americans filed a record-breaking nearly 3.3 million unemployment claims. let's put that in perspective. that is, by far, the highest number we've ever seen. nearly five times the previous record set back in 1982 when it was just under 700,000. but this morning, the fed chairman jerome powell gave a very rare interview on the "today" show and said he expects the economy to recover quickly. >> at a certain point, we will get the spread of the virus under control, and at that time, confidence will return, businesses will open again, people will come back to work. so you may well see, you know, significant rises in unemployment, significant declines in economic activity, but there can also be a good rebound on the other side of that. and that's actually one of the main things we're trying to do by assuring the flow of credit in the economy and keeping rates low is to assure that rebound when it does come is as impactful. >> the vote was unanimous, how about that bipartisanship. 96-0. next it goes to the house which is expected to pass it tomorrow morning, and then to president trump's desk. i want to take you now down to capitol hill where garrett haake is standing by. garrett, people are anxious to get these checks. how fast does this thing get signed? >> it could get signed as early as this weekend but that doesn't mean the checks will get to you that fast. it's our understanding for folks -- the amount of money individuals will get, the direct money that will go to families and people out of the country is based on your tax filings over the last couple of years. if you have direct deposit, if you get your tax return deposited directly into your checking account you could see your money in three to four weeks. that's not in time to help you with april rent but it's the fastest way they can get it to you. if you don't have direct deposit and they have to cut you a physical check, you are looking at a couple of months. if you don't have a physical bank they are looking at sending out debit cards preloaded with the money. but given the sheer number of people who will be getting some kind of financial assistance from the federal government here, this is just an enormous operation that's going to take some time to turn around. but at least we moved one step forward with that senate vote and house vote expected tomorrow morning, steph. >> garrett, promise me this because we have an enormous amount of questions coming in from americans who want to know when they are getting these checks and other information. as soon as you know more, you have to fill us in. >> you got it. >> all right. let's dig deeper on those record-breaking jobless claims. let's turn to california where jo ling kent is standing by in l.a. california's governor said his state alone had a million people filing for claims. how bad is it where you are, and how concerned are people that they'll not get paid out? >> good morning, steph. the stress here in california is real. we're seeing the governor newsom said it's been a million people who have filed for new unemployment claims since march 13th, two weeks ago. the idea here is that california and all of the cities that are under the stai y-at-home orders are going to be getting about $10 billion from the federal government in relief. we put out a call to people who lost their jobs and they've been telling us across the board that probably won't be enough and that filing for unemployment in states like california has been an overwhelming process. that when you have to file online because, in most cases, you cannot go in person, that you are facing clogged phone lines. you aren't able to get online. it's taking days for people to file for their unemployment. that's why, when i see this headline number, we sent that it m tick higher here in california beyond this big number that newsom said last night. another note is that the shelter in place order has only been in place in california since, i believe, march 16th. and so the number is likely to creep higher based off of that as well. so california, unfortunately, leading the way on this front as these unemployment claims get clogged up in the system. and california is also telling me the state agency that runs the unemployment claims office, they say they're trying to hire and staff up so they can meet all of this demand. they are thinking about bringing back people who have retired or left the agency just to stem the bleeding and meet people where they are and get them what they need. >> just think about that for a moment when you think about heroes. we've got people working for the government every day doing essential jobs to help you and me. jo, thank you. let's take you to new york which is the hardest hit state in the country and more specifically, elmhurst hospital in queens. it's one of the hardest hit hospitals in the whole state. ron allen is there standing by. ron, i understand they have seen more than a dozen people die in just the last 24 hours. talk about that situation. >> well, this is the center of the epicenter, stephanie. it's just a tragic and heartbreaking scene. behind me you can see there's a long line of people. it's getting longer and longer. they've been out here since 6:00 waiting for tests. this is a low-income neighborhood. an immigrant neighborhood. this is one of the oldest hospitals in the city. and it is at 125% of capacity at least. and we have a glimpse of what's going on inside because of some video that was released by a doctor here who was apparently so frustrated, she wanted the world to see what's going on. and you can see crowded ward. you can see the lack