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U.S. Hits Another Daily COVID-19 Record; Brazil Reopens As Cases Near 1.5 Million; Britain to Reopen Pubs on Saturday. Aired 10-11a ET
Aired July 03, 2020 - 10:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[10:00:17]
KIM BRUNHUBER, CNN ANCHOR: Hello. And welcome to CONNECT THE WORLD. I'm Kim Brunhuber in Atlanta.
Another day, another record number of new coronavirus cases in the United States. We'll take you to the heart of this crisis. In the next few
minutes, I'll speak to the head of the ICU in Miami, Florida.
Plus, in Brazil, cases are close to 1.5 million and they're facing another crisis -- massive unemployment.
And in the U.K., they're opening pubs and restaurants this weekend. Boris Johnson's message: don't overdo it.
(MUSIC)
BRUNHUBER: The United States is heading into the holiday weekend with a string of unwanted records. For the second straight day the country
reported its highest daily number of new COVID-19 cases -- more than 52,000 on Thursday.
So you can see on this chart here how the daily average has essentially doubled since the middle of June. But the U.S. president is painting a very
different picture of what's happening across the country.
Boris Sanchez has the latest.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Another record- setting day for new coronavirus cases in the United States. As the CDC made this startling prediction ahead of the holiday weekend, projecting 19,000
more people could die from the disease by July 25th.
But at the White House, a different message from President Trump.
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: This is being handled. We have some areas where we're putting out the flames or the fires and that's
working out well. Now we're opening up and it's opening up far faster than anybody thought even possible and more successfully.
SANCHEZ: Now, 36 states are seeing increases in new weekly infections this morning. Dr. Anthony Fauci says that is extremely worrisome.
DR. ANTHONY FAUCI, DIRECTOR, U.S. NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY AND INFECTIOUS DISEASES: It's quite disturbing. We're setting records,
practically, every day of new cases in the numbers that are reported. That clearly is not the right direction.
SANCHEZ: For weeks, governors in Arizona, Florida and Texas resisted issues mandatory mask orders. But on Thursday, Texas Governor Greg Abbott
issuing an executive order requiring them in every county with 20 or more active cases.
That covers about 95 percent of the state's population. Texas adding nearly 8,000 new cases Thursday. And health care providers are asking residents to
stay home this weekend as hospitals become overwhelmed with patients.
DR. MARC BOOM, CEO & PRESIDENT, HOUSTON METHODIST: In Texas, you know, we were worried about fuel being dumped on the fire over the weekend. We have
a chance like it being a garden hose starting to hit the fire and actually starting to slow things down. This order really helps that happen
tremendously.
SANCHEZ: Intensive care units in Arizona are nearly at 95 percent capacity. Governor Doug Ducey asking the federal government to send 500
additional medical personnel to help.
DR. MURTAZA AKHTER, ER DOCTOR, VALLEYWISE HEALTH MEDICAL CENTER: Our positivity rate is ridiculously high, 25 percent of the people in this
state can get tested test positive. That is way higher than the 5 percent threshold. And that's just the cases that are happening right now.
SANCHEZ: Ducey temporarily pausing Arizona's reopening plan.
Florida also doing the same with no signs of the spread slowing down statewide. The Sunshine State recording more than 10,000 new positive
cases, a record high.
Governor Ron DeSantis defending his leadership when pressed on whether he takes responsibility for the increases.
GOV. RON DESANTIS (R), FLORIDA: I don't think anyone predicted a Sun Belt resurgence in mid-June. But we had the infrastructure in place and we're in
a much better place to be able to deal with this.
SANCHEZ: At the same briefing in Tampa, Dr. Birx sending this message to Floridians under 40.
DR. DEBORAH BIRX, WHITE HOUSE CORONAVIRUS TASK FORCE COORDINATOR: But if you have participated in a large gathering in the last four weeks, we ask
all of you to come forward and be tested because of the level of asymptomatic spread.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BRUNHUBER: That was Boris Sanchez reporting.
I want to bring in now, Dr. David De La Zerda. He's the ICU medical director at Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami.
Thanks so much for joining us in what is obviously a very busy time for you.
So, as we just heard an explosion of cases, you're on the front lines. Please tell us what you're seeing.
DR. DAVID DE LA ZERDA, ICU MEDICAL DIRECTOR, JACKSON MEMORIAL HOSPITAL: Hi, how are you? Thank you for having me.
So yes, you know, in the last week we are having an unprecedented amount of new cases admitted to the hospital. So I work in the ICU, so I get 5 or 10
percent of the patients that come to my ICU. But we have seen an explosion in cases in the last week.
BRUNHUBER: Now, we have seen from some of our correspondents inside of the ICUs it seems like a mass trauma event has happened, but it's a disease.
[10:05:08]
I mean, give me a sense of the atmosphere, what it's like to treat so many people at once.
DE LA ZERDA: You know, it's difficult. At this point, the hospital is pretty big. So we have enough rooms. We have enough supplies.
But there is an increase in the pace of patients coming through the emergency room, through the floors and to the ICU. So we increase our force
and we deployed our physicians and our nurses, but there's so much we can do. And also for now, we can control the situation.
