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Connect the World
Memo Sheds Light On AstraZeneca Vaccine Trial; Israel's President Apologizes For Second COVID-19 Lockdown; World Health Organization On State Of Pandemic In The Middle East; President Donald Trump Causing COVID-19 Confusion By Contradicting Experts; Mother Talks About Horrific Conditions In Forced Quarantine; Growing Concerns Over Vaccine Supple & Distribution. Aired 11a-12p ET
Aired September 17, 2020 - 11:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[11:00:00]
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ANNOUNCER: Live from CNN Abu Dhabi, this is "Connect the World" with Becky Anderson.
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BECKY ANDERSON, CNN ANCHOR: This hour a very serious situation. There are more new Coronavirus cases in Europe now than they were back in March? That
is part of a much wider global story, as the search for a vaccine seems more contradictory than ever.
We want to try to tie this together for this to you so that you know how to stay safe. The numbers are daunting aren't they, especially when you
consider every Coronavirus case and death is a human life. Take look at these nearly 30 million cases around the world, the death toll approaching
1 million.
Overall, most countries' responses quite frankly leave much to be desired. Right now, Latin America the worst region hit region in the world. The
World Health Organization says countries there are resuming normal life too soon the result death rates are climbing in nearly every country in the
region and cases have stayed above 8 million.
Meanwhile, in Europe conditions are so bad that the World Health Organization is warning of a very serious situation unfolding. The W.H.O.
says current cases have exceeded those that we saw back in March. They are pleading with world leaders to hammer home the simple prevention measures
as follows.
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DR. MICHAEL RYAN, EXECUTIVE DIRETOR, W.H.O. HEALTH EMERGENCIES PROGRAMME: It's not just about masks, not just about physical distancing it is not
just about avoiding crowded spaces, it's not just about hand hygiene. It's about all of those things. Do it all. Governments need to get that message
across and continue to get that message across to communities and they need to empower communities to take action.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: Well, let me zone in on England for a moment. The National Health Service there says the number of COVID-19 cases has risen 167 percent, 167
percent just this month. In fact, over a one-week period more than 18,000 people tested positive.
All of which is enough to make you despair, but what of our light at the end of the tunnel, what of a vaccine? Well, several of them are in phase
III trials. As you well know, that's the last stage. It sounds like we are one step closer to getting one, but in reality, it is more complex than
that.
And we have just gotten some new details about the illness that halted a key vaccine trial in its final stage before approval. CNN has obtained an
internal document from AstraZeneca that confirms a previously healthy woman in her 30s was diagnosed with a rare neurological disorder after her second
dose of the vaccine. Senior Medical Correspondent Elizabeth Cohen has more on that.
ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: CNN has contained an internal document from vaccine maker AstraZeneca detailing why the
pharmaceutical giant pause its worldwide clinical trials for their COVID-19 vaccine last week. At first, all we knew was a study participant had a
spinal cord problem.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DR. FRANCIS COLLINS, DIRECTOR, U.S. NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH: With an abundance of caution, at a time like this you put a clinical hold; you
investigate carefully to see if anybody else who received that vaccine or any other vaccines might have had a similar finding of a spinal cord
problem.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COHEN: But now this internal AstraZeneca document shows more was known about the illness than was said at the time. After the pause was announced,
"The New York Times" reported that a trial participant had been diagnosis with Transverse Myelitis a rare neurological disorder which can cause
muscle weakness and even paralysis.
And stat news reported that AstraZeneca's CEO said in an investors call that the participant had symptoms consistent with Transverse Myelitis.
AstraZeneca then called reports of confirmed Transverse Myelitis incorrect and said there was no final diagnosis. But AstraZeneca's own internal
initial safety report obtained by CNN, says the participant had "Experienced confirmed Transverse Myelitis and "Symptoms consistent with
Transverse Myelitis".
The report describes how the participant, a 37-year-old woman in the UK was previously healthy. She had two doses of the Coronavirus vaccine about 2.5
months apart. Then on September 2nd, 13 days after that second dose, while running, she had a trip, not a fall, with a jolt, according to the report.
The next day she experienced symptoms including difficulty walking, pain and weakness in her arms. On September 5th she was hospitalized, and
Neurologists noted that her symptoms were improving.
[11:05:00]
COHEN: Citing patient confidentiality, AstraZeneca declined to provide more details about the woman's case so did the University of Oxford which is
running the trials in UK. On September 11th AstraZeneca distributed its report to doctors involved with its study.
