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The Situation Room
Dr. Fauci Says Trump Campaign Ad Took His Words Out of Context; Trump Claims to Have Tested "Totally Negative" for COVID-19; Stimulus Talks Stall as White House, GOP and Dems Can't Agree on Package; Interview with Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson about Kidnapping Plot and Elections; Jackie Kennedy's Enduring Legacy. Aired 8-9p ET
Aired October 11, 2020 - 20:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[20:00:01]
ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.
WOLF BLITZER, CNN HOST: Welcome to our viewers here in the United States and around the world. I'm Wolf Blitzer in Washington. This is a special edition of THE SITUATION ROOM.
Tomorrow it will have been one week since the president's doctor has answered reporters' questions, and this would be a good time for Dr. Sean Conley to speak in person. The president tonight saying he has tested, quote, 'totally negative" for the conversation. But the White House also finds itself in a war of words with another doctor. Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation's top infectious disease expert says the Trump re-election campaign took an old interview of his and used it in a new political commercial to make it look as if he was endorsing the president.
Here's part of that ad.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: President Trump is recovering from the coronavirus and so is America. Together, we rose to meet the challenge. President Trump tackled the virus head on as leaders should.
DR. ANTHONY FAUCI, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY AND INFECTIOUS DISEASES: I can't imagine that anybody could be doing more.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLITZER: The problem is Dr. Fauci was not talking about the president when he said those words. He was discussing the Coronavirus Task Force. And that was back in March. In fact, Dr. Fauci has no intention of endorsing either candidate. He hasn't in five decades of public service. This matters because we are in a truly critical time in the fight against this pandemic.
Only yesterday, on Saturday, the Johns Hopkins University reported 54,639 new cases and 618 new deaths here in the United States. Another troubling sign that we are entering a second deadly wave of coronavirus infections.
For the very latest, let's go to CNN's Jeremy Diamond. He's over at the White House for us.
So, Jeremy, Dr. Fauci told CNN the Trump campaign took his words totally out of context and the president, I understand, has now weighed in.
JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Wolf. We have heard from the Trump campaign. They said that these are Dr. Fauci's own words. They stand by this political ad despite Dr. Fauci's comments. And the president himself is also echoing that same sentiment saying, "They are indeed Dr. Fauci's own words. We have done a phenomenal job, according to certain governors, many people agree. And now come the vaccines and cures long ahead of projection."
But, Wolf, we should point out that it is very clear from the context of that interview that Dr. Fauci is referring to other public health experts like himself, the Coronavirus Task Force, and this whole of government effort. And of course this was happening in March, in the early months of the pandemic is when Dr. Fauci made those comments.
We should also point out that the president, while his campaign is willing to tout Dr. Fauci's words and twist them to make it sound like he is endorsing the president, the president himself we know from our sources, Wolf, he's not relying on Dr. Fauci's counsel as much. In fact, Dr. Fauci and Dr. Birx have been frustrated by the fact that the president has been relying much more instead on Dr. Scott Atlas, somebody who is not a public health expert, not an epidemiologist, but instead a neuroradiologist with no public health experience.
That has been frustrating to Dr. Fauci and Dr. Birx. And of course, Wolf, we should point out, given the number of cases in the United States, the claim in that ad that the U.S. is recovering from the coronavirus is blatantly false.
BLITZER: Yes. The president yesterday said the coronavirus was disappearing. That's clearly false as well.
The president is pushing ahead, Jeremy, as you well know with a schedule full of rallies this coming week and the coming days. It was just last weekend that he was being treated for coronavirus over at the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland. So what do we know specifically about the president's health right now?
DIAMOND: That's right, Wolf. Well, we are hearing the president make a series of confusing or misleading claims and really we still haven't had an opportunity to question Dr. Sean Conley about his latest memo saying that the president is essentially no longer infectious. In fact, we haven't been able to question Dr. Conley in nearly a week now since the president left Walter Reed hospital. But the president is claiming that he is now immune from this virus. Listen to him this morning.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I beat this crazy, horrible China virus, and it also gives you immunity. I mean, it does give you immunity. Even the people that just could not accept anything, I mean, they just don't want to accept anything. No. So we -- I passed the highest test, the highest standards, and I'm in great shape. And I have to tell you, I feel fantastically. I really feel good. And I even feel good by the fact that, you know, the word immunity means something, having really a protective glow means something. I think it's very important to have that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DIAMOND: And, Wolf, while medical experts have said that those who survive the coronavirus likely do have some degree of protection from reinfection, we know it's not impossible to be reinfected with this virus. And it's not clear yet what the science is on that question of immunity.
