Prevent the spread of the coronavirus. And not only is it day 37, today is also earth day. Yes. The day when we celebrate one of the top planets humans have ever lived on. You know, honestly, you have to admit, man, earth is having the best earth day ever. Because ever since coronavirus locked all of us in our home, animals have been roaming free, the smog has cleared from the sky, the waters of venice are blue again. Basically as bad as coronavirus has been for humans, it has been amazing for the earth. In fact, i dont want to be a conspiracy ther rest, theorist but isnt wuhan a part of the earth . Interest trevors couch in new york captioning sponsored by Comedy Central city to your couch somewhere in the world, this is the daily social distancing show with trevor noah. Trevor now as you know, usually on the show we would cover all the latest coronavirus updates. But today we had a really special guest who came on the show. New york governor andrew cuomo. The man who is at the helm of the biggest coronavirus hot spot in the world right now. So for todays episode we are decided to air the full interview where we talk about everything from his meeting with trump to the rollout plans for new yorks reopening, to what it was like having coronavirus hit his own family. So here it is. Governor andrew cuomo, welcome to the daily social distancing show. Pleasure to be with you. I am a big fan. Trevor well, thank you very much. I think everyone is a big fan of yours right now because more than ever during this pandemic, people have sought out leaders who communicate effectively and seem to know what theyre trying to do. Nobody has all the answers about coronavirus but people look for leaders who know what they would like to do. Lets start off with new york. Where does new york stand right now in terms of the numbers and in terms of its trajectory. Well, the good news is we have shown that we can control the spread of the virus, right. Which people take for granted now. But i wasnt always so sure. We could have taken all these measures, closed down, stay home, and we without have seen that spread continue to go up. That would have been a really frightening place. But that was a possibility. We showed that we can control the spread. It went up, the so called plateau was hit, a flat spot and now we are on the downside of the plateau. The question is how fast is that decline and how long does it take to make the decline. We have about 1300 People Per Day new diagnose cease coming into the system. We lost about 474 people yesterday. Which is a horrific number, but it is, the only good news is it is less than the previous numbers of people we lost. And the hospitalization rate is coming down. We have about 16,000 people in hospitals. So the numbers are all on the decline. And thats the good news. How long does it take until that number gets to a small enough level where you can sleep at night and not worry about it . Could be two weeks, could be three weeks, could be 50. Trevor you are balancing the pressure of the people who want to and need to get back to earning a living and also you know, the pressure of keeping people safe as a leader. How are you weighing these numbers . Is there a point where you say the risk is worth taking to go outside . Yeah, thats you put the question very well. And often the question is more important than the answer. And here is one of those cases, i think. That is the boundary. The pressure that people are under is phenomenal. It is traumatic. This is traumatic for people. And thats the way i think about it. You are right, the economic pressure, you have no paycheck but meanwhile they are still sending the bills. The bill collector is an essential worker and they are piling up on your desk. You dont know when you will go back. You dont know if you will go back. You dont know if your job is still there, in your business is still there. You have been in the house with the family for a month, it sounds romantic, the first seven days, and then it gets highly stressful when you have everyone in that environment it with nothing to do and everyone has their own stress. So it is people are about to burst on one level. They are under that kind of pressure. On the other hand, we have 474 people die yesterday. You tell me how many people go outside today and touch other people, i will tell you how many people walk into a hospital three days from now. The cause and effect is that high. This virus communicates and transfers that quickly and that precisely. So you think a situation like new york city where social distancing cannot happen by definition. Nobody gets six square feet of real estate, right. You dont get six feet on a subway car or on a bus or sidewalk. You will see those numbers go up. It is an impossible balance, trevor. Its impossible to make people, to make both sides happy, if you will. And you just have to accept that. And for me its going to be about the data. Were going to be tested. Were going to look at the hospitalization rate, were going to look at that death rate. And you dont start to reopen until you haves no numbers under control. Trevor so what is that number for you . Do you have that number . Is there a number that medical professionals or experts have given to you and said this is the number that we think activates new yorks reopening . They wont give me the number, trevor. Because youre right, nobody has been here on any of these situations. What they will say is the number will decline to a level that is basically a low constance. Because you cant stop all transmission of the virus. Were never going to get down to zero. So when you get down to the lowest level you can, that is your low point. Because remember, the economy is not really closed down. You still have a sense of workers out there. You have people on buses and transportation and people in grocery stores. So that will be some low level constant. And once we hit that number t then you can talk about starting to reopen. So were seeing governors around america, were seeing leaders around the world using different tactics to reopen their country in denmark they started opening up a few schools. In germany theyre getting ready to do that. In georgia they said they are going straight to bowling alleys and hair dressing, salons, et cetera. Do you have an idea . Are you going to say to new yorker we will start with these industries, this world and then move to this or that. Or does it all open at once . Do you have an idea of what that would be . No, it has to be phased in. It has to be slow and building. And watch that infeksz rate infection rate as you start to open the val of to reopen. As you increase the flow, keep your eye on that infection rate. Were going to have the most aggressive Testing Program ever done, just to monitor that infection rate. Remember, the hospitalization rate is too late. Hospitalization rate is people who are so sick they went into a hospital. We want to track the infection rate. So we watch that, start opening the flow slowly and then basically it is a matrix. How essential is the business, and how high a risk does the business pose. The more essential businesses first, and the lower risk businesses first. So barbershops, hair salons, to me they are on the end of the chain because they are not that essential. People would argue, but in the scope of things, they are not that essential. And they are high risk because i want to see a person perform a haircut and maintain social distancing while they give you a haircut. And i want to see the haircut that they do after they did it socially distant. So that would be on the front end, you would just basically be doing the next launchofessential services, right . What is the next level of essential. And low risk essential. Trevor well, thats part one with governor cuomo. And will have more right after this break. Im your mother in law. And i like to question your every move. Like this left turn. Its the next one. You always drive this slow . How did you make someone i love . That must be why youre always so late. I do not speed. And thats saving me cash with drivewise. My son, he did say that you were the safe option. And thats the nicest thing you ever said to me. So get allstate. Stop bossing. Where good drivers save 40 for avoiding mayhem, like me. This is my sons favorite color, you should try it. [mayhem] you always drive like an old lady . [tina] youre an old lady. Only roomba i7 uses two multisurface rubber brushes. And picks up more pet hair than other robot vacuums. And the filter captures 99 of dog and cat allergens. If its not from irobot, its not a roombaâ„¢. Welcome back to daily social distancing shoavment earlier today i spoke with new york governor andrew cuomo, here is more with the interview. You are in an interesting place right now where you are the governor of new york, but you are one of many governors who has entered into a pablght to try and open up a region. Because as you said publicly, the the virus doesnt follow state lines. You cant do this approach without the federal government helping you where it needs to. You and trump have gone back and forth but one thing you both acknowledge is that when it comes down to it, you know how to communicate and you work together. You had a meeting with the president. Was there anything fruitful from that meeting . Is there anything that is going to come from that meeting . And what is the relationship feen yourself and trump slash the federal government right now in getting new york what it needs. The relationship between myself and the president is, the president doesnt like me. That is the relationship stufnlt ambiguous, st honest, st open. And he doesnt like my politics, lets say. And we have been at political loggerheads many times over the past few years. If you look at his twitter account, you will see my name quite often. None of it good, trevor, none of it good. And i have sued the federal government a number of times. So it is open and it is not necessarily loving. Having sailed that, we had a meeting, the white house, and it was a very productive meeting. And i dont mean in diplomatic, concept all talk, it was a honest, open, granular detailed conversation about the subject of test. Which is totally new for everyone. Its an impossible undertaking because the numbers are just so extraordinary and there is so much urgency to it. But we had a very honest conversation and we went through what is test, and what should the states do, and what should the federal government do. And we basically allocated tasks. So it was a very positive conversation. And look, i give them credit. Because it is hard to actually sit down with some one who you have is differences with. And say put that all aside. And lets just do our job here, our respective jobs. Because it is bigger than we are. And that is what yesterday was. It was forget everything else. Were talking about lifeanddeath. Were talking about the profound moment of our history that we will experience and we have a job to do because were in a position, and lets just do it and forget everything else. And that is the way it should be. Who cares o how telephone he is or how i feel. Who cares about how i feel about him personally. My feelings are irrelevant. My emotions are irrelevant. Just do the job. Who cares about what i think or what he thinks. And thats what yesterday was. Trevor great to hear that the testing part of it is what really jumped out to me. Because one thing most people seem to agree upon all across the world is with testing that is going to be our best defense against coronavirus before vaccine. Testing and tracing this virus. What does that mean though for you as a governor of new york. Does it mean every new yorker has some method where they are selftesting or getting tested and monitoring themselves . Does it mean that people who come from out of state can or cannot come in unless they are tested . Im really infreeinged by how this will work. Because unless the whole world is doing the same sthing, one hole might be a local for everybody. It could sink the entire ship. So what does that mean for you in terms of testing and how it will be applied. There there will always be a net with many holes. I dont think youre going to have enough tests anywhere to to design the perfect system, okay. Testing capacity, we are trying to jump start a Testing Laboratory system that just doesnt do this. I have private labs in my state, there are National Manufacturers of lab kits and lab equipment. But were asking them to go to 50 times what they can do. If you took every machine in the state of new york that does z t and you ran itself endays a week, 24 hours a day, you could get up to about 40,000 tests per day, all right. That is the maximum capacity. Sounds like a lot, but its not when you are talking about 19 million people. I have done more tests in this state than any state in the united