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First Move with Julia Chatterley
The Japanese Prime Minister Resigns, Citing Health Grounds; President Trump Lays Out His Reelection Strategy; Walmart And Microsoft Join Forces In The Tiktok Acquisition Bid. Aired 9-10a ET
Aired August 28, 2020 - 09:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
VAN JONES, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: And he needs to come out and show real strength and part of that needs to be clarifying where he agrees with
some of these protest moves and where doesn't, because I think that's authentic to him, it also happens to -- it has the benefit of being true
and it can help electorally.
These movements are going to grow. They are going to do what they are going to do. I'm proud of the athletes, I am proud of the people in the streets
who are doing it the right way, but Joe Biden needs to show strength.
ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN ANCHOR: Van Jones, thank you for tying up a long week for us. Great to see you.
And CNN's coverage continues right now.
[09:00:28]
JULIA CHATTERLEY, CNN BUSINESS ANCHOR: Live from New York, I'm Julia Chatterley. This is FIRST MOVE and here is your need-to-know.
Abe away. The Japanese Prime Minister resigns, citing health grounds.
Fear and fury. President Trump lays out his reelection strategy.
And TikTok team-up. Walmart and Microsoft join forces in the app acquisition bid.
It's Friday, let's make a move.
Welcome once again to FIRST MOVE. Great to be with you as always for a jam- packed final show of the week.
The sudden resignation of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe just hours ago, among some of our top stories. Today, the nation's longest serving
Prime Minister resigning due to ill health. The decision of course, coming at a critical moment in the COVID crisis and amid a deep downturn in the
economy, too.
Japanese stocks dropped on the news, down some 1.4 percent at the close, but they were off their lows. What next for the country? Well, we've got an
analysis coming right up.
Japan, though, the under performer in a split Asia session. The Shanghai Composite rising, as you can see, some 1.6 percent. Hong Kong and South
Korea also advancing.
What about here in the United States? Well, the bulls remain buoyant. The S&P 500 continuing to make fresh record highs. Helped along yesterday,
though, by the Federal Reserve, confirming I think what we already knew, that they're ready to accept higher levels of inflation and wage growth
before they raise interest rates and that could take years.
Let's be clear, we've got very little detail on how this will work in practice, but the hope is that recoveries as a result will be stronger.
Recovery was key to President Trump's convention speech last night as he pledged to create 10 million now jobs in ten months if reelected. Remember,
they're all jobs lost during the COVID crisis, but hey, having them back is critical to the nation's healing, among other things.
We'll discuss it all with Nobel Prize winning economist, Paul Krugman very shortly, but the real big news out of Asia overnight, political change
afoot in Japan.
Let's get to the drivers. Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe announcing his resignation, citing his worsening health.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SHINZO ABE, JAPANESE PRIME MINISTER (through translator): Despite all the support, even though I have one year to go in my tenure, and with other
challenges that have not been addressed yet, and amid the coronavirus outbreak, I decided to step down as the Prime Minister.
I would like to send my apologies to the people of Japan.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHATTERLEY: And Will Ripley joins us now. Will, we obviously feel sorry for the Prime Minister and his decision here to step down early, but a critical
pivotal time. He comes and has been under fierce pressure over the handling of COVID, the economy is in a downward spiral again. What do we make of
this, Will?
WILL RIPLEY, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Julia, 2020 was supposed to be Shinzo Abe's banner year. Before the pandemic turned our world upside
down, he was going to host the Chinese President Xi Jinping to Tokyo, which would have been a huge development considering the tensions historically
between China and Japan.
The Tokyo 2020 Olympics were supposed to his crowning achievement. He had basically been the champion of billions of dollars, tens of billions,
according to some estimates, to put on these games successfully, to build infrastructure, add jobs, and he imagined that tourists would flock to
Japan and then they would travel through the country and this would be the turning point that could get the Japanese economy into a kind of service
sector, hospitality, tourism-driven economy and that people around the world would flock in.
And of course tourism is nonexistent at the moment because of travel restrictions. The Olympics, it's up in the air whether they will even
happen at all.
So Shinzo Abe was accusing, in the early months of the pandemic like other world leaders, of downplaying the situation, of not taking it seriously
enough, perhaps of focusing so much on trying to save the Olympics that he didn't take the steps that he could have taken early on to prevent what
Japan is now seeing, which is huge record daily hikes in the number of infections.
You know, Japan had a pretty slow start in terms of the numbers, but the numbers have really picked up and the public is angry and they're angry
about the economy. They're angry about their lives and they have accused Prime Minister Abe of being out of touch, of not really understanding the
struggles of everyday Japanese.
