs, many of us freelancers. Stop asking us how we can afford the force or use because we drive. We work hard. Go and work hard. Stop harassing us. Stop extorting us. That's all we want. And that's why we are here right now because we want SARS to stop.

(END VIDEO CLIP) BUSARI: So, there you go, Rosemary. That gives you a sense of the real anger and sense of injustice that is people have been feeling out here across the streets of Nigeria. Rosemary?

CHURCH: Yes. And I have certainly been receiving a number of tweets from Nigeria. So, keep them coming. We want to stay on top of the story.

Stephanie Busari, many thanks.

Still to come on CNN, how Rafael Nadal cop-out a remarkable piece of tennis history at the French Open.

[03:55:00]

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CHURCH: The Los Angeles Lakers have won the 2020 NBA championship. They defeated the Miami Heat in game 6 Sunday night. It's the Lakers 17th title all-time tying the Boston Celtics for the most in league history. LeBron James was named the finals MVP. Former President Barack Obama congratulated the Lakers and the Seattle storm winning the WNBA title thing he was proud of how the league's teams and players used their voices for racial justice.

And in tennis, Rafael Nadal's victory at the French Open earned him his 20th Grand Slam title. It ties him with Roger Federer's all-time record, Nadal beat rival Novak Djokovic in straight sets in Sunday's final. The 34-year-old Spaniard says he is pleased with his performance.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RAFAEL NADAL, 2020 FRENCH OPEN WINNER: Yes. Well, of course, I played an amazing level of tennis now. For two sets and a half I played great. Honestly. I can't say another thing. It is impossible to play against him without playing great.

NOVAK DJOKOVIC, LOST FRENCH OPEN TO NADAL: Just he did, you know, he surprised me with the way he was playing and the quality of tennis he was producing and the level. I mean, it was phenomenal. I mean, he played a perfect match.

The coronavirus pandemic forced tennis organizers to move the French Open from its usual late May start.

And I want to thank you for joining me this hour. I'm Rosemary Church. I'll be back with more news in just a moment. Stick around.

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