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Louisiana Governor Issues New Guidance Amid Spike In New Infections; Alabama Governor Blames New Case Surge On Unvaccinated People; Mask Mandates Back On The Table As COVID-19 Surges Nationwide; U.S. Women's Water Polo Dominates Japan 25-4 In Opener; Tom Manger Takes Over As New Chief Of U.S. Capitol Police; Biden's Hometown Of Scranton Feeling Impact Of Inflation; 80-Plus Wildfires Blazing Across Western U.S., More States Of Emergencies Declared. Aired 12-1p ET

Aired July 24, 2021 - 12:00   ET

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


[12:00:00]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE MINUTOLO, CO-OWNER, BAR HARBOR BYCYCLE: It's beautiful views of the lakes and the mountains and you get some views of the ocean. There are so many bridges to see and there are sites to behold. So, it really makes for quite an experience.

BRAD JORDAN, OWNER, MAINE STATE SEA KAYAK: We're on the West Side, it's the quiet side, the remote side of Acadia National Park that not everyone gets to see. This is kind of what it would feel like if we were the first people discovering the island.

And we're paddling here today to get awesome wildlife opportunities. We're getting up to some silver creek some breeding grounds and we've got pine trees that we're looking for some more eagle's nest, bald eagles, all kinds of awesome wildlife habitat.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: -- breaching out of the water that keep coming out.

JORDAN: And we have harbor porpoise, jellyfish and all kinds of things--

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And this one coming out of the water towards a buoy.

JORDAN: It's totally different being in a kayak, download the water, not everyone gets the chance to see the park from that perspective.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN HOST: Hello again, everyone. Thank you so much for joining me. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. Alright officials across the U.S. are now working overtime to slow the latest coronavirus surge that is largely being blamed on people who have yet to get vaccinations.

Discussions between the CDC and FDA are now ongoing over whether to revisit official federal mask guidance, but the Delta variant is already reigniting the fight over face coverings. The latest battle brewing in Missouri, where the State Attorney General is vowing to sue to stop a mask requirement set to take effect in the St. Louis area on Monday.

New cases are now trending upwards in 49 states in Louisiana Governor of Bel Edwards is taking steps to keep new infections low in his state, which is among the least vaccinated in the nation. CNN's Suzanne Malveaux joining me now from Jefferson, Parish so Suzanne, what more are you learning?

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Fred, it's actually a good sign. What we're seeing here at the mall, the mall just opened up minutes ago, and we have seen at least seven people go into this pop-up vaccination site. It really is a pilot program. And already we're seeing some enthusiasm around this.

So that is pretty good. But Fred, I mean, it is a dire situation in Louisiana, Louisiana, has the dubious distinction now of really having the highest COVID increase rate over just the last couple of weeks per capita. So the governor making an emergency announcement saying that this is a crisis situation in his state, that it's a confluence of many different factors.

If you just take a look at the numbers alone, Fred, you're talking about an increase of 208 percent COVID cases over the last two weeks 80 percent of that due to the Delta variant and then 40 percent of Louisiana residents getting at least one dose of a vaccination, the governor saying that it is way too low, they've got to do much better.

And they've got to get those numbers up higher, much, much faster. Otherwise, this is going to be even worse than what was expected. Fred, this is what the governor said just yesterday.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. JOHN BEL EDWARDS (D-LA): This really is the perfect storm. And the conditions are right for catastrophic outcomes for far too many individuals and families.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: And using that analogy, he is talking about these hurricanes that folks here in Louisiana, of course, are used to fighting and battling but he says unlike a hurricane, this is something that people can actually fight and they do have some sense of agency of power over their bodies and what they can do to prevent this.

And so, they're talking about 1400 locations Fred where you can get a free vaccination site. And I want to talk about this site in particular here because I was able to talk to a health official who is very much a part of this community outreach --.

And she says that it's about faces in spaces going back to people who really recognize whether it's your parish, or whether it's an accent going to a crawfish boil a fish fry to convince folks that the vaccine works, that it's important to get it now and then to direct them to places like this, the local mall where it's accessible Fred?

WHITFIELD: Alright, Suzanne Malveaux thank you so much. So, Alabama's vaccination rate is also pretty unimpressive. New numbers from the CDC show that just 33.9 percent of the state's population is fully vaccinated and new cases in the state have nearly doubled over the last week. Republican Governor Kay Ivey says it's clear who's to blame.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What is it going to take to get people to get shots in arms?

