This is a rush transcript from "Fox News Sunday," July 5, 2020. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated.
MIKE EMANUEL, FOX NEW HOST: I'm Mike Emanuel, in for Chris Wallace.
The U.S. adds a record number of jobs but also sees record numbers of new coronavirus cases.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: This is the largest monthly jobs gain in history.
EMANUEL: The president takes a victory lap as the U.S. gains back millions of jobs. But his 2020 rival says it's too soon to declare victory.
JOE BIDEN, PRESUMPTIVE DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: We're still down nearly 15 million jobs, and the pandemic is getting worse, not better.
EMANUEL: Even as markets rebound and consumer confidence rises, states with hot spots are pulling back, and enhanced unemployment benefits could end within weeks. We'll talk with labor secretary and coronavirus task force member, Eugene Scalia, about whether more stimulus is needed. It's a "FOX News Sunday" exclusive.
Then --
DR. ANTHONY FAUCI, WHITE HOUSE CORONAVIRUS TASK FORCE MEMBER: The numbers speak for themselves.
EMANUEL: -- as officials warn Americans to avoid crowds this holiday weekend, four out of five states see coronavirus spikes.
We'll talk with Dr. Ashish Jha, director of the Harvard Global Health Institute, about how leaders can slow the surge and what's ahead for work and school this fall.
Plus confusion over when the president knew about reports Russia put bounties on American troops.
TRUMP: Intelligence people didn't even -- many of them didn't believe it happened at all.
EMANUEL: We'll talk live with Senator Jack Reed, top Democrat on the Armed Services Committee, about bipartisan pressure for an explanation.
And the president's fiery rhetoric on statues and cancel culture.
TRUMP: Our nation is witnessing a merciless campaign to wipe out our history.
EMANUEL: We'll ask our Sunday panel about the politics of embracing the past.
All, right now, on "FOX News Sunday".
(END VIDEOTAPE)
EMANUEL: And hello again on this Independence Day weekend from FOX News in Washington.
Americans face yet more uncertainty as the number of coronavirus infections hits new highs. Some states are pumping the brakes on reopening and many July 4th celebrations were scaled back. This comes as the Labor Department reports the U.S. added 4.8 million jobs last month and as the president heats up his rhetoric over how to frame our nation's past leaders.
In a moment, we'll talk with Labor Secretary Eugene Scalia.
But, first, Mark Meredith joins us live from the White House with the latest -- Mark.
MARK MEREDITH, FOX NEWS CORRESPONDENT: Mike, President Trump invited friends, family and first responders to the White House last night for the Fourth of July celebration while in other cities because COVID cases are surging, celebrations were canceled to help slow the spread.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MEREDITH: President Trump celebrated Independence Day by watching a dazzling flyover showcasing America's military might. But in his prepared remarks, a more somber tone.
TRUMP: We are now in the process of defeating the radical left, the Marxists, the anarchists of the agitators, the looters, and people who in many instances have absolutely no clue what they are doing.
MEREDITH: White House guests were encouraged but not required to wear masks or social distance. The speech echoed the president's fiery rhetoric a day earlier at Mount Rushmore.
While Joe Biden says Americans should embrace the debate over racial injustice.
BIDEN: It's past time to fully confront systemic racism and our growing economic inequity to deal with the denial of our nation's promise.
MEREDITH: Protests continued throughout the weekend, and in Baltimore, demonstrators toppled a statue of Christopher Columbus.
Meantime, there were plenty of fireworks on Capitol Hill last week as lawmakers demanded answers over reports Russia offered bounties to militants to target U.S. troops in Afghanistan. Democrats accused President Trump of ignoring the issue.
REP. NANCY PELOSI (D-CA), SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE: He should spend more time reading the daily presidential brief than planning military parades.
MEREDITH: The White House continues to celebrate the latest jobs report with the Labor Department reporting 4.8 million jobs added in June, a potential sign the economy is bouncing back from its pandemic lows.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MEREDITH: The president says he's open to another round of direct payments and help for small businesses, but lawmakers remain split, Mike, about how to move forward with this potential next stimulus bill -- Mike.
EMANUEL: Mark Meredith reporting from the White House -- Mark, thanks very much.
MEREDITH: You bet.
EMANUEL: Joining me now, secretary of labor and White House coronavirus task force member, Eugene Scalia.
Mr. Secretary, welcome to "FOX News Sunday."
EUGENE SCALIA, SECRETARY OF LABOR: Mike, thanks for having me.
