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CNN Live Event/Special

RNC Special Live Coverage Day 3; Wisconsin Riots Instill Fear; Live: Laura Storm Coverage; Police Chief All but Blames Protesters for Being Outside; Milwaukee Bucks Protest over Blake Shooting. Aired 1-2a ET

Aired August 27, 2020 - 01:00   ET

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

[01:00:00]

DON LEMON, CNN HOST: Do you even have to ask that question?

CHRIS CUOMO, CNN HOST: The right answer would be the same thing would have happened. But with don't believe that.

LEMON: I was going to say, do you really have to ask that question? I'm not calling you out for that -- but do we really have to ask that question, do we know what would happen? Let's be real.

CUOMO: We know.

LEMON: We know.

CUOMO: But we watched a convention tonight.

LEMON: They know.

CUOMO: Where people -- listen, I'm telling you. They're blowing up my phone right now.

LEMON: No. Just because they talk about it, they know.

CUOMO: But they're blowing up my phone saying, isn't that what you want to happen ? Did you want the cops to shoot him? No, I didn't want the cops to shoot him.

But the reason people are angry in the streets --

LEMON: That's ridiculous. Whoever's blowing up your phone saying that --

CUOMO: -- is because people keep getting shot.

LEMON: Whoever's blowing up your phone saying that is ridiculous. That's not -- by saying that there is, as we said, a double standard or you saying the standard doesn't mean that you want the guy to get shot.

We're pointing at the hypocrisy in all of this. That a person walking down the middle of the street with that much law

enforcement on the street and the situation that's happening there with a long gun in full sight, people are yelling, "This guy just shot someone."

And that person doesn't get thrown to the ground, doesn't get beaten up, doesn't get shot at, doesn't get shot, doesn't end up losing his life, is not in a hospital -- really?

And you're saying did you want -- no, no one wanted the guy to get shot. That's not what we're saying and you know that. And if you don't know that then -- really?

CUOMO: But do you think it's a coincidence that state TV's play on it is what did you to expect?

LEMON: No. I think it's embarrassing for them.

CUOMO: These people are going to be out on the streets like this, are you surprised that this young man had to take matters into his own hands?

That's law and order. That is law and order. As reflected by the mouthpiece for the party of Trump. That is the message to America. They think this is OK.

LEMON: Only if law and order looks like you. If that's what you mean by law and order, that's -- then -- looks like you.

What they're saying is, is that the people who have the right to be out on the street at that hour look like them. They're saying that tacitly. Right? That's what their actions are showing.

They must be a good person and on our side because they look like us. That's what they're saying.

Because if the person didn't look like you, where would you -- where does your mind go?

CUOMO: Right.

LEMON: Where do your actions go? Automatically it is this person is a threat.

CUOMO: Right.

LEMON: They didn't think that person was a threat -- that person can't be a threat. Why? Because it's a young white guy.

CUOMO: Right.

LEMON: That is the truth. And when you look at -- when we talk about implicit bias or unconscious bias, black men are deemed to be more threatening just from their look, just from their presence --

CUOMO: Right. LEMON: -- just from their being. Young men. Children. They think

they're older than they are, black boys especially.

They're taller. "I thought he was" -- we've seen in cases were black children were shot. Black boys. "I thought he was older, he looked older, he was taller."

Why is that? Because that's what we're taught to think. That's what --

CUOMO: But this is what the election --

LEMON: That's what --

CUOMO: This is what the election is about.

LEMON: -- this society and the country teaches us this.

CUOMO: This is what the election is about. When we say COVID and Kenosha, it's not because it's alliterative, it's because it's illustrative.

Kenosha is a metaphor for what's happening with systemic racism and the application of justice in the society.

And again, Mike Pence made his stand tonight and he's getting a lot of kudos for an eloquent speech. But let me tell you being articulate and well spoken is not the same thing as being a leader.

The words that come sliding out of your mouth matter with such grace matter. It's not a style contest, it's a substance contest.

And for him to say Joe Biden says that our police have implicit bias and I say no. Then what was that that we saw in Kenosha?

LEMON: Implicit bias.

CUOMO: And why didn't you say anything about it? They may well wind up winning this election and have to lead this country. This this is happening on their watch now.

Don, what do you think? Let's play this Pence speech because I'm telling you, this is what the election's about.

LEMON: All right.

CUOMO: There is no coincidence that state TV is saying what did you expect them to do? We have to take matters into our own hands. That's what was going to happen. Nobody's keeping the streets safe so he had to do it.

Listen to Mike Pence tonight.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MIKE PENCE, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE USA: Now Joe Biden says that America is systemically racist. And that law enforcement in America has and I quote, "an implicit bias" against minorities.

