Transcripts For CNNW New Day With Alisyn Camerota And John B

Overturned Governor Tony Evers extension and the Health Departments extension through may 26th. Now, the ruling reads in part that an agency cannot confer on itself the power to dictate the lives of law abiding individuals as prehence civilly as the comprehensively as the order does. Thats what it came down to. Republican lawmakers felt that the order itself overstepped the Governors Authority and that the extension would cause too many residents to lose their jobs and too Many Companies to be adversely affected. Thats why it was filed in the first place. Democratic governor tony eastbounder says its a mistake. Today, Wisconsin Republican legislators and those Supreme Court justices decided that facts dont matter and the staut utes dont matter. Theres no regulations out there right now, period. Now we have no plan and we have no protections for the people of wisconsin. This will cause the us to have spikes across the state. Theres no question about it. Reporter now, despite warnings from health officials, both in the state and countrywide, bars did reopen in those just within a few hours of the decision and there were people willing to go. As far as moving forward, what the rules will be, were starting to see local jurisdictions step in place. Like in milwaukee, they said theyre keeping their safer at home order in place. Then places like the State Capitol of madison and in green bay, they put in place new orders for safer at home just last night. But as far as whats next in the longterm, the governor and the legislature will have to Work Together and given their working relationship over the course of the pandemic, that may prove to be difficult. Really interesting. Well keep an eye on that. Thank you very much, omar. In three hours, all eyes will be on capitol hill when the former vaccine official who filed a whistleblower complaint will testify. He claims he was removed from his position for political reason. Debra katz is the attorney for dr. Rick bright. Ms. Katz, great to see you. We have gotten a copy of some of dr. Brights opening remarks. I want to read one passage that has gotten a lot of attention. He says our window of opportunity is closing. If we fail to develop a National Coordinated response based in science, i fear the pandemic will get far worse and be prolonged, causing unprecedented illness and fatalities. Without clear planning and implementation of the steps i and other experts outlined, 2020 will be the darkest winter in modern history. What does he foresee . What does he mean by that . He means just that. There will be widespread illness and suffering and fatalities. If the country doesnt develop a National Strategy for the pandemic. He goes on to say. As i reflect on the past few months of the outbreak, its painfully clear that we were not as prepared as we should have been. We missed Early Warning signs and forgot pages from our pandemic playbook. Will he explain that . Which pages does he think were torn out of that playbook exactly . The issues that he raised. Instead of acting with urgency, as soon as it became clear that the strategy of trying to contain the virus at our border was not going to work and the experts certainly told hhs leadership it was not going to work and by january the virus is already here, he immediately says we need to obtain specimens so we can start working to develop medicine and diagnostics and vaccines and his Early Warning signs were ignored. He also immediately identified a problem with a lack of masks, a lack of syringes and swabs. The very basic tools needed to address a pandemic of this type that new york is living with now. Does he think weve learned nothing . Does he think theres been no progress made . There is more testing now. We do have more access to masks now. The idea that 2020 will be the darkest winter in modern history, dont we know more about washing our hands and staying social distanced. Sure. But weve lost months. We should have been able to supply medical personnel, First Responders with masks and prevent the spread. We did not act appropriately and many people got sick that did not need to get sick. We still do not have adequate supplies. When he talked about the pandemic playbook, there was an assessment done that we need 3. 4 billion masks to deal with the pandemic of the type we were dealing with. Our nation stockpile only had 100 million masks. In january, dr. Bright started racing that as an issue raising that as an issue. We have to up the production and ensure that masks are not sent overseas. His warnings were ignored. It sounds like dr. Bright himself can expect a lot of pushback from some lawmakers today. Lately, theres been reports on his record and his tenure there at barda. There have been former colleagues who have given some, i guess, quotes to reporters about dr. Brights mistreatment of staff and that he, they say, failed to consult his higherups. He made unilateral decisions. Basically, what will he say to that . Theyre saying that his removal wasnt political. It was a long time in coming. What will his response be . His response will be that he received a glowing performance appraisal. None of these issues were noted. In fact, he was wellregarded and unfortunately, this is what happens when people come forward and disclose serious issues of fraud, waste and abuse. Whistleblowers face this type of smear campaign. He will say and the nation will have a chance to judge his credible blt that he was a conscientious person. His staff actually loved him. The fact that this administration now is trying to politicize this by going after our nations leading scientist in pandemics is disgraceful. Its exactly why people stay silent and keep their heads down. Hes a courageous person because he came forward then and hes coming to testify before Congress Today knowing thats going to be subject to this kind of a test. One of his claims is that he was trying to urge caution on the use of hydroxychloroquine because it was an unproven and possibly dangerous treatment for coronavirus. That appears to have been borne out by the latest research. But the health and Human Services spokesperson has a different take on this. She says that he was not trying to pump the brakes, which she says is health and Human Services secretary pushed back on brights claim. She said he requested the emergency use authorization from the food and Drug Administration to secure doses of chloroquine for Strategic National stockpile. Is that true . Shes mixing things up. Initially, he did an assessment to see any kind of drug that was advantageous. He responsibly said lets get our hands around as much of the drugs as possible to conduct appropriate Clinical Trials. That did not happen. He felt strongly that Clinical Trials needed to be done to ensure that the drug was safe and advantageous. Thats what he was trying to get his handson. Thats appropriate. What the administration did was not appropriate. They said lets flood new york, lets flood new jersey with these drugs even though they were not scientifically tested to have any kind of efficacy. We know there was significant risk to taking those drugs. He absolutely pumped the brakes on flooding new york and new jersey with these drugs. The last time you were on new day and spoke to john, you said this had taken a toll physically on dr. Bright. So how is he feeling and it he prepared for whatever is going to happen this morning . He will testify today as a result of what has happened. He was suffering from hypertension. He is doing some better. But this is a lot of pressure. And the kind of attacks that hes now being subjected to from this administration are unfair and theyre hurtful. Theyre harmful to the public as well. Debra