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President Trump Defy Health Protocols; Joe Biden Trying to Flip States Trump Won; COVID-19 on its Second Wave; Greater Manchester Complain of Tough Restrictions; Czechs Tired of Wearing Masks; Experts Say that the United States is in Midst of Dreaded Autumn Surge; More Than 27 Million Ballots Cast in Early Voting; Pelosi Sets 48-Hour Deadline to Approve Stimulus Deal Before the Election; China's Economy Grows 4.9 Percent in Third Quarter; Israel is Easing COVID Restrictions and Senior Official Saeb Erekat in Israel Hospital with COVID; Putin Foe Speaks Out. Aired 3-4a ET
Aired October 19, 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, a wild weekend of campaigning. President Donald Trump looks toward the election packing swing state rallies with mostly mask-less supporters. This as coronavirus cases rise across the United States.
Plus, Europe works to fight its second wave of COVID-19 but some leaders are pushing back on more lockdowns and restrictions.
And we hear from Russia's opposition leader on surviving a poison attack. What he has to say to the U.S. president about it. We will have a live report from Moscow on that.
Good to have you with us.
Well, the U.S. enters the homestretch of the presidential election campaign amid spiraling coronavirus cases, hospitalizations and deaths. And this, as experts say, the predicted cold weather surge is here. Nevertheless, President Donald Trump spent the weekend holding rallies in key states, some of which are also COVID hotspots.
On the heels of his Wisconsin appearance, the same day the state posted a record number of new daily cases, Mr. Trump went to Nevada. And that state just posted its biggest one-day jump in new infections since mid-August.
Look at how tightly people are packed together at this Carson City rally. Some people are wearing masks but not Mr. Trump. He's not wearing a mask at this Las Vegas church appearance either nor the White House officials with him. The country's top infectious doctor thinks the president's refusal to mask up is a bad image.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He hasn't worn masks consistently.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He's pushed back against that. You said.
ANTHONY FAUCI, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY AND INFECTIOUS DISEASES: See, I think that's less than an anti-science than it's more a statement.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What kind of a statement?
FAUCI: You know, a statement of strength, like we're stronger we don't need -- we need a mask that kind of thing.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Is that --
FAUCI: Sometimes equates wearing a mask with weakness.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Does that make sense to you?
FAUCI: No, it doesn't. Of course not.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: But the mixed messaging doesn't stop there. Twitter removed the tweet from White House Coronavirus Task Force adviser Scott Atlas for spreading misinformation. The tweet read masks work? No. Twitter said the message puts lives at risk. The U.S. health secretary was asked about the contradictory messages. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ALEX AZAR, SECRETARY, UNITED STATES HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES: We have it in our individual control ticket to be reconnected to education, to worship, to work, to healthcare and also to our people and civic like, Chuck. Wear a face covering when you can't be socially distant, Chuck.
CHUCK TODD, HOST, MSNBC: So why has that message so difficult for the president?
AZAR: I think it's a difficult message for all western democracies. We're seeing that in Europe. People are tired, the American people have given so much.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CNN's Ryan Nobles he is traveling with the Trump campaign. He's got the latest from Carson City.
RYAN NOBLES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: President Trump is in the middle of a very busy campaign schedule, a campaign schedule that's actually picked up since he was diagnosed with the coronavirus pandemic.
The president just in the past few days traveling to key states, including Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, Michigan, Wisconsin, and he ended the weekend with a trip here to Carson City, Nevada. It was at that event in Nevada that he talked about his response to the coronavirus pandemic and actually ridiculed some of the scientists who've been giving his him advice when it relates to the virus. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: If I listen just totally to the scientists, we would right now have a country that would be in a massive depression instead of we're like a rocket ship. Take a look at the numbers. And that's despite the fact that we have like five or six of these Democrats keeping their states close because they're trying to hurt us on November 3rd. But the numbers are so good anyway. They'd be even better.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NOBLES: And this toward campaign pace is expected to continue. The president expected to make stops next week in Pennsylvania, and in North Carolina, and of course, he'll travel to Nashville on Thursday for the final debate of the 2020 campaign.
Ryan Nobles, CNN, Carson City, Nevada.
CHURCH: Also, out on the trail Democratic candidate Joe Biden who is running a very different style of campaign than President Trump in style and substance.
[03:05:01]
Arlette Saenz tells us what Biden has been saying and where he is going next.
ARLETTE SAENZ, CNN POLITICAL REPORTER: Joe Biden traveled here to Durham, North Carolina as in person early voting is underway in the state. The former vice holding a socially distant drive-in style rally as he encourages his supporters to make a plan to vote in the final weeks of this election.
