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The Situation Room
CDC Reverses Guidance on Asymptomatic Testing after Firestorm; NYT: Top Officials Pressured Government Scientists Working on Pandemic; New Attack on FBI Director; Trump Announces $13 Billion In Aid To Puerto Rico Amid Heated Battle For Votes Of Puerto Ricans In Florida; DOJ Officials: Barr Speech Criticizing Members Of His Department And Comparing COVID Lockdowns To Slavery Was "Deep Blow To Morale"; Trump, Biden In Minnesota Today As State Begins Early Voting; Britain Weighs Second Lockdown As World Health Org Warns Of "Very Serious" COVID-19 Situation In Europe. Aired 5-6p ET
Aired September 18, 2020 - 17:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[17:00:00]
ANNOUNCER: This is CNN Breaking News.
WOLF BLITZER, CNN HOST: Welcome to our viewers here in the United States and around the world. I'm Wolf Blitzer in THE SITUATION ROOM. We're following breaking news.
The number of Americans dead in the coronavirus pandemic is now nearing 200,000 with more than 6.7 million confirmed coronavirus cases. And right now, cases are trending up. Look at this. In 30 states, seven of them have seen an increase - an increase of at least 50 percent.
And just a short while ago, over at the White House, President Trump claimed there will be enough coronavirus vaccines for all Americans by April. But his new timeline comes amid growing concern the administration is politicizing the pandemic.
Meanwhile, the CDC is once again advising that asymptomatic people should be tested after controversially changing that guideline last month. Sources tell CNN that the initial change was not written by CDC scientists and came under pressure from the top -- the top of the Trump administration.
Let's go first to the White House, our chief White House correspondent Jim Acosta is monitoring all these late-breaking developments for us. Jim, a major vaccine promise, from the president even though there is still no vaccine that's been approved.
JIM ACOSTA, CNN CHIEF WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Wolf. President Trump tried to reassure pandemic-weary Americans his administration is making progress and has plans to distribute the coronavirus vaccine to every American as soon as possible. Today the president predicted there will be enough doses of the vaccine for all Americans by April of next year, as you said. Mr. Trump made that claim even though a coronavirus vaccine still hasn't been approved for use. But the president is facing a credibility crisis on the virus as the White House has repeatedly interfered with government scientists responding to the pandemic.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ACOSTA (voice-over): With the U.S. approaching the grim milestone of 200,000 deaths from the coronavirus, President Trump vowed a COVID-19 vaccine is coming soon, with enough doses for all Americans by April of next year.
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We'll have manufactured at least 100 million vaccine doses before the end of the year, and likely much more than that. Hundreds of millions of doses will be available every month, and we expect to have enough vaccines for every American by April.
ACOSTA (voice-over): That's sooner than the timeline laid out by the director of the Centers for Disease Control, Dr. Robert Redfield earlier this week.
DR. ROBERT REDFIELD, DIRECTOR, CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION: If you're asking me when is it going to be generally available to the American public so we can begin to take advantage of vaccine to get back to our regular life, I think we're probably looking at late second quarter, third quarter, 2021.
ACOSTA (voice-over): But the problems plaguing the administration's response goes well beyond mixed messaging as recent news reports have found top officials pressuring government scientists working on the pandemic. "The New York Times" obtained e-mails from two top aides at Health and Human Services bashing comments from a CDC expert who advocated masks, with one of those officials saying that doctor's aim is to embarrass the president. "She is duplicitous." The other official on that e-mail, former HHS spokesman Michael Caputo who went on medical leave this week after accusing CDC doctors of sedition.
Added to that report that the White House nixed plans to distribute hundreds of millions of masks through the U.S. Postal Service to avoid a panic. And a revelation that HHS officials were rewriting the CDC's guidelines for testing asymptomatic people for the virus. The CDC just rewrote those guidelines again saying, "Due to the significance of asymptomatic and pre-symptomatic transmission, this guidance further reinforces the need to test asymptomatic persons."
