five days after hurricane maria, president trump tweeting about puerto rico's devastation. >> the people run this country not one individual. damn sure not him. >> it's appropriate for the president of our country to promote our flag. >> i don't think a lot of people truly understand what it feels like to not feel equal.

>> any rational human being would vote against this monstrosity. >> we're about you getting care, you being covered, you having the power. >> these idea used to be bipartisan. maybe now we need more time to draw that message through. >> announcer: this is "new day" with chris cuomo and alisyn camerota. up first, president trump breaking his silence on puerto rico, nearly a week after hurricane maria made landfall there. he appears to be blaming puerto rico on what he calls his fragile infrastructure and financial troubles. >> president trump is spending the majority of his time, on twitter at least, fanning the flames of a feud with nfl players. the president tweeting three times in the last hour about it. wait until you hear the words he is using. we'll get to that. last night, the news is that the entire dallas cowboys team and their team owner did take a knee before the anthem.

and then stood up, locking arms in a show of solidarity during the anthem. we have all of the big stories covered. let's begin with cnn's joe johns live at the white house. joe? >> good morning, chris. it's the first time the president has substantively addressed the issue in puerto rico after hurricane maria made landfall there just last wednesday. in the process, the president has raised eyebrows in a series of tweets in which he acknowledged the problems in puerto rico, but also seemed to blame puerto rico for the ongoing debt crisis there. tweeting monday night that the u.s. territory is in deep trouble, pointing to the broken infrastructure and massive debt that the island was dealing with prior to hurricane maria, before asserting that the billions of dollars owed to wall street and

the banks sadly must be dealt with. >> it's a recognition that this is an unprecedented situation and we're going to need an unprecedented level of support. >> reporter: as puerto rico's governor warns they are on the brink of humanitarian crisis after maria knocked out power across the island. residents growing in desperation for basic necessities like food, water and fuel. >> we want this bill to have the resources that would would be allocated to another state because we're u.s. citizens. >> the white house, defending the government's response. >> the federal response has been anything but slow. in fact, there's been an unprecedented pushthrough of billions of dollars in federal assistance. >> but the president spent the last three days tweeting repeatedly about nfl players so kneel during the national anthem, continuing to fan the flames on twitter monday night. sources tell cnn that the president appears pleased with

the firestorm he has created, telling a private dinner of conservative leaders it's raul caught on. i said what millions of americans were thinking. we're told that john kelly is not happy with the feud but the chief of staff, who lost a son in the iraq war, agrees with the president. jerry jones and the cowboys taking a knee before the anthem and then standing arm in arm as the song was sung. >> you're not going to disrespect our flag. >> reporter: the president's remarks continuing to divide nfl fans and players. >> the people run this country, not one individual and damn sure not him. >> there might be implicit biasa that our president just doesn't understand zblsh the press secretary rejecting this idea.

>> is he trying to wage something of a cultural war? >> not at all. the president is not talking about race. the president is talking about pride in our country. >> reporter: dodging questions about whether the president went too far, using vulgar terms, referring to players who kneel. >> this isn't about the president being against anyone. this is about the president and millions of americans being for something. being for honoring our flag. >> reporter: a couple of more tweet this is morning back on the nfl. first one read ratings for nfl football are way down except before game starts, when people tune in to see whether or not our country will be disrespected. the other two tweets, the president offering his perspective of what happened before the dallas game on monday night football last night when the owner and players kneeled before the national anthem. >> joe, thank you. >> alisyn and chris, back to you. >> we'll get to the nfl battle in a moment. first, we have cnn political

analyst david gregory, leslie lowery and chris cillizza. david gregory, why do you think with puerto rico -- let's start there. 3.5 million people are in dire straits. why do you think it's been so challenging for the president to express empathy or support for those folks? >> it's challenging because it doesn't make a lot of sense. puerto rico predate the storm. why have that fight now as it was reported. puerto rico is on the brink of humanitarian catastrophe. these are our fellow citizens. this is a problem that has to be solved. time down the road to address how puerto rico got here. this is not the time.

