>> building a better bay area area moving forward, finding solutions. kristen: hi, everyone get i am kristen sze. today, american voters believe our democracy is in danger, but saving it is apparently not a priority. we will talk with abc news political director rick klein about which issues are actually driving voters right now r andedder or bluere. filed very few charges in that

regard. the reporter will join us to share what they found. governor newsom announced an end date to the state's covid public health emergency and stanford university announces it is dropping a mandatory masking as of next monday, so this is all good, right? or is it. joining us to look at the latest trends another important news on uterine and colon cancer, dr. hong, who is going to do all of that in eight minutes. it is so nice have you. dr. hong: thanks for having me on, kristen. kristen: yeah, no pressure. institutions are signaling they are moving forward. cases are moving up. mask requirements may come up if there is a surge. let's unpack those competing signals. are they good or are they bad? or are they bad now and getting better? dr. hong: when the going is

good, we drop restrictions. if the going gets rough, hospitals get flooded, we kind of just pull it back, temporarily, and we don't know if it is going to come back at all. it all depends on how we do with the population. i would say we are getting stronger and stronger. we had a five-month slow burn of covid cases, and i am hoping that will protect many of us from a winter onslaught. kristen: do we still have to isolate for five days if we have covid and then we come out, wear a mass for five more days? dr. hong: that is a very good question, kristen. many parts of the world are not isolating any market i was talking to a colleague from denmark a couple of days ago, and i know this to be true in south africa, other countries as well. you go to work when you are feeling well, you stay home when you are sick. but i think we have not made that move yet in the united

states for it i think, you know, chasing infections is probably going to be very challenging, but we have to kind of think and step back to whether or not, you know, it is a public health benefit to really isolate everyone at all times if you're positive. kristen: i wonder if you really think this is a problem from a public policy standpoint, because having to isolate now i that covid is way more serious than a cold or flu, but if it is, then why no mask or vaccine requirements anymore? i'm not saying how i feel one way or the other, but i am scenes an inconsistent messaging here, right? dr. chin-hong: i think in the united states, such a heterogeneous response to, you know, fight vaccinations, like other areas that may keep households operating. that might have driven some of the mixed, you know, management strategies.

if we all did the same thing, it might have been easier to implement something as more, you know,, but i think it is because of them more mixed response, and also, you know, in the shape of changing things, changing science, you're going to have, like, policy at odds with each other sometimes. kristen: sometimes or a lot of times. [laughs] dr. chin hong, i want to ask about new strains that is making xbb, that new variant getting more notice and asia right now can should we care about cases? dr. chin-hong: when i hear about the news, i asked three questions -- is it more transmissible, is a vaccine or a vases, and doesn't cause more serious disease? we do not really know for sure any of these answers yet for xbb, andy x is they took two

random covid variants and made a progeny. that is what the x stands for. in singapore, it caused more than a five-fold increase in cases, but has not really been seen in large numbers outside of that country. it has been here or there in a smattering of other countries, indiana has xbb.1, in the united states, but not a lot of action with xbb. it may look the scariest of all in the lab, but until it gets into the fuel of life, we don't really know how it is going to be with the other variants going around right now. kristen: speaking of scary, hearing about a new strain created in a boston university lab, allegedly more lethal, at least to the lab mice, but there are a lot of inaccuracies on that one. tell us what it is all about. dr. chin-hong: in the boston university lab, what they did was they were trying to look at

properties, the enterovirus, which is the genome, and the altera virus, which is a spike protein, and they took the spike of omicron and the inside of delta, which we know cause a serious disease and found that it -- it killed 80% of mice. so they put that out in a paper, and i think it got a lot of people concerned, because it was almost like you are making a lethal weapon, sodas. they did not do it intentionally, but they were just reporting what the finding of this was in the lab. so that is what the factor, the interpretation goes beyond that, which is, you know, should we, as a society, be making these sort of hybrid variants intentionally, if they do cause more damage? kristen: that is a half-hour show in itself. we have to move on to it i want to talk about the bivalent

booster. 8% who are eligible have gotten it. some doctors say it is not necessary, right? if you have had the booster or a covid infection earlier this year, likely omicron. do you think it is reasonable to say your body has seen it and would know how to fight it and you do not need another shot? dr. chin-hong: it depends on what our outcome is, what our goal post is. i think, for me, the biggest message for everyone as you are over 65, if you are immune compromised, and if you're pregnant, i should run out and get it, because i want to protect my fetus, because we cannot actually under six month, and i'm going to protect the other two groups from dying. for everybody else, it is just a matter of, you know, if you want to top off the antibodies so you don't miss thanksgiving or that trip across the country or internationally, or if you wanted to go to an office party, or maybe some people don't want to go to the office party. kristen: right. can people get the flu shot and

covid booster at the same time, for convenience? or are there reasons not to, like maybe it will make you feel doubly bad, if someone is prone to side effects? dr. chin-hong: i got them at the same time did i got the covid booster in my dominant arm, my right arm, and i got the flu shot in my left, because flu gives a little bit more symptoms i would say i was a little bit tired the next day, but i was still able to work. for me, it was all about convenience, and the line was short, and, you know, that is what was important to me. if somebody can space them out and they are sure they're going to go and get it come it might be better for some people. kristen: two quick news items, one is about using here trading products-- hair-straightening products and whether it causes cancer, and if colonoscopies work. dr. chin-hong: they found that in a study of about 40,000 people around the united states,