EMANUEL: Forty percent of the job growth in June of what was a huge jobs report was in leisure and hospitality, which includes restaurants and bars, but now, in some of those COVID hot spots states, those businesses are being restricted once again.
How is that going to impact our economic growth?
SCALIA: Well, Mike, it was an extraordinary jobs report as you said. We added nearly 5 million jobs in June. Projections have been that we might add around 3 million, so we did extremely well. And across industrial sectors -- for example, we saw a really big gains in manufacturing, saw gains in construction, and we saw gains across really nearly all demographic groups. It was a terrific month.
But yes, we have new cases. We have to keep an eye on that. I believe that we can continue to reopen our workplaces safely.
Our workplaces can be very safe places today but there are precautions that the president, vice president have underscored and those do remain important. We've gotten a reminder of that over the last couple of weeks.
EMANUEL: Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell warned Congress this week that unless the viruses brought under control, the nation's economic outlook is extremely uncertain. So, while the latest jobs report was very, very strong, how much does that concern you about the future?
SCALIA: Well, yes, the Federal Reserve chair expressed some concerns, but I think it's really important to again remember how much better than projected we've done so far. Back in May, it was projected that we would lose 7.5 million jobs. Well, we've now over the last couple of months added 7.5 million jobs.
In other words, we're about 15 million ahead of what the experts that we were going to do. We're doing very well. We do need to be careful about the virus, but I am just optimistic among other reasons because USMCA went into effect last week. We finally put NAFTA to rest. This was something that was so important to the president. USMCA will be another source of stimulus, job growth to the country.
So, there will be talk as we get deeper into the month about possible additional measures but I am optimistic, as I know the president is, about how we're reopening, the success we're having right now rebuilding that really extraordinary economy that we have through February until the virus came.
EMANUEL: Last week, spending dropped, according to JPMorgan Chase, according to credit card customer data. Isn't this summer vacation season when people are supposed to be outspending, isn't that the driving force of GDP?
SCALIA: Well, overall, spending, retail spending, consumer spending generally, new home starts, all of these have been actually very encouraging economic indicators over the last about six weeks or so, so I think when you did pass the job numbers, look at other economic indicators, Mike, actually, it's encouraging on that front too.
Now, you know, that doesn't mean that we should rest content -- we know that there remain many Americans still out of work. We want to help them get back to work.
That's why the president is talking about potentially additional tax cuts. You know, it was the president's tax cuts, it was his elimination of unnecessary, burdensome regulations that delivered that amazing economy we had before the virus struck.
And so, I think additional measures around those lines do warrant discussion as we continue to move forward this month.
EMANUEL: Do you see a V-shaped recovery going into the fall, sir?
SCALIA: Those that the indications that we see. We again have just been doing so much better over the last two months now than was being projected. And -- and again, when you look at some of the more micro data, very strong indications there as well, but that said, it is going to be important, as you're noting, that people take social distancing seriously, wear masks in circumstances often where they're not able to social distance and the like.
We can reopen safely, we can reopen while the virus is still there, but it will get more challenging if people don't take that seriously.
EMANUEL: Speaking of that, on COVID-19, since you are a member of the coronavirus task force, new cases in the U.S. hit the largest single day total on Friday, 57,497. And new coronavirus cases on the rise in nearly 40 states, plus Mississippi, Tennessee, Texas, Nevada, and Arizona all sitting records for hospitalizations on Thursday.
Looking at the rising cases in these states, did they move too soon or too fast?
SCALIA: We knew that as people came out of their homes, emerged from their basements and the like, we knew that cases would go up. We are far, far better prepared to deal with those cases now than we were just a few months ago. We've got a much better understanding of how to treat the virus. We have the equipment, the hospital beds now to deal with the situation.
So, this is something that we can manage, but part of managing it, as I've been emphasizing, individual responsibility as well.
So we are positioned to deal with these challenges, but we again will have to take them seriously and the task force is certainly focused on delivering aid to these locations as the cases increase. The CDC, the Department of Health and Human Services are dispatching personnel, expertise and equipment where they're needed.
EMANUEL: In terms of economic growth, President Trump is talking about what he would like from Congress in the next COVID relief package.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
INTERVIEWER: Let me start with phase four and what might potentially come later this month. Another direct round of payments for individuals -- do support that at this time?
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I do. I support it, but it has to be done properly and I support actually larger numbers than the Democrats.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
EMANUEL: Mr. Secretary, do you expect a deal shortly after lawmakers return from Independence Day holiday?
