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U.S. Sets New Daily Case Record of over 195,000; Trump Tries to Maintain Leverage with Republicans; Trump Transition Turmoil Impacts Pandemic Response; Trump Set Back in Three Key States; Europe Proceeds with Vaccine Distribution Plans; Cases in South Dakota Skyrocketing; Saudis Can't Showcase Reforms during Virtual G20. Aired 4-5a ET
Aired November 21, 2020 - 04:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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KIM BRUNHUBER, CNN HOST (voice-over): The United States is breaking more COVID records. The virus is surging just as many families are preparing to get together for Thanksgiving.
Plus, Donald Trump's false claim about the election.
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DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Which I won, by the way. But you know, find that out. Almost 74 million votes.
BRUNHUBER (voice-over): Trump again wrongly says he won the presidential election. Now his legal team has suffered a new setback.
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BRUNHUBER (voice-over): And how the Trump administration is causing a cash crunch for the Biden transition team.
Welcome to you, our viewers in the United States, Canada and around the world. This is CNN NEWSROOM.
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BRUNHUBER: COVID-19 is spreading so quickly across the United States that 1 million Americans have tested positive in just the past week. Friday set a new U.S. record, more than 195,000 new cases in a single day. The country is now approaching 12 million total cases since the pandemic began.
The number of people admitted to hospital for treatment has skyrocketed to the highest levels yet. Medical facilities are feeling the strain. Among those who recently tested positive, another member of President Trump's immediate family, his eldest son, Don Jr.
Also, Andrew Giuliani, a special assistant to Mr. Trump and the son of the president's personal attorney, Rudy Giuliani. With Thanksgiving days away, the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention is once again urging Americans to wear face masks. More than half of all infections are being spread are by those who are asymptomatic and may not realize they're carrying the virus.
There's some good news; COVID-19 vaccinations could begin before the end of the year. CNN's Alexandra Field has more.
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ALEXANDRA FIELD, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Another major step toward a COVID vaccine, Pfizer and BioNTech applied today to the FDA for emergency use authorization of their vaccine, which they say is 95 percent effective.
That means the first doses of the vaccine may now be as close as three weeks away. And some of the most high-risk Americans like healthcare workers could receive both doses of vaccine by early January.
JUDITH PERSICHILLI, COMMISSIONER, NEW JERSEY DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH: We're seeing a lot of enthusiasm about the vaccine particularly amongst healthcare individuals like nurses and physicians.
FIELD (voice-over): The CDC will meet Monday to prioritize how vaccines are distributed as the virus is spreading its fastest, yet new cases are up 25 percent nationwide in a week from already record highs. More than 187,000 new cases reported on Thursday alone.
DR. PAUL OFFIT, DIRECTOR, VACCINE EDUCATION CENTER, CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL OF PHILADELPHIA: The country is on fire with this virus and now we're heading into Thanksgiving and Christmas when, you know, multi-generational families get together. It's just a recipe for disaster.
FIELD (voice-over): Death toll projections are moving higher. The influential Institute for Health Metrics and evaluation, raising its estimate to 471,000 deaths by March 1st. That's assuming 40 states reimpose social distancing mandates, the number goes to 658,000 assuming they don't.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We like our freedom. And we're not going to listen to somebody tell us we can't go see Grandma or we can't go see our brother or we can't go see our family or friends.
FIELD (voice-over): Some sheriff's departments in California say they won't enforce a 10:00 p.m. curfew set to go into effect on Saturday, following a 55 percent increase in cases in a week.
In New York, one of the early epicenters of the crisis, the looming question, how soon could there be new limits for restaurants, bars, gyms and other businesses?
New York City public schools shut down earlier this week.
One of the biggest epicenters of the crisis today, the Midwest. In North Dakota, cases have tripled since White House Taskforce member Dr. Deborah Birx visited past month.
DR. DEBORAH BIRX, WHITE HOUSE CORONAVIRUS TASK FORCE COORDINATOR: When I'm out and seeing them without masks indoors, it really worries me. I mean, I'm worried for their health.
FIELD (voice-over): Dr. Anthony Fauci, worried for families all over the country, is warning again the cases are likely to explode after Thanksgiving.
