good evening. we begin, tonight, with something mr. rogers used to tell children to do whenever they saw something scary on the news. look for the helpers, he would say. well, today, with the school year starting and the news on covid and younger people, certainly, scary enough for children and parents, alike, where are the helpers? that's the question, tonight. in the case of florida, some are being threatened by governor ron desantis, with punishment for taking steps to protect children too young to be vaccinated. today, he not only stood by his

order banning mask mandates, in schools, his office today put out a statement warning of, quote, financial consequences for noncompliance for dissenting school superintendents and school-board members. the most recent data shows the positivity rate in florida, for children under 12, at more than 20%. and more than 24% for ages 12 through 19. and because kids under 12 cannot be given the vaccine, public-health experts have been pushing for mask wearing in schools. which, in florida, puts them at odds with the governor. same for texas, where covid hospitalizations are climbing so steeply that at one, big hospital in houston, tents are being set up, in case they are needed to handle the overflow. the school superintendent there, recently, proposed a mask mandate to be taken up by the board later-this week, in defiance of governor abbott's orders. and schools in dallas announced a mandate, today. in south carolina, which also bars such action, the governor, henry mcmaster, had this to say. >> shutting a state down, closing schools and masking

children, who have no choice, for the government to mask children, to have -- who have no choice, to protect adults who do have a choice, is the wrong thing to do. and we are not going to do it. we're not going to shut our state down, as other states did. mandating masks is not the answer. >> well, as for what is the answer, he said, personal responsibility and common sense are. he went on to say that we are, quote, dealing with a virus that we know this year. which raises the question, is he really? and what makes him think he knows better than the doctors and nurses and educators and, yes, parents of school kids in his own state? you could ask the same of governor desantis of florida or governor abbott of texas or the governors of the five other states that barred school districts from mandating mask wearing. all, except arkansas, where the governor, republican, is trying to reverse the action he, himself, took. for him, common sense means facing facts. >> and leaders have to adjust to

the new facts that you're -- and the reality of what you have to deal with. and so, i asked the legislature to redo the law that prohibited those requirements or those options for the school districts to protect the children. and so, it was an error to sign that law. i admit that. >> ron desantis is doing the opposite. our randi kaye joins us now from palm beach county, with more. so what more do we know about what governor desantis is doing? >> well, as you know, anderson, the governor had issued this executive order, in recent days, which was banning masks mandates. he did threaten to withhold funding from schools if they defied that order. and as you said, today, he took it a step further. he said the state board of ed would withhold salaries for sooufrp intendants and school board members who tried to push through mask mandates. the governor's office saying they are trying to tailor punishment to decision makers, who led to the violation of law. that's the exact quote. meanwhile, anderson, already, at least four school districts here, in the state of florida,

are defying the governor's order. including broward county, which is the second-largest school district in the state. and also, just today, leon county, in tallahassee, the superintendent there had -- he -- he has now issued a mask mandate. but earlier, he had sent a letter to the governor asking for autonomy and flexibility. and that whole exchange went sideways because he ended up issuing that mask mandate, today, in response to the governor's threat to withhold his salary. that superintendent in leon county said you can't put a price tag on someone's life, including my salary. that's according to the allahas democrat. meanwhile, the backdrop, not only hospitalizations you mentioned and the positivity rates but florida has been leading the nation among hospitalizations for children and adults. and as you know, cdc is recommending universal masking for children and teachers, as they return to school, anderson. >> and, randi, other governors around the country are, also, obviously, at odds with schools about this and the cdc. what other states are we talking about? >> well, a couple that you

mentioned, just briefly, in what's happening. we see it in texas, where governor greg abbott has been battling with -- with districts around the state. just today, the superintendent of dallas said he is going ahead with a mask mandate. they will be returning to school, next week. that is the first district in the state of texas to go ahead, and defy the governor there. and issue a mask mandate. and those defying the texas governor's order are subject to a thousand-dollar fine. so we will see where that goes. but also, south carolina, you have governor mcmaster there saying that there should not be a mask mandate in place for schools. and now, this one community, columbia city, has defied that order. the mayor there has issued -- they put the city under emergency order and now the city council has voted to have a mask mandate. but the governor there in south carolina says that the city ordinance is illegal because it conflicts with the state ordinance. and the governor there, in south carolina, has been saying that, you know what? look at the numbers. the hospitalizations are down. the -- those in the icu are