of ventilators. you can see how it's just overcrowded. there have been dozens of people in the emergency room waiting for hours and hours to see -- to get treated, to get tested. just a terrible situation. the city has said that this is the number one priority of the public health system in new york. they have been trying to increase the capacity of the hospital on a daily basis. taking what they describe as a terrible toll and, of course, the medical staff here, the doctors and nurses are doing heroic work around the clock. they are surging more and more supplies here. we've all heard governor kwoem o cuomo and mayor de blasio talk about the need for all kinds of supplies. this is the place number one on the list. about 125% of capacity. we understand a lot of these people, some of these people have been waiting out here since 6:00 in the morning. some will be here until 5:00 at night, maybe later, and some do not get in to see doctors because the demand is just so intense. it's been growing since we've been out here early this morning. what prospect is there for some relief? one of the big issues is ventilators. the doctor released the video said there were only a handful of them. we know that the numbers are astronomical in terms of what the need is versus what hospitals in new york city and new york state have. at this point, aside from surging supplies, surging personnel here, that's the solution at this point. but we know this is the beginning of the situation here, according to the governor and it could be weeks and weeks before we get to the peak of it. and this again is about -- around the city, this is the center of the epicenter. stephanie? >> that is new york in a nutshell. so much privilege and so much pain across five boroughs. not just the doctors and nurses we have to thank. think about all the hospital staff. the people serving food. the people cleaning up. those are heroes. i want to turn now a bit further north to connecticut where the governor of connecticut ned lamont is standing by. thank you for joining me this morning. i want to ask about the new senate bill. a minimum of $1.5 billion for each state. that's a total of $175 billion for all states. is that enough for you? yesterday governor cuomo was trashing that thing saying it's terrible for new york. >> stephstephanie, it's a good . tomorrow would be too late. obviously, the payments you make to the governors, i think on both sides of the aisle, we're the best people to allocate that money and put it where it ought to go. if i have one objection to the reporting in that bill is to think about the virus in terms of states or municipalities. yes, new york city is the epicenter, but it's worth reminding everybody the new york metro center is the epicenter. and that includes new jersey city where the infections are high. that includes fairfield county where the infections are through the roof. i hope they target the money based on need, not just political borders. >> i want to talk about medical supplies because, as you mentioned, thard. the medical supply issue. is it that you don't haves s acs to what you need or there's just a backlog? >> we don't have access. the federal government has been promising the ppe and the masks for some time. we're out there scouring the globe. we've placed orders weeks ago for ppe and other related materials. we can't get it. it's on order. it's supposed to be on the tarmac at kennedy. i'm now from the show-me state. i've got to see it. in the meantime, hospitals are being very creative in terms of reusing, making sure all nonurgent care is being put off so we can free up gowns, free up people, free up space doing everything we can on our own, not just waiting for the federal cavalry to come over the horizon. >> let's talk about unemployment for a moment. a massive unemployment number. your state alone has a three-week backlog in unemployment claims. how are you going to get on top of that because every day we keep telling people go on your state's website. apply for unemployment. but applying doesn't do anything if you don't actually get the money. >> no, i heard your report from california. we're bringing in retired people, relocating other folks at gol. we tripled the number of people processing these claims. that's the good news. the bad news is, claims went from, say, $5,000 a week during the last recession to $15,000 yesterday. 5,000 a week. now it's 15,000 in a day. that's what we're keeping up with. >> i want to talk about numbers for a sending. you were just reminding us what's really important. there's no borders between state and state. and one week ago, you were the person coordinating restrictions with governors in new york and new jersey. since that time, the number of cases in those three states have exploded. how worried are you that your numbers are going to follow suit? >> our numbers are following suit. we're doing everything in social distancing trying to contain it in the southern part of the state. being very careful in terms of people traveling elsewhere. urging everybody to stay home. metro north, the busiest rail system in the country, i believe, 95% empty. 