katz, we appreciate you giving us a preview of what to expect. Well be watching closely when dr. Bright testifies. Thank you very much for being here. Thank you, alisyn. John. Joining us now chief medical correspondent, dr. Sanjay gupta and Jeffrey Toobin. Well see what dr. Bright says. It will be interesting because he was there in the early stages of the response in the pandemic. Sanjay, another bit of breaking news overnight. Thats wisconsin where the state Supreme Court struck down the stayathome orders that were in place by the governor and it resulted in this. Scenes at bars across the state where clearly theyre not social distancing or wearing masks. You cant make a toast like that to be social distanced. When you see these pictures, what are your concerns . This is obviously concerning. Anybody who has been following the story along now for the last few months recognizes that a contagious virus is still out there. Its in the environment. People cluster together like that, the chances of that virus continuing to spread and developing these clusters is really concerning. I mean, that is some of what we saw a few months ago. I think peoples memories are short. In some ways, this doesnt surprise me. You get the sense that theres been a real impatience among people for some time and understandably. People have been going stir crazy being inside their homes. Maybe theyre not directly affected by this in some way. They dont know somebody who have been affected by this. I know people. Health care workers who have seen the patients. Theyre the ones who are sort of shaking their heads in disbelief because they see these patients all the time. But many people havent. Its shocking, its jarring. But its not surprising. Jeffrey, the wisconsin Supreme Court was divided in their decision 43. Basically the conservatives feeling one way, the liberals feeling a different way. I mean, they fiphilosophically this comprehensive claim to control virtually every aspect of a persons life is something we normally associate with a prison not a free society gofrd by the rule of law. What are your thoughts on the decision . The Republican Party turned wisconsin into a failed state. This is such an outrageous lawsuit, such an outrageous decision, including by daniel kelly whom you quoted who has been voted out of office but he hasnt been thrown out yet. His term isnt quite over. The idea that this lawsuit, sure, as sanjay said, its understandable that people are frustrated. Everybody is frustrated. But the idea that a state cannot try to protect the Public Health of its citizens is contrary to Wisconsin Law as well as common sense and this hostility in the Republican Party to the democratic governor there has just jeopardized thousands of lives in wisconsin. Sanjay, you talked about the impatience. Part of that might be that people are looking at the numbers. In wisconsin the number of new cases is going down. You can see that chart. Now, its just beginning to go down. In fact, across the nation we are testing more, a little bit more. But the number of new cases going down. The positive test rate, by the way also going down substantially. How do you explain to people that yeah, things look good right now. But we still need to be careful. I think the criteria were pretty clear on this. Theres two major things. There were several criteria. But two major things. You had to have a downward trind for 14 days. I get it. People say ive had a downward trend for a week, were good to go. 14 days exists for a reason. That means you get to a rate of new infections and there will be new infections no matter what when things reopen. Thats fru. You get it down to a low enough level where if you have testing in place, which is another second very important criteria, that you can quickly identify people with new infections, isolate them. Trace their contacts. Everyone in the country knows these terms. The states dont meet that criteria yet. The concern is that you have a few day downward trend. Wisconsin there, may 1st was i think one of their largest of new cases and theyre bouncing around over the last few days even though overall you may have a few days in a row where it goes down and then you have a spike again. Those are concerning because does that mean youre start to go get new spikes or new clusters of cases. Thats why you want 14 days in a row of a downward trend and then the testing in place. Its not clear that theres enough testing in place that will be required to then find people with new infections and isolate them. If you dont do that, you keep having the spikes again. What youre trying to prevent is this going into exponential growth. If that happens, its going to be a huge problem. Jeffrey, i am interested in the philosophy that youve fashioned on with justice kelly. Obviously, it is human nature to want to go out and socialize. It is human nature to want freewill and not want to be told that if you dont know anybody who is sick, why are you having to stay home for months and months . Then the other side is that your actions end up having repercussions on an emergency room doctor and on your neighbor. You know, you may not know. You may be asymptomatic. But you may accidentally infect someone else. So you know, i dont know if if youre waking up in wisconsin this morning, i just dont know what message youre supposed to go with. I think the problem is that this the virus has been politicized. You have democrats believing in science and believing in the need to listen to people like sanjay and dr. Bright who is going to testify and you have republicans who are looking at this, it seems to me, through an ideological lens that is about hostility to government, disbelief in science and government has got to come down on one side or the other. Either you are with science or youre not. If people have to stay home and if theres economic suffering as there clearly is, thats a price we have to pay. So thousands more people dont die. No one wants this. But there is either response to the real world or there is fantasy about what you want the world to be. It seems to me between those two choices you got to go the former. One thing that continues to be a problem around the country, meatpacking plants, Food Processing plants. Were getting new information about the outbreaks there. What have you learned . So first of all, the meatpacking plants have been real drivers of these new rates of infection. What weve known is that theyve led to a recent wieight fold growth with the coronavirus, new Coronavirus Infections. What were now finding, you can take a look at the numbers there. These various plants have had significant outbreaks. What were finding, i think, is interesting. This is a new report from the Environmental Working Group overnight that basically says now if you start looking in a 15mile radius around that area, 15 miles was chosen because thats the average length of a oneway commute. You find now in the counties around the meatpacking plants that you have twice as many cases of new Coronavirus Infections as in counties that are not 15 miles within a meatpacking plant. So youre starting to get a sense now of the impact of these clusters not just on the plant itself, the workers in the plant but on the counties surrounding it. Thats the real concern. If you start to get clusters and people are moving around, whether it be a meatpacking plant or a bar in wisconsin, then you start to see the broader impact on the Community Around them. Thats what the scientists are talking about in terms of spikes and trying to contain them. Sanjay if i can add, thats the problem here. The libertarians who are drinking in that bar in wisconsin are not just saying, oh, well ill take my chances about getting the virus. Theyre putting