contact us confidentially today. it's time. coronavirus cases spike around the globe, as the u.s. debates whether or not to open schools next month. another night of protests in portland, as the black lives matter movement keeps its momentum in the u.s. and warning for parts of texas as tropical storm hanna strengthens in the gulf of mexico. and it's not the only storm out there. >> hello, and welcome to our viewers in the united states and all around the world. this is cnn "newsroom." i'm michael holmes.

thanks for your company. we begin with a record spike in coronavirus cases around the world. the world health organization says the global tally rose by more than 284,000, in just 24 hours. the u.s., of course, especially hard hit, again. it had more than 73,000 new cases, on its own, on friday. and then, there is the question about what to do about reopening schools. top infectious disease expert, dr. anthony fauci, urging caution. >> when you talk about forcing teachers to come back to school, you better be careful about that. and make sure you pay attention to, a, keeping them safe. and, b, keeping them healthy. >> as the debate rages, u.s.

immigration officials say new international students won't be allowed into the country, if their classes are entirely online. they can come, if there is some kind of hybrid coursework. keep in mind, public school policy in the u.s. isn't dictated by the federal government. though, the federal government can and, obviously does, make rec m recommendations and exert pressure, as we've seen. but states and counties are the ones that, ultimately, make the decision. so they have to consider their own local case counts and trends. nick watt has more on the school dilemma and the state of the nation, during this pandemic. >> reporter: the president, backed by new cdc guidelines, pushing hard for schools to reopen, brick and mortar. >> being at the school, being on the campus is very, very important. >> but is it safe? the cdc says scientific studies suggest that covid-19 transmission, among children in schools, may be low. emphasis on suggest and may.

>> we, certainly, know, from other studies, that children under 10 do get infected. it's just unclear how rapidly they spread the virus. >> i think we still need to learn a lot about children, you know, elementary school children getting infected. and whether they either spread, or not, efficiently to adults. >> reporter: in hot spots, schools should figure out a plan with local health officials, says the cdc. they define a hot spot as a county with more than 5% of tests coming back positive. >> the majority of the nation right now actually has positivity rates that are less than 5%. >> across the country, more than half our states average new case counts are, right now, steady or falling. that's good. case counts, generally, falling in arizona after a very difficult month. and hard-hit florida. >> i do think south florida, you know, is definitely stabilized.

and i think miami is showing some signs of improvement as well. >> he is right. new case rates in florida are leveling off, but leveling off very high. and average daily deaths in the state are at an all-time high. and in miami-dade county, icus are now operating at 132% capacity. >> we're drowning. we're, absolutely, drowning here. it's just an overwhelming number of cases. 527 individuals in the icus. >> tennessee just suffered a record daily death toll. still, no statewide mask mandate. but they launched this psa today. >> this is the face of a fighter. face it. masks fight covid-19. >> washington state has made masks mandatory, everywhere, except inside your house. >> our suppression of this virus is not at the level it needs to be. >> reporter: starr county, texas, just ordered everyone to shelter at home. according to the county, our doctors are going to have to decide who receives treatment, and who is sent home to die by

their loved ones. one major model projects around another 75,000 americans might die before november. so now, we should hit the reset button, say 150 prominent medical experts and others, who have signed an open letter to our leaders. shut it down now, and start over. >> i don't, personally, think that's necessary. i think that if we just do the common-sense things, we can get this under control, as other countries have gotten it under control. >> so the absolute opposite of this tight-packed, unmasked religious service in northern california. >> and here, in california, 159 deaths reported by the state in just 24 hours. that's a new record because it's two more than yesterday. nick watt, cnn, los angeles. >> well, not everyone is happy about the decisions local officials are making when it comes to reopening schools in the u.s. take the hard-hit county of

guinette, here, in georgia, for example. despite a rise in virus cases, hundreds of parents, teachers, and students, are demanding their school district reopen its doors for the academic year. >> that's our future! >> parents were initially given the option to vote on their preferred-education plan, with many choosing in-person learning. protests began after the district reversed course, and announced it will only be offering online classes. >> i feel like i can learn better, especially in math, in school. >> if that is ewhat y's what yo and we spoke, i think that the decision should have been honored, at least in full or in some sort of partial honoring of that. >> we, as local leaders debate