down. not as many people on ventilators as there were before. so, basicallying nothing to look at here. don't worry about it, kids, go back to school. you don't need a mask mandate, anderson. >> randi, appreciate it. thanks let's get perspective now from dr. richard besser. peetdia trigz and former acting cdc director. also, cnn chief medical correspondent, dr. sanjay gupta. so, sanjay, you hear the governor seeking to penalize educators trying to get masks in schools. saying a responsible business wouldn't put 30 unvaccinated people in a confined space right now without masks, and keep them there for a whole day. and not only is that happening in some states, governors are fighting to keep it that way. does that make sense? >> uh, no, it -- it doesn't make sense. i mean, we've learned a lot over this past year, certainly about this disease and -- and its impact on kids. and it's worth reminding people, you know, millions of kids have been infected. thousands have been hospitalized. somewhere between 400 and 500 have died. you know, it's -- if you go back and look at h1n1, rich besser was acting cdc director at that

time, that was a disease that primarily affected kids and the reported number of deaths during h1n1 was 358 deaths. my point is that we paid a lot of attention to it because it was affecting kids. this -- this covid has killed more kids, sadly, than h1n1 did. so this is -- this is really concerning. we know, like where i live, for example, 39%, roughly, have been fully vaccinated. there have been schools that have, already, started and had to go into quarantine because, you know, you had positive tests. some of these school districts not requiring masks. that's happened in arizona, as well. so, we talk about this a lot in terms of who lives and who dies. we don't know the long-term effect of this disease on kids. and, you know, just procedural speaking, we are going to be stutter stepping our way through the fall, if we're not careful with masks, ventilation, and testing. things that we know work. and can keep kids in school. >> dr. besser, i mean, i think one of the things -- much of what's -- everything sanjay said is important. particularly, the idea that we don't know the long-term effects on children, who have become

positive. this notion of, you know, governors stepping in and -- and -- and not allowing schools to make the decisions about whether or not children should mask in -- in local communities. it seems like that's based on the old idea, from the early on in the pandemic, that this didn't affect children. that children weren't really susceptible to covid. with the delta variant, we've seen, now, more children becoming infected. more children dying. and there's a lot we just don't know about this virus, in children, long-term. >> yeah. you know, anderson, i think it's really important that we -- we do show a lot of humility here, in terms of what we know and what we don't know. sanjay laid out the impact, so far. and when you have a virus, like the delta variant, that is raging across communities, so rapidly. that's so much more contagious. even if it were less severe, and

we don't think it's less severe, the fact that millions of more children could get this infection means that there are so many more who -- who could end up in the hospital, and unfortunately, some children who -- who will die. um, we all believe that the best place for children, this fall, is in school, learning. and the best way to keep that happening is to ensure that teachers and staff are vaccinated, that parents are vaccinated, and that everyone in schools is -- is wearing masks. we don't know the long-term outcome of this infection, and we really need to -- to treat it with a lot of respect. >> dr. besser, um, dr. peter hotez, the pediatrician and infectious disease expert in houston, has said he's concerned that there's going to be a back-to-school tragedy in the south, and is suggesting mask mandates for all students and vaccine mandates for students 12 to 17 years old. what do you want schools and parents to do to keep children safe? >> yeah. i mean, one thing that i would say to parents is that, you have a choice. there may not be a mandate in

