L.A. County Likely To Remain Under Stay-At-Home Order Through July; Fauci's Blunt Warning; Trump Declares The U.S. Has Prevailed With Testing; Fauci: U.S. Death Toll "Almost Certainly Higher" Than Reported
JAKE TAPPER, CNN HOST: All right, Matthew Chance, thank you so much. Appreciate it. Our coverage on CNN continues right now. Thanks for watching. Stay healthy.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is CNN Breaking News.</s>WOLF BLITZER, CNN HOST: Welcome to our viewers here in the United States and around the world. I'm Wolf Blitzer in THE SITUATION ROOM. We're following breaking news. Residents of the nation's largest county are likely looking at months more at home. The Los Angeles County health director just said she expects the stay-at-home order covering the county's 10 million people to be extended through July. Also breaking right now, the U.S. death toll from the coronavirus pandemic now approaching 82,000 people with more than 1.3 million confirmed cases. The U.S. now counts for more than one quarter of the world's 4.2 million cases and almost 300,000 people have died worldwide. Meanwhile, a blunt warning from a top U.S. health official that stands in stark contrast from what we're hearing from President Trump. Dr. Anthony Fauci telling senators that ignoring guidelines on reopening creates the real risk of what he calls an outbreak that you will not be able to control, direct quote. And he's urging more testing, despite President Trump's claim that the U.S. has, once again, I'm quoting the president, prevailed when it comes to testing. Let's get some more on all the breaking news. First, out of Los Angeles, our National Correspondent Erica Hill joins us. Erica, 10 million residents of Los Angeles County. They're probably looking at months more at home.</s>ERICA HILL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: That's right, that's what we heard from the county public health director. What she said really coincided with what we heard from Dr. Anthony Fauci today, his concerns about moving too quickly, about possibly triggering a spike. The public health director saying that her hope has always been that by using data, they could lift restrictions slowly over the next three months. Today, Wolf, she said very simply there is no way.</s>HILL (voice-over): An experiment in real time, as experts urge caution.</s>DR. ANTHONY FAUCI, DIRECTOR, NIAID: I think we're going in the right direction. But the right direction does not mean we have by any means total control of this outbreak.</s>HILL: Retail stores opening their doors in Ohio today.</s>RANDY BENEDICT, GENERAL MANAGER, SECOND SOLE: We are going to stick to a strict two to one. If we have an employee, we can have two customers.</s>HILL: As more restaurants adapt.</s>JOHN HORN, OWNER, ANNA MARIE OYSTER BAR: We really felt we needed one more week to let people stay at home and not quite rush into it.</s>HILL: Beaches in Los Angeles County set to reopen Wednesday. For exercise only. As the county's public health director warns other stay-at-home orders will likely be in place for the next three months. Broadway's iconic theaters won't be back before at least September 6, as the CDC reports there could be as many as 5,000 additional deaths in hard-hit New York City. The mayor warning any reopening is still weeks away.</s>MAYOR BILL DE BLASIO (D), NEW YORK CITY: In the beginning of June, that will be the first chance we get to start to do something differently. But only if the indicators show us that. Only if they show that we've reached the kind of consistent progress we need.</s>HILL: That progress includes a steady decline in cases. Part of the White House's own guidance which no state appears to have met. Alabama, Texas, and South Dakota among those seeing an uptick. In Georgia, one of the earliest states to reopen, cases remain steady. With nearly every state scheduled to be partially open by the end of the week, Americans are not convinced officials have the virus under control. More than half say the government is doing a poor job preventing the spread, according to a new CNN poll. While 52 percent believe the worst is still to come.</s>MICHAEL OSTERHOLM, DIRECTOR, CENTER FOR INFECTIOUS DISEASE RESEARCH AND POLICY: I think we're only literally in that very, very early inning of this. And what's really concerning to me is we're not planning for what could be a large wave of cases.</s>FAUCI: There is a real risk that you will trigger an outbreak that you may not be able to control.</s>HILL: The union representing many workers at the nation's meat processing plants says 10,000 members have been infected or exposed to the virus. At least 30 have died. Outbreaks and deaths at nursing homes and long-term care facilities also a major source of concern. Dr. Anthony Fauci noting Tuesday the number of U.S. deaths may be far higher than the 80,000 plus reported. And while September may feel like a lifetime away, there is pressure for answers about school this fall. Dr. Fauci warning there is not a single solution and there also won't be a vaccine in time.