But if we continue in this pace, it's going to be pretty out of our hands, because it's the amount of new patients are pretty impressive.
BRUNHUBER: Right, that's the worry. You know, obviously, if they're in the ICU, every case is worse and every death is tragic, but has there been any
recent case you've dealt with that has really stayed with you?
DE LA ZERDA: Yes. You know, I'm seeing a lot of younger patients like the last time. I mean, between the age of 25 to 45.
So when you have somebody really young that they have no history whatsoever. They just went to work in construction, I remember a particular
guy, because he needed to support his family. He got the disease and now he is doing very bad in our ICU.
So those young cases, people are doing the best they can to protect their families. But they could see, that's like the ones -- it's really bad.
Really it affected me a lot.
BRUNHUBER: Yes, we are hearing more and more young people are getting infected and that the patients are getting sicker than those -- a month or
two ago, at least in Miami. Is that what you're seeing and any idea why?
DE LA ZERDA: You know, yes. I think that the ones that get to the ICU, we see 5 to 10 percent of everybody being admitted. The resources, we're
spending on these patients. I mean, the resources, of the amount of oxygen they needed, the medications to get the blood pressure from high it's much
more than last time.
The reason why, you know, it's only -- I have the feeling that it's the amount of virus that they were exposed. It's different than if you go to
our -- I don't know, a shopping place, to a grocery store, you get exposed by somebody who is sick. You go to the house party where 20 people are
infected and you get the load of virus at you at one time.
It's just my theory. Again, this is no evidence-based, there is no studies on the subject, but that's my idea.
BRUNHUBER: Wow. That's interesting if true. I talked to people here who are, you know, fatalistic about getting it. They say, well, as long as
you're not old or frail, you isolate yourself in bed for a little while, you'll be fine.
So, as a lung specialist, give me a sense of what this disease can do to your lungs even if you're young, you know?
DE LA ZERDA: You know, that's a great question. One, because young people believe they will not get sick or die from COVID, which is completely
false. A lot of people are getting sick, they're really young and they're dying even young.
So probably that's the reason that we see a lot of the young people not wearing masks and so forth. The second question is, what happened after? We
have seen those lungs are more like fibrosis, like people with pulmonary fibrosis. They will have oxygen requirements for a long time. I will not be
surprised if we have to have lung transplants in some of these patients in the future.
For now, you know, the COVID is kind of new, so we need to follow the patients here in Jackson Hospital and we'll have a clinic to follow the
patients after they're discharged. So we'll know more as the months go. But right now, the lungs are pretty damaged after the COVID, even in young
people.
BRUNHUBER: Wow.
Now, we're starting to see more mandatory mask orders, so I imagine for you that's welcome news. But do you think if they had been implemented sooner,
would that have saved lives?
DE LA ZERDA: You know, I think the expectations was that people would behave, that you don't have to mandate people to use masks. That people
will understand that this is about us as humans, not about your political orientation.
Unfortunately, people didn't behave the way we all expected so you need to enforce that. So, I think Miami-Dade County and Miami Beach are moving in
the right direction by enforcing masks. So, I hope people really understand, they need to do this for themselves and for their families. And
hopefully the culture will change.
BRUNHUBER: All right. Let's hope that message is heard. Thank you so much, Dr. David De La Zerda in Miami. Thank you very much for your time.
DE LA ZERDA: Thank you very much for having me. Have a great day.
BRUNHUBER: All right.
Well, right now the U.S. is in a place where no country wants to be with the highest number of COVID-19 cases and deaths in the world. There are
questions about President Donald Trump's leadership and his response to the pandemic.
Our Nic Robertson reports on how Donald Trump's policies have changed how the world sees the United States.
[10:10:03]
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR (voice-over): America's COVID-19 infection rate is putting it on an exponential path to pariah.
This week, U.S. citizens barred entry from Europe, as a recent poll shows Europeans trust in Trump's America is tanking.
TRUMP: We must protect our borders from the ravages of other countries.
ROBERTSON: From his inauguration, Trump's "America first" has accelerated the U.S. along a road from international respect to unreliable ally.
TRUMP: We've been talking about this for a long time.
ROBERTSON: Within days, shunning global trade deals, banning citizens of seven Muslim-majority nations from travel to the U.S.
E.U. leaders meeting in Malta soon after sounded the alarm.
On his first overseas trip at NATO H.Q., a few months later, Trump bullied his peers, manhandling one leader, yanking the hand of another, capping at
all, refusing to endorse NATO's founding principle, Article 5: an attack on one, an attack on all.
(on camera): And now, three years later, concerns at NATO run so deep that some senior officials fear that, if President Trump is reelected, it could
render the transatlantic alliance irrelevant.
But Trump's decision to pull 9,500 troops from Germany, without telling Angela Merkel, is emblematic of a bigger problem for the United States as
an unreliable ally, and not just about NATO.
(voice-over): Whether on Syria, North Korea, trade, or NATO, he is unpredictable. Perhaps most so on China.
TRUMP: I think our relationship has never been better. We're very much involved with them right now on the virus that's going around.
ROBERTSON: In January, he backed China. By April, he wanted them castigated for failing to contain COVID-19 and withholding information.