i can't believe that anybody on the president's team thinks this is the time. this is a classic case of the president not using, perhaps not realizing the power of the office to focus attention on a solution for a disaster like this, that must be dealt with quickly rather than muddying it with these rants of how puerto rico got into this. >> they don't vote for the president. maybe that's the difference. they've put a lot of assetses in place and shown dexterity and commitment on the federal level here. trump, when he was just a citizen -- when he was a citizen often would say disaster is the test. that's when the president really makes their bones. he seemed to want to do that with irma and harvey. >> absolutely. >> why not throw on the khakis,

get down there and parade around there and say we can do this. i'm the builder. i'm the doer. that would go to the top of the americans' concerned, get way from the health care debate he's not doing on, away from north korea and the erin deal, which is not going the way he wants. the need is so real. why not do that? >> even if he didn't want to make that decision for all the right policy reasons you just outlined there's also a political reason. 64% of people in our cnn poll approved of how he handled irma and harvey. someone who lives and dies on poll numbers. the presidency should be a way that you take this massive

spotlight and, as the president, you kind of shine it where you want to shine it. when you shine it in a certain place, for all the fracturing of the media, for all the -- no one pays attention to politics. when you, as president, shine a light somewhere, it gets light. people pay attention. it gets more coverage. he knows this. but what does he choose to shine a light on? the nfl. how can i service my base? how can i get people angry, harvest resentment and bitterness? that is the campaign he ran. that is the presidency to date he has been conducting. it is as simple as that. there are political points to be scored there with his base.

when you shine a light on the nfl and then the tweet about puerto rico is that this place kind of a dump. >> if the tweets are a window into his mind this morning there has been three about the nfl. i'll just read them through for everyone. ratings for nfl football are way down except before the game starts, when people tune in to see whether or not our country will be disrespected. less than ten minutes later, the boo'ing when the entire dallas team dropped to its knees was the loudest i've ever heard. great anger. ten minutes later, but they all stood up for our national anthem. big progress being made. we love our country. your thoughts? >> to me, at least, this seems to be the president attempting to turn an l into a w here, right? after the president of the united states called for players who kneeled on the field to be

fired from their jobs, one of his friends, jerry jones, took a neon the field himself. a pushback on the president, essentially affirming the right of these players to express themselves on the field, whether you agree with the anthem protests or not, right? this was a repudiation of exactly what donald trump had been calling for. he is pretzeling this somehow into him having a political or rhetorical victory. those who support the president will say this was a victory. because he's right and a strong leader. it will be something like that. what we saw here again -- you have to remember what this three, four-day arc has been. the president called for all these players to be fired by owners like jerry jones. what jerry jones did was lock his arm with his players and kneel on the field in an act of demonstration. >> in a moment of potential

controversy and crisis, he became a leader and joined with people and showed a united front. what a novel idea. david gregory, the language alone he is tweeting about the nfl. and the language deserves examination. forget about that it was the loudest he ever heard at the dallas game. who knows if that's true. it was true in his mind. great anger. who says those words? there is nothing great about anger. yet to the president, he sees negativity directed at these people on the field as a good thing. how is it a good thing? >> well, it's not a good thing. and i think it shows something about how the president sees himself as president in the

country. he sees himself as a culture warrior, to get into the heart of a divisive issue like this, and create a firestorm to his liking. in other areas he's more of a bystander, when it comes to major legislation he would like to see passed, he has been more of a bystander. it's really much more of a team effort, thankfully so, given some of the advisers he has around him, when it comes to dealing with foreign affairs. here, he feels like he can uniquely drive this particular issue. you know, that earlier tweet about -- i was saying something that so many americans were thinking. i think he's probably right. that doesn't make it right. it doesn't make it right that he's preying off the idea that people think a lot of these athletes are so rich, they're just being cry babies here. he's not understanding. but he does understand that he -- the racial aspect of all

of this. and to use the form they have when people are watching to say here is a part of america i don't like. this is the person you're going to put the credibility in, when it comes to how we honor the military and america and have a white house press secretary who says it was appropriate to defend america? this kind of things shows how cynical all this is, to try to get people riled up instead of taking a hard look at what is behind this, even if you