if you use hair-straightening products more than four times in the last year, you have a doubling risk of uterine cancer or cancer of the uterus. it is not coming out of the blue. these compounds and some of these products can disrupt hormones, suppress the human system, and maybe change the vessel, so it may promote cancer. it was kind of like a signal, and it does support, the signal was impressed and air -- in breast and ovarian cancer is welded whether you need to go ahead and change your behaviors, i'm not sure i would be moved by the study, but it would probably lead to other studies in the future. kristen: all right, dr. peter chin-hong, thank you so much. dr. chin-hong: thanks, kristen. kristen: what are the big races in california, and water issues that matter most right now?

abc 7 news

kristen: new polls show democrats are facing strong headwinds with three weeks left before the midterm elections. republicans have a clear edge in the house and maybe the senate as well. theoretically, at least half the population should be fired up. pres. biden: the only sure way to stop these extremist laws, that are putting in jeopardy women's health and rights, is for congress to pass a law. and i have said before, the court got roe right nearly 50 years ago, and i believe congress should codify row once and for all. [applause] kristen: but is the abortion issue that important to voters?

a new "new york times"" poll is very eye-opening. here talk about that and more is abc 7 news political reporter rick klein. eric, who -- eric swalwell shows an ad showing police to arrest a woman come a mom, for having an abortion, in front of a family. it looks like a scene out of "handmaid's tale." what is democrats' play here? rick: we are seeing a lot of emphasis on the issue. this is an issue where americans -- democrats believe americans are on their side you democrats largely believe there should be a right to choose, at least under some circumstances. the eradication of that right due to the overturning of roe v. wade is quite controversial. what to do in those states become the very light issue. i think president biden is outlining today and answer, which is basically a lot more

democrats. he would have the democrats hold the house and the senate to be able to change the rules. that is very unlikely to happen, i think he knows it, but really the strategy to try to campaign on this as much as possible, because the status quo, as long as there is a narrow advantage in the house and very narrow in the senate, things are not going to change them and roe v. wade is now gone, and abortion rights will be decided state-by-state. kristen: a "new york times" poll suggests abortion may not be top of mind, a key issue, not even close. let's take a look at that and walk us through what issues are actually driving voters decisions good we have a graphic here i think. rick: you see the pocketbook issues, the economy, inflation, this is exactly what the issue is, the democrats have to overcome. it is not like they don't have them on their site on abortion, even on aspects of the economy, that this is a top of mind

issue. and making it into a voting issue and the focus of democrats, there is a sense among many that the white hot anger has sizzled in the wake of the decision overturning roe has dissipated. most people are not trying to get an abortion everyday, but they are seeing and impact of high prices every day as they go about their lives. kristen: yeah, they get gas, they by milk. when comes to the economy, which party do voters trust more? rick: republicans have an edge on that. there is blame on democrats on runaway inflation, whether it is warranted or not. there is a distinct message on the economy that democrats are trying to overcome. that is a big issue, and it is not that every election is about the economy, but that is kind of a default, that, all things being equal, running in a very difficult economic climate is extremely hard. kristen: no doubt.

another surprising finding in this poll, many americans worry that our democracy is falling apart, but a good percentage is open to voting for anti-democratic candidates anyway, as in candidates who deny the 2020 election results. tell us about that. rick: yeah, i mean, it is striking. democrats pretty firmly have the public on their side. this tells me people are not thinking about it as a top of mind issue. people may vote on anything they wanted it may seem difficult how someone who throws the democratic party, people prioritize other issues and say yeah, what happened last time, a may not agree with what happen january 6, but there are other ways i live my life, and it is what it is, and people, again, they get to choose based on what issues they care about. kristen: california has 53 representatives in the house. i believe 11 are currently

republicans. do you expect any of those seats to change hands, and if so, where of those places? i don't rick: rick: think in the bay area. i think unlikely in the bay area. redistrict and always creates some turmoil. there are always opportunities. looking at orange county, that is when it is always targeted. democrats would like to unseat young kim, who is one of the surprise recruits last time around you can not talk about and not talk california, because it is such a big delegation. you've only got a five-seat majority with the democrats now, and every one of those seats matters. kristen: the democrat party is actually putting a lot of weight on the california raisins for what can democrats do, ultimately, to fight? -- california races. what can democrats do, ultimately, to fight? rick: when you look at

candidates by race, you start to see some opportunities for democrats to hold on. really they are still in the conversation at all. a lot of people came into the year thinking the democrats almost certainly would lose. that is the history. tack onto that inflation and the president's low approval rating, and there may be some hope. kristen: speaking of the senate, the one everyone is watching very closely in georgia, raphael warnock versus herschel walker, the republican, tried to challenge him for the seat. really interesting here, because a lot has come out about walker, including that he pay for an abortion commit a course his public stance is staunchly antiabortion diver interviews from voters who say, "i really don't care. it doesn't matter what else comes out, because it is only about the control of the senate, and that is it." rick, my question is, are we now in an era where we are not