whether to reopen schools in person or online. arizona's governor now changing his approach, now basing it on health benchmarks. the state reported more than 3,000 new cases on friday. but as cnn's miguel marquez reports, there are also some promising numbers. >> so there are some encouraging signs in arizona. those -- the rates. the overall rates of cases, every day, is -- is coming down. has been coming down in the last 24 hours. though, the most recent reporting by the state, it was up over 3,000, again, which is fairly high. it had been down below 2,000 cases a day, over the last week or so. that rate of transmission, if i get it, how many do i pass it on to? that has been trending in the right direction for the state as well. but the problem, the big -- the big sticking point for this state, that rate of positivity. the number of people getting tested, and the rate that come back positive. that's been stuck at about 25%. that indicates, to epidemiologists and -- and to health officials, that there is a lot of virus out there.

a lot of community spread. and that has complicated things for, say, opening up schools for in-person instruction. they wanted to start on their traditional date of august 1st. the governor then pushed that back to an aspirational date of the 17th of august. and now, they are waiting. the governor's now said, you know what, we're going to scrap all that. we are going to come up with some metrics to figure out what that rate of the virus in the community needs to be before schools can open up for in-person instruction. many schools are already pushing back into october. possibly, to 2021 for some of them. arizona is unique. it's a snowbird sort of area, people who live in cold climates come here for the winter. it's also the time of the year when the flu strikes and the hospitals, typically, in october and november and december, get very full with people suffering the flu. if you have a lot of covid out there, at the same time, and you have those patients, on top of

flu patients, it is going to be extraordinarily difficult for this state to cope with that many sick people. that's what the state is looking at now. they are trying to get this back into the box right now. but it is very, very hard when -- when the governor opened up the state in may, there were about 500 cases a day being reported. now, you are in the 2 to 3,000 number a day being reported. back to you. >> joining me now is an emergency medicine physician in phoenix, arizona. good to have you on, doctor. i wanted to start, rather than talk about the facts and figures, i want to -- what are you seeing in the emergency rooms? how bad has it been? >> well, thanks for having me on. yeah. the emergency departments have had this issue, where any time we have patients who need to be admitted. namely, the sickest patients. they are waiting for long, long periods in the emergency department. i'm sure you've heard about the

bed capacity issues we've had and the staffing issues we have had. when there's a patient whom we can turn around quickly, we have actually done a pretty good job think i as emergency room physicians, to handle that. but where the patients need to be admitted, they end up staying for long periods of time. just this last week, i had a couple shifts back to back. came home. went back the next day and a patient i had admitted the previous day was still in the waiting department. that is not typical for an er. we had a scenario where a patient was waiting so long, she decided she was going to go home. and we said you're pretty sick. and she said, i think i'm going to die. i want to die at home and not in a hospital. so that gives you an idea of what it's like in the emergency department. >> wow. that is just heartbreaking stuff. one thing that struck me, social media is still full of those who resist taking this seriously. abiding by precaution and so on. what should the public know

about what is happening in hospitals around the country, in your hospital, the stark reality of that? >> yeah. you know, i don't know why people have turned this into a social media game. i mean, if they want to post sultry picks, that's one thing. but if they are going to do something that's harming people, by spreading false information, it literally is dangerous. masks are, clearly, very effective. there are always great data for it. all the other countries in the world don't wear masks, just for fun. they are obviously on to something. they've dealt with pandemics before. even with covid, which is a new pandemic that we're in right now, even within this pandemic, we've got very good data for how effective masks are. and obviously, distancing is helpful. obviously, hand hygiene is very important. so the people who are turning this into a social media game, just think of it this way. our hospitals are very backed up. and obviously, heart disease still exists. so whatever you think about covid or masks, heart disease still exists. trauma still exists. strokes still exist. if you end up in a car accident

or your loved one has a heart attack, how good do you think his or her care will be if there are no beds in the hospital? >> to that same point, give us a sense of what it's like for nurses, doctors, therapists, and all the others, what it's like to deal with this, not just the volume? but with those sick people, dying, one on one. sort of take us into the emotion of that because it must be -- it must be -- well, it's unthinkable, to most of us. >> yeah. you know, obviously, there are things i can say on air. and things that we say amongst colleagues, you know, when we're open about it, there are a lot of emotions. sometimes, there's anger. but a lot of times, there's almost desperation. we can handle sick people, right? especially, as emergency room physicians, that's what we are trained for. my intensivist colleagues are there working long, long hours. calling people telling them thei they're dying. what's really demoralizing is how the patients keep coming in. and despite how full we are, despite how much the news is telling people how bad it is in