disagree with the form of the protest. >> i agree with david's point. that comment will probably get overshadowed by his tweets this morning. it's really caught on. talking about the nfl. what does that tell you? it tells you that he is so focused on dominating the conversation on, hey, i created this thing. well, you created a thing that's driven racial resentment and animous. at least it's driven that conversation up to the top of the mind but that's what he's focused on. he's focused on i did this. it's not like he built something and said, hey i built this. it's really caught on tells you his mind-set. how he thinks about this stuff. he cares about being talked about. he cares about being applauded, at least by some people. and he just sort of creates the rest of it. i don't know that he has a boo-o-meter at his house to

judge the loudness of them. but in his mind, it's loud. he has stirred it up. his job is not to add heat. it's to take heat away. >> exactly. and beyond that, he is basking in it, as chris and david are talking about here. and is doing so in a way that frankly is intellectually bankrupt, at the very least. if we want a president who is a culture warrior, at least he could advance the conversation in a positive way. the comments made by sarah huckabee sanders, calling these players s.o.b.s and his flavor of fanning the flames of this, it w it was hypocritical of these players to protest police brutality if they're the benefit from security.

if you benefit from a government service you can't speak out about what you don't like about it? if your kids go to schools you can't protest the school board? you're allowed to benefit from police services and protest the police. >> panel, thank you all very much. great to get your insights into this. if everybody is wondering how president trump supporters feel about these conversations, puerto rico versus the nfl, stick around. coming up in minutes, i will ask trump voters what they think about the president taking on the nfl players. do they stand by him on this one? we'll get the pulse of the people. plus, the white house, the criticism of nfl players, it's not about race. it's about respect. that's the word from the white house. it's not about being against. it's about what the president is for. is that the truth? let's discuss the truth of what is going on here, next. i count on my dell small business advisor for tech advice.

with one phone call, i get products that suit my needs and i get back to business. ♪ you know win control? be this guy. check it out! self-appendectomy! oh, that's really attached. that's why i rent from national. where i get the control to choose any car in the aisle i want, not some car they choose for me. which makes me one smooth operator. ah! still a little tender. (vo) go national. go like a pro.

i'm not a customer, but i'm calling about that credit scorecard. give it. sure! it's free for everyone. oh! well that's nice! and checking your score won't hurt your credit. oh! i'm so proud of you. well thank you. free at at discover.com/creditscorecard, even if you're not a customer.

the president is not talking

about race. the president is talking about pride in our country. what you saw yesterday were players and fans of all races, joining together as americans to honor our service members. that's what the president is talking about. that's what his focus is on. >> sarah huckabee sanders going on to say this is not about what the president is against. this is about what the president is for. let's debate what donald trump's injection of this new urgency into what's been going on with these nfl protests, let's discuss what it's really about. dr. michael eric dyson. tears we cannot stop:sermon to white america. and the conservative case for trump author brett mcdonald. it's not about race. it's not about him being against something. it's all positive and about progress. do you buy it?

>> not at all. the reality is that the nfl nascar, not so much major league baseball, 8.3% black, 20% something latino. we know we're dealing with an overwhelmingly white response from this president to a perceived black league or at least perceived black players who are acting in historically constructed terms as uppity. it's about race because these young men have argued that the central issue that they're concerned about is the fair treatment of people of color beyond their ranks. they're not concerned about themselves. they're not being selfish, as we ask athletes to do. they're being concerned about something bigger and broader. what is that? the unfair treatment of their people, of the ways in which police brutality have riled the

african-american community. so, yes, the president is responding out of the base of his own bigotry and responding to something that is american as apple pie. >> ed martin? >> look, the good doctor forgot something. the people protesting are in the 1%. we're in an era where people want to talk about categorizing people based on the groups they fit in. these are really rich people. i don't think that matters but that's what he's saying, slice everybody up by categories. donald trump, this is like the day before election day, chris. i was out in new york doing radio and tchlt everybody was saying he's got no chance. he's got no chance. i'm out here in middle america, in missouri. lot of people agree with what he was saying. colin kaepernick was a benched player who led a protest. it's not all the players, by the