At WHO's annual meeting in May, all of Trump's E.U. allies effectively sided with China. Sweden's former PM, an experienced global diplomat, Carl
Bildt, tweeted: Observing the post-American world. A confident and assertive China with a clear strategic approach. An E.U. trying to rescue
what is left of global cooperation. And a disruptive U.S. more keen on fighting China then fighting COVID-19.
Worse, Trump's own words on COVID-19. Whether on ingesting bleach.
TRUMP: By injection, inside, or -- or almost a cleaning.
ROBERTSON: Or use of the ineffective virus drug hydroxychloroquine, have rendered his opinions almost worthless.
(on camera): If COVID-19 were Trump's only crisis, U.S. allies could be more forgiving. But he has jangled so many nerves -- threatening war with
North Korea, almost starting one with Iran, while, apparently, being in the thrall of dictators -- helping create an unstable global environment that
they have seized upon.
(voice-over): On his watch, Russia's Putin has effectively become president for life, as has China's Xi, who has also floated international
laws, snatching control of Hong Kong.
This Independence Day, the United States will be more alone than in decades. As COVID-19 spikes from state to state, old allies will be
watching, helpless and transfixed, knowing that their fate is still tied to Trump.
Until the world's biggest economy recovers, everyone is at the mercy of the pandemic.
Nic Robertson, CNN, London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BRUNHUBER: Coming up next, Brazil has nearly 1.5 million cases of COVID- 19, that's not the only crisis that the country is facing. We'll look at Brazil's second largest city as it starts to reopen.
Plus, crowds are sure to be out for a pint this weekend as England's pubs and restaurants open. But Britain's prime minister is warning the public
don't overdo it.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[10:16:25]
BRUNHUBER: Brazil has nearly 1.5 million COVID-19 cases. That's the second highest number of cases in the world and more than 60,000 Brazilians have
died from the virus. Meanwhile, millions of jobs have been lost and illegal fires rage through the Amazon Rainforest.
CNN's Shasta Darlington takes us to Rio de Janeiro as it reopens.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SHASTA DARLINGTON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Dining in front of Rio's famed shores, patrons attempt a return to normalcy, as
Brazil's second largest city reopens for business.
ALINE DA SILVA, BAR MANAGER (through translator): We just opened after almost four months of being closed. Now we're coming back.
DARLINGTON: On Thursday, Rio de Janeiro entered its latest stage of reopening, allowing restaurants, bars, and cafes to accept a limited number
of customers, with social distancing rules in place.
Residents can also return to the gym. Rio is joining other cities around Brazil in the phased reopening, as the world's second worst-hit country
sees coronavirus cases nearing 1.5 million, with a steady increase in new daily infections.
ROBERTO MEDRONINO, RESEARCH DIRECTOR, CLEMENTINO FRAGA FILHO UNIVERSITY HOSPITAL(through translator): We have the problem of people who are going
to work, because the economy has been reopened. If they become infected, they will take this infection to their relatives, many of them elderly,
many of them with complex health issues.
DARLINGTON: Despite warnings from experts, many regional leaders are desperate, as finances plummet and unemployment soars. Now, millions of
Brazil's informal workers face a stark choice: Go to work and risk infection or go hungry.
MATIAS SANTOS, FOOD DELIVERY WORKER (through translator): We are totally exposed to the coronavirus every day, without any protection. And because
companies do not deliver masks, we have to make our own masks, or buy them, and buy hand sanitizer.
DARLINGTON: As coronavirus wreaks havoc on Brazil's already fragile economy, it aggravates some of the country's chronic problems.
In the Amazon rainforest, deforestation is surging. Environmental activists warn illegal loggers and ranchers are capitalizing on less oversight,
burning more land, as the pandemic stretches official resources.
That may be responsible for a jump in fires: the most, in June, since 2007. Now, fears are rising of a coming dry season, with more smoke posing
respiratory dangers.
CARLOS SOZA JR., MEMBER, IMAZON (through translator): Slash-and-burn clearing of land already represents a serious health problem. If we have
land clearing and COVID-19 together, this could mean catastrophic consequences for the region.
DARLINGTON: A burning Amazon also adds to threats facing indigenous populations, where COVID-19 is sweeping through communities.
Brazil's government has sent medical workers and military to help protect some isolated tribes, but the virus has already infected thousands of tribe
members, and killed dozens. That's according to the government's special indigenous health service.
The indigenous population, now part of a grim milestone. On Wednesday, Brazil reached more than 60,000 coronavirus deaths.
A tribute to those victims, lit on Christ the Redeemer, Rio's famed statue, acknowledging the morbid toll of COVID-19, as the city reopens amid crisis.
Shasta Darlington, CNN, Sao Paulo.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BRUNHUBER: India is trying to deal with one of the worst coronavirus outbreaks in the world. Officials in Delhi have been transforming a
spiritual center in what they say is the world's largest field hospital for COVID-19.
[10:25:05]
CNN's Vedika Sud shows us what it looks like so far.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
VEDIKA SUD, CNN PRODUCER (voice-over): Hundreds of columns of biodegradable cardboard beds topped with mattresses and pillows, set up at
a socially safe distance from each other with chairs by the bedside.