place. but you have a choice, and can send your -- your child to school with -- with a mask on. you have a choice, and you can get vaccinated. knowing that getting vaccinated helps protect you. but it, also, helps protect your children and others who -- who may not be able to get vaccinated, now. or who may have an immune problem, where the vaccine isn't -- isn't as effective as -- as you like to see. i hope that we -- we create space to allow governors to -- to make changes in what they're doing. it's great to see the governor, in arkansas, trying to make a change there in terms of mandates. but -- but i -- i think that a lot of the decisions we're seeing have less to do with the science of the impact on children, and more to do with the politics of, well, if -- if public health is saying it, we -- we don't want to do it. >> sanjay, the cdc is reporting that nearly 1,600 children are now hospitalized for covid. hospital admissions are up more than 21% from the prior week. can you just put it in perspective? because obviously, i mean, you know, you hear those numbers. it's very concerning. um, what do we know about the

effects of this in kids? >> yeah. let -- let me show you. we can -- we can look at this. how this is sort of -- the graph of -- of what's happened over this past year. i think it's really important. um, we see the -- the hospitalizations and this is in the united states, in kids. and right now, here we are, in august. we're sort of approaching the peaks that we saw, in january. a time where we know viruses, respiratory viruses, typically, spread more easily. so, already, here in august, we're approaching that with some-217 hospitalizations per day in january, for minors. and that's around 200, now. so we are likely going to, now, have a -- a peak that's the highest that we've seen throughout this pandemic. the same time, we know that there are lots of kids who are, you know, hospitalized, any, given time. so out of the 66,000-or-so hospitalizations that are currently people are hospitalized, about 1,600 of them are children. so the numbers are -- are increasing. and again, you know, i -- i don't know. i don't think anybody knows what the next-few months or, maybe,

even next-several weeks are going to look like. but this is supposed to be a time when you don't have as much of the viral spread. so, i think, it -- it really worries people, going into the fall. i hear from pediatric emergency-room doctors that they are so worried about this going into the fall, on top of other respiratory viruses that have already started to emerge, early. so, this is -- this is really concerning. >> sanjay. dr. richard besser, appreciate it. thank you. kcoming up next, what patients are telling republican pollster and political analyst, frank luntz, about getting tare kids vaccinated. and later a string of news and potentially pivotal developments in the case of governor andrew cuomo.

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kids have always had to get vaccinated against any number of other diseases. republican pollster, frank luntz, has been doing surveys, holding focus groups throughout the pandemic. his latest reveals a partisan divide over school vaccine mandates. democrats, by 64 to 36% say kids should be vaccinated against covid as requirement for attendance. for republicans, it's 40 to 60, against. frank luntz joins us, now frank, good to see you. perhaps, it was or it was not a surprise that parents responded along party lines when it came to whether they would want a vaccine mandate in schools. yet, they all responded that having a safe environment is their top priority. what do you make of that? >> is the ability for common ground, if we want it. and i think the -- the argument is do you put parents first? or politics first? and this is the message that i say to my republican colleagues and my democratic colleagues, alike. you've, already, politicized the issue. you've, already, drawn these sharp lines. these kids are going back to school in two or three weeks.

whether they are going back safe and secure is up to you to make the right decisions. and it is not a surprise -- another finding from the de beaumont foundation. i urge your viewers to go to the de beaumont foundation website because you will see the entire data set. is that parents who are vaccinated produce vaccinated kids. the communities that have a high degree of vaccination produce schools and classrooms that have vaccinated children. so, save parents, save kids. save communities, save schools. and those that aren't safe, in those places where they're not getting the vaccine, particularly in the southern states, they are susceptible. and the only bright light that i see -- and i'm -- i'm -- i'm very pessimistic about this -- but a bright light i do see is that the delta variant is has changed the minds of people across the country who are hesitant. this is a -- a opportunity here because there is genuine fear, genuine concern. it should not have to be this