GOV. KAY IVEY (R-AL): I don't know you tell me. Folks supposed to have common sense. But - the start blaming the unvaccinated folks, not the regular folks. It's the unvaccinated folks and letting the stain.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: But as a leader of the state, don't you think it's your responsibility to try and help get this situation under control?

IVEY: I've done all I know how to do. I can encourage you to do is something that I take making take care of yourself.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[12:05:00]

WHITFIELD: CNN's Gary Tuchman went to Alabama to see why people are so resistant.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

GARY TUCHMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's 5 pm and a pop up COVID vaccine clinic has just opened at Mobil Alabama's Annual Baby Bites Food Truck Festival. There's the choice of all three vaccines. But there were no takers only the workers for the Mobile County Health Department, but 10 minutes later.

The CEO of the soul heaven cafe leaves their food truck and becomes the first visitor choosing the Pfizer vaccine.

TUCHMAN (on camera): Oh, you're done? That's pretty easy, right?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It was very easy.

TUCHMAN (voice-over): Mobile County has more than 400,000 people. And it's one of the lowest vaccination rates of any large county in America 37 percent in a state that's the lowest in the country at 34 percent. The County Health Department is striving for more frequent outreach to get people vaccines.

And that's why its employees are here. 10 minutes later another woman gets a vaccine Cindy Renkert, she chooses Moderna.

TUCHMAN (on camera): You told me you have multiple sclerosis. And your doctor has given you the OK to get the vaccine. How do you feel about now getting it?

CINDY RENKERT, RECEIVED VACCINE: My husband's been after me to do it. And I know that I need to be done. So, I'm really glad they got it. They're here doing this today because otherwise, I'd still be dragging my feet.

TUCHMAN (voice-over): 40 minutes passes by with no more vaccine customers. But two people then show up Don Bates on the left Brittani Williams on the right.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The reason I'm doing it is because I can do it.

BRITTANI WILLIAMS, RECEIVED VACCINE: It's right here and it is free. Most of my family's been vaccinated and you know, they've been pushing me and pushing me, and I've been putting it off but the Delta variant kind of fears me.

TUCHMAN (on camera): So that's why you got it today?

WILLIAMS: Yes.

TUCHMAN (on camera): It's now six o'clock we're one hour into the vaccinating. The curiosity level is high. But the vaccinating level is not. You've met four people have gotten the vaccine. Those are the only four who came over the first hour.

TUCHMAN (voice-over): The Health Department is sponsoring other vaccine events in places such as truck-stops, coffee shops, and car dealerships. The Department's Director of Disease Surveillance is Dr. Rendi Murphree, she says her department must be creative.

DR. RENDI MURPHREE, EPIDEMIOLOGIST, MOBILE COUNTY HEALTH DEPARTMENT: Since July 4th, we have just had an explosion of cases, you know, a doubling or tripling of the number of cases every seven days. It's accelerating greatest in the age groups of 18 to 49.

TUCHMAN (voice-over): Back at the Food Truck Festival, Jacqueline Battaglia is 22 and says no vaccine for her.

JACQUELINE BATTAGLIA, DOESN'T WANT VACCINE: I just don't think that I need it, so I'm not going to get it.

TUCHMAN (on camera): I do know, though, that almost everyone now who's dying, or being hospitalized, is somebody who hasn't been vaccinated. The people who have been vaccinated, almost all of them are not going to the hospital not dying would that concern you?

BATTAGLIA: Not really, I'm a healthy person. I don't have any underlying health issues. I'm not really concerned about it.

TUCHMAN (on camera): They'll just do the Johnson & Johnson.

BATTAGLIA: OK, that's perfect.

TUCHMAN (voice-over): But those who are concerned continuous slow trickle to the vaccination tent. Jason Sullivan says he wasn't planning to get a vaccine until coming to this festival.

TUCHMAN (on camera): How come you waited this long?

JASON SULLIVAN, RECEIVED VACCINE: Based off a lot of stuff that I heard on the internet and what people were saying about the COVID--

TUCHMAN (on camera): They're basically rumors.