[20:05:04]
The president did also claim that he had tested negative for the virus, Wolf. But that was not what Dr. Sean Conley said. He only said that the president was no longer at risk of transmitting the virus to others. The White House for its part declined to comment when asked about the president's claim that he tested negative -- Wolf.
BLITZER: Yes. It's about time that Dr. Conley had a news conference and answer reporters' questions. The last time he did so, as you point out, was -- tomorrow will be one week since we specifically heard him answer reporters' questions. He's just been issuing these short little written statements.
Jeremy Diamond, at the White House, thank you very much.
Joining us now, the emergency room physician Dr. Megan Ranney from Brown University and CNN medical analyst Dr. Rochelle Walensky, chief of infectious diseases at Massachusetts General Hospital.
Dr. Ranney, what do you make of team Trump first of all using Dr. Fauci in that political campaign commercial?
DR. MEGAN RANNEY, EMERGENCY PHYSICIAN, BROWN UNIVERSITY: My heart goes out to Dr. Fauci. Certainly, people's words get used in campaign videos frequently, but to have them twisted in that way and assigned to praising President Trump's response, I mean, that does disservice to Dr. Fauci's long history of both being nonpartisan and being truthful. So my heart really goes out to him. And I hope he manages to get his words out of that campaign video.
BLITZER: Yes. He's really angry that they included those words there.
Dr. Walensky, let's talk about the president's claim -- latest claim that he tested totally negative. Does that sound plausible given about what we've been told about the timeline of his illness?
DR. ROCHELLE WALENSKY, CNN MEDICAL ANALYST: Good evening, Wolf. It seems certainly unlikely. We know that the PCR test usually remains positive for some period of time, up to in fact 12 weeks after your initial positive. Certainly, the language that the president has been using is not consistent with any medical terminology. And it makes it very hard to interpret what he is saying.
Also with regard to immunity, we know very little about the durability of immunity, about how much protection happens, especially in the context of receiving monoclonal antibodies, which the president received. And we do know of at least four cases of people who have been reinfected. One of which has been actually more severe than the initial infection. So I would say you're on treacherous ice if you're claiming immunity to this disease.
BLITZER: So let me get Dr. Ranney to weigh in. So when Dr. Conley, the president's White House physician, says he is no longer considered a transmission risk to others, what does that say to you?
RANNEY: That says to me that I have no idea how he is telling us that the president is no longer a transmission risk. There are certainly -- as Dr. Walensky said, there are studies looking at PCR, at those nasal swabs and at the number of cycle times that it takes. So looking at how much virus is there, you can do fancy tests to see if the virus that you get from the back of your throat or the back of your nose is actually infectious or not.
But those tests are really on the bleeding edge of science. And to claim that they know with certainly that the president is no longer infectious, that seems to me like a bridge too far. If I were the president, which I certainly am not, the last thing I would want to do is to infect a constituent, a staff member, a donor, so to push the envelope and to say he is not infectious when we don't yet have full proof of that fact, that just -- it's a little mind boggling to me.