DR. ANTHONY FAUCI, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY AND INFECTIOUS DISEASES: You take a look at your family and you say, do I have a person there who's an elderly person, a person with an underlying medical condition that might put them at an increased risk of a severe outcome if they get infected.
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FIELD (voice-over): The CDC now officially recommends that Thanksgiving celebrations are limited to members of your own household.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's a very difficult decision to make to not travel, but you can't hear from all of these healthcare workers and not think, you know, I really have no business doing that or, you know, making it worse for anyone.
FIELD: As for the timeline on that vaccine, the FDA could give its authorization by December 10th. Distribution would start almost immediately after that. But before the vaccine can end up in anyone's arm, the CDC would still have to sign off.
What is key to know here, though, is that, after those first doses are received by some of the most vulnerable among us, it still takes a full 28 days between that first dose and the time that you achieve protection from that vaccine -- in New York, Alexandra Field, CNN.
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BRUNHUBER: Canada has been struggling with a new wave of COVID so worrisome, in fact, that now its biggest city is tightening restrictions. Starting Monday, Toronto and the suburban Peel Region will go into a 28-day lockdown.
Schools will stay open but outdoor gatherings will be limited to 10 people and most retailers will only be able to offer curbside pickup or delivery. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau sent a stern message to all Canadians about the severity of the crisis.
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JUSTIN TRUDEAU, CANADIAN PRIME MINISTER: If you are planning to see friends this weekend, maybe don't. If there was a birthday party or a gathering for dinner you were thinking about doing, don't do it.
We're in a moment right now where, even with all the sacrifices I know Canadians have been making over these past 10 months, we are now going to have to really tighten up once again.
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BRUNHUBER: Joining us to speak about the COVID crisis is Dr. Owais Durrani, an emergency medicine resident at UT Health Center in San Antonio.
Thanks for joining us. Cases have been rising across the country in the U.S. Texas has been particularly hard hit, even now into a second or third wave. We are hearing from more and more health care workers who are dealing with patients who either thought COVID wasn't real or it wasn't a big deal and now finding out otherwise.
What are you seeing?
DR. OWAIS DURRANI, UT HEALTH CENTER SAN ANTONIO: Yes, exactly. We are in a really, really dire situation. We have been seeing an exponential increase in cases. We're well on our way to seeing 200,000 cases a day across the nation.
And unless we make some drastic changes, we're going to be seeing exponential death rates. Here in Texas, we saw skyrocketing hospitalizations and now we're seeing the death rates catch up. They're putting out calls for citizens to help transport bodies to morgues.
I actually worked an emergency medicine shift this evening. And around 7:00 or 8:00 pm, got an alert on my phone. Everyone did. There were beeps going off. And it was from the San Antonio Public Health Department, saying that we reached the highest peak of cases in a single day since July. That was our previous record high.
So that is a really humbling figure. Seeing all these numbers going up, knowing what is to follow and the death rates, which are a lagging indicator, and unless we make some big changes in how we are interacting with each other, we will see these headlines for months and weeks to come.
BRUNHUBER: What is it like when you are dealing with these patients, who are struggling and who might have been in denial about this very disease?
DURRANI: Yes, it's tough. They come in and ask what's wrong. I say it's COVID-19. A lot of times they will give me a blank stare, thinking COVID could never happen to them.
The disease doesn't discriminate. It treats everyone the same and we truly need to give it the respect that it deserves and take the precautions that are necessary. We are really at a point, unless we make some drastic changes, the numbers aren't going be headed in a direction that is going to be kind to us.
BRUNHUBER: So, staffing and hospital capacity are two issues I'm hearing about quite often from those on the front lines. How are you being affected in the emergency department?
And how is the lack of staff and capacity, you know, possibly affecting the patients' health?
DURRANI: Absolutely. So, a few things, one thing that happens is patients don't get rooms up in the ICUs and the medicine floors as quickly as they should.
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DURRANI: So, our nurses and our physician and staff are stretched thin because we are trying to take care of these critically ill patients. But at the same time, we are getting new patients that are critically ill.
The other thing we are facing now is that, back in the summer and spring, we had surges in various pockets of the country. So, for example, we were able to mobilize physicians to Texas when needed, to New York when needed, because the other parts of the country were doing OK.