DR. TOM FRIEDMAN, FORMER CDC DIRECTOR: When I look at things on the CDC website that aren't scientifically justifiable and were written not at the CDC headquarters in Atlanta but in Washington by people with no special experience in public health.
ACOSTA (voice-over): The president is scrambling to find some good news on the virus with Democrat Joe Biden hammering Mr. Trump for downplaying the pandemic.
JOE BIDEN (D), PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: He knew it and did nothing. He's close to criminal.
ACOSTA (voice-over): The president is also taking some swipes at his own FBI Director Christopher Wray who testified this week on Russian attempts to meddle in the upcoming election.
CHRISTOPHER WRAY, FBI DIRECTOR: And I think the Intelligence Community has assessed this publicly to primarily to denigrate Vice President Biden and what the Russians see as kind of an anti-Russian establishment.
ACOSTA (voice-over): Mr. Trump tweeted, "But Chris, you don't see any activity from China, even though it is a far greater threat than Russia, Russia, Russia."
When the president was asked about that.
QUESTION: (INAUDIBLE)
TRUMP: I think - I think - I have yes, in many cases I do.
ACOSTA (voice-over): The president also touted his administration's announcement of new aid to Puerto Rico.
Glossing over his past blunders in responding to the devastation on the island left by Hurricane Maria three years ago.
TRUMP: I'm the best thing that ever happened to Puerto Rico.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ACOSTA: Now, an administration health official said the president's timeline on a COVID-19 vaccine still depends on whether the vaccine is found to be safe and effective. That has not happened yet.
[17:05:04]
And the official went on to say that it may still take until the third or fourth quarter of next year for life to return to normal for most Americans. As for the news that the White House scrapped a plan to distribute masks to Americans through the post office, the president brushed off that report saying he doesn't run the nation's mail system.
And, Wolf, right now we can point you to what is happening in Minnesota at a rally that he's going to be having in that state later on this evening. It is the same story we've seen time and again at recent rallies, hundreds of Trump supporters packing into a crowded space. This time once again not wearing masks, and not doing a lot of social distancing.
But as we saw today, Wolf, here at the White House, the president is clearly struggling to find some answers for Americans who are sick and tired of these disruptions to their lives from the pandemic. And they may be voting accordingly. Wolf?
BLITZER: I assume those people don't realize how dangerous it is to be hanging so close together not wearing masks. The situation like that even though they're outside, which is better than inside. But still, it's pretty - pretty dangerous.
ACOSTA: There's still a risk.
BLITZER: Jim Acosta, thanks very much.
Let's get some more on the breaking pandemic news right now. CNN's Nick Watt is in Los Angeles for us.
Nick, the country is within days of crossing a really terrible new milestone.
NICK WATT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Wolf. It's likely that this weekend we will pass 200,000 dead Americans killed by COVID-19. And what really strikes me is that more than seven months since the first death on American soil, some of our leaders are still playing politics and still tinkering with how we should try and contain this virus.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
WATT (voice-over): Today, the CDC is finally once again recommending that asymptomatic people are tested after contact with an infected person.
DR. SYRA MADAD, SENIOR DIRECTOR, SPECIAL PATHOGENS PROGRAM AT NYC'S HEALTH PLUS HOSPITALS: We know that asymptomatic spread is one of the primary drivers of this pandemic.
WATT (voice-over): We've long known that. But in late August, CDC guidance was changed to say asymptomatic people didn't necessarily need a test after possible exposure. Two sources told CNN the change came from outside the CDC and was perhaps not properly vetted. The CDC director denies that, though there's fierce backlash.
GOV. ANDREW CUOMO (D-NY): Shame on the people in the CDC.
WATT (voice-over): The White House testing czar said at the time the tweet was to get appropriate, not less testing.
DR. CELINE GOUNDER, FORMER NYC ASST. COMMISSIONER OF HEALTH: I think it's more likely that this is an intentional effort by the administration to conceal the true extent of transmission and the numbers.