</s>FAUCI: The idea of having treatments available, or a vaccine, to facilitate the reentry of students into the fall term, would be something that would be a bit of a bridge too far.</s>HILL: Meantime, Disney now accepting July reservations for its theme parks, as baseball prepares for a shortened season with fans cheering from home.</s>HILL: There was some pressure on officials at the hearing, Wolf, for direction from the CDC. Senator Chris Murphy of Connecticut actually pressing CDC Director Robert Redfield saying are we going to get this guidance or not, my state is getting ready to reopen, I'd like to have the information. And Dr. Redfield basically making it clear, it will likely not be there in time for Connecticut at least, which is one of the last states until to set to reopen.</s>BLITZER: We'll speak to the governor of Connecticut shortly. All right, Erica Hill, thank you so much. Let's go to the White House right now, our chief White House correspondent Jim Acosta is on the scene, as he always is. Jim, some really stark testimony today by Dr. Fauci and other top health officials.</s>JIM ACOSTA, CNN CHIEF WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Wolf, president trump's rosy assessments about the pandemic were put under the microscope during that Senate hearing top administration health expert, Dr. Anthony Fauci, warned senators not to reopen schools in the U.S. too quickly. And even one of the president's fellow Republicans, Mitt Romney, tore into Mr. Trump's misleading statement that the U.S. is leading the world in testing.</s>FAUCI: Thank you very much Mr. Chairman.</s>ACOSTA (voice-over): Testifying remotely at a rare Senate hearing on the coronavirus pandemic, Dr. Anthony Fauci warned the health crisis in the U.S. could be worse than what's already known. Telling senators the actual number of deaths may be higher than current estimates.</s>FAUCI: I think you are correct that the number is likely higher. I don't know exactly what percent higher. But almost certainly it's higher.</s>ACOSTA: Fauci and other health officials were grilled about some of President Trump's questionable comments about the virus. Ahead of the hearing the president twitted, our testing is the best in the word by far. But that's not true. Some of the latest data show the U.S. still lags behind other countries in testing. The administration has frequently compared the U.S. to South Korea, even though the two countries are far apart in deaths. A glaring contrast noted by GOP Senator Mitt Romney.</s>SEN. MITT ROMNEY (R-UT): I find our testing record nothing to celebrate whatsoever. The fact is, their test numbers are going down, down, down, now, because they don't have the kind of outbreak we have, ours are going up, up, up.</s>ACOSTA: A clash over reopening schools, Republican Senator Rand Paul echoed complaints from Trump supporters that Fauci has been too cautious. Fauci fired right back.</s>SEN. RAND PAUL (R-KY): I don't think you're the end-all, i don't think you're the one person that gets to make the decision.</s>FAUCI: I have never made myself out to be the end-all and only voice in this. I'm a scientist, a physician, and a public health official. I think we better be careful if we are not cavalier in thinking that children are completely immune to the deleterious effects.</s>ACOSTA: As the White House and some Republicans are clamoring for states to reopen, Vice President Mike Pence was spotted outside the West Wing, wearing a mask. Unlike last week, White House staffers could be seen in masks too. Pence is keeping his distance from Mr. Trump, officials say, as a precaution after the vice president's press secretary tested positive for the virus.</s>KAYLEIGH MCENANY, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: The vice president has made the choice to keep his distance for a few days, and I would just note that that's his personal decision to do that, as to how many days he does it.</s>ACOSTA: A new CNN poll shows a sizable majority of Americans don't approve of the president's handling of the virus, a measurable spike over the last two months. So the president is trying to distract the public from his record, taking credit for the positive poll numbers from many governors tweeting, Remember this, every governor who has sky high approval on their handling of the coronavirus, and I am happy for them all, could in no way I have gotten those numbers or had that success without me and the federal government's help. The president is tossing out new bright shiny objects, coining the term "Obama-gate," to suggest former President Barack Obama somehow committed a crime even as Mr. Trump won't say what it is or produce any evidence.</s>UNDENTIFIED MALE: What is the crime exactly you're accusing him of?</s>DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: You know what the crime is. The crime is obvious to everybody. All you have to do is read the newspapers, except yours.</s>ACOSTA: Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell complained about Obama's criticism of the president.