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CNN NEWSROOM
Nearly 1 of Every 100 Americans Tests Positive; California Closes Bars, Most Churches, Gyms; Los Angeles Schools to Restart Online Only; Grieving Daughter Pens Scathing Obituary; Israelis Demand Economic Relief as Restrictions Resume; Spike in Deadly Shootings Across U.S.; Washington Redskins Changing Name and Logo; Hong Kong Officials Hold Briefing as Cases Rise. Aired 4:30-5a ET
Aired July 14, 2020 - 04:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[04:30:00]
ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back, everyone.
Well, global coronavirus cases have now surpassed 13 million with the death toll nearing 600,000. The U.S. leads the world in deaths and infections. According to Johns Hopkins University it has recorded more than 3.3 million cases, meaning nearly one out of every 100 Americans has tested positive for the virus.
Meanwhile, President Trump is downplaying any tensions with Dr. Anthony Fauci. The administration sent out talking points over the weekend criticizing the nation's top infectious disease expert, but on Monday Mr. Trump said he has a good relationship with Fauci, even if they don't always agree.
Well, at least 35 U.S. states are seeing infections climb, and President Trump is still trying to blame that on more testing. CNN's Nick Watt has the day's other headlines.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NICK WATT, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): California is closing down again.
GOV. GAVIN NEWSOM (D-CA): Effective today, requiring all counties to close their indoor activities, restaurants, wineries, tasting rooms, movie theaters, family entertainment centers, zoos and museums, card rooms, and the shuttering of all bars.
WATT: For counties like Los Angeles on the governor's watch list of the worst, there's even more shuttering.
NEWSOM: Fitness centers, places of worship, offices for non-critical sectors, personal care services -- that includes hair salons, barbershops -- and indoor malls.
WATT: Meanwhile, Florida is smashing records, more than 15,000 new COVID cases Sunday, the most logged in any state, any day, ever.
FRANCIS SUAREZ (R), MAYOR OF MIAMI, FLORIDA: We have to get control of these numbers. These numbers are out of control.
WATT: Disney World just opened two parks, but if you don't wear a mask, you won't get the photo from your ride. Seriously, that's part of the enforcement.
As for masks around the country, there is still no federal mandate. Even though --
DR. JEROME ADAMS, SURGEON GENERAL OF THE UNITED STATES: We can turn this thing around in two to three weeks if we can get a critical mass of people wearing face coverings.
WATT: Meanwhile, in Texas the average daily death toll just doubled in a week. Harvard researchers say these eight states should also roll back reopening.
DR. ANTHONY FAUCI, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR ALLERGY AND INFECTIOUS DISEASES: You don't necessarily need to shut down again but pull back a bit.
WATT: Dr. Fauci says in large part because --
FAUCI: People in some states who went from shutdown to complete throwing caution to the wind.
WATT: Atlanta already rolled back to phase one, the mayor and her family recovering.
KEISHA LANCE BOTTOMS (D), ATLANTA, GEORGIA MAYOR: We are a textbook example of how quickly this virus spreads. We had one child in the house who was asymptomatic. I was also asymptomatic, and my husband doesn't have any underlying health conditions, and this has hit him really hard.
WATT: Internal CDC documents uncovered by "The New York Times" suggest fully opening K-12 schools and colleges would be the highest-risk option, and that's what the Trump administration wants.
MERCEDES SCHNEIDER, PUBLIC SCHOOL TEACHER: It is a political roll of the dice for us, and we are the dice, the teachers in the classrooms.
WATT: Los Angeles, second largest district in the nation just said school will start back in August, online only. There is a way out of all of this. New York City opened slowly,
(on camera): Now in Los Angeles and San Diego school districts have both said that kids will not be back in the classroom for the start of the fall semester. They say they will only be back in the classrooms when the public health conditions allow and as the governor of California said, this virus is not going away any time soon.
Nick Watt, CNN, Los Angeles.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: A grieving daughter is lashing out at politicians after her father died from the coronavirus. Kristin Urquiza wrote an emotional obituary that expressed both her love for her father Mark and her anger over what she says was his unnecessary death. She said Arizona Governor Doug Ducey failed the people of his state by opening up too early.