When asked whether he'd support cutting funding to law enforcement, Joe Biden replied, "Yes, absolutely."

[01:05:00]

Joe Biden would double down on the very policies that are leading to violence in America's cities.

The hard truth is you won't be safe in Joe Biden's America.

And under President Trump, we will always stand with those who stand on the thin blue line and we're not going to defund the police. Not now, not ever.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: So where is -- wait a minute. So Joe Biden's the president right now? This is Trump's America.

What is he talking about? This completely dystopian speech and convention that's happening. What is he talking about? This is Donald Trump's America right now.

Joe Biden's not the president, Joe Biden is not in power.

They keep -- they criticize him on one hand says he's not getting out there, he's in the basement, he's whatever. He is too far left and then he's too far right when it comes to police.

Make up your mind. Which is it? But he didn't address what you and I talked about.

CUOMO: And it's happening on his watch.

LEMON: His watch. And this is also Mike Pence's America --

CUOMO: Yes.

LEMON: -- because he is the vice president of the United States.

But let me ask you, what is the difference? What is the difference between those militia guys out there and Jews will not replace us, blood and soil, tiki torches or Ku Klux Klan?

What is the difference? It is the same mentality.

My America, this This is how it should be. I have authority even though I am not a sworn law enforcement officer -- I would imagine who were in the sheets or whatever back in the day or even now are law enforcement officers -- we just don't know.

But the thing is what is the difference? What's the difference? You should not be out there. It's not your business. Why are you doing it?

Why are saying out there you are a Blue Lives Matter supporter, you're a Trump supporter, you do all of these things. Why are you out there?

CUOMO: Right.

LEMON: How is this your business?

CUOMO: And -- so look, you've always had the threat.

The question is why do those people find comfort in this administration? And they say, "Oh, you can't call the president that." I'm not calling the president anything.

You tell me why do people who favor white nationalism favor this president? I'll tell you. They don't want Don Lemon to be president. Why? Now that's something for Trump to explain to America.

But for Mike Pence -- and again, you can look the part and you can sound the part -- Mike Pence is out of central casting. Good for him. Effective political tools.

But on your watch and you are thanking God for the privilege to accept the nomination and serve again -- you better speak about what's happening on your watch, brother.

Especially if you want to call yourself a man of God. You tell me how it squares with your faith to look past implicit racism because the white guy with the gun with people saying he just shot people got a pass.

"No, he didn't. He was arrested." I'm talking about the matter of apprehension.

You've got a guy in the hospital who walked around a car after for some reason the cops couldn't keep him on the ground. And they shoot him in the back seven times.

LEMON: And now they're saying well, we believed that there was a knife in the car. That's what they're saying. You believe.

Did you believe the guy carrying a weapon? Do you believe he had a weapon or did you see he had a weapon?

CUOMO: So you shot him the seven times because you believed it. You see a weapon on a guy with a gun walking with his hands up --

LEMON: Yes.

CUOMO: -- and you give him a pass. We're not saying he should have shot him, God forbid.

LEMON: No -- yes.

CUOMO: But have one standard that has fairness on all color band. That's all. And speak to it as a leader. You're the vice president of the United States.

LEMON: It's not just Kenosha where you had -- we saw Minneapolis. Once people get to dig into the videos, once the investigations, the results of the investigations are made public you see in a number of these incidences there are, as you say, outside agitators.

Or people who are coming in, a number of them militia people, white guys, who come in and start situations. Right? And then run away. Or continue to do it.

Some people believe -- I don't know if this is true -- look at the fact checks -- that there are paid actors. I don't know that.

I'm always suspicious of the guys with the skateboards. Always suspicious. Because they used to brick windows or they use it as shields.

And if you look in the crowd and you see those guys with the skateboards, just be weary -- or leery of those guys because usually -- many times they're up to no good.

Look, I'm a skateboarder, I'm not going out there to a riot though. But I know how you can use it to protect yourself and if you need it you can use it as a weapon.

[01:10:00]

CUOMO: Right.

LEMON: So --

CUOMO: Right. I'm just saying -- look, this guy was apprehended, there are charges, the system is working.

LEMON: What I'm saying is -- I want people to be clear of what I'm saying.

Do not say these are scary black people out there rioting. Look at the diversity in that crowd. This is not what is, it should not be portrayed that way. And if you portray it that way and if you believe it then shame on you.

Look at the people who were -- the person who was arrested for what happened.

CUOMO: Right. And look, the riots are symptomatic of the problem. They're wrong. People who riot and commit crimes surrender the high ground and they become what they oppose, which is lawlessness. We always say that.

LEMON: Yes.