all sorts of people at risk. Those people have no choice. They are at risk because those people are in the bar. Jeffrey, sanjay, thank you both very much. More universities are announcing plans to keep students off campus this fall. So what about the rest of the schools, what about the schools in new york city . The new york mayor is going to join us next to tell us. And right now, is a time for action. So, for a second time were giving members a credit on their auto insurance. Because its the right thing to do. Were also giving Payment Relief options to eligible members so they can take care of things like groceries before they worry about their insurance or credit card bills. Right now is the time to take care of what matters most. Like weve done together, so many times before. Discover all the ways were helping members at usaa. Com coronavirus discover all the ways were helping members that gives me cash back onesome new aeverything. Akuten thats ebates. I get cash back on electronics, travel, clothes. Youre talking about ebates. I cant stop talking about rakuten. Pretty good deal peter sfx [blender] ebates is now rakuten, sign up today. So were working 24 7 toected maintain a reliable network, to meet your growing internet needs. Were helping customers who are experiencing Financial Difficulties stay connected. Were increasing internet speeds for low income families in our internet essentials program. And delivering selfinstall kits to your door. Nos comprometemos a mantenerte conectado. Were committed to keeping you connected. For more information on how you can stay connected, visit xfinity. Com prepare. Across the United States a lot of uncertainty as they weigh how and when to reopen. What does that mean for americas largest city. Joining us now is bill de blasio, the mayor of new york city. Great to see you this morning. Thank you, alisyn. If you can give us a timeline of what youre thinking, whats going on behind the scenes. Lets start with something on everyones minds, particularly parents. Schools. Will schools, the Public Schools in new york city be reopened in september . Alisyn, first and most importantly, new yorkers have done an amazing job with social distancing, with shelter in place. Thats why you see the Governor Tony Evers<\/a> extension and the Health Departments<\/a> extension through may 26th. Now, the ruling reads in part that an agency cannot confer on itself the power to dictate the lives of law abiding individuals as prehence civilly as the comprehensively as the order does. Thats what it came down to. Republican lawmakers felt that the order itself overstepped the Governors Authority<\/a> and that the extension would cause too many residents to lose their jobs and too Many Companies<\/a> to be adversely affected. Thats why it was filed in the first place. Democratic governor tony eastbounder says its a mistake. Today, Wisconsin Republican<\/a> legislators and those Supreme Court<\/a> justices decided that facts dont matter and the staut utes dont matter. Theres no regulations out there right now, period. Now we have no plan and we have no protections for the people of wisconsin. This will cause the us to have spikes across the state. Theres no question about it. Reporter now, despite warnings from health officials, both in the state and countrywide, bars did reopen in those just within a few hours of the decision and there were people willing to go. As far as moving forward, what the rules will be, were starting to see local jurisdictions step in place. Like in milwaukee, they said theyre keeping their safer at home order in place. Then places like the State Capitol<\/a> of madison and in green bay, they put in place new orders for safer at home just last night. But as far as whats next in the longterm, the governor and the legislature will have to Work Together<\/a> and given their working relationship over the course of the pandemic, that may prove to be difficult. Really interesting. Well keep an eye on that. Thank you very much, omar. In three hours, all eyes will be on capitol hill when the former vaccine official who filed a whistleblower complaint will testify. He claims he was removed from his position for political reason. Debra katz is the attorney for dr. Rick bright. Ms. Katz, great to see you. We have gotten a copy of some of dr. Brights opening remarks. I want to read one passage that has gotten a lot of attention. He says our window of opportunity is closing. If we fail to develop a National Coordinated<\/a> response based in science, i fear the pandemic will get far worse and be prolonged, causing unprecedented illness and fatalities. Without clear planning and implementation of the steps i and other experts outlined, 2020 will be the darkest winter in modern history. What does he foresee . What does he mean by that . He means just that. There will be widespread illness and suffering and fatalities. If the country doesnt develop a National Strategy<\/a> for the pandemic. He goes on to say. As i reflect on the past few months of the outbreak, its painfully clear that we were not as prepared as we should have been. We missed Early Warning<\/a> signs and forgot pages from our pandemic playbook. Will he explain that . Which pages does he think were torn out of that playbook exactly . The issues that he raised. Instead of acting with urgency, as soon as it became clear that the strategy of trying to contain the virus at our border was not going to work and the experts certainly told hhs leadership it was not going to work and by january the virus is already here, he immediately says we need to obtain specimens so we can start working to develop medicine and diagnostics and vaccines and his Early Warning<\/a> signs were ignored. He also immediately identified a problem with a lack of masks, a lack of syringes and swabs. The very basic tools needed to address a pandemic of this type that new york is living with now. Does he think weve learned nothing . Does he think theres been no progress made . There is more testing now. We do have more access to masks now. The idea that 2020 will be the darkest winter in modern history, dont we know more about washing our hands and staying social distanced. Sure. But weve lost months. We should have been able to supply medical personnel, First Responders<\/a> with masks and prevent the spread. We did not act appropriately and many people got sick that did not need to get sick. We still do not have adequate supplies. When he talked about the pandemic playbook, there was an assessment done that we need 3. 4 billion masks to deal with the pandemic of the type we were dealing with. Our nation stockpile only had 100 million masks. In january, dr. Bright started racing that as an issue raising that as an issue. We have to up the production and ensure that masks are not sent overseas. His warnings were ignored. It sounds like dr. Bright himself can expect a lot of pushback from some lawmakers today. Lately, theres been reports on his record and his tenure there at barda. There have been former colleagues who have given some, i guess, quotes to reporters about dr. Brights mistreatment of staff and that he, they say, failed to consult his higherups. He made unilateral decisions. Basically, what will he say to that . Theyre saying that his removal wasnt political. It was a long time in coming. What will his response be . His response will be that he received a glowing performance appraisal. None of these issues were noted. In fact, he was wellregarded and unfortunately, this is what happens when people come forward and disclose serious issues of fraud, waste and abuse. Whistleblowers face this type of smear campaign. He will say and the nation will have a chance to judge his credible blt that he was a conscientious person. His