Right now, we're seeing record highs across the nation. So that ability to flex and have that surge capacity simply isn't going to be there this time around like it was in the summer and spring.
BRUNHUBER: So, this is obviously very depressing to hear. So let's turn to vaccines. Tell me about how the two vaccines are the same and how they're different and sort of what that will mean practically for those of us who will get them eventually.
DURRANI: So, they're the same in the fact that they use mRNA technology. I like to explain it to people that it's an essential code. mRNA is a code that gives your body instruction to make a protein.
When you get that vaccine, your body makes a protein that is the same protein that is on the outside of the COVID virus. So, your body learns how to battle that piece of protein so when you do get exposed to the actual virus, you can fight it off more effectively.
Differences between the Pfizer and the Moderna vaccine in terms of the storage temperature, that will determine what areas of the country they can go to and what the transportation methods and capabilities are.
But all in all, it's a great day for humanity and scientists and volunteers who took the risk of being the initial test subjects for these vaccines. I think now that we see and feel that light at the end of the tunnel, it's more important than ever to focus on the health effects of the country.
Each infection we save, each life that we save, we're that much closer. And each live that we lose is that much more painful because we're almost there. So I really urge everyone to focus on hand hygiene, to focus on
wearing a mask, to avoid traveling during the holidays and really hunker down and focus on the fundamentals so we can get through the rest of the 2020 and into 2021.
BRUNHUBER: A great and important note to end on. Thank you so much, Dr. Owais Durrani. Appreciate it.
DURRANI: Thanks for having me.
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BRUNHUBER: Top Michigan Republicans met with President Trump at the White House. Ahead, we'll hear what they said afterwards about the election and how they plan to handle it. Stay with us.
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BRUNHUBER: Michigan state lawmakers are vowing to follow the law and the normal process in choosing presidential electors after a meeting with President Trump Friday at the White House.
The president summoned the state's top Republicans to Washington as he tried to gain support for denying Joe Biden his victory in that crucial state. Here in Georgia, the president suffered another important defeat with that state election chief certifying Biden's win. Boris Sanchez has the details.
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DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The campaign, which I won, by the way. But you know, we will find that out.
BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Tonight, President Trump denying reality and for the 17th consecutive day, dodging questions while he tries to up-end the democratic process in a desperate bid to stay in power.
In a brazen move, President Trump inviting Republican lawmakers from Michigan to the White House today before the state certifies its election results which currently has Biden leading by more than 100,000 votes. Trump calling this 11th hour meeting that the White House says is routine.
KAYLEIGH MCENANY, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: This is not an advocacy meeting. There will be no one from the campaign there. He routinely meets with lawmakers from all across the country.
SANCHEZ (voice-over): Sources tell CNN that White House officials are considering a similar invitation to Republican lawmakers in Pennsylvania before that state certifies Biden as the winner on Monday.
Despite Trump's efforts, today, Georgia one step closer to certifying Joe Biden as the winner of its 16 electoral college votes with local Republican officials making clear there was no fraud.
BRAD RAFFENSPERGER, GEORGIA SECRETARY OF STATE: Numbers don't lie. As secretary of state, I believe that the numbers that we have presented today are correct.
SANCHEZ (voice-over): With lawsuits fizzling out and state-by-state fights hitting dead-ends, tonight, the leader of Trump's legal team sidelined.
RUDY GIULIANI, PRESIDENT TRUMP'S ATTORNEY: Did you all watch "My Cousin Vinny"?
SANCHEZ (voice-over): Rudy Giuliani, who originally planned to be in today's meeting with Michigan lawmakers, forced to cancel because of exposure to COVID- 19.
His son, Andrew, an assistant to the president, who was at yesterday off-the-rails news conference, announcing on Twitter, he tested positive for the virus. Despite surging case numbers around the country, the White House is desperately spinning Trump's refusal to concede.
MCENANY: Something that I would note is just we talked a lot about transfer of power in the election and it's worth remembering that this president was never given an orderly transition of power. His presidency was never accepted.
SANCHEZ (voice-over): In fact, Hillary Clinton called Trump to concede hours after he was declared president-elect. President Obama invited him to the White House just days later and during his inauguration, Trump said this.
TRUMP: Every four years we gather on these steps to carry out the orderly and peaceful transfer of power.
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TRUMP: And we are grateful to President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama for their gracious aid throughout this transition.
