Return to Transcripts main page

NEW DAY SATURDAY

Actor Chadwick Boseman Dies at 43; Police Union Defends Kenosha Officers, Says Blake Fought Police, Was Armed With A Knife, Was Not Breaking Up A Fight; Trump Makes First Comments About Blake Shooting; COVID-19 Model City By The White House Forecasts More Than 317,000 Deaths By December; Crowds Gather in Washington D.C. for March on Washington; Texas Christian University Reports 400-Plus COVID-19 Cases Among Students and Staff; A Man Claims Jerry Falwell Jr. Encouraged Him to Have Affair with His Wife. Aired 6-7a ET

Aired August 29, 2020 - 06:00   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:00:00]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: As demands for racial justice in the United States grow ever louder, the day ended the morning after the unexpected passing of a young American Actor Chadwick Boseman, lost his life after a full-year battle with colon cancer.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The Kenosha Police Officers Association releasing their first detailed version of what happened the night the 29-year- old Jacob Blake was shot seven times in the back by a police officer.

B'IVORY LAMARR, BLAKE FAMILY ATTORNEY: Even if Jacob did resist an officer or obstruct an officer. The penalty is up to nine months in jail and up to a $10,000 fine.

JACOB BLAKE SR., FATHER OF JACOB BLAKE JR.: That 17-year-old Caucasian shot and killed two people. My son got ICU and paralyzed from the waist down.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is New Day weekend with Victor Blackwell and Christi Paul.

VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning to you. Chadwick Boseman, the actor who brought Black Panther to life has died. He was 43 years old. He'd been battling colon cancer since 2016. According to a statement posted on his Twitter account, he died at home with his family by side.

CHRISTI PAUL, CNN ANCHOR: Yes. He rose to fame playing several American icons including James Brown and get on up and Jackson -- Jackie Robinson in "42", Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall as well. BLACKWELL: Yes, it was that starring role though as the African superhero king T'Challa in "Black Panther" that made him, for many, a household name. It was 2019, the film one Best Ensemble at the SAG Awards. And Boseman accepted the award on behalf of the cast, he spoke about the historic win and why it meant so much.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHADWICK BOSEMAN, ACTOR: You have equal if not more talent at times, and -- but you don't have the same opportunities. You don't necessarily have the same doors open to you, the same nepotism, the same money or resources that could be put towards your dreams.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PAUL: Boseman was a South Carolina native. He graduated from Howard University in 2000. He earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree. And while there, he studied under acclaimed actress Phylicia Rashad, who urged him to pursue acting. She also helped him attend to British Academy, American Drama Academy in London.

BLACKWELL: He was diagnosed with stage three colon cancer in 2016. It progressed to stage four. Now, consider this, he filmed several movies during that time.

PAUL: It is astounding to think about how he managed that. Boseman leaves behind his wife, singer Taylor Simone Ledward. Chadwick Boseman, as we said, just 43 years old. CNN Contributor and "Entertainment Tonight" host, Nischelle Turner says this about his life.

(BEGIN VIDEOCLIP)

NISCHELLE TURNER, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Like so many other actors of color, it's just tough to get in and get roles and especially leading roles for black men in the industry that's very, very tough. And once he did give Hollywood a taste of what he could do, it couldn't get enough of him. So that just, you know, glean more to his talent and his greatness in his work. And, you know, off screen, he was just a humble, kind, generous, caring man who cared about others, who cared about equality, who cared about social justice.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PAUL: Tributes and condolences are pouring in from celebrities, politicians, sports figures. Senator and democratic vice-presidential nominee Kamala Harris tweeted, "Heartbroken. My friend and fellow Bison Chardwick Boseman was brilliant, kind, learned and humble. He left too early, but his life made a difference".

BLACKWELL: A Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden added to that sentiment. He wrote this, "The true power of Chadwick Boseman was bigger than anything we saw on screen. From the Black Panther to Jackie Robinson, he inspired generations and showed them they can be anything they want even superheroes". The civil rights activist Martin Luther King said -- the third I should say -- said that Boseman brought history to life on the silver screen as Black Panther. He was also a superhero to many. And despite his four-year battle with cancer, he kept fighting and he kept inspiring. He will be missed.