CUOMO: Because that's the truth. And we've both experienced it in person and it's scary to be in the middle of it. And I guarantee you, you don't favor anyone who's doing any of that stuff.

LEMON: This is a disaster that will continue until we figure it out. There's an earthquake -- CUOMO: Deal with the problem. But what we saw tonight with those

videos --

LEMON: Yes.

CUOMO: -- that's the problem.

LEMON: But we have a natural disaster that's happening right now, Chris.

CUOMO: All right. We got the storm circle going. And things are starting to heat up with Hurricane Laura.

It's going to happen on our watch as Don has been telling you. So let's start the loop.

I'll start with CNN's Martin Savidge live from Lake Charles, Louisiana. We'll be to Van Dam in Beaumont, Texas in a second.

All right. I see you got the helmet on, your pants are whipping around. What's the situation now, my friend?

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, the National Weather Service now has reported the first 100 mile per hour gust. That was down in Cameron which, of course, is right on the coast.

But that means it's not that far away from us here. There's already tree damage that has happened on the property here so stuff is starting to fly in the air.

When it's reaching highway speeds, it's best to put head cover on.

It's a combination of the wind speeds here and this was a storm that's clocked at 150 miles an hour as it approaches shore. That's sustained winds, gusts could be higher than that.

The wind loads on the building here are extreme. I should tell you that we're actually sheltered So what you're seeing maybe with me or with the rain or anything moving in the background, it's actually a protected area.

If you are out in the brunt of it right now it would be hard to even stand up.

And then the next thing we're going to worry about is, of course, storm surge. And even though were 30 miles away from the coast storm surge could be going as far as 40 miles inland.

Part of the reason for that is the topography around here. If you've been around St. Charles, flat. There is hardly a tree to even stop that kind of a storm surge coming ashore and preventing it from reaching this far in.

That's why Lake Charles, they're fearing that much of the downtown area and many of the surrounding communities could be inundated with as much as nine, maybe even 12 feet of water. Twenty feet is the projected absolute height of that storm surge.

And remember you're going to have high tide around six o'clock in the morning. So that's another problem.

And when the water's there it gets whipped up by the wind and it becomes a liquid battering ram.

So that's why they had to tell people to get out. It was mandatory. They can't drag you out of your house here in Louisiana, that's not the law. They can just try to scare you within an inch of your life and say you should leave.

Hopefully many people did. But others said, you know what, they weren't going to leave because they feared coronavirus in the shelter more than they feared the storm.

That's really a mix up. The storm is going to be much more dangerous people if you're going to try and ride it out, something like this in your home.

You'd be much safer in a shelter. But that decision's already been made for you by nature. Chris.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CUOMO: All right, Martin. Thank you very much. Appreciate it. Stay safe.

LEMON: Yes. Stay safe. Let's get to Derek Van Dam, he's in Beaumont. Because we need to know -- get to our expert here. He's our meteorologist.

So Derek, walk us through this. Give us the numbers, what you expect as someone who has done this. This is your forte.

Walk us through what's happening on the ground right now.

DEREK VAN DAM, CNN WEATHER ANCHOR: Yes. Conditions in Beaumont Texas are deteriorating quickly, Chris and Don.

We just started to experience really the persistent tropical storm force winds edging closer to those hurricane-force gusts.

Now we know that the potential exists for the landscape here to change completely as we know it from this storm.

And people here are scared. And that's saying something because residents of southeast Texas and Louisiana have been through a lot. They've been through so many hurricanes; Harvey, Rita, Ike; the list goes on.

So they know what to expect and how much devastation these storms can bring. Now the I-10 corridor, it's open behind me but just 10 miles to my

east, it's shut down. That's a major evacuation route from the border of Texas and Louisiana all the way to Lafayette.

And that area, that evacuation center -- evacuation area is no longer an option for people. That ship has sailed.

We have updated power outage numbers here, Chris and Don.

We have 10,000 people without power in Texas, 25,000 customers in the state of Louisiana. And we know that number is going to skyrocket because of the extreme wind warnings that are in place.

[01:10:00]

Something in my professional career I have never experienced before from the National Weather Service. So that is a first for me.

We have to treat it like it's a prolonged tornado warning, for instance.

Now we have the safety of cover at the hotel that we're at right now. And I am a veteran storm chaser so I know the dangers that are to my left, I know the dangers that are to my right.

But we're going to take you through this storm hour by hour as it continues to ramp up because we know the eyewall is approaching the coastline and will get that left quadrant here in Beaumont, Texas where we anticipate winds in excess of 100 miles per hour.

And a grown man, 150 pounds like myself, you cannot stand up in those winds.

People ask me why do we send our teams in the middle of these storms?