[04:35:00]
Take a listen to Kristin reading part of what she wrote.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KRISTIN URQUIZA, DAUGHTER OF COVID-19 VICTIM: Mark, like so many others, should not have died from COVID-19. His death is due to the carelessness of the politicians who continue to jeopardize the health of brown bodies through clear lack of leadership. Refusal to acknowledge the severity of this crisis, an inability and unwillingness to give clear and decisive direction on how to minimize risk.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: Kristin says her father only left the house for work during the stay at home order, but he began going out more when the governor encouraged people to resume their normal lives.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
URQUIZA: My father, I believe, was robbed of life, and I have endured a living nightmare over the course of the last three weeks that he was sick and passed. And I knew that if I didn't speak up, who would? And the best thing that I could do to continue to fight for my father was to fight for other families out there and to make it known that these deaths are preventable as long as we are focused on a coordinated response that minimizes risk and puts people first.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: The governor's office has responded. A spokesperson said this --
Our hearts go out to the family and loved ones of Mark Anthony Urquiza. We know nothing can fully alleviate the pain associated with his loss and every loss from this virus is tragic.
We turn to Israel now where there's growing anger at the government for its handling of the pandemic. Despite getting an early handle on the virus, cases in Israel are spiking now, meaning many restrictions are back in place. CNN's Oren Liebermann has more now from Jerusalem.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): On the streets of Tel Aviv, the numbers are going up. First, there is the number of protesters. Police say more than 10,000 people filled Rabin Square to demonstrate against the government's handling of the coronavirus crisis. Demanding economic aid, they held signs that read economic war, and free the money.
YIGAL SHILOAH, PROTESTER: I don't feel that they are doing enough to support us. We eat our savings. We don't get any money.
LIEBERMANN: Then there is unemployment, which hit 21 percent this week according to the Israel unemployment service. Over the weekend, 1,250 citizen's return to work, more than twice that number filed for unemployment.
MAAYAN ELIASI, PROTESTER: I can't train, I can't prep, I can't work, I can't get money from the country, my clients can't come and train. And I had enough of it.
LIEBERMANN: And there is a coronavirus which has surged to record numbers of new cases a day. Israel is struggling to contain in July when it thought it had it under control in May. The numbers have all put pressure on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who promised up to $2,170 and soon to unemployed and business owners who qualify.
BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER (through translator): This support, this grant, is not dependent on legislation. And we ordered that will be acted already today. The button will be pressed so the money will arrive in accounts in the next few days.
LIEBERMANN: One number that is falling, Netanyahu's approval rating in the handling of the coronavirus crisis. From 74 percent in May to 46 percent now. Last week, Netanyahu held a Zoom call with business owners trying to placate their fears, instead he became the target of their anger.
My husband and I, we do not know what to do. How are we going to live? This woman tells the Prime Minister. We never got anything in the first round or the second round, there is nothing that we can do, we need a serious solution.
Politically, Israel's longest serving Prime Minister faces no real threat from the right or the left. But he has to contend with a second wave of coronavirus on a tide of economic hardship.
(on camera): According to the latest numbers from the ministry of health, Israel now has 40,000 confirmed cases of coronavirus since the beginning of the pandemic. Perhaps more worryingly, a quarter of those cases have come in about the last ten days. Meanwhile, according to a survey from the Israel Democracy Institute, public trust in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's handling of the economy and of the coronavirus crisis, down to 29 percent.
In Jerusalem, Oren Liebermann, CNN.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: And this is CNN NEWSROOM. Coming up, a surge in gun violence across the U.S. leaves more than a dozen dead, families bereft and officials calling for change. We'll have the full story next.