95% below capacity. only 5% taking it. and a lot of those are first responders and doctors, folks we really need. so i think we've got the right balance. the roads are pretty much empty. so i'm hoping that people are taking this seriously and staying at home. >> how about the balance of the economy and the health crisis? i know the president said on wednesday he wants everything open by easter across the country. and across the board, people are saying that's not going to happen. but are there instances or locations where things can partially get back open? >> yeah, you don't want to send a mixed message out there. right now we've got to solve the health pandemic first and that's going to take weeks, and it will be shorter if people stay at home. we are thinking about the day after. we've turned on online learning. got free laptops out to people. scholastic is providing content. we're working with our businesses getting them fever thermometers so when they get going, they'll be able to test everybody coming back. but i'm afraid that's many weeks away. >> governor, thanks for joining me. thanks for all you're doing. >> thank you, stephanie. coming up next -- we are watching the markets as they react to the first unemployment numbers we've seen since the outbreak started. this as the chairman of the federal reserve says we may already be in a recession but also thinks we could snap back quickly. next, hospitals overwhelmed with patients. former dhs secretary jeh johnson will be joining us to talk about a program reportedly abandoned at the start of the trump presidency that could have helped a lot. yes. yes. yeah sure. yes. yes. yeah, yeah no problem. yes yes, yes a thousand times yes! disover. accepted at 99% of places in the u.s. yes, yes a thousand times yes! so, you bought those "good enough" paper towels? 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>> blayne, thank you. i want to bring in msnbc medical contributor and former health policy director in the obama administration, dr. patel. i've heard you say you and your medical colleagues are basically under the assumption that you're going to contract the virus. tell us about that? >> absolutely, stephanie. it kind of matches what you're seeing playing out in cities across the country. not just doctors but nurses and, as you rightly pointed out, essential hospital services staff. the people who bring you food. we're all kind of operating under an assumption that we will likely contract the virus and really now it's more about kind of dealing with the symptoms and not passing it along. and i think that that's important just to level set that that's where we're at. and a large part of why that is, is the lack of that personal protective equipment which is why you hear these outcries from health professionals all over the country. >> how concerned are you about that shortage issue? when we're listening to blayne talk about what could hit new orleans in a week and we know there's such a shortage of ppe, what could be done in five or six days? >> yeah, it's a great question, stephanie. to be candid, we're already getting guidance on websites about how to make our own ppes. you see a lot of kind of -- you see grandmothers and other stay-at-home kind of family members who normally are very good at sewing actually knitting these together. there's parent patterns on the internet. people are using gas masks and things you can buy from a hardware store. so it is very serious. i'm not doing this to scare the country. i really think it's just more to kind of echo what you and others and leaders have been saying. stay at home. the only way we can stem this tide is to prevent the very virus that we're all trying to fight together. >> and give us a history lesson. you were the health policy director in the obama administration. did you ever plan for something like this? >> sure. and it was a large team effort, as you well imagine, with expertise from not just health care but perhaps even more importantly, stephanie, there were -- it was an interdisciplinary effort led with teams from health care, defense, treasury, and it was exactly what we would call, quote, pandemic scenario planning. so these types of planning exercises are truly kind of part and parcel any of responsible administration. and unfortunately, the bulk of those recommendations really were removed in the change from obama to trump. and now we're -- i never -- we never wanted this to become reality, but we always knew that we had to be prepared for this type of reality amongst others like a cyberattack or a direct military threat. but this was one of the scenarios that we had planned for, yes. >> dr. patel, thank you so much for joining me. as i said, history is important. it helps you prepare and predict the future. and i want to share a just-released report that says a vital program in the department of homeland security that created models for potential pandemics just like this was abandoned. it was abandoned at the beginning of the trump administration, leaving the united states even less prepared for the coronavirus. that is according to politico. so i want to bring in former dhs secretary, jeh johnson. what is your reaction to this politico report? >> well, stephanie, this pandemic we're facing right now is a once in a century, unprecedented crisis, but not unpredictable. and we've got a taste of the future with the ebola crisis in the fall of 2014. and so the risk of a lethal virus spreading globally like this has been something that has been and should be upper most on the minds of dhs officials, health officials across the u.s. government. and, in fact, when the outgoing obama administration cabinet sat down and met with the incoming trump administration cabinet on friday, january 13th, one of the very few things we discussed was how to respond to a lethal pandemic like this. so when you're in homeland security, you have to prepare for a variety of different types of threat. a terrorist attack, an aviation disaster. but also, a lethal virus like this. and it's extremely disappointing to know that the