Well, my answer to that and to our viewers at home it's because if you're asked to evacuate, it is my job as a journalist and a meteorologist to show you what you evacuated from, why did you put in all that effort?

These are the potential missiles that come flying at you when the winds start becoming persistent, 75 miles per hour. So we will not stand here during those moments but you can see just how ferocious things are starting to pick up across this area.

And it is only going to get worse from here.

In fact, the authorities here have told us that with sustained winds over 35, 40 miles per hour that means that they have removed the ability of search and rescue.

And with the duration of this storm we could be talking about the next 12 to 15 hours without having fire and police services available here in extreme southeast Texas and Louisiana. That is because the winds are just simply too strong. Also spoke to a Beaumont police officer earlier this morning. She

told me that previous hurricanes had knocked out power in some of the rural parts of this area for over 30 days.

So we should anticipate that because this is one of the strongest storms to reach the coast of Louisiana. So if that's any kind of tale -- sign of what's to come, we need to be prepared to be in the long haul for this one.

Chris, Don, back to you guys.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CUOMO: All right. Appreciate it. Look, I'll be saying it all morning long.

Keep the team safe, that comes first. We'll get the information one way or another. We're monitoring it.

It's starting to go, the picture tells the story.

It's Don's hometown so we obviously have heads and hearts invested in this up to now.

LEMON: I'm a little distracted. I keep looking at the text -- texting about that and also my friend who died, COVID.

If you listened to the convention tonight, if you listened to Larry Kudlow, it's in the rearview mirror, in the past tense. It's not.

I just had a friend who died, tonight. From complications from COVID.

CUOMO: And they were speaking to a crowd tonight. No masks, nobody had to be tested. I don't know how they can believe that's the right message.

LEMON: Yes.

CUOMO: I really don't. But look, we're watching everything tonight, we're reporting on everything.

And we're going to talk to a storm chaser who is flying over this monster storm and get that perspective for you. Right after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[01:20:00]

LEMON: We're back now to our breaking news as it concerns Hurricane Laura. Expecting to cause catastrophic damage as it slams into the Texas Louisiana coast.

We've got it all covered for you, you see it up there on your screen. Category four at this time.

We are tracking the storm with our experts and our folks on the ground.

Here's what the National Hurricane Center is warning. That it will pack potentially devastating winds and I quote here, "unsurvivable storm surge."

Let's discuss now. On the phone with me, Air Force Garrett Black of the 53rd weather reconnaissance squadron.

He is flying over the hurricane for us right now. We're so happy to have him.

Captain Black, can you hear me?

GARRETT BLACK, CAPTAIN, AIR FORCE 53RD WEATHER RECONNAISSANCE SQUADRON (Voice over): Yes, sir. I sure can. How are you guys?

LEMON: I'm doing well. You're flying right over. Tell us what you're seeing.

BLACK: Yes. We're flying in, actually directly into the storm at about 10,000 feet above the water.

We are just now actually turning to head westbound through the storm, the eastern side of it, to go back into the center to try to get one more fix here before it unfortunately makes landfall on what looks like to be Louisiana.

LEMON: So it's a little tough to hear, to understand -- maybe it's just my little small earpiece here. I hope the folks at home have a better time hearing you.

The wind speed, though, is remarkable with this storm. What are the conditions now? And also, for you as well as you fly over? On the ground for the folks here and for you as you fly over?

BLACK: Yes. So we've seen at the surface anywhere from 120 to about 125 knots, and at a flight level (inaudible) 140 knots. So it's been a pretty rough ride for us at the northern half of the storm.

It's been fairly turbulent, quite a bit of lightning.

That's kind of where we've spent most of our time this early morning is on the northern side, that area to make landfall.

So anyone on the ground, this is an absolutely catastrophic storm, unfortunately.

And we do hope everyone's been paying attention to the local government, National Hurricane Center, emergency management, (inaudible) and are prepared and hopefully evacuated.

LEMON: Listen, I hope you're right.

But a good indicator for these always, storms that happened before, hurricanes that happened before, you learn a lot. Especially if they're along the same path. So give us a comparison of this storm and others that you have seen, Captain.

BLACK: Yes. They're all a little bit different. But the thing is when you're talking about a strong category four hurricane like you have here, unfortunately, the results are going to be catastrophic for where it makes landfall.

When you have winds up to 140 miles per hour even up to 150, with gusts it'll even be higher.

[01:25:00]

It's pushing a lot of ocean water, unfortunately, onto land where it doesn't belong.

And it's going to be absolutely dangerous -- they're probably experiencing it right now, across portions of Texas, Louisiana.