[09:05:25]
RIPLEY: And so his approval ratings -- his disapproval ratings have just been really, really tough to deal with. But, you know, he had a lot of big
ideas.
He started a conversation about getting more women in the workplace. He started a conversation about rethinking Japan's Pacifist Constitution. He
wanted to revise the Constitution and make Japan more assertive on the global stage.
He was able to befriend President Trump, the first world leader to do so. He had an alliance with President Obama and he has had similar alliances
with leaders all around the world and that was probably a key strength.
He really wanted to bring Japan back in a stronger form and elevate its standing on a global stage and I think, he acknowledged in his comments
today that a lot of those goals, albeit very difficult goals and a changed resistance in a society like Japan just haven't come to fruition yet.
CHATTERLEY: Yes, the practice was far tougher perhaps than the theory, and I agree with you, super bold ideas.
Will, very, very quickly, who might follow? Who can step into the breach here?
RIPLEY: Well, that's the big question. It's going to be somebody in the Liberal Democratic Party because Prime Minister Abe will essentially stay
as Prime Minister until someone else is chosen.
It could be anywhere from the Finance Minister Taro Aso, the Defense Minister Taro Kono, but you know, basically big names are being thrown out.
Abe might have his favorites. I think Fumio Kishida, the former Foreign Minister probably is the one he is going for, not doing so well in the
polls right now. But the key is, it's going to be somebody in the party who probably shares a large part of Abe's ideology.
So Abenomics, while it may not continue in the name, Abenomics in practice it probably will continue -- Julia.
CHATTERLEY: Yes, the theme continues. Will Ripley, thank you so much for that analysis there.
All right, from a leader standing down to one standing for a fresh term, Donald Trump accepted his nomination for President at the Republican
National Convention last night at the White House.
Jeff Zeleny has all the details.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEFF ZELENY, CNN SENIOR WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): President Trump formally accepted his party's re-nomination, turning the White House
South Lawn into a full-blown Trump rally.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I profoundly accept this nomination for President of the United States.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ZELENY (voice-over): On the final night of the Republican Convention, the President spoke before more than 1,500 supporters, with few masks and no
social distancing.
This after months of the Trump administration's own health experts urging people to avoid large gatherings, to slow the spread of the coronavirus.
Trump praised and misrepresented his handling of the crisis, while the U.S. continues to face a high human cost from the pandemic.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: We are meeting this challenge. We are delivering life-saving therapies, and we'll produce a vaccine before the end of the year or maybe
even sooner.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ZELENY (voice-over): He also warned a Joe Biden-led response would cripple the economy.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: Instead of following the science, Joe Biden wants to inflict a painful shutdown on the entire country.
Joe Biden's plan is not a solution to the virus, but rather, it's a surrender to the virus.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
TRUMP: My administration has a very different approach: to save as many lives as possible, we are focusing on the science, the facts, and the data.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ZELENY (voice-over): Yet Biden has only said he would shut down the country if scientists recommend it.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOE BIDEN (D), PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: I would be prepared to do whatever it takes to save lives. Because we cannot get the country moving until we
control the virus.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ZELENY (voice-over): As the President's daughter, Ivanka Trump, tried to soften his image --
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
IVANKA TRUMP, DONALD TRUMP'S DAUGHTER/WHITE HOUSE ADVISOR: I recognize that my dad's communications style is not to everyone's taste.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ZELENY (voice-over): People gathered outside the White House to protest racial injustice.
[VIDEO CLIP PLAYS]
ZELENY (voice-over): Trump did not mention Jacob Blake, who was shot by police in Kenosha, Wisconsin, earlier this week, or two of the people
allegedly killed by a 17-year-old during a protest. But he did warn a Biden presidency would lead to an attack on public safety.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: We must never allow mob rule. We can never allow mob rule.
(APPLAUSE)
TRUMP: In the strongest possible terms, the Republican Party condemns the rioting, looting, arson, and violence we have seen in Democrat-run cities,
all, like Kenosha, Minneapolis, Portland, Chicago, and New York, and many others -- Democrat-run.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ZELENY (voice-over): It was one of many blistering attacks on Biden, a moderate Democrat, whose record Trump repeatedly mischaracterized as
radical.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: Biden is a Trojan horse for socialism.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ZELENY (voice-over): Ahead of a fireworks celebration, Trump told voters, November's election could have historic consequences.
[09:10:10]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: At no time before have voters faced a clearer choice between two parties, two visions, two philosophies, or two agendas. This election will
decide whether we save the American dream or whether we allow a socialist agenda to demolish our cherished destiny.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHATTERLEY: And Jeff Zeleny joins us now. Jeff, as the President was saying there, two parties, two very different visions here. The Republicans and
Donald Trump, clearly the underdogs coming into this, have they turned sentiment, do you think?