way. the most famous player in america whose jersey is selling faster is hispanic-american because he stood out and didn't stay with his other players that stayed in the tunnel. i don't think it's about race. it's about this very simple fact. if you burn the flag at the 50 yard line, i would think people would agree you should be fired but it is protected speech. these guys have protected speech. but just like curt schilling, he got fired by saying something that espn thought was inappropriate. the president is supposed to use the bully pulpit. we wanted kennedy to do it, fdr, obama. and trump is saying, hey, protest in lots of ways v press conferences. put your money where your mouth is but -- >> we'll stick to the current issue. the main line criticism of the president tweeting so much about the nfl is that we have an unprecedented catastrophe in puerto rico right now and it's about priorities. but that is a different conversation. let's stick on this one. you heard ed's arguments, doctor. can you counter? >> absolutely.

first of all, he didn't answer the question. the question is, it can be about everything he just said. but it's also about race. >> no, it's not. >> in this country, the mistreatment of african-american people is something that concerned colin kaepernick from the very beginning. even beyond colin kaepernick it's bigger and broader than him. whether or not he has flaws is irrelevant to the point he's making. many of our leaders owned slaves and wrote the declaration of independence. we can't is ask them to make perfect choices but be held accountable. the president of the united states of america, bully pulpit comes from teddy roosevelt, high intelligence in defense of moral principles that spread to the rest of the nation. >> well i -- zblet me finish. he is a bully in the pulpit trying to rain down the furry of his policies and has failed to understand. you say mostpeople out there agree with the president and so

on. people disagreed with martin luther king jr. when he began to speak out. yet the country now celebrates his birthday. let's not forget that often protests exposes some of the deeply entrenched biases in this country that people then turn the tide on later, sir. >> chris, you just said we were going to talk about policies and the doctor drops into insulting people's intelligence. you can have a debate about whether trump should have said as much as he did on the nfl. i'm just telling you, people don't want to see the flag and the anthem disrespected. that's what he's saying. >> when black people are murdered the flag is disrespected. >> doc, i didn't are interrupt you. you asked me not to. >> fair point. >> chris, here is what's interesting. instead of having a debate on something else right now we're talking about whether african-americans have been abused by the police. isn't there some way that you should say hey, wow, trump has led us into a national conversation and instead of whacking and banging on every american that sfwraes with the

protest method say hey, guys, he's not full of hate and nonintelligent, which is what the doctor said. instead say here are what the facts are on brutality and other things. >> first of all, we do that all the time. you watch this show. you'll know that. but again it's not about us. here is the thing. you said shouldn't you guys be saying let's talk about this issue? why isn't the president doing that? why is his response to this to do little more than fan the flames of the division? he hasn't advanced any part of this larger dialogue, ed. look at his own tweets. they booed loudly last night. great anger. when the dallas cowboys dropped to their knees as a team they all stood up for our anthem. big progress being made. does he say progress on better policing, does he say progress on community interactions between black and white? he doesn't elevate a damn thing, ed. he traffics in the division. >> no, chris.

come on. look, everybody -- you want to pick out tweets, i agree tweets on certain subjects gets him into his rhythm. >> what rhythm? >> what rhythm, ed? i love the anger directed toward the dallas cowboy. >> nobody said i love the anger. >> great anger. >> you know this -- >> great anger, what does that mean? is he upset about it? >> no, there is anger. the country is fed up with this. we're fed up with people. >> what part of the country -- >> the part of the country that won the election. the part of the country that won the election. >> let me tell you this, sir. >> hold on. gentlemen, hold on. >> he is the president. >> let's refocus on this last point that ed has made. we've heard it from other person s, drchlt you have to deal with it. the people protesting in the nfl, you're too rich to be upset about police brutality. you have it ease. >> i that's not what i said. >> you said there's hypocrisy because they're in the 1%. >> no, the doctor saying slicing