SANCHEZ (voice-over): While a few Republicans are speaking out, Senators Ben Sasse and Mitt Romney, saying the president and his team are hurting the nation, with Romney writing, quote, "It is difficult to imagine a worse more undemocratic action by a sitting American president."
Most Republicans remain silent as the White House tries to sidestep scrutiny.
MCENANY: I don't call on activists.
SANCHEZ: Friday's appearance in the press Briefing Room is really a rare moment for the White House nowadays. This is the first time we actually had seen President Trump in about a week. He has not answered questions from reporters for 17 consecutive days, dating back to Election Day.
And looking forward, the president, to this point, only has two public events still on his schedule: first, the Thanksgiving Turkey pardon at the White House and the unveiling of the White House Christmas tree -- Boris Sanchez, CNN, at the White House.
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BRUNHUBER: In the meantime, Joe Biden is plowing ahead with his transition. He met Friday with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer to finds ways to fight the pandemic and its impacts. As Arlette Saenz reports, it happened on a particularly special day for the president-elect.
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ARLETTE SAENZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): With President Trump and his administration stonewalling the formal transition process, president-elect Joe Biden Democratic leaders are presenting a united front.
JOE BIDEN (D), PRESIDENT-ELECT OF THE UNITED STATES: Thanks for coming up. There's a lot of work to do.
SAENZ (voice-over): The incoming White House team huddling for the first time with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, with COVID-19 top of mind.
REP. NANCY PELOSI (D-CA), HOUSE SPEAKER: We were discussing the lame- duck session, the urgency of crushing the virus and easing the pain of this economic crisis.
SAENZ (voice-over): But Biden has yet to speak with the top Republican in Congress, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, even as he's had private talks with some GOP lawmakers.
RON KLAIN, INCOMING WHITE HOUSE CHIEF OF STAFF: They have been very kind to have these conversations and talk about ways they can work together going forward.
SAENZ (voice-over): The Democratic confab is the latest attempt to show the president-elect has hit the ground running, as President Trump tries to challenge the election results.
BOB BAUER, ATTORNEY FOR BIDEN CAMPAIGN: While the president and his allies are ripping at the fabric of the democracy in any way they can, the fabric is not tearing. It's holding firm.
SAENZ (voice-over): On Capitol Hill, House Democrats are demanding the GSA provide a briefing on the ascertainment delay, as the pressure campaign ramps up.
PELOSI: It is totally mystifying that the GSA refuses to make the statement necessary for the transition to happen in an orderly fashion. They have been sort of Trumpian from the start.
SAENZ (voice-over): The president-elect is forging ahead, announcing more key White House staff, including his director of legislative affairs.
Biden is also speeding up his timeline for announcing his Cabinet picks, with the first nominees now expected to come before Thanksgiving, Biden revealing he's already decided on one key post, Treasury Secretary.
BIDEN: You will soon hear my choice for Treasury.
SAENZ (voice-over): With exactly two months until his inauguration, Biden today turned 78 years old, on path to become the oldest president in U.S. history.
SAENZ: And President-Elect Joe Biden's team is making a major fund- raising push trying to raise money for its transition efforts. It sent an email to its grassroots supporters saying without ascertainment from the GSA, they need to raise transition funding themselves.
Biden's team right now cannot access millions of because of the fact the GSA hasn't declared Biden as the winner -- Arlette Saenz, CNN, Wilmington, Delaware.
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BRUNHUBER: To analyze all this, I'd like to invite Amy Pope to join us.
Thank you very much for joining us. As you just heard, more losses for the president; Michigan lawmakers saying they'll follow the law. Georgia certified Biden's win as well as losses for the president's legal team in Arizona.
What's next?
AMY POPE, CHATHAM HOUSE: There aren't many paths left for the president. This is really more about the political theater, sending a message to his base. It may be that he's setting himself up for a run in the future.
It may be that he's setting himself up for an audience if he has a new plan to do his own television.
But no matter what he is, trying to keep the spotlight on him, make sure he's the center of attention. And he's not ready to give that up yet.
BRUNHUBER: Literally fewer than a handful of Republicans have been willing to call out the president.
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BRUNHUBER: Or challenge him in any way. You've worked in the Senate.