Now Joe Biden once again hammered away at the president for his response to the coronavirus pandemic, as he believes this is a central issue in these final weeks before the election. And Joe Biden also talked about how the country needs to overcome division and, now he is a president who will look out for all Americans. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOE BIDEN (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Folks, as my coach used to say in college, it's, go time. I'm running as a proud Democrat, but I will govern as an American president.
(CROWD CHEERING) BIDEN: No red states, no blue states, just the United States. I promise you. I'll work as hard for those who don't support me as those who did.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SAENZ: Now North Carolina is one of those states that President Trump won back in 2016 that Joe Biden is trying to flip in these final two weeks before the election. And on Monday, his running mate Kamala Harris is returning to the campaign trail. She will campaign in the state of Florida.
This comes after her -- the campaign had suspended her travels for a few days after two members of her traveling team tested positive for coronavirus. Kamala Harris tested negative for coronavirus on Sunday and will resume campaigning on Monday.
And later in the week on Wednesday, perhaps the biggest Democratic political surrogate out there is hitting the campaign trail for Joe Biden, President Obama will campaign in Philadelphia, his first in person campaign appearances as he's making that pitch for his former V.P.
Arlette Saenz, CNN, Durham, North Carolina.
CHURCH: Joining me now is Dr. Amy Compton-Phillips, she is the chief clinical officer at Providence Health System. Thank you for being with us and for all that you do, doctor.
AMY COMPTON-PHILLIPS, CNN MEDICAL ANALYST: Thank you so much for having me, Rosemary
CHURCH: So, the U.S. is now averaging more than 55,000 COVID-19 cases a day, with masks the major weapon we all have to fight this virus, yet we are seeing the doctor now advising President Trump, Scott Atlas tweeting that masks don't work. Twitter took his tweet down because of the risks of false content leading to harm, but this reveals a lot about the president's thinking, doesn't it?
What do you say about those who questioned the science behind masks?
COMPTON-PHILLIPS: So, my advice would be to stick with the science and the science is really vetted by the experts at the CDC. Something we've seen with this pandemic and one of the reasons why we have concerns about the national leadership around the pandemic is that we need to let science speaks and not take one person's opinion and amplify that. And that's what's happened.
The mixed messaging, you know, the CDC saying one thing, which is where the expertise lies and then I belief for some reason, I still don't understand it that counter what the science says of being promoted by another arm of the government really is incredibly complicated for people to tease their way through believe the CDC masks work.
CHURCH: Yes, absolutely. It's confusing people though nonetheless. And of course, the irony is that if President Trump asked his supporters to wear masks, they would do just that and those actions could very well increase his chances of reelection, but he refuses to do it for whatever reason.
What impact would a national mask mandate have on the United States if he calls from one right now?
COMPTON-PHILLIPS: Well, you know, it would have to slow down the spread of the virus. Because what masks do is they inhibit the person wearing it from spreading the germ to other people and they also ensure that if do you get the virus you get a lower viral load because if you breathe in, you get a less severe, likely a less severe bout of the disease, because you inhale less viral particles.
And because of that, it slows the spread and it makes the condition less bad in people who get it. And so, I would believe that if we were able to have everybody wear a mask, we could within a span of a couple of weeks, really get our level of infection much, much better than where it is today. It's the easy way for us to help getting control of this pandemic.
CHURCH: And I love how you explained that because really by wearing the mask, if you do it but a less severe case that's almost like getting the vaccination, isn't it?
COMPTON-PHILLIPS: Well, it might not be like getting the vaccination, you know, we would prefer people not to get the disease at all, so don't wear a mask and try to inhale the virus, right? But, so better to not to get the germ at all, but if you are going to get the germ, better to a lower viral load when you do breathe in through the mask.
[03:10:02]
CHURCH: Right. And we are currently witnessing the autumn surge in cases that experts had warn us about, and yet we are seeing more reckless behavior at these Trump rallies. No masks or no social distancing. And Dr. Fauci said Sunday night on 60 Minutes that this is exactly why the president's COVID diagnosis came as no surprise to him.
How concerned are you when you watch these rallies and how might they impact where the current surge in cases is going?
COMPTON-PHILLIPS: I am very concerned, Rosemary. I mean, this kind of behavior and it's so unnecessary. It's easy to wear a mask. It's not that hard. We do it in hospitals, we do it in medical clinics all day long every day. It really is not that hard, it's such a simple solution, all it would take is the president and all the leadership in government to be aligned on saying wear a mask, go protect yourself. We would save countless lives.
