>>> WELL, GOOD EVENING ON THIS DAY 1,205 OF THE TRUMP
ADMINISTRATION.
ADMINISTRATION. 179 DAYS TO GO UNTIL OUR NEXT
PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION.
PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION. AND LET’S SET THE SCENE FIRST
TONIGHT.
TONIGHT. TODAY THE PRESIDENT WELCOMED
REPUBLICAN MEMBERS OF CONGRESS
IN THE STATE DINING ROOM.
THE PRESIDENT WAS SEATED
DIRECTLY IN FRONT OF THE
FIREPLACE AND JUST BENEATH THE
INSCRIPTION FROM JOHN ADAMS THAT
SAYS "MAY NONE BUT HONEST AND
WISE MEN EVER RULE UNDER THIS
ROOF."
ROOF." AND FROM THAT PLACE, THE
PRESIDENT SAID THIS ABOUT THE
CORONAVIRUS, QUOTE, I FEEL ABOUT
VACCINES THE WAY I FEEL ABOUT
TESTS.
TESTS. THIS IS GOING TO GO AWAY WITHOUT
A VACCINE, AND WE’RE NOT GOING
TO SEE IT AGAIN.
AND THAT IS NOT TRUE.
AS WE GO INTO THIS WEEKEND WITH
CLOSE TO 80,000 DEAD IN THIS
COUNTRY AFTER WE LOST JUST UNDER
2,000 PEOPLE JUST TODAY, IT IS
MORE IMPORTANT THAN EVER TO
POINT OUT THIS IS NOT JUST GOING
TO GO AWAY.
AND FROM THAT SAME ROOM, THE
PRESIDENT WENT ON TO SAY, SOME
PEOPLE DON’T WANT OUR COUNTRY TO
COME BACK FOR POLITICAL REASONS.
THEN HE SAID, QUOTE, THE REAL
PEOPLE -- AND HE DEFINED THE
REAL PEOPLE AS THOSE WHO WANT
THIS COUNTRY TO BE GREAT AND
GREAT AGAIN.
GREAT AGAIN. THEY WANT TO GET BACK, AS HE
PUTS IT.
PUTS IT. MORE ON THE PRESIDENT’S COMMENTS
IN MOMENTS.
IN MOMENTS. BUT AS WE DELVE BACK INTO THE
REAL WORLD NOW, WE TESTED
300,000 PEOPLE TODAY IN OUR
COUNTRY OF 327 MILLION, GIVE OR
TAKE.
TAKE. AND THE DEATH TOLL TONIGHT
STANDS AT 77,974.
THE STATE OF GEORGIA, THE FIRST
STATE TO UNDERGO A SO-CALLED
REOPENING, IS CURRENTLY SEEING A
40% SPIKE IN CORONAVIRUS CASES.
THIS IS THE WEEKEND, REMEMBER,
SO MANY STATES ARE POISED TO
RELAX RESTRICTIONS.
RELAX RESTRICTIONS. PART OF THE PRESIDENT’S CAMPAIGN
TO REOPEN THE COUNTRY DURING AN
ACTIVE PANDEMIC.
ACTIVE PANDEMIC. AND ON A DAY WHEN WE LEARNED OF
A SECOND POSITIVE CASE IN THE
PRESIDENT’S CIRCLE, IN THE WEST
WING OF THE WHITE HOUSE.
MORE ON THAT IN A MOMENT.
BUT FIRST HERE JUST FOR CLARITY
IS THE PRESIDENT FROM TODAY,
AGAIN BENEATH THE QUOTE LEFT
BEHIND FOR US ALL FROM JOHN
ADAMS, THE FIRST PRESIDENT TO
LIVE IN THE PEOPLE’S HOUSE.
>> I THINK SOME PEOPLE DON’T
WANT IT REALLY TO COME BACK FOR
POLITICAL REASONS, WHICH IS
SICK.
SICK. BUT THE PEOPLE, THE REAL PEOPLE,
THE PEOPLE THAT WANT THIS
COUNTRY TO BE GREAT AND GREAT
AGAIN, WE CAN SAY THEY WANT TO
GET BACK.
GET BACK. AND WE’RE GOING TO HAVE EMBERS.