PAUL: Actor Don Cheadle said, "I will miss you birthday brother. You were always light and love to me". And Oprah Winfrey called Boseman, "A gentle gifted soul. Showing us all the greatness in between surgeries and chemo. The courage, the strength, the power it takes to do that. This is what dignity looks like".

[06:05:07]

Let's bring in CNN Medical Analyst Dr. Saju Mathew with us here. He's a public health specialist, primary care physician. Good morning to you, Saju, so grateful to have you here. I know a lot of people have questions about the rise that we have seen in colon cancer in young adults. How prolific is it right now, and why?

DR. SAJU MATHEW, CNN MEDICAL ANALYST: Yes, good morning, Christi. What a sad story to wake up to this morning, one of my favorite actors, and to die that young. That's what's worrisome, Christi, is that if you think about colon cancer -- I'm a primary care physician -- you think about cancer affecting an older group of people 65 and older. Now, we're finding out that cancers affecting people younger than 65, and we don't exactly know why, but a lot of theories could be obesity, smoking and diet and also consistent antibiotic use that can change the gut flora.

And listen to this, Christi, even worse than African American men, one in 41 African American men are diagnosed with colon cancer versus one in 47 or 48 white men that are diagnosed. So, it's worrisome to see that trend, not only in African American men, but also in the younger generation.

PAUL: Why that trend, Saju, do we know?

MATHEW: You know, so obesity, smoking diet, if you think about it, older people are more inclined to go into the doctor's office and get screened. The screening age before five, 10 years ago was 50 for your first colon cancer screening. And now, the American Cancer Society's recommending that we start screening at 45.

And also, you have to realize that a lot of men, especially African American men will tell you hey, Dr. Mathew, I don't want anything up my behind, a colonoscopy is a test that looks at the entire colon and looks for these tiny polyps. It is the goal standard for making a diagnosis. And I highly recommend that you go in for a physical every year and talk to your doctor about a colonoscopy.

PAUL: So, right, and I know that people have their trepidations about that kind of test. I've had it several times. You're asleep, you don't even know, it just -- they try to put some sort of salve (ph) on this that this is why it's so important the numbers that Saju is telling us about inside you, when we talk about symptoms. You say we need to be screened at 45, but what symptoms do we need to be very aware of in ourselves?

MATHEW: Yes, so that's the difficult part, Christi, is that not every cancer will have symptoms. In this situation, it was weight loss. So, weight loss definitely should be a red flag, unexplained abdominal pain, blood in the stool and not -- again, I don't want our viewers to panic -- not every patient with blood in the stool has colon cancer. But if you see blood in the stool, yes, you absolutely want to call your doctor and let them know.

And then also, like I said, it's very important even for our young patients to schedule that preventive exam, that physical every year so that your doctor can talk to you about the tests that are appropriate. Also, by the way, Christie, family history is key as well. Know your family history. If you've got a family member that has had colon cancer early, then yes, your diagnosis or your exam should be done much sooner.

PAUL: So, when you talk about going to get a physical and other test, besides the colonoscopy, what kind of tests would be expected?

MATHEW: So, Christi, are you asking me for colon cancer specifically?

PAUL: Yes.

MATHEW: Yes. So for colon cancer, specifically, really, the goal standard is the colonoscopy. That's what you talked about, you put to sleep. And, by the way, just so our viewers know, like you said, it's painless. My dad walked out of the colonoscopy room and was able to function the rest of the day.

And one thing also that the patient should know is that a colonoscopy is both diagnostic and preventive. If they see a polyp, you can clip the polyp and you prevent really the patient from developing cancer. In terms of other tests, there is a fecal blood test, and that specifically looks for cancer in the stool. It's not a sensitive, Christi, because you're not looking for polyps. The bottom line is get a colonoscopy, let the doctor look for polyps. And some of these polyps are pre-cancer, so it's really key to understand how life- saving a colonoscopy can be.