plans that we prepared and exercised for seemed to have been shoved in a drawer somewhere. i'm afraid it reflects the department of homeland security's -- almost singular focus on simply immigration enforcement when, in fact, public safety, homeland security, is so much more. >> i realize you are not part of the current administration, but can you help us understand what that rationale would be? i know the american people often feel like there's too much bureaucracy in our government. we need to trim things down. but when you learn about a vital program, specifically put in place to prepare us in the event of a health crisis, why would one scratch that off? >> there's no excuse for that, stephanie. look, it is true that when you are facing dozens of different types of threats, you have to prioritize. and the way i used to look at it when i was secretary, there are threats that are high probabilities, but perhaps less impact and then there are threats that are of lower probability, but also high impact like the very crisis we're facing right now. and there has to be somebody responsible somewhere in the vast department of homeland security who is thinking about each one of these different types of threats and preparing for it and gaming it out and preparing scenarios for dealing with something like this. so you cannot simply just put aside the possibility something like this could occur, and we may be paying for that right now. >> here's something that i can't solve for, and i know you know the actual mechanics here. the president has articulated other members of his administration that they want the whole country back open for business, let's say, by easter. but thus far, it hasn't been the president shoutting things down. it's governors and mayors so how does the president reopen the country? >> that's a good question. if you walk across the street from my house right now in montclair, new jersey, the park is closed. the park is closed not because the president of the united states ordered the park closed. it's because the mayor ordered the park closed. i am here in my home quarantined basically because the governor of new jersey issued an executive order to that effect. i'm not going to my place of work in manhattan, at my law firm, because the governor of new york, governor cuomo, has issued an executive order to that effect. the president of the united states simply cannot override the executive orders of a mayor and a governor. and, in fact, social isolation, separation is a matter of local and state authority, not federal authority. so as much as the president would like to somehow see in a little over two weeks this is all going to be over and we can all go back to work again, he cannot mandate that, and i'm quite sure that governor cuomo will decide when it's appropriate for new yorkers to be able to go back to work. that's not a matter of federal authority. the federal government's principal role in a crisis like this is to regulate our borders, but also marshal resources, medical supplies, respirators, test kits, medicine. and though the president said last week, we're not shipping clerks. in fact, the federal government is. the shipping clerk in chief in a crisis like this. and so it's up to fema. it's up to homeland security and all the other departments to make sure that hospitals and local governments have what they need to deal with the national crisis like this. >> jeh, thank you so much for joining me. mr. president, if you're watching, i believe what jeh johnson just said is you're not the boss of that. we're going to leave it there. after the break, the mark els are about to open responding to the record-breaking unemployment number. over 3 million claims. highest on record. sleep this amazing? 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nope! a new volkswagen. a volkswagen?! i think we're having a breakthrough here. welcome to caesar's palace. thank you. this morning, record-shattering unemployment numbers are spooking wall street after two straight days of gains. markets just opened and the dow is down. despite the senate passing a $2 trillion relief program late last night, investors are laser focused on the unemployment numbers with more than 3 million americans filing for unemployment benefits this past week. let's put it in context. two weeks after september 11th, jobless claims peaked at 517,000. the number peaked again during the financial crisis in march of '09 when 665,000 filed jobless claims. this past week, 3.2 million americans filed first time claims. joining me to discuss, doug holds eakin. he's the former chief economist of the president's council of economic advisers and former director of the congressional budget office and ben whits, chief economic correspondent for politico and host of politico's money podcast. doug, i want to go to you first because secretary mnuchin was just on cnbc and he said these high jobless numbers are not relevant. does he have a point? you can't really compare this to the financial crisis or even 9/11. there's never been a time in history where the u.s. government told the economy to shut down. >> i think they're relevant. those are 3 million americans who have lost their job and are now going to have to rely on the unemployment insurance system for their welfare. but it's true that the situation is not comparable to either 2008 and the financial crisis or post-9/11. you know, this is a much bigger economic event. it's different in character. and it has to be responded to differently. hopefully we'll continue to do that well. >> my apologies. the dow is now up. i got those numbers