the hospital. despite what the health experts are saying. people are, still, treating it like it's a game. they're still partying. they're still not distancing. they're still not wearing masks. there are a lot of people doing the right things. but it really takes everybody to do the right thing because it's very easy to spread germs. so it's very frustrating for us, when we are doing our utmost to save lives. that's what we do, right? but then, to go home, and on the way home, see people who are clearly not following guidelines. like i said, it's infuriating for some. and it's almost like desperation, demoralizing for others. makes it hard to come to work every day, knowing that other people are just being apathetic about it. >> infuriating is the word that leaps to mind, as you put it. i just, finally, briefly, if you will, according to "the new york times," i think ten u.s. states are recording more cases per capita than any country in the world. why -- why do you, as a medical professional, think that is? why, when we care to other major nations and europe and asia, has the u.s. done so badly? >> yeah, it's really appalling

and really ironic because we had this information. some countries didn't know what was going to happen mu. but we knew because of other countries, and even within our country, we saw what happened in new york. and we knew the ways of preventing it. we knew how important distancing was. we knew how effective masks could be. and despite all that, we decided, you know what, it'll be okay. i don't know why we thought that. now, there is something to be said about the fact that there might be some countries who, maybe, represearen't testing as. but europe clearly is. a lot of the eastern nations we talk about clearly are. and despite how densely populated are and despite the fact a lot of them have fewer resources than we do, they were able to control it. i think a lot of it is a cultural difference. people listen to the health experts and governments in other countries. people are okay with wearing masks. i don't know how it became such an issue here, especially in a pandemic. especially, when you have seen your own countrymen and country women die, in large numbers. why this has become political,

why people aren't wearing masks is really appalling. we need a big cultural shift here to bring control on to this pandemic. >> i think that's well put. as you say, the u.s. had a huge heads up given what was happening in other countries and kind of blew it. doctor, thank you you so much. i really appreciate it. >> thanks for having me, michael. stay safe. >> we are going to take a quick break. here on the program, when we come back, tensions remain high in portland, as federal agents get the go ahead to arrest, without having to identify themselves. we are live in that city, when we come back. want to brain better? unlike ordinary memory supplements- neuriva has clinically proven ingredients that fuel 5 indicators of brain performance. memory, focus, accuracy, learning, and concentration. try our new gummies for 30 days and see the difference. - [child] what is a wish? (submarine rings) - [man] captain, we're ready to dive. - [child] it's adventure in seeing the unknown. (dolphin chatters)

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welcome back. on friday, u.s. federal judge ruled the state of oregon can't force federal homeland security officers to identify themselves, when arresting protestors in portland. a week ago, the state took the trump administration to court over its handling of the protest there. the american civil liberties union calls the ruling disappointing. and there are more protests going on right now. let's go to portland. cnn's lucy cavanaugh is live for us there. tell us about this ruling.

what's been the reaction to it? and what's happening there? >> that's right, michael. well, the attorney general, here, in oregon, filed this lawsuit on july 17th, against homeland security, u.s. customs and border patrol, the u.s. marshall service, and other agencies to stop them grabbing and seizing oregonians off the streets in unmarked vans. basically, to identify themselves whenever they detain a person. and not to detain people without probable cause. the judge, today, denied that request. he explained the reasoning in a 14-page decision. saying while this case does involve allegations of harm by law enforcement, the claimant in this case is not a protestor. he also said that the state was not seeking redress for past

harm done, but rather, trying to prevent future action of these federal agencies, which he called, basically, something that the state does not have any grounds to require. so he denied that request. reaction to that, i will say that, the focus here, on the ground, at the moment is not on this legal move. there's been a very large crowd. this is probably one of the largest crowds that we've seen, to date. if not, double the size of what we saw yesterday. people have been gathered here, very peacefully. there were speakers. people were doing call-and-response chants. different people were coming up and trying to highlight the black lives matter message. and then, in the midst of this peaceful gathering, a very small group of protestors over by the federal building, behind me, began shaking the fence that federal agents had erected to protect the building, back and forth. that sort of got more and more dramatic.