way but it's what it is. >> and, of course, we know the longer this pandemic goes on, the longer more people are not vaccinated, the potential for other mutant variations/variants, it continues. in fact, it's inevitable, there will be more, other variants and, god forbid, there's some variant that, you know, only impacts children or severely impacts children. um, that, you know, that would be cataclysmic for globally. do -- do you -- is there a breakdown that you see in -- in -- in the focus groups that you do of parents who support vaccinations of children, mandatory vaccinations of children, in general, for a whole variety of the illnesses which kids get vaccinations for, in order to go to school. and i mean, are there some parents, who support the idea of vaccines, in general, and some mandated vaccines but just are against, for some reason, this covid vaccine because it's been

so politicized? or is, generally, if you're against a mandate of vaccine for children in school, is it because you're against all vaccines? >> no, there is -- and -- and we have two opportunities. one is right now because kids are preparing to go back to school. and the other one will come in september. i believe the -- the -- the center for disease control, the cdc, will approve, officially, the vaccine. there won't be a conditionary approval. it will be a full approval and that will convince millions of americans, who have not been vaccinated, to get vaccinated. but, anderson, that raises a point. if you condemn those who have, up to now, asked to be given time, to be patient. that they want to ensure that there are no side effects. that they acknowledge that the vaccine was developed very quickly. there are lines -- there are responses to that. they cut bureaucracy. they didn't cut corners. 95% of all doctors have been vaccinated. 95% -- even more than 95% are those in the hospital.

remember this. if you are in the hospital because of covid, 95% of you were not vaccinated. so, we know these but -- but that's what needs to be communicated. and, anderson, my greatest fear in all of this is that there will be an anger, among those who aren't vaccinated, that they're being disrespected and that they're being forced into doing this. and that just makes them more obstinate. and i am also afraid of those who have been vaccinated that lose their cool, lose their temper because, in the end, if you yell at a child, the child won't listen to you. if you teach them, if you educate them, if you bring them towards you, you can have the greatest impact. so i'm urging the people in the media. i know how frustrated you are, and i know you want to say to them, look, we can't wait any longer, get the damn shot. but that's not how you'll get people vaccinated. and in the end, this is why i'm in this country right now. this is why i'm on your show right now. this is my mission. it's my purpose. it's why i exist. instead of yelling at people,

let's teach them, educate them, and pull them to make the right decisions for themselves, their families, their friends, and their community. >> well said. frank luntz, i appreciate it. thank you very much. coming up next. new york governor andrew cuomo reportedly in a, quote, fighting mood as few allies believe he can survive the fallout from nearly a dozen, separate allegations of sexual harassment. the road to potential impeachment, when we continue. ♪ someone once told me,

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sources tell cnn that aides are trying to convince new york's governor, andrew cuomo, to resign over sexual-harassment allegations. one, however, says cuomo believes, quote, he can wait it out, end quote. reverend al sharpton tells cnn that he spoke with multiple people close to cuomo. they described the governor as being in a quote fighting mood. this comes as a police union today became the latest to call for his resignation. the governor repeatedly harassed her, after she became part of his protective detail. brynn gingrass has the latest on the movement to remove cuomo as governor. >> reporter: new york governor, andrew cuomo, possibly facing an

impeachment trial. the state's judiciary committee met, this morning, to discuss a timeline following the explosive report from the state attorney general's office alleging sexual misconduct by the governor. >> our goal is now to bring this matter to a conclusion with all due haste. >> reporter: the meeting comes just hours after this. >> what he did to me was a crime. he broke the law. >> reporter: the woman, identified as executive assistant number one in the ag's report, revealing her identity. >> i know the truth. he knows the truth. >> reporter: 32-year-old, brittany camiso, who still works in the administration, spoke to cbs news and the albany times union about the sexual misconduct she says she endured by the governor, on multiple occasions. >> that's when he put his hand up my blouse, and cupped my breast over my bra. i, exactly, remember looking down, seeing his hand, which is a large hand. thinking to myself, oh, my god.