SULLIVAN: Rumors, rumors.

TUCHMAN (on camera): It's now eight o'clock the vaccinations at the food truck fare are over the final number of people who got vaccinations 12. That's an average of four an hour.

TUCHMAN (voice-over): It's not a big number, but the health department workers will tell you the numbers are getting higher at their various outreach events over the last week. Good news, amid the Delta variant, bad news Gary Tuchman, CNN Mobile, Alabama.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Alright, with me right now is Dr. Carlos del Rio; he is the Executive Associate Dean of the Emory University School of Medicine at Grady. So good to see you and in studio doesn't mean that we won't see you via computer at some point again, but here we are.

DR. CARLOS DEL RIO, EXECUTIVE ASSOCIATE DEAN, EMORY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE AT GRADY HEALTH SYSTEM: It's nice to be here.

WHITFIELD: It is great to have you wonderful, thank you so much. So, you know, what are your concerns about some places such as L.A. County has imposed mask mandates or an encouraging of people to wear masks when indoors again, but then you go to some places and you know, it's just use your best judgment?

DR. RIO: Well, you know, I mean, public health is local and public health decisions in our country are made locally by local and state health departments, as CDC makes suggestions, recommendations but doesn't make policy the policy is made at a local level.

And I think local health departments are beginning to take - make recommendations based on their local data - based on other epidemiology based on how much transmission there is, in a variety of different things. I think we're going to start seeing periods of masking and non-masking as the cases go up or down.

I mean, I was telling somebody a couple of weeks ago; I was totally comfortable not wearing a mask indoors today I'm not. So, I think as - I think you almost have to think about it as you think about the weather. When I get in the morning, I look at the weather and I say, oh, I need to take an umbrella today because it's going to rain.

[12:10:00]

WHITFIELD: That's my judgment today.

DR. RIO: What's much - what's best for me to protect me?

WHITFIELD: And to protect others.

DR. RIO: And I think - well, that's the other component, right? The vaccine is not just - masking is not just about protecting you. It's about protecting others, and quite frankly, sort of protecting about others around you. You have a little kid under 12, you're not vaccinated. You don't want to bring the infection to your house.

WHITFIELD: Right. And you have people who are immune compromised, who, in your circle as well, you're taking measures to help keep them protected. So, there are a number of states around the country that are now prohibiting masks mandates. Here's the Former Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius on CNN this morning.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KATHLEEN SEBELIUS, FORMER HEALTH & HUMAN SERVICES SECRETARY: I'm really frightened by the fact that while mandate authority lies often at the state and local level since the early 1900s.

Many states including my own have passed laws preemptively forbidding government to take any action that would mandate - mask mandate, vaccine information, vaccine, the use of vaccine passports. So they're actually moving rapidly in another direction, which could really tie our hands as the Delta variant gets more and more robust.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: So Dr. Del Rio, you talked about use your discretion, but now we're talking about mandates against mandates?

DR. RIO: No, this is very concerning. And I'm really concerned, like Dr. Sibelius is about, you know, about - states, safe legislators and governors and attorney general's passing specific orders prohibiting local health departments to take an action.

This is really not what we need, not only because of COVID, but you know, wait until measles gets into your community, waits until many other things public health needs to be able to make the decisions based on science based on information.

And one thing we really need to get out of these discussions is, is getting political interference. I mean, the reason for the masks mandate is because we have made masks, you know, political as opposed to public health intervention.

WHITFIELD: It's a very strange territory, because you talk about public service or the Office of Public Service, it really is about advocating public welfare. But if you're hearing now, these measures that would rule against what science is telling us about public health. I mean, what are citizens to do there?

I mean, yes, fall back on your personal discretion, as you put it, but some people are really looking for guidance. DR. RIO: Absolutely. And, you know, imagining, for example, now we have a politician say, you know, we prohibit mandates against speeding in the highways or against wearing a seatbelt in your car. I mean, you can go on and on, right, and think about things that really don't make any sense.

So I think we need to let public health do what public health does. And I think we need to not interfere with the best decisions, people working in public health are working incredibly hard to try to make the best to safeguard the health of their citizens.

WHITFIELD: Right. I also want to talk to you about these breakthrough cases, Los Angeles County officials saying this week that one in five new cases there is among fully vaccinated people. So what can you tell us about these breakthrough cases? And of course, this is just ammunition for people who say, you know, who are reticent against vaccinations?