BLITZER: Yes. You know, for the last four days, Dr. Walensky, the U.S. has had at least 50,000 new confirmed cases of coronavirus, 50,000 every day, more than 54,000 just yesterday. I want you to listen to Dr. Rick Bright, the ousted vaccine director, what he told our Jake Tapper the other day.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DR. RICK BRIGHT, OUSTED VACCINE DIRECTOR WHO FILED WHISTLEBLOWER COMPLAINT: This winter, we're going to have an explosion of cases of coronavirus. This winter, we're going to have an explosion of influenza infections and other respiratory infections. It's going to overwhelming our health care system again. We still don't have enough personal protective equipment for our doctors and nurses. We still don't have enough tests. We're still not doing enough testing.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLITZER: As you know, Dr. Walensky, the president keeps saying, and I'm quoting him, "Don't be afraid of COVID, don't let it dominate your life." He said yesterday at that rally from the balcony overlooking the South Lawn of the White House the coronavirus is disappearing right now. You heard what Dr. Bright said. What do you think? WALENSKY: I want to be very clear. I'm afraid of COVID. I'm afraid of
what's going to happen in the winter. I'm afraid of our surges. And we are planning for those surges because we anticipate they are going to happen. We have not had these many cases of this disease since the middle of August. We know that cases generally reflect about a two- week lag from when they happened. And so we're talking about cases now in early to middle of October that reflect, you know, late September.
[20:10:08]
What is going to happen when we have, you know, people indoors, cold weather, people not outside? I am very worried about what's going to happen in the winter.
BLITZER: Yes. All of us are very worried. Dr. Bright especially.
You know, Dr. Ranney, just this week, there was truly an unprecedented editorial in the New England Journal of Medicine, a 200-year-old publication, entitled "Dying in a Leadership Vacuum." And it urges people to vote President Trump out. I spoke with the editor in chief, Dr. Eric Rubin, the other day. I want you to listen to what he told me.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DR. ERIC RUBIN, EDITOR IN CHIEF, NEW ENGLAND JOURNAL OF MEDICINE: We were watching such poor decision-making, decisions made -- that were very contrary to the evidence. This was not an easy situation. We haven't had an outbreak like this for 100 years with this kind of death rate. And we don't know the right answers. We do know many of the wrong answers. And wrong choices were being made consistently and costing thousands, tens of thousands of lives. It was hard not to speak out.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLITZER: What's your reaction? What do you make of the medical community speaking out like that?
RANNEY: You know, I couldn't agree more strongly. There are certainly partisan debates that need to happen. Medicine is not monolithic. We're not all Democrats or all Republicans. But we do all believe in science and we do all believe in protecting our healthcare work force and our community.
What we have seen over and over from this administration is an absolute disregard for the science, whether it's the science of transmission of the virus that led to the president himself being infected last week, whether it's disregard for the importance of personal protective equipment and testing, or whether it's disregard for where the virus came from, how it came to the United States and how it continues to spread across our communities.
We've just seen time after time that this administration has essentially done harm to our country. So I'm quite proud of the New England Journal of Medicine. I hope that they never have to write an editorial like this again. I do hope that we can go back to science and medicine as usual where we're united in protecting patients and our communities rather than in trying to fight against an executive branch that really is disregarding the needs of the population.
BLITZER: Truly an unprecedented editorial in the New England Journal of Medicine.
Dr. Ranney, thank you so much for joining us. Dr. Walensky, thanks to you as well. Both of you, please, please be safe out there. Appreciate it very much.
Stimulus negotiations have stalled once again here in Washington, even as millions of Americans desperately need help from the government. Is there a path forward right now?
The former CIA director, former Defense secretary, Leon Panetta, he's standing by. We have lots to discuss.
Stay with us. You are in THE SITUATION ROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[20:16:57]
BLITZER: As millions of Americans are struggling in an economy gripped by the coronavirus pandemic, negotiations for another desperately needed stimulus package have stalled yet again. The House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said discussions are at an impasse unless specific conditions are met. Republican senators have balked at the White House proposed $1.8 trillion package and adding to the confusion, the White House chief economic adviser Lawrence Kudlow telling my colleague Jake Tapper this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LARRY KUDLOW, WHITE HOUSE CHIEF ECONOMIC ADVISER: I don't want to get into the specific legislative strategy, Jake. But I will say from the president's remarks late last week, he is happy on the key targeted areas that I mentioned, small business loans, unemployment and so forth. He would actually go beyond what some of the Democratic numbers are. He may not do it for the entire package. But for those key targeted areas that would truly help the recovery.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLITZER: All this less than a week after President Trump said negotiations were completely off the table until after the November 3rd election. But then he did a complete 180.
Joining us now, the former secretary of Defense, former CIA director, former White House chief of staff, Leon Panetta, who also served, by the way, as the director at the Office of Management and Budget.