That same day the University of Oxford updated this online patient information sheet. The sheet says volunteers in trial "Developed
unexplained neurological symptoms, including changed sensation or limb weakness" it doesn't not mention Transverse Myelitis or if that
participant's diagnosis changed?
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DR. PETER HOTEZ, BAYLOR COLLEGE OF MEDICINE: But we're not being provided any details, so this is creating a lot of confusion.
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COHEN: On Saturday AstraZeneca announced that clinical trials had resumed in the UK, but in the United States, the clinical trial remains on hold and
under review. Dr. Anthony Fauci tells CNN it's just a matter of time before trials restart in the U.S. and when they do, investigators will need to be
careful and watch out for should symptoms.
AstraZeneca says it's committed to the safety of trial participants and to the highest standards of conduct in their studies, telling CNN the company
will continue to work with health authorities across the world, including the FDA in the U.S., and be guided as to when other clinical trials can
resume.
ANDERSON: Elizabeth Cohen joining us now live, Elizabeth?
COHEN: Hi, Becky. It's interesting. You and I have talked so much about how we need a say and effective vaccine? We also need a trusted vaccine or else
people won't get it. So there are concerns about the transparency in this vaccine development process, transparency of course, is what breeds trust.
Becky?
ANDERSON: There does seem to be some confusion, certainly in the U.S. between, for example, President Trump and the Director of the CDC. I want
our viewers to just have a listen to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DR. ROBERT REDFIELD, DIRECTOR, CDC: I think there will be vaccine and initially be available sometime between November and December, but very
limited supply and will have to be prioritized. If you're asking me when is it generally available to the American public, so we can begin to take
advantage of vaccine to get back to our regular life, I think we're probably looking at late second quarter, third quarter 2021.
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I think he made a mistake when he said that. It's just incorrect information. I called him and he
didn't tell me that, and I think he got the message maybe confused, maybe it was stated incorrectly. We're ready to go immediately as the vaccine is
announced. It could be announced in October. But once we go, we're ready.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: Yes, none of this helps, of course, to put people's minds at rest about what is going on, when we will get a vaccine? Whether it's going to
be safe and effective? I want to bring up something on this screen for viewers to see here.
The president making these vaccine claims regularly. Elizabeth, what do you make of this? People will be asking is there anything legitimate in what
the U.S. President is saying at this point.
COHEN: You know, I think that this is a lesson that what everyone in government or in power should be saying is, look, we are working towards a
vaccine. Of course we're trying to move quickly so that we can end this pandemic, but if we are moving at the pace of science, at the pace of
biology, at the pace of safety, and we will have a vaccine when we have it.
That is much better than giving any sort of random date. We just don't know when this is going to happen. I think we all need to keep that in mind, and
I think people like Dr. Redfield and President Trump need to keep that in mind. Why are we quibbling about November versus December versus January?
It will happen when it happens, and it will happen when it's safe to happen.
ANDERSON: Yes, and of course the reason why we're quibbling about it is perhaps because this issue has become so politicized, right? We know the
issue of masks has also become politicized. Have a listen to what the Director of the CDC had to say about that.
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DR. REDFIELD: These face masks are the most important public health tool we have. If we did it for 6, 8, 10 and12 weeks, we would bring this pandemic
under control. I might even go so far to say that this face mask is more guaranteed to protect me against COVID than when I take a COVID vaccine,
because the immunogenicity may be 70 percent. And if don't get an immune response the vaccine is not going to protect me this face mask will.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: It's interesting, Elizabeth, because just in the last hour the Former CDC Director says masks and vaccines are not comparable and that
they both need to be used as part of a comprehensive response.
[11:10:00]
ANDERSON: Just work through the weed for us, please, for our viewers' sake here.
COHEN: Right, there's no reason to be comparing masks and vaccines. It is unclear why the Head of the CDC decided to go down that road. It just
doesn't make any sense. We should be wearing masks, and we should be working towards a vaccine both are important.
We don't have a vaccine right now, so the only thing you can do is wear a mask. But there's no reason to be comparing them. They both are very
important. I think the point - I think the point that Dr. Redfield is trying to make is that for a certain percentage of people, the vaccine is
not going to work at all and they will be back to just having a mask and nothing else.
That is important to keep in mind. This vaccine is not going to be 100 percent. If we're extraordinarily lucky, it will be 90-something percent
effective, but some people would say it's more likely to be in the 80s or the 70s, it may even be even lower than that. So that's an important thing
to keep in mind.
The vaccine is not going to be perfect. That's why, even once there is a vaccine, masks will still be important.