They're going to say, well, wait a minute, if that person is vaccinated, and they are still, you know, become a breakthrough case, meaning they test positive. What's the point of getting vaccinated?

DR. RIO: Well, it's really complicated, and I kind of see why people will get that confusion. But the more people you have vaccinated in a community, when you have something like the Delta variant, which is hyper transmissible, the more likely you are to have somebody who catches the infection, it simply is because the vaccines are not perfect.

And if you have a lot of transmission, again, I go back to my umbrella. You know, if you're in a rain, and you get an umbrella, you'll be protected. If you're in a hurricane, you're still going to get wet, they're stuck too much water coming down.

So you need to think about that. But the other thing is, we need to reassure people that the great majority of persons who test positive in break-through cases, don't get sick, don't get up in the hospital, and don't die. More than--

WHITFIELD: So that's the distinction. You may not be hospitalized, you may have been vaccinated, you may be a breakthrough case, but it's not likely that you're going to be hospitalized.

DR. RIO: And that to me is incredibly reassuring, particularly because, you know, as I tell you, I work in a hospital. I just came from there. The people I'm seeing in the hospital with COVID all of them are unvaccinated. I'm not seeing people with breakthrough infections. So yes, if you test positive--

WHITFIELD: And they're fighting for their lives when hospitalized.

DR. RIO: --and they're fighting for their lives, I mean, they're very sick when people with this Delta variants are getting very sick. And there also is they have multiple people around them that are now infected who should have been vaccinated and many of them are saying things like, I should have gotten vaccine. I should have thought about it before.

So my plea to people is get vaccinated. We can decrease breakthrough cases if we get more people vaccinated simply because we're going to decrease - we're going to create some level of community immunity.

[12:15:00]

DR. RIO: But if you get infected, after you've been vaccinated, you know, you're probably going to either do fine or get somewhat sick. But you're very unlikely to end up in the hospital; you're very unlikely to die.

WHITFIELD: Alright, Dr. Carlos del Rio always good to see you even better now in person.

DR. RIO: It's fantastic to be with you.

WHITFIELD: Thank you so much.

DR. RIO: Take care.

WHITFIELD: Appreciate it. Alright, CNN has learned, the Justice Department says it will not open its civil rights investigation into nursing home deaths in New York, Michigan, and Pennsylvania. Republican lawmakers, including Congressman Steve Scalise wanted an investigation into nursing home policies in those states that admitted positive COVID-19 patients from hospitals.

CNN's Pablo Sandoval has been following the developments. He's joining us now. So, what is the DOJ saying about why they are not pursuing any further investigations?

POLO SANDOVAL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Fred, this is not what Republican lawmakers wanted to see. And we're going to get you more of that in just a second. But first, let's bring viewers up to speed on how we actually got here in the first place.

You remember it was last August. So, a little under a year ago, the Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division basically announced that they would be putting in a request to four different states, Michigan, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and here the State of New York for key information, key documents, specifically when it comes to state issued guidance directives, also seeking advisories.

And this is key executive orders that were regarding admission of persons to public nursing homes. Basically, what they were looking to do here was that they were seeking to determine if so, state orders requiring the admission of COVID positive patients during the height of the crisis into nursing homes possibly played a role in the deaths of residents at those nursing homes.

And then yesterday, the Department of Justice announcing that they had reviewed all of those documents that they concluded that they would not be launching SEC investigation. They did, however, say that they were looking into at least two facilities specifically in New Jersey, as you just saw in some of those bullet points that we listed here. And to the earlier point to Fred, this is certainly prompting some criticism from Republicans who wanted to see this kind of investigation play out by the Department of Justice one of them Steve Scalise, who actually is a member of Select Committee on the COVID crisis releasing a statement, Fred.

And if I may - I'd like to read you a portion of what he actually released in response to this decision by the Department of Justice calling this outrageous Representative Scalise saying that these deadly orders contradicted the CDC's guidance and needlessly endangered the most vulnerable among us to the deadly COVID-19 virus even worse.

Governor Cuomo in New York intentionally tried to cover up the truth the true death toll rather resulting from his mandate now this is really important to mention here Fred and that is this is not actually signal an end to a separate investigation that's currently happening currently being headed by the attorney general's rather by prosecutors in Brooklyn.