WATT (voice-over): Now as we head into fall, the president still lauding his record.
TRUMP: We're doing great with vaccines and therapeutics, remdesivir, all sorts of other things that are bringing the rates down like at numbers that nobody can believe.
WATT (voice-over): The irony of that statement? Trump's largely mask less mega rally last night was in Wisconsin. And yesterday Wisconsin reported its highest number of new daily COVID cases since this pandemic began.
DR. LEANA WEN, FORMER BALTIMORE HEALTH COMMISSIONER: It does appear that we are trending in the wrong direction. WATT (voice-over): Some schools are opening, but as much as half of staff are at an increased risk from COVID-19 due to age or underlying conditions, so says one new study.
Sports are gradually coming back. But a fan at last week's Kansas City Chiefs sensibly distanced season opener just tested positive. Potential contacts now told to quarantine. Average new case counts right now rising in 30 states, including Connecticut.
GOV. NED LAMONT (D-CT): We've reopened cautiously going back to May, and the infection rate has gone down. It's been one of the lowest in the country for three and a half months now. We started getting back to school. We opened up our colleges. And you see the slight uptick. Still, one of the lowest in the country but it is concerning.
WATT (voice-over): Here's why. A cautionary tale. Italy had a horrific spring, crushed the curb in the summer but today logged its highest daily case count since May 1st.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: In United States, this can be overturned. This can be -- you can overcome this, and you will. And I know you will.
WATT (voice-over): Can we really?
WEN: We just don't have enough testing. We need to be doing a lot more of that kind of surveillance testing because otherwise without those types of data, we're flying blind.
WATT (voice-over): And do we really have the will?
DR. JEROME ADAMS, SURGEON GENERAL: There is no chapter in the pandemic playbook for a presidential election, a highly divisive presidential election. There's no chapter in the pandemic playbook for a social justice movement, the likes of which we haven't seen since the '60s.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WATT: And new data coming out of South Carolina today that proves wearing masks works, and also making us wear masks works.
[17:10:06]
The state compared counties with and without mask mandates, those with mask mandates saw case counts falling dramatically faster. Wolf?
BLITZER: Nick Watt reporting for us from L.A. Nick, thanks very much.
Let's get some more on all of this. The former acting director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Dr. Richard Besser, is joining us. Dr. Besser, thanks so much for joining us. As you heard the president just now claimed the U.S. will have enough vaccines ready for every American by April. What's your reaction to that prediction from the president?
DR. RICHARD BESSER, FORMER ACTING DIRECTOR, CDC: My reaction is incredulity. I mean the idea that you're saying there's going to be a vaccine when the studies haven't been completed. I think it's really important, Wolf, that expectations around vaccines be reset.
I'm optimistic there's going to be a vaccine because there's so much effort going on and so many different types of products. But the studies haven't been done. When you look at the past 30 years and the infectious diseases that have devastated the world that there's no vaccines for, malaria, HIV, Hepatitis C, dengue fever. It's not from a lack of trying. It's because making vaccines is really, really hard. So until we have one and we know that it's safe and it's effective, all of the communication should be around social distancing, wearing masks, doing the things that have led to control around the globe, not about let's wait for a vaccine and that's going to save the day.
BLITZER: Back in May and I want you to look at these numbers. 72 percent of the American public said they'd want to get a coronavirus vaccine. But now that number has dropped more than 20 points. Only 51 percent. Are these political promises by the president chipping away at people's overall confidence in a vaccine?
BESSER: I don't know if it has to do with the promises or the multiple times over the course of the pandemic where we've seen politics interfering with the processes that we have in place at FDA, at CDC, for developing public health guidance and for improving products. If there's a vaccine and it's safe and effective, you want to make sure that that's been determined by FDA and that it hasn't had any political influence in that process that external scientists have been able to look at the data and assess whether or not it's effective, and that CDC through its regular mechanisms will determine who should get that vaccine and in what order.