What do you make of the silence coming from Republicans there?
POPE: I think they are holding on for the sake of securing their base, at least until the votes are certified. I think they're nervous about alienating people who voted for Trump, who still genuinely believe the election was stolen.
At some point, once those votes have been certified, once the Electoral College has been officially called, then there isn't much room for them to go and they need to look to the future because there are very serious challenges that they have to face as a Congress.
BRUNHUBER: That says a lot about President Trump's enduring power after all this going forward.
I want to know what generally the effects of all of this is on democracy. I see a lot of headlines, which have variations of "Trump is salting the soil of democracy."
Biden's senior adviser said the fabric is not tearing, it's holding firm.
Is it?
POPE: The good news is the institutions are functioning as a check on the president's power. The fact that the courts are very quickly hearing and dismissing the claims when there's no evidence to support them, the fact that we have at least some members of Congress demonstrating that ultimately, they're going to go along with whatever the vote shows.
What I think is really heartening is the fact that Republican legislature, both in Georgia and in Michigan, are demonstrating that they're going to follow the rule of law. So, it's not great, let's be honest about that.
It's not wonderful to have the president of the United States calling into question the outcome of an election, when there is absolutely no evidence of fraud. But at the same time, everyone else around him is really toeing the line, adhering to the Constitution. That's what really matters in the end.
BRUNHUBER: Everyone except Republican lawmakers at the federal level. Now I want you to have enough time to answer this, just from your background. I want to get to this.
I imagine those in the Kremlin will be looking at all of this and rubbing their hands.
What effect could all of this turmoil have on our safety domestically?
And how does it help the country's adversaries abroad?
POPE: I recently saw a YouTube video done by the former ambassador to Saudi Arabia and his message to the American people was ignore our human rights abuses, ignore unlawful detention and disappearance of people, you, too, have your own human rights abuses. And we can overlook those and work together as allies.
That is a really damaging message to suggest that the United States is in the same category as governments that are known to disappear people, known to have no due process of law.
That is a message that people like Vladimir Putin can point to, when they're saying you don't really want democracy; look at how chaotic it is. People fail to adhere to its own basic tenets. And for a number of reasons, including our strategic alliances, that is the real damage that's happening in this place.
BRUNHUBER: All right. Very sobering note there. Thank you very much for joining us, Amy Pope from London.
POPE: Thank you.
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BRUNHUBER: Europe is battling a dangerous second wave of the coronavirus with the vaccine on the horizon. We'll find out how countries across the continent are planning to distribute it once it's approved.
And a little later, we'll go live to Saudi Arabia for the G20 summit and find out what the Saudi foreign minister thinks the U.S.-Saudi relationship will look like with Biden in the White House.
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BRUNHUBER: Welcome back to you, our viewers in the United States and all around the world. You're watching CNN NEWSROOM.
All eyes in Europe are on a vaccine as the continent fights a fierce second wave of coronavirus. On Friday, Britain's health minister says if the Pfizer BioNTech vaccine is approved, it could be rolled out by next month.
But Scotland isn't waiting. First Minister Nicola Sturgeon confirmed it's banned all nonessential travel to England and other parts of the British Isles with a few exceptions.
And France's health agency says the peak of infections likely has passed, with the number of new cases, hospitalizations and ICU admissions slowing. So, for more on that and other coronavirus news across Europe, I'm joined by Anna Stewart in London.
But first let's turn to Jim Bittermann, who is just outside Paris.
Jim, some good news there in France but the optimism isn't shared across Europe. JIM BITTERMANN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It's a mixed
picture. In France and other countries that imposed tough restrictions toward the end of last month and the beginning of this month, now they're start to go bear fruit.
In France, for example, hospitalizations and entries into the ICU units are down. So, it's headed in the right direction. The government spokesman yesterday said they're not about to lift the restrictions just yet. But the president will speak to the nation on Tuesday and it's expected he'll announce some loosening of restrictions.
In other countries, it's a little bit the same; in Germany, Italy and Spain, the benefits of having had a tough lockdown are starting to show. Other countries in Eastern Europe, not so much, where they didn't impose these kinds of restrictions.
So at the moment, it's good news. The other thing that's very positive here and I think the people are looking forward to is the approval of these various vaccines out there, particularly Pfizer and Moderna. The European Union has been negotiating contracts with the various vaccine makers.