this is happening? >> reporter: camiso is one of at least 11 women who the ag's report found cuomo sexually harassed over the last seven years. the report, also, stated the governor violated state and federal laws but stopped short of recommending criminal prosecution. the albany county sheriff's department is now investigating camiso's accusations after she filed a criminal complaint last week. >> but to me, and the other women that he did this to, it was not normal. it was not welcomed. and it was, certainly, not consensual. >> reporter: cuomo's team did not comment on the interview. but his personal attorney spoke about the accusations, on cnn this weekend. >> i will be quite clear. the -- the executive assistant number one, he did not grope her. >> reporter: and the governor denied the allegations laid out in the ag's report in a video statement, tuesday. the interview with camiso airing just hours after the governor's

top aide, melissa derosa, resigned. >> it's like an atom bomb dropping in the -- in the governor's inner circle. >> reporter: derosa, who was seen as one of the governor's most loyal confidants was mentioned in the ag's report as participating, in retaliation against at least one of cuomo's accusers. she has not responded to those allegations. derosa calling the past-two years, quote, emotionally and mentally trying. adding, i am forever grateful for the opportunity to have worked with such talented and committed colleagues, on behalf of our state. her statement, notably, did not mention the governor. >> i am joined, now, by brynn gingrass, in albany, the state capital. the governor hasn't said anything. do we know what he's been doing? where -- where is he? >> yeah, we haven't really -- yeah, anderson, we really haven't seen the governor. he hasn't said anything, like you just noted. really, letting his attorney do most of the talking for him. but what we have learned from sources is that he is in, quote, a fighting mood. we're reporting that some of his

closest aides, actually, met with him and tried to convince him that it's time to resign, believing there is really no way out of this. but we are learning from sources that the governor has remained steadfast. that he wants to wait this out. that he doesn't believe his time is up. and he just wants more time. now, of course, that could all change. he could change his mind, certainly, as we see more people coming forward and speaking out against him. the next date, though, to remember, anderson, is this friday. that's when cuomo's attorneys can submit evidence they want assembly members in that judiciary committee to consider, as they continue this investigation, impeachment investigation, which we're hearing could wrap up in weeks. anderson. >> brynn, appreciate it. thanks. perspective now from christine quinn, former speaker for the new york city council who now serves as president of women in need. and kimberly waily, former federal prosecutor, and law professor at the university of baltimore. so, christine, cnn is reporting that governor cuomo was in a quote, fighting mood over the weekend. he's probably kind of always in

a fighting mood. but even as aides tried to convince him to resign, how long can he keep fighting? i'm not sure who he is actually views himself as fighting against. but i mean, at a certain point, it becomes a disservice to the state of new york, i assume. >> it's a terrible disservice to the state of new york. i mean, think of all the work that needs to be done on the pandemic, on an inclusive economic recovery for the state. but andrew cuomo really has one gear, and that gear is fight. and when this all broke, last week, i thought he would take it into impeachment because he -- that's what he knows how to do is fight. he usually wins. and i can't really imagine, although i think it is the wrong decision, him stepping down. or not stepping down, anytime soon. it's just not who he is. it's not his dna. >> kim, you heard governors cuomo's executive assistant telling what she said happened. her version of it. her account.

how much more weight does she give to -- to all of this? >> well, there's -- she's not alone. there are 11 that are mentioned in the 168-page report. and this was an independent report that was actually authorized by the governor's office under new york law, letitia james could not have started this investigation, absent mr. cuomo's -- governor cuomo's authorization. so, now, to be saying it's, somehow, biased or not credible is very difficult. and as was mentioned in the setup, there are now additional allegations, outside the governor's office, from state troopers. so this is -- if you read the report, it's -- this is not a recent event. this is something that is deep within the bowel, so to speak, of the governor's mansion. and a lot of people propped up this culture of harassment, bullying, and retaliation. and it's hard to imagine, with this avalanche of evidence, that either political or legal accountability won't follow for governor cuomo. >> kim, this accuser says she