staff actually loved him. The fact that this administration now is trying to politicize this by going after our nations leading scientist in pandemics is disgraceful. Its exactly why people stay silent and keep their heads down. Hes a courageous person because he came forward then and hes coming to testify before Congress Today<\/a> knowing thats going to be subject to this kind of a test. One of his claims is that he was trying to urge caution on the use of hydroxychloroquine because it was an unproven and possibly dangerous treatment for coronavirus. That appears to have been borne out by the latest research. But the health and Human Services<\/a> spokesperson has a different take on this. She says that he was not trying to pump the brakes, which she says is health and Human Services<\/a> secretary pushed back on brights claim. She said he requested the emergency use authorization from the food and Drug Administration<\/a> to secure doses of chloroquine for Strategic National<\/a> stockpile. Is that true . Shes mixing things up. Initially, he did an assessment to see any kind of drug that was advantageous. He responsibly said lets get our hands around as much of the drugs as possible to conduct appropriate Clinical Trials<\/a>. That did not happen. He felt strongly that Clinical Trials<\/a> needed to be done to ensure that the drug was safe and advantageous. Thats what he was trying to get his handson. Thats appropriate. What the administration did was not appropriate. They said lets flood new york, lets flood new jersey with these drugs even though they were not scientifically tested to have any kind of efficacy. We know there was significant risk to taking those drugs. He absolutely pumped the brakes on flooding new york and new jersey with these drugs. The last time you were on new day and spoke to john, you said this had taken a toll physically on dr. Bright. So how is he feeling and it he prepared for whatever is going to happen this morning . He will testify today as a result of what has happened. He was suffering from hypertension. He is doing some better. But this is a lot of pressure. And the kind of attacks that hes now being subjected to from this administration are unfair and theyre hurtful. Theyre harmful to the public as well. Debra katz, we appreciate you giving us a preview of what to expect. Well be watching closely when dr. Bright testifies. Thank you very much for being here. Thank you, alisyn. John. Joining us now chief medical correspondent, dr. Sanjay gupta and Jeffrey Toobin<\/a>. Well see what dr. Bright says. It will be interesting because he was there in the early stages of the response in the pandemic. Sanjay, another bit of breaking news overnight. Thats wisconsin where the state Supreme Court<\/a> struck down the stayathome orders that were in place by the governor and it resulted in this. Scenes at bars across the state where clearly theyre not social distancing or wearing masks. You cant make a toast like that to be social distanced. When you see these pictures, what are your concerns . This is obviously concerning. Anybody who has been following the story along now for the last few months recognizes that a contagious virus is still out there. Its in the environment. People cluster together like that, the chances of that virus continuing to spread and developing these clusters is really concerning. I mean, that is some of what we saw a few months ago. I think peoples memories are short. In some ways, this doesnt surprise me. You get the sense that theres been a real impatience among people for some time and understandably. People have been going stir crazy being inside their homes. Maybe theyre not directly affected by this in some way. They dont know somebody who have been affected by this. I know people. Health care workers who have seen the patients. Theyre the ones who are sort of shaking their heads in disbelief because they see these patients all the time. But many people havent. Its shocking, its jarring. But its not surprising. Jeffrey, the wisconsin Supreme Court<\/a> was divided in their decision 43. Basically the conservatives feeling one way, the liberals feeling a different way. I mean, they fiphilosophically this comprehensive claim to control virtually every aspect of a persons life is something we normally associate with a prison not a free society gofrd by the rule of law. What are your thoughts on the decision . The Republican Party<\/a> turned wisconsin into a failed state. This is such an outrageous lawsuit, such an outrageous decision, including by daniel kelly whom you quoted who has been voted out of office but he hasnt been thrown out yet. His term isnt quite over. The idea that this lawsuit, sure, as sanjay said, its understandable that people are frustrated. Everybody is frustrated. But the idea that a state cannot try to protect the Public Health<\/a> of its citizens is contrary to Wisconsin Law<\/a> as well as common sense and this hostility in the Republican Party<\/a> to the democratic governor there has just jeopardized thousands of lives in wisconsin. Sanjay, you talked about the impatience. Part of that might be that people are looking at the numbers. In wisconsin the number of new cases is going down. You can see that chart. Now, its just beginning to go down. In fact, across the nation we are testing more, a little bit more. But the number of new cases going down. The positive test rate, by the way also going down substantially. How do you explain to people that yeah, things look good right now. But we still need to be careful. I think the criteria were pretty clear on this. Theres two major things. There were several criteria. But two major things. You had to have a downward trind for 14 days. I get it. People say ive had a downward trend for a week, were good to go. 14 days exists for a reason. That means you get to a rate of new infections and there will be new infections no matter what when things reopen. Thats fru. You get it down to a low enough level where if you have testing in place, which is another second very important criteria, that you can quickly identify people with new infections, isolate them. Trace their contacts. Everyone in the country knows these terms. The states dont meet that criteria yet. The concern is that you have a few day downward trend. Wisconsin there, may 1st was i think one of their largest of new cases and theyre bouncing around over the last few days even though overall you may have a few days in a row where it goes down and then you have a spike again. Those are concerning because does that mean youre start to go get new spikes or new clusters of cases. Thats why you want 14 days in a row of a downward trend and then the testing in place. Its not clear that theres enough testing in place that will be required to then find people with new infections and isolate them. If you dont do that, you keep having the spikes again. What youre trying to prevent is this going into exponential growth. If that happens, its going to be a huge problem. Jeffrey, i am interested in the philosophy that youve fashioned on with justice kelly. Obviously, it is human nature to want to go out and socialize. It is human nature to want freewill and not want to be told that if you dont know anybody who is sick, why are you having to stay home for months and months . Then the other side is that your actions end up having repercussions on an emergency room doctor and on your neighbor. You know, you may not know. You may be asymptomatic. But you may accidentally infect someone else. So you know, i dont know if if youre waking up in wisconsin this morning, i just dont know what message youre supposed to go with. I think the problem is that this the virus has been politicized. You have democrats believing in