WE’RE GOING TO HAVE FIRES.
WE’RE GOING TO HAVE THINGS TO
PUT OUT, AND WE’LL PUT THEM OUT.
WE LEARNED A LOT.
YOU KNOW, THINGS THAT WE HAD NO
IDEA TWO MONTHS AGO, WE’VE
LEARNED A LOT OVER THE LAST
COUPLE OF MONTHS, AND WE’RE
GOING TO DO A JOB LIKE NOBODY’S
SEEN BEFORE.
SEEN BEFORE. I FEEL ABOUT VACCINES LIKE I
FEEL ABOUT TESTS.
THIS IS GOING TO GO AWAY.
WE’LL HAVE FLARE-UPS MAYBE.
MAYBE NOT, BUT ACCORDING TO WHAT
A LOT OF PEOPLE SAY, WE PROBABLY
WILL.
WILL. WE’LL BE ABLE TO PUT THEM OUT.
>> AND NOW TO THE DAMAGE THAT IS
BEHIND THE DRIVE TO COME BACK.
THE VIRUS HAS ALREADY WIPED OUT
A DECADE OF JOB GAINS.
WE’RE NOW IN THE THROES OF THE
WORST ECONOMIC CRISIS SINCE THE
GREAT DEPRESSION.
GREAT DEPRESSION. THE LABOR DEPARTMENT SAYS MORE
THAN 20 MILLION PEOPLE LOST
THEIR JOBS IN APRIL.
THAT’S THE LARGEST ONE-MONTH
DROP IN U.S. HISTORY.
UNEMPLOYMENT RATE HAS SOARED TO
14.7%, THE WORST SINCE 1933 WHEN
IT REACHED 25%.
JUST THIS MORNING, THE PRESIDENT
PREDICTED A SWIFT REBOUND.
>> THOSE JOBS WILL ALL BE BACK,
AND THEY’LL BE BACK VERY SOON.
AND NEXT YEAR WE’RE GOING TO
HAVE A PHENOMENAL YEAR.
>> THAT VIEW IS NOT SHARED BY A
LOT OF ECONOMISTS.
AS WE MENTIONED, THERE IS
ANOTHER CASE OF CORONAVIRUS
WITHIN THE TRUMP INNER CIRCLE.
THE PRESS SECRETARY FOR MIKE
PENCE, KATIE MILLER, TODAY
CONFIRMED SHE TESTED POSITIVE
ONE DAY AFTER TESTING NEGATIVE.
SHE HAPPENS TO BE MARRIED TO
STEPHEN MILLER, SPEECHWRITER AND
ARCHITECT OF THE TRUMP
IMMIGRATION POLICY.
IMMIGRATION POLICY. TONIGHT THE WHITE HOUSE SAID
MILLER HAD TESTED FOR COVID-19
JUST YESTERDAY WE LEARNED A
MILITARY STEWARD FOR PRESIDENT
TRUMP HAD ALSO TESTED POSITIVE.
TONIGHT POLITICO REPORTS FDA
CHIEF STEPHEN HAHN HAS TESTED
NEGATIVE AFTER COMING INTO
CONTACT WITH KATIE MILLER.
BUT TONIGHT WE ARE TOLD HE IS
STILL QUARANTINING NONETHELESS.
HERE IS A PHOTO FROM A PENCE
EVENT YESTERDAY SHOWING ON THE
RIGHT AN UNMASKED KATIE MILLER
SPEAKING TO MEMBERS OF THE
TRAVELING PRESS CORPS.
TRUMP SAID HE HADN’T COME INTO
CONTACT WITH KATIE MILLER AND
SAID HE AND PENCE HAVE BOTH
TESTED NEGATIVE.
TESTED NEGATIVE. OUR NETWORK REPORTS THE WHITE
HOUSE HAS NOW ADOPTED NEW
MEASURES TO TRY TO SAFEGUARD
AGAINST FURTHER INFECTIONS,
INCLUDING OFFERING TESTING AND
CONTACT TRACING, EXACTLY WHAT SO
MANY MUNICIPALITIES WOULD VERY
MUCH LIKE TO BE ABLE TO DO.