That's completely separate here. CNN has - to Cuomo's Office those calls right now so far going on answer as his office is refusing to comment at least for now back to you.

WHITFIELD: Alright. Let us know if anything changes. Thank you so much, Polo Sandoval. Alright, still ahead the first medal handed out at the Olympic Games. This is Team USA has a series of standout performances in several events we'll take you live to Tokyo and CNN sits down with the new Chief of the U.S. Capitol Police hear what he had to say about lawmakers who are downplaying the January 6th attacks.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[12:20:00]

WHITFIELD: Alright, let the games begin. And it has it's the first full day of competition for the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games even though it's 2021. The battles for gold are already underway. Friday's opening ceremony kicked off the competition in dazzling fashion along with the Parade of Nations although some U.S. Olympians actually did their own rendition of the parade outside the stadium because of COVID concerns.

The ceremony overall featured a magnificent drone display high above the arena right there. First Lady Jill Biden is in Tokyo she was there for the opening ceremonies she's also there to cheer on Team USA. She has already seen several events in fact this morning. CNN's Coy Wire is in Tokyo for all the action.

So Coy some U.S. teams are playing pretty well you know pretty good even though it hasn't resulted in medals just yet, but they're excited to be there.

COY WIRE, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: Yes, no doubt about that Fred. Good to see you. For the first time though since the 1972 Games in Munich can you believe Team USA were shut out of the medals on the opening day of competition at a Summer Olympics.

But there is still plenty of good news out of Tokyo for the red, white and blue as well. The U.S. women's national team bouncing back from an opening defeat notching their first win at these games by crushing New Zealand 6-1 goals from Rose Lavelle, Lindsey Horan, Kristin Press, Alex Morgan and two own goals cementing it.

The U.S. women's national team closes out group play on Tuesday against Australia. A win then would punch their ticket into the quarterfinals. Now the red-hot American softball team kept firing on all cylinders, as the U.S. is now 3-0 thanks to their Queen of the Pitching Circle Cat Osterman, 38-years-old Fred came out of retirement and is back with a vengeance.

She threw six innings of one hit ball in a 2-0 triumph over Mexico. The U.S. has yet to give up a single run at these games. They're back in action tonight against Australia at 9 Eastern. But the most dominant team on the planet right now could it be USA women's water polo coming out the gate strong here in Tokyo.

They unleashed an offensive flurry of 25 goals setting a new Olympic Record. I know that wouldn't last long. Maggie Steffens and Stephania Haralabidis has led the way five goals of peace and a 25-4 win over Japan.

[12:25:00]

WIRE: But just hours later Fred, Spain scored 29 goals to set the new Olympic Record. The Americans are heavy favorites to win their third straight Olympic title as they haven't lost a major tournament since 2013. We asked Fred, what makes this team so good.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ASLEIGH JOHNSON, TEAM USA WATER POLO: Our team is the most dominant team on the planet because we never really take on that title. We always view ourselves as the underdog.

MAGGIE STEFFENS, SCORED 5 GOALS IN WIN VS JAPAN: The past is the past. So, a motivator for us is how can we be better in the future? How can we be better now and reminding people that the now is where we're going to be our best?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WIRE: You heard Asleigh Johnson saying it not me, the most dominant team on the planet. They're one of the many fun groups of athletes from Team USA that will look forward to covering as these games continue for you Fred.

WHITFIELD: Wow! As strong as their legacy is I love that. I mean, they don't look back they're just looking forward and you know, seizing the moment right now and that is the Olympic Games the spirit of the games, isn't it? Coy Wire thank you so much from Tokyo appreciate it.

Alright, the new Chief of the U.S. Capitol Police says he would be a fool not to be concerned about potential future attacks on the Capitol, hear more of what he told CNN next.

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(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

[12:31:01]

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Just as the Republican Party today offers nothing but fear lies and broken promises. No. Listen. I mean, think about it, turning on the television every day and seeing the replay what happened on January 6th and saying I was told her a lot of peaceful, wonderful people. God, no, I really need to think about it. It is bizarre.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: All right, that was President Biden at a campaign rally for Virginia Gubernatorial Candidate Terry McAuliffe last night. So those comments come days ahead of the first Select Committee hearing on the January 6th insurrection. And just last night, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi penned a dear colleague letter stressing the importance of the Committee.