ANDERSON: Elizabeth Cohen in the house, Elizabeth talked earlier about the Oxford trials, the AstraZeneca vaccine trials. We've got new details on
another vaccine candidate coming into the show now, as the makers announce that they remain hopeful it will be ready for regulatory approval by
October.
Pharma firms BioNTech and Pfizer say to make that deadline they're recruiting phase III trial volunteers in Argentina and in Brazil where
cases are widespread. They plan to deliver 100 million doses - between the U.S. and Europe by year's end, and then drastically increase production
capability next year.
Keeping you up to date on the facts clearly, as Elizabeth and I have been discussing, when and where these vaccines will be available to the masses
is still extremely unclear?
We are walking you through the hunt for a future vaccine as well as the here and now and what we are enduring. So let's consider the facts on the
ground as the number of cases verging 30 million around the world. To do that, to Israel, well, the president there is - something we really haven't
seen from world leaders since the pandemic began.
He is apologizing for his government's handling of the pandemic. Reuven Rivlin spoke as Israel braces for its second general lockdown, a second
very restrictive lockdown that all comes as the country endures a drastic spike in new Coronavirus cases that you can see here.
Let's bring in Oren Liebermann who joins me now from Israel. Just how unprecedented of an apology is this from the president of the country?
OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Incredibly so. It is, of course, standard for the country's leaders to make statements before - but those
statements are about what's supposed toy a joyous and a festive holiday. A holiday of religious gatherings, of family gatherings as Jews mark the New
Year this was not that kind of speech.
In this speech, Israel's President Reuven Rivlin came out and said essentially I apologize, a Mea culpa not only on behalf of himself
apologizing for his violation of Coronavirus restrictions back during the first lockdown in April during pass over, but he also apologized on behalf
of the country's leaders for failing to lead the country out of the Coronavirus crisis. Take a listen here.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REUVEN RIVLIN, ISRAELI PRESIDENT: My fellow Israelis, tonight I'm speaking to you on the eve of the State of Israel's second lockdown. I ask you to
open your heart to me and what I have to say. I know we have not done enough as a leadership to be worthy of your attention.
You trusted us, and we let you down. You, the citizens of Israel, deserve a safety net that the country gives you. Decision makers, government
industries, policy implementers must work for you and only you to save lives, to reduce infection to rescue the economy.
I understand the feeling that none of these were done satisfactorily. Now today, my fellow Israelis, we are forced to pay the price again. It is a
high price.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LIEBERMANN: Two things that make this even more stunning, first Rivlin is the president, he is the technical Head of State but he is not the member
of the Knesset, but he is not a member of any Coronavirus committees which means he has absolutely no influence about how this country handles the
Coronavirus pandemic and yet he still felt it was the right move to do to come out and apologize on behalf of the country's leadership.
Second, it's such a marked contrast to the tone of the Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who although putting himself front and center for
Coronavirus has not taken any responsibility for the country heading back to a second general lockdown.
[11:15:00]
LIEBERMANN: In fact on Sunday night in announcing the lockdown he was asked whose failure is this. His answer was there are no failures, only
achievements.
ANDERSON: Fascinating. Some interesting comments Oren from Israel's top Spy Chief on the normalization deal, which of course has stolen the headlines
this week, and I have to say a wry quip from the Mossad Head about a botched intelligence operation in Dubai, explain if you will?
LIEBERMANN: A bit more than an intelligence operation I believe, but this was Yossi Cohen the Head of the Mossad giving an incredibly rare interview
to Israel's Channel 12 News. The Mossad is essentially so secretive that the only known employee of the spy agency is the Head of the Mossad.
He rarely makes public comments or gives interviews as he did here. Two parts of this were noteworthy. First in talking about other countries that
were normalizing, he said perhaps Saudi Arabia would be on the list of countries to normalize.
And I think he really gave a time frame and there is a significant difference of course between ten days away from normalization and ten
years, but it is nonetheless a significant statement from someone whose organization I think pretty much no doubt has ties to many of the Gulf
States with which Israel does not have diplomatic relations.
To the bigger point here, and this came up when it comes to Israel's relations with the UAE, it was long assumed that Israel carried out an
assassination in Dubai in a hotel of Mahmoud of Al-Mabhouh one of the founders of Hamas' military wing in a Dubai hotel.
He was asked about this and he gave what is essentially the standard Israeli head when you're talking about things like this he said, according
to foreign media reports, and said in responding to this, that this was a dream for the relations to come true.
The representative - or anchor asked, probably won't be staying at that hotel, he kind of smiled there and gave a short, quick answer, but it was a
reference to something that I don't know that this county's has ever really talked about, especially the Mossad.