And they have a contract with Pfizer. They're still in negotiation with Moderna. Basically, they believe they'll have approval for the use of those vaccines somewhere around mid-December.
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BITTERMANN: So, the first shots could be going into arms somewhere around there or around the 1st of January. And then it's up to the countries themselves to decide how the vaccine should be distributed, who should be getting them first.
BRUNHUBER: All right, thanks so much, Jim.
So now we're going to bring in Anna Stewart in London.
Some good news in England. Not so across the U.K.
What can you tell us?
ANNA STEWART, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Cases do appear to be leveling off, particularly in England. However, it's early days. There is absolutely no letup when it comes to restrictions.
Last night at 6 o'clock, Scotland had more restrictions approved on over 2 million people matching the lockdown we have here in England. Nonessential shops being shut, told you can't mix with other households and a ban being given between Scotland and the other U.K. nations.
Now Kim, this is the very first of its kind. It's legally enforced with a fine of 60 pounds, around $80. A lot of attention to it also because it seems a fairly flawed plan in terms of a travel ban. There is really no border, no border checks. But also, the exemption list for this travel ban are really quite
exhaustive. You can still travel from Scotland into England to feed an animal, to donate blood, take a driving test, or for education or for other health reasons. So, enforcement on that one is not too heavy.
But the Scottish first minister said restrictions would be short and they would be sharp, trying to get the R rate down before Christmas. Currently, the U.K. is just a big patchwork of different rules and different restrictions.
We know Number 10 Downing Street is now in talks with Wales and Scotland and Northern Ireland, to try and reach some shared agreement so families can meet and mix over Christmas.
But like Jim said, a lot of focus this week, also, on the vaccine news and when that will be rolled out.
BRUNHUBER: Thanks so much, Anna Stewart in London. Appreciate it.
Authorities in South Australia say a six-day lockdown of the entire state was based on a lie. A man told officials he contracted COVID after picking up a takeout meal from a pizza shop. The exposure seemed very short, but officials feared he was infected by a specially virulent strain of the virus.
So, they ordered businesses closed and told the state's population of 1.7 million to stay home. Investigators later learned the man worked at the pizza place and lied to contact tracers. He had actually worked several shifts with a contagious person. The state's premier was furious.
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STEVEN MARSHALL, SOUTH AUSTRALIA PREMIER: To say I am fuming about the actions of this individual is an absolute understatement. The selfish actions of this individual have put our whole state in a very difficult situation.
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BRUNHUBER: So the lockdown will end tonight and the premier said the man who lied won't be punished.
Coronavirus cases are soaring in South Dakota. So after the break, we'll speak to medical staff from one hospital about the increase. Stay with us.
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BRUNHUBER: Coronavirus cases in South Dakota have been skyrocketing since the summer. Just this week, the state has had one of the highest per capita rates in the nation. CNN's Gary Tuchman visited one hospital, where patients and staff are struggling with an avalanche of cases because some people don't even believe the disease is real.
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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Are you going to be OK if I sit you up a little bit?
KEITH SUGDEN, COVID-19 PATIENT: Sure.
GARY TUCHMAN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Keith Sugden is very ill.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Thank you.
SUGDEN: No, you're welcome.
TUCHMAN (voice-over): The 88-year-old has COVID-19. He's in the hospital in Rapid City, South Dakota, a state with an explosive increase in COVID cases. Incredibly more people in South Dakota are testing positive than negative.
SUGDEN: (INAUDIBLE) helped me so much. Those three days has been rough. It's improved.
TUCHMAN (voice-over): This is an intensive care unit just for COVID patients at the Monument Health Rapid City Hospital. The onslaught of patients is overwhelming for the staff. And everyone knows things are likely to get worse.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: As I've been working.
TUCHMAN (voice-over): Dr. Shankar Kurra is the hospital's vice president of medical affairs.
DR. SHANKAR KURRA, MONUMENT HEALTH RAPID CITY HOSPITAL: I'm very scared for the state for my neighbors for my own family. Sometimes for myself and this is the truth.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We're going to get better, huh?
TUCHMAN (voice-over): Employees here are doing heroic work.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, you are getting better.
