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Senate Intel Releases Final Report On Russia's 2016 Election Meddling; Michelle Obama Delivers Scathing Attack On Trump; Joe Biden's Former Primary Rivals Make The Case For His Candidacy; Admiral Brett Giroir: We've Got Lots Of Testing Capacity Right Now; John Kasich: I Don't Believe Biden Will "Turn Sharp Left". Aired 12-12:30p ET

Aired August 18, 2020 - 12:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

[12:00:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

JOHN KING, CNN HOST: Hello, everybody. I'm John King in Washington. Thank you for sharing this busy news day for us. It is day two for the Democrats with Bill Clinton and Jill Biden tonight's convention headliners. Out with President Trump in constant chaos in Joe Biden and steady leadership that is the over arching Democratic theme. And Michelle Obama was powerful as the opening night closer.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MICHELLE OBAMA, FORMER FIRST LADY OF THE UNITED STATES: Donald Trump is the wrong president for our country. He has had more than enough time to prove that he can do the job but he is clearly in over his head. He cannot meet this moment. He simply cannot be who we need him to be for us. It is what it is.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KING: If getting under the president's skin was one of the former First Lady's goals then mission accomplished.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What is your response to Michelle Obama's speech last night where she said that you're over your and the wrong president for this country?

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: She was in over her head and frankly should have made the speech live and didn't do, taped it. It was not only taped but a long time ago with the wrong deaths and didn't mention the vice presidential candidate in the speech and she gets these fawning reviews. I thought it was a very divisive speech. I wouldn't be here if it weren't for Barack Obama.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KING: That back and forth there actually a bit of normal political jousting in a campaign that is anything but normal. Coronavirus disruption is everywhere. With Election Day 11 weeks from today, an early voting opening much sooner than, the Biden convention message is that it would not be this bad, not even close, if President Trump had taken the Coronavirus threat seriously and listen to the science.

There are some positives in the pandemic numbers today. The 35,000 new infections reported Monday well that's the lowest daily number in eight weeks. 445 U.S. Coronavirus deaths recorded Monday the average as you can see has been 1,000 a day for three weeks now so perhaps a glimmer of improvement in sad tally.

The president is right to say Michelle Obama's death number was off but that is hardly a plus for him. Yes, it was 150,000 when she recorded her speech earlier this month it is more than 170,000 now on track for 200,000 by Labor Day. That tally includes Marker Keisam (ph) a Trump supporter in Arizona who died in June.

His daughter Kristin had a convention spotlight last night saying, her father didn't take the threat seriously because he followed the president's lead.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KRISTIN URQUIZA, FATHER DIED OF CORONAVIRUS: Enough is enough. Donald Trump may not have caused the Coronavirus but his dishonesty and his irresponsible actions made it so much worse.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KING: The president's handling of this pandemic is the central issue in campaign 2020 but there is a 2016 flashback of note today. The Senate Intelligence Committee releasing its final installment of its Russia meddling investigation this morning. The Republic Committee Chairman says there's zero evidence of Trump Campaign collusion with the Russian interferers.

The Committee's top Democrat though says the report details what he called a breath taking level of contacts between top Trump aides and Russian operatives. So what do Democrats think about night one and what is the goal for tonight? NPR's Asma Khalid, CNN's Jeff Zeleny joining me now.

Asma I want to start with you. We had this theme last night, out with Donald Trump, in with Joe Biden, he is a nice guy. Tonight we hear from Jill Biden potentially the next First Lady of the United States and we hear from someone who knows the job quite well, Bill Clinton, on tape.

We are told this will be five minutes. I believe in 2012 he spoke for 48. How important tonight is it to continuing the arc of this Democratic Convention?

ASMA KHALID, POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT, NPR: You know, John, what I've been struck by so far is that we've been hearing from disparate number of people whether you think of some Republicans, some folks on the very progressive left we're going to hear from today. And then someone like Bill Clinton who I think is sort of struggling to maintain really his party's sort of leadership within his party. I mean, this is a Democratic Party that on issues of gender on issues of race seems to have moved from the left when he governed.

And so I think really all he has to do like many other folks we've heard from is present this singular mission which is what we have been hearing from everyone which is essentially that Democrats can't handle four more years, the country can't handle four more years of President Trump. It doesn't feel like everybody has been an agreement on policy issues and I will say thus far I don't think that that's really matter. That hasn't been the focus of the convention.

KING: I think that's a very important point. Jeff, to that point you see the back and forth. The president deciding to respond to Michelle Obama part of what Michelle Obama said last night was what Asma was just talking about.

Look, some of you might have differences; some of you might not think Joe Biden is perfect however the bigger threat is President Trump. Listen to Michelle Obama here urging everyone, do not repeat mistake of 2016. Do not stay home. Do not think the election is over. Do not think your vote doesn't count. Make sure you get out.