In it, she writes. Now, our imperative must be to find the truth. We must do so in a way that retains the trust of the American people in the proceedings, so that they will have confidence in the truth that emerges. Pelosi penned those words.

She did not mention anything in that letter on appointing other Republicans to the panel. This as we are hearing from the new U.S. Capitol Police Chief on his first day on the job, he talked to CNN about the January 6th insurrection and what he thinks about those trying to downplay the seriousness of that day.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHIEF TOM MANGER, U.S. CAPITOL POLICE: I cannot waste my time worrying about what -- how somebody interprets a tape. I know what the men and women of this agency went through. I know the challenges that they faced. I also know the courage that they've displayed that day.

JOSH CAMPBELL, CNN SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Well, what's your view when people say, well, this was tourism or this was a love fest? I mean, we all saw that video of your officers on the receiving end of so much violence. As the leader of the Department, what do you think when you hear it characterized that way?

MANGER: Well, I don't agree with it. That's not the way I saw it. But again, everybody's entitled their opinion. And frankly, as the chief for this Police Department now, I'm in a position to do things to ensure that that wouldn't happen again.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: CNN's Josh Campbell, you saw him in that interview, he conducted that first interview with the Capitol Police Chief. So Josh, you know, you asked the Chief if he views January 6th as a failure by law enforcement. And then what did he say?

CAMPBELL: Well, that has been a key question. Were there things that could have been differently and done differently in the run up to the January 6th insurrection? And he was quick to defend the U.S. Capitol Police who said, look, this is a Department that deals with protests all the time. And the reason you don't hear about them is because things go well, there aren't issues.

Now he did say that there were mistakes surrounding January 6th that need to be investigated. But he also reiterated his support for the women and men in uniform that he now oversees. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CAMPBELL: Speaking of January 6th, when you look at that day and what preceded that, do you view that as a failure by the Capitol Police?

MANGER: I don't think it's fair to say that this Department is a failure, or it's the -- it's dysfunctional. It's not fair to say because it's not true. The fact that matter is, there were failures that day. It doesn't speak to the quality of the people in this organization. I think that this is this is an excellent Department. And one of my goals is to restore the confidence that people have in this Department.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CAMPBELL: So again, pointing out there, there were issues, but he also expressed his support for this Department as they move forward from a very dark period of time, Fred.

WHITFIELD: And then Josh, what did the chief say about another possible Capitol insurrection, especially given there is chatter on extremists forums about possible action as early as next month?

CAMPBELL: This is very important. This is the person who's now at the helm of this Department. So he's not only looking back at January 6th and trying to learn lessons there but also looking forward at threats that are on the horizon.

And I talked to law enforcement experts who say that there are threats out there, potentially coming from this continued spread of the big lie that the election was stolen, that has law enforcement concern that there could be more violence down the road. I asked the Chief specifically about whether he's concerned about what's to come. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

[12:35:24]

CAMPBELL: Does that concern you, we may see a repeat of January 6th?

MANGER: I'd be a fool to not be concerned about that. I mean, that obviously, the safety and security of the U.S. Capitol, the Congress, that legislative process, those are top priorities. And I'm absolutely concerned about all of those things.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CAMPBELL: Now, we have all seen the video footage from January 6th to the violence that those officers endured. I asked the Chief whether he believes that more officers should be allowed to speak out whether he supports giving them the latitude to speak publicly about what they endured. He said, absolutely, they need to be heard.

And looking ahead, Fred, to Tuesday, we know that the House Select Committee looking into the insurrection will hear from four witnesses, two officers from the Metropolitan Police, two officers from the U.S. Capitol Police, we expect to get more insight into their experience, which of course CNN will be covering on Tuesday but again, the Chief telling us that he is also in favor of more officers being able to come forward and tell their story, Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right. Josh Campbell, thank you so much. Thanks for bringing us that interview.

CAMPBELL: Thanks.

WHITFIELD: Appreciate that great interview.