Now, if we talked about before, there are certain populations in America who have been dying at incredibly higher rates. You know, Black Americans, Latino Americans, Native Americans. We want to make sure that there's priority for those groups who have been affected the greatest, frontline healthcare workers. These are things where we have public health agencies that are designed to provide those recommendations and we don't want politics anywhere near that.
BLITZER: Yes. Speaking of politics, I want to get your thoughts on what is clearly a major reversal by the CDC. They have now updated the testing guidelines after we learned the previous guidelines didn't go through the normal fact checking you're very familiar. You're former acting director of the CDC. You led the CDC. Is this enough to reassure you that the CDC can now operate free of political pressure because the earlier guidelines were full of political pressure?
BESSER: What we need to see, Wolf, is CDC out front every day holding a press conference, talking about what they're learning. When you post new guidance and you're not out there to be able to answer questions as to why did the guidance change? Was there new information? Was it simply clarification? Why did you before recommend this and then you moved away from it, now you're back to that?
Without having that communication, it's really hard to have the kind of trust you need where people are going to follow that new guidance. The new guidance I think is appropriate. If you've been exposed to someone with COVID, you should get tested. BLITZER: Right.
BESSER: A lot of people who have been exposed and are infected don't have any symptoms. And so, you have to be able to identify those people and then provide the ability for them to isolate or quarantine. But just putting out guidance isn't how you're going to rebuild trust. You have to have that communication. And to require a Senate hearing to be able to hear from the head of the CDC, that's so far from where we should be.
BLITZER: Absolutely. "The Washington Post" is reporting that back in April the U.S. Postal Service planned to send masks to every household in America, but that plan was blocked. How different would the situation be today if efforts like those had been supported and implemented?
BESSER: Well, you know any effort that makes this a national effort and pulls the politics out of it that says it's the American thing to wear a mask. I wear a mask because I care about your health. You wear a mask because you care about my health. It has nothing to do with political party. We're doing this as Americans for each other. Anything you can do, and that's something where a president has just an incredible opportunity to pull the nation together. In this circumstance we've seen incredible division.
[17:15:09]
BLITZER: Dr. Richard Besser, thanks so much for joining us.
BESSER: Thank you, Wolf.
BLITZER: Up next, Joe Biden campaigning in Minnesota and hitting President Trump hard as he also prepares to visit the state.
And the president is now doubling down on his attack on his own FBI director for calling out Russian election interference. We're going to talk about that and more with a key Biden ally, Senator Chris Coons of Delaware standing by.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: We're following multiple breaking stories including President Trump claiming just a little while ago there will be enough doses of a COVID-19 vaccine for all Americans by next April.
[17:20:07]
We're joined now by Democratic Senator Chris Coons of Delaware. He's a member of both the Judiciary and Foreign Relations Committees as well as a key supporter of Joe Biden. You know, Senator, thanks so much for joining us. The president again contradicting his top health experts saying vaccines will be ready for every American by April, and he said in many cases he does know better than the experts. So, what's your reaction when you hear that from the president?
SEN. CHRIS COONS (D-DE): Well, Wolf, that's just another tragic reminder of the many ways in which President Trump's refusal to listen to experts, to respect those who are in positions of responsibility to help lead us, whether in a public health response or a counterintelligence and national security response has made America less safe.
We've got now nearly 200,000 Americans who've died, 6 million who have been infected, 30 million who are unemployed. All of this didn't have to happen.
Donald Trump of course didn't create this global pandemic, but his bungled federal response to it is in no small part because he just doesn't know how to listen to experts. I'll remind you of the times when he was taking to the stage at the White House and promoting things like hydroxychloroquine, a since disproven potential remedy for COVID-19. And the times in which he has bickered with or disagreed with the head of the CDC or the head of the NIH or Dr. Fauci who's been a great leader in this situation.