[12:05:00]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OBAMA: His life is a testament to getting back up. And he is going to channel that same grit and passion to pick us all up. To help us heal and guide us forward. Now, Joe is not perfect and he'd be the first to tell you that. But there is no perfect candidate, no perfect president.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KING: That was part of Michelle Obama's message. The point I was referencing also she said we have to turn out like we did in 2008 and 2012 because turnout in some key important places were down in 2016.

JEFF ZELENY, CNN SENIOR WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: No doubt. I mean, there is a road map for how Democrats could either win or lose in 2020 and that is the road map from November of 2016. So Michelle Obama there was talking to a variety of people.

A she was talking to the people who voted for her husband and Joe Biden in 2008 and 2012 who did not either turn out or they voted for Donald Trump in 2016. She was talking to them and she was also talking to the younger voters who may not find Joe Biden as exciting or as progressive.

She was - in a really stringing everything together there making the point that the alternative is Donald Trump, the alternative she said things can get worse. So watching a lot of Michelle Obama convention speeches, this was the fourth speech she gave John I was just so struck by how different she was and how freed she was to say exactly what's on her mind?

And perhaps she - it was almost as though she was speaking with a moral authority rather than just a political speech directly making an appeal to people who may not be all that enthused. Who may be turned off by all of this?

So that, of course, was the highlight of the evening but I have to say I think that as we look forward to this evening and to the lineup it really is a book end of the Democratic Party as well. That is a central theme here.

You have AOC a new comer on the left and Bill Clinton, certainly the lion of the party. And it reminds me again of 2008 when a young Barack Obama - actually, 2004, when young Barack Obama was speaking on the same night that Senator Kennedy was.

So certainly just a big divide in the party here in terms of age and ideology but that's what Joe Biden needs. He needs all of those Democrats to win in November.

KING: And Trump is the glue to that, Asma. A lot of Democrats setting their differences aside essentially saying we may have some policy disagreements, we will litigate them after you win the White House. Let's get Democrats in the White House then we'll debate.

How aggressive to be with healthcare? How aggressive to be with climate change? But one of the interesting parts last night was as they try to seek every vote out possible there. You had John Kasich, Former Republican Governor of Ohio, guys who wants balance the federal budget in Washington, a fiscal conservative.

And Bernie Sanders someone who says college should be free, the federal government should spend a lot more money on health care. Both listen here saying you must vote for Joe Biden.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN KASICH, FORMER GOVERNOR OF OHIO: I'm sure there are Republicans and independents that couldn't imagine crossing over to support a Democrat. They fear Joe may turn sharp left and leave them behind. I don't believe that.

SEN. BERNIE SANDERS (D-VT): Our movement continues and it is getting stronger every day. Many of the ideas we fought for that just a few years ago were considered radical are now mainstream.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KING: There is Asma some creative; I'll call it creative tension there. John Kasich saying Joe Biden is pretty set in the middle and Bernie Sanders saying we have actually moved him pretty far to the left.

KHALID: Yes. I think what the point there John is that who Joe Biden is and really what he believes from an ideological end? To me both of those men were saying that's secondary, the primary issue is to defeat President Trump.

And I will say I've been in touch with some progressive organizations leading up to the convention and one person told me that it is clear from their end that there's never been an election in their lifetimes that feels as important as this one.

Another organization said that they did not endorse in 2016 they are now planning to put up $7 million. I mean, there is general agreement amongst the progressive organizations that this time feels fundamentally different than 2016 because they've seen how President Trump has governed for the last couple of years.

KING: And to that point, Jeff, we were reminded last night that at one point earlier in this campaign there were 20-plus Democratic candidates. And many of them got a chance briefly to say something last night a little quick sample here.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Joe Biden is somebody who deeply cares about people.

SEN. CORY BOOKER (D-NJ): He puts his arm around me and starts telling me how good my ideas are.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It is not easy to unite the Democratic Party. We are a rambunctious group. Joe Biden has pulled it off.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He is the kind of leader that brings other leaders in.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He will bring decency and dignity back to the White House.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KING: I have a friend who's worked in Democratic politics going on four decades now who texting me last night said you know what? I'm struck by there is how genuine those were? That the other rivals always say it is time to move on and it is time to do it. But how genuine it was and I do think there's something to that?

[12:10:00]

KING: Even people who don't agree with Joe Biden on everything like him.

ZELENY: No question about it. When Senator Booker there was saying that right after that tough exchange they had a debate in the commercial break Joe Biden essentially reached out and said I want to hear your ideas that shows the comfort level of Joe Biden. That shows someone who has been at this a very long time.

Of course, when he first ran for president in the 1988 a campaign cycle he didn't make it through 87. He was the young man in the party, he was the newest candidate and now he is very comfortable being the elder here in the party.

