after a month-long battle with covid phil valentine is now dead. joining me is dr. chris purchase nell, a public health physician, and mara gay, a member of "the new york times" editorial board. i have to go to you first, dr. burnell, as a physician and someone who lost your dad unfortunately to covid. when you hear stories like that of phil valentine and another guy, dig farrell, a conservative radio host, his friends and family at the end said he urged people to get the vaccinate but it was too late for him, too late for phil valentine. when you hear those stories, how does it hit you? >> joy, it is heartbreaking. i don't want to see anyone lose their life, especially to something that's preventable at this point. look, when i lost my father back on april 13th, 2020, we weren't here. we didn't have these vaccines available to the public. there was so much we still didn't know about coronavirus and my father still does not have to be another person's story. this not only breaks my heart but it puts a fire in my belly to shame on politicians and public officials who

and now i am sorry to report that phil valentine has died.eventually express regret at questioning the vaccine, but that came too late. and these news headlines this weekend are all about this one example, this one life lost too soon after battling covid-19. that brings me to this stage now and donald trump who was at a rally in alabama last night getting cheers from the crowd, cheers that suddenly came to a halt when he touted the vaccine. >> take the vaccines, i did it, it's good, take the vaccines. that's okay, that's all right. you got your freedoms, but i happened to take the vaccine. >> you've got your freedoms, he says. it is awful to have to examine the right wing content, the crop that masquerades for news that's full of anti-vaccine rhetoric. you do it, you listen to these radio shows, you watch these television shows, and you think about the real world consequences for people like phil valentine. but i have to tell you, hosts on fox are still downplaying the vaccine, still engaging in c contrarianism, still ratcheting up the skepti

his death comes after phil valentine, another conservative radio host in tennessee and dick, a radionewsmax anchor, died of coronavirus scoffing at the need for vaccines and voicing skepticism of how effective they are. >>> joining us now is cnn political commentator s.e. cupp. given this new trend in what we're seeing, is there any chance it could change minds? because we're hearing from phil valentine's brother saying, if he could tell you now to get it, he would. >> look, you hope so. i mean, these are anecdotal examples, but you hope they are jarring enough. i think this is a bigger problem, though, with right-wing media. you know, years ago i was asked to fill in for a right-wing radio host for a couple days. i did my job. i brought my strong opinions and passion and facts and was told after, by the station owner, that was great but you aren't outraged enough. i think the industrial outrage that's taken over right-wing media is corrosive. outrage is all that matters. all of these guys you mentioned really, you know, took their characters seriously and wore their characters not j

cohen: this weekend, phil valentine, a conservative radio host in nashville, passed away. also one of the greatest football plays for the history, danton bartow, passed away. both passed from covid, both -- neither got the vaccine and both said toward the end of the life that they would encourage everyone to get the vaccine. i ask you, please get the vaccine. let america continue its activities and culture and lifestyles as we have in the past. i yield back my time. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from wisconsin seek recognition? >> i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. >> i rise to sound the alarm of bernie sanders and speaker pe pelosi's spending spree. let's not forget that earlier this year, biden and pelosi have spent trillions of dollars. speaker pelosi brought us back to washington late in august not to address the crisis in afghanistan. no. she brought us back to push through another $4.5 trilli

people are aware of the fact that one of the major conservative talk radio hosts in the country, phil valentineer the weekend. and his last wish to his family before he died was please get vaccinated, everybody. he spent months and months and months criticizing anyone's need to get the vaccine. so i can tell you right now here i am in minneapolis and we're not being hit as hard as a lot of the rest of the country and yet we don't have a pediatric intensive care bed today. covid has done this in a way that people can only understand even if you don't get covid, hope you don't have a heart attack or a car accident. hope you don't fall off of a roof today. you would be in deep trouble trying to find the deep trouble that you need. >> >> let's turn now to alabama where covid cases are spiking. vaccine ratts there remain below 50% and hospitals have run out of icu beds. let me talk to the top alabama state health officer there. the icus there are in really bad shape, can you give us a sense of what is happening in your hospitals? >> we've been really under water for a few weeks now. the number of ca