delayed. ben, but to that very point, the dow is now up. assuming the stimulus, or really the relief bill goes through, you are going to see a huge amount of support for small business, big business, and individuals. >> yeah, i think that's why the market is up. it's also up because there were whisper numbers much higher than 3 million. i saw numbers as high as 7. i think there's some relief it doesn't look quite as cataclysmic, though this is a massive number. but that's exactly why it was so important that the senate finally got their bill passed last night. as you said, this is a massive extension of unemployment benefits. the additional $600 per week. the extension to four months. that's critical for all these people to have income that keeps coming in so they can pay their rent and get groceries and mortgages and all the rest of it. then there's massive lending available to small and midsized businesses, particularly through the fed. this bill has $434 billion in it to back up fed lending, to small and medium sized businesses which they can leverage up to 4 trillion. we need to keep people who have lost their jobs getting cash and businesses so they have jobs and incomes to come back to. this is the committee to save the world right now, to save this economy from sliding from recession to depression. >> i think it's really important -- >> earlier this morning -- yes? >> i think what ben said is really important. there will be the capability to get a little bit ahead of this and keep these businesses alive and preserve the business infrastructure for when we get past the pandemic. but we're not over the finish line yet. the house hasn't passed this. the president hasn't signed it. the money has not gone out the door. and i think the slower that happens, the more we'll see big numbers like 3.1 million in unemployment claims. that's the key right now. >> earlier this morning, federal reserve chairman jay powell spoke to savannah guthrie on the "today" show. i want to share a bit on this. >> the message is this, that this is a unique situation. it's not like a typical downturn. we've had people to step back from economic activity, really to make an investment in our public health. they're doing that for the public good. and this bill that's just passed is going to try to provide relief and stability to those people. the federal reserve is working hard to support you now and our policies will be very important when the recovery does come to make that recovery as strong as possible. >> doug, here's another unique situation. what does it tell you about the vacuum of leadership in our government and how scared our country must be right now when the fed chair goes on america's morning show to reassure the american people we're okay. what does that tell you about the moment we're in? >> i'm really glad you asked that question. as it turns out, i looked at my wife this morning. you know the definition of a crisi crisis? when the fed chairman is on the "today" show. the congress is in the process of giving the administration enormous amounts of not just money but programs that can infuse the economy with cash. but now we need to articulate the strategy. the american public needs to know that this isn't just $2 trillion we're going to dump out there. we have a plan to get small businesses the cash they need so they don't need to lay people off. large businesses the cash they need to do the same thing. big relief for those already laid off in extend ui and paid sick leave. this matches the problem we face. that's the kind of articulation that would be beneficial so they have some sense that, yeah, we can get through this. there's a plan to get through it and after that, we can go back to the life we used to understand. >> put that in perspective. before 1994, the fed used to not even alert markets when they would raise or lower rates. they would just figure it out. now you have the fed chair telling the american people, it's all going to be okay. it's a different world. doug, ben, thank you both so much. we'll leave it there. after the break, this relief bill passed on the senate floor in order to make americans be able to afford their basic necessities. but what happens when the coronavirus disrupts our actual food supply chain leaving less food for people to actually buy? 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>> thanks, stephanie. i think the first priority has to be the health crisis, but the close number two is ensuring that we have access to food throughout the country. that means two things in particular. number one, we have to protect the first mile. so the first mile is what goes into the ground, what gets planted this spring. 80% of all theae rable land will be planted in the next two months. that has to go off without a hitch. number two, we have to protect the last mile. 30% of all the calories consumed under normal times are consumed outside of the home. that means in restaurants or cafeterias. that gap has to be accounted for and if we don't find ways to move the logistics to get those calories into the home in new methods, we'll end up with a food crisis on our hands. >> let's talk about different logistics because a lot of our food is imported from other countries. with the border closures and travel restrictions in place, how are we going to solve for that so quickly? >> the most important piece of advice i would have for the government is to ensure that our borders remain open to both farm supplies and food. we already have instances of governments that are closing borders to food movement. if that happens, it exacerbates the