You got the best resume going out there, Mr. Secretary. Thanks so much for joining us. What's your reaction to this confusing and at times conflicting messaging we're getting on where these critically needed negotiations stand? Because, as you know, there are so many Americans out there right now who are struggling to pay the rent, put food on the table, just pay the bills. And they are wondering, where is the money?
LEON PANETTA, FORMER WHITE HOUSE CHIEF OF STAFF UNDER PRESIDENT CLINTON: Well, we know there's a lot of frustration, Wolf, with Washington. And its dysfunction. And the inability of the president and the Congress to come to any kind of agreement on something that represents emergency legislation to try to help those that have been impacted by COVID-19, those businesses that are suffering, those individuals who are out of work.
This is emergency legislation. And very frankly, we've had nothing but mixed signals coming from the president and the White House. It started with the president saying he was cancelling negotiations until after the election, realized that that could be a problem, came back and then said, we should pass airline assistance alone or different packages alone. Then came back with $1.8 trillion. Now there's discussion about perhaps even increasing that.
A lot of mixed signals. So I can understand the frustration on the Hill. But it is essential that they sit down and work through and get an aid package to the American people.
BLITZER: Because there's so many millions of Americans who are in desperate shape. They are suffering right now simply to try to put food on the table for their kids.
[20:20:06]
I want you to listen, Mr. Secretary, to what the former 2020 presidential candidate Andrew Yang told me last night about these negotiations. Listen to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANDREW YANG (D), FORMER 2020 PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: If I'm Nancy Pelosi, I'd take this deal. If I'm Mitch McConnell, I'd take this deal. This is great for the American people. They were suggesting another $1200 in direct cash relief to millions of Americans. $400 a week in weekly federal unemployment benefits. This would be a lifeline for millions of Americans. And I have no idea why this is not being passed. Instead they are grandstanding and playing politics while people are hurting.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLITZER: So what do you think, Mr. Secretary? Should Speaker Pelosi take that advice, take the money and run?
PANETTA: You know, I think they have reached a point in these negotiations where the numbers have truly narrowed. But, you know, by my last count was that there was somewhere around $500 million or 600 million apart. And in my days, when you were negotiating, you basically cut the difference and went home. I think that's what they ought to be looking at right now. How can they get to a number that's agreeable?
I think, frankly, that the speaker has the advantage here. She asked for $2.2 trillion. The administration has certainly moved towards that position. I think it's important to settle on a number, get an aid package to the Congress, pass it and try to help the American people at a dire time of trouble.
BLITZER: Let me get your quick reaction to this -- one of the major stories today. As you heard CNN exclusively learning that the nation's top infectious disease expert, Dr. Fauci, did not consent to being featured in a Trump political campaign ad, said his comments were taken completely out of context.
You have been in politics a long time. What do you think about that when you saw that?
PANETTA: You know, my sense is that the president recognizes and so does his campaign recognizes the failure that is being targeted by this administration in terms of dealing with COVID-19. He is in a corner. He is obviously being impacted by all of the polls that indicate that he is in the wrong place with regard to COVID-19.
And now to try to come back by misusing and basically plagiarizing a comment by Dr. Fauci, which was not aimed at the president but aimed at the task force and the work of the task force. The president, frankly, should withdraw that commercial because it does not represent the truth in terms of Dr. Fauci.
BLITZER: Mr. Secretary, as usual, thanks so much for joining us. Leon Panetta, out in California, appreciate it very much.
PANETTA: Good to be with you, Wolf.
BLITZER: There's more news we're following. In the lead-up to the U.S. presidential election, political ads are normal. But that's not necessarily always normal. The Trump campaign as we've been noting using Dr. Fauci's comments in a way that he says were taken completely out of context. So what does that mean? What's the political impact of all of this?
We have more when we come back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[20:28:09]
BLITZER: The relationship between President Trump and Dr. Anthony Fauci hasn't always been smooth sailing. But now a new Trump campaign ad featuring a clip of Fauci appearing to praise President Trump's pandemic response, the trusted disease expert telling CNN as a result, his words were used out of context and without his permission.