doesn't plan to drop the criminal complaint that she filed against governor cuomo with the albany county sheriff's office. i want to play what the sheriff said over the weekend. >> at some point, we're going to have our victim back in, um, for probably a very lengthy interview. could be a series of interviews. and at that point, depending on the facts and the circumstances, um, we'll sit down with the district attorney and make a decision to move forward with a criminal charge. >> and clearly, i mean, it is up to the legal authorities, whether or not they -- they move forward. uh, can you just walk us through the kind of legal trouble that the governor could, potentially, face down the line? >> yeah, really important distinction there, that you make. which is that it's not like a private person can press charges. but her willingness to testify is the critical piece of evidence. and that the -- the prosecutors could then use to bring a charge. and there's -- you know, new york state law, relating to sexual assault, is actually quite complicated. there are many levels of potential crimes, from misdemeanors, all the way up to

felony rape. but the key element is lack of consent. and so, groping someone, touching a -- a personal part of her body, without her consent, if proven, would be a misdemeanor. and so, that could be potential-criminal liability. the report lays out sexual-harassment civil liability for the state of new york, potentially, under both federal and state law. and then, there could be potential-civil liability for mr. cuomo, personally, depending on some things like sovereign immunity, et cetera. but i really think the key element here is impeachment. and unlike under federal law, where we saw with donald trump, twice, nothing happened because it -- the conviction didn't happen in the senate. under the new york state constitution, the charge, itself, of impeachment, which requires only 76 assembly members, that would displace him as governor, pending the trial. so, we could see some immediate action, relating to his position that we didn't see, at the

federal level, with the former president. >> just very quickly, what is the punishment for a misdemeanor of groping? i mean, if groping's just a misdemeanor, what is -- what's the potential punishment for that? >> well, it looks like it could be something as minimal as parole -- or probation, i should say. not necessarily jail time, which -- which tends to be triggered more with a felony. and of course, given his position and posture, again, like we're seeing with the former president, there's a sobering element to prosecuting any-former government -- governor, or someone at that high level, that these prosecutors have to take into account. but it sounds like there is at least five offices that are looking into this in new york. >> christine, i mean, the fact that governor's top aide, i mean, who's been, you know, his right hand and probably left hand, as well. i mean, what does that tell you? >> you know, that melissa left, you're right. she was kind of his everything. he didn't take a move, without running it by melissa. that she has left really signals -- signals that this is over.

she is the most loyal person he has ever had. and that she has left means it has, basically, all fallen apart. and the governor should look around, and realize that because all he's doing, now, is hurting the state. when your most loyal, hardest-working person leaves, you've got to realize that the end is near. and you're not going to get out of this one. >> but, christine, you know that -- i mean, clearly, his theory is he's just gonna tough it out. and that, in this day and age, bad behavior. there's so much, you know, coming -- information swirling around -- that people will move on and stop paying attention and that he can just outlast everybody else with shamelessness. do you think there's a chance of that? >> absolutely not. when the assembly democrats met last week, and the assembly is vast majority democrats. and the speaker, speaker hasty

did kind of a rollcall to see if there was anyone in the caucus who was supporting the governor, not one democrat. he has no support. he cannot wait it out. and what's happened here, 11 women, a trooper. i mean, that really is shocking. he can't wait this one out. he's, already, lost and he needs to resign. >> christine quinn, kim wehle, really appreciate it. thank you. coming up next. supporters of california's governor gavin newsom have real concerns about the upcoming-recall election. the reason? they say not enough democratic voters are paying attention. coming up.

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california governor, gavin newsom, is facing a multitude of challengers from his democratic party, along with a raft of republicans in that recall election now set for a little more than a month from now. there is enthusiasm among some of the democratic faithful to keep newsom in office. but for the party's voters writ large, the election doesn't seem to be most in their minds. our kyung lah, now, with the story. >> reporter: pumped up. >> that's what i'm talking.

