"THE 11th HOUR" WITH BRIAN WILLIAMS STARTS NOW.
>>> WELL, GOOD EVENING ON THIS DAY 1,203 OF THE TRUMP
ADMINISTRATION.
ADMINISTRATION. 181 DAYS TO GO UNTIL OUR NEXT
PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION.
PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION. THE PRESIDENT HAS ADOPTED THE
USE OF A SCORSESEAN PHRASE TO
SUM UP OUR SORRY CIRCUMSTANCES
AS A COUNTRY THESE DAYS.
YESTERDAY HE SAID ABOUT THE
STATE OF THE U.S. ECONOMY AND
UNEMPLOYMENT, "IT IS WHAT IT
IS."
IS." TODAY WHEN ASKED ABOUT THE DEATH
TOLL HE AGAIN SAID, "IT IS WHAT
IT IS."
IT IS." ADDING 70,000 SOUNDS CORRECT TO
HIM.
HIM. JUST YESTERDAY THE PRESIDENT
ANNOUNCED HE WAS WINDING DOWN
THE CORONAVIRUS TASK FORCE.
EVEN THOUGH THE PANDEMIC IS JUST
NOW RAMPING UP IN SOME PLACES,
WITH THE LARGEST SPIKE IN NEW
CASES NOW IN NEBRASKA AND
MINNESOTA.
MINNESOTA. THE PRESIDENT SEEMED FINE WITH
WINDING IT DOWN.
MIKE PENCE, WHO RUNS THE TASK
FORCE, OF COURSE SEEMED FINE
WITH DOING AWAY WITH THE TASK
FORCE.
FORCE. UNTIL TODAY, WHEN THE PRESIDENT
SAID HE DIDN’T KNOW HOW POPULAR
THE TASK FORCE WAS AND SAID HE’S
DECIDED HE’S GOING TO KEEP IT
AROUND.
AROUND. THE VIRUS CONTINUES TO CHURN
ACROSS OUR COUNTRY IN TANDEM
WITH THE TREND OF REOPENING
BUSINESSES AND ENTIRE STATES.
DESPITE THE JOHNS HOPKINS EXPERT
WHO JUST TODAY TESTIFIED THAT
NONE OF THE STATES REOPENING
HAVE MET ALL OF THE WHITE HOUSE
GUIDELINES FOR REOPENING.
AND DESPITE OPINION POLLS
SHOWING A MAJORITY OF AMERICANS
ARE NOT AT ALL READY OR WILLING
TO GO BACK TO LIFE AND EVENTS AS
NORMAL AS WE KNEW THEM.
INDEED, IN THE REAL WORLD
TONIGHT THE DEATH TOLL ACROSS
OUR COUNTRY STANDS AT 73,863
SOULS LOST TO THIS VIRUS.
THERE ARE NOW AMONG THE SMALL
PERCENTAGE TESTED MORE THAN 1.2
MILLION CONFIRMED CASES.
THE NUMBER OF NEW CASES IS
RISING IN NEARLY HALF OF OUR
COUNTRY.
COUNTRY. THOSE ARE THE STATES IN ORANGE
ON THIS MAP.
THE GREEN STATES ARE WHERE THE
NUMBER OF CASES ARE FALLING.
SOME 36 STATES HAVE NOW REOPENED
IN SOME FORM OR NATIONAL.
FORMER DIRECTOR OF THE CDC WAS
ASKED ABOUT THAT DURING A HOUSE
COMMITTEE HEARING THIS MORNING.
>> IT WILL BE TRAGICALLY AT
LEAST 100,000 DEATHS FROM COVID
AT THE END OF THI MONTH.
AS BAD AS THIS HAS BEEN, IT’S
JUST THE BEGINNING.
>> IS IT IRRESPONSIBLE TO OPEN
THE ECONOMY WITHOUT ADEQUATE
TESTING?
TESTING? >> WE NEED TO CONTINUE TO
RAPIDLY RAMP UP OUR ABILITY TO
DO ALL OF THE FOUR THINGS I
MENTIONED.
MENTIONED. NOT JUST TESTS BUT ALSO ISOLATE
PEOPLE WHO ARE INFECTED, CONTACT
TRACE AND QUARANTINE.
BY HAVING ALL OF THOSE THINGS IN
PLACE WE CAN COME OUT SAFER AND
SOONER.
SOONER. AND WE START OUR ECONOMY WITHOUT
A RISK OF EXPLOSIVE SPREAD.
>> DR. FAUCI WAS SUPPOSED TO
TESTIFY AT THAT HEARING AS WELL,
BUT HE WAS BLOCKED BY THE WHITE
HOUSE.
HOUSE. NEW REPORTING FROM POLITICO
REVEALS THAT EVEN AS THE
PRESIDENT HAS PUSHED TO REOPEN
THIS COUNTRY FEDERAL OFFICIALS
ARE WORRIED.
ARE WORRIED. POLITICO OBTAINED AUDIO
RECORDINGS OF THREE CONFERENCE
CALL MEETINGS HELD BETWEEN 24
APRIL AND 1st OF MAY LED BY HHS
AND FEMA OFFICIALS.
THEY TALKED ABOUT MEDICAL
SUPPLIES AND A POSSIBLE NEW
OUTBREAK AS RESTRICTIONS ARE
LIFTED.
LIFTED. POLITICO SAYS A MAY 1st
CONFERENCE CALL STARTED WITH THE
HEAD OF THE CDC’S INFLUENZA
DIVISION WARNING "THE NUMBERS OF
DEATHS DEFINITELY WILL BE HIGH."