CNN editor at large and politics reporter Chris Cillizza is joining us right now.
We know political ads, Chris, can be misleading. But this one seems to go way too far.
CHRIS CILLIZZA, CNN POLITICS REPORTER AND EDITOR-AT-LARGE: Yes, Wolf. I think it does. And I think a couple of reasons. One, this is from Anthony Fauci months ago. This is not from Anthony Fauci in the last few weeks. So this is Anthony Fauci broadly praising the work of the Coronavirus Task Force, not Donald Trump in particular, but the task force saying they're doing everything that they can.
This is cut up in a way to make it look as though he's praising Donald Trump when in fact he wasn't. And context. Right? Anthony Fauci, we know this, has been pushed aside for Dr. Scott Atlas and other people who more accurately reflect what Donald Trump believes to be the case with the virus, that it's, you know, going away, we're rounding a corner, pick your metaphor, but that things are getting better.
Anthony Fauci has been very clear, as he has been his entire career working for six presidents, Republicans and Democrats, that we remain in a not-very-good place heading into a time, the winter months, flu season, where we expect this virus to get worse before it gets better.
BLITZER: So you think this could backfire on the president with, what, 23 days to go until the election?
CILLIZZA: Well, I would say the answer is yes, Wolf. But I don't know how much further Donald Trump has to drop when it comes to how people view his handling of the coronavirus. There is a "Washington Post"-ABC News poll out this morning that had him at 41 percent approval, 58 percent disapproving of his handling of COVID-19. You say, well, 40 percent, that's not bad.
[20:30:02]
But remember, that's about the number of people who will be with Donald Trump no matter what happens under any circumstances. It's a hard 39 percent, 40 percent, 41 percent. So effectively, everyone outside of the Trump base has really soured on Donald Trump's handling of the coronavirus and it has impacted obviously where he stands vis- a-vis Joe Biden and polling.
So it potentially could hurt him, Wolf, but I think honestly most people have made up their mind about how Donald Trump has handled this pandemic. And I would point you to poll after poll after poll that suggests about six in 10 disapprove.
BLITZER: Now that the president's doctor, Dr. Sean Conley, has medically cleared the president to return to business as usual for all practical purposes, the president, as you know, has scheduled a series of rallies in the coming days in Pennsylvania, Florida, Iowa. I assume that gives us a good indication which states the president is mostly worried about.
CILLIZZA: Yes. That's right. Look, presidential travel is always really important. They don't ever go places by accident. But especially when we're about, you know, 23 days away from the election. And especially when you have a president who's been sidelined due to the virus for the last 10-ish days. So yes, I mean, I think -- let me just pick one state out and that's Florida. No Republican has been elected president in about 100 years without carrying Florida.
If Donald Trump doesn't win Florida, it's extremely hard for me to see how he wins the presidency. I think it is notable that he is in Florida, a state that he won in 2016. I think they are playing defense there. That is a state that, you know, Obama has won but obviously Donald Trump won in 2016. That should be a worrisome sign.
You would rather have them be spending time in places like maybe Michigan, Wisconsin, yes, Pennsylvania, states that Donald Trump won in 2016, but have Democratic roots and Democratic heritage. That he's fighting for Florida at this point, when we have Joe Biden competitive in places like Arizona and Texas, in North Carolina, and I'll even say I don't think it's going to happen, Wolf, but there's polling in places like Kansas that suggests it's at least a single-digit race.
It should worry you if you're a Republican and Donald Trump is going to Florida this week.
BLITZER: Yes. It's Florida, Florida, Florida. They used to say Ohio, Ohio, Ohio. Florida, Florida.
CILLIZZA: Yes.
BLITZER: The president's son, Donald Trump Junior, by the way, he is attending a rally in Miami tonight. We've got some pictures coming in to THE SITUATION ROOM. There you can see Donald Trump Junior will be speaking there. They are spending an enormous amount of time worried about Florida right now.
CILLIZZA: Yes.
BLITZER: We know, Chris, that, what, more than seven million Americans have already voted in the general election.
CILLIZZA: Yes.