ANDERSON: Yes, fascinating stuff. All right, well, I was going to say the plot thickens, but the plot was thick at the best of times. Things are on
the move, things are changing, and we continue to cover the stories. Thank you very much indeed.
As a rich world developed economy, Israel better place than most in the Middle East to help take on the Coronavirus. Up next, we'll speak to a
regional director for this part of the world at the World Health Organization about everything that is going on in this part of the world.
Plus--
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: One hospital here one doctor tells me there's nine ICU beds. Six hours of available water a day, intermittent power, and one x-ray
machine that hasn't worked for months.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: This is what the COVID-19 crisis looks like in Venezuela. The horrific conditions people are describing in government hospitals and in
quarantine facilities all of that, after this.
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[11:20:00]
ANDERSON: We'll get you a quick update on the vaccine race. We've been talking about that throughout the hour. There couldn't be anything more
important. The CEO of Moderna now saying he expects his company's vaccine trial to have enough data to know if the vaccine works by November?
He said that in an interview with CNBC a short while ago. And the company's later stage COVID-19 vaccine trial is now nearing completion. Moderna says
the best-case scenario for learning the vaccine's efficacy is in October and the worst case, he says, is in December. We're going to keep cross that
in all of the latest lines of course on the vaccines as we get them.
Well, Coronavirus cases in the Middle East are now well past 1 million, with Iran still reporting the highest total number of reported cases
followed by Saudi Arabia. Iraq though is seen a steady raise reporting almost as many as Saudi and passing its record for highest daily cases
twice this month already.
Look, we're reporting from the UAE here this is our Middle East Broadcasting Hub. I want to focus on the Middle East for a moment. Let's
bring in the Director of Health Emergencies at the W.H.O.'s Eastern Mediterranean Office Rick Brennan is with on the show. It is a pleasure
having you here sir.
Israel. Let's start there. This is the first country to go into a general lockdown twice and we're talking about a pretty stringent lockout here.
Where did they go wrong? Do you believe this second lockdown was needed, sir?
RICK BRENNAN, REGIONAL EMERGENCY DIRECTOR, W.H.O. EASTER MEDITERRANEAN: Well, I think there are concerns as you said, they went into a lockdown
early on. I think some of the opinion is that the releasing of some of the lockdown measures was a bit early and perhaps not as based on some of the
public health figures and data that we have.
I think that in Israel, just like in many countries, communities are suffering from COVID fatigue, and there hasn't been as much adherence to
the social distancing, the mask wears, the things that we know work, so we have seen this acceleration of cases recently.
ANDERSON: So you say there's been some fatigue. I agree, I think all over the world there is some sort of lockdown fatigue. Also in Israel a body of
thought that says that this was leadership inadequacy. Are you seeing that both there and in any other places? I mean, are you prepared to say that
you think that the world's leaders, including those in Israel, have failed some of their populations here?
BRENNAN: What I can say is, on Monday this week a very important report came out by what's called the Global Preparedness Monitoring Board. They
identified seven key lessons learned from this pandemic worldwide.
The first one was the importance of responsible leadership. Leaders being open, transparent, making their decisions based on science and evidence.
And I do agree that there has been a problem with some of the leadership that we have seen across the globe, including in our region.
ANDERSON: All right. Well, let's continue to focus on our region because it is so important that we sort of flush out what's going on and where? I
interviewed the UN Relief Chief Mark Lowcock a man you know well about the COVID situation in Yemen. And I asked him if the numbers there - the
reported numbers are anything like accurate, have a listen to what he told me.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARK LOWCOCK, U.N. UNDER SECRETARY GENERAL FOR HUMANITARIAN AFFAIRS: I don't think anyone really believes those numbers. There's very little
testing for COVID done in Yemen, and of course the confirmed cases only arise when you got a test.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: Can that be said about other countries in the Middle East as well? Certainly, during the beginning of Iran's outbreak that is what
things looked like over there isn't it?
BRENNAN: Yes. Well, I think that in Yemen specifically, yes, we believe there's a gross underestimate in the number of cases, so W.H.O. are
partners we're responding as if there is community transmission in Yemen.
But you're right it's not just a problem for Yemen. I think there are underestimates across the board in almost all countries, and you hear this
from Europe and, you know, North America as well. So it's largely related to the fact that we haven't scaled up testing sufficiently.
Certainly, conflict affected countries like Yemen, who have really severely weakened health systems, this is one of the big struggles that we're
facing, and we have eight of these large-scale emergencies across the region.