some federal agents came out to protect the fence. we then saw some protestors lob firecrackers -- fireworks, pardon me, over to the fence. and in response, we saw tear gas lobbed back at the protestors. they have now pushed their way back over there. you can't quite see it in the camera behind me. but more federal agents have come out of the building. sort of getting ready to make a move. the way that this has worked in the past is, as these things escalate, they do eventually step out from behind the barricade. the tear gas gets more intense. the crowd gets more worked up. and sort of this cat-and-mouse game ensues. and this is exactly the kind of behavior that some of the local officials here, incluiding the attorney general, is trying to limit. because, in a situation like this, where you have a lot of people frustrated with the police response. frustrated with the federal response. these kinds of tactics, they

say, simply escalate things more. they don't calm the crowd down. instead of reducing the sieszze this protest, it sort of rallies more and more people to the cause, gets people to come out here. and what protestors will tell you, the ones who have been here for nearly 60 days, trying to highlight the original message of black lives matter. is that this then dilutes the movement. it becomes about these federal actions. you hear one of the fireworks going off behind me. the focus becomes on that, rather than the original message of justice, limiting police brutality, and focusing on the lives of black american citizens. michael. >> lucy thank you. lucy cavanaugh there in portland, oregon. i want to stay in portland, oregon, actually. and go back to -- we spoke last hour to freelance journalist sergio amos. sergio, we got a new audience now. so i want to ask you, again,

what it has been like there, not just tonight, we just had a sense of that from lucy. but, you know, the president had said he handled this situation. but it is government actions that have really escalated it, correct? >> yeah. this is now 11 days after the president said he quelled -- very much quelled protests here in portland. what we're seeing now is a crowd, about a thousand, 1,500 people. excuse me, i'm getting feedback in my ear. we saw about 3,000 to 4,000 people earlier tonight. and protests had died down here in portland. but what we saw, after the president sent federal officers here, is that numbers rose back up to early protest phase levels. >> one of the things that -- that seems to have angered people, and has made this protest grow, is the appearance of these federal agents. men in military camouflage. they look like military

uniforms. little or no markings. not identifying themselves. taking people away in unmarked vehicles. what do protestors tell you about that? is this what's energized things now? >> yeah, they took mark pettibone. grabbed him, threw him into the van. so what you have for the first week or so was real fear on the street and anger. and now, what you see is a kind of -- i'd say resiliency. they are throwing tear gas at protestors right now. protestors are grabbing them, throwing them right back. and they've been ordered to, you know, not mess with the fence. they're still messing with the fence. so, there was real fear. and now, what you see is kind of they're not leaving just because the federal officers tell them to. >> and to that point, i mean, lucy was talking about this earlier. it has grown the protest, the

anger is there about the actions of the federal government in terms of these sort of faceless, military-uniformed officers. but has it diluted the -- the -- the core of the original protests, the black lives matter protest? or has it just hardened the resolve? wh what's your read? >> my sense is it's added numbers. there is now a bigger coalition of protestors. protestors who weren't here at the beginning of black lives matter, maybe, are now here. at the same time, we had numbers of protestors up to 10,000, at one point. so what we are seeing is protest numbers rise back to early protesting levels. i will say that, you know, the federal government here has added something that they're protesting. they're not just protesting local police brutality now. now, they're saying, you know, this is a -- a -- a -- government brutality. they are adding that to -- to the thesis. >> i wanted to, also, by way of context. because if you listen to the president and the administration and some right-wing media, you

would think the entire city is under attack, in total chaos and anarchy and so on. you're there. you live there. what is the reality when it comes to the city, overall, compared to the breadth of the protest? >> yeah. so if you go to your maps on the phone and type in portland. it's about half the size of your pinkie, this area. this downtown area here, right here, there's not residential. and most of the city, there's about 700,000 people here, are not seeing this. about 98% of the city doesn't look like this. there's like food carts a couple blocks away, where there is people getting food and they're not involved in this. so this is a very tiny area of downtown portland. >> that's important context to make given what the country's been hearing from certain areas. sergio amos, thanks for your coverage. >> thank you. >> and we will take a short break. when we many back, the stand off between the u.s. and china continues. u.s. officials have taken back this building, here, the chinese

consulate in houston. we'll get the latest on the diplomatic rift. also, ahead. white house officials in denial about the president's reversals, as his coronavirus missteps weigh on his re-election bid. we'll have that and more when we come back. look here, it's your very own all-in-one