BLITZER: According to a CNN-Edison Research survey of state election data, more than seven million already have voted. Millions more will vote in advance of November 3rd. So what does that spell potentially for the president and the Democratic challenger?
CILLIZZA: So remember this, Wolf. We all focus on 23 days until the election. And understandably so. But the election is happening. Right? And this has been the case for several election cycles, but more so now because of the number of mail-in ballots that we expect and early voting that we expect due to coronavirus fears.
The issue there for Donald Trump is this. The electoral environment today is not very good for him. Now he can hope while by November 3rd things will be better, a problem is, between now and November 3rd, millions more votes, so seven million, millions more votes will be cast. And they will be cast not on what the political environment looks like on election day, November 3rd, they will be cast on what the political environment looks like on the day those votes are cast.
And unless something radical changes, the political environment does not look good as these millions of votes are being cast. It makes the Republican bet on winning massively large on voters who come on election day and vote in person. They're going to have to win that overwhelmingly, I believe, Wolf. Because if we expect that these early votes are typically more favorable to Democrats, particularly in an environment like this one, I think there's going to be a huge lead that Donald Trump is going to have to try to eat into of Joe Biden's.
BLITZER: Chris Cillizza, as always, thank you so much for joining us. You're going to be very, very busy in these coming days. All of us will be very busy.
CILLIZZA: Right, Wolf.
BLITZER: Thanks so much for that.
CILLIZZA: Thank you.
BLITZER: We're going to have much more on the coronavirus pandemic in a moment. We're also getting some stunning new details on that alleged plot to kidnap the governor of Michigan. The Michigan secretary of state is standing by. We will discuss, get the latest information. This is so, so disturbing what's going on here in the United States.
We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[20:38:41]
BLITZER: There's stunning new information coming into THE SITUATION ROOM on the alleged plot to kidnap the Michigan governor, Gretchen Whitmer. Neighbors now tell CNN they heard an explosion at the home of two of the suspects, at least a day before the FBI raided that home. 13 people in Michigan are now charged in the kidnapping plot.
In the immediate aftermath, Governor Whitmer slammed President Trump for as she put it stoking distrust and hatred. Her comments coming in a rather critical time in a crucial swing state where most polls show Joe Biden leading in the presidential race at least right now.
Michigan's secretary of state Jocelyn Benson is joining us right now.
Madame Secretary, thank you so much for joining us. This is so disturbing, so worrisome that here in the United States, a governor of a large state, any state for that matter like Michigan, could actually be targeted in this alleged terror plot for kidnapping. Have you had any threats against you in the wake of all of this?
JOCELYN BENSON (D), MICHIGAN SECRETARY OF STATE: Yes. It's very real. I mean, managing and serving as the chief election officer in a state in this contentious election cycle leads to that sort of thing, but also, you know, I'll tell you, Wolf, I started my career tracking hate groups and hate crimes at the Southern Poverty Law Center, then researched the same at Oxford University in my master's degree. And the bottom line is, the research shows hateful rhetoric and hateful words from leaders lead to hateful actions from followers. [20:40:03]
That's what history teaches us. And I think that's certainly what you're seeing in Michigan right now.
BLITZER: Yes, it's so worrisome. And all of us remember, just a few months ago in the spring, armed protesters poured into the Michigan state capital with loaded -- weapons were loaded and this was legal. This past week, we learned about the kidnapping plot. Should voters in Michigan be concerned when they hear about these things and they're considering how to vote?
BENSON: Voters in Michigan should know that the leaders of Michigan, myself, the attorney general, the governor, the tremendous folks at the Michigan State Police and the FBI, we're all on it. We're going to protect every single citizen, we're going to protect every single voter. Weve got a plan in place to ensure precincts are protected for voters on election day.
The attorney general and I working with law enforcement so we're fully aware of and tracking all the possibilities and building contingency plans with our priority being to secure elections and protect our voters.
BLITZER: Here's what I don't understand, Madame Secretary. The -- it's legal in Michigan, you can go inside the state capital with an AR-15 loaded, but you can't go inside the state capital with a sign because that might damage the wall. Is that right?