[11:25:00]
BRENNAN: And certainly, in each of those, we have a significant underestimate of the number of cases we believe.
ANDERSON: I alluded to Iran; I know you visited hospitals there back when it first got badly hit. You mentioned the locally made equipment was not
good enough. How badly did the Trump Administration's economic sanctions on Iran do you think impact its fight against the virus? Because that was
certainly a complaint wasn't it at the time?
BRENNAN: Yes, I mean some of the concerns there are getting access to the raw materials to produce the supplies. There aren't constraints as much on
the importation of the supplies, but Iran has a reasonable solid manufacturing base, frankly related to some of its military production, and
they repurposed that to produce the personal protective equipment a lot of the hospital supplies and equipment that they need.
But as we understand it, it wasn't - at certainly early on some of these supplies and equipment were not of the standard. How much the sanctions
impacted that, I think that's for others to determine, but certainly there were constraints in access to supplies and raw materials early on.
ANDERSON: Very briefly, what do you understand the situation to be in Iran as we speak?
BRENNAN: Well, Iran has really - in a kind of - it's had a sustained level of disease transmission at a pretty high level. They had an early peak - a
decline as they really scaled up their operations there. And then again I think we did see the COVID fatigue.
There were significant declines in the adherence to all the measures that we know with the masks, the social distancing. We did see an increase.
We've seen that sustained, and indeed in the last week or two, we are starting to see an increase again.
So just as I saw that you had my friend and colleague Mike Ryan on earlier, and our appeal to Iran, it's just like it is to every other country in the
region and globally. You know, we have certain tools in our tool kit we know what works in controlling this outbreak.
We've got to continue to scale up, the testing, the isolation, the contact tracing. We've got to get individuals to take the measures that we know
that are protective, wearing the masks, social distancing, personal hygiene.
And then we need the leaders to apply the lockdown measures in a way that helps control the outbreak, but mitigates the economic and social impact,
but those decisions have to be driven by science and evidence.
ANDERSON: So how do you ensure that that sort of work that you've just described is being carried out in countries like Libya, for example? Cases
there surging, its health care system has been wrecked by years of war. You've said that the W.H.O. has faced serious logistical constraints in
Libya and faces major challenges in, for example, PPE and testing kits. How do you overcome challenges like that in a country like Libya?
BRENNAN: Well, it's very difficult. And W.H.O. - we cannot overcome these problems of ourselves and nor can we without partners such as UNICEF and
other UN agencies now NGO partners. It's particularly difficult in Libya, because there you have a divided government with different authorities
claiming sovereignty.
You also have ongoing conflict and insecurity, so people don't have access consistently to health care, and you got the very weakened health system
that you mentioned. So what we're doing, we are continuing to appeal to the authorities, both authorities as well as at some national level.
We are working to ensure a more consistent supply chain. We've had problems, as you know, of authorities releasing our supplies at the ports.
We've had diversion of aid. We can only do so much in appealing to those who make the decisions, who can influence what security forces do on the
ground.
The authorities they have to care more about getting on top of this pandemic than we do. And so we do convey to the authorities what works. We
give them the evidence base; we give them the technical advice. We bring in a lot of supplies, personal protective equipment, laboratory equipment and
so on, but this is, you know, what we focus on day in, day out.
[11:30:00]
ANDERSON: Yes, now I understand. I'm running out of time because we are hitting the bottom of the hour here. Very briefly, Gaza locked down a few
weeks ago after recording its first COVID case. This is a place that will not be able to deal with a surge. Are you worried that, that is what will
happen there eventually?
BRENNAN: We've heard about a surge everywhere, as you're seeing in many, many countries. Gaza is a particular - because of the high population
density. You know, I think we do have to acknowledge the very good work done by the health authorities in Gaza in the early stages of this pandemic
and you're right now, we're seeing an up surge.
So again, we know what works. We're working with the authorities there. We're trying to scale up all those public health measures, the behavior
measures. We've got the leadership there on board, I think. So, I think, you know, we'll see what happens in Gaza, but I am hopeful that we can
start to flatten the curve there and turn it around.
It's going to require a lot of work. But Becky, the important thing to remember now is we're coming into a period, you know, with the increase in
cases that we're seeing globally and across our region, are related to a number of factors.
ANDERSON: Sure.
BRENNAN: The COVID fatigue of populations getting tired of all the measures, the lessoning of these lockdown measures. And now we're getting
into the colder months, the flu season where other viruses are going to increase.
ANDERSON: Yes.