states. We do more tests than any country per capita and we have tested about 500,000 people. It sounds like a lot of people. But again, not on a population of 19d million, not on a workforce of 9 million. And that was 500 in one month. You want to bring them back based on tests, you cant do it. What tests can do is monitor the spread of the virus. That you can do with tests. And that is the single most important thing to me. Because as you are opening, the reopening valofand increasing the flow, what you need to know is how many people are geght infected and that testing can do for you. It can also do Antibody Testing with not only how many pleem infected but people that can do the con val es ent Plasma Treatment which is important. And it gives employers a tool in their workplace to test a smaller number so you know for those that next throng of essential businesses that their workers are fine. But you are never going to be able to do a net that covers new york or any other state. Trevor as a governor you are facing a pandemic right now, in one of the most affected places in the world. The horizon, unfortunately, brings with it another dark side and that is peoples finances. You know, yes, some people may have been able to stop paying their mortgage, some may have been given a little leeway to pay their rent or not pay their rent. What happens on the other side of this . Is there a plan to help people, to help new yorkers who now may have a landlord who says well, you are only two times the rent. Or now you owe me double this or double that, is there any plans to try and alleviate that stress that may be felt post coronavirus. Were talking about it, trevor, and we are thinking about it. We dont have a specific plan yet because we dont know how bad it is. I have said short term no one can be evicted for nonpayment. Okay. So you are out of work, you are not having a check. You cannot be evicted for nonpayment. That is the immediate shortterm problem, right. Depending on how long this goes, you will have other issues down the road, no doubt. The expression stone to stone across the moras, how do you get across the that is all we see in front of us. Stone to stone. You dont have to figure out the whole path, just find the next firm stone to advance your progress. And thats what we are doing. So deal with it here and now, and then well tig out the future when we actually see what the future is because were we have been wrong from day one here, right. Every projection has turned out to be incorrect. So i am at the point where let me see the facts that i am dealing with and then well deal with it. Trevor when we come back, we will complete the triology of my interview with governor cuomo. Cuomo. Stay cuomo. Stay when you think of a bank, you think of people in a place. But when you have the chase mobile app, your bank can be virtually any place. So, when you get a check. You can deposit it from here. And you can see your transactions and check your balance from here. You can save for an emergency from here. Or pay bills from here. So when someone asks you, wheres your bank . You can tell them heres my bank. Or heres my bank. Or, heres my bank. Because if you download and use the chase mobile app, your bank is virtually any place. Visit chase. Com mobile. Eveso we can stillg a answer your calls. Now. And we are monitoring our system 24 7 to ensure that we have a fast reliable network, keep the customers connected, and making sure people are staying safe. And were still on the road. Solving Critical Issues as they arise. Go to xfinity. Com prepare. Thank you. Distancing show, on todays episode we have been going in depth with governor andrew cuomo, so here st the final part of our inte view. One thing you have done as governor that has been particularly unique amongst leaders is you havent just i think given people platitude, you came out with really stern warnings really early on. You were very grim in your forecasts. You just told the people what information you had. It st a very unique way to handle a press conference. Youve also been very personal in telling the store he stories that you have told. Is there a reason you chose to do this . Because somebody doesnt go im going to hide it all and not slair anything with the public, i will just make them feel good. You have chosen a completely different approach. Why, because i havent slept at night and i feel like you could have carried some of that burden for me. But i want to know why you chose o to not do that . We had our first case on march 1st. I was going to put in some of the most dramatic government mandates in history. No other governor has shut down the economy it. No other governor has ever said you have to stay home. If new yorkers had said no, im not doing it, and new yorkers are a defiant bunch, i would have been powerless. I cant enforce a stay at home order for 19 million people. The ability to have a plan was purely depend ent on new yorkers buying in. And they are smart, and they are cynical. And if they dont believe you or you havent made your argument and you havent laid out the facts, theyre not going to do it. Especially when youre asking them to do something they dont want to do. Especially when you are asking them to do something they have never done before. Just think about things that new yorkers, everybody must stay home, lock the door. You cant go outside, except to go buy food and then you have to run right back home. No, no, i am a native new yorker. My first instinct is no, im not doing that. But im not doing it. So they have to believe it. They have to understand it. And i am not in the business of not telling the truth or trying to manipulate or im only going to tell you what you can handle because im worried about what you can actually absorb. No. I am not there to filter. Im not there to manipulate. Here is the situation. Here are the facts. I am going to tell you everything i know. You know everything i know. And just the way i know it. No sawrg coating. Trevor there is no lying that everyone has been affected by this. Some days i feel like life is normal. Some days i feel like this is the craziest thing i have ever experienced and it swings wildly, i know everyone has a different experience of it i dont know what st like to be a leader, a governor of a state where thousands of people are dying and you are hearing this, you are seeing the stories, you are responsible for these lives. You are not responsible for