That's what officials claim is the biggest COVID care center in the world. Located in India's capital, this facility as the size of 22 football
fields.
Delhi has been witnessing an exponential rise of COVID-19 cases, with the Delhi government predicting over half a million infections within the next
60 days. Preparations are on a war footing to complete the ambitious project of 10,000 beds.
DR. DEEPAK K. TEMPE, ADVISORIES COMMITTEE MEMBER, DELHI GOVERNMENT: If the number of total cases -- positive cases goes up, then there is a large
population who will be requiring for care center and health centers. So, in this (INAUDIBLE) these beds at this particular center is going to be of
immense benefit.
SUD: From manual cleaning of the ground, to covering the earthen floors with carpet, installing 18,000 tons of air conditioning, and preparing 800
washrooms, at least 1,500 people, including volunteers, have been working tirelessly to meet the deadline. The facility will then be handed over to
paramilitary forces.
(on camera): By the time when Delhi's health care system is already over burdened, a hospital of this magnitude with 10,000 beds would need a huge
workforce of medical staff and security.
BM MISHRA, DISTRICT MAGISTRATE, SOUTH DELHI: Each cubicle will be managed by the personnel in a ratio of one is to five -- one medic, one doctor and
five staff, nurses, medics and other people. So, in that sense, they need to only look over their particular hundred bed or 110-bed facility. They
need not to worry about the whole 10,000.
SUD (voice-over): While smaller COVID facilities are being prepared to counter rising COVID-19, over 500 old railway coaches have been converted
into isolation centers. These coaches will help increase Delhi's capacity by 8,000 beds.
The Indian army and its medics have been roped into operating these isolation centers, housing patients with masks and tents.
"Our priority is the patients get the right treatment, good facilities and proper food. Doctors should attend to them properly," says Rajiv Chaudhry,
general manager of Northern India Railways.
While the Delhi government scrambles to ready more COVID facilities, its chief minister claims the situation, at least for now, is under control.
But the real test will be in the coming weeks when Delhi's health care system will be put under enormous strain amid the predicted onslaught of
cases.
Vedika Sud, CNN, New Delhi.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BRUNHUBER: Britain's prime minister is issuing a stark warning as England embarks on the major lifting of its lockdown: don't blow it.
Beginning tomorrow, the country will see its most significant easing of restrictions since they were imposed three months ago. Residents will once
again be able to enjoy a -- well, a warm beer at a pub. Restaurants, movie theaters and hair salons will also be reopening this weekend, but Boris
Johnson is asking the public not to overdo it and erase the progress that's already made. He told the British radio station LBC that the government is
now better prepared, should a second wave come.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RADIO HOST: God forbid there were to be a second spike, a second wave.
BORIS JOHNSON, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: Indeed.
RADIO HOST: What would you do differently? Or hand on your beating heart you'd do the exactly the same again?
JOHNSON: I'm certainly not going to say that, but what I can say is that we're learning lessons the whole time about how to handle this disease.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BRUNHUBER: CNN's Scott McLean is live in London for us.
Scott, it's been a long time coming I understand pubs will open at 6:00 a.m. are people counting down?
SCOTT MCLEAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You could bet there's a lot of excitement here in England, Kim, and look, the U.K. is in a reasonably good situation
when it comes to the coronavirus. It is doing more than 150,000 tests per day on average, and getting less than 1,000 positive results. But as we
have seen in other places, most notably the United States, reopening the economy too quickly can come with some serious consequences.
And so there are concerns that the same thing could happen here, or at least we could see the ill effects of reopening too soon. But as you
mentioned, hotels, barbershops, even pubs and restaurants will be opening tomorrow across England with some restrictions.
Now, last month, the British prime minister said that he was confident that this relaxation of restrictions would not lead to the second spike in
cases, certainly not a second spike that would overwhelm the health care system here.
Now he's got a much more blunt message. Yesterday, it was: don't overdo it. That was his message to the British public. Today, it's: don't blow it.
[10:25:01]
Don't undo the progress that the U.K. has made in fighting the coronavirus.
Now, the pubs will not be a free-for-all by any stretch. If you want that warm beer that you mentioned, Kim, well, you won't be able to belly up to
the bar. As per usual, you're going to have to sit at the table and wait for the server which is a little bit unusual here in England. There's also,
you know, obviously going to be distancing between the tables or physical barriers put up between them.
This is also not risk free by any stretch. Obviously, you could come in contact with the virus or more likely if there is someone who shows up at
the pub that maybe you'd even around, who ends up testing positive -- well, the pub is recording names and contacts for every group that comes in so if
there is an outbreak, if there is a case, that they can contact everybody and let them know they have to self-isolate for 14 days.
For what it's worth though, the prime minister says that he'll be going to the pub this weekend with his fiancee and remember, this is a guy who
literally almost died from the coronavirus, Kim.
BRUNHUBER: Wow. Well, if what we saw, you know, that rush to the beaches on the first sunny day is any indication, I mean, some people have said
that this might feel like New Year's Eve, no limit to the number of patrons inside.
So how hard -- I mean, you're there. How hard is it to maintain, you know, social distancing, things like that when people have had a couple of pints
in them?
MCLEAN: I think that's definitely the concern.