TUCHMAN (voice-over): But there is great concern that as cases continue to increase, it will be difficult to maintain adequate staffing levels.
TUCHMAN: As recently as the end of July, there were just five COVID patients in this hospital. Today, there are 85 COVID patients in this hospital.
TUCHMAN (voice-over): Heidi Schumann is a nurse's aide. HEIDI SCHUMANN, NURSE'S AIDE: It's very hard. There's a lot of days that I go home and just cry because I get to go home to my family and I get to see my daughter and, you know, my parents and everybody. And some of these people don't make it out of here unfortunately.
TUCHMAN (voice-over): For Keith Sugden, things are touch and go.
SUGDEN: It's been a great life. And they just tears in my eyes are happy tears. They're not sad. There's to know that how many people really care. You've got to wonder and once in a while.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Ninety percent right now. So remember to take those deep breaths in your nose.
TOM MASSA, COVID-19 PATIENT: Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'll turn now and then breathe.
TUCHMAN (voice-over): A few days ago, Tom Massa felt achy and had a scratchy throat. Now he's also extremely sick, receiving high levels of oxygen.
TUCHMAN: How are you feeling right now?
MASSA: Oh (INAUDIBLE).
TUCHMAN: You have good character. Great doctors and nurses.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, yes, they're here. Excellent.
TUCHMAN (voice-over): One of the RNs treating Tom moved to South Dakota from South Florida, right at the beginning of the COVID outbreak.
JAMESHIA PARKER, REGISTERED NURSE: Thankfully, I haven't contracted it yet. I just keep praying that it stays that way.
TUCHMAN: It's scary, isn't it?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, it is.
TUCHMAN: What do you say to people who don't take it seriously? COVID?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, I don't know if I should say this or not.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: But I believe that the whole COVID situation was a failure from the top government leadership to the state government. They did deal with it. They apparently did think that they needed to listen to the experts and stuff.
GOV. KRISTI NOEM (R-SD): My people are happy.
TUCHMAN (voice-over): The governor of South Dakota has refused to encourage her citizens to wear masks or socially distance, even as their state becomes a national leader in COVID sickness. So South Dakota hospitals are taking it upon themselves to try to keep people safe.
KURRA: Some folks don't even believe this disease is real.
TUCHMAN: Here in South Dakota?
KURRA: Yes, yes. And so, misinformation is one thing that leads to misguidance. But also there's this streak of, you know, we will not do something if you tell me to do it. I'll do it if I --
TUCHMAN: So that's the way you feel when you give advice.
KURRA: That's how frustrated I feel, yes.
SUGDEN: My father told me when I was a kid, he poked me in the lid and he says, you know, everybody's got troubles and you have to help them if you can. And I've done that all my life.
TUCHMAN: And now people are helping you, Keith.
SUGDEN: They are, they are. Thank God.
TUCHMAN: The governor of South Dakota had a news conference this week. There's zero indication of any change in her philosophy. She showed a public service announcement airing a lot here in South Dakota.
In the PSA she said, "We did a good job of fighting COVID-19."
But the numbers don't lie. South Dakota is a beautiful state but it's in a very bad place right now -- this is Gary Tuchman, CNN, in Rapid City, South Dakota.
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BRUNHUBER: Nic Robertson sat down with Saudi Arabia's foreign minister. Just ahead, we'll go live to Riyadh for the first annual G20 summit. Stay with us.
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BRUNHUBER: Just hours from now, the G20 leaders' summit will be getting under way, hosted by Saudi Arabia. But this year, leaders won't be gathering in Riyadh as they normally would in the past. Instead the coronavirus pandemic is forcing them to meet online in a virtual summit.
So let's turn to CNN international diplomatic editor Nic Robertson in Riyadh.
What can we expect during the next few days?
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Well, you read the headlines here in Saudi Arabia. They're hugely proud to be hosting this, albeit virtual.
"Inspire the world," this is the view they're taking; this paper saying, "Cross into the future," which really is the Saudi message that jives with the G20 message, which is grapple with the big issues that are coming in the future.
Saudi Arabia sees itself as a country that is transforming, its economy, its outlook, its perspectives, its people over the coming generations. So these things match up, from the Saudi perspective, hosting the G20.