PAUK: It is. And it's so informative to us, because I know they always show the pictures afterwards, they show you what they found, where they might have found something, what they would have taken out, so you can be better informed because we know that that is certainly part of trying to keep ourselves healthy, especially in something like this.

Dr. Saju Mathew, we always appreciate your expertise. Thank you.

MATHEW: Thank you, Christi.

BLACKWELL: Still ahead, we've got the latest on the shooting in Kenosha, the protests also what President Trump is taking credit for renewed calm.

[06:10:04] And we've got details about circumstances surrounding the shooting that left Jacob Blake paralyzed.

PAUL: And you're going to hear from the man who claimed evangelical leader Jerry Falwell Jr. was, quote, aware from day one about an affair with Falwell's wife. New Day continues after a quick break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLACKWELL: An attorney for the family of Jacob Blake is denying claims that he was a threat to officers before those officers shot him.

PAUL: Last night, the Kenosha Police Association released its own version of what happened before Blake was shot seven times in the back. Shimon Prokupecz is with us now from Kenosha. Shimon, good to see you this morning. I know these are two different stories. Are we getting any clarity from the police department this morning?

SHIMON PROKUPECZ, CNN CRIME AND JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: No, we aren't, and good to be with you guys this morning. We aren't getting any clarity from the investigators that are looking into this.

[06:15:00]

There are now two different versions. You have the version from the police union, which says that Mr. Blake was a threat. They did have a confrontation with him. They say that he placed one of the officers in a headlock. They use tasers. And then they say that he had this knife and that he was threatening officers. And that is ultimately, perhaps, their argument is why the officer shot Mr. Blake.

We have not heard much from investigators. The only thing that investigators have to this point revealed is that there was a knife, there was a knife in the vehicle that Mr. Blake was driving. Of course, all this coming as really this city, the country wanting to know what happened here, wanting answers. You know, we saw big rallies yesterday in Washington, D.C. Today, there will be some rallies here in Kenosha, as the country just really wants some answers as to what happened.

And just a warning here that the images you're about to see, you may find disturbing.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PROKUPECZ (voice-over): Thousands marched on Washington Friday to bring recognition to those who have become household names.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Jacob Blake.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER (in unison): Jacob Blake.

PROKUPECZ (voice-over): For all the wrong reasons.

LETETRA WIDMAN, JACOB BLAKE'S SISTER: You must stand, you must fight, but not with violence and chaos. PROKUPECZ (voice-over): Among those in attendance, the family of Jacob Blake, who is conscious after being shot in the back seven times by a Kenosha police officer. It all played out on video. Authorities have revealing new details about Blake's past and the circumstances surrounding the shooting that left Blake paralyzed.

The sheriff says Blake had a felony warrant for his arrest from July for third degree of sexual assault. The Wisconsin Department of Justice Division of Criminal Investigation, which is leading the shooting investigation has said that Blake admitted he had a knife in his possession and law enforcement agents recovered one from the driver's side floorboard of his vehicle. The Kenosha Professional Police Association saying that he confronted officers, put an officer in a headlock and carried a knife that he refused to drop when ordered to by police, the union said, moments before being shot in the back.

For Blake's attorneys, the police union's narrative is merely a tactic to justify the officer's action.

LAMARR: You know, I think that it is the common strategy that police departments use in these types of circumstances. It's always trying to justify murder from misdemeanors. Arguably, even if Jacob did resist an officer or obstruct an officer -- let's just say if that was true -- the penalty was in Wisconsin (ph), we understand it is up to nine months in jail and up to a $10,000 fine.

But we commonly see in these types of police brutality cases, they tried to justify their actions. And I think it's very clear, I think that the world watch that same 22nd video, they can clearly see -- like my co-counsel Patrick mentioned that Jacob never posed the imminent threat -- in their actions are completely unjustified in our excessive.

PROKUPECZ (voice-over): It's why the sheriff's office says Blake would have woken up shackled to his hospital bed. A move the family has called cruel and the sheriff called protocols. The handcuffs that restrain Blake while in the hospital have been removed and the criminal warrant that authorities used to explain the restriction has been vacated, his attorneys told CNN.