BENSON: Yes. And it's something we've called on the state legislature to address for many months now. And so my hope is that particularly with the latest revelations, we'll see some action to ensure some realistic protections for the citizens of the state and the lawmakers of both parties.
BLITZER: And it's also a little strange. Michigan I take it does not have a state law that explicitly bans firearms at polling places. Will you be banning guns from polling places for this election on November 3rd?
BENSON: We will be ensuring that any effort to intimidate voters or disrupt our elections is met with swift consequences. That's the bottom line because that is illegal. It is illegal to intentionally try to intimidate voters or block them from voting. And that's what we're -- we certainly consider any type of, you know, visual intimidation or words. Part of that. So we will be in the weeks ahead as we get closer to election day itself announcing specific rules and regulations that we expect all poll watchers to follow.
Poll watchers are allowed in the precincts on election day. But there are regulations around what they can do. And the bottom line is they can't be disruptive or intentionally interfere with the process.
BLITZER: Michigan of course being a critical battleground state as we all know. President Trump carried Michigan narrowly four years ago. You've said that every ballot will likely be tabulated, counted by the Friday of election week, November 3rd is a Tuesday. Is that still your expectation as far as confirming a winner in Michigan, that by Friday all the votes will have been counted?
BENSON: Well, I'll tell you, yes, I mean to say succinctly. But I'll tell you, we see more people voting even than we'd anticipated by mail and early. Already, I believe by tomorrow, we'll be able to say one million citizens will have voted early already in Michigan. And everyone who votes early, we can't begin tabulating those ballots until election day morning. Still, even with recent changes to the law. So that means that, you know, whether we have three million or more than that, we can't begin tabulating them until election day. And that's going to take time to do so methodically, carefully and securely.
Right now the math tells us that will take to Friday at the latest. We're hoping sooner. We can keep increasing capacity through more people, through more machines. And so we'll continue to update our estimates in the weeks ahead. But right now, we feel Friday is a safe bet to say at the latest our results will be in by then. Again, hopefully sooner.
BLITZER: Well, good luck with that. And good luck with everything else that's going on. Good luck with your safety, too. We need you safe out there.
BENSON: Thank you.
BLITZER: Jocelyn Benson, secretary of State of Michigan, appreciate it very much.
BENSON: Always a pleasure, Wolf. Thanks.
BLITZER: Thank you.
Up next, President Trump isn't the only member of the first family who tested positive for COVID-19. We're going to bring you an update on the first lady's health. That's coming up next. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[20:48:25]
BLITZER: Iconic first lady Jackie Kennedy's time in the White House was brief. 35 tumultuous months that promised a new dawn for America but were marked by private betrayal and public tragedy. Tonight on an all new episode of CNN's Original Series, "FIRST LADIES," we examine one of America's most glamorous first ladies and her heartbreaking task of establishing her husband's legacy after his assassination.
Here's a preview.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The president's car is now turning on to Elm Street and it will be only a matter of minutes before he arrives at the trademark. (INAUDIBLE) earlier even the freeway was jampacked with spectators waiting to see the president.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They are in the car. And Jackie thinks that she hears some backfires. And she turns to look at her husband. And she sees literally his brains being blown out.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Something has happened in the motorcade route. Something, I repeat, has happened in the motorcade route.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The sounds and the screaming and the motors racing. For him then literally to fall into her lap so that she is staring into the wound and knowing that he is gone.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Numerous people running up the hill alongside Elm Street.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She's in a war zone. And she starts to climb out of the car.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And then Clint Hill, the Secret Service agent, pushes her into safety, pushes her back down. But now she's back into the horror of this chamber in which her husband has been murdered.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[20:50:03]
BLITZER: Wow. All right. Let's discuss. Our White House correspondent Kate Bennett is with us.
Kate, I want to get to the CNN Original Series "FIRST LADIES" in a moment. But I know you've been doing some reporting. What do we know about First Lady Melania Trump right now and her battle against coronavirus? How is she doing?
KATE BENNETT, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, my sources tell me she's doing well. That she's getting better each day. And I think it's important to know that she has not left the residence. She has not left the White House after the diagnosis. She's tweeted a couple of times. But she has not made any public appearances. And she's cleared her schedule for the foreseeable future.