ZELENY: There's no question that President Trump needed to reset his candidacy during this four-day Republican National Convention and there are
many signs that he did.
It seems that he has finally found a message on which to go after the Democratic ticket on, to go after Joe Biden on. He sort of flailed around a
little bit in trying to find a criticism that would actually stick, but it does seem, you know, fueled by the racial unrest and the protests that we
are seeing across the country that the President is seizing on that in this law and order message.
But also it is dripping with fearmongering. In many respects, it is dripping with racism as well.
So there is a sense here that Democrats are always worried about being portrayed as a weaker party, not a party of strength. So that will be Joe
Biden's challenge here over the next 67 days until Election Day to push back on this and really try and keep this election to be a referendum on
the incumbent, a referendum on the President as opposed to a choice between the two of them.
But Julia, four weeks is the first debate. That will be the first sense here when we see Biden and Trump side by side, how to really measure them
up.
But I think, no doubt, Trump has turned a bit of a corner here. We'll see what the voters say as they take a measure of these messages.
CHATTERLEY: Yes, it's going to be interesting to see, and Jeff, very quickly, 1,500 of people there. A lot of them not wearing masks, most of
them not wearing masks. Had they been tested?
ZELENY: Right. No, there were not widespread testing for most of the people, at least the ones that we spoke to. And look, you could just see
they were not following the protocols.
So, yes, it was outside, but they were not wearing masks. So we will see if there's any fallout from that.
But certainly, it is an image that we will see again and again. I wouldn't be surprised if it showed up in Democratic ads as a leadership moment. I
mean, Joe Biden is the one saying, look, you should wear your mask here.
So we will see if that lingers. But boy, it sure looked strange last night as the South Lawn of the People's House here essentially became a Trump
rally -- Julia.
CHATTERLEY: Yes, just checking. Just checking. Health first. Jeff Zeleny, great to have you with us. Thank you.
All right, Walmart shopping for TikTok U.S. The retail giant teaming up with Microsoft in an attempt to buy the Chinese app. The news comes just
hours after TikTok's recently appointed CEO, Kevin Mayer left the company.
Selina Wang is in Hong Kong for us. Selina, great to have you with us. This is an interesting one because it's all about monetization and looking at
the future e-commerce and potential advertising opportunities that this platform presents.
Talk us through what to think of this.
SELINA WANG, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely, Julia. I'll just start out with this. TikTok is one of America's most influential social networks. It has
about 100 million monthly active users in the U.S.
So what does that mean for Walmart? It means access to a very large young consumer base that could potentially buy its products online or in-store.
It gives it very valuable user behavior insights on that coveted Gen-Z demographic.
It also gives it a very lucrative, as you have mentioned earlier, a potentially very important advertising base and it could play into
Walmart's rollout of Walmart Plus, which is expected to compete with Amazon Prime.
In addition to that, Walmart could also help transform TikTok into an e- commerce platform for its creators and users. In fact, Douyin, which is ByteDance's Chinese version of TikTok already has e-commerce integrated
into it.
In terms of Walmart teaming up with Microsoft that may seem like an odd pair, but this isn't the first time they've worked together. In 2018,
Walmart signed a five-year deal to use Microsoft's Cloud computing services. They are both investors in Indian e-commerce giant, Flipcart.
It is unclear at this point however how they would split-up their stake in TikTok if they were successful for this bid, which they are still competing
with Oracle for.
But either way, Julia, this is going to be a massive deal. Analysts estimate that TikTok's U.S. operations are worth between $40 million to $50
billion.
CHATTERLEY: Yes, you have to envisage the advertising and the e-commerce opportunities in order to even imagine that kind of a valuation, even when
you're talking about a hundred million users.
What does the exit of the CEO tell us? One, about the likelihood of this deal actually taking place, quite frankly, and the fact that he wanted to
be the global CEO and clearly there is not really going to be a global business if this deal takes place?
[09:15:10]
WANG: Essentially what Kevin Mayer is saying, this isn't what he signed up for. As he said, he signed up for a global role, not a potentially more
diminished regional carved-up position that has to talk to a much larger and obey a much larger technology giant.
Remember, he was only hired about four months ago. He was a major high- profile hire. It was part of TikTok's way to distance itself from its Chinese owner.
At the time of course, he saw this as a massive global opportunity. He had left a very high profile position at Disney where he was seen as a
potential successor to Bob Iger. He had overseen the launch of Disney Plus. That situation has drastically changed.
