>>>
>>> WE
>>> WE OFTEN LOOK BACK ON HISTORY TO LEARN HOW TO HANDLE
CURRENT AND FUTURE EVENTS.
THAT IS NO DIFFERENT THAN WHAT
LEADERS ARE DOING RIGHT NOW TO
HELP FIGHT THE CORONAVIRUS.
I DECIDED TO ASK HER FORMER
OBAMA ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL
WHO LED THE FIGHT AGAINST THE
EBOLA OUTBREAK, HOW SHE THINKS
THE NATION IS DOING RIGHT NOW
COMBATING THE CORONAVIRUS.
GAIL, THANK YOU FOR JOINING US
HERE ON GREAT DAY WASHINGTON.
>> THANK YOU FOR HAVING US.
>> THE TIME YOU HEAR REFERRING
BACK TO THE MOST RIGHT NOW IS
THE EBOLA CRISIS.
I KNOW YOU ARE ONE OF THE LEAD
PEOPLE TAKING US THROUGH THAT
PERIOD OF TIME.
HAVE YOU BEEN THINKING BACK TO
THEM RIGHT NOW?
>> ALL OF THE TIME.
ALL OF THE TIME THERE ARE SO
MANY LESSONS THAT CAME FROM
THAT EMERGENCY, IN TERMS OF
WHAT WE NEED TO BE DOING RIGHT
NOW.
NOW.
NOW. IT
NOW. IT HAS BEEN, I THINK VERY
INFORMATIVE IN MANY WAYS VERY
HELPFUL, BECAUSE WE LEARNED SO
MUCH ABOUT HOW TO MANAGE A
HEALTH CRISIS LIKE THE ONE WE
ARE SEEING NOW.
IT IS VERY PROMINENT IN MY
MIND.
MIND.
MIND. >>
MIND. >> FOR THIS TO BE A GLOBAL
PANDEMIC AS WELL, AND I KNOW
YOU HAVE EXPERTISE IN THIS AREA
THAT GOES SO FAR AND WIDE.
HOW IMPORTANT IS IT FOR US TO
BE WORKING GLOBALLY WITH
EVERYONE TO MAKE SURE WE ARE
HANDLING THIS?
HANDLING THIS? >> IT IS CRITICALLY IMPORTANT.
I UNDERSTAND THAT IT IS VERY
DIFFICULT RIGHT NOW, BECAUSE
OBVIOUSLY ALL OF THOSE IN
WASHINGTON, D. C. ARE FOCUSED
ON WHAT IS HAPPENING HERE.
WE ARE CONCERNED ABOUT FRIENDS
AND FAMILY IN THE ECONOMY AND
JOBS AND EVERYONE'S HEALTH.
BUT, THE FACT OF THE MATTER IS
THIS VIRUS DOESN'T NEED A
PASSPORT OR VISA.
IT MOVES FREELY ACROSS BORDERS,
AS WE HAVE SEEN.
IT IS IN OUR INTERESTS TO BE
WORKING GLOBALLY WITH OTHER
PARTNERS TO MAKE SURE WE CAN
DEFEAT THIS PANDEMIC, NOT JUST
WITHIN OUR BORDERS, BUT
EXTERNALLY.
EXTERNALLY. IT IS ALSO, I THINK AN
IMPORTANT THING THAT U.S.
LEADERSHIP IN THESE THINGS
HELPING THE REST OF THE WORLD
SHOULD BELIEVE IN A UNITED
FRONT.
FRONT.
FRONT. THE FACT THAT THE U.S. STOOD UP
TO MARSHALL FOR GLOBAL
COOPERATION LED TO A LOT OF
COUNTRIES JOINING WITH US
DURING THE EBOLA OUTBREAK.
IN FACT, THE PARTNERSHIP
BETWEEN THE INTERNATIONAL
COMMUNITY IN AFRICA THAT LED TO
THE DEFEAT OF THAT EPIDEMIC.
SO, IT IS THE RIGHT THING TO DO,
BUT IT IS THE SMART THING TO
DO.
DO.
DO. >>
DO. >> IS
DO. >> IS THERE ANYTHING, SPEAKING
OF U.S. LEADERSHIP THAT YOU
WISH THE ADMINISTRATION OR
PERHAPS, CONGRESS WOULD DO?
ACTION THEY SHOULD BE TAKING TO
HANDLE THIS?
HANDLE THIS? >> I THINK THERE ARE A COUPLE
THINGS.
THINGS.
THINGS. I
THINGS. I WILL SAY ON THE CONGRESSIONAL
SIDE.
SIDE.
SIDE. HERE, INTERESTINGLY AND
IMPORTANTLY THERE IS A REAL
BIPARTISAN CONSENSUS.