Blake's shooting lead two days of protests in Kenosha, Wisconsin. Tuesday night, two were killed and one wounded on the back end of demonstrations. Kyle Rittenhouse, 17 years old in custody for the shootings after allegedly shooting and killing the first person, 36- year-old Joseph Rosenbaum. Another male approaches and the defendant turn and begins to run away from the scene. As the defendant is running away, he can be heard saying on the phone, "I just killed somebody", according to the criminal complaint.

Rittenhouse now faces six charges including first degree intentional homicide, first degree reckless homicide and possession of a dangerous weapon by a person under 18. His attorney say he was acting in self- defense.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hey, he just shot them (ph). J. BLAKE: The 17-year-old Caucasian shot and killed two people and blew another man's arm off on his way back to Antioch, Illinois. He got to go home. He got water. They gave that guy water and a high five.

My son got ICU and paralyzed from the waist down. Those are the two justice systems right in front of me. You can commend yourself

[06:20:00]

PROKUPECZ (voice-over): As for the officer who shot Justin Blake, officer Rustin Chesky, that investigation continues.

MAYOR JOHN ANTARAMIAN, KENOSHA, WISCONSIN: I believe that the attorney general is a good guy and he will do the right thing. And so, I believe that we will get a fair analysis from him as to the investigation. And I have every hope and faith in him that that will occur.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PROKUPECZ: And John Pierce, one of the attorneys who's representing Kyle Rittenhouse said in a tweet late last night that, "Rittenhouse will be acquitted. He will become a symbol of the heroic individual American who at certain times in history must say, "Don't tread on me"," in a post on Twitter. He posted that late last night.

BLACKWELL: Shimon Prokupecz for us there. Shimon, thank you so much.

Sarah Westwood live in the White House. Let's go there now. The President I understand, Sarah, is now speaking about Jacob Blake. What is he saying?

SARAH WESTWOOD, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: That's right, Victor and Christi. After weathering some criticism this week for not mentioning the name of Jacob Blake or focusing on the shooting really at all, the President sort of direct -- addressed it more directly while he was in New Hampshire yesterday in an interview. He said he was looking into whether the shooting was justified and reports about the instant. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I'm looking into it very strongly. I'll be getting reports and I'll certainly let you know pretty soon, but I'll be -- it was not a good sight. I didn't like the side of it, certainly, and I think most people would agree with that. But we'll be getting reports in very soon and we'll report back then.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WESTWOOD: Now, as he did Thursday in his acceptance speech on the final night of the GOP convention, the President spent his rally in New Hampshire last night drilling down on that law and order message and warning about the dangers in his eyes of what would happen if Democrats expanded power in November. President was also touting what he characterized as a victory from sending -- authorizing the deployment of National Guard forces into Kenosha, Wisconsin claiming he'd fixed the problem.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: Look at what's going on in the great state of Wisconsin. Now, I will tell you two days ago, we sent in the National Guard. That was the end of that problem.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WESTWOOD: Now, the President went after protesters and anti-racism demonstrators across the country more aggressively in New Hampshire than we had seen him during his convention speech. And he also continued to criticize Democratic leaders for failing in some instances to request federal assistance when the demonstrations are in his eyes getting out of hand.

I want to read you a tweet that the President sent yesterday. "Kenosha has been very quiet for the third night in a row or since the National Guard has shown up. That's the way it works, it's all very simple." And then he goes on to say, "Portland with a very ungifted mayor, should request help from the federal government. If lives are endangered, we're going in".

Also in New Hampshire, we heard the President lament the fact that some of these democratic jurisdictions have not requested federal help in the fact that the laws prevent him from unilaterally sending in federal troops, something that he has wanted to do in some of these protests, Victor and Christi.

PAUL: All right, Sarah Westwood, appreciate the update from the White House there. Thank you.

BLACKWELL: Thank you, Sarah.