He likes to bring people in. So that is a sense of perhaps a glimpse at if he wins in November who might be populating the cabinet. I mean, he is going to surround himself by this newer generation and he has made no bones about the fact that he is the bridge to the next generation of the Democratic Party.

So that is what is so unusual about this moment. You often have some sharp elbows at these conventions and you often have people jockeying. It is harder to do that virtually. And I think the biggest takeaway had Bernie Sanders been delivering that speech in a conference hall could have been an entirely different matter.

We all remember 2016 where it did not go nearly as well, nearly as smoothly with Hillary Clinton. So what Bernie Sanders did last night in that speech was something he was never able or perhaps willing to do for Hillary Clinton?

KING: Right. I do think the personal friendship, the history makes it different. Jeff Zeleny, Asma Khalid, grateful for your reporting and insights especially on this very busy day. We'll see how night two goes tonight? And to that point a reminder our Special Live Coverage right here on CNN continues tonight, beginning at 8:00 pm eastern, please join us.

Up next, colleges struggling now with you know what the Coronavirus, even canceling in-person classes one of them did after just one week.

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[12:15:00]

KING: The death of the current Coronavirus disruption really depends on where you live, especially as children go back to school, all the kids start to go back to college campuses. Let's take a look at the current trend lines and start with the 50 state maps?

14 states heading up that's the orange and the red. A little bit of downturn if you will in this map. We were in single digits heading up a few days ago. 14 states now heading up including Iowa that's where the president is traveling today and you see them spread across the country that means more cases right than they were reporting last week 14 states.

15 states holding steady that's these beige or yellow states. California among them, Texas among them. California and Texas of course big drivers of the summer surge they are holding steady. 21 states heading down including Arizona that's another stop for the president on the road today and another state that had been driving the summer case count up.

You see the 21 states in green that means your case count is going down. Now the death map lags the case map so even when the cases were coming down sometimes the deaths are heading up. And there's still a lot of pain and suffering in this map 19 states reporting more deaths today than did a week ago by comparison. Fourteen states holding steady 17 states in green including California

and Texas heading down the death count in Florida, Pennsylvania, you see up here in New England states heading up. So the case count, this one is interesting and worth watching.

We're on Tuesday now, right? Monday 35,000 cases down here, right? Over the weekend just above 40,000 cases are we finally coming down? And you see the seven day average moving up here; this is the summer surge starting to come down can we keep it down? Sometimes early in the week you get glitches and it goes up. Let's watch this for the rest of the week and hope it stays down.

35,000 cases, you see you have to go back to June to get that low again. So the president can make the case and his team can make the case starting to come down, that's good. But the president's critics will say is that you had it down here. How did you ever let it get back up? That is the continuing debate in the country.

Another thing we look at is the testing positivity rate and right now 5.8 percent, so about 6 percent of the tests taken in the United States are coming back positive right now. You want to be below 5 and then you want to push it down from there and you see again it went up in the summer; it's about level now maybe trickling down a little bit. Let's hope that continues as we go down.

Here's the other issue though if you go state by state. Again I said you want to be below 5 percent but we have 24 states right now at 5 percent or higher including again the president's traveling to Iowa today, the president is traveling to Arizona today.

Texas and Florida driving the summer surge. Their positivity rate still too high, actually still too high in half of the United States yet the administration's testing CZAR says, things says are better and getting better still.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ADMIRAL BRETT GIROIR, ASSISTANT SECRETARY FOR HEALTH, HHS: I'm not at all dismissive of testing. Testing is critically important and it plays an important role in surveillance particularly going back to school. The only thing I've been trying to say is that it's part of a comprehensive plan.

We have the capacity to do almost 50 million tests in August and we believe that will be up to close to 90 in September. Now how those are employed in the schools, diagnostics, hospitals that depends on the degree of spread but we have got lots of testing capacity right now.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KING: With me now live from Boston is Dr. Michael Mina who is an Assistant Professor of Epidemiology at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public health. Dr. Mina, it is good to see you again. So let's translate what the Admiral says there and whether you think that's right? When you look and I'm hopeful but I'm afraid to be optimistic, right? You start to see that curve coming down. The baseline is still way too high, never sure we got to know how to begin with but it is starting to come down so you start to get hopeful. Is there enough testing out there in the places where we need it most to make sure we have two full eyes on this and we're not blind to it?

DR. MICHAEL MINA, ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF EPIDEMIOLOGY, HARVARD T.H. CHAN SCHOOL OF PUBLIC HEALTH: It really depends on what the goal in the case of testing is? As far as goal is just to be able to observe and know where cases are increasing? Where they might be going down? We're starting to get a good number of tests.