BRENNAN: So we're going to expect to see a continued increase. So again, we have to scale out all those measures that Doctor - mentioned earlier.
ANDERSON: Understand. We've got to take a break. Thank you so much.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ANDERSON: In covering the new Coronavirus confusion created by U.S. President Donald Trump speaking to reporters on Wednesday, he contradicted
the Head of the Centers for Disease Control of the CDC as you may know, it's on a vaccine timeline and the use of face masks. I want to just play
you this exchange. Have a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You said, you spoke to Dr. Redfield earlier and you said that he made a mistake.
TRUMP: I think he made a mistake, yes. I didn't go any - great, I was very surprised to hear. It doesn't really matter. He's what does matter. We're
all set to distribute immediately.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You're twice contradicting the Director of your own CDC on the side. You testify before Congress today.
TRUMP: No, he's contradicting himself. I think he misunderstood the questions.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, he was testifying--
TRUMP: You know what I think. I think he misunderstood, I told you, I am not to go through this. I think he misunderstood the questions.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: How can the American people trust you on the pandemic when you're contradicting the Head of the CDC and your --?
[11:35:00]
TRUMP: Because of the great things we've done, because of the great things we've done in other fields also.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: All right The World Health Organization's top health emergency's expert had a response for President Trump's confusing stance saying, it's
important for countries to have consistent messaging.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RYAN: There's a process of transferring knowledge to people. It's not just shouting at them. It's communicating with them, it's engaging them, it's
understanding the confusions, it's understanding their concerns, it's understanding their apprehension, and not laughing at it and not turning
that into some kind of political football.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: Right, Democratic Congresswomen for the District of Columbia, Eleanor Holmes Norton joining me now from Washington D.C., and thank you
congresswomen for joining us. This was all about the timing of a vaccine when it might be available to the sort of the common man and women, right?
Clearly the president has said, time and time and time again will have a vaccine effectively before the election. Some of its health experts have
said that's simply not going to happen. So there is a contradiction here. What's your view on the overall response of congress to this pandemic and
that from the White House?
ELEANOR HOLMES NORTON, U.S. HOUSE DEMOCRAT: The response of congress of course has been to engage with a bill that is still pending, but there's a
lot of controversy because the House and Senate cannot agree on that bill.
The leadership, however, must come from the White House and what you just played indicated that the American people must listen. And I think all are
listening to experts and not the President of the United States.
ANDERSON: It has to be said. We are talking about sort of contradictory messages in the U.S. and we heard the W.H. O. saying that, that's simply
not good enough. People need a consistent message.
I have to say, you know, what's going on in the states is reflected in other places around the world, as well we report every day on what is going
on elsewhere in the world? And unfortunately, and the messaging not consistent in an awful lot of places; Congresswoman; I'd like you to take a
listen to the U.S. Attorney General.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
WILLIAM BARR, U.S. ATTORNEY GENERAL: Putting a national lockdown, stay at home orders is like house arrest. It's other than slavery, which was a
different kind of restraint; this is the greatest intrusion on several liberties in American history.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: What's your response to a narrative like that from the Attorney General?
NORTON: Look, I suppose I should not be surprised, but I am surprised that the Attorney General would go this far. A stay-at-home order has no
resemblance to a lockdown. A stay- at-home order is what has been useful in Europe, in China, and in countries around the world.
It is true that this is a very diverse country. But in fact, in parts of the country, including the parts where I live, the stay-at-home order has
gone a great distance toward, if not combating, taking this virus out of the danger that it poses, in places where people were not compliant with
stay-at-home.
Stay-at-home doesn't mean you can't go out. It does mean, however, that it is in the best interest of everyone in the population to stay at home, and
that is what is happening across the United States, but unfortunately at various levels. That is why the pandemic is still here in this country.
ANDERSON: Yes, okay. I just want to move on from a discussion about COVID- 19, but thank you very much indeed for your insight and your analysis as to what is going on in the states. The Boeing MAX 787 report came out
yesterday.
This is a report, of course, on what went wrong and let to the crash of two jets and the loss of nearly 400 lives? There is a lot of blame going
around, and to go around. Help us understand what this report tells us and just how damning the verdict is?
NORTON: The report to not be more damning, it was put out by my committee. And what it shows, indisputably is, what I can only call a fatal
combination.
[11:40:00]
NORTON: What we had here was a recklessly negligent corporation, Boeing, whose only concern was getting those planes out and, in the air,, and a
totally compliant regulator. The result was that you had a double failure and the loss of hundreds of lives needlessly.