So the man was part of this scandal involving Jerry Falwell Jr. claims that Falwell was aware from day one of the affair with Falwell's wife. You're going to hear him describe how their relationship started next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:27:46]

PAUL: Twenty-seven minutes passed the hour right now. And listen to this, a 25-year-old man in Nevada may be the first person in the U.S. documented to have been infected with coronavirus twice.

BLACKWELL: OK, so there's this study from a team at the University of Nevada, Reno School of Medicine and the Nevada State Public Health Laboratory. It's not yet been peer-reviewed by a journal, but this is what research has found. They say that the findings suggest that people can catch COVID-19 multiple times.

PAUL: Can we just breathe for a minute?

BLACKWELL: Just that minute.

PAUL: Like that is just more than we need to hear. CNN's Polo Sandoval following this from New York. This has been such a fluid virus, something new coming out all the time. We kept thinking that once you had it, you were going to be safe for a while.

POLO SANDOVAL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's a new discovery that seems to be coming each and every day here, Victor and Christi. As you correctly pointed out here, Nevada researchers determined that this 25-year-old man tested positive for COVID not only late in April, but also late in May. The findings that as you also pointed out are not peer-reviewed, at least not just yet. They show us that he was sick with two distinct infections, according to researchers.

And you'll recall earlier this week, the first global reinfection case that was reported by researchers in Hong Kong, they are noting that this not only suggests that reinfection is possible, but that there may be implications for the efficiency of future vaccines.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SANDOVAL (voice-over): It's another grim warning, a prediction by a model previously cited by the White House of a coronavirus death toll of more than 317,000 by December. Researchers at the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington said 67,000 lives could be saved, however, if 95 percent of Americans wore masks in public. Now the doctor thinks even more people could avoid dying from the coronavirus.

DR. ROB DAVIDSON, EMERGENCY ROOM PHYSICIAN: We could save 90,000 American lives if 95 percent of people wear masks by the end of this year. I mean, that's just such a huge number of American lives that could be saved.

SANDOVAL (voice-over): This week, amid the ongoing pandemic, crowds gathered on the White House south lawn in support of the President and on the National Mall in support of equal rights. Some wearing masks, but little to no social distancing at these events.

[06:30:00]

WILLIAM HASELTINE, CHAIR AND PRESIDENT, ACCESS HEALTH INTERNATIONAL: The White House scene was a very dangerous scene. It is a super spreader I never -- a case you know that some of those people were unknowingly infected. They'll be infecting others. And two weeks from now, we're going to see the result.

SANDOVAL (voice-over): On Friday, a Health and Human Services official expressed optimism about a future COVID-19 vaccine, saying efforts are quote, "absolutely on track" and we could see four possible vaccines in phase three clinic trials by next month. Many experts say it will likely be next year before a vaccine is readily available. Whenever that might be, the nation's pharmacists will be able to administer the vaccines, says the head of the CDC, Robert Redfield. Meanwhile, the American Academy of Pediatrics is calling on the CDC to reverse its recent guidelines, advising the testing may not be necessary for asymptomatic people who have come into contact with COVID-19 patients. It's a dangerous step backwards, wrote the organization. And in Louisiana, COVID concerns are on the mind of the state's governor who fears this week's hurricane may have drastically interrupted testing efforts.

GOV. JOHN BEL EDWARDS (D-LA): As we move people, as we shelter people, as we rescue people, we have to be very mindful of this, otherwise in a couple of weeks, we're going to really pay the price here with more cases and hospitalizations and unfortunately more deaths that we would otherwise experience.

SANDOVAL: Large gatherings are being blamed for an increase in infections at Texas Christian University. More than 400 cases and counting on that Fort Worth campus. A letter from one university official reading, "we literally cannot keep up."

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SANDOVAL: Staying on that education thread and bringing it back here to New York, Mayor de Blasio said schools are still on track to start in-person teaching on September 10th, teachers will be sticking with that same -- with the same students both in person and remote instruction according to what the mayor said, Victor and Christi, and this is coming as we experience the lowest infection rate that we've seen since the pandemic started, about .6 percent here in New York City.