science and believing in the need to listen to people like sanjay and dr. Bright who is going to testify and you have republicans who are looking at this, it seems to me, through an ideological lens that is about hostility to government, disbelief in science and government has got to come down on one side or the other. Either you are with science or youre not. If people have to stay home and if theres economic suffering as there clearly is, thats a price we have to pay. So thousands more people dont die. No one wants this. But there is either response to the real world or there is fantasy about what you want the world to be. It seems to me between those two choices you got to go the former. One thing that continues to be a problem around the country, meatpacking plants, Food Processing<\/a> plants. Were getting new information about the outbreaks there. What have you learned . So first of all, the meatpacking plants have been real drivers of these new rates of infection. What weve known is that theyve led to a recent wieight fold growth with the coronavirus, new Coronavirus Infections<\/a>. What were now finding, you can take a look at the numbers there. These various plants have had significant outbreaks. What were finding, i think, is interesting. This is a new report from the Environmental Working Group<\/a> overnight that basically says now if you start looking in a 15mile radius around that area, 15 miles was chosen because thats the average length of a oneway commute. You find now in the counties around the meatpacking plants that you have twice as many cases of new Coronavirus Infections<\/a> as in counties that are not 15 miles within a meatpacking plant. So youre starting to get a sense now of the impact of these clusters not just on the plant itself, the workers in the plant but on the counties surrounding it. Thats the real concern. If you start to get clusters and people are moving around, whether it be a meatpacking plant or a bar in wisconsin, then you start to see the broader impact on the Community Around<\/a> them. Thats what the scientists are talking about in terms of spikes and trying to contain them. Sanjay if i can add, thats the problem here. The libertarians who are drinking in that bar in wisconsin are not just saying, oh, well ill take my chances about getting the virus. Theyre putting all sorts of people at risk. Those people have no choice. They are at risk because those people are in the bar. Jeffrey, sanjay, thank you both very much. More universities are announcing plans to keep students off campus this fall. So what about the rest of the schools, what about the schools in new york city . The new york mayor is going to join us next to tell us. And right now, is a time for action. So, for a second time were giving members a credit on their auto insurance. Because its the right thing to do. Were also giving Payment Relief<\/a> options to eligible members so they can take care of things like groceries before they worry about their insurance or credit card bills. Right now is the time to take care of what matters most. Like weve done together, so many times before. Discover all the ways were helping members at usaa. Com coronavirus discover all the ways were helping members that gives me cash back onesome new aeverything. Akuten thats ebates. I get cash back on electronics, travel, clothes. Youre talking about ebates. I cant stop talking about rakuten. Pretty good deal peter sfx [blender] ebates is now rakuten, sign up today. So were working 24 7 toected maintain a reliable network, to meet your growing internet needs. Were helping customers who are experiencing Financial Difficulties<\/a> stay connected. Were increasing internet speeds for low income families in our internet essentials program. And delivering selfinstall kits to your door. Nos comprometemos a mantenerte conectado. Were committed to keeping you connected. For more information on how you can stay connected, visit xfinity. Com prepare. Across the United States<\/a> a lot of uncertainty as they weigh how and when to reopen. What does that mean for americas largest city. Joining us now is bill de blasio, the mayor of new york city. Great to see you this morning. Thank you, alisyn. If you can give us a timeline of what youre thinking, whats going on behind the scenes. Lets start with something on everyones minds, particularly parents. Schools. Will schools, the Public Schools<\/a> in new york city be reopened in september . Alisyn, first and most importantly, new yorkers have done an amazing job with social distancing, with shelter in place. Thats why you see the Health Situation<\/a> here improving so intensely. Weve got to keep to it and be disciplined and the schools decision is several months away. Were almost four months until the beginning of school. Were going to make that decision based on health and safety. My plan a is open schools as normal. That would be the best thing for our kids and families. But only if we can do it safely. If we dont feel we can, then weve got a lot of plan bs and cs to look at as alternatives to make sure our kids are educated. Weve got a while before that decision. How about restaurants . I dont know if youve seen the video from wisconsin but last night the wisconsin state Supreme Court<\/a> decided that the stayathome order that the governor had issued was over effective immediately. They ruled against the governor and within 45 minutes, this video was taken. People in wisconsin were apparently very thirsty because they raced out and you see them reveling in bars. Obviously, new yorkers want to be able to do the same thing. Whats your timeline . What the Supreme Court<\/a> did in wisconsin is just dangerous. A governor, mayor, were elected by the people to make decisions about health and safety. Thats what we do. For a court to interfere with that is very problematic. The idea of people rushing to gather together in a moment where the coronavirus is still alive and well, that worries me deeply. So alisyn, were going to be slow and steady here in new york city. Were going to be very careful. Its about health and safety first. Its about avoiding that boomerang where the disease reasserts which will be worst of all worlds if we are not careful and that disease makes a comeback here or anywhere else. The restart, the recovery gets delayed much, much longer. I would say, when you think about restaurants in new york city, were talking to Restaurant Owners<\/a> and bar owners about the right way to do it in stages, do it carefully. Theres interesting talk about focusing on outdoor rather than indoor. It has to be with social distancing and with a safety first mentality. What will be the first things in new york to open . So were looking forward, hopefully as early as next month in june, if the Health Indicators<\/a> continue to move in the right direction, were going to talk about the things that we can start up again with a lot of social distancing, with a lot of precautions in place where people do not have to gather in tight space this is large numbers. The last things were going to be able to do are where theres large crowds. Thats months away. There are things that we hope to do. Well delineate them soon. Some of the Retail Sector<\/a> where people can go and do what they do without creating a health danger. You say that new york needs federal aid. That new york is financially in trouble. How much exactly do you want . So ill tell you immediately, we found in just the first weeks of this crisis that we were losing billions of dollars. The money we use alisyn to pay for basic services, to pay police officers, firefighters, teachers, everyone, Health Care Workers<\/a> who have been the heroes, over 7 billion lost already. Youve seen the economic forecast. Its going to