So it's really -- the length (ph) and the surge (ph) of this storm are quite impressive (ph), unfortunately.

LEMON: All right. You be safe, Captain. We really appreciate it. That is Captain Garrett Black, 53rd weather reconnaissance squadron flying over Laura right now.

If we get any more information from him, we'll get him back on. Again, thanks, Captain.

Port Arthur, Texas also sits right on the Gulf Coast right in the path of this hurricane, Hurricane Laura.

So joining me now on the phone is Mayor Thurman Bardy (pronunciation) of Port Arthur, Texas.

Mayor, I appreciate you joining. Thanks so much.

MAYOR THURMAN BARTIE, PORT ARTHUR, TEXAS: Thank you for having me on. And it's Bartie.

LEMON: I'm sorry, say again? Bartie, Bartie?

BARTIE: I say it's Bartie.

LEMON: Bartie, yes. I got you.

BARTIE: Thank you.

LEMON: Thank you. I appreciate it. Get it right, Don Lemon.

BARTIE: Yes, sir.

LEMON: So listen --

BARTIE: That's it. You my man, Don. Thank you. Bam.

LEMON: You guys are still recovering from Hurricane Harvey. And that was three years ago. Three years later, you're still recovering.

Bracing for now -- you heard what the captain said.

Catastrophic storm conditions in the middle of this coronavirus pandemic. Give us your main priorities right now.

BARTIE: Right. Well, my main priority has really been to get all of our citizens out of harm's way. And thank God, we probably did (inaudible) to maybe 70, almost 80 percent of our citizens have actually evacuated.

There are still some who have remained. And what they know -- that they're actually on their own because there's no emergency services available to them during this particular period of time.

But we are now just awaiting total arrival.

The winds are blowing probably at this point where I am here in the Golden Triangle, 30, 40, 35, 40 miles per hour and the rain is intensifying. But the full brunt of it has not even arrived.

And we're probably looking, as we were saying, from eight to ten, maybe even twelve more hours of intense weather beating from Laura.

But thank God, our citizens, the majority, have gotten out of harm's way. And we appreciate their compliance (inaudible).

LEMON: They heeded your warnings, Mayor.

BARTIE: Sir?

LEMON: They heeded your warnings?

BARTIE: Yes, yes, yes. I would say that they -- if I heard you correctly. We gave them a warning -- we called the mandatory evacuation order on Monday. Actually, we were the first -- I was the first mayor in this region to actually call for it.

And it was based upon information that I had been receiving since Saturday. Saturday I called voluntary for low-lying areas. And they (inaudible) began Saturday moving out.

Because you could see that this was a great storm coming across the Atlantic out there and -- hoping that it would probably go to some other area. But it wouldn't.

And if it would come this way, this was actually what probably be the outcome. And we are right in the middle of experiencing it.

LEMON: Listen, I was just looking for updates on this as you were speaking.

I want to tell you be careful because, as you know, the storm surge can be the worst thing in all of this.

BARTIE: Yes. LEMON: And that's usually how people lose their lives.

BARTIE: So I'm glad to hear that folks in your community, for the most part, have heeded the warnings. Get ready for those storm surges.

BARTIE: Right.

LEMON: You get out of harm's way as well. And we appreciate it. We know it's busy, stay safe. And we appreciate you joining us. OK.

BARTIE: Yes. Appreciate you having us on.

LEMON: Mayor Bartie, thank you so much.

BARTIE: Right.

LEMON: Thank you, Mayor.

BARTIE: OK.

LEMON: Be safe.

So there's a teenager now, who is facing first-degree homicide charges are two men were shot and killed at a protest in Kenosha, Wisconsin.

Chris and I have been talking about this all evening. This is a very big story.

As we said last night, a Rorschach test for the entire country, this is.

Chris, I believe you're going to speak with the county supervisor there who says that residents are leaving to find refuge from all of this chaos. I can't wait to hear what they have to say about this.

CUOMO: Let's take a break and we'll get after it.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[01:33:27]

CHRIS CUOMO, CNN HOST: New video emerging from the unrest in Kenosha, Wisconsin. The alleged shooter armed with a gun, walking right up to and then passed police after shots were fired while people were screaming to the police that this man on the screen had just shot somebody.

Then -- so why would this happen? Well there's a video posted to a Milwaukee-based right wing Web site that shows a group of men carrying guns interacting with law enforcement personnel in armored cars. Among them is a man seen on numerous other videos firing at people with his long gun.