But the biggest issue is coping with the pandemic. That's why this is virtual. And the headline on this paper is the sort of answer, if you will, and I think you may have the picture there as well, of what to do if you can't get the leaders together in real space and real time.
Well, you project a big picture of them on the front of one of the beautiful old buildings here in Riyadh. That's what the Saudis have done.
It isn't just about confronting globally the issues that come in the future and the pandemic and the economic fallout. The Saudis are also confronting their own diplomatic situation, if you will.
They had such a close relationship with President Trump. And I put that and this issue of changing leadership in the United States to the minister of foreign affairs. We discussed the topic. This is what he told us.
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ROBERTSON: How do you expect things to be different with the United States under President-Elect Biden?
ADEL AL-JUBEIR, SAUDI FOREIGN MINISTER: We have a bipartisan relationship with the United States that, with every passing decade, it has grown stronger, broader and deeper.
We deal with the President of the United States as a friend, whether Republican or Democrat. President-Elect Biden has been in the Senate for 35 years. He has tremendous experience. He was vice president for eight years. I don't expect there to be a major change in terms of America's foreign policy. America's a global power with global interests.
ROBERTSON: But he says he's going to be tough on Saudi Arabia.
AL-JUBEIR: I believe that what people say in their campaign often doesn't translate once they're in office. President Trump said things about Saudi Arabia during the campaign and we were the first country he visited when he took office. So we deal with the presidents once they're in office. ROBERTSON: And you would be OK for the negotiations to be reopened with Iran?
Would you need a voice involved around that table in some way?
AL-JUBEIR: We will be discussing these matters with our friends in the new administration. I believe our position with regard to the JCPOA and that of probably most of the world --
(CROSSTALK)
AL-JUBEIR: -- like I mentioned, the sunset provision and expanding the inspections mechanism and dealing with terrorism and dealing with the ballistic missile program.
What we really want is we want to make sure Iran never is able to obtain a nuclear weapon and we want to make sure that Iran changes its aggressive behavior and its support for terrorism.
ROBERTSON: And this weekend, secretary of state Mike Pompeo is coming to Saudi Arabia. There are reports that perhaps they are considering designating the Houthis as a terrorism organization.
Is that a good thing?
AL-JUBEIR: I believe they are a terrorist organization. We have designated them as a terrorist organization.
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ROBERTSON: Do you want the United States to do it?
AL-JUBEIR: We want the whole world to do it.
When you -- when you --
ROBERTSON: Is that what Mike Pompeo is going to come here and do?
AL-JUBEIR: When you launch missiles at civilians in Yemen and (INAUDIBLE), that's terrorism. When you use child soldiers, boys who are 9, 10, 11 years old and put them on the front lines with a machine gun, that's terrorism.
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AL-JUBEIR: And we believe that this will add to the pressures on the Houthis to come to the negotiating table and find a political solution to the Yemeni problem so we can move Yemen from a state of war to a state of reconstruction --
ROBERTSON: So that's a yes, Mike Pompeo comes, announces this --
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AL-JUBEIR: I can't speak for the secretary of state. ROBERTSON: And President-Elect Biden might not do that. So there's a
limited window of opportunity with President Trump and his administration to do it.
AL-JUBEIR: That's really internal U.S. issues that I am not in a position to get into. Our view has been they are a terrorist organization and they should be designated as such by every country in the world.
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ROBERTSON: So that is a big issue in the region here. What happens, does this designation land on the Houthis. What we're hearing from aid organizations who work in Yemen, their concern that will affect the flow of food, fuel, money, cash available in the banks in the country.
It can have a further crippling effect on the people of Yemen.
But I think, when you switch back to the G20 today, we now understand President Trump is going to speak. We've seen him before in previous summits vetoing language on the final communique. His handling of the pandemic at home has not gone down well, is not viewed well around the world.
So, is he going to weigh in for or against what they're trying to achieve at this G20?
And also, how is he going to handle the fact that he will be speaking virtually to a roomful of people, who have leaders who have already spoken and given their congratulations to President-Elect Joe Biden?
BRUNHUBER: We'll see whether the president lays any diplomatic land mines for the incoming Biden administration. Great interview there, thank you so much, Nic Robertson, in Riyadh.
That wraps this hour of CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Kim Brunhuber and I'll be back in a moment with more news. Please do stay with us.