So, I am disheartened when that's not the message that comes across.
CHURCH: And Dr. Fauci also says that he intends to take a COVID-19 vaccine once it's approved, and of course if there is sufficient medical data to support that. How important is it that he gets that message out?
COMPTON-PHILLIPS: Well, it's really important that he gets that message out and that the rest of the scientific community and the physicians and the doctors and the nurses get that vaccine in the same way that we do flu vaccines, right? That virtually every person working in the clinical space gets a flu vaccine, so we aren't the vectors that spread the flu onto others, since we take care of people with flu. Right?
So Dr. Fauci needs to do that not only to inspire others but so does every doctor and nurse in the nation, once it's proven safe and effective so that we can make sure where we can speak not only with our heads but with our hearts that we've done it ourselves and that we're here to protect the public and see if we can do it, so can you. So, we really need to do the change that we want to see.
CHURCH: Such important messages there. Dr. Amy Compton-Phillips, always a pleasure to talk with you. Many thanks.
COMPTON-PHILLIPS: Thank you so much.
CHURCH: And still ahead, tracking coronavirus around the world. We will take you live to Manchester, England, a city taking a stand against tougher restrictions. That's just one location where CNN is covering the pandemic and while some countries struggle with the surge, other see calls for hope.
Do stay with us. We're back in just a moment.
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CHURCH: Well now to the latest on the spread of the coronavirus worldwide. Malaysia announced a new record high in daily cases on Sunday. That's the country's highest since the outbreak began.
In Europe surge in case numbers are proving hard to control. Later today, Ireland will become the latest country to announce tough new measures.
Italy's prime minister introduce tighter rules on Sunday, they include limits on restaurant service and a ban on local festivals.
In England, newly leaked documents show the Manchester area is close to running out of ICU capacity. This revelation comes as the local government keeps resisting tough new restrictions. And in France, authorities announced nearly 30,000 new cases on Sunday. Most major French cities are now under a nightly curfew.
And CNN's Salma Abdelaziz is covering this story from Manchester, England and CNN's Melissa Bell is live for us in Paris. Good to see both.
So, Salma, let's start with you. Tensions rising among local leaders in the midst of new COVID restrictions. What's the latest on this, particularly with this revelation of ICU capacity reaching its highs?
SALMA ABDELAZIZ, CNN PRODUCER: Well, Rosemary, we finally have a breakthrough after days of a standoff between Greater Manchester's authorities and that of Downing Street. We now have heard that the mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, did have constructive talks with a member of Prime Minister Boris Johnson's government on Sunday.
We've also heard from the housing secretary that a greater financial package will be offered to Manchester to help it deal with the second blow. Now it just kind of go through this debate because it's been going on for so many days.
Essentially, the mayor of Greater Manchester has argued that this is a risk versus reward calculation for the city. He says that under these limited regional restrictions, the risk to local businesses is too high in exchange for the reward in terms of how much he would be able to bring the infection rates down. That's why he called for a nationwide lockdown.
Now the government's answers, answer to a call for a nationwide lockdown has been resounding no. So short of that the mayor is essentially trying to negotiate a better financial deal for his city.
He's called for an 80 percent furlough scheme. That means that 80 percent of people who are affected, or rather, 80 percent of wages for those who were affected would be paid for by the government.
We are expecting talks to resume today and potentially a settlement to be reached. But all of this is important to remember, but in all of this it's important to remember, Manchester is just one city. Imagine having to negotiate these regional restrictions town by town, city by city. That's the challenge here, Rosemary.
CHURCH: Yes. And so many others as well. Thanks for that. And Melissa, let's go to you now. France is seeing record COVID cases across the country despite a curfew being in place and more of those to come of course. So, what's the latest on this?
MELISSA BELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, that's right, Rosemary. It's now been four days of daily rises above 25,000 new cases. And of course, that is way above what the French president had said the system can sustain. He wants to get those back between three and 5,000.
And what Salma was just talking about is very much the kind of conversation that's been happening in France. Ever since the French government decided to devolve regionally the responses to COVID and it's meant that a lot of mayors, a lot of local authorities have pushed back over these sorts of restrictions that have been brought in.
[03:19:58]
Not least these curfews from 9 p.m. until 6 a.m. in Stanford (Inaudible) including here in Paris, you have to be at home and everything is shut be on 9 p.m. or you can face a fine if you go out, you don't have a document explaining why you're out and why you're out as exceptional and necessary.