voting for the individual who would occupy the office and what he or she would stand for or bring to the table, or are we only in this era now adjust, you know, i'm voting for my party, and that is that? rick: again, people can make a decision based on anything they want, and we have heard that from a lot of voters do nothing herschel walker will lose some support over this, and whether he will be able to maintain that and win the election or not is an open question. bottom line, a lot of voters see the environment and say, i don't care what you did in the past can i really don't care about your personal life, what i care about is who you're going to vote or and whether my party that shares my values, my values control the house with. us and is the bigger issue. . i don't know if we are there yet , necessarily. i remember georgia is one of the hoses that -- areas that may test that proposition. kristen: rick klein, fascinating as always. appreciate your time. rick: my pleasure, thank you for kristen: coming up next, da

brooke jenkins promises to get tough. what our new

kristen: one of the big problems -- promises san francisco district attorney brooke jenkins has made is getting tough on drug dealing, especially near schools. the issue is front and center in her first campaign at. d.a. jenkins: fentanyl is killing way too many san franciscans. on day one of becoming district attorney, i will work to end drug markets plaguing our city, repeal issues of those dealing fentanyl, increase punishments for those dealing drugs near our schools. kristen: what is the da actually cracking down? joining us now is michael barba, a senior reporter with our media partner "the san francisco standard." michael, thank you for joining us. michael: thank you for having me. kristen: tell us what school

zone enhancements means. michael: it basically means or prosecutors can add additional prison time to send this is for people who are convicted of dealing drugs near schools. kristen: ok, so, she announced this, and then you looked into how many cases she has actually filed, those enhanced charges could what did you find? michael: our data team took a look at her different charging decisions, and they found that the d.a., despite announcing this policy, has only filed enhancements for dealers near schools on two occasions. kristen: two? ok, where there missed opportunities, though, or was that all there was? michael: so that was another finding, it turns out that the police had actually made arrests near schools, during school hours, on at least 35 occasions since the school year began, and the d.a. has only filed the

school zone enhancements two times. kristen: have you talked to her office about these decisions? michael: we did ask her office about why they haven't filed these school zone enhancements more, when she is touting this in her campaign add, and what they pointed to was they really rely on the police to provide probable cause, police reports, and, you know, she said given the opportunity, they would be filing these charges. kristen: ok. look, in san francisco, you will have opinions on different sides. if jenkins charges more people for schools on drug dealing, is the thinking this would be tough on time? -- crime? michael: that is definitely her thinking for when she announced this policy, she talked a lot about disrupting the drug markets, the open air drug markets, as she calls them, but really there are experts and

critics who doubt that policies like the school zone enhancements would have an effect on drug sales. they say the best way to deter crime is to have police increase the likelihood that someone will be arrested in the first place. kristen: are there people saying there are downsides to enforce? michael: yeah, the other potential ramification is the fear that these enhancements might be applied disproportionately to people of color. there is some history with that in friends for cisco -- in san francisco, where there was an operation with police, and 37 people were arrested, and all 37 of them turned out to be black. kristen: so how was her record on this so far, compared to her predecessor, or his predecessor, george gaskell? -- george gascon? michael: he did not have these

policies, but at the same time, we found no indication that these -- that they filed the school zone enhancements during his tenure. he tried to use incarceration as a last resort, and the other thing to note is that he was da at a time when many schools were closed, during the pandemic. kristen: the city did do an issue with prosecutors. michael: that is what i was referring to earlier, there were 37 arrests, and all 37 of them were black, the people that were arrested, so that spot a lawsuit from the aclu, and that ended up resulting in a settlement agreement that i think was over $200,000. kristen: ah. michael:yeah, and ■those were similar charges to the school zone enhancements that jenkins is talking about filing, so there is some worries there that

a situation like that could be replicated again. kristen: well, there is a whole lot more in your article about this, which is now on "the san francisco standard's" website. it is a team effort. thank you so much, michael barba feud you can look at more of "the san francisco standard's" original reporting, and abc 7 will continue to bring you more stories focusing "the standard's" journalism. a reminder, you can get our live newscast, breaking weather, and more, with the streaming tv app. just search abc 7 they area and

kristen: thanks so much for joining us today for "getting

answers". we will be here every weekday at 3:00, "getting answers" for y tonight, the deadly plane crash right into a car dealership. the verdicts just in in the case of kristen smart. tonight, a son and father and what the jury's decided. and across the u.s. tonight, frost and freeze warnings for 90 million americans. 24 states under alert tonight from texas to the northeast. wind chills plunging up and down the east coast. record cold in some places. more than a foot of snow in parts of michigan and wisconsin. rob marciano is standing by. also tonight, that deadly plane crash in ohio, crashing into a car dealership after vanishing from radar 30 minutes after takeoff. gio benitez at the scene. the verdicts just in tonight for that son and father in a case that made national headlines. college student kristen smart disappeared in 1996. >> years later, that son and father charged.

the verdicts now in.