get a lot worse this year and next year. Right now, if we dont get a massive infusion of federal support, we cannot go through this recovery. We cannot get our city back on our feet. We wont be able to pay the basics. What the house of representatives has done is exactly the right thing. To really make sure its a stimulus, not here is a small amount so you can keep limping along butt ability to get back on your feet and revive your economy. We need all the stimulus we can get if the America Economy<\/a> is going to come back. The proposal in the house of representatives would allow new york city and cities and states, blue states, red states, everyone to get back on their feet. Thats the direction we need to take. Is there a specific dollar sign you can give us, how much you think you need . What the house representatives over two years, 17 billion, thats a realistic figure. I know ive lost 7 billion. Next year will be similar. I guarantee you. The lost revenue alone over the next few years will likely be 17 billion. This is skbrus gjust getting us back to the point where we can run the government, provide the basic services, keep the people who have been the heroes in the crisis. Think about it. The same people weve lauded, the Health Care Workers<\/a>, the essential workers, their jobs only survive if we get the federal support to stay whole. Otherwise, were hemorrhaging so much money, were not going to be able to do what people expect in terms of basic services. How do you have an economy if you cant provide the basics to people. You cant have a recovery without the stimulus. I want to ask you about the death toll. Yesterday you announced that 20,000 new yorkers have died. Our reporting is that President Trump<\/a> is privately questioning the death toll numbers. He in private is suggesting that he thinks theyve been inflated. Your response . Alisyn, just think for a moment. When you ask the question, i mean, a pain came over me. 20,000 of our fellow new yorkers, our fellow americans, just one city, 20,000 lives lost to a disease we never heard of seven months ago. So just the sheer pain of this has to how many families are grieving right now. We have to be honest about it, alisyn. Look, what id say to the president is, when we said new york city really led the way in terms of transparency. We know that doctors, medical personnel noted on death certificates that even though they couldnt confirm it was the coronavirus, they thought it was the probable cause or a key contributor in the deaths of over 5,000 new yorkers. We wanted to be honest about that. Why do we want to try and minimize this horrible crisis rather than acknowledging its human toll and then learning what we can learn to protect people in the future and find ways to make people whole and move us forward now. Everything begins in life with acknowledging the truth of the problem. So were simply trying to say what really has happened here. I think this country needs to do that, too. Mayor bill de blasio, thank you very much for your time. Great to see you. Thank you, alisyn. Roons in the senate releasing a list of officials in the Obama Administration<\/a> who sought to unmask names from classified intelligence reports before donald trump took office. A closer look at what is really going on and what the president s role in this is. Every Financial Plan<\/a> needs a cfp\u00ae professional confident Financial Plan<\/a>s, calming Financial Plan<\/a>s, complete Financial Plan<\/a>s. Theyre all possible with a cfp\u00ae professional. Find yours at letsmakeaplan. Org. [ siren ] doug le with a cfp\u00ae professional. Give me your hand i can save you. Lots of money with Liberty Mutual<\/a> we customize your Car Insurance<\/a> so you only pay for what you need only pay for what you need. Liberty. Liberty. Liberty. Liberty. New fallout this morning after two republican senators revealed the names of Obama Administration<\/a> officials who requested to unmask americans named in intelligence documents. Now they were completely authorized to do so and those requests were approved by the nsa. Still, the president claims without evidence that the Obama White House<\/a> was trying to undermine him and his former National Security<\/a> adviser who was mentioned in some of the reports. Cnns sara murray live in washington with the details. Good morning, john. The president and his allies are taking a routine intelligence matter and whipping it into a Conspiracy Theory<\/a> suggesting that former Obama Administration<\/a> officials were out to get Michael Flynn<\/a> and by association, President Trump<\/a>. Senate republicans releasing a list of Obama Administration<\/a> officials who sought the names of americans discussed in intelligence reports in the weeks before donald trump took office. The unmasking is a massive thing. Its the latest attempt to discredit the fbis russia investigation and accuse the Obama Administration<\/a> of undermining President Trump<\/a> and his first National Security<\/a> adviser, Michael Flynn<\/a>. The list names top obama officials who may have received flynns identity. It includes former Vice President<\/a> joe biden. During the transition, flynn made phone calls to foreign officials and later lied to the fbi about what he discussed. The calls were picked up in surveillance of foreign diplomats. Americans names are redacted in foreign intelligence reports. Its routine intelligence work. Theres no evidence that the requests were made for political purposes. Procedures werent bypassed. Rules werent broken. All of the rules were followed. This was an individual who was captured and overheard on a lawful surveillance of a valid foreign intelligence target as far as we can surmise from the documents. Senate Homeland Security<\/a> chairman ron johnson and senator Chuck Grassley<\/a> who jointly released a list of names by acting rick grin he will admitted they dont know if it revealed wrongdoing. Im alleging nothing, johnson said. A document from the National Security<\/a> agency notes that the officials who requested the unmasking were authorized to do so. The practice is routine in the Trump Administration<\/a>, too. Unmasking requests have increased for the final year in office. That hasnt stopped trump and allies from claiming without evidence this was part of a conspiracy orchestrated in part by obama and biden to sabotage trumps presidency before it began. The president is driving the narrative using the obama gate. Obama gate. Its been going on for a long tiemt. Hes using the discloesh ush of the list to attack his 2020 rival. I watched biden yesterday and he said he knew nothing about anything. He knows nothing about anything. Nothing at all. Then it gets released today that he was a big unmasker. In fact, biden asked for only one report. Bidens Campaign Said<\/a> all the list shows is the breadth and depth of concern including among career officials over intelligence reports of Michael Flynn<\/a>s attempts to undermine ongoing american National Security<\/a> policy through discussions with russian officials and other foreign representatives. Now, the Senate Republicans<\/a> unveiled its part of bill barrs review of the russia investigation. In a recent interview bill barr said of all the people under review, none is running for president. John . Thank you very much. Joining me now is james clapper. He is one of the obama officials who made unmasking requests. We should know that mr. Clapper is a cnn security analyst. Thank you for being with us. I want to ask about the specifics in a second. First terminology that people need to understand. Some of the phraseology being used is fundamentally dishonest. People are saying obama officials requested to unmask Michael Flynn<\/a>. Thats not how it works. You