and dicing, instead of describing -- no, you, sir -- >> are in the 1%, ed. >> doctor, hold on. ed, that's what you said, right? people protesting are in the 1%. >> no, what i said -- no, no. >> say it again. make your point. >> the doctor jumps in and says let me slice and dice all americans into categories. the one he leaves out. >> -- >> i didn't say that. >> the people that are protesting are different than me and him and even you, chris. >> that's why they have a voice. >> i understand but they're also employees. >> they have a platform. >> that's the point, doctor. ed is saying the people protesting are in the 1%, so it rings disingenuous when they protest police brutality. do you buy it? >> let me ask you how. the president of the united states of america is a billionaire bichlt that predicate he should not be able to speak or be president. >> what? >> those who are gifted and talented, those who have a platform use that platform to ar

tparticular late ideas that ech throughout the land for those people who understand them. those leaders and african-american leaders, jackie robinson historically made more than everybody else. muhammad ali made more than everybody else. they were allowed to articulate ideas and sensibilities that people with far less fame, wealth and the ability to be public use that for a good purpose. so, to argue that because they're reach they can't speak doesn't mean the fact that john f. kennedy -- >> no, no, no. >> he was rich and got murdered in this country as a result of what he was as the president. one of the richest men in the world is now the president of the united states of america. >> chris? >> if being rich disqualifies you from being able to speak, he should therefore be disqualified. >> chris, one thing. you're not hear whag -- i must not have stated it clearly. i'm not saying they're not allowed to speak. i'm saying they are. everyone is. by the way, you can speak, chris, right now and say something on the air. if cnn doesn't like it they'll fire you. >> true. >> what i'm saying is if the doctor wants to slice americans

into categories, one of the categories he says matters is not just black, not just white but also the amount of wealth they have. and some americans are sitting out there saying, gosh, instead of hearing about what your problems are, you very, very successful, gifted, wonderful people, you're kneeling during the anthem. it doesn't make sense to us. and that's what trump has tapped into. by the way, he's really good at this. he won the presidency, because he knows what the people feel. and it's not racist. it's about what we feel. >> that's a different conversation. should the president of the united states, should his job, should his mandate be to foment tensions or find a way to lead through those tensions? we'll take it up on another day. ed martin, thank you very much. doctor, as always, appreciate it. gentlemen, thank you for doing this civilly. the way we debate matters. alisyn? how do president trump's supporters feel about the fight he's picking with the nfl? how about his slow response to the crisis in puerto rico? on monday i sat down with trump voters from florida, virginia,

north carolina, and new york state for one of our signature panels in a very candid conversation. some of them say today they regret their vote for donald trump. and all of them, to a person, wish that president trump would stop attacking athletes who take a knee. here is our latest pulse of the people. show of hands. how many of you are feeling just as positively today about donald trump as you were on election day? two of you. how many of you are having some second thoughts or reservations or regret your vote? three of you. jordan, what was the moment that you started regretting your vote? >> a lot of it had to do with his choices for cabinet officials. i'm a high school teacher. his choice for the secretary of education is completely unacceptable to me and most of my colleague. >> why? what's the problem with betsy devos? >> inexperienced. she's now in charge of public

education and doesn't seem to believe in it. >> what was the moment you started having second thoughts? >> he's a businessman. i thought he could get the deals done. once i started seeing he was too busy tweeting or not really understanding the kind of way congress and politics really works, i was a little disappointed. >> what did you think he could pull off? >> i was hoping for his travel ban to go through and not be so divisive. i was hoping for health care repeal and replace. >> mark, how about you? >> i think the day after inauguration day. >> so soon? what happened? >> when he was so concerned about the crowds or lack thereof. i was like, is that that important? you're the president. let's move forward. so that probably started my, what have i done? >> when he was so upset about his crowd size, what did that tell you? why did that upset you? >> it went back to his hands. size matters to him, i guess.