But what it means for the restaurant sector that had so successfully pushed back on one attempt to have them close just a few weeks ago and some of those maximum alert places like here in Paris. They are going to suffer from this as well. From 9 p.m., it means that for a lot of them it's going to be huge losses to their businesses.
And that was really something that they fought back against. But it is, of course, just as Salma was just saying in Manchester, in the end all about the system, the healthcare system's ability to cope here in Paris where at 48.8 percent of ICU beds taken out by COVID-19 patients.
If you take Guadeloupe, a French overseas territory in the Caribbean which is also one of those maximum alert areas and has been for some weeks, practically all of the ICU beds now just shy of all of them are taken up by COVID-19 patients.
And of course, that is what has to stop. Still, these curfews have now been in place since Friday night at midnight. It's going to take some time for them to show some kind of effect on the rises in daily numbers.
And in the meantime, those record rises that we've seen several of these last few days will of course, in the next couple of weeks, have an effect on the ICUs. And all eyes are very much on what's going to happen there.
CHURCH: Absolutely. Melissa Bell and Salma Abdelaziz, thank you both for joining us and bringing us up to date on the situations. I appreciate it.
Well there were scenes of anger in the Czech capital on Sunday as thousands of people protested new coronavirus restrictions. The large crowd gathered in Prague's old town square. The demonstration started peacefully but there were some clashes with police.
Protesters were frustrated over restrictions including the closures of bars and restaurants. The Czech Republic has seen a surge of new cases, making it one of Europe's hardest hit countries.
And CNN's Scott McLean is tracking the situation for us in the Czech Republic. He is live in Berlin at this hour. Good to see you, Scott.
And so, it has to be said, the Czech Republic initially showed the whole world how to beat this pandemic by wearing masks. But then they stop doing it and now they are paying the price. What happened?
SCOTT MCLEAN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It's a great question, Rosemary. You know, the Czech Republic may have been too good at controlling the first wave of the virus for their own good. Czechs never saw a mass casualties, they never saw overflowing hospitals, and so in the spring the virus didn't really seem all that harmful.
Only now are people there realizing that well, they may have underestimated it. The Czech Republic now has per capita about three times new cases than the U.K. And four times more than even the United States.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MCLEAN: In this Prague ICU the sickest coronavirus patients are treated by staff in full hazmat suits. Some are hooked up to ventilators, others placed face down. For now, there is still a bed for everyone.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (on-screen text): We have other back up beds prepared in other departments in case the capacity exceeds our current possibilities.
MCLEAN: The government is also building a temporary field hospital it expects to need in just weeks. The Czech Republic has more new cases per million people than any other major country on earth. This is technically the second wave of infection. The first was barely a blip on the radar after the government moved quickly to close borders and implement the lockdown. Just like many other countries.
What set the Czech Republic apart?
PETR LUDWIG, DATA SCIENTIST: We were the first country in Europe with the mandate for masks from the government.
MCLEAN: In mid-March, months before the WHO was recommending masks, Czech data scientist, Petr Ludwig, read the scientific evidence supporting masks and made this video to explain why he was convinced they were the answer.
LUDWIG (on-screen text): More importantly, masks protect you from spreading COVID-19.
MCLEAN: The video went viral and a few days later, the populist Czech Prime Minister, Andrej Babis, made masks mandatory everywhere outside the home. With medical masks still scarce, Czechs started sowing. The mask mandate was unpopular but wildly effective. By late June Prague threw a party to mark the end of the pandemic. Dr. Roman Prymula is the newly appointed health minister.
Do you think you maybe did a victory lap a little bit too soon?
ROMAN PRYMULA, CZECH HEALTH MINISTER: That's true because we had many experts, and those were not epidemiologists, not virologists but they were arguing that, OK, the disease is there but it's very mild. So, they tried to push politicians just to skip out of strict countermeasures.
MCLEAN: With almost no restrictions the number of cases started to slowly bounce back in late summer. The top government epidemiologists called on the prime minister to reinstate the mask mandate.
Why do you think the prime minister said no?
LUDWIG: I think it was because we had an election. After the election they started to push some harder rules again but it was much too late because we already had an exponential growth. [03:25:01]
MCLEAN: The government close schools and bars but the same strict mask rule so effective in the spring still hasn't been fully reinstated.
You don't think a mandatory mask mandate would have prevented you being in the situation that you are in right now?
PRYMULA: I think just now we have a mandate for protective masks but indoor. There is discussion if to introduce it outdoor as well. But it's not only wearing a mask, it's an issue of other countermeasures, and particularly social contact. This is the reason why the situation is still not under control.