Honestly, compared to other countries, I mean, I spent the bulk of this lockdown at least the worst parts of the European experience I spent in
Spain where things were extremely strict. You'd even have police officers or members of the National Guard if you were standing too close to someone
outside, even once they had relaxed these restrictions.
We haven't seen that close to this level of enforcement in this country. Oftentimes, you can walk through a park. You can see people clearly not
from the same household, clearly way more than the recommended number of people or the mandated number of people that you're allowed to have
gathering in one place, not following social distancing and police have been relaxed on the enforcement.
So, I think it's a fair concern that once you open up these pubs, once you get a couple of pints in people, are they really going to be staying at
their table? Are they going to be abiding by the social distancing rules and that's the warning that the prime minister has here, that look, don't
blow it, or we're going to have to shut things down again.
BRUNHUBER: All right. We'll wait and see. Thank you so much, Scott McLean in London.
North Korea's leader is praising his country's handling of the coronavirus as a shining success. According to state run news, Kim Jong-un says
Pyongyang, quote, thoroughly prevented the inroad of the malignant virus, despite the worldwide health crisis, but he's still urging people not to
get complacent. North Korea hasn't reported any COVID-19 cases even though it borders both China and South Korea. Two of the most heavily affected
countries in the region.
MCLEAN: Iranian nuclear officials tell state media they are looking into the fire that tore through Natanz nuclear complex south of Tehran. It
caused damage to the site, which is key to Iran's uranium enrichment program. State media reported there is no evidence of sabotage and the
nuclear official there says the fire did not lead to any radioactive contamination. The incident comes just weeks after a major explosion near a
military facility on the outskirts of Tehran.
Ahead on CONNECT THE WORLD, we'll have a live update from Florida where record coronavirus cases are cause for concern this holiday weekend.
Plus, in the middle of the coronavirus pandemic, the U.S. president heads to South Dakota for a holiday celebration where social distancing will not
be required. Details ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[10:31:18]
BRUNHUBER: As the U.S. gets ready to observe its Independence Day, coronavirus is on the rise. Infection rates are going up in 36 states. The
nation has hit record high case numbers for two days straight and that has health experts and some government officials very concerned. They're
worried that holiday revelry may make a bad situation even worse. A whopping 52,000 new cases were reported in the U.S. on Thursday alone.
The pandemic has changed nearly every facet of normal life including holidays.
The usual fireworks displays and barbecue gatherings for the 4th of July will or should be quite different this year. Experts are pleading with
people to make social distancing and masks a priority at their celebrations.
CNN's Boris Sanchez joins me from Clearwater, Florida.
So, Florida one of the several states seeing record high spikes in cases, now with the 4th of July on the doorstep many beaches are closing. Notably
not where you are.
SANCHEZ: Yes, that's right, Kim. Clearwater Beach here open this 4th of July weekend. It sort of underscores the approach that the state of Florida
is taking to respond to the coronavirus and the spike in cases that you mentioned, more than 10,100 cases added to the list of patients dealing
with coronavirus.
Keep in mind, the state of Florida now leading the nation on the average number of new cases per day. We are expecting new figures in just about
half an hour or so. So we'll see how that develops.
The governor here, Ron DeSantis, has effectively left it up to local leaders to determine restrictions within their own municipalities. What
that leads to is the fact that Clearwater Beach is open while on the southeast coast of the state in Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach
Counties, all of those beaches will be closed this weekend.
And very quickly, I just want to show you, it's about 10:30 a.m. and the beach is starting to get packed. We have been watching families come in all
morning. There are signs up that ask folks to stay six feet apart if they don't live together, not to congregate in groups and they're not allowing
groups of over ten people. But the question is about how will they enforce these new rules?
Now, the state's governor, Ron DeSantis, is leaving it up to local leaders, also making it clear he's not interested in issuing a statewide stay-at-
home order, the kind the Sunshine State had in place a few months back. He's also not going to impose the sort of widespread face mask mandate we
saw put in place in Texas by Governor Greg Abbott there.
DeSantis has defended his approach to responding to coronavirus. We'll see how it does over the 4th of July weekend and whether two weeks in line we
see the spike in cases like after Memorial Day -- Kim.
BRUNHUBER: Yes, we'll be watching.
All right. Thanks so much, Boris Sanchez in Florida.
Now Texas, the governor of Texas, has issued an executive order for most residents to wear a mask in public as we have heard.
Lucy Kafanov is live in Houston as cases continue to rise in that state.
So, many people across the country did a double take when they heard the Texas governor mandate masks. What's been the reaction?
LUCY KAFANOV, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, it's an interesting reversal by the governor, Kim, because he previously barred local governments from finding
people or penalizing people for not wearing masks in public. But then the cases kept going up and up. We are now in the situation where there's
175,000 cases in Texas and so this mask mandate is in effect.
It doesn't apply everywhere. It's only for counties that have 20 or more cases but that does affect roughly 95 percent of all of Texans.
Another things he's put into place is empowering local officials to restrict gatherings to just ten people. He's urging folks to maintain
social distancing, six feet or more at those gatherings. But already, we are seeing some local county judges for example saying they'll allow even
bigger gatherings as we enter the 4th of July weekend.