and that's not important to me, you know. and that's not why i voted for him. that's not why i voted for him. i felt he was different. thought he could make a change than what we've been used to overall these years. just not impressed. >> what is it like for you when you hear your fellow panelists say they have all these doubts? >> i can understand perfectly where they are from, but i am an issue -- almost a one-issue person. >> your family came from nicaragua. >> i'm from nicaragua. >> you came legal ly, you're no american, nationalized citizen. >> yes. >> you take issue with the d.r.e.a.m.ers. >> with the favoritism that they receive. they come and expect and demand free college education, boy, would i like to have had that. this is why we are resentful. the community of legal

immigrants from latin america are the ones that voted for donald trump because of our resentment. >> let's talk about the nfl. how many of are you comfortable with the president weighing in on what's happening during the national anthem and some players taking a knee? are you happy that the president talked about it this weekend or tweeted about it? nobody is happy that the president weighed in? >> these players have the first amendment right to kneel during the national anthem or sit out. it's an argument that didn't need to be picked. now it's what everybody is talking about when there are so many other things we could be talking about, like the hurricane in puerto rico. >> why isn't president trump weighing in on this? >> i think because he loves america. i don't like the disrespect that these players are showing, but on the other hand, as my husband and i both say, we may not like it, but my husband served 21 years, my brother-in-law died in service to guarantee both the

nfl players rights to free speech and the president's right of free speech. >> i'm tha son and grandson of veterans. i was taught i might not like what you say but i'll defend to the death your right to say it. that's what the first amendment is about. that's what this country is about. do i like them taking a knee during the national anthem? personally, no. but that's their choice and their way to protest. >> what i had concern about is why in the world -- i live a couple of hours from charlottesville, virginia, he couldn't call those individuals the neo nazis, the white supremacists, why couldn't he call them sons of bitches? >> why couldn't he? >> that's a huge concern of mine, what is really going on in that man's mind? >> a lot of what happened yesterday was in response to what our president said, being very unpresidential, using the term son of a bitch.

i believe if we want to continue to be the country we are, we have to allow descending opinion. but i believe with mark also. if you're going to use that term, let's use that term in charlottes vilville as well. >> what do you think about that? why is he using harsher words for the nfl players? >> i wish i knew. it completely baffles me. when he made the first condemnation of white supremacists in charlottesville it seemed it was lacking any substance. he didn't call anybody out. he made the second one, which sounded presidential. and then he comes back out and retracts what he said the day before and goes with his original stance. it's so unnerving to have those flip-flops within days of each other. >> there are people in the country who think that's racist, racism right there, not calling out white supremacists and calling out the nfl, 70% of whom are black. >> i agree but we use the race card far too often. >> do you wish that the president had spoken out more

forcefully about charlottesville? >> he could have given a much stronger statement, he could have been very condemnatory. these people do not make up america. >> why didn't that cause you any erosion in your support? >> i try to look at the big picture. i also believe, as a businessman, he's not used to politics. and he's used to going in and making deals and having his own way. >> we're talking about a businessman. is he? that's what i'm trying to -- he's not making any deals. he's pissing people off that he needs votes for and that sort of thing. i voted for him because he was different, because he wasn't a politician. but i didn't vote for somebody that i have great concern about his thinking. >> so, listen, that's different than what you've heard in the past. i appreciate their candor. it's not easy to say all of that on national tv, to admit that you now regret their vote. for the life of them, none of

them could explain mr. trump's rationale for what he is saying right now with the nfl. they don't get t they want to understand it. they don't get why he's picking this fight over other presidential responsibilities. >> and that's a legitimate confusion. you know, there's a calculated risk for the president here. when you play to cultural tension, you're playing to visceral issues. it's easy access. that's why demagogues go to the emotional. that group of voters, some of them seem to be business savvy, entrepreneurial. once you start taking away what matters to me, my pocketbook, deals you said you would get done, increasing fiscal responsibility, reducing my taxes, now i'm not going to like what you're doing. there's a calculated risk. >> tomorrow we'll hear from them on health care as well as where they stand on d.r.e.a.m.ers. they have very strong feelings on that. stay tuned for that tomorrow. >> and often we're hearing from

the president distractions, like what's going on in korea, in alabama. this has been a dicey proposition for the president. he and his former buddy, adviser, steve bannon, are backing different candidates. we'll discuss why steve bannon, who says he's all in for the president, is going against the president on this. and he says it's in an effort to help the president save himself from himself. next. i count on my dell small business advisor for tech advice. with one phone call, i get products that suit my needs and i get back to business. ♪