[04:40:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHURCH: Officials are now confirming that U.S. actress Naya Rivera is dead and it's possible her final moments were spent saving her 4-year- old son's life. The "Glee" star seen here disappeared during a boat ride with her son on a lake in Southern California last week. The boy was found asleep on board wearing a life vest. He told authorities he had been swimming with his mother but she didn't make it back on the boat. Investigators believe it's possible she battled strong currents and was able to muster enough energy to get her son back onto the boat but not enough to save herself. Rivera's body was discovered Monday after a six-day search. She was 33 years old.
Well, at least six people have been shot at a bus stop in Washington state. It happened in Kent about 20 miles south of Seattle, just one of many incidents across the U.S. over the last week. Gun violence is rising with tragic consequences. CNN's Ryan Young reports from Chicago.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LATONYA GORDON, TERRANCE MALDEN'S MOTHER: He had it in his hand. I seen his arm go like that.
RYAN YOUNG, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A mother in grief telling her son's teacher that 15-year-old Terrance Malden is dead.
GORDON: What is it that I did that God is putting all of this on me? It's only so much I can take.
YOUNG: A high school sophomore and mentor to other kids, Malden's death marks the fourth straight weekend a child was lost to Chicago violence.
SUPT. DAVID O. BROWN, CHICAGO POLICE DEPARTMENT: Police alone is not and cannot be the only solution for the gun violence faced by so many throughout Chicago.
YOUNG: In all, 64 shot, 11 killed this weekend. Families have had enough.
ERIKKA GORDON, TERRANCE MALDEN'S AUNT: I'm tired of it. You know, we talk about Black Lives Matter, but I'm sick and tired of what's going on in the street.
YOUNG: And it's not just Chicago. Another weekend, another tally of the dead in American cities. In New York, a 1-year-old child shot and killed when someone opened fire near a playground.
MAYOR BILL DE BLASIO (D) NEW YORK: It's not acceptable. It's not something we can ever look away from. It's something we have to address and stop.
[04:45:00]
YOUNG: In all there were 35 gunshot victims this weekend in New York. Last year there were only 6. On Thursday, the White House highlighted the names and faces of children lost to gun violence.
KAYLEIGH MCENANY, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: Let's make sure we have peace in our streets this weekend.
YOUNG: But the grim trend continues. Even smaller cities weren't immune. In Charleston, South Carolina, five shot, one dead in three separate shootings Saturday night. In Wilmington, Delaware, a 10-year- old boy and four other teenagers were shot when someone fired more than 30 shots into a basketball court.
RASHIDA WILLIAMS, WILMINGTON RESIDENT: I wasn't shocked. Because this is just what we used to. This is what's going on around here.
YOUNG: A new study from the Council on Criminal Justice links the violence to the pandemic with spikes tied to the reopening.
THOMAS ABST, COUNSEL ON CRIMINAL JUSTICE: Two major shocks to the system in terms of crime rates right now, are the coronavirus pandemic and the unrest that is followed the tragic death of George Floyd.
YOUNG: Both have strained public services, including the police. CNN has learned at the NYPD retirement filings in early July surged 411 percent over last year. The union says some officers feel abandoned by elected officials. Nearly two dozen Atlanta police officers told CNN affiliate, WSB, they fear being proactive to stop violence. One officer said because it involves arresting gang members and drug dealers. And in those cases, people resist. Right now if we use force, we're going to be terminated.
Ryan Young, CNN, Chicago.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: The American football team, the Washington Redskins, is finally retiring its controversial name and logo. Redskins can be considered an ethnic slur and has long been denounced by Native American groups. The team's head coach tells The Washington Post the new name, which has not yet been announced, will honor both the military and Native Americans.
The team's owner had long resisted any name change. Seven years ago he vowed we'll never change the name, it's that simple. Never. You can use caps. But after these corporate sponsors and racial justice protestors started heaping on the pressure, the Redskins management caved.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: Joining me now is Christine Brennan, a CNN sports analyst and sports columnist for "USA TODAY." Great to have you with us.
CHRISTINE BRENNAN, CNN SPORTS ANALYST: Rosemary, great to be with you as well.
CHURCH: So given the controversy that swirled for years around the name and logo of the Washington Redskins, why did it take so long and require the pressure of corporate sponsors to make this happen at this time? And just how significant is this move?