situation we're in currently, and it's critical that we find ways to ensure that food and farm input, seeds, fertilizers, production can make its way to the farm in two months. those movements are occurring right now. we already hear stories in places like italy where drivers are afraid to leave the country because they don't know they'll be able to get back in. even the perception of a border closure can cause impact to our food economy. >> so how does this happen logistically? who manages these changes? right here where i am in new jersey with all the restaurants closed, you have got fishermen here with nowhere to sell their fish. how do things get rerouted to grocery stores or individuals? >> it takes everyone. the food chain is complex in this country and throughout the world. it's not just government. it's also private companies. it's also truckers who are moving away from the food service sector. may have been furloughed. shifting their time and resources to grocery and retail so that consumers can get access to food. it also requires the governments are thinking through the implications of their policy decisions. so when a border closure is made to protect the movement of human beings for health purposes, we have to make sure that food and food inputs can continue to move along that path. >> decker, thank you so much. it's a reminder that in this very dark moment if we work together, it can be our finest hour. i want to talk for a moment about one of those people who are making it their fine hour. they are americans across this country on the front lines who are helping us stay safe from the coronavirus, and they deserve to be recognized. today, i would like to honor our hero of the day, justin wiener. he's a grade school teacher in northern california working to maintain stability for his students who now have to learn virtually. every single morning, he keeps his backdrop very similar to his classroom, even his desk so his kids feel comfortable. it's a scene they know well. and every morning, he sings a greeting to every single one of them in a recorded morning meeting. so i just want to thank him. i know what it's like to be a parent dealing with kids who are really unsettled by this. i want to thank justin. i want to thank teachers across this country who are trying to keep a sense of normalcy and help those kids feel safe during a really scary time. thank you, justin. you're my hero today. if you know a local hero, please, send them our way using #hero of the day. too many after parties? 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>> good morning, stephanie. it's so good to be here with you. so what have doctors and public health officials saying time and time again, talking about physical distancing. why? because we are facing a disease that's caused by really a deadly virus for which we have no vaccine, no treatment, most definitely no cure. the only thing we know that works is physical distancing. so look at a country like india, for instance, where i still have many relatives, and my parents emigrated from years ago. this is a country one-third the size of the united states but four times the population. so just imagine the density of people. the concept of physical distancing is virtually an abstract concept. that said, and i'm getting real time -- >> okay -- >> yes? >> but then to that point, even if the prime minister in india shuts the country down, inside there are tiny apartments field with people. >> i'm getting real time information from my cousin who lives in india, a nationwide complete lockdown. the president -- the prime minister, sorry, is taking swift steps at the early stages in terms of the nationwide lockdown. yes, you're right. people are staying at home, and now whether they're practicing precautions within the home is unclear. i'm right now concerned about in the quarantined areas, where they have completely unsanitary conditions, dirty toilets, no hand sanitizers and soaps. if they don't get control over this now and by the way, also a country with 600 million people living in slums and other really impoverished conditions, but look, this is a country that also has a lot of resources. they have the second largest military in the world. so i think if they get their act together early, which i think they're doing, they may be able to stem it unlike what we're doing here in this country. >> jeffrey, last word to you. >> ewe're going to see a massiv spread of pandemic, we have to hold together as a world and take the best lessons from places that are succeeding in this, so that we learn from them as well. in the united states, we did for weeks and weeks, the president neglected this epidemic, now it is upon us. it is upon the whole world. everybody has to treat this with full urgency. >> it is no time to dither. it is a moment to take this seriously and work together. thank you both. we have to leave it there. we are out of time. this actually wraps up our entire hour. i'm stephanie ruehl. when we come back, my friend and colleague eamon mohyeldin will be picking up coverage. and date night essentials here. get free delivery when you order now through outback.com outback steakhouse. at philof cream cheese.w what makes the perfect schmear you need only the freshest milk and cream. that one! and the world's best, and possibly only, schmelier. philadelphia. schmear perfection. others see cracked concrete, instrundown courts.ere. i see a way to bring pride back to communities. that's why i made project backboard and a site with godaddy. how will you make your mark? 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