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welcome back to cnn "newsroom," everyone. i'm michael holmes. let's get you caught up on the latest coronavirus numbers now. the u.s. recording more than a thousand deaths from covid-19, for the fourth-straight day on friday. and johns hopkins university

tallying more than 73,000 new cases. that brought the total well past 4 million. experts say new cases are starting to plateau, in some hard-hit states, including arizona and florida. but others are reporting record-high numbers. new mexico, hawaii, and missouri, all reporting records for new daily cases this week. president donald trump didn't deliver a briefing on the virus, on friday, after having done so three days in a row. but there was a big dose of spin coming from the white house. cnn's jim akos icosta, with tha. >> reporter: just as the president is changing course in his response to the coronavirus, white house officials are trying to pull a fast one. falsely, claiming mr. trump has been consistent, all along. >> what changed this week? why did his tone change? >> there has been no change. he hasn't changed, in fact, on just speaking around covid generally. the way i have heard him talk,

privately, in the oval office is the way he is talking out here. >> but that's not true. the president just pulled the plug on his big convention speech in jacksonville, citing concerns at the virus. >> but i looked at my team, and i said the timing for this event is not right. it's just not right, with what's happened recently. the flare-up in florida. to have a big convention, it's not the right time. >> contrast that with his rally in june, where the president praised his supporters as warriors, for risking their lives to cheer on mr. trump. >> you are warriors. i've been watching. i've been watching the fake news, for weeks now. and everything is negative. don't go. don't come. don't do anything. today, it was like i've never seen anything like it. i've never seen anything like it. you are warriors. thank you. >> reporter: a gop convention official described the party's decision to move some of the events to jacksonville, before scrapping them, as a multimillion dollar debacle and think of where that money could

have gone. still, dr. anthony fauci said it's a good thing the president is now listening to warnings about large crowds. >> i believe he, and others in the white house, have heard us speak about that. so i would hope that, that maybe had some influence in the decision. but i think it was a good decision. >> new polls also explain the president's recent reversals, as he is down double digits in florida and pennsylvania. while, also trailing badly in michigan and minnesota. while the president is moving to protect his party's delegates, he is determined to send most u.s. school children, back to the classroom. >> given these considerations, we believe many school districts can now reopen safely. provided, they implement mitigation measures. >> reporter: the administration is pointing to new guidance for the centers for disease control, advising schools to reopen, with strong safety measures. >> it is our firm belief that -- that our schools are essential places of business. >> reporter: that's despite the warning from coronavirus task force dr. deborah birx, who is comparing texas, florida, and california, to the situation in

new york, at the beginning of the pandemic. >> i just want to make it clear to the american public. what we have right now are essentially three new yorks, with these three major states. >> fauci said the president's recent aboutface on masks may help. >> as you can see, the president has come around, now, about wearing a mask. and has actually been recommending it. so, i think we're moving in a really positive direction, in that regard. >> reporter: and yet, there were missed opportunities this week. from a medal of freedom ceremony. to this photo opportunity, celebrating the return of major league baseball. where there were few masks in sight. president does sound regretful about one thing. his twitter account. >> do you ever tweet out and be like, wake up, like man, i wish i didn't send that one out? >> often. too often. we put it out instantaneously, we feel great. and i get a phone call. and i say what's wrong with that? >> a trump campaign adviser said

it is far too soon to give up on the november election. but the adviser said, candidly, that the president is running out of time to turn things around. if the polls look like this at the end august, they said, quote, then, we worry. jim acosta, cnn, the white house. >> turning now to australia, where more than 300 hospital workers in the state of victoria have been infected with covid-19. that coming, as the state surpasses 7,700 confirmed cases. for more, swanson joins me now live from sydney. okay. bring us up to date, first of all, on these healthcare workers. and the toll this virus has taken on them. >> it's a terrible toll, michael. as you know, these healthcare workers are among the most at-risk people, when it comes to fighting this virus. over 300 of them have now caught it, in that place of work. and the government's really worried at that because, of course, when you take nurses and

doctors, particularly off the front line, well, that just makes it more difficult to keep people safe and healthy. and to cure them of this virus. and what's almost more worrying, for the government, at the moment, as well, is the spread of the virus into aged-care settings. over 500 people have now caught it in these aged-care settings. both, careers and the people tht are in there. frail, many of them. some of the most at risk in our society. the government's worried that's what's pushing up the death toll in victoria, michael. >> yeah. now, they pretty much shut down several places around melbourne when they were worried about this last week. how successful have they been at keeping the outbreak in victoria and not allowing it to spread to the rest of the country? there was some concerns about sydney, i know. >> well, michael. you'd be forgiven for thinking that people in victoria might be feeling like they are a fighting