In an internal memo to staff he wrote, quote: "In recent weeks, as the political environment has sharply changed, I've done significant reflection
on what the corporate structural changes will require and what it means for the global role that I signed up for."
His departure also indicates that a deal is imminent, in fact, according to Reuters, ByteDance aims to close -- not close, but to enter exclusive talks
with a bidder in the next 24 to 48 hours.
And Julia, we've been talking about the twists and turns with ByteDance over the past few weeks. It all just underscores how difficult it is moving
forward, going to be for Chinese-owned or Chinese technology companies in the United States as the Trump administration increasingly tries to
decouple the two technology ecosystems.
CHATTERLEY: Yes, a dance with many steps and fast music. Selina Wang, thank you so much for that, as always.
And we will be putting some of those questions to TikTok later in the show. We'll be joined by the company's Vice President and head of U.S. Policy.
Stay with us. We're back after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHATTERLEY: Welcome back to FIRST MOVE, live from New York, where Wall Street is firmly set to open in the green.
New numbers before the bell showing U.S. personal spending rising 1.9 percent last month, a slower pace, let's be clear, than seen in May and
June.
[09:20:10]
CHATTERLEY: Personal incomes rose almost half a percent. This data collected before the $600.00 a week enhanced benefits ended for millions of
jobless Americans. Congress, of course, still AWOL on new aid. And unemployment claims are still rising by one million former workers a week.
Fed Chair Jay Powell assuring investors once again yesterday that he will use all the tools that he has available to help boost growth. His message
to markets is that rates will stay lower for longer, even if inflation overshoots the Federal Reserve's targets.
But how can the Fed boost inflation when prices are falling globally? And will investors, as a result now be incentivized to invest in riskier
assets? Who better to ask than "New York Times" columnist and Nobel Laureate, Paul Krugman who joins us now; he is also the author of the book
"Arguing with Zombies."
Paul, fantastic to have you on the show as always. What do you make of the Federal Reserve and Jay Powell's signaling here? I can see plenty of flaws
in the practice, if not the theory?
PAUL KRUGMAN, NOBEL PRIZE WINNER: Well, sure, this is all about expectations. At the moment, the Fed does not have -- they will never admit
it, but they don't have a whole lot of ammunition. Rates are zero. QE has never been entirely clear how effective it is.
What they're basically saying is well, trust us, we will keep rates low for a long, long time with the hope that that will give the economy some boost
and maybe it does. But I'm in the camp that finds it hard to get excited about this.
This doesn't seem to me to be much of a change from what they've been doing anyway.
CHATTERLEY: I mean, the idea is, as well, if we see inflation at some point in the future, then that will arguably see the market react anyway. We'll
see long-term rates rise, whatever they're doing, and that will have a negative impact on housing.
KRUGMAN: Yes, many, many years ago I said that what the Bank of Japan -- remember, they were here first, they experienced this kind of situation. I
said that what they needed to do was to credibly promise to be irresponsible, that they needed to say to people we will not tighten when
the inflation starts to rise.
And what we've learned since then is that's actually really hard to do. First of all, people don't necessarily think that much ahead; and secondly,
they tend to assume when push comes to shove, central bankers will be central bankers and they will raise rates at the first whiff of inflation.
CHATTERLEY: Some might argue that the Federal Reserve wouldn't have to promise to be credibly irresponsible if Congress were responsible about
providing more support in a crisis and as I just mentioned, they're AWOL. I mean, this is a huge problem.
KRUGMAN: This is huge. I mean, if you look at the -- so the personal income report just came out and last month, the $600.00 payment, the pandemic
unemployment compensation was $900 billion at an annual rate. It was more than four percent of GDP in this special aid to workers who desperately
need it and that's just gone. It's been replaced by a hope that eventually a little bit of money might trickle through from President Trump's
executive order.
But that's a huge fiscal contraction and it is not really showing the data yet, but it's got to be a concern for the economy over the next couple of
months.
CHATTERLEY: Enough to push the U.S. economy back into recession, Paul?
KRUGMAN: Possibly. I mean, but there are two forces operating in different directions here. One of them is that it's not so much the policy on
reopening, it's the fact I think that the private sector is finding ways to operate in a pandemic environment. Just look at the proliferation of
outdoor dining and things like that.
So there are ways in which people are gradually adapting to this unpleasant new world, which are plus, lead to some job gains. On the other hand, yes,
we're hitting the economy, we're slamming it with what amounts to massive fiscal austerity at a time when we are really not prepared for that.
CHATTERLEY: President Trump said he promises to add 10 million jobs over the next ten months. Credible?
KRUGMAN: It's not impossible. We've been seeing -- no one knows, but some estimates suggest we might be adding on the order of a million or maybe a
bit less jobs. The numbers are all very, very hard to parse right now.