Some of them at least could have been saved after the second crash. Every country in the world except the United States, took down this plane. That's
why at our hearing, I cross-examined the FAA on why the United States was the last to take down the plane and his mumbo jumbo about data was
infuriating because of the data of two crashes was all the data, if you will, that we needed.
ANDERSON: Sure. That was needed. Congresswoman a very simple question that is an investigation that went on for 18 months. We know what came out of
it. What is the solution going forward, to ensure that people watching this show feel safe in the air?
NORTON: It may be easier to fix the planes than it is to fix the regulator. My major concern is that the FAA cannot be depended upon. I think that it
is in the best interest and certainly if they want to make a profit and get these planes in the air, for Boeing to do what is necessary.
But it will take congress and the press and the executive to fix the regulator, which needs a total overhaul in order to make it an effective
regulator in the first place.
ANDERSON: What a concession from the congresswoman. Thank you very much indeed for joining us. Donald Trump's Senior Adviser and son-in-law have
raised the possibility of political assassinations of foreign leaders and the idea that they could once again become U.S. policy.
President Gerald Ford signed an Executive Order in 1976 banning political assassinations. But Jared Kushner now says, and I quote "It's a full
contact sport. This is not touch football."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Does this administration rule out the use of assassination as a tool of U.S. foreign policy?
JARED KUSHNER, SENIOR ADVISER TO PRESIDENT TRUMP: Look, I think that President Trump always keeps all options on the table. Are you asking me a
question, I don't want to give you a non-answer. But different terminology can be used to describe different methods that you're going to take to try
to retaliate to somebody for an action that they have taken.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: Well, Kushner's comments come just a few days after President Trump revealed that he was ready to take out Syrian leader, Basher Al
Assad, but was talked out of it by the former Defense Secretary, James Mattis.
Right, ahead on this show, it is just before quarter to eight here in the UAE. Venezuelans forced into quarantine. They talk about horrific
conditions in government hospitals and motels. We've got an exclusive report on that coming up.
And we know the world is desperate for an official COVID-19 vaccine, but producers still face a monumental challenge, even after they win approval
for their vaccines. We'll explain all of just ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[11:45:00]
ANDERSON: Venezuela has reported some of the lowest COVID-19 numbers in Latin America. You see Venezuela here in the red, and Latin America and the
Caribbean in blue. It's reported only 63,000 cases and just over 500 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University, which keeps running data on
these things.
But doctors, nurses and humanitarian workers in Venezuela say those numbers most likely do not reflect the reality of the pandemic, because many cases
are not being reported. Some Venezuelans feel CNN people even suspected of having the disease facing mandatory quarantine by the government.
And many fear these quarantine facilities more than the virus itself. CNN's Isa Soares has gotten some incredibly rare access to what is going on. And
she joins us now live. What have you learned about what's going on, how the country is handling the situation, Isa?
ISA SOARES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Becky, when I looked at the official government figures from Venezuela, it raised eyebrows, not just with me,
but with many experts around the world. That just does not match what we're seeing in the content as you clearly illustrated that in that graphic.
And that really propelled me to find out what was happening? Over two months now, I've been speaking to doctors to nurses and NGO's to get a real
sense of what's happening on the ground? And they tell me the picture that the government of Nicolas Maduro what they're painting that just does not
match the reality that they're seeing day in, day out. This is our report from Maracaibo.
In the once oil-rich City of Maracaibo in Venezuela, COVID-19 comes hand in hand with fear and repression. This mother of three knows this all too
well, so much so she's still shaken by her experience.
Like others in this story, she spoke to me on the condition of anonymity for of fear of government reprisals. She tells me she was quarantined
against her will in this motel after she lost her father to suspect COVID- 19 under rapid antibody test came back in conclusive.
She says inside there was little food or water, and personal hygiene, a luxury. Away from family and unable to leave her room, she says she was
held for 23 days despite another testing positive for the virus.
Doctors tell us this motel is one of many being used by the Venezuelan government to how suspected COVID patients in a bed to keep them off
Venezuela's crumbling hospitals, where the situation is similarly desperate?
The main hospital here, one doctor tells me has only nine ICU beds, six hours of available water a day, intermittent power and one extra machine
that hasn't worked for months. Details that even healthcare workers aren't comfortable sharing because of the climate of fear.
In this video from hospital in Maracaibo shared on social media, patients protest at the shortage of medical staff. They plead for help. Patients say
this man was left dead, abandoned in his bed, for days.