</s>SEN. MITCH MCCONNELL (R-KY): I think President Obama should have kept his mouth shut.</s>ACOSTA: Now, White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany was not wearing a mask during her briefing with reporters earlier in the day. She said she took off her mask as she felt she was a safe distance away from reporters in the room. We should note nearly all of the journalists were wearing a mask during that briefing. And as for Senator Paul telling Fauci he is not the end-all, be-all on the pandemic, it should be noted the press secretary frequently cited the doctor and his expertise during his briefing. Wolf.</s>BLITZER: As she should, indeed, because he is Dr. Fauci, a national treasure, we've said it many times and we continue to say that. All right, thanks very much for that, Jim Acosta at the White House. Joining us now, the Governor of Connecticut, Ned Lamont. Governor, thank you so much for joining us. The headline we're having this hour some residents in Los Angeles will probably remain under at least some form of stay-at-home order for the next three months. Your stay-at-home order in Connecticut expires, I understand, next week on May 20th. Are you considering, governor, a partially extension of two or three months like they seem to be doing in Los Angeles, at least now?</s>GOV. NED LAMONT (D-CT): No, we followed Dr. Fauci's guidelines very closely in terms the downward trend in hospitalizations, upward trend in our testing, making sure we're doing track and tracing in a very serious way. We're going to have a very limited open on May 20. And I think we can handle it and handle it responsibly.</s>BLITZER: The Connecticut Senator Chris Murphy, a man you know well, had some rather tough questions for the CDC director about the lack of specific guidance on reopening from the CDC. In fact Senator Murphy called the guidance given out so far in his words, criminally vague. From your perspective as governor, does Connecticut have all the support and information you need from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention?</s>LAMONT: Well, Wolf, as soon as I heard there was some CDC guidance that the White House yanked back, I really scoured to see how we could get ahold of that guidance so he could see what they had to say. So we did get ahold of that guidance. But more importantly, I've got a business and scientific team that's put together guidance, store by store, business by business, so they know how to open safely.</s>BLITZER: The administration hasn't released that guidance publicly yet although it's available, it's been leaked, obviously. Do you have any reason to believe that the White House is deliberately suppressing that guidance as Senator Murphy suggested?</s>LAMONT: I have no idea why they suppressed it. You know, it was tripped. It really took the seriousness of covid to heart and made sure we open in a serious way. And I don't know why the White House would wanted to discourage us getting that information.</s>BLITZER: All right. So just bottom line on this point that you're satisfied what you're hearing from the CDC, the guidance you're getting?</s>LAMONT: Look, it was limited, it was not specific at all when it became to businesses. We did that ourselves. It was quite specific when it came to religious services, worship services, that was sort of interesting, discouraging singing because that spreads germs. So, it was specific where they wanted to be specific.</s>BLITZER: Dr. Fauci reiterated his warning that reopening too soon will risk triggering an outbreak that states won't be able to control. What metrics will you monitor to make sure that doesn't happen in Connecticut?</s>LAMONT: We're going to have extensive testing, number one. And number two, hospital utilization. Right now we have about 40 percent of our beds empty. So we have capacity to take a hit. But we're going to do that in a very careful way to make sure we always have the hospital capacity we need to keep everybody safe.</s>BLITZER: Admiral Giroir from the Department of Health and Human Services says, he said that he believes the United States will have 40 to 50 million tests per month by the fall. Are you confident that you'll have enough testing and contact tracing in place by the fall to reopen schools in Connecticut?</s>LAMONT: I am, Wolf. We're going to test everybody going back to college, especially those people in residence hall. We're thinking about selective testing how you do a K-12 as well. We're testing everybody going into the factory floor at electric boat on a regular basis. We're doing everything we can to keep people safe and see if we can cautiously get our economy moving again.</s>BLITZER: Thank you so much, governor, for joining us. I know these are really difficult life and death decisions you have to make. We're grateful to you for joining us. We appreciate it very much.</s>LAMONT: Thanks, Wolf.</s>BLITZER: Up next, more on Dr. Fauci's blunt warning in sharp contrast to claims by President Trump. Plus we'll have more on the breaking news, Los Angeles County now expected to extend its stay-at-home order through July.