>> reporter: to save california's governor. >> fight the good fight. >> reporter: volunteers fan out across south los angeles. a democratic stronghold. five weeks to go, before the recall election in california. >> we got far more people voting no than we have that's going to vote yes or just going to ignore this election, altogether. >> you just got to reach them? >> just got to reach them. you want to put no. >> reporter: in a state, where registered democrats outnumber republicans, 2-1, the recall of governor gavin newsom is being met by a collective yawn. >> it's ridiculous. i think he'll still be our governor. >> yeah. >> reporter: unconcerned or unaware about the huff off-year election. >> do you sense people are talking about it at all? >> not as much, no. >> involving what, exactly? >> the governor? >> no. >> oh, they want to -- um -- they want to, like, remove him. >> reporter: apathy equals

opportunity for republicans. here's how the ballot works. question one is yes or no to remove newsom? if enough democrats don't save newsom, a gop challenger in question two could win. >> thank you for joining us. special coverage of the very first gubernatorial debate to recall gavin newsom. >> reporter: republican challengers at the first debate stressed enthusiasm is on their side. sure, celebrity names, like caitlyn jenner and radio host larry elder, who did not show up here, may snag headlines. and one candidate has grabbed attention by campaigning with a bear. but california's conservatives believe this recall is a rare-political opportunity. a chance to pull off an upset. >> oh, i think governor newsom's worried and he ought to be. i think californians are angry and frustrated. >> if you are a democrat, it's scary. >> if you're paying attention. >> if you're paying attention. >> reporter: most are not, says longtime democratic strategist,

bill caric, but there is still time. newsom, who won in 2018 with more than 60% of the vote has millions more in the bank than republicans, and is now blanketing the airwaves with ads. >> vote no to protect california and our democracy. >> reporter: republicans do have challenges of their own. >> they haven't done well in california, in years. they have no statewide offices. they -- supermajority of democrats in both houses of -- of the legislature. closing that gap and -- from where they are in the registration, that is one big mountain to climb. >> reporter: another republican dilemma? donald trump. so toxic, in california, that on cnn, larry elder jumped through hoops to avoid any connection. >> i have not voted for a democrat, since 1976. i'm a republican, and i've consistently voted republican. so to call me a trump-supporting radio host, little unfair, is my opinion. >> reporter: california's progressive poll gives newsom the advantage. but in politics, nothing is ever

certain. >> you know, after trump, there is no way of, like, ever being sure. >> reporter: and the governor's forces are sounding the alarm. saying, hey, look, democrats can win. they just gotta pay attention. they just gotta care. there's, also, a number of issues facing this governor. the covid numbers are on the rise here, in california. you have wildfires. you have drought. so, a litany of roadblocks, anderson, where they simply cannot predict the outcome. >> yeah. >> anderson. >> kyung lah, appreciate it. just ahead, the former president's attempted coup and the alleged actions of one official in the justice department to turn false claims about voter fraud into something more than just words. close-door testimony, this weekend, on capitol hill that chairman of the committee conducting the investigation, next. as your business changes, the united states postal service is changing with it. with e-commerce that runs at the speed of now. next day and two-day shipping nationwide, and returns right from the doorstep. it's a whole new world out there.

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over the weekend, we learned more about what "washington post" columnist, ruth marcus, calls a quote slow-motion attempted coup plotted in secret at the pinnacle of government. these were the events just before the january-6th riot foiled by the resist ps of a few officials. and it was just a few.

two former-top officials at the justice department. former-acting attorney general, jeffrey rosen, and his acting deputy, richard donoghue, testified behind closed doors about attempts to push voter fraud allegations. according to a source, familiar with the testimony, much of what they said before staff at the senate judiciary committee was about attempts by one particular senior-department lawyer, jeffrey clark, to use department resources to push these false claims. just before the program, i spoke with the chairman of that committee, democratic senator, dick durban, about the testimony and investigation. . >> in the last administration, how concerned are you about the pressure they were under? >> let me tell you something, the pressure was as tough as it gets in this town of washington. here's the president of the united states basically saying, here's what i want you to do, if you can't do it, i've got somebody to replace you.