Joe Biden knows that he will rely on the science and the public health experts to get us through this. That'll be one of the biggest differences that voters should consider this fall. Do you want a president who relies on public health and scientific experts? Or do you want a president who makes it up as he goes along?
BLITZER: You know, the president also, this is pretty extraordinary development, publicly rebuking his own FBI Director Christopher Wray who testified under oath that Russia is in fact actively interfering in the 2020 U.S. Presidential Election to hurt Joe Biden's chances. What message does that send, for example, to Vladimir Putin?
COONS: Wolf, that is an open invitation to Putin to continue interfering with America's election. Think about it. I have known Chris Wray since we went to law school together. This is President Trump's own chosen FBI director. He's responsible for counterintelligence within the United States. He's testifying under oath that Russia is a clear and present danger to our election. And President Trump instead of taking to the airways and committing to himself to ensuring the security of our elections against all enemies foreign or domestic, is instead choosing to attack his own FBI director.
It leaves me speechless at times the ways in which President Trump refuses to take responsibility for America's security in the face of Vladimir Putin's repeated attacks on what makes us a Democracy, the security of our own elections.
BLITZER: The Attorney General Bill Barr is echoing President Trump. He told me in an interview the other day that election interference from China is a greater threat than it is from Russia. But that's just one example. When it comes to voting by mail or racial injustice, does Bill Barr seem to be amplifying the president's political messaging across the board?
COONS: Wolf, one of the reasons I voted against Bill Barr for attorney general was in his confirmation hearing, things that he said suggested he viewed himself more as President Trump's personal attorney rather than the attorney general of the United States. And his conduct since then has simply amplified those concerns. Bill Barr is someone who has put aside his commitment to the Constitution and instead has made himself almost solely committed to amplifying the political rhetoric of President Trump. It frankly matters less whether China or Russia is a greater threat to our election than it matters that there are clear foreign threats to our election.
I've been trying to advance all year a bill to provide more money for security for our elections. Senator Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota has been helping lead this effort in the senate. And yet President Trump hasn't stepped forward. Attorney General Barr hasn't stepped forward to say we need to invest more in ensuring the security of this election. That should be shocking to every American.
BLITZER: Before I let you go, Senator Coons, I want to show our viewers some live pictures coming in from Minnesota right now. The president getting ready to address a rally there, political rally. And there's a huge crowd. I don't see -- I mean, I see some face masks but not a whole lot of face masks. We see a wide shot. I don't know if we have a wide shot right now. There are a lot of people right there, not much social distancing at all. What's your reaction when you see that?
[17:25:06]
COONS: Well, last night was the tale of two campaigns and the tale of two Americas. Joe Biden addressed an event in Scranton, Pennsylvania, where he was born and raised in his early life. And Donald Trump - President Trump, addressed a rally in Wisconsin.
The Biden rally, there were masks, there was social distancing. He talked about his concrete plans for protecting our veterans, for advancing the middle class, for getting us through this pandemic together.
Donald Trump, in a rambling and largely divisive speech, spoke to a crowd about ways in which he was amplifying the grievances that he has only heightened as president.
These men have two very different views of us as citizens of our country and its future and will lead us to very different places.
I'm enthusiastic about the ways Joe Biden has laid out a good and solid and clear plan to bring us together to get us out of this pandemic, and to build back our economy stronger, to be more inclusive and just for all of us.
BLITZER: Very quickly before I let you go, a final question. You've heard all the speculation that Biden is elected president you might become secretary of state. Do you want to be secretary of state?
COONS: Well, Wolf, there's a lot of problems facing us in the world. Joe Biden and I have very similar closely aligned views on foreign policy. He's got a lot of great folks to choose from who he's already served with. But if he were to consider me as well, I'd certainly be honored. BLITZER: I'm sure you would be. Senator Coons, member of the Foreign Relations Committee, the Judiciary Committee. Thanks very much as usual for joining us. I appreciate it very much.
COONS: Thank you, Wolf.