dont request to unmask a named individual. When you are making a request for unmasking, what are you doing . Well, john, youre exactly right. What happens here is that when nsa, who is collecting foreign intelligence and intelligence on a known validated target who is engaging with a u. S. Person, that u. S. Persons name is masked or protected by being referred to as u. S. Person 1, u. S. Person 2, u. S. Person 3. When you see these reports, to understand the context and the importance of whats going on, the almost have to have the actual name. You dont know who it is in advance. So in my case, they cite list cites by the director of nsa three occasions where i requested unmacsking, which turned out to be mike flynn. You did not know that it would be general flynn when you asked to unmask these conversations . Well, no, i did not. Now, its possible i mean, this is 3 1 2 years ago. So i dont remember the specific reports in question. But its possible that the context may have suggested that, but i dont know. Again, if i had known that, i probably wouldnt there wouldnt have been a need to ask. But no, you dont know that in advance. The idea that Obama Administration<\/a> officials asked to unmask Michael Flynn<\/a> is inaccurate on its face because you dont ask to unmask an individual. You ask to unmask an unnamed or unknown individual. Exactly. Thats correct. Broadly speaking, how many unmasking requests did you make, say, in a given week . Well, great question. It varied. I dont recall the exact number. But over the sixplus 6 1 2 almost years i served as dni, i would say perhaps once or twice a week, perhaps. But it would vary. Not every day. But fairly frequently. Its a routine thing. Its appropriate and legitimate. When you have a valid foreign intelligence target engaging with a u. S. Person, is it an insider, someone in the government engaging with that foreign adversary. Its important from the point of jeopardy of National Security<\/a> that you understand whats going on. You would make those requests once or twice a week and to be clear, the number of unmasking requests went up in the years of the Trump Administration<\/a> from the Obama Administration<\/a>. Do you remember why you made these specific there were three, december 2nd, december 28th, january 7th. These requests to unmask the name of an individual . No. I dont. I dont recall what prompted a request that was made on my behalf for unmasking. I dont remember the specifics or what it was in the report that was suggestive enough that i was concerned and felt that i should know who was actually involved. Aside from the requests, what concerns did you have about general Michael Flynn<\/a> in this period, which was from the day after the election to the inauguration . Well, there was a general concern about the number of engagements with russians that we were seeing happening. May not necessarily have known what the content of the engagements were, but there were numerous engagements by representatives of the trump camp with russians. So that was of concern, general concern anyway. So that, i think, is what attracted the attention of me and other then serving National Security<\/a> officials. You have said this under oath, youve said it on tv before. But ill have you say it again. When you were director of national intelligence, did you see any direct evidence of collusion between general flynn or any Trump Campaign<\/a> official with the russians . No, i did not. Of course, collusion is not a formally defined term certainly in a legal sense. But if you read the intelligence assessment, particularly the highly classified version and as well as the unclassified version, you wont find the c word in that report. In the absence of evidence of collusion indicate to you that no requests for unmasking should have happened . If you had seen no evidence of collusion there, why ask for names like this in the intelligence reports . There could have been, as i say, other reasons why you would unmask. Again, when you read the report, it may not tell you what exactly is going on. Whether it was collusion or what, what youre trying to determine, does this pose a threat to National Security<\/a> . Now, the vast majority of these unmasking requests that came from Obama Administration<\/a> officials actually came before the december 29th call between the Russian Ambassador<\/a> and Michael Flynn<\/a> where they talked about sanctions, that was a conversation that Michael Flynn<\/a> admits to having lied about after. Again, the bulk of these conversations came before that. Many of them came around december 14th, 15th and 16th. Not from you. But do you remember anything suspicious happening at that time . No, i dont. But i did note the cluster around that period. So which prompted several officials to request unmasking. I dont recall the specifics of what reporting occurred then, but apparently it alarmed several people enough to request unmasking. John, i should make the point here that the nsa program, which is foreign intelligence, is completely separate from the program that collected the transcript of december 29th. Again, thats right. This list of names asking for unmasking from the nsa, thats a separate program than that phone conversation which was part of an fbi program. So asking for names, nothing wrong with that. Unmasking in and of itself, nothing wrong with that. Leaking classified information, and by definition, these phone calls were classified. Thats a problem, correct . Absolutely. It is. If anyone did leak the contents of these conversations with or without the name, that would be a problem, yes . Weve lost the shot. I wonder if we can get him on the phone to finish this. Lets try to get director clapper back. All right. Were going to work on getting that shot back. But joining me now is Jeffrey Toobin<\/a>, cnn chief legal analyst to talk a little bit more about this. Jeffrey, we were talking about the legality of unmasking and the outrage that is out there. Is there anything legally wrong or what are the legal implications for any of the information released yesterday . There are none. Because this is a perfectly routine operation of government. This is how the system is supposed to work. Names as director clapper just said. In these raw intelligence reports, the names of americans are not supposed to be disclosed. Thats a protection of american civil liberties. So if the policy makers want to identify the americans, they have to ask, who is that person . They have to have them unmasked. Thats how the system is supposed to work. Thats how it worked. And the idea that there is anything improper that went on here is a fox news, President Trump<\/a> fantasy. But nothing but its just not true. Is there any immunity that exists by being a member of a president ial campaign or president ial transition or for that matter, president ial administration in terms of your name being unmasked in a request . Not at all. In fact, you would want more disclosure about people who are important and have highlevel access. If someone who is involved in a major way in a president ial campaign, in a president ial administration is involved in something that is potentially improper, you would certainly want their name disclosed. Because youd want to stop it. The idea that, as you suggest, theres some sort of immunity for a highlevel person, the opposite is true. Jeffrey, stand by. We have general clapper back. General clapper, the idea of the leak which is something thats also being focused on here, that would be illegal, correct . If it involves classified information, absolutely. David ig nash yus put out this he mentions the phone call, the december 29th phone call. Did you leak that information . I did not. Good. Again, i was just talking to Jeffrey