that's pretty powerful. >> i mean, all this information coming the way from the report last week that jeffrey clark, environmental lawyer, had circulated a letter within the department after the election which he wanted to send to state officials to georgia falsely claiming the justice department had identified signature concerns that may have impacted the outcome of the election in multiple states, including the state of georgia. he was trying to get the doj to wade pressure officials to wade into results. do you think the public grasped how dangerous something like this is? >> i don't think they do. there were so many bizarre twists and turns in the trump administration. people were number to it. the election happened, the president did not accept the results. he went to the courthouses around america looking for a friendly judge. he couldn't find any one of them to buy his theory that he actually won the election. so then he turns to the attorney general. bill barr, the man who had done his bidding for four years

basically said, i'm out of here. i resign. it was a valid result and a valid election. in came jeffrey rosen. we were skeptical. who is jeffrey rosen? we knew his position beforehand, but to be at the top of the heap is an important thing at that moment in history. well, rosen buzz challenged by the president and statements before our interviewers made it clear, repeatedly, and, of course, the ultimate threat, if you don't do this as i wish, you'll be gone. >> and i understand your -- this week your committee is set to interview the trump administration former u.s. attorney for the northern district of georgia who resigned in january. it happened days after a phone call was made public in which then the president was heard pressuring the georgia secretary of state to find votes to overturn the election. what do you hope to learn from that interview? >> i don't know for sure. i'm anxious to hear it. i want to say this, all those appearing before us, donahue and rosen, all of them have done this voluntarily.

without a subpoena. they have come before the committee. we have attorneys representing the republicans on the committee and attorneys representing us democrats on the committee taking turns asking questions. it's as bipartisan as it can be. and i want to thank all three of those witnesses for stepping forward. now we would like jeffrey clark to do the same. i'm not sure what we're going to find. we're going to issue a report and make public as much as we possibly can. but it's been an illumination from most of us to hear directly from jeffrey rosen what he went through. >> if the department of justice had in fact backed the idea of -- that there had been fraud, which there wasn't, in georgia and elsewhere, that's essentially as close to a coup or the beginnings of a coup as one can get in this country, wouldn't it be? >> well, it sure -- smacks of it from my point of view. sometime they take over the whole government and don't even mess around with the people with

the titles. in this case, the former president, donald trump, was checking the boxes. he went to the courts. no luck. decided to go to the attorney general. put the pressure on. no luck. brought his mob scene down to the january 6th rally, turned them loose on the capital, i didn't work. he was trying every trick in the book. i'm not sure what was left. i'm glad he didn't try anymore. >> for people who wonder why these interviews are happening behind closed doors, you're saying they're bipartisan. that would be something that in this day and age the public would like to see. why are they behind closed doors? >> it's a tradition. we do these behind closed doors and make a public report. we're trying our best to make sure we don't step into territory we shouldn't. i don't think we're going to have a problem. the attorney general said two weeks ago that he was waving all privileges as far as our interviews were concerned. and that the witnesses should answer as they wish. that's really a green light.

i think most of the information that we received in these interviews, the public will see, and will probably be complete transcripts very little deleted. >> there's also the house select committee investigating the instruction on january 6th. how much overlap do you think there will ultimately be between your committee and the house committee? >> there could be. and i made it clear that nancy pelosi has a bipartisan committee at work. this is a bipartisan effort. whatever we come up with in a transcript is available to her or to the public, for that matter. if it's helpful in getting to the truth, we want to use it. >> appreciate your time. thank you. >> thanks.

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republicans and democrats are reached an agreement for final package of the infrastructure bill. calling it a good thing for the country. the senate will vote on final passage tomorrow morning at 11:00 a.m. let's hands it over to don lemon. hello, everyone. this is "don lemon tonight" and we have big developments on three major stories and all have something in common so here we go. willful, deadly, disregard for the facts and for the truth. let's start with the covid crisis. worsening by the day, yet some politicians are pretending it's not a big deal. it is a big deal. so i don't want to say they are in denial because the truth and the facts, well, they are known. they're making a conscious choice trying to politicize a virus killing people and hospitalizing children when much of the spread is really preventable. the united states averaging more