voters in alabama will head to the polls today. interestingly, the race is pitting president trump against his former chief strategist and breitbart honcho, steve bannon. how is it looking, alex? >> reporter: it's also pitting the president against many of his own supporters. this perfectly illustrates the fight for the soul of the republican party. on the one hand, we have president trump, who has taken a huge gamble, throwing his support behind the establishment candidate, luther strange, a former washington lobbyist and alabama attorney general, who appeared at a rally last night with vice president mike pence, pence making it clear that their support from strange comes from the loyalty that strange has shown in advancing their agenda.

just a short time ago, the president tweeted about today's election, saying luther strange has been shooting up in the alabama polls since my endorsement. finish the job. vote today for big luther. now it's a very tight race. on the other side we find steve bannon supporting the very controversial judge moore, who held their own rally last night. bannon wasted no time tearing into mitch mcconnell and the establishment calling them the most corrupt and incompetent group of individuals in this country. >> they think you're a pack of mor morons. they think you're nothing but -- remember, these are the same people that have tried to destroy donald j. trump from the first day he announced for office. for mitch mcconnell and ward baker and karl rove and stephen law, all the instruments to try to destroy judge moore and his

family, your day of reckoning is comin coming. >> at the same time, bannon did not criticize the president or try to explain why the president is supporting strange. instead, seeming to try to want to comfort the pro-trump crowd saying a vote for roy moore is a vote for donald j. trump. this is a complex race with huge implications. chris? >> thank you very much, alex. appreciate it. time for cnn money. hurricane maria, leaving behind billions in damage. that's a huge burden on puerto rico's economy. chief business correspondent christine romans in our money center to tell us why. >> damage in the caribbean forecasted to be billions and 85% of that is for puerto rico alone. puerto rico's economy is ill equipped to deal with that cost. there is a financial crisis and $74 billion in debt. it is the largest municipal

bankruptcy in u.s. history. two things will make the economic hit worse. there's no electricity. most of puerto rico is still in the dark. if more residents flee the island, that's a big problem. 450,000 people have left since 2005. skilled workers will be necessary to rebuild. unemployment on the island right now more than 10%. that's double the national average. now few people could leave right now. most major airlines still can't fly in to puerto rico. thousands of passengers are stranded. san juan's international airport has no power. it has damaged radar. 10 commercial flights leave each day. still united, american, jetblue all have managed to fly in emergency supplies. corporate relief efforts are just getting started. starbucks, verizon, google and lowe's. >> it's hard to get your mind around how long the crisis will last. >> it's a big, complicated problem and someone will have to solve it quickly. >> thank you for the update.

the president has been slow to speak out about the crisis in puerto rico. what do things look like on the ground there this morning? we see for ourselves, next. i'm val. the orange money retirement squirrel from voya. i represent the money you save for the future. who's he? he's the green money you can spend now. what's up? gonna pay some bills, maybe buy a new tennis racket. he's got a killer backhand. when it's time to get organized for retirement, it's time to get voya. you know win control? be this guy. check it out! self-appendectomy! oh, that's really attached. that's why i rent from national. where i get the control to choose any car in the aisle i want, not some car they choose for me. which makes me one smooth operator. ah! still a little tender.

(vo) go national. go like a pro. nice man cave! man. oh! nacho? [ train whistle blows ] what?! -stop it! -mm-hmm. we've been saving a lot of money ever since we switched to progressive. this bar is legit. and now we get an even bigger discount from bundling home and auto. i can get used to this. it might take a minute. -swing and a miss! -slam dunk! touchdown! together: sports! when we love someone, we want to do right by them. what is this? (chuckling) but habits are hard to break. honey, where are the habaneros? and then there are things we can't control, like snoring. (loud snoring) now the answer is right under your nose. introducing theravent anti-snore strips, clinically shown to reduce snoring with the power of your own breathing. nice try! there are always things that are hard to let go of. now snoring isn't one of them. theravent.