PAUL: Well, that is the good news as opposed to silver-lining there. Polo Sandoval, good to see you this morning, thank you for the info.

BLACKWELL: Thank you, Polo.

SANDOVAL: Thank you.

BLACKWELL: So the controversy surrounding Jerry Falwell Jr., the evangelical leader who resigned as president of Liberty University, so this morning is growing even more complicated. The man, his wife had an affair with for years is now speaking publicly and he's accusing Falwell Jr. of encouraging the affair. Giancarlo Granda spoke with Anderson Cooper about their relationship.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GIANCARLO GRANDA, FORMER POOL ATTENDANT: She invited me back to her hotel, but before she invites me back to the hotel, she's like, by the way, my husband, he likes to watch. He likes to watch and immediately I kind of -- I pulled back. And I thought it was a little bit odd. I don't like to shame anyone for anything, OK, but I did find it odd at the moment. And she's like don't worry, he's not going to -- he's not going to intervene, he's just going to watch in the corner of the room. He's going to watch from the corner of the room and I'm like, OK, I'm a 20-year-old single guy, I'm like why not.

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN: Did you know who --

GRANDA: Hence -- COOPER: They were at that time?

GRANDA: I had no idea who they were. They -- at the end of my work shift, they called me through a blocked number and then they told me to meet them at another hotel. It was right by the (INAUDIBLE) pool. I meet them at this hotel, I walk into the lobby, and Becki is sitting there, she's nervous, I'm nervous, you know, she offers me Whiskey to calm down, to relax. And then shortly after, we go to the room --

COOPER: You were 20 years old by the way, understand --

GRANDA: I was 20 years old, the age of a Liberty University student, right, that's really important to remember. Go up and Jerry is lying down, and there's two beds, he's lying down on one of the beds, and he's you know, he's noticeably drunk and giggling, and then again, I'm a little bit worried, right? I'm like what am I getting myself into? And then I said, hey, at any point if you get jealous or upset, just let me know and I'll walk out of here. No problem.

COOPER: You said that to Jerry Falwell.

GRANDA: I said that to Jerry Falwell. And he's like, no, just go for it where he encouraged me to just go for it.

COOPER: Did you get the sense that they had done this before? I mean, did it seem new to either of them?

GRANDA: Now, look, as a 29-year-old man, I can see how they're very methodical in targeting me.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PAUL: Now, Granda says the Falwells offered him equity in investment properties, a business relationship that he says he felt trapped and then tried to get out of for years.

BLACKWELL: So there's a statement from Jerry Falwell Jr., he acknowledged the affair, but he said that he was not involved. He also said the affair led to stress and weight loss and that Granda was trying to blackmail him and his wife. Granda denies that claim.

[06:35:00]

Former President Barack Obama, big basketball fan, we know that, so he was the perfect person to call to step in and play a key role in the return of the NBA.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLACKWELL: The NBA, the players will be back on the court today, and former President Barack Obama played a role in helping the players leverage their positions. And Obama spokeswoman tells CNN that the former president spoke to LeBron James, Chris Paul about who to talk to and what to do to create change.

[06:40:00] PAUL: Yes, Coy Wire is with us now because Coy, I know that players

are describing this as a way to refocus after -- I mean, yes, there's been an emotional week.

COY WIRE, CNN SPORTS REPORTER: Yes, absolutely. Good morning Christi and Victor, NBA games resume this afternoon. Players are going to have more specific action plans in place. How to use the game as a platform to promote social justice and empower black communities both now and after they leave that Orlando Bubble. Remember, before the season even restarted, many NBA players had concerns about leaving their families and their communities being isolated during such tumultuous times. Those feelings became overwhelming, following the shooting of Jacob Blake and the subsequent fallout in Wisconsin. Oklahoma City Thunder superstar Chris Paul was fighting back tears, trying to describe the strain that players are feeling. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHRIS PAUL, OKLAHOMA CITY THUNDER: Because guys are tired. I mean, tired! And when I say tired, we're not physically tired. We're just tired of seeing the same thing over and over again and everybody just expects us to be OK just because we get paid great money. You know, we're human. We have real feelings and I'm glad that we got the chance to get in a room together to talk with one another and not just cross paths and say good luck in your game today.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WIRE: Now, as part of the green to return, players and team owners are going to work with local elections officials to convert as many arenas as possible into COVID safe polling places for the November elections. Also expect to see ads promoting voting and registration during game broadcasts throughout the rest of the playoffs. The players and league have also created a social justice coalition that will work towards meaningful police and criminal justice reform. The NBA -- the WNBA, rather, returning yesterday after a two-day stoppage and the Connecticut Sun sent a message on the anniversary of the march on Washington, kneeling, holding pieces of paper to form Martin Luther King's quote, that says "in the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends."