BIPARTISAN CONSENSUS. THERE IS A LONG HISTORY OF
MANY, MANY YEARS OF DEMOCRATS
AND REPUBLICANS WORKING TO
GATHER ON GLOBAL HEALTH
CONCERNS LIKE THE FIGHT AGAINST
HIV, MALARIA AND ALL OF THOSE
THINGS.
THINGS.
THINGS. THERE HAS BEEN A REAL POLITICAL
CONSENSUS.
CONSENSUS. I THINK ON THE HILL THERE IS
COMMON INTEREST THAT WE NEED TO
BE FOCUSED GLOBALLY AS WELL AS
NATIONALLY.
NATIONALLY. I WOULD LIKE TO SEE THE UNITED
STATES JOINING MORE OF THE
INTERNATIONAL FORMS THAT ARE
BEING STOOD UP.
THERE IS A LOT OF WORK BEING
DONE NOW ON HOW DO WE MAKE SURE
VACCINES AND THERAPEUTICS, WHEN
THEY BECOME AVAILABLE ARE
AVAILABLE GLOBALLY.
AVAILABLE GLOBALLY. AGAIN, IT IS THE RIGHT THING TO
DO, BUT IT IS ALSO SMART
BECAUSE, WE CAN DEFEAT THIS AT
HOME IF WE ARE NOT ALSO
DEFEATING IT ABROAD.
I HOPE THAT THE AGENCY I HAD
THE PRIVILEGE TO LEAD, THE U.S.
AGENCY FOR INTERNATIONAL
DEVELOPMENT IS ENABLED AND
EMPOWERED TO LEAN ON THIS.
THEY DID A TERRIFIC JOB DURING
EBOLA AND THEY CAN CONTRIBUTE A
LOT.
LOT.
LOT. I
LOT. I HOPE WE WILL SEE MORE OF
THEM.
THEM.
THEM. >>
THEM. >> SPEAKING OF EBOLA, I TOLD
YOU I WAS A REPORTER IN DALLAS
DURING THAT TIME.
FOR ME, COVERING THIS
CORONAVIRUS FEELS VERY
DIFFERENT THAN EBOLA.
WAS IT DIFFERENT FOR YOU, AS
WELL?
WELL?
WELL? I
WELL? I KNOW THAT WAS YOUR ENTIRE
LIFE FOR 13 MONTHS.
>> IT IS DIFFERENT, IN THAT THE
EBOLA EPIDEMIC IN PARTICULARLY,
YOU WERE IN DALLAS SO YOU KNOW
THIS VERY WELL.
WHEN THERE WAS AN ACTUAL CASE
IN THE UNITED STATES, AND WE
HAD TWO FRONT-LINE WORKERS ALSO
INFECTED, AND WE HAD AMERICAN
HEALTHCARE WORKERS COME BACK,
ONE OF WHOM DR. CRAIG SPENCER
IS NOW WORKING IN NEW YORK CITY
ON THE CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC.
I THINK IT BROUGHT IT HOME TO
PEOPLE THAT THESE VIRUSES CAN
MOVE ACROSS BORDERS.
I THINK IT REALLY SCARED
PEOPLE.
PEOPLE.
PEOPLE. AND, FOR QUITE SOME TIME WE SAW
A LOT OF SUPPORT ACROSS THE
UNITED STATES FOR DOING WHAT WE
NEEDED TO DO EXTERNALLY.
BOTH TO HELP PEOPLE IN WEST
AFRICA, BUT ALSO TO SERVE OUR
OWN NATIONAL SECURITY AND OTHER
INTERESTS.
INTERESTS. I WISH THAT SOME OF THAT
UNDERSTANDING HAD BEEN
RETAINED.
RETAINED.
RETAINED. I THINK AS WITH SO MANY CRISES,
ONE PASSES AND ANOTHER ONE
EMERGES AND SOMETIMES, WE
FORGET WHAT HAS HAPPENED.
AS I SAID AT THE OUTSET, THERE
IS SO MUCH TO BE LEARNED, EVEN
THOUGH IT WAS VERY DIFFERENT.
SO MUCH TO BE LEARNED FROM IT
ABOUT HOW WE NEED TO PROCEED
NOW.
NOW.
NOW. >>
NOW. >> ABSOLUTELY, WE CAN ALWAYS
LEARN FROM OUR PAST.
GAYLE, I COULD TALK TO YOU
FOREVER, BUT THAT IS ALL THE
TIME WE HAVE.
THANK YOU FOR JOINING US.
>> THANK YOU, AND THANK YOU FOR
KEEPING THE LIGHTS ON IN D. C.
>> I COULD TALK TO GAYLE