a bit of a lonely battle against this virus. it's terrible down there in victoria. 300 cases today. 300 cases yesterday. and it's been higher than that as well in the past week. here in sydney, 15 cases. so that was previously new south wales. the state -- melbourne and victoria have superseded that in. that has to remain the case, keep it that way, the borders have to remain shut and australia has to become a divided country, until a vaccine is found, michael. >> angus, thanks for that. angus watson in sydney. well, it has been less than a week since the trump administration ordered chinese diplomats to clear out of their consulate in houston, texas. on friday, u.s. federal agents secured that compound, and

officially changing the locks, literally. the u.s. justice department says the consulate was part of a spying ring. and, a you might imagine, china responding in kind by ordering the u.s. consulate in chengdu to shut down. beijing says it is a, quote, legitimate and necessary response. let's talk about all of this with christy lou stout, joining us from hong kong. yeah. just seems to be on a bit of a spiral. where is this headed? is there an off ramp in sight? >> it is a bit of a spiral as you put it. as each day passes, the tension between the u.s. and china just gets higher and higher as we follow these dramatic and fluid developments taking place in houston and in the southwestern city of chengdu. first, let's go to houston. th regarding the situation there, confirmed the chinese consulate has been shut down. blacksmiths were seen and filmed

entering the compound there. of course, it was on wednesday when the u.s. state department ordered the consulate there to be closed in order to, quote, protect american intellectual property and americans' private information. calling it quote talking nonsense. now, in an open letter just published, the council general, to houston has spoken out. says this. quote, the friendship between the chinese and american people will not be interrupted. no one can undermine the bright prospect of sino-u.s. friendly cooperation. of course, where the chinese researcher was holed up in the consulate there. she is now in custody. officials accuse her of visa fraud. saying she lied about connections with the military. but she has not been charged with espionage. meanwhile, in chengdu, the

insignia on that consulate has already been taken down. why chengdu? why did chinese authorities, in retaliation, decide to choose that mission in particular? i want you to listen. >> some people of the u.s. consulate general in chengdu, interfering in china's internal affairs and damaging china's security interests. >> damaging china's national security interests. a bit of a cryptic explanation there. now, when will the american consulate in chengdu close? according to the editor in chief of the nationalist newspaper global times, he believes it's going to take place monday morning. all eyes on that anticipated closure, and on where all this is going to head next. michael. >> yeah. incompatible with the status. there's an old diplomatic one, isn't it? there's another -- i mean, they're sort of lining up here.

a singaporean man admitted to spying, for china, in the u.s. >> yes, this is another case that we are following, closely. a singaporean national has pleaded guilty for being an agent of china. u.s. officials say that he acted as a spy for china, in the united states, for four to five years. that he used a political consultancy in washington, d.c. as a cover, as he attempted to incur information about artificial intelligence and the trade war. this development happens, as we know, the u.s. is cracking down hard on chinese corporate espionage and cyberespionage. it is also notable that this case involves a non-chinese national. michael. >> yeah. lot to cover there. christy lou stout in hong kong, appreciate it. good to see you. and when we come back, on the program, trouble on the horizon. tropical storm hanna strengthening, has its eyes set on texas. we'll have the very latest for you. every time we pre-rinse

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welcome back. hurricane warnings are posted for parts of texas. what is now tropical storm hanna, turning in the gulf of mexico. and as it does, it strengthens as it makes its way towards landfall. residents there, filling sandbags, getting ready for some expected flood and storm surge. texas, not alone, either. let's check in with meteorologist derek van dam. good to see you, derek, what do you see out there? >> yeah, not alone, at all. in fact, we have got tropical activity, at the moment, michael, from the central pacific through the gulf of mexico, into the atlantic ocean. major hurricane douglas. that's got its eyes set on hi hawaii. we've got hanna you just mentioned nearing the coast of

texas. and gonzalo. that's really a nonthreat. but let's get to the immediate threat. tropical storm hanna as it approaches texas, 65 mile an hour sustained winds. looking more and more organized and developed as we move on. hurricane warnings in store for much of the southern coastline in texas, with tropical storm warnings extending to the north and south of that. one interesting thing note. does predict a category one hurricane just before landfall. and as it does so, it will move inland and bring very heavy rainfall to this region. the storm surge threat is real. three to five feet. including the greater corpus christi region. but the fwlglimmer of light out this storm in texas is it will impact one of the more sparsely populated areas of texas. nonetheless, with the strong winds will be heavy rainfall.