LUDWIG: I think that one of the main causes is really populism. During the first wave they were convinced that people want masks, so they pushed masks. Now they are convinced that people don't want to wear a mask, so they are against it.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MCLEAN: And one Czech scientist that I spoke to said that despite the success of that mandatory mask mandate, Czechs really hate wearing them. They don't have the same kind of mask wearing culture that some Asian countries do.
And as you mentioned at that protest in Prague this weekend, a lot of people turned out but there is no social distancing and few masks in sight. And with the hospitals nearing their capacities, the Czech medical chamber and now also the Czech health minister they are calling on Czech doctors abroad to come back to the country to help deal with the growing number of patients. Rosemary?
CHURCH: It is a concern. And of course, people may hate wearing masks but they worked. We see it. The scientific evidence.
Scott McLean, many thanks for bringing us up to date on that situation. I appreciate it.
Well, as COVID-19 cases rise in the United States, President Donald Trump is on a campaign blitz but without a mask. More on that, next.
Plus, a glimmer of hope. How China's economy is bouncing back from the worldwide pandemic. We'll explain.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[03:30:00]
ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: Here in the United States, COVID-19 case counts are trending upward as the country heads into what health experts called the dreaded autumn surge. Right now, the U.S. is averaging more than 55,000 new cases a day and nearly 220,000 Americans have died from the virus since the pandemic began. Only Missouri and Vermont recorded a more than 10 percent improvement in the average number of reported cases over the past week. Cases in Connecticut and Florida, on the other hand, increased by 50 percent or more. Despite the rise in cases, Dr. Anthony Fauci isn't advocating for a lockdown just yet.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANTHONY FAUCI, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY AND INFECTIOUS DISEASES: They'd have to get really, really bad. First of all, the country is fatigued with restrictions. So we want to use public health measures not to get in the way of opening the economy, but to being a safe gateway to opening the economy.
So instead of having an opposition, open up the economy, get jobs back, or shut down. No. Put "shut down" away and say, we're gonna use public health measures to help us safely get to where we want to go.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: But those measures Dr. Fauci speaking of haven't been followed by President Trump. In the last week, Mr. Trump attended rallies across multiple states with little mask wearing and social distancing, and it seems his administration is once again giving out mixed signals.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ALEX AZAR, U.S. SECRETARY OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES: The president is leading the overall whole of government response and he's making all of us, as public health leaders, available to help educate the public. But what matters right now is the message that we're trying to get across, which is cases are increasing.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: Well, Americans aren't wasting any time before the election. Millions have already turned out for early voting, more than 27 million, in fact. That number represents almost 20 percent of the amount of votes in the last presidential election.
Here in Georgia, there is a record turnout in person voting. Natasha Chen tells us why voters here are so energized.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NATASHA CHEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Over the weekend, we saw Georgians come out in droves to polling places, in some cases waiting three or four hours to cast their ballots, especially in Marietta, Georgia, a suburb north of Atlanta, on Saturday.
We saw people arriving hours before doors even open. But they were undaunted by that. We saw people bringing their lounge chairs, their pets, their small children, their breakfasts, and they were determined to wait however long it would take to cast their ballots in person. On Sunday, we saw the wait times get a lot shorter. Some people were not even aware that Sunday voting was available to them. So, in many cases, they were able to vote within just a few minutes.
In both cases across the two days, we spoke to voters who said that it was critical for them to make sure their ballot was cast this time around. They said they were motivated by issues such as the response to the coronavirus pandemic and divisiveness in this country.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is such an important election. There is so much at stake in today's society right now with so much racial divide going on. We need candidate who is going to be -- who will be sensitive to that. And the person who gets elected needs to be held accountable for everything.
CHEN: The Georgia secretary of state's office said that compared to this point in the early voting process in 2016, the total voter turnout has increased by more than 150 percent. That's including both in-person early voting as well as absentee ballots.
Natasha Chen, CNN, Atlanta, Georgia.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: And now to the critical battleground state of Pennsylvania. President Trump won it four years ago but recent polls put Joe Biden in the lead. Dana Bash visits a Trump's stronghold which Democrats believe could now be in play.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DANA BASH, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A line forms outside well before opening, waiting to enter the Trump house.
LESLIE ROSSI, CREATED THE TRUMP HOUSE: (INAUDIBLE) come on in.
BASH (voice-over): A mecca of sorts for the president's supporters in Southwest Pennsylvania, where Trump's record turnout four years ago helped deliver his surprise Pennsylvania victory and the White House.