BRENNAN: It took so long because the owner of the team, Daniel Snider, actually told a colleague of mine, "USA Today's" Eric Brady seven years ago that he would never change the name of the team, and he said use all caps, never. And it's probably one of the most famous quotes in sports in Washington, D.C., and really even throughout the country over the last seven years. I mean, that's a pretty strong, adamant statement. Never, no way, no how.
And as much as I've covered the team and been in this town, I thought that Dan Snider was going to be able to pull it off for at least a while longer. He's the owner. So it's his call at the end of the day. What, of course, has happened in the last two months has really changed everything, and it's changed much more than just the Washington NFL team name of course as you know.
But with the murder of George Floyd and the emphasis on Black Lives Matter, the Washington NFL team tweeted out, as did many, obviously, that black lives, that day signifying Black Lives Matter. And the push back was extraordinary, including from AOC, from people in Congress and from all over saying how dare you, Washington NFL team, talk about racism when you consider the name of your team.
And that basically started the dominos falling and money talks, the corporations, FedEx, PepsiCo, Bank of America, Nike. When all of them basically told Dan Snider, enough is enough, that's when years and years of pressure finally led to a decision that I believe is a great day in Washington. Finally a racist, awful name for a team is now gone. And I think that is a cause to celebrate.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: And that was CNN sports analyst Christine Brennan. Many thanks.
Well, coming up on CNN NEWSROOM, Hong Kong is tightening social distancing measures again after a spike in COVID-19 cases. We'll have a live report from the city in just a moment.
[04:50:00]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHURCH: Hong Kong is tightening social distancing measures as the city sees more cases in a third wave of infections. Officials there are holding a news conference on the virus. So let's go to Hong Kong where Kristie Lu Stout joins me live. Good to see you, Kristie. That is still ongoing, of course, but what Hong Kong officials said so far at the briefing.
KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, fresh pandemic data out of Hong Kong. We have learned that the city has posted 48 new COVID-19 cases of which 40 are locally transmitted. This follows a report on Monday of 52 new cases of which 41 were locally transmitted. So that means two days in a row brought 40 new locally transmitted cases as Hong Kong goes through the third wave of coronavirus infections. Again, this is the reason why I'm reporting from home.
Late last night the Chief Executive, Carry Lam, she held a press conference to announce a new series of pandemic responses including border controls. Anyone coming into Hong Kong from a high-risk country must present proof of a negative COVID-19 test before they're allowed to board their vessel.
Also, new central distancing measures. There'll be no more gatherings of more than four people. Also at restaurants, no more than four people could be seated together.
[04:55:00]
And no more dine in services at restaurants and clubs across the territory between 6 p.m. at night and 5 a.m. in the morning.
It is now compulsory to wear a mask on public transport in Hong Kong and the city has also announced a temporary closure of amusement parks including Hong Kong Disneyland. Disneyland will be closed for seven days starting tomorrow. This is what Carrie Lam said last night about the new measures.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CARRIE LAM, HONG KONG CHIEF EXECUTIVE (through translator): This is a time for tightening. Which means that it will affect business. Which means that people will become more inconvenient. So I will have to appeal to people that I understand, I fully understand you want to go to book fair, they want to go to restaurant, they want to meet friends, but this is a time for us to put our act together in order to fight this latest reemergence of cases.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
STOUT: Rosemary, as you know, Hong Kong has been a strong pandemic success story, but despite universal use of facemasks and despite a population of 7.4 million that have been so responsible and had this built-in pandemic know how because of our experience of SARS, of avian flu, of swine flu, now coronavirus, we have seen this novel coronavirus infiltrate the city once again. Hong Kong and its people have no choice but to respond once again as we try to get through this third wave. Back to you.
CHURCH: And the difference, too, is they take it very seriously. We don't see the same response here in the United States just yet. Kristie Lu Stout joining us there from Hong Kong. Many thanks to you.
And thank you for your company. I'm Rosemary Church. "EARLY START" is up next. You're watching CNN. Have a great day.
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