BLITZER: Well, we wish her a speedy, speedy recovery. Let's hope for the best for her.
Tonight's episode of the CNN Original Series, Kate, "FIRST LADIES," all about Jackie Kennedy. Jackie was by JFK's side as we just saw when he was shot. She almost immediately set about planning a monumental funeral for her husband and planning a way to cement his time in the White House as Camelot. How instrumental was she in establishing his legacy?
BENNETT: She was the most important part of establishing his legacy. You know, people forget that Jackie was only 31 when she became first lady. But she was remarkably savvy. And she understood things like history and legacy and branding, quite frankly, to create this Camelot scenario for Americans to feel and also at that point to grieve. She was offered -- the famous story she was offered a change of clothes on that flight home. It was blood spattered.
And she said no. I want to keep this on. I want people to see what happened to Jack. And those moments have really taken charge in creating this Washington homage to JFK, really cemented his legacy and hers as well.
BLITZER: You know, it's really amazing because Jackie Kennedy was often used as we see in the documentary as a political tool by the Kennedy family. And she knew it. How did that manifest itself? And how did she feel about it?
BENNETT: I mean, I think there were times when she really struggled with it. You know, she has this public persona. Women are cutting their hair like Jackie. They want to dress like her. It's this idealized, romanticized image of a young first family. But behind the scenes, there was a lot going on. There was a husband who had infidelity. There was personal pain. They lost a young baby. There were certainly things within Jackie's world that were out of her control.
And as she looked to her husband and his family and advisers, she didn't always find the answers. And it created what a lot of first ladies feel, which is this public side that they have to show and this private side that they sort of have to keep to themselves. And that was challenging for her.
BLITZER: She contributed so much to American culture, fashion, style during her years in the White House and beyond, I should say. What would you say her greatest legacy that has emerged as first lady of the United States?
BENNETT: She probably remains the most iconic first lady this country has ever had. She showcased the White House. She made it the people's house. She had that television special where millions of people watched. She sort of flung open the doors to this new, vibrant presidency. Unveiling the curtains and sort of airing out the drapes, so to speak. I think that has become her legacy.
There was something young, youthful, approachable, motherly about her. And again, she had that great style. The world loved her, not just America. And that certainly cemented her. She went on to become a relative celebrity after her years in the White House. And it was certainly a brief time that she spent there with her husband. But one that she really made her own. And she was able to do again at such a young age.
BLITZER: Really, really an amazing documentary.
Kate Bennett, thanks so much for joining us.
And to our viewers, be sure to tune in, an all-new episode of CNN Original Series, "FIRST LADIES." It airs later tonight, 10:00 p.m. Eastern and Pacific, only, only here on CNN.
And we'll have much more news right after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[20:58:44]
BLITZER: I'm Wolf Blitzer in Washington. Thanks very much for watching. I'll be back in THE SITUATION ROOM tomorrow, 5:00 p.m. Eastern.
Up next, Fareed Zakaria for an in depth look at President Trump's impact on the relationships between the U.S. and its allies. A CNN Special Report, "HOW THE WORLD SEES AMERICA WITH FAREED ZAKARIA." That's coming up at the top of the hour.
And then at 10:00 p.m., an all-new episode of the CNN Original Series "FIRST LADIES." All that coming up tonight.
But before we go, we want to remember some of the victims of the coronavirus pandemic. Margie Kidd was a wife, mother, friend, an elementary school teacher. According to her daughter, she was nervous returning to the classroom this year with the pandemic. Just two weeks into the school year and despite taking all the proper precautions, Margie contracted the virus. She was 71 years old.
Sally Fontanilla, a nurse in southern California, dedicated two decades of her life to taking care of others. On the front line battling this pandemic, Sally carried with her risk factors including diabetes and asthma. But she still fought hard for her patients up until she contracted the virus herself. Passing away just two weeks shy of her 52nd birthday, Sally leaves behind her husband Ben.
Duane Bark, a superintendent for the Markesan, Wisconsin, School District, passed away this week after a three-month battle with COVID. His family says prior to COVID he was healthy, he exercised, he took the --
(END)