All of this very much a top concern for health officials really because they've seen the spike in cases. Texas breaking records almost every day on
Wednesday, the number of total cases in one day topped a thousand. It was a little bit less yesterday. We'll see what the numbers are today.
Hospitalization rates continue to go up to the point that Houston where there's a 25 percent positivity rate, that means one in four people getting
tested, might come out positive with coronavirus, their health facilities so overwhelmed that some hospitals are transferring patients out.
And again, what you're hearing from doctors every time we have had a big holiday weekend, whether it was Mother's Day, Memorial Day, they have seen
a spike in cases and they're very concerned that we might see a repeat of that this coming holiday weekend, even though this statewide mask mandate
is now in effect -- Kim.
BRUNHUBER: All right. Thanks so much, Lucy Kafanov.
President Trump is getting ready for his Independence Day plans. He's set to head to South Dakota later day for an early holiday celebration at Mt.
Rushmore. The event has already come under scrutiny.
Local authorities say social distancing measures will not be enforced despite the coronavirus crisis. It will include a 4th of July fireworks
show which hasn't been done in Mt. Rushmore in more than a decade due to the high risk of wildfires. The national park service says previous
displays have caused 21 wildfires but the service says it's confident this time the risk is low.
So CNN's Joe Johns takes a closer look at Mr. Trump's visit to Mt. Rushmore and the monument's controversial history.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOE JOHNS, CNN SENIOR WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's a made for TV election year photo-op for the president to kick off the 4th of July
weekend.
TRUMP: It's going to be a fireworks display like few people have seen.
JOHNS: Standing in the shadow of four presidents at Mt. Rushmore, with military flyovers and the first fireworks display at the monument in a
decade, all amid a global pandemic.
Critics say the event is risking coronavirus spread among the expected 7,500 spectators. As cases continue to spike across the country, there are
nearly 7,000 confirmed cases in South Dakota and 97 deaths. There will be no social distancing, but masks will be provided.
GOV. KRISTI NOEM (R), SOUTH DAKOTA: We won't be social distancing, we're asking them to come, be ready to celebrate to enjoy the freedoms and the
liberties that we have in this country.
JOHNS: It's not clear how many of those 7,500 visitors will come from other places experiencing rising cases.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We are concerned about coronavirus but we want our visitors or the safe and healthy. We're quite confident we have been quite
careful in analyzing the situation on how to have a safe and responsible visit (ph).
JOHNS: And president once suggested to South Dakota's governor that he'd like to be the fifth face on the mountain. And here in Trump country,
people actually buy into it.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: One day, Donald J. Trump will be on the monument. I firmly believe it.
JOHNS: But at a time of racial unease when protesters are tearing down statues of slave holders and calling for the names of Confederate generals
to be removed from army bases, the Rushmore event is a reminder that Trump is fighting to preserve these relics of heritage and history that some see
as symbols of oppression and to indigenous people, Mt. Rushmore with four white presidents, two of whom were slave owners, is one of those symbols.
NICK TILSEN, CITIZEN OF OGLALA LAKOTA NATION: Indigenous people, my ancestors fought and die and gave their lives to protect the sacred land
and to blow up a mountain and put the faces of four white men who were colonizers who committed genocide against indigenous people. The fact that
we don't as America think of that as an absolute outrage is ridiculous.
JOHNS (on camera): The dispute over Mt. Rushmore has gone on for decades, carved out of South Dakota's black hills, on lands sacred to Native
Americans who have never gotten over the fact that the government took over this location and turned into a tourist attraction.
(voice-over): Native American activists say that the government should give back the land to the original owners. They're planning protests and
local tribal councils have denounced the Trump visit.
TILSEN: All of a sudden, what indigenous people have been saying for generations, there's an appetite to have a conversation about symbols of
white supremacy, structural racism.
[10:40:07]
JOHNS: Historian Tom Griffith says getting rid of the monuments is not the answer.
TOM GRIFFITH, HISTORIAN, MT. RUSHMORE SOCIETY: We can easily erase all of the symbols of our past. But we can't ignore the history. It will remain,
no matter what sculptures, what are torn down around the country and that continues today.
JOHNS: To some, Mount Rushmore the creation is almost as controversial today as it's creator. Gutzon Borglum, the sculpture, was an ardent
supporter of the Ku Klux Klan, though he never took the oath.
GRIFFITH: I think more than ideology but more practically, he was affiliated with the Klan to raise money.
JOHNS: Joe Johns, CNN, in Keystone, South Dakota.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BRUNHUBER: And just to the north, Canada's fight against the coronavirus pandemic looks much different than that of the U.S. The country has more
than 100,000 cases compared to 2.7 million cases in the States.
CNN's Paula Newton looks into why things are so different.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PAULA NEWTON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): For Canada, it's been a hallmark of the pandemic, empty hospitals. The feared wave of
COVID patients never happened.
Canada started out much like the United States, but as the COVID curve climbed, Canada crushed it, now seeing on average a few hundred new
positive cases a day. That means right now, the U.S. is reporting more than 10 times more positive cases per capita than Canada.
And yet, no one here is declaring mission accomplished.