WHILE THIS AFTERNOON TRUMP WAS
ASKED ABOUT THE RISK.
>> WILL THE NATION JUST HAVE TO
ACCEPT THE IDEA THAT BY
REOPENING THERE WILL BE MORE
CASES, THERE WILL BE MORE
DEATHS?
DEATHS? >> SO I CALL THESE PEOPLE
WARRIORS.
WARRIORS. AND I’M ACTUALLY CALLING THEM,
JOHN, AS YOU KNOW THE NATION
WARRIORS.
WARRIORS. HOPEFULLY THAT WON’T BE THE CASE
BUT THAT COULD VERY WELL BE THE
CASE.
CASE. WE CAN’T HAVE OUR WHOLE COUNTRY
OUT.
OUT. WE CAN’T DO IT.
THE COUNTRY WON’T TAKE IT, WON’T
STAND IT.
STAND IT. IT’S NOT SUSTAINABLE.
IF SOMEBODY LOST SOMEBODY, A
PARENT OR A WIFE OR A HUSBAND
OR, YOU KNOW, ANY BROTHERS,
SISTERS, IF YOU LOST SOMEONE,
YOU CAN NEVER MAKE UP FOR THAT
BY SAYING WOW, YOU’RE GOING TO
HAVE A GREAT YEAR NEXT YEAR
ECONOMICALLY.
ECONOMICALLY. SO YOU WILL NEVER DO THAT.
BUT I WILL SAY FROM AN ECONOMIC
STANDPOINT I THINK NEXT YEAR’S
GOING TO BE A VERY BIG YEAR.
>> TRUMP MADE THOSE COMMENTS
DURING AN OVAL OFFICE EVENT TO
HONOR NURSES WHERE HE WAS ALSO
ASKED ABOUT THE NEED FOR
TESTING.
TESTING. >> WE HAVE MORE CASE, WE’RE
GOING TO DO MORE TESTING.
IF I DON’T DO TESTING WE DON’T
HAVE ANY CASES.
SO AZ DO MORE TESTING THEY SAY
BUT YOU HAVE MORE CASES.
>> MEANWHILE, THE TASK FORCE
THAT WE WERE TOLD YESTERDAY WAS
GOING AWAY, AS WE MENTIONED,
CAME ROARING BACK INTO EXISTENCE
TODAY.
TODAY. >> I THOUGHT WE COULD WIND IT
DOWN SOONER.
DOWN SOONER. BUT I HAD NO IDEA HOW POPULAR
THE TASK FORCE IS.
UNTIL ACTUALLY YESTERDAY.
WHEN I STARTED TALKING ABOUT
WINDING IT DOWN.
I GOT CALLS FROM VERY RESPECTED
PEOPLE SAYING I THINK IT WOULD
BE BETTER TO KEEP IT GOING.
IT’S DONE SUCH A GOOD JOB.
I WOULD SAY BY MONDAY WE’LL BE
ANNOUNCING TWO OR THREE NEW
MEMBERS TO THE TASK FORCE.
>> THOSE NEW TASK FORCE MEMBERS
MAY BE CHALLENGED ON THE DARKEST
ASPECT OF THIS PANDEMIC, AND
THAT IS THE GROWING DEATH TOLL.
AXIOS REPORTING THE PRESIDENT
HAS COMPLAINED TO ADVISERS ABOUT
THE WAY THE CORONAVIRUS DEATH
TOLL IS BEING CALCULATED,
SUGGESTING THE REAL NUMBERS ARE
ACTUALLY LOWER AND THAT A NUMBER
OF HIS SENIOR AIDES SHARE THIS
VIEW.
VIEW. ONE HIGH-LEVEL OFFICIAL "EXPECTS
THE PRESIDENT TO BEGIN PUBLICLY
QUESTIONING THE DEATH TOLL AS IT
CLOSES IN ON HIS PREDICTIONS FOR
THE FINAL DEATH COUNT AND
>> THE DEATH TOLL FIGURES IN THE UNITED STATES, OVER 70,000.
DO YOU BELIEVE THOSE FIGURES?
>> WELL, I THINK IT IS WHAT IT
IS FROM YOU SAYING IT’S 70,000.
IT’S APPROXIMATELY NOW 70,000.
I DON’T IMAGINE THERE WOULD BE A
VERY BIG VARIATION.
NO, IT’S A BIG NUMBER.
BUT IT’S ALSO A NUMBER THAT’S AT
THE LOWER SCALE.
I THINK DEBORAH, YOU COULD SAY
IT’S AT THE VERY LOWER SCALE OF
ANY NUMBER THAT WAS PREDICTED.
BECAUSE IF YOU LOOK AT THE
PREDICTIONS I GUESS THEY SAID
FROM 100,000 TO 220,000.
THAT’S IF WE DID THE BIG SHUTINS
AND IF WE WENT TO THE TOTAL
SHUTDOWN.
SHUTDOWN. >> TONIGHT THE NATION’S MOST
POPULOUS STATE PREPARING TO
REOPEN.
REOPEN. ON FRIDAY CALIFORNIA WILL START
LIFTING PARTS OF ITS
STAY-AT-HOME ORDER, WHICH HAS
BEEN IN EFFECT FOR NEARLY TWO
MONTHS.
MONTHS. THIS IS HAPPENING EVEN AS THE
STATE GRAPPLES WITH RISING
NUMBERS OF CASES IN L.A. AND THE
BAY AREA.