in tennessee, conservative radio host phil valentine joked about the virus this summer. nearly killed him. left his brother pleading with the public. >> ooze many people can hear my voice this morning to put politics aside and get the vaccine. >> reporter: in louisiana republican luke ledlow died of covid. he wanted the vaccine and it wasn't available. now his wife can't believe others still won't take it. >> i would have given anything. i would have given everything for that shot to be available for us. i mean, looking back now and for someone to turn it away, i just -- it's heartbreaking to me. >> reporter: still a recent poll found nearly a third of republicans insist they'll never take the vaccine. even as other people like travis campbell who didn't get around to getting the shot is also begging from his hospital bed for everyone to ge t it. some republican leaders are slowly embracing the idea of vaccines but generally they're lukewarm. many remain white hot about the closing mask mandates, social distancing, and any idea that vaccines should be required. even as t

his death came just a week after tennessee-based radio host phil valentine, another prominent vaccine critic, died of covid-19. his brother said that he said from his deathbed that people should be vaccinated. thousands marched in washington, d.c., and in cities across the country saturday, the 58th anniversary of the march on washington, to demand the protection of voting rights. demonstrators called out the onslaught of voter suppression bills around the country and called on lawmakers to end the filibuster to protect voting at the federal level. latosha brown, co-founder of black voters matter, spoke at the make good trouble rally in front of the lincoln memorial. >> jt a moment press to say how are we going t protest? this is a moment press to really think about how are we going to transform this nation and the transformation starts with us. where we decide that all human beings deserve to be treated with dignity and respect. amy: in southern yemen, at least 30 soldiers were killed and 60 others injured sunday after houthi rebels fired missiles from a drone at a saudi-led coalitio

. >> we got the news overnight that conservative radio host phil valentine had passed away from coviden he changed his mind on all of this after he got seriously ill. his family said his hope was to get back on air and be more pro vaccine but never got that chance. it's just awful that he passed away. what is your reaction to that? it's just such a terrible price to pay. >> yeah, i was very sorry to see that. about six, seven months ago he said on his show that, first of all, he thought it was very un unlikely that he could get the coronavirus. that was sadly very wrong. he thought even if he got it he was healthy. he should have no problem beating it. but he was 61 years old. and he was in an at-risk group. and what i'm saying now is that if you are unvaccinated now, you will get the coronavirus. it's just a matter of time. and if you are in an older age group, the way mr. valentine was, you are at a substantial risk of dying. so i was very sorry to see him die, but it's it's terribly surprising. >> it's just so sad. there's a moment from trump's rally last night where he started tal

in tennessee, conservative radio host phil valentine joked about the virus this summer.early killed him and left his brother pleading with the public. >> we want as many people as can hear my voice this morning to put the politics aside and go get the vaccine. >> reporter: in louisiana, republican luke letlow died in december weeks before he was to be sworn into congress. he wanted the vaccine, it wasn't available. now his wife, elected to fill his seat, can't believe others still won't take it. >> i would have given anything. i would have given everything for that shot to be available for us. i mean looking back now and for someone to turn it away, i just -- it's heartbreaking to me. >> reporter: still, a recent poll found nearly a third of republicans insist they will never take the vaccine, even as other people bike travis campbell, who just didn't get around to getting the shot, is also begging from his hospital bed for everyone to get onboard. >> please, if you really want to have a chance, don't follow all the tv personalities and social media. just protect yoursel

. >> associated press reported that talk radio host phil valentine currently hospitalized with covid-aking it one issue that's emerging is people finding an orthodox ways of obtaining this truck. some people have been getting. >> doses from veterinarians couldn't believe that. and of course, the veterinary formulations on set up for human use. >> high doses of ivermectin can have serious consequences and the version used for animals is not the same as the one used for humans. so some of the side effects related to intestinal disturbance, nausea, vomiting diarrhea. but others are more serious. you can lose your sense of balance, which is not very good and on occasion. it's actually coma and they've been some people who've died right now the vaccine is the best preventative tool you have against covid-19. >> in the north. a sonoma county will require proof of vaccination or weekly covid testing for all law enforcement and emergency medical service workers this policy will go into effect on september. 1st the county board of supervisors say they'll consider extending the requirement to a