Police have not confirmed if this is the man that is also the suspect who was arrested earlier today. Here is that video. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hey thank you guys again. Do you need water? Seriously. Guy to our right --

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You need water?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You need water.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We'll throw you one.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We've got to save a couple but we'll give you a couple. We appreciate you guys, we really do.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CUOMO: Now, juxtapose that with the police chief all but putting the blame on the protesters for even being outside in the first place.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHIEF DAN MISKINIS, KENOSHA POLICE DEPARTMENT: Persons who were out after the curfew became engaged in some type of disturbance, and persons were shot. Everybody involved was out after the curfew. I'm not going to make a great deal of it but the point is the curfew is in place to protect. Had persons not been out involved in violation of that, perhaps the situation that unfolded would not have happened.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[01:35:04]

CUOMO: Joining us now is Andy Berg, a Kenosha County supervisor. Thank you, Mr. Berg. Appreciate you taking the opportunity.

ANDY BERG, KENOSHA COUNTY SUPERVISOR: Thank you for having me here, Chris. I appreciate it.

CUOMO: Are you aware of local police coordinating with these militiamen or are you surprised by that video?

BERG: I heard about it earlier today and I was surprised then when I heard it. We have a curfew that's supposed to be in place. And if we are going to start citing or arresting those that are -- in our community that are out past curfew, why aren't we citing those that are basically vigilantes?

(CROSSTALK)

CUOMO: That's what the chief called them. He called it vigilante work and supposedly they are not from your community.

But what do you make of the fact that one of the men walking with a long gun across his chest and he has his arms up while people are shouting, "He just shot somebody. He just shot people," was allowed to just move right past the police. BERG: You know, being a veteran myself, I can understand the aspect of

hearing a thousands things at one time and not grasping what's going on. Boy, I don't know, from my perspective I heard from multiple accounts or multiple times that the yellers were telling them that the shooter is right there. He just got through shooting somebody.

And you're right -- that was shocking that he was able to just walk past an MRAP, a bearcat, and a vehicle.

CUOMO: Let's assume that the police officers heard nothing. The cause for concern and suspicion is what do you think happens if a black guy with a long weapon across his chest walks down the street in Kenosha, Wisconsin towards the police bearcats?

BERG: You know, that's all speculation but I think we have a good idea of where that speculation is going to go to. And that causes a discussion on any crime that happens as to how we're handling people of color versus white people. How are we handling that?

And the people of color, those in my district are telling the local officials that there's absolutely an injustice in how that's happening.

CUOMO: Have you spoken to the police chief about why his guys were cozying up to the militiamen?

BERG: I have not. That's -- he's not under my -- I don't have jurisdiction but that's not under my section. That would be the sheriff's department.

CUOMO: Do you have any awareness of whether or not the feds are in town?

BERG: Oh they are. They are. It's been verified through all levels of government through the governor's office, through county and city. (AUDIO GAP) Sorry, I'm back.

(CROSSTALK)

CUOMO: All right, good. Well, listen. Andy Berg I don't want to keep you. I know you've got a very busy job. I appreciate the information and the perspective coming from your community.

I know people are scared. But do you believe you can keep your municipality under control with your local authorities?

BERG: I think we can. There's going to be -- have to be some changes and some adjustments but I think it can be done.

CUOMO: All right. What is the biggest adjustment?

BERG: We are going to have to make changes on the governmental side as to how we are going to impact incarceration and how are going to impact the bonding system and how we're going to actually respond to what people in our community that have the injustice against them, how are going to respond to them? Are we going to actually have actionable items? Are we going to continue to talk about it like we've done for decades?

CUOMO: And what do you say to the people who say no, the problem is those people in the community? Look at the riots. Look at how they're destroying things? That's your problem. You've got to put that down.

BERG: Well those people they don't come from my community. Those people came from outside of our community.

CUOMO: How do you know?

BERG: You can look at the arrest records from the last 2 days. A lot of people outside of -- outside of Kenosha coming from Illinois. There was one from Minnesota. There was a (INAUDIBLE) from Milwaukee.

CUOMO: Andy Berg, thank you very much. Appreciate the perspective.

BERG: Thank you Chris.

CUOMO: Now, you're looking at Kenosha, Wisconsin; Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Milwaukee has got the big basketball team, right? The Bucks. The Bucks refused to play in protest at what's happening in Kenosha. And that was just the beginning.

The wave of protests from people who matter in American society -- our sports celebrities, that's going on and we'll discuss it. My man, D. Lemon in command.

DON LEMON, CNN HOST: Yes.

Can I say something before we go to break?

CUOMO: Of course, you can.

LEMON: So I think people think that our last name is -- your last name andon (ph), and my last name is andchris (ph).

[01:39:55]

CUOMO: I'll tell you, I have never been more connected with somebody that I don't have a show with than I am with you.

LEMON: Chris and Don.

CUOMO: But I love it.