But you know, that's not great, even if that happens, that still leaves us below where we were early in the year and that's an enormous period of
suffering in between.
So, and in any case, you know, if that's what he wants to do, he should have actually been pushing Congress to have a real plan to keep the incomes
of unemployed workers and he isn't doing that.
[09:25:09]
CHATTERLEY: Yes, compromise required. Paul, your views of this President and this administration are very clear, I think, to our regular viewers and
to those who read your work. What did you make of the R.N.C.?
KRUGMAN: I thought it was just -- I mean, to me, it was just very odd because it was all don't be afraid of the things that are actually -- the
scary things that are actually happening. They always talk about the pandemic in the past tense, even though a thousand people are dying a day.
And do be afraid of things that mostly aren't happening.
Yes, we've had some urban unrest, and there's been some bump in the murder rate, but this is not a country that is full of burning cities and mobs of
violent criminals. It's actually still a country that is vastly safer than it has been for most of my life.
And so this weird thing that we're supposed to be terrified of that wild Marxist revolutionary Joe Biden and not be terrified of a pandemic that is
still killing at a rate of 9/11 every few days. It's bizarre.
CHATTERLEY: It is interesting though, even "The New York Times" this week said that if you look at the tragedies that happened in Wisconsin and
Minnesota with George Floyd, it arguably plays to that concept. It plays into President Trump's hands. Do you believe the polls or do you think this
election is going to be tighter?
KRUGMAN: Nobody knows. I mean, the polls -- polling got a bad rap in 2016. National polling was pretty accurate, some of the state polls,
unfortunately, or fortunately, depending on how you put it, but the polls in a few swing states were off. But pollsters have made adjustments.
I think it is clearly the case that Biden is ahead right now, that if the election were held today, Trump wouldn't be our next President. Now, what
happens, how it actually plays, who knows?
But it's hard to know exactly what is Trump running on besides fear of this crime wave that mostly exists only in his mind? I mean, his economic record
no longer looks particularly good, and it's really hard to know what else is out there that's supposed to be the plus, except if you can somehow
convince people that this mild-mannered guy in his 70s is in fact somehow a radical threat to American values.
CHATTERLEY: Or those around him, I guess. Does the stock market matter, Paul?
KRUGMAN: Well, yes. No, I think that's one of the things we've learned, is that people like me have spent all these years saying the stock market is
not the economy, the stock market is not the economy and it turns out the public has the same view.
There has been basically no relationship between what happens to stocks and public opinion, which makes sense because the great majority of stocks are
held by a small number of people.
For most people, what matters is jobs, what matters is government programs to support their incomes and their healthcare.
The fact that the Dow or the S&P are hitting new highs doesn't do anything for the person who is out of work because of a pandemic.
CHATTERLEY: Yes, it's just not a reason to be complacent. Let's hope lawmakers in D.C. now understand that.
KRUGMAN: Yes, I mean, it's not that the -- the thing is, the people who are watching your show and people that I hang out with are much more invested
both literally and psychologically on the stock market than, if I can say, real Americans.
The media and voter is basically -- it has almost no stake in the stock market and if the stock market were a good indicator of what was happening
to the economy at large, that might be different. But it isn't.
As you know, the old line, the stock market predicted nine of the last five recessions. The stock market is just not the economy.
CHATTERLEY: Nine of the last five. Paul, always fantastic to have you on the show. Thank you so much.
KRUGMAN: Good to be on. Take care.
CHATTERLEY: Paul Krugman there. Nobel Laureate. You, too.
All right, coming up next, as the clock is ticking on any deal to buy TikTok, we ask the company's head of U.S. Policy when it might happen and
if.
Stay with us. That's next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[09:32:31]]
CHATTERLEY: Welcome back to FIRST MOVE. U.S. stocks are up and running on the last trading day of the week and we are higher across the board as you
can see. The S&P 500 rising to records for the sixth straight session. The Dow in positive territory for the year once again, too. Yes, there we are,
28,550, the level.
Investors bracing for a number of key market events, too. Tesla and Apple split their stock after the closing bell today. The newly revamped Dow will
debut therefore on Monday and we'll see whether the three new Dow recruits can give the index a further boost.
Coca-Cola shares meanwhile on the rise in early trading. The soft drink giant announcing a major restructuring before the bell today. It is
offering voluntary buy-outs to some 4,000 workers. That stock having some three quarters of one percent.
And hacking in the news this Friday, too. Elon Musk confirming that Russian hackers tried to get a Tesla employee to install ransomware into the
company's systems and hackers also disrupting New Zealand's stock exchange for a fourth straight session. The government now asking its spy agency to
investigate.