nashville host phil valentine also died. he was 61.vaxman." dick farrell, florida-based talk radio host, passed away from coronavirus earlier this month. in july he promoted distrust in the vaccine, calling it bullshid with a "d." the virus does not care about your political beliefs. get vaccinated. it could save your life. >>> next, a 20-year war ending today. the final military plane in afghanistan taking off a minute before midnight afghanistan time. cancel. i haven't left the house in a year. nothing will stop me from vacation. no canceling. flexible cancellation. kayak. search one and done. - that moment you walk in the office and people are wearing the same gear, you feel a sense of connectedness and belonging right away. and our shirts from custom ink help bring us together. - [narrator] custom ink has hundreds of products to help you feel connected. upload your logo or start your design today at customink.com you need an ecolab scientific clean here. and here. which is why the scientific expertise that helps operating rooms sta

nashville-based host phil valentine also died from the virus last week. he was 61.vaccinated, parroting the beatles tax man, changing it to vax man. in a statement after his hospitalization, valentine's radio station urged people to get vaccinated. and dick farrell, a florida-based talk radio host passed away from coronavirus earlier this month. in july, a facebook post promoted distrust in the vaccine calling it bull shid with a "d." do not wait until it's too late, everyone because the virus does not care about your political beliefs. get vaccinated. it could save your life. >>> next, a 20-year war ending today. the final military plane in afghanistan taking off a minute before midnight afghanistan time. [tv announcer] come on down to our appliance superstore where we've got the best deals on refrigerators, microwaves, gas ranges and grills. and if you're looking for... at carvana, we treat every customer like we would treat our own moms, with care and respect. to us, the little things are the big things. which is why we do everything in our power to make buying a

on "new day" we spoke to the brother of right wing radio host phil valentine still battling covid inn icu. lesser known true believers like 34-year-old steve harmon proudly posting about his refusal to get the vaccine from the hospital and died days later. the anti-maskers and anti-vaxxers recognized reality only when covid came calling for them and even then it's sometimes not must have. the author michael lewis did reporting from florida and found that one of the local protesters watched his mother die of covid. in that moment a political opinion was challenged by a fact. one of them needed to be altered. the man called the coroner and demanded that the county change the cause of death. talking with andrew sullivan on a recent podcast, lewis tried to explain what leads to such extremes. partly the power of narrative he said, once you start telling yourself a story about the way the world is, it's much easier to shape the facts to the narrative than change the narrative. it's the power of us against them. in a world where people are starved for a sense of belonging. where politics h

phil valentine was only 61 years old. anti-vaxx rally just days after his wife died. johansson and his wife had chronicled her battle with covid on facebook, writing posts such as quote, it's absolutely horrible to be alone, shortly before she died. the bangor news reports neither the republican lawmaker or his late wife got the vaccine. that's the thing we've heard and i've heard from friends of mine that didn't get the vaccine and went in there, and understood when they were alone and were facing death, just the -- there's just this feeling of regret that came over them that this could have been taken care of. they didn't have to be in a position where they were about to get a ventilator put down their throat and afraid they were not going to live anymore. i think that's just -- it's just such a tragedy that all of this is so avoidable. let's go to hawaii. >> the lieutenant governor there, josh green, has become the target of anti-semitic protesters who opposed new state mandates designed to combat the surge of covid ca

. >> conservative co-host phil valentine passing away this weekend after being hospitalized with theus. his brother telling "the tennesseean," before his death, i know if he were able to tell you this, he would tell you go get vaccinated. the pfizer approval now by the fda actually gives some movement forward. for instance, the pentagon now can require members of the military to get vaccinated. those who have been fence sitting on this, a kaiser family foundation study, asked those who were thinking about it or put off by the emergency use authorization, three out of ten said once it was approved, they, too, would get vaccinated. and so we're beginning to see what some doctors believe is a significant step forward to getting more people in this country vaccinated. guys, we'll see how this goes in the coming days. >> kerry, thank you. >>> now to the crisis? afghanistan, a deadly firefight involving u.s. forces at the airport in kabul it came just hours after president biden announced emergency evacuations were accelerating while noting, quote, a lot could still go wrong. nbc's chief f