the answer is right under your nose. hey. what can you tell me about your new social security alerts? oh! we'll alert you if we find your social security number on any one of thousands of risky sites, so you'll be in the know. ooh. sushi. ugh. being in the know is a good thing. sign up online for free. discover social security alerts.

why should over two hundred years of citi history matter to you? well, because it tells us something powerful about progress: that whether times are good or bad, people and their ideas will continue to move the world forward. as long as they have someone to believe in them. citi financed the transatlantic cable that connected continents. and the panama canal, that made our world a smaller place. we backed the marshall plan that helped europe regain its strength. and pioneered the atm, for cash, anytime. for over two centuries we've supported dreams like these. and the people and companies behind them.

so why should that matter to you? because, today, we are still helping progress makers turn their ideas into reality. and the next great idea could be yours. puerto rico suffering apocalyptic damage after hurricane maria, trump tweeting about that, puerto rico is in deep trouble. it's old electrical grid was devastated, and most of the island was damaged. joining us now on the phone is the mayor of san juan.

madam mayor, thank you for being with us this morning. can you tell us what the situation on the ground is like in san juan? >> good morning to all of you. first of all, maria has left behind in her trail devastation and a humanitarian crisis. we have been canvassing one by one all of our elderly homes, and i'm not kidding. we have to transfer 11 of them in near-death conditions. no food. no water. no electricity. the sanitary conditions were deplorable. we are seeing the humanitarian crisis. the aid is coming in and that is making people feel like we are not alone and we can make it, but yesterday we couldn't get to two people in time, and frankly

hospitals are losing their diesel. when they get diesel it's for one day only and places for people with disabilities are also losing power in terms of whatever power they can get from diesel, so we have a humanitarian crisis in our hands right now, and we must, one, pull together, and two, be able to set up all the logistics for distributing, and we have been on a united front from the u.s. and i am getting calls from other countries that are willing to help and getting boots on the ground. the fema people have been wonderful and here since last week helping us and setting up the logistics. it's a massive endeavor we have

to deal with. make no doubt about it, there's a humanitarian crisis, not only in san juan but in the rest of the island. in the southern part, there was a town that lost five bridges, and totally incommunicated. there's thousands and thousands of people that are getting now going back to their homes and noticing that i don't have a home to go back to. >> mayor, you have painted -- you have given us, i think, a vivid picture of how dire the situation is. i know when we spoke to you last you talked about that being your greatest fear and you are quite emotional about the fact you have not been able to reach people in time and it has been too late for some people. do you think that you have found all of the people who were trapped in san juan, or are there more people in that situation? >> no, we have not found.

yesterday we canvassed two elderly homes, and we are going inside the rural area. most people think san juan has more of an urban environment but it's more of a rural environment, and we are finding dialysis patients that have not been able to contact their providers. we are having to transport them in near death conditions. we are finding people with generator tanks, and disabled people, they live alone and can't just walk somewhere. and i just got a sos message, and these are the ones i get more terrified about, and the ones that say i have no doubt food and i'm not in the street. they are so petrified and so scared they don't give you their point of location. we are in a desperate, desperate search for people anywhere, and

the only way to do that is to canvas every structure you can get your sights on. we are getting local unions and stateside unions, and they are using san juan as their base of operation. yesterday we got a huge statement, and more coming together from the silver liberties foundation, and the help is getting in. the logistics people from new york, the mayor is going to set that up, not only with san juan. boots on the ground 20 hours a day, but a lot of spirit. every time we find a person that is gasping for air -- i am not painting a poetic picture, i am telling you i have seen them and

held them in my arms and helped them into an ambulance, and every time we do that we get a little frail and of course we get a little afraid but we also get a lot more results to push on and move on and to do whatever. our bodies are so tired, but our souls are so full of strength that we will get to everyone we can get to. the situation in the hospitals is something that has to be completely with sustained spaces. yesterday we took power to two elderly homes, to two elderly homes late at night. late at night. the nuns that were there that take care of the elderly were really, really frantic. have no doubt, first of all, we appreciate all the help. we appreciate all the fem