All right, tech remains on the minds, too. Let's return to one of our top stories. Walmart teaming up with Microsoft in the potential acquisition of
TikTok U.S. Here's the rather turbulent history since the app was launched back in 2017.
In February of last year, TikTok owner ByteDance agreed to pay a fine of nearly $6 million to U.S. regulators over illegal collection of personal
information from minors. That didn't stop the app's ever growing popularity.
A month later, it reached its first billion downloads and today, it surpassed two billion and has over 100 million users in the United States
alone.
But just a few weeks ago, Donald Trump said he would potentially ban the app saying a Chinese firm shouldn't be allowed access to data on millions
of Americans, and then just this week, newly a pointed CEO, Kevin Mayer announced he was leaving.
Wow, it's been busy.
Michael Beckerman is Vice President and Head of U.S. Public Policy at TikTok and joins us now. Michael, fantastic to have you with us. I just
want to start with, short-term, the exit of the CEO, Mr. Mayer, seen as presiding over an imminent deal. Can you give us any information?
[09:35:00]
MICHAEL BECKERMAN, VICE PRESIDENT AND HEAD OF U.S. PUBLIC POLICY, TIKTOK: Thanks for having me. Kevin is terrific. Obviously, he came in for a global
role and that's not how things are shaking out, and so we wish him the best.
He is leaving on good terms and we have a very strong leadership team here in the United States that's continuing to focus on the app and make sure
that we're providing the great, authentic and joyful entertainment content on TikTok that our users and creators love.
CHATTERLEY: Michael, it's clearly been a turbulent few weeks and months. How is morale at TikTok?
BECKERMAN: That's a great question. Our employees are optimistic and we're confident that we're going to be around for the long haul. We have an
amazing, amazing team, particularly in the United States, and certainly around the world for all the markets and we just focus on the work that
we're doing every single day.
And TikTok continues to grow and it continues bring joy to people that are creating content and consuming content on a daily basis and that's really
what we focus on and we try to ignore a lot of the external noise that's going on.
CHATTERLEY: A lot of the influences that we've spoken to point to the innovation, they point to the culture, the accessibility of the platform
and the tools.
If TikTok U.S. or in some kind of form is then working with Walmart and Microsoft in the future, will that suppress innovation? Will that change
anything about the culture in your mind?
BECKERMAN: Not at all. I mean, TikTok is so unique because of the culture, because of the creativity, because of the unique opportunities it has for
creators to reach such a massive audience in a way that is just not possible in any other app as much as they try to copy, they can't really
copy the community that we have.
And so, that's why there's such interest in this, frankly, it is because is community is so great. The app is running in a way that no one else is able
to duplicate, and so that's not going to change at all and we're confident that the same app that our creators love and come to every day and that
people come to and hundreds of millions around the world will not change.
CHATTERLEY: Michael, do you think it is just a case of TikTok through its ownership of a Chinese company ByteDance, just got caught up in the
geopolitics here between the United States and China, or do you think as the "Wall Street Journal" has recently suggested, perhaps other tech giants
like Facebook tried to undermine you because they saw a strong competition? Do you think that's possible?
BECKERMAN: That's a great question. Clearly, we are in the middle of major geopolitical headwinds. There's a lot of confusion about the app. TikTok is
not available in China.
We're run by a strong team in the U.S. and other markets around the world for those markets. And so, you know, we're just trying to get the facts out
there and clearly, from the "Wall Street Journal" report and others, some of our competitors would like to see us exit the market because we are
being so successful and because we are growing so much.
But, again, we focus on making sure the app remains joyful and entertaining and that's what we focus on. We try to ignore particularly competitors with
tactics that often are not so great, but we're still successful and so it really just doesn't matter.
CHATTERLEY: Michael, is the app safe for U.S. consumers? Because I know you guys have said, look, to the U.S. administration, China doesn't have
access. But if China asked for American user data, surely, you would have to pass it over.
BECKERMAN: Absolutely. We'd absolutely not on the China piece, absolutely that we're safe. TikTok doesn't operate in China. We have a world class
chief security officer, our servers are in Virginia and we've said time and time again that we will not share information with the Chinese government.
We go by legal requests in the United States and the fact that TikTok does not operate in China really answers the question there.
In fact, you don't have to take our word for it. The C.I.A. in the United States does an analysis of TikTok and they said it's not a security threat.
Some of the world's leading security experts have looked through this and they said the data that exists on TikTok and the TikTok app itself has
absolutely no value from a foreign or domestic security purpose at all. It's an entertainment app.