JUSTIN TRUDEAU, CANADIAN PRIME MINISTER: What the situation we're seeing in the United States and elsewhere highlights for us is that even as our
economy is reopening, we need to make sure we're continuing to remain vigilant, individually and collectively.
NEWTON: Vigilance has been the watch word -- early and widespread testing, a free health care system still building surge capacity. Longer shutdowns,
slower reopenings, social distancing and there's no controversy over wearing masks. Most see it as their duty.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I wear it for myself and others. It protects them from me and me from them. Just it's -- it's just respectable, being respectful
to other people.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: From the top down, leading by example in terms of the use of mask.
NEWTON: British Columbia's top doctor acted as the country's early warning system, successfully managing the first outbreaks and proving it can be
done.
DR. BONNIE HENRY, BRITISH COLUMBIA PROVINCIAL HEALTH OFFICER: A lot comes down to cohesiveness, providing the information that people needed to do
what we needed them to do and that has held up as we have gone into opening up things again. People still are adhering to the basics to try and ensure
that we still keep each other safe.
NEWTON: Dr. Henry points to something else that was critical -- keeping politics out of the response.
Here's a conservative leader praising the liberal deputy prime minister.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Chrystia Freeland, what I can say? She's an absolute champion.
NEWTON: It would be like a Democrat calling Vice President Mike Pence their hero.
HENRY: In general, we were all coming together. We have the same basic information for people and the politicians made the right decisions based
on the advice and that helped us.
NEWTON: Also critically important -- the U.S./Canada border remains closed to all but essential travel and anybody entering Canada right now must
quarantine for 14 days and the E.U. has deemed Canadians as safe for entry, unlike Americans.
And yet, here too, missteps have had tragic consequences. More than 8,500 people have died. The vast majority of the deaths linked to crowded and
poorly staffed seniors homes.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Seeing a lot of bad stuff happen but I don't remember anything with this level of sadness.
NEWTON: Prime Minister Trudeau admits it's been a national shame and in that contrition, Canadians see a willingness to recalibrate the country's
response to the virus based on an unwavering deference to science.
Paula Newton, CNN.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BRUNHUBER: The death of journalist Jamal Khashoggi shocked the world. The trial of those accused has begun, but the accused are not in the courtroom.
We'll explain why coming up.
And the crackdown in Hong Kong commences. Police accuse a 23-year-old of deliberately ramming his motorcycle into officers.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[10:46:44]
BRUNHUBER: The trial of 20 Saudi Arabian men is under way in Turkey. They're accused in the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. Among those
charged, a former security official and former aide to the Saudi crown prince.
Saudi Arabia has refused to extradite the men so they're being tried in absentia. The journalist's fiancee tested earlier.
Jamal Khashoggi was last seen in October 2018, going into the Saudi consulate in Istanbul. He'd gone there to get documents for his wedding.
Saudi officials eventually admitted Khashoggi died inside the consulate but they said it was a fistfight, not by murder.
In Hong Kong, a man has been charged with terrorism and inciting secession. Police say he deliberately rammed several officers with his motorcycle. The
23-year-old -- you can see him sitting on the sidewalk, surrounded by police, is the first to be charged under China's new national security law
which took effect Wednesday.
A bystander video circulating online showed him knocking over several officers on a narrow street before falling off and being arrested. He was
reportedly carrying a sign reading: liberate Hong Kong, revolution of our times, which the government argues connotes separatism or subversion under
the new law. He appears to have an injured leg. His attorney said he was going to hospital.
Hong Kong officials argue the new law will be good for the city's stability.
CNN's Ivan Watson spoke with the secretary of justice.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Do you think a majority of the population supports this law here in Hong Kong?
TERESA CHANG, HONG KONG SECRETARY FOR JUSTICE: I think they do. I really think they do because it's --
WATSON: You know, one of the problems is that popular opinion polls show your chief executive is very unpopular and that China's policies here in
Hong Kong are deeply unpopular. There was no effort to pass a referendum to get any mandate of popular support for this. This was imposed on the people
here.
So it's hard to claim that a majority of the population supports this, especially if opposition activists are closing down their political offices
out of fear right now and clearing their history of social media.
CHANG: Right. There's a whole number of questions there. Let me start with -- I think it's important to bear in mind where I started just now that is
national security is the sovereign right and in fact for every state that is one of the most important things.
For every national, and in particular in Hong Kong as I said, we're very -- we're a very special city. We look at people here as Hong Kong residents
who come from all over the world. They still have an allegiance to Hong Kong, because, you know, as a matter of common law, there's a concept of
temporary allegiance as well.
But they all love Hong Kong as a home. They all want Hong Kong to be stable and prosperous. They all want to move forward from the difficult times that
we had last year.
The national security law will give us that environment, for us to calm down, stop all that, and one other thing that has to be observed and it's
worth mentioning that there is no retrospective effect. So in other words, it's a clean break. Everybody now knowing what should not take place.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BRUNHUBER: The long awaited Formula 1 season gets the green light this weekend in Austria.
[11:50:01]
Amanda Davies is up next with a racing star whose impact maybe felt more off the track more that on it.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BRUNHUBER: Well, already during this pandemic, we have seen the return of football, golf and horse racing and now finally Formula 1 begins its
season.