BLITZER: Coming up, we'll have more on the politics behind President Trump's claim that all Americans who want the coronavirus vaccine, assuming there is a safe and effective vaccine, will have access to it by April.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[17:31:55]
BLITZER: President Trump today announced a $13 billion aid package to Puerto Rico and claimed, and I'm quoting the President now, I'm the best thing that's ever happened to Puerto Rico.
Let's get reaction from our Chief Political Analyst Gloria Borger, along with CNN Contributor Miles Taylor, he was Chief of Staff to the Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen and has endorsed Joe Biden. Gloria, I want you and our viewers to watch specifically what the President had to say in making this nearly $13 billion aid package announcement for Puerto Rico. Listen to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: We've done more for Puerto Rico than anybody. By contrast, Biden's devastated the island of Puerto Rico. He -- Joe Biden, what he's done to Puerto Rico, meaning the past administration is devastating. I'm the best thing that ever happened to Puerto Rico.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLITZER: So what do you make, Gloria, of those pronouncements? And, specifically, the timing, only a few weeks before the election?
GLORIA BORGER, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL ANALYST: What we heard from the podium today, Wolf, on Puerto Rico and the President saying everybody's going to have a vaccine by April, it's just -- it's pure electioneering. This is what's going on. It's election year, he wants to win Florida, he suddenly said he's going to give aid to Puerto Rico and good about that.
But this is a state he called corrupt, and wanted nothing to do with and wanted to investigate whether we should maybe swap it for Greenland. And he is also saying, of course, the Obama, Biden administration did nothing. When, in fact, a disaster occurred on his watch. And he's a little late. So, I think it's so blatant, it's almost insulting to a degree. But that's what it is.
BLITZER: Yes. And there's a, you know, there's a large Puerto Rican community --
BORGER: Sure. BLITZER: -- but now lives --
BORGER: Yes.
BLITZER: -- in the key battleground state of Florida.
BORGER: Yes.
BLITZER: A Republican needs to win Florida in order to be elected president and he's -- and a lot of Puerto Ricans now live in Central Florida.
BORGER: Yes. Of course. Miles, the President said Puerto Rico's a great place with great people. There's nothing -- that's nothing like what you personally heard the President say, during your time in the Trump administration. Tell us about that.
MILES TAYLOR, FORMER CHIEF OF STAFF TO HOMELAND SECURITY SECRETARY KIRSTJEN NIELSEN: No, it isn't, Wolf. And, look, in the first case, I would say the $13 billion, my answer would be finally, right? This is important for the island to recover. But I've got to agree with Gloria, this is political, political, political. Because at the time when the President thought the Puerto Ricans were not supportive of him, and he thought politically, it was a hostile place, he had no interest whatsoever, Wolf, in helping the island. He would tell us he thought Puerto Rico was dirty. He didn't like the Puerto Ricans.
And, actually, the President was surprised at one point to discover that Puerto Ricans were actually Americans because it's a U.S. territory. He didn't want to help the island and he was kicking and screaming every time we told him that we had to distribute more money to Puerto Rico. The President did not want to provide these funds.
[17:35:02]
So, it's no coincidence that now, as you know, just a few weeks before the election, the President is touting aid that's going to Puerto Rico. And, in some cases, it's too late. I mean, the island should have gotten this level of support sooner. But, again, the President's always been reluctant to approve those funds. And, as you know, I've witnessed all of this firsthand, including the President wanting to either sell away our fellow Americans in Puerto Rico or swap them for other countries like Greenland.
So, this is pure posturing. I think it's good that it's happening. We should applaud the fact that we're going to help our fellow Americans in Puerto Rico, but it shows the President's cynicism and he truly does have disdain for the people on the island, which I think is unfortunate.
BLITZER: Yes. And, Gloria, we're also seeing some long lines today and a handful of states where early voting actually got started today. So what does that say about possible enthusiasm and turnout in the coming weeks?