And if folks want to be -- want to really focus on threats from other markets or threats abroad, focusing on TikTok is just missing the boat. So
TikTok absolutely is safe and we're confident of that.
CHATTERLEY: Do you think the situation with TikTok could be different under a different administration? Clearly, TikTok is now suing the U.S.
administration, the perception is perhaps trying to push this past the election date. Do you think that would make a difference, Michael?
BECKERMAN: Well, this is not about politics. We're in a very unique place globally with very high level geopolitics that are at stake and we just
focus on the facts, and the fact is that TikTok is a safe platform.
We work to secure it every single day with an incredible team in the U.S. and that's it. I mean, this is an entertainment app that has grown and is
beloved by people all over the world and that really is what matters and we try not to focus on politics or speculate on elections.
[09:40:17]
CHATTERLEY: And if the deal goes through, will you drop the lawsuit against the U.S. administration?
BECKERMAN: Yes, I don't want to speak to our legal strategy, but certainly we want to have options on the table. And, again, the focus and what we're
confident of is that TikTok is going to be around to stay for users and I'll leave it at that.
CHATTERLEY: Some of the influencers again that we've spoken to, they say actually, look, part of their strategy is to diversify, to be on a number
of different platforms as much as they have loved the growth of TikTok and what the platform represents, do you worry that some of your big
influencers might perhaps go somewhere else just because of the noise surrounding TikTok?
How do you convince those guys to remain, whatever happens here?
BECKERMAN: The quality of the app, the quality of the community, the views they're getting and the product we have. Many competitors are trying to
copy and duplicate features and different parts of TikTok, but you cannot copy and you can't duplicate the community and you can't duplicate the way
we're able to operate on a daily basis.
And so what we hear from creators that dip their toes into other apps and try other things, that's completely fine and we don't have any problems
with that. What we hear from them is that they love TikTok and TikTok is still number one for them and it is still number one for the millions of
people that use it every single day and that for us is what matters the most.
CHATTERLEY: So your message to, particularly to users at this moment in the United States, is we're going nowhere, whatever happens.
BECKERMAN: That's right, we're focused on sticking around. We're optimistic and we have different pieces in place to ensure that we can continue to
offer this joyful and entertaining experience for over a hundred million Americans that rely it on every single day.
And it has really been a bright spot, not only to the community that are watching videos and creating videos every day, but also for the economy. I
think that's a piece that is missed often.
We have over 1,500 jobs in the United States and have grown very rapidly, even during the pandemic and have plans to hire another 10,000 people in
the United States over the next year or two in a lot of different areas outside of California and New York and we'll be in Michigan and Florida and
Texas and other places.
So we're really growing and we're confident that we'll be able to continue to do that.
CHATTERLEY: Michael, great to chat with you. Come back and speak to us soon, please.
Michael Beckerman, Vice President and Head of U.S. Policy at TikTok. Great to have you on the show, sir. Thank you.
BECKERMAN: Thank you.
CHATTERLEY: All right, still ahead, hundreds of thousands of homes without power and the risk of further devastation ahead. The latest as Laura tears
through the United States.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[09:41:02]
CHATTERLEY: Welcome back to FIRST MOVE. Look and leave. That's the message from the Mayor of Lake Charles, Louisiana to people returning after
Hurricane Laura. He says he has no timeframe for how long it will take to recover.
More than 750,000 homes across Louisiana, Texas and Arkansas are without power, and at least six people have lost their lives. Martin Savidge is on
the scene in Lake Charles, Louisiana and joins us now.
Martin great to have you with us. Scenes of devastation.
MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, absolutely, Julia. I mean, the damage is extensive and it's definitely severe. It's very much like you
would see in a tornado, which if you're not familiar with those, are extremely powerful storms here in the United States, but they tend to be
geographically very narrowly focused.
This is that kind of damage, but spread over a massive kind of area. In the background, that was a restaurant. You can see that it's been absolutely
crushed.
If you follow me this way, well, its next door neighbor here was an insurance company and it, too, has suffered a devastating blow. And if you
continue to follow along, well, you see the reason why.
This is one of those broadcast antennas, a very large one that came toppling down at the height of the storm. It just shows you some of the
power.
And then we have this drone footage to show you. This is another incredible scene. It's a high-rise building located in downtown Lake Charles, and look
at the windows knocked out, almost every other one. This is a clear example of why you do not do what they call vertical evacuation, in other words,
get up into tall buildings when you have powerful hurricanes moving through the area. It almost looks like something out of an apocalyptic kind of
film.
You already pointed out, the mayor is saying look and leave. That's because the electricity is out throughout the entire city and not likely to be back
for weeks because the entire infrastructure electrically was just dismantled by this storm.