LEMON: I'm Don and Chris.

CUOMO: I'm connected with you anyway.

LEMON: I know.

CUOMO: I'm with you all the time anyway. What's the difference?

LEMON: It's great. It's great but listen, I have to be honest with you. I can't think of a better partner/person/friend to have here to discuss these issues than you and in a real way.

We don't pull any punches. You know there's very little filter, if any, which could get us in trouble but I think the viewer appreciates it.

And I also that this is the way people should discuss it at home. Because we don't always agree eye to eye, on everything, right.

CUOMO: No. No.

LEMON: But that's the point.

CUOMO: But you disagree in decency and the respect and love of the friendship, you know.

LEMON: Yes, but sometimes we yell at each other and we're like, oh come on.

CUOMO: But it's ok.

LEMON: Yes, it's all right.

CUOMO: That's ok.

LEMON: Yes.

CUOMO: The only problem is when people fake it for effect. See my big problem with our pals over on the state TV is I believe they're faking the funk (ph) because it works for them. And -- because I can't believe that somebody in good conscience can say hey listen, you know, that's what is going to happen. The white guys is going to come and clean up because the cops aren't doing it, you can't have these blacks running around like this.

Now, he didn't use the color references that way but he might as well have. And I can't believe that somebody in a position like you or me can have that in their heart, let alone in their head and come out their mouth.

LEMON: Yes.

CUOMO: So that worries me. I'm never worried about a good faith dispute about what is going on. I know people don't like me calling out the vice president or when you call out the president about things. That's all right. They have a right to be upset.

LEMON: Yes.

CUOMO: But you tell me if you're going to look America right in the eye and say we've got to talk about the law and order problem --

LEMON: Then talk about it.

CUOMO: -- you explain the whit e militia guys getting a pat on the back from the cops and walking down the middle of the street with a gun and it's all good. LEMON: Amen.

And we're also going to talk about it because this is spilling over to every aspect of life including sports -- big story.

CUOMO: And you wonder why they don't want to play a game in the middle of this.

LEMON: Right on.

CUOMO: Come on.

LEMON: Back in a moment.

[01:41:57]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Breaking news when it comes to sports, ok. And it's in response to the shooting of Jacob Blake.

Multiple games were postponed across the sports world today. The NBA's Milwaukee Bucks whose home stadium is just an hour away -- under an hour away from Kenosha. First team to announce that they would not be playing their playoff game against the Orlando Magic.

Members of the Milwaukee Bucks spoke about their decision. Here it is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE HILL, MILWAUKEE BUCKS PLAYER: We are calling for justice for Jacob Blake and demand the officers be held accountable. For this to occur, it is imperative for the Wisconsin state legislator to reconvene after months of inaction, and take the meaningful measures to address issues of police accountability, brutality and criminal justice reform.

We encourage all citizens to educate themselves, take peaceful and responsible action, and remember to vote on November 3rd.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: There was league-wide players meeting tonight. The Los Angeles Lakers and Los Angeles Clippers voted to boycott the rest of the playoffs. That's according to Shams -- I always get his name right -- Charania, Shams Charania. Shams' been on the show so many times. Sorry to mess up your name, Shams.

From the athlete in the stadium. Let's discuss now. Right away, I'm going to get to Hall of Fame broadcaster -- sports broadcaster, veteran Bob Costas. Bob, thank you. I'm glad your name is simpler. I didn't mess it up.

Serious story though. Here is the thing. I spoke with another veteran broadcaster who said that real activism is going to be what happens later on with the season, and whether or not these NFL players and NBA players and professional athletes were going to continue on with this and maybe even defy management and coaches.

It appears to be happening. I don't know if it's in defiance of management and coaches but because many of them seem to be on their side. This is really, the earth is shifting when it comes to how people are reacting to this.

BOB COSTAS, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Yes, very much so. And you're are right. In the NBA especially, the commissioner, many, many of the owners, certainly the coaches, the white players in the league -- they all appear to be in strong solidarity with the idea of being pushed primarily and obviously by the black players in the league.

So this is not a movement against management. And I think it was very compelling and effective when first the Bucks and then Orlando, who they were going to play today, and then the other games were postponed. That was very effective, to take a break.

It happened with three games in Major League Baseball. It happened with games in Major League Soccer. But there is a point to be made and I'm not sure what side of it I come down on but it's something that should be talked about.

Are these players going to be more visible and more effective when they are playing? And then they make their points and postgame press conferences as Lebron and others have, they make it in the interviews that surround the games that they are playing.