ROSSI: (INAUDIBLE) flag.
BASH (voice-over): Leslie Rossi created the Trump house in 2016, where she pushed disaffected Democrats and never before voters to choose Trump.
[03:35:02]
ROSSI: We give people a place to come to believe they could win.
BASH (voice-over): Now, Trump supporters show up daily for swag and yard signs, and help registering to vote.
SCOTT HARRER, TRUMP SUPPORTER: We need Trump in there again. I'm 65. I think it's time to register.
BASH: Have you not voted ever?
HARRER: No.
BASH (voice-over): Rural Westmoreland County seen a surge in republican registrations. They help with that here, too.
RITA BLAIR, CHANGED PARTY AFFILIATION FROM DEMOCRAT TO REPUBLICAN: Changed my registration from Democrat to a Republican.
BASH: Why?
BLAIR: From what I've seen in the last couple of years, I'm ashamed to say I was a Democrat.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's a great honor to have you here.
BASH (voice-over): Joe Biden is ahead in Pennsylvania polls. Yet his campaign motto is every vote matters, campaigning here in Westmoreland County this month, which Hillary Clinton did not in the 2016 general election.
It is not an area Democrats come and campaign very often, but you're here. Why?
JILL BIDEN, WIFE OF DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE JOE BIDEN: I am here because, like I said, we are not taking any vote for granted.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They have seen the past four years of the presidency --
BASH (voice-over): Gina Cerilli is county commissioner of Westmoreland, PA. Ten years ago, she was Miss Pennsylvania in Donald Trump's Miss USA pageant. Now, she's an elected Democrat working to blunt Trump's advantage here.
GINA CERILLI, WESTMORELAND COUNTY COMMISIONER: In 2016, Donald Trump was a fresh face. He was new to politics. Everyone was excited. He made big promises. Bring back jobs. But frankly, Donald Trump broke those promises.
BASH (voice-over): In small town Pennsylvania, signs matter. Trumps are everywhere, big and bold, but Bidens are out there, too.
CERILLI: When you see signs like this, it makes the Republicans and the Democrats who voted for Trump in 2016 realize I'm not alone.
BASH (voice-over): A big Biden challenge, his supporters are being COVID careful.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (INAUDIBLE) we think we would be meeting via Zoom.
BASH (voice-over): Phyllis Friend (ph), head of Democratic Women of Westmoreland County, organizes from home. She's clear eyed about the Democrats goal here in Trump country.
PHYLLIS FRIEND, HEAD OF DEMOCRATIC WOMEN OF WESTMORELAND COUNTY: We can't win Pennsylvania for him but we can add to the total numbers.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hey, David. This is (INAUDIBLE). I am a volunteer for Trump campaign. How are you doing?
BASH (voice-over): As for Republicans, they never stop traditional ways of getting out the vote.
(KNOCKING)
BASH (voice-over): Knocking on doors, walking in neighborhoods in masks, and using a GOP data-driven app to find and persuade voters.
BRITTNEY ROBINSON, RUNS PENNSYLVANIA RNC OPERATION: Depending on who that voter is, we are able to tailor that message at the door and on the phone to how we think we need to target that voter and turn them out.
BASH (voice-over): Given the president's struggles in the suburbs, boosting the vote here is critical for Trump.
How important is it for him to get his numbers even higher than it was four years ago?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I do think that we need to increase our voter turnout here for the president to offset some of what might be happening in the southeastern part of Pennsylvania.
BASH (voice-over): Back at the Trump house, Leslie Rossi shows us the log of visit from thousands of Trump supporters.
What do you think this year?
ROSSI: Oh, my numbers have tripled, tripled. Four years ago, my work was really hard here. I had to convince the voters to vote for the candidate. I had to convince them President Trump was the best voice for the. This time, I don't have to do any of that. They're all in.
BASH (voice-over): Whether enough or all in could determine whether Trump can overcome the headwinds he faces to win Pennsylvania and the second term.
Dana Bash, CNN, Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi says she and the treasury secretary have to agree on a coronavirus stimulus plan within 48 hours if it's going to pass before Election Day.
Last week, the White House proposed a 1.8 trillion-dollar plan. But Pelosi said it didn't offer enough worker protections, aid to state and local governments, and help for renters. She said the White House also watered down language on a national plan for COVID-19 testing and contact tracing. But she remains optimistic a plan will pass.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NANCY PELOSI, SPEAKER OF THE UNITED STATES HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES: We're saying that we have to freeze the design on some of these things. Are we going with it or not and what is the language? I'm optimistic because, again, we have been back and forth in all of this.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: And while struggling Americans wait for a stimulus deal, a federal judge on Sunday struck down a Trump administration rule that could have stripped food stamps from nearly 700,000 people in the midst of a pandemic.