Wolf Blitzer will be anchoring CNN special live coverage of Tuesday's hearing, you don't want to miss that it begins at 9:00 a.m. All right across the country, consumers are feeling the pinch with the cost of staples like food and gas on the rise. The big question now is the current price hike temporary or a warning sign of serious problems ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[12:41:29]

WHITFIELD: All right, welcome back. A rising inflation is causing dramatic price increases to household staples like food and gas and Americans are starting to notice. A recent NPR poll found that inflation has now surpassed wages and unemployment as the public's top concern about the economy. At a CNN Town Hall this week, President Biden insisted the rise in prices is temporary.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BIDEN: Vast majority of the experts including Wall Street are suggesting that it's highly unlikely that it's going to be long term inflation is going to get out of hand. There will be near term inflation because everything is now trying to be picked back up.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: CNN's Vanessa Yurkevich took a trip to Biden's hometown of Scranton, Pennsylvania, to ask how people feel about these rising prices.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) VANESSA YURKEVICH, CNN BUSINESS AND POLITICS CORRESPONDENT (voice- over): The price of just about everything --

AUCTIONEER: Forty-one, 42, 43.

YURKEVICH (voice-over): -- is going up --

AUCTIONEER: Forty-one thousand five hundred.

YURKEVICH (voice-over): -- from used cars to gas to food.

PETER VENTURA, CO-OWNER, CONEY ISLAND: And boy, when things go up it hits immediately.

YURKEVICH (voice-over): Consumer prices are up 5.4 percent since last June, the biggest jump in annual inflation in nearly 13 years.

And in President Biden's hometown of Scranton, Pennsylvania, which he often uses to take the temperature, they're feeling it firsthand.

MIKE MOLETSKY, OWNER, MOLETSKY'S AUTO: This is probably the worst it's been in a long time.

YURKEVICH (voice-over): Mike Moletsky is at the Northeast Pennsylvania Auto Auction where he's having to pay more per vehicle to replenish his used car lot.

MOLETSKY: You have more guys at the auction bidding against you and driving the prices up.

YURKEVICH (voice-over): The price of a used car will cost you 27 percent more.

(on camera): Are you seeing prices that you have never seen before for vehicles?

LISA COHOWICZ, GENERAL MANAGER, NORTHEAST PENNSYLVANIA AUTO AUCTION: Yes, they're outrageous.

YURKEVICH (voice-over): And that's because the economy's engine is roaring again, but supply chains across industries are slower to start. Add labor shortages and it simply costs more to do business.

At the pump, gas is up about a dollar since last year.

KEVIN SANTIAGO, PENNSYLVANIA RESIDENT: My car usually takes around $25.00 to fill up. It's just $10.00 more.

YURKEVICH (voice-over): In the grocery store, the price of milk up 5.6 percent, fruits and vegetables, 3.2 percent.

JOE FASULA, CO-OWNER, GERRITY'S SUPERMARKETS: We're seeing, again, 10, 15 percent increases, things like flour, mayonnaise, a lot of -- a lot of oils, everything that we're experiencing now is unprecedented.

KATHY OPSHINSKY, PENNSYLVANIA RESIDENT: I might not buy as much of something, like for two weeks. I might just buy like a week at a time instead of buying in bulk.

YURKEVICH (voice-over): And the price of beef is rising to 4.5 percent in June. And that's a problem for Coney Island Lunch, known for its hot dogs in downtown Scranton for nearly 100 years.

VENTURA: Like hot dogs, they've gone up. Our hamburgers, our chili sauce because that's made with ground beef.

YURKEVICH (voice-over): Just about every single item on Peter Ventura's menu costs him more to make, but he hasn't raised prices just yet.

VENTURA: Once I get an idea where they're going to stop, then I'll know where my baseline is.

YURKEVICH (on camera): So, inevitably, you will have to.

VENTURA: Oh, yes. I'm going to have to raise prices. It's just -- there's no way to get around it.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Thank you.

Vanessa Yurkevich, CNN, Scranton, Pennsylvania.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

[12:44:58]

WHITFIELD: All right, governors in several states declaring state of emergency regarding several wildfires out west. They're burning out of control. We'll take you there live next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: More states of emergency have been declared throughout California and Nevada as dozens of wildfires continue to burn across western United States. Nearly 1.5 million acres has been scorched so far with more than 88 active fires. A video from Nevada showing a crew of firefighters driving through the flames as the Tamarack fire burns out of control right there.