To date Venezuela has reported some of the lowest COVID-19 numbers in the region, but with testing limited to a small number of government-controlled
labs, patients may wait up to 70 days to learn their results. Doctors and NGOs tell us many cases go unreported and some die without even knowing if
they had COVID.
[11:50:00]
SOARES: Doctors having calling for increased testing since the pandemic reach the country. The Venezuelan Academy of Physical Mathematical and
Natural Sciences is currently predicting a peak of up to 14,000 daily cases. An earlier report in May was met with a threat of physical violence
by a government official on TV.
They're not just empty threats. Doctors on the ground tell me authorities here have arrested health care workers who speak out publicly. They say
it's the government's way of maintaining control over the political narrative.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SOARES: Is there pressure also on doctors not to note down who has contracted COVID, who has died from COVID? I - here, is there that type of
pressure?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So all doctors work under the government radar, and patients stay away from the streets. Embattled President Nicolas Maduro
tightens his power, under the guise of COVID-19.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOARES: Now, Becky, CNN gave the Venezuelan government multiple opportunities to respond not to just these accusations, but also the
criticism of the conditions that you say there in those motels, but also in the hospitals. And thus far, we have not received any comment.
ANDERSON: Isa Soares on the story. Isa, thank you. We will be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ANDERSON: Well, we've been connecting you this hour to in-depth coverage of the race for a vaccine. Of course, finding it is paramount, but producers
will still face other challenges even after it exists. Have a look at this. The world economic forum warning that there's a strong possibility there
won't be enough of an approved vaccine to go around.
Oxfam says rich nations have already bought up more than half of the expected supply, even though they only make up about 13 percent of the
global population. So Anna Stewart, my colleague. Looking into the possibilities of shortages on what is being done behind the scenes.
ANNA STEWART, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Pharmaceutical companies are inching closer to the finish line. There are over 170 vaccine candidates around the
world. Eight are in the final stage of human trials, proving them to be effective safe and achieve regulatory approval isn't the only challenge.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KATE O'BRIEN, DIRECTOR OF IMMUNIZATION, VACCINES & BIOLOGICAL, WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION: We have to go from there to actually having billions of doses
of vaccine that can be delivered to people around the world, where investing in the process of manufacturing before we even know whether a
given vaccine will reach licensure and could be used.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
STEWART: Governments around the world have committed billions of dollars to vaccine makers, buying up hundreds of millions of vaccine doses which may
not even work. Pfizer, in partnership with BioNTech plans to make 100 million doses of its vaccine candidate by the end of the year and over a
billion next.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PAMELA SIWIK, VICE PRESIDENT, GLOBAL SUPPLY CHAIN, PFIZER: Well, it is absolutely not normal, it's unprecedented.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
STEWART: To try and meet that demand, Pfizer has set up separate manufacturing in the U.S. and Europe and is drawing on all its resources.
[11:55:00]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SIWIK: Well, this really is a collaborative effort it has to be. In this case, the race, the people talk about the competition, right? The
competition is not each other, right? It really is working against the virus.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
STEWART: Making the vaccine isn't the end of the challenge, next up, getting it to those that need it all over the world. Companies like UPS
plan to be ready to pick up, store, and deliver a successful vaccine.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
WES WHEELER, UPS: We don't know who is going to be first. We know that Pfizer, Moderna, AstraZeneca with the Oxford University, we know that
CanSino in China is doing well. We know that Novavax is moving fast.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
STEWART: Different types of vaccine need different transport and storage conditions. One of the biggest challenges is temperature.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
WHEELER: Just a few months ago, when we started to get good information about what temperatures will be required for these vaccines, we made an
investment in freezer farm technology, so we have invested in both the U.S. and - in the Netherlands is one of our pubs near Parkalone Air Hub in
Germany.
So we have made investments there. And also on the clinical side, we have put freezers now in several of our depots around the world.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
STEWART: Keeping the vaccine safe and secure is critical. And UPS plans to have 24/7 tracking for every single vial.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
WHEELER: We are taking seriously the fact that our clients are counting on us to move every single vial and not lose a single one.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
STEWART: And they're not alone vaccine developers, suppliers, manufacturers and logistics firms are all taking unprecedented action not just to make
but to deliver a vaccine for COVID-19. Anna Stewart, CNN, London.
ANDERSON: Let me start where we began, we are within touching distance of 30 million cases, and now almost a million deaths. We cannot turn back time
for those lost and those who will sadly still succumb to the virus. But life will find a way. We will find a way. We will figure this out, and we
will meet again. One day this will end. Until then, wear a mask, stay safe. Good night.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
END