And days after Naomi Osaka's refusal to play, forcing an entire tournament to hit pause, she returned to the court yesterday wearing a "black lives matter" shirt in honor of Jacob Blake. Osaka won in straight sets to advance to her first final of the year. And ahead of Monday's U.S. Open, she admits she had a revelation during the shutdown.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NAOMI OSAKA, 2018 U.S. OPEN CHAMPION: Being more aware of the impact that my voice can have, and I feel like this is a really big example, but -- and it happened really early on. And honestly, I'm more of a follower than a leader. And I like to follow things. So, I was just waiting and waiting, but then I just realized that maybe I would have to be the one to take the first step. (END VIDEO CLIP)

WIRE: Finally, Yankees' Manager Aaron Boone who has two adopted black sons broke down and he even had to leave the podium for a short time when asked about the events of this past week.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

AARON BOONE, MANAGER, NEW YORK YANKEES: I know I'm talking to a lot of people out there, you know, it's just been -- it's been a hard and heavy year. My prayer is just that, you know, we continue to -- even though we're going through some dark times, that at the end of this, we're better -- we're better for it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WIRE: Heavy is the word that stands out from Boone. And Chris Paul, he also mentioned, Christi and Victor, that he was so moved that it wasn't just NBA players shifting the focusing from games back to the fight for racial equality and social justice, it was the WNBA, MLB, NHL, Major League Soccer, all halting events, even the NFL pausing practices for the cause.

PAUL: Coy Wire, really appreciate it this morning. Thank you.

BLACKWELL: Thank you, Coy. So President Trump, he's back out at his rallies and back on attack. Coming up, you're going to hear his response to the protests in Kenosha and the new attacks on Joe Biden.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:45:00]

BLACKWELL: Twelve minutes to the top of the hour now. President Trump is back out campaigning. This is after he formally accepted the Republican presidential nomination. Last night, he held a rally in New Hampshire. Listen, there's no social distancing, this woman has the mask under her chin -- it doesn't work that way. And people booed when they were reminded of the requirement to wear a mask in public. And the president started his remarks by attacking former Vice President Joe Biden and his decision to resume in-person campaigning soon.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Today, it was announced that Joe Biden is coming out of the basement --

(CROWD BOOING)

Because the poll numbers have totally swung. It totally swung. And they've swung like nobody's ever seen them swing before. That was rapid. It was a rapid swing.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: With me now is Margaret Talev; politics and White House editor for "Axios" and CNN political analyst. Margaret, good morning to you.

MARGARET TALEV, POLITICS & WHITE HOUSE EDITOR, AXIOS: Good morning, Victor.

BLACKWELL: So --

TALEV: I'm not sure if I've seen all those poll numbers, yes.

BLACKWELL: Yes, when he says there's a rapid swing. I don't know that there's any that chose him in the lead. But let's talk about the decision for the former vice president to get back out on the trail. Before the RNC, they were going to stay at home, continue with the stay-at-home strategy. Now he says that the campaign is going to be going to battleground states. Why?

TALEV: Well, the Vice President Biden's folks had told us a couple of weeks ago that they were going to revisit their strategy in terms of whether or not he would travel after Labor Day. But they have now made that decision.