BORGER: Well, I -- you know, the pictures you're showing show that just at the beginning of early voting, people have decided they want to get out there. And maybe, maybe the President saying, you know what? I don't like absentee ballots and people understanding that absentee ballots take a longer time to count. Maybe he's actually encouraging Democratic voters to go out there and vote, because they don't want to get caught up in this rigmarole about a rigged election.
And so, I think what you're seeing is voters who feel that it's safe, who are being socially distant and masked, are going out there early on and saying, OK, Mr. President, you've decided you don't want mail- in ballots. Well, maybe I'll vote in person. Now, I've no idea who these voters are supporting. But the stakes of the election are so high, it seems to me that the enthusiasm is going to be very high as well from both sides, by the way, because both sides present this election as existential. But in a state like Virginia, for example, which started early voting, I think that's pretty much a blue state these days.
BLITZER: You know, one thing the both sides agree on, they both keep saying it, this is the most important election in U.S. history. We hear that from both sides. Gloria, Miles, guys, thank you very much.
We're going to have much more breaking news coming up. CNN has learned that U.S. Justice Department officials are calling Attorney General William Barr's controversial criticism of his prosecutors, among other things, a deep blow to morale. We're going to get reaction from Ben Crump, the attorney who represents the families of Jacob Blake, George Floyd, Breonna Taylor. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[17:42:11]
BLITZER: The breaking news we're following, we're getting word of some scathing reaction to Attorney General William Barr speech criticizing prosecutors in his own Justice Department officials, tell CNN, Barr's comments in which he compared some career members of his department to pre-schoolers, suggesting they were tone-deaf, not helpful and representing a deep blow to morale.
Joining us now, the Attorney Ben Crump who represents the families of Jacob Blake, George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and others. Thanks so much, Ben, for joining us. This week alone, the Attorney General effectively speared Black Lives -- the Black Lives Matter movement, he compared coronavirus, lockdowns to slavery. He's also facing a lot of criticism from the NAACP for not including more representation on a new law enforcement commission. Do you believe the black community can expect justice from someone like Bill Barr?
BEN CRUMP, LEAD ATTORNEY, JACOB BLAKE & FAMILY: Well, what I do see and hear from his actions is that he is incredibly tone-deaf when it comes to speaking about black America. If he's going to insult us, Wolf, we were rather he not speak about us in any manner. When you compare a lockdown to keep the country safe from coronavirus to being ripped from your home in Africa, and then chain come across the Atlantic Ocean to live a life of involuntary servitude where you are raped, tortured, and beaten until you die and knowing that your child has to face a similar fate, is just unbelievable on so many levels, Wolf. Unbelievable.
BLITZER: The President and Joe Biden, as you know, they're in Minnesota today. They're campaigning, the state where George Floyd was killed by police. Do you still see George Floyd's memory and the impact of his death reflected in these campaigns, or do you fear the urgency of that moment has faded away?
CRUMP: No, I certainly still see George Floyd's tragedy as having a profound impact on this upcoming election, especially on people of color and people feel like they have been disenfranchised by the system. And remember, Wolf, this COVID-19 pandemic that America is facing, we, in black America, have to deal with that as well as the 1619 pandemic, where we are being killed outside of the courthouse and inside the court room, like George Floyd, like Breonna Taylor, like Ahmaud Arbery who was lynched for jogging while black.
[17:45:01]
So I think this is an incredibly emotional issue. And it's going to drive us to the polls to vote, especially with statements coming from the President and his attorney general that insults black America.
BLITZER: You also represent Breonna Taylor's family and there was just a vote of no confidence in the mayor of Louisville for his handling of her case. But we do know a grand jury is looking into her death. So what is her family expecting over the next days and weeks?
CRUMP: Wolf, thank you for remembering Breonna Taylor, because oftentimes black women don't get the attention and recognition that others get when they're killed by police. Our legal team, Breonna's mother and family and the community expect Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron to present the case to the grand jury and we expect charges to be bought against the police officers' responsible for more murder in this black woman in the sanctity of her own home. But anything else to happen would be to disrespect the legacy of Breonna Taylor and continue to marginalize black women lives and we have to stand at the top of the rooftop and say black women lives matter too in America.