So I imagine this is quite a different look and feel, Amanda, this time around.
AMANDA DAVIES, CNN WORLD SPORT: Yeah. Absolutely, Kim. Nearly four months since that failed attempt at the season's start in Australia back in March.
The focus, the season, is set to get under way this weekend in Austria and things are looking very different.
As the sport is getting to grips with these coronavirus times, the teams are all traveling, staying separately in their little bubbles. There's no
fans, of course. Really limited members of the media, and, of course, the social distancing and the protective masks are compulsory. The paddock is
looking a different place to the usual busy buzz that we would normally see on a race weekend.
But, one thing that has remained the same is the lack of diversity in Formula 1 which has become such a talking point in recent weeks, hasn't it,
particularly championed by the six-time world champion Lewis Hamilton.
But even though the focus over the next couple of days is about the battle on the track, his drive for change in this direction certainly isn't
diminished.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LEWIS HAMILTON, 6-TIME F1 WORLD CHAMPION: It has to continue. We have to stay on it, black people don't have the privilege of being out to take --
take a moment out. It's something we have to stay on top of it. The industry has to stay on top of it.
We have to come together in our voices, each of us our voices are powerful. If we bring them together collectively, we can have a huge impact. So I do
think it's sustainable if we all stay on it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DAVIES: This messaging isn't something new for Lewis Hamilton. It's something he's talked about throughout his career, but particularly in the
wake of George Floyd's death, the sounds of his message, the strength of it is being felt more powerfully than ever. It's led a lot of people to talk
about this season, 2020, as perhaps being the defining season of Lewis' career.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HAMILTON: In the past years I have heard racist names being called to me. The first time it happened I felt really upset. I told my mom and dad. And
I felt like I needed to get revenge.
I grew up in a sport that has really given my life meaning, but I have actually grown up in a sport that has very little to no diversity. And I
think it's an issue that we continually are facing.
DAVIES (voice-over): Since his earliest days in motorsport, Lewis Hamilton's fight has been much greater than just his battles on the track.
In recent weeks, his voice has been stronger than ever, calling for change in and beyond motorsports through a string of powerful social media posts.
PHIL DUNCAN, FORMULA 1 CORRESPONDENT, PRESS ASSOCIATION: You know, it's like a white male dominated world and has been for -- since the sport
started in 1950s. It's -- it's probably the most exclusive sport in many ways. Hamilton will want to push for change so it isn't like that for the
years to come.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Winner of the Texas Challenge Grand-Am.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If you don't want me in your sport, then beat me.
DAVIES: Hamilton is the first and only black driver to compete in Formula 1 in the sport's 70 year history. But it could have been different.
American Willy T. Ribbs was the first black driver to test the F1 car back in 1985. For him, the journey ended there, but in Hamilton, he sees a true
pioneer.
WILLY T. RIBBS, FIRST BLACK DRIVER TO TEST IN FORMULA 1: He is the leader. He is the band leader. Lewis Hamilton, he's not afraid. He hasn't broken
any laws, he hasn't done anything. He hasn't embarrassed the sport. He's done -- he's broadened the sport worldwide to people of color. He has the
right to take a position and take a stand for humanity. That's what he's doing.
DAVIES: And it's not just words. Lewis has set up the Hamilton Commission, a new research partnership aimed at making motorsport more diverse and
multicultural. And Formula 1 itself has announced the We Race as One Campaign, to tackle the issues of diversity and inclusion, both on and off
the track.
So it could prove a landmark year for both the sport and Lewis as he starts the new season looking to claim that record equaling seventh world
championship title that would take him level with Michael Schumacher.
DUNCAN: He can deal with everything off the track, but when he gets in the car, he's the animal, he's the racer, he's the speedy driver that he's been
since he started with McLaren in 2007 and for Hamilton to potentially equal Michael is incredible. It was a feat that no one thought that anyone would
get near to.
RIBBS: Talent-wise, Lewis is the greatest in the world. He's on another planet, and will be anointed as the greatest of all time in the end.
DAVIES: He's the driver who's been setting new standards on the track throughout his career. But perhaps in 2020, his impact will be felt much
further afield than ever.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
DAVIES: Well, wearing a specially designed black race suit, and the newly painted black Mercedes car, really powerful image for the silver arrows.
The car, of course, is normally silver and green. That's a team show of support for this campaign to help promote diversity.
Lewis was once again leading from the front as the cars hit the track for first time in Austria, posting the fastest times of the day by some
distance. So, really ominous showing for any of his rivals, hoping to stop that quest for a seventh world championship this season.
But you have to say, whilst the other drivers might be rivals on the track it's been fantastic, Kim, to see how they have all united together behind
this new drive within motorsports and watch out on Sunday because we understand there is going to be some collective action from the drivers
ahead of the first race.
There's been some suggestion they might all take a knee during the playing of the national anthem, but that hasn't been confirmed as yet, Kim.
BRUNHUBER: Well, interesting. We'll be watching.
Thanks so much, Amanda.
And that's it for this hour of CONNECT THE WORLD. I'm Kim Brunhuber in Atlanta. I'll be back with much more news after a quick break.
[11:00:00]
END