[06:50:00]

And part of the reason why is because there are a number of people inside the Biden campaign or close to Biden world, including donors who feel that it's possible that the president will have a tactical advantage if the president is out and advising crowds even if they're at airport hangars and if Biden is not. But I don't expect that we're going to see him back out there as if nothing had happened. He has said now himself that these are going to be a very sort of measured visits within all of the guidelines that public health officials or local government might have, and I just don't think it's going to be a daily thing every day to large unmasked crowds. It's going to be much smaller events, more space in-between and a lot of virtual supplement -- you know, events to supplement that.

BLACKWELL: Yes, in some of these places, crowds of 10 or more, 50 or more are discouraged if not against local ordinances. But let me see what you think about this number out of Wisconsin if this plays some role. New polls shows that support for Black Lives Matter dropped by 13 points from June to early August, a 25-point difference is gone. Is that shifting strategy of the either campaign in what is really a crucial state?

TALEV: For sure, it's switching President Trump's strategy. That's why you're seeing him drill so hard into the notion of attaching Biden and Kamala Harris to the Black Lives Matter movement, and to suggesting that, you know, urban chaos is going to breach suburban city limits and so on and so forth. The polling -- like as you know with all polling, polling is not as conclusive as we all want it to be. We do see particularly in this Wisconsin poll and we're going to start to look all over the country at reduced support among white voters in particular for the Black Lives Matter movement, calling it Black Lives Matter, talking about the mission of Black Lives Matter.

That doesn't necessarily translate into reduced support for Joe Biden. And because there's an intensification of concerns about the movement among white Republican voters, it doesn't even necessarily carry over to voters who would be voting for Biden anyway. And one of the key questions is, would some of these voters actually abandon Biden for President Trump or is it more a matter of voters staying home because now they're just not sure what to do. Any of those things are real concerns for Joe Biden, obviously, and the president is going to try to take maximum advantage of that, and that's why we're seeing that rhetoric.

BLACKWELL: Yes --

TALEV: But it's just too soon to really understand how tightly these are connected.

BLACKWELL: Let me ask you about the black supporters at the -- who spoke at the RNC in support of the president. They all of them -- all of them because we went back and looked, shared a similarity. There's one common denominator. Let's see if we can play this and folks can pick it up.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. TIM SCOTT (R-SC): Our family went from cotton to Congress in one life-time.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I take it as a personal insult that people would think I've had a 37-year friendship with a racist?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: As you can see, I'm a man of color and I'm a life- long Democrat too.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: In Baltimore where we had the highest number of black Republicans in the entire country running for office this election cycle.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Republicans are the party that freed the slaves. And the party that put the first black man and women in Congress.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Look at me, I am black. We're not all the same, sir, I am not in chains.

BEN CARSON, SECRETARY OF HOUSING & URBAN DEVELOPMENT: Many on the other side love to incite division by claiming that President Trump is a racist. They could not be more wrong.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: Every one of their supporters spoke from a perspective of blackness or criminal justice first. They were black or ex-cons and then some other trait. White people got to talk about the pandemic and health care, military and public safety, but black people were black first. Is this working for the president? Are we seeing any movement in his support among black voters?

TALEV: We have some very early polling on this, and that suggests that this was not effective, at least not in the immediate days in terms of swing black voters towards President Trump. But it's not clear that was ever the intention. If the intention was to aim for college- educated white suburban voters, that's what my colleague Jonathan Swan is reporting. We're not even sure whether it's made an impact on that front, but I think that's where we will be looking. If you talk about a permission structure. This is to -- for these folks, these surrogates to validate the idea that if you're a white suburban voter and you kind of want to vote for President Trump, then it's OK to do that. And we'll see how that plays out in the polling, but we're not seeing any immediate movement in terms of his support among black voters at this point.

[06:55:00]

BLACKWELL: And Ben Carson; a retired neurosurgeon and Secretary of Health -- Housing and Urban Development didn't talk about housing or medicine. Margaret Talev, thanks so much for being with us.

TALEV: Thanks, Victor.

PAUL: It came as a shock to so many people this morning, I know, and it is such sad news that actor Chadwick Boseman known for playing heroes from the "Black Panther" to "Jackie Robinson", he has died. We have more on that when we come back, stay close.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)