Nineteen states, the city of New York and the District of Columbia, have sued to block the rule change. It was expected to say five and a half billion dollars over five years.
Well, meantime, China's economy is steadily recovering from the pandemic lockdowns. Gross domestic product grew 4.9 percent in the third quarter year on year. That was slightly lower than analysts had forecast. Markets across Asia responded positively to the news.
[03:40:00]
CHURCH: As you see there, Japan's Nikkei is up more one percent and Hong Kong's Hang Seng is up at nearly -- has gone to 0.68 percent.
So, CNN's Selina Wang joins us now from Hong Kong to talk more about this. So Selina, what is the major takeaway from China's GDP numbers and what role might be deteriorating relationship with the U.S. have on this recovery?
SELINA WANG, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Rosemary, the numbers point to a very different picture between the rest of the world and China. While the global economy is dealing with the worst crisis since the great depression, China's economy grew 4.9 percent in the third quarter. Yes, that is lower than what analysts had expected, but it is still substantial growth.
It is really a reminder here that until a country gets a pandemic under control, it is impossible for that economy to recover and hang on to that recovery. There are no shortcuts here. And so far, China's process of the lockdowns, mass testing, contact tracing has worked.
We are seeing this pick up, as well in consumption, which grew three percent in September, and it was evident in terms of China's mass trouble (ph) holiday when more than half a billion people in China were traveling and spending inside the country.
Now, of course, there is always skepticism about the accuracy of China's official reported numbers, but the economists I speak to say that based on outside sources and cases that they're looking at, directionally, the story of China's rebound is significant.
Now, like other countries, though, China's recovery is uneven and it has disproportionately affected China's poor population. China still has high unemployment though the official numbers show that it is getting slightly lower.
But the data the China reports doesn't capture the full picture. It's unclear how many of those millions of people who lost their jobs during the thick of the pandemic have now gotten those jobs back.
Now, Rosemary, when it comes to those U.S.-China tensions, interestingly here, even though there's talks about decoupling because China has managed to handle the pandemic and reopen its factories, economists say that China's role in the global supply chain is important as ever.
CHURCH: Right. Of course, the big difference you see in China, aggressive testing and people wearing masks. It's going to be hard to see that happen here in the United States. Selina Wang, many thanks for joining us live from Hong Kong.
Well, coming up, Israel is easing COVID restrictions as cases continue to fall. We'll go live to Jerusalem after the short break. Stay with us.
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[03:45:00]
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CHURCH: Israel is easing some of its coronavirus restrictions with cases there continuing to fall. Businesses that don't require close contact with customers are allowed to open, along with national parks, beaches, and schools for younger children.
Meanwhile, the Palestinian chief negotiator, Saeb Erekat, was rushed to a Jerusalem hospital on Sunday with a worsening case of COVID-19.
Our Oren Liebermann joins us now live from Jerusalem to bring us up- to-date on the situation. So Oren, what more are you learning about Saeb Erekat's condition this hour?
OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Robyn, Hadassah Medical Center where he is being treated in Jerusalem said his condition has deteriorated this morning and he is in critical condition. He is on a ventilator and is under general anaesthesia at the moment.
He came into the hospital yesterday, taken from his home in Jericho in the West Bank, where he was in serious but stable condition and remained in that condition overnight. But again, the hospital said this morning, his condition deteriorated, and he is now in critical condition. He is ventilated and is under general anaesthesia.
He was diagnosed about a week and a half ago, according to his office at the PLO's Negotiations Affairs Department, and all along here has been a high-risk case because of a lung transplant he underwent in 2017 in the United States. So these are of course critical hours for Saeb Erekat as he remains in critical condition at a hospital in Jerusalem. Robyn? CHURCH: Yeah, absolutely. It's actually Rosemary, Oren. So, Israel is now easing restrictions. But is there any concern that that move could be premature as we've seen so many other times across the globe?
LIEBERMANN: Rosemary, I apologize for the confusion there, and yes, there certainly is concern here. If you compare when Israel came out of its first lockdown to when Israel is coming out of this lockdown, the numbers are dramatically different.
It was less than a death a day on average after the first lockdown. New cases were in the teens at that point or under about 20 or 30. The numbers are simply much higher at this point. The deaths per day are still in double digits, although low double digits. There are hundreds, if not more than a thousand cases a day.