KEEP IN MIND ONLY ROUGHLY 2.5%
OF ALL AMERICANS HAVE BEEN
TESTED.
TESTED. THESE NEW MEASURES ALSO INCLUDE
REQUIRING WHITE HOUSE STAFF WHO
SERVE THE PRESIDENT, WHO ARE
WORKDAY, TO WEAR FACE COVERINGS.
TRUMP HIMSELF WAS AGAIN WITHOUT
A MASK TODAY WHILE HONORING
WORLD WAR II VETERANS ON THIS,
THE 75th ANNIVERSARY OF V.E.
DAY.
DAY. THE MEN IN ADDITION TO BE
TREASURED AMERICAN CITIZENS ALSO
HAPPEN TO BE IN A HIGH RISK
GROUP DUE TO OLD AGE.
>> MR. PRESIDENT, YOU WERE WITH
SEVEN AMERICAN HEROES EARLIER
TODAY, THESE WORLD WAR II
VETERANS.
VETERANS. >> I WAS.
>> I WAS. >> ALL IN THEIR 90s.
DID YOU CONSIDER WEARING A MASK
WHEN YOU WERE WITH THEM GIVEN --
>> NO, BECAUSE I WAS VERY FAR
AWAY.
AWAY. I APPRECIATE THE QUESTION.
I WAS VERY FAR AWAY FROM THEM AS
YOU KNOW.
YOU KNOW. I WOULD HAVE LOVED TO HAVE GONE
UP AND HUGGED THEM BECAUSE
THEY’RE GREAT.
THEY’RE GREAT. I HAD A CONVERSATION WITH EVERY
ONE, BUT WE WERE VERY FAR AWAY.
YOU SAW.
YOU SAW. PLUS THE WIND WAS BLOWING SO
HARD AND SUCH A DIRECTION THAT
IF THE PLAGUE EVER REACHED THEM,
I’D BE VERY SURPRISED.
THE WIND WAS HOWLING, AND I
DIDN’T SEE ANYBODY WITH MASKS.
I DON’T KNOW.
MAYBE THERE WERE.
BUT THEY WERE -- THEY WERE
GREAT.
GREAT. I HAD CONVERSATIONS WITH THEM
BUT, BUT I WAS STANDING AS YOU
NOTICED -- WOULD YOU SAY I WAS
QUITE FAR AWAY?
>> MEANWHILE, THE ASSOCIATED
PRESS HAS NEW INFORMATION
TONIGHT ON A STORY IT BROKE
YESTERDAY REGARDING CDC ADVICE
ON HOW STATES SHOULD BEGIN
REOPENING.
REOPENING. THE A.P. SAYS IT HAS OBTAINED
INTERNAL GOVERNMENT EMAILS THAT
SAY, QUOTE, THE DECISION TO
SHELF DETAILED ADVICE FROM THE
NATION’S TOP DISEASE CONTROL
EXPERTS FOR REOPENING
COMMUNITIES DURING THE
CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC CAME FROM
THE HIGHEST LEVELS OF THE WHITE
HOUSE.
HOUSE. FILES ALSO SHOW THAT AFTER THE
A.P. REPORTED THURSDAYED THE
GUIDANCE DOCUMENT HAD BEEN
BURIED, THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION
ORDERED KEY PARTS OF IT TO BE
FAST-TRACKED FOR APPROVAL.
OUR OWN NETWORK HAS NOT SEEN
THESE EMAILS, HAS NOT CONFIRMED
THE A.P. STORY.
AS WE MENTIONED, MOST STATING
WILL BE REOPENING IN SOME FORM
OR FASHION THIS COMING WEEKEND.
AS FOR NEW YORK, THE EPICENTER
OF THE PANDEMIC IN THIS COUNTRY,
THE GOVERNOR SAYS FINALLY THE
BEAST IS ON THE RUN.
>> THE GOOD NEWS ON THE OVERALL
IS WE’RE FINALLY AHEAD OF THIS
VIRUS.
VIRUS. NUMBERS ARE COMING DOWN IN NEW
YORK.
YORK. I GET THE EMOTION.
EVERYBODY WOULD LIKE TO SEE
EVERYTHING REOPEN TOMORROW.
BUT YOU TELL ME WHAT THE VIRUS