CNN's Lucy Kafanov is in Nevada, following the latest on the fire, I mean some tenuous moments how incredibly dangerous for all those fighting these fires. And then last we heard that, what, at least one fires only 4 percent contained?

[12:50:12]

LUCY KAFANOV, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, that's the Tamarack fire. They have not gotten control over that and take a look from above. We are just outside of the city of Reno. You're supposed to be seeing mountains in the distance. Instead, you're seeing this smoke and haze blanketing the air.

You can taste it in your mouth, you can smell it, you know, much of this is actually coming from that Tamarack fire, which has scorched parts of California and Nevada. Right now about 58,000, in fact more than 58,000 acres are currently burning just 4 percent contained.

As you said this started as a lightning strike back on July 4th, and as of last Thursday, more than 8,000 acres have lit up on fire threatening some 800 homes. That fire in addition to several others has actually prompted Governor -- California Governor Gavin Newsom to declare a state of emergency Friday for four counties as several fires continue to blaze out of control, Fred.

WHITFIELD: OK. So Lucy, we're also hearing that the largest of all these fires, the bootleg fire, that it's actually still growing. It's now scorch more than 400,000 acres and you were embedded with one of the crews firefighting it?

KAFANOV: That's right, more than 401,000 acres, we spent the day with one of the teams on the frontlines, and they say what's really difficult about this fire is just how large it is and just how dry the conditions have been. Take a listen to how one firefighter described the terrifying conditions.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE TONE, INCIDENT MANAGER, BOOTLEG FIRE IN OREGON: The fire itself is faster than the firefighters can get control over it. The winds and the trees and the brush that is so dry burns at a rate faster than we can keep up with it. No matter how many people were throwing at it, we're it's -- it outpaced us for several days.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAFANOV: And that's the thing, Fred, these women and men have been on large fires before but they've never seen anything that's gotten so out of control this early in the fire season. It is only July and they are worried about the conditions going forward, Fred?

WHITFIELD: Yes. We all have that shared worried and indeed, Lucy Kafanov, thank you so much.

Mask mandates are back on the table as COVID-19 surges nationwide. Straight ahead, we'll discuss what this means for you, straight ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[12:57:16]

WHITFIELD: Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Gilligan's Island, The Jeffersons, Cheers, what have they all have in common? Iconic theme songs. It's something that is missing in the current age of television after all, so CNN's Don Lemon has a new special to find out this simple question, where have all the theme songs gone? Here's what he found.

DON LEMON, CNN HOST: Hello, everyone, Don Lemon here. You know these past few months I've embarked on a mission. You can call it a fun instigation. That's a fun investigation, tried to answer this very pressing question, where have all the theme songs gone? I had to get to the bottom of this. So I spoke with composers like Gary Portnoy. Gary Portnoy, he's a cowriter of the Cheers theme song, and some of the actors from the shows who sang them, plus the one and only Nanny, Fran Drescher.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FRAN DRESCHER, AMERICAN ACTRESS: Well, this is exactly what the doctor prescribed.

(SINGING)

LEMON: What was the spark for the show?

DRESCHER: It was when I was in London, with my girlfriend, Twiggy, her and her husband were busy working. And so I ended up hanging out with her little daughter. And I'm schlepping a roll over London. And the kids suddenly says, oh, friend, my new shoes are hurting me. And I'm thinking what the hell did she tell me for? So I told her just step on the backs of them. And she said were in fact print them. And I said break them in.

And I could not get this relationship out of my head because I wasn't really telling her what was good for her like a normal caregiver. I was telling her what was good for me. And so if the wheels were churning in my head, what do you think about the spin on the sound of music, only instead of Julie Andrews, I come to the door.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: I hope you all enjoy it. Especially you Fredricka and I know you'll be watching. I can't wait for you to see it.

WHITFIELD: Come on, knock on my door. I'll be waiting for you. Which show did that come from? "Three's Company?" Don I'm all over it. I like it. Be sure to join my colleague Don for the new CNN special, Where Have All The Theme Songs Gone, that airs tomorrow 8:00 pm. Eastern only on CNN.

[12:59:55]

Hello again, everyone. Thank you so much for joining me. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. We begin with the U.S. rethinking its approach to stop the rapid spread of the coronavirus.