And yes, from a purely observational perspective I would say we are able to track where the epidemics are happening? But when we're trying to use testing as an approach to pull people out of transmitting to their neighbors, for example, the types of tests that we have right now are not where they need to be.

[12:20:00]

DR. MINA: Primarily because the long delays that still exist, multiple days usually if not a week or more before people get their result back.

KING: And you heard Admiral Giroir mentioning that more testing helps especially when we get into this back to school environment, we can talk about elementary school the like. But let's talk at the moment about college campuses.

University of North Carolina being exhibit "A" right now on this national debate, they came back to school then they had several clusters now they're going back all online. Listen to a little sample here of perspective on how we got here?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REEVES MOSELEY, UNC-CHAPEL HILL STUDENT BODY PRESIDENT: UNC was kind of a - for like of a better phrase, guinea pig for all of this nationally and across the state of North Carolina. And you know when you saw 130 students test positive that should tell the rest of the universities across the system this isn't the best idea especially given the rise of cases across the state.

KEVIN GUSKIEWICZ, CHANCELLOR, UNC-CHAPEL HILL: When things started activities begin to happen off campus and then bring some of that back into the resident's halls, that's where we began to see the positive cases and we were surprised at the velocity and the magnitude of the spread.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KING: I'm not sure what the steps necessary are here to prevent this from happening but for parents watching who may have drop off the kids already or about to do so is this instructive or is it just one college campus that went awry? DR. MINA: Unfortunately this is it instructive. I think that this is the real fear of bringing a large number of people back into usually pretty cramped quarters and it's been one of the biggest fears that we have had in terms of looking towards the fall, K-12 or colleges.

This is unfortunately somewhat expected and we are hoping it might go a different direction but I think it's going to prove very, very difficult.

KING: I want you to listen here because as I said earlier we're - hopefully we're going to stay below 40,000 cases. We were at one point down to 19,000 cases a day hopefully we can continue to track down.

But Dr. Deborah Birx another member of the Coronavirus Task Force was talking about this the other day and she says she wishes that when you had a lower baseline, I'm not going to call a low baseline, 18,000 daily cases is still pretty high. When we had that low baseline she wishes the United States had done more.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. DEBORAH BIRX, WH CORONAVIRUS TASK FORCE COORDINATOR: I wish that when we went into lockdown we looked like Italy. But when Italy locked down, I mean, people weren't allowed out of their houses. Americans don't react well to that kind of prohibition.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KING: Is it that simple? Americans don't react well or is it a little bit more complicated? And I would go back to the day the White House actually released some pretty comprehensive reopening guidelines telling states to be careful, meet different tests, different gates before you go more aggressive with your reopening. And then within days the president said forget about them reopen.

DR. MINA: Now look, Deborah Birx is absolutely correct. When we have lower baselines but I would say that we should get much lower than 20,000 but it is much easier to actually continue to suppress cases if we do what we need to do when cases are at lower base lines.

And we should be talking the same mindset today and recognizing we need to be acting now because cases could very well skyrocket in the fall. And I do think Americans are having a lot of difficulty following these types of guidelines to really social distance and not go out and congregate.

It is not part of the culture but in this case I think it is going to be increasingly needed especially as we get into the fall to keep cases low and keep everyone safe.

KING: I've been saying this for a while but I'm going to hope that listening more to smart, level-headed scientists like yourself becomes more and more part of our culture. We will see if that can be the case. Dr. Mina I appreciate your insights as always. Thank you. Up next for us, shift back to politics, the president calls him a loser, a lifelong Republican makes the case for Joe Biden. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[12:25:00]

KING: John Kasich helped balance the federal budget a generation ago as a rising Republican star in the House of Representatives. He was later twice elected Ohio Governor, but today the incumbent Republican President of the United States calls Kasich a loser because of this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KASICH: I'm sure there are Republicans and independents that couldn't imagine crossing over to support a Democrat. They fear Joe may turn sharp left and leave them behind. I don't believe that. Because I know the measure of the man, he's reasonable, faithful, respectful and you know no one pushes Joe around.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KING: That's Republican John Kasich right there, the Democratic convention prime time last night urging a vote for Joe Biden refuting the Trump argument Governor that Biden is too liberal. Governor Kasich joins us now live. I'm sure you're not going to sleep tonight.

The President of the United States called you a loser. I don't want to dwell on that. That's part of the rougher and tumble. It is good to see you. We've known each other a long time. I covered you back in the days when you're balancing the budget when Bill Clinton was President.

KASICH: Right.

KING: You said last night and you're reaching out to Republicans you're reaching out to independents you're saying nobody can push Joe around, Joe is a pretty grounded left of center but a moderate guy. I want you to listen to Bernie Sanders last night who seems to think that he's moved Joe to the left.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SANDERS: Joe supports raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour.

(END VIDEO CLIP)