And then on top of that, there is no running water, and that, too, could be a problem for some time because a number of the pumping plants suffered
severe damage. So they can't get those online. They can't get the water pressure up, so no water, no electricity, those are essentials for life.
That's why, if you've evacuated, the mayor is saying, this is not a good time to come on back.
Six deaths, which as tragic as those are, that's remarkably low given the amount of damage that we're seeing, and it was 15 years ago next month that
this area suffered greatly from Hurricane Rita. It took them a long time to recover from that, and now, well, they have to start all over again --
Julia.
CHATTERLEY: Yes, cleanup complicated by COVID, of course, too. Our hearts go out to everyone involved.
Martin, thank you for being there. Our Martin Savidge reporting.
All right, when we return, an emotional interview with the father of Jacob Blake, who says his son is shackled to his bed in a hospital and discusses
what his son says went through his mind as he was shot by police. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[09:51:13]
CHATTERLEY: Welcome back to FIRST MOVE. In the next hour, the 17-year-old charged with killing two protesters in Kenosha, Wisconsin, is expected to
appear in court for the first time. He now faces six charges, including first-degree murder.
Meanwhile, Jacob Blake's family say his leg is shackled to his hospital bed, despite Blake being paralyzed from the waist down. Earlier Jacob
Blake, Sr. spoke to CNN about his son's condition.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JACOB BLAKE, SR., FATHER OF JACOB BLAKE: His main concern when we were talking was his sons. He was -- in his mind's eye, he just wanted to get --
he wanted to get his sons out of harm's way, but before he could get them out of the car, he said he was just counting shots. He said, he was
counting them.
And I guess, he went -- he lost consciousness around number four or five. The oldest in the car was eight and the youngest in the car was three.
CAMEROTA: And have you talked to them?
BLAKE, SR.: They're with me every day.
CAMEROTA: What do they say? How are they coping with this this morning?
BLAKE, SR.: The oldest every day, his question is, daddy, why did the police -- he calls me papa, and all my grandkids call me papa or pop-pop.
He said, Papa, why did they shoot my daddy in the back? Where is daddy?
They want their father because he was a part of their life every day. He's a person. He's a human being. He's not an animal. He is a human.
Well, my son has not been afforded the rights of a human. He's not been treated like a human. He's a father. He's not a deadbeat dad, he's a
father. He's with his children every day.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHATTERLEY: The family of Jacob Blake is taking part today in a new march on Washington. Exactly 57 years after Martin Luther King, Jr. roused the
consciousness of the nation with his "I Have a Dream" speech calling for racial equality.
Tens of thousands of people are expected to gather at the Lincoln Memorial this morning. Suzanne Malveaux joins us now. And Suzanne, I think achieving
that dream today feels like a long way off and that's the message.
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN U.S. CORRESPONDENT: Julia, it really is amazing when you think about it because it was August 28th, 1963, the march on
Washington, attracting more than 200,000 people calling for equality and freedom, racial justice.
And I speak to so many people here who are -- the thousands who are waiting to just get into this area, into the National Mall area and the issues are
the same.
It is about police brutality. It is about voting rights. It is about jobs. You just heard that sound there that the father tore it up. It is about
Jacob Blake. That man shot seven times in the back.
And just to give you a sense of what this march is about, it is being dubbed the "Get your knee off our necks march." That in reference to George
Floyd, the man who had a police knee to his neck eight minutes and 46 seconds before he died.
These are the kinds of stories that people are telling. We're going to hear many, many more of those family members of those victims.
Julia, I also had a chance to talk to Martin Luther King, III. He talked about his father's legacy, the speech, the famous "I Have a Dream" speech
and he also really thought about what would he think today? What our society is about and what we have become. Take a listen.
[09:55:15]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARTIN LUTHER KING, III: Dad would be very proud of the fact that tragically after George Floyd's death, the tragedy caused the largest Civil
Rights demonstrations on the planet ever.
I think that if he just showed up today, he would be greatly disappointed in the conduct of our behavior, particularly the conduct that is starting
at the White House level.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: Julia, this demonstration very different than previous ones because of the restrictions around COVID-19, everybody required to wear a
mask. Everybody has their temperature taken and a wristband here to be allowed into the area, encouraged to social distance.
And they say that it's not that important to be here physically if you are watching, all you have to do is take some sort of action for racial justice
-- Julia.
CHATTERLEY: Yes. Absolutely. Suzanne Malveaux, great to have you with us. Thank you for that.
And that's it for the show. I'm Julia Chatterley. Stay safe and we'll continue to follow all the stories throughout programming today. Have a
safe weekend, guys.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[10:00:00]
END