BLITZER: Ben Crump joining us. Ben, thank you very much. We'll stay clearly in close touch with you in the days and weeks to come.
Coming up, there's new data now backing Dr. Anthony Fauci's projection that the U.S. won't face a widespread flu outbreak amid the coronavirus pandemic, as long as Americans take some major strict precautions. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[17:51:39]
BLITZER: With more than 30 million known coronavirus cases globally and almost 1 million deaths, the World Health Organization is now warning of what it calls a very serious COVID-19 situation unfolding in Europe. Weekly confirmed cases on the continent are now higher than when the pandemic first peak back in March and that has Britain right now weighing a second lockdown.
CNN's Scott McLean has more from London.
SCOTT MCLEAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, the British health secretary is not ruling out the nuclear option, a second nationwide lockdown to try to get a handle on the resurgence of the coronavirus. Today, the government expanded localized restrictions which essentially ban almost all in-person socializing with people outside of your own household. The health secretary is pleading with people to follow the rules. But he says that if things continue to get worse, that nationwide lockdown is there as a last line of defense.
Right now, the virus is showing up increasingly in older segments of the population and also in care homes. And as a result, the number of hospitalizations is doubling about every eight days. The government is also dealing with a testing shortage which means that it's having to prioritize who gets a test and who doesn't. And right now, it's set aside more than one-third of the test that it does have four care homes. Wolf?
BLITZER: Scott McLean in London, thank you.
Cases and hospitalizations in Israel are also rising at a truly alarming rate right now and the government there is taking some drastic action. CNN's Oren Liebermann is in Jerusalem for us.
OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, Israel's second gen lockdown has officially begun and it started just a few hours before the beginning of the eve of the Jewish New Year. It scheduled the last three weeks in an attempt to get rising coronavirus numbers under control. In fact, just yesterday, according to Ministry of Health Data, there were more than 5,200 new cases, not a record, but indicative of the steady rise in new infections per day.
Also on the rise, the number of severe cases and the number of patients on ventilators. All of that is why the country has been the first to reimpose a lockdown because of rising coronavirus numbers. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warning that if these restrictions aren't enough, they may have to add more severe restrictions to get the numbers under control. Wolf?
BLITZER: Oren Liebermann in Jerusalem, thank you.
And there's a hopeful sign as fallen winter approaching the northern hemisphere raising fears of a flu outbreak on top of the coronavirus pandemic. We have details from CNN's Selina Wang.
SELINA WANG, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, countries in the southern hemisphere just had their easiest flu season on record. Precautions that prevent COVID-19 like staying at home and wearing masks also helps keep flu numbers down. Take Australia, for example. In August 2019, there were 61,000 confirmed cases of the flu. This August, there were only 107. South Africa and parts of South America have had similar experiences.
But experts say this doesn't necessarily mean the U.S. will be as lucky. They're concerned about the twindemic of the flu and COVID-19 at the same time, which could strain the healthcare system. That's why the CDC Director Robert Redfield said it's so critical for people to get a flu shot this year, but convincing people to do so is going to be a challenge. About a third of U.S. adults get their flu shots at a doctor's office. But this year, many people are hesitant to go to the doctor for fear of catching COVID. Wolf?
BLITZER: Selina Wang in Hong Kong for us, thank you very much.
There's more breaking news here in "The Situation Room". A major coronavirus vaccine vow from the President of the United States. He's not claiming every American will be able to get one by next April even though there's no vaccine that's been approved yet.
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BLITZER: We want to welcome our viewers here in the United States and around the world. I'm Wolf Blitzer in "The Situation Room". Tonight, President Trump is again trying to hype hopes for an end to the coronavirus as the U.S. death toll nears the truly gut-wrenching number of 200,000.