Take a pause, that's gotten a lot of people's attention what happened today. But if they disperse as the Clippers and Lakers -- Kawhi Leonard of the Clippers and Lebron James, the most visible player in the league with the Lakers -- have said if they dispersed and the season ends, I'm not so sure that that produces the end they are looking for. I think the visibility --

(CROSSTALK)

LEMON: But Bob, you don't think by starving --

COSTAS: -- might very well be diminished.

(CROSSTALK)

LEMON: Ok, I take your point. You don't think by starving people of their sports and the playoff games that they will get people's attention and maybe they will upset people even more because then they will be starved of their playoff games. You see what I'm saying?

COSTAS: Yes, I don't know where that comes down. The people that support them and I think a large number of NBA fans absolutely support them. They might be disappointed that they don't get to see these games. Some of these playoffs series where shaping up even without fans as very interesting and exciting.

Then there are those who resented -- resented it going all the way back to when Colin Kaepernick knelt four years ago. They have another reason to resent it all the more. I think it's a mixed bag of reactions.

But my point is this, the visibility is not going to be there if they are not playing the games. They've gotten a lot of attention and they've made an impact by saying we are postponing these games.

It's not really a boycott -- that's probably not the right word but the games have been postponed. That, I think, has gotten a lot of people's attention.

LEMON: Yes.

COSTAS: If they just drift away, I think some of that will be lost.

LEMON: That's a very good point. When you have the platform -- not sometimes but most of the time you want to keep it because it offers you visibility. Very good point, Bob.

COSTAS: Yes.

[01:49:58]

LEMON: Bob, thank you so much. I appreciate you.

COSTAS: You're welcome, Don.

LEMON: A lot more on this. Jemele Hill right after this break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: All three NBA playoff games postponed tonight after the Milwaukee Bucks players -- that's a team you would follow if you lived in Kenosha or if you live there. Those players refused to take the court for their game. They're protesting the police shooting of Jacob Blake.

Let's discuss now. Jemele Hill is here. Jemele is a staff writer at "The Atlantic". She's a regular on the show.

She's a host of the "Jemele Hill is Unbothered" podcast, which I love and I've also been on. Jemele, thank you.

Boy, look at what's happening right now in sports as we talk about it. I mean we had, you know, Lebron James, right. We have the meeting tonight. We've got Lebron James leading the charge, they're boycotting the rest of the season, that's according to media reports.

And then we have Shams Charania saying that after a vote to boycott the season, Lebron James walked out. The rest of the Lakers and Clippers exited behind him, and then posting on Twitter this. "F -- this man, we demand change. Sick of it."

How powerful is his voice right now?

[01:54:58]

JEMELE HILL, STAFF WRITER, "THE ATLANTIC": It's extremely powerful. When you have the best player in the NBA, one of the most famous athletes in the world willing to leverage his own talent for something of this magnitude. All that does is give permission to other guys to do the same.

I think we have to understand why they are at this point. I heard you had Bob Costas on in the last segment. Great broadcaster, obviously, Hall of Famer. But I couldn't disagree with him more.

The thing is the players tried it the easy way. They tried to sweet talk America into caring about black bodies.

So they wore t-shirts. They talked about voter suppression. They've steered all the interviews toward more meaningful conversations. They have a court that says Black Lives Matter.

They have a court that says black lives matter. All of that happened, and yet we still get Jacob Blake. They are tired. They are exhausted. And they said, you know what? I'll tell you what, America. Since you can't respect black bodies in the street, you don't deserve to watch ours play this game. You don't deserve to have us entertain you because that's how upset that they are. And if you think about anytime there's any meaningful change in this country, Don, it has always come through boycotts, through strikes. It has never been a situation where we can just calmly talk people into doing the right thing. That doesn't work.

History has proven this many, many times. So we keep trying to have situations where people do this easily, and where sometimes, you just have to say, this is enough. And I think that's what it is.

LEMON: I've got to run, but I just want to put this up on the screen so Jemele, you can look at it and our viewers. This is from the former president, Barack Obama, weighing in on Twitter and he writes, "I commend the players on the Bucks for standing up for what they believe in. Coaches like Doc Rivers in the NBA and the WNBA for setting an example. It's going to take all of our institutions to stand up for our values. All I have to say is this is where we are right now."

The former president doesn't weigh in on much, you've got Lebron James speaking out, and you have players who are feeling empowered.

Boy, what a difference. Fasten your seatbelts, let's see what happens next.

Thank you, Jemele. I will see you soon. You be safe.

HILL: All right. You too, Don.

LEMON: The third night of the Republican Convention wrapping up as an extremely dangerous hurricane barreling right now towards the Gulf Coast. And then there's racial unrest that is rocking Kenosha. And then we just talked about what's happening in sports.

A lot going on. Our special coverage, more of it, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) END