Toobin<\/a> about the idea of immunity here. One of the things youre actually looking into, people suggest how can you be spying or looking at a member of the trump transition. In fact, you would be more concerned if it were an active member of the administration, the Obama Administration<\/a>. Sometimes you want to know if current Administration Officials<\/a> are talking in ways with other governments. Well, absolutely. One of the concerns you have is particularly with russians, most of whom are going to be connected with the government, is if there is engagements with them, is there recruiting going on, for example . Or are the russians attempting to obtain leverage . And if it is someone involved in the current administration, youd certainly want to know that. Its a general concern, a general alarm. And thats why this is such an important and, frankly, routinely used tool. Again, the idea that somewhere floating that there was no justification for being concerned about general flynn during this time period, what would you say to them . Well, i mean, i know mike flynn and, you know, i dont its of interest. What exactly what was going on, again, with the russians who are it wasnt just mike flynn. It was others. So what exactly is going on with this engagement with our primary adversary, the russians. So thats, i think, why the warning lights on everyones dashboard was on. It wasnt a specific concern about mike flynn. Just in general why all the dialog and engagement with russians. Senator Lindsey Graham<\/a> has requested that you come testify before his committee on this issue and larger issues surrounding Michael Flynn<\/a>. What is your response . Given my age demographic, id be happy to come after ive been vaccinated for covid19. Would you testify remotely . I could do it remotely as the case with the fauci hearing or respond to questions or thoo sort of thing, but i dont particularly want to put my life or that of my wifes in jeopardy for inperson testimony. What is your response to those, and you have seen the headlines and some of the coverage who are saying that this is proof of a political witch hunt . Well, i dont think that it is any such thing. Gasoli again, in program has long existexist ed and the way it operates is trying to minimize u. S. Persons who are engaged in the activities and it is a very valuable tool to know about what is going on in these engagements with valid foreign intelligence targets. I cant stress that enough. And that is the predicate for the operation of the program. And it is a very important capability for protecting the National Security<\/a> of the country. Why do you think the president and some republican senators are raising it in in fashion then . Well, i think this is part of the narrative to, uh, create the impression that, uh, some there was something untoward or improper or illegitimate going on here. And there was not. And as general, uh, explanatory note eminphasizes, this was a legitimate process and people that got these reports were authorized recipients and authorized to request unmasking and that those procedures were followed. Just to read that, each individual was an authorized recipient of the report and the unmasking was a standard process which reviews justification for the request. General clapper, thank you for helping us understand the realtrealt reality. Appreciate it. Well be right back. Unilever, the makers of dove, hellmanns, vaseline, and more, is donating millions of products to frontline aid organizations like feeding america and direct relief. To get help or give help, join us at weareunitedforamerica. Com. There are times when our need to connect really matters. To keep customers and employees in the know. To keep business moving. Comcast business is prepared for times like these. Powered by the nations largest gigspeed network. To help give you the speed, reliability, and security you need. Tools to manage your business from any device, anywhere. And a team of experts here for you 24 7. Weve always believed in the power of working together. Thats why, when every connection counts. You can count on us. One of the many graduation traditions derailed by the coronavirus pandemic is the senior portrait. But the class of 2020 is capturing this moment in their own way. Across the country, graduating seniors are making this moment their own. And creating a National Gallery<\/a> of pandemic senior portraits. A visual record of the times. Were living in something that is going to be talked about and remembered for years to come. Jonah denton is part of the class of 2020, a new graduate and photographer. He shot these self portraits in his backyard in london, kentucky. I wanted to do something to visually represent what i was feeling and represented what all of the senior class of 2020 was going through at the time. The photos quickly went viral. The pictures themselves were able to show that there is joy. You can find something good in every bad situation. Portrait photographer Tiffany Smith<\/a> hopes to spread a little joy of her own. As a photographer, there is not much that i can do to take the sting away, but i can donate my time and give them something to look forward to. Smith offered free portrait sessions to the seniors at her local high school. And when word got out, the whole class wanted their turn. They are taking back whatever was robbed from them, and it is not completely gone. Their moment captured in photos as unique as each graduate. And be sure to tune in as the nation pays tribute to its 2020 high school graduates. In an hour long special, it is called graduate together, it is saturday night starting at 8 00 p. M. Eastern on cnn. We have breaking news on a court ruling striking down the stayathome orders in one state. New day continues right now. The wisconsin Supreme Court<\/a> overturning the states mandate to stay at home. This will cause fights across the state. And dr. Bright is giving fair warning, without more action, 2020 will be the darkest winter in history. The idea of having treatments available to facilitate the reentry of students would be a bridge too far. That is not an acceptable answer especially when it comes to schools. President trump questioning the accuracy of the coronavirus death toll in the u. S. The number of deaths is not the right number. It is higher. This is new day with Alisyn Camerota<\/a> and john berman. Good morning, welcome to our viewers in the United States<\/a> and around the world. This is new day. And we begin with breaking news. Chaos in wisconsin after the states Supreme Court<\/a> threw out the governors stayathome order. Some bars immediately reopened last night leading to scenes like this, large crowds reveling in their freedom but not socially distancing, not wearing masks. The governor likens this situation to the wild west saying that the state has no plan and no protections for its residents. And just a little later this morning, what could be an electric moment of testimony on capitol hill, the ousted head of the department overseeing Vaccine Research<\/a> is expected to testify about what he sees as missed signals and opportunities to confront the pandemic in the United States<\/a> in jachb and","publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"archive.org","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","width":"800","height":"600","url":"\/\/ia601900.us.archive.org\/30\/items\/CNNW_20200514_110000_New_Day_With_Alisyn_Camerota_and_John_Berman\/CNNW_20200514_110000_New_Day_With_Alisyn_Camerota_and_John_Berman.thumbs\/CNNW_20200514_110000_New_Day_With_Alisyn_Camerota_and_John_Berman_000001.jpg"}},"autauthor":{"@type":"Organization"},"author":{"sameAs":"archive.org","name":"archive.org"}}],"coverageEndTime":"20240618T12:35:10+00:00"}