so the potential leads to excessive flooding across that region, with up to 10 inches of rain. even, some higher amounts, possibly, locally. now, let's talk about what's happening in hawaii because this is major hurricane douglas. equivalent to a category three hurricane at the moment. 115 miles per hour. this storm is starting to weaken, and that is good news. that's what people want to see. and the general trend and consensus of the weather models we look at is more of a northward shift of that track. we will try and edge that further and further north so we can keep the worst effects away from the hawaiian islands. nonetheless, we do have hurricane watches for all of the major islands across hawaii at the moment. including the oahu region and honolulu. with hurricane watches in place. landslides, mudslides, a strong possibility. so very busy, to say the least. >> that's quite a list. derek van dam, thanks so much. good to see you, my friend. >> quick break now. when we come back, a young

driver hopes to become a star in nascar. but many think his autism will put the brakes on that dream. how he's out to prove the doubters wrong. that's when we come back. want to brain better? unlike ordinary memory supplements- neuriva has clinically proven ingredients that fuel 5 indicators of brain performance. memory, focus, accuracy, learning, and concentration. try our new gummies for 30 days and see the difference.

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february with the kansas city chiefs but the offensive guard is, also, a practicing medical doctor who's been working on the front lines of the coronavirus pandemic. now, he is going to be sitting out the upcoming nfl season. partly, because of his own concerns about covid. and also, to treat covid patients. lauren was due to make nearly $3 million with his nfl salary this season. but, instead, is opting for $150,000 from the league to continue as a doctor, working on the pandemic. good for him. 20-year-old imani williams is hoping to live out his dream of being a star nascar driver. but autism has kept him from reaching that dream, so far. cnn's sports andy shahlai shows

us how es intends to prove the doubters wrong. >> on the track, 20-year-old williams is like any driver trying to reach nascar's highest efbl. but off of it, he is one of a kind. diagnosed with autism as a kid, he fell in love with racing. autism is a disorder characteristically marked on focusing on and processing different stimuli and tasks, simultaneously. skills that are crucial for any race car driver. but imani has never let his condition stop him from achieving his dreams. >> tell me that i can't so i can show you that i can. people with autism are unique, and for me, i have dedicated my entire life to the sport that i love. and i am proof that, if you work hard enough, you have the right support system, and you believe in yourself or what you do. that many, many things are possible. >> imani has participated in nascar's drive for diversity

program. he continues to climb the ladder in nascar. now, imani says he has never been the victim of racism while at the track. but was very disappointed when hearing the news of a noose being found in the garage of bubba wallace at talladega super speedway. >> this should be well past our time. like, we're in the year 2020 and right now, i believe that we need to start focusing on inclusion. learning to love one another, no matter what you are. >> bubba wallace is the only black driver at nas tcar's top level. imani says he continues to be an inspiration. >> he has taken the same route that i would like to take in my career racing. and lately, you know, you see he has had to carry a lot of weight on his shoulders where racial issues, with nascar. and for me, from what he's been -- how he's been able to approach that and handle that, i

think he's done a very good job, considering we're in a very difficult situation. >> with recent decisions like banning the confederate flag, he thinks nascar's headed in the right direction. and armani hopes, one day, he will be competing against the likes of bubba wallace in nascar's cup series. >> my dream was to become a professional race car driver. i believed in miyself. and i have continued to work hard, every single day, to go further in the sport that i enjoy. and i am believing that it will he happen for me, soon. >> armani, such an impressive individual. you of course need lots of talent to make it to nascar's highest level. but you need sponsors, too, and here is wishing armani lots of luck as he continues to chase his dreams. andy scholes, cnn. >> i am a michael hoemlmes. appreciate you starting your day with me. natalie allen will be here with cnn "newsroom," right after the

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huge protests as donald trump calls for law and order. we take you to the streets of portland, oregon. the push to reopen schools, as health officials issue a new warning about how the virus affects young adults. and this -- >> it is baseball time in texas. >> familiar sounds, unfamiliar sights. a very different opening day for the texas rangers. coming up here