According to ministry of health data, there were 892 cases yesterday, and the infection rate, though relatively low in mid to low single digits, is still much higher than it was when Israel came out of its first lockdown. We know how that went. Within a few weeks, the numbers started rising rapidly again and Israel had to return to a second general lockdown.
So what happens now when the numbers are already higher than when it came out of the first lockdown? Well, we will see. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said it would be better this time and coming out of lockdown will be slower. Will it work? We will certainly know that answer in a few weeks. Rosemary?
CHURCH: Oren Liebermann is joining us live from Jerusalem. Many thanks. Leading Kremlin critic is speaking out about his horrific poisoning. Just ahead, we will find out how Alexei Navalny thinks President Trump should get involved. We will explain.
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[03:50:00]
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CHURCH: The Russian opposition activist at the center of a poisoning scandal is speaking out to U.S. news media. Alexei Navalny became gravely ill during a flight to Moscow in August. Much of the horrifying experience was recorded on camera by other passengers.
As his condition got worse, he was transferred to a hospital in Berlin. It was later determined that Navalny had come in contact with the toxic nerve agent novichok. He says Russian president, Vladimir Putin, is responsible.
And for more on this, we want to turn to CNN's Fred Pleitgen, who joins us live from Moscow. Good to see you, Fred. So, what all did Navalny have to say about his poisoning?
FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hi there, Rosemary. Alexei Navalny's first English language television interview since the poisoning was with CBS "60 Minutes." There are really a lot of very interesting details that he talked about.
First of all, of course, what it felt like to be poisoned. We just saw that video there. Also, I think heard some of the audio of him screaming in anguish on that plane. Interestingly, he said, that while he was in anguish, there was no pain whatsoever. At the same time, he also says he realized that he was dying. Let's listen to some of what Alexei Navalny had to say.
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ALEXEI NAVALNY, RUSSIAN OPPOSITION LEADER: I said to the flight attendant, and I kind of shocked him with my statement, well, I was poisoned and I am going to die. I immediately lay down on -- on his feet. Every cell of your body is just telling you that, body, we are done.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PLEITGEN: The body telling all of you that you are dying. Of course, Alexei Navalny in that interview once again reiterated that he says he does not only believe that Vladimir Putin was behind his poisoning. He is certain that Vladimir Putin was behind this poisoning simply because he believes no one else would be able to get the substance, novichok, and then also be able to cover everything up the way that Navalny claimed.
Of course, we always have to point out, Rosemary, that the Kremlin vehemently denies all that and calls the allegations absurd. Rosemary?
CHURCH: And Fred, Navalny also had a message for President Trump. What did he say to the U.S. leader?
PLEITGEN: He certainly did. I mean, first of all, Alexei Navalny said that he did hear and he was quite surprised by the fact that so far President Trump himself had not condemned the poisoning of Alexei Navalny nor condemned the leadership of Russia for the poisoning of Alexei Navalny.
[03:55:00]
PLEITGEN: He says that he believes that it is important for, of course, the most powerful person in the world, the president of the United States, to take a stand, not necessarily just against the poisoning itself, but especially the use of a chemical nerve agent that was developed for warfare. Let's listen to more of what Alexei Navalny said.
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NAVALNY: I think it is extremely important that everyone, of course, including and maybe in the first of all, the president of the United States, to be very against using chemical weapon in the 21st century.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PLEITGEN: And it is quite interesting because if we go back and we look at the reasons why Germany and France initiated the European Union sanctioning, some Russian officials and also Russian organizations, as well, it was because of the fact that novichok was used in this poisoning.
The Germans and the French, especially saying they believe that there would have been some sort of state organization behind that, and the fact that novichok was used, that a chemical nerve agent was used, they believe makes this a case for sanctions to be used and make this obviously a very grave crime. Rosemary?
CHURCH: All right. Fred Pleitgen is bringing us up-to-date on that situation live from Moscow. Appreciate it.
Well, it is a sad day for baseball fans here in Atlanta. The Los Angeles Dodgers are headed to the World Series after beating the Atlanta Braves in the National League Championship Series.
Here was the go ahead run from L.A.'s Cody Bellinger. He blasted a tie breaking solo home run in the bottom of the seventh. The final score is four to three after the Dodgers trail in the series three to one. Los Angeles is set to face the Tampa Bay race in game one of the World Series on Tuesday.
And thanks so much for joining. I am Rosemary Church. I'll be back with more news in just a moment. Stick around.
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