SCALIA: I think there are going be a lot of discussions toward the end of the month about what additional -- additional measures may be needed. The president moved so swiftly and so effectively to get bipartisan relief with Congress back in March. That was those direct payments. It was the Paycheck Protection Program, which I think has been really an essential part of the recovery we're experiencing right now.
And it was also a very substantial on employment benefit that the president put in place in March. So we did a very good job I think back in March positioning ourselves for this reopening and I think the American people can be confident that the president is going to take a careful look again at what further measures may be needed now.
EMANUEL: Speaking of that, the president has also been clear about wanting a payroll tax cut. There's been resistance to that on Capitol Hill with some Republican senators being pretty blunt in saying they are not in favor.
Are you prepared to give Democrats an unemployment insurance extension to get the payroll tax cut?
SCALIA: Well, I think the payroll tax cut is -- could be an important part of, among other things, bringing Americans back to work and fueling job growth in the country. It was the tax cuts, as I mentioned, the president put in place that had a much stronger economy back in February than people were projecting, and I think that we should listen to the president's views on this as we move forward.
In terms of the unemployment benefit, it was a really important thing to do as we were shutting our economy down, Americans across the country were basically being told -- and we needed to take measures, but they were basically being told you can't go to work right now.
And so, we needed that substantial unemployment benefit. But, you know, there are some states where you can get on an annual basis, $75,000 a year right now on unemployment. And I think as we reopen the economy, I don't know that we need a benefit like that.
During the so-called Great Recession 10, 12 years ago when we had a downturn, the added federal unemployment benefit was $25 a week. And what we did in the CARES Act was $600 a week.
So, I think this is something we'll get a look at, but I don't think we need that $600 benefit going forward.
EMANUEL: Mr. Secretary, finally, I ask this with great sensitivity since I missed my own father every day. The president has spoken this weekend defending statues in this country, including announcing he'd like to include a statue of your late father, Justice Antonin Scalia, in the new National Garden. What would that mean to your family, sir?
SCALIA: Well, it's -- it would mean a lot. I -- I didn't see that one coming, Mike, and it was really touching to hear.
I hope it would mean a lot to the American people, too. We need heroes. We need to admire our forbearers and recognize what is great and good in our past.
And that is what the president is emphasizing right now.
As we were reminded yesterday, we are nation conceived in liberty and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal. No other nation can claim such an inspiring founding, so many great forbearers, and I certainly was touched to hear my father included on the kind of a list.
EMANUEL: Mr. Secretary, thank you. Thanks for your time on this holiday weekend. Please come back.
SCALIA: OK. Thanks so much, Mike.
EMANUEL: Up next, states face tough choices as coronavirus cases increase across the country. We'll bring in a global public health expert to discuss what leaders can do to slow the surge next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
EMANUEL: This week, the U.S. hit a record for a single day spike in new COVID-19 cases leading into the Fourth of July. Even as many Americans dialed back their holiday plans, health officials are eyeing trends as we head into the fall and as states continue to reopen.
Joining me now, the Director of the Harvard Global Health Institute, Dr. Ashish Jha.
Dr. Jha, welcome to "FOX News Sunday".
DR. ASHISH JHA, DIRECTOR, HARVARD GLOBAL HEALTH INSTITUTE: Thanks for having me on. Good morning.
EMANUEL: Doctor, at least 20 states set record highs for average of new cases over seven days with Florida, Texas, California, Arizona, Georgia, and North Carolina tallying the highest number of new infections. Where are we in this COVID-19 fight and how do you explain the surge in new patients?
JHA: Yes, so we're -- we're in a pretty tough spot right now. We have large outbreaks happening in large parts of our country. About two-thirds of the country is seeing increases in cases and we got here, Mike, because of a couple of reasons.
One is I think we opened up a little too early in some places. A lot of states didn't meet the White House's own guidelines for when to open up safely. We didn't have the kind of testing and tracing infrastructure that we needed. And then last but not least, there's been a lot of mixed messaging on masks and social distancing and so all that has contributed to what I think is a perilous moment for our country.
EMANUEL: According to The New York Times, new cases over the past 14 days are up 89 percent, while people dying is down 19 percent. Doctor, is that what you're seeing and how do you explain it?
JHA: Yes, so what we know and this all -- first of all, it's always good news to see fewer people dying, right, and there are a couple of things that explain this.
First of all, death is always a lagging indicator. By the time -- between the time somebody gets infected and takes a couple weeks before they get hospitalized and get really sick and another week or 10 days before they die. So death comes later. And I think a few things explain this.
One is we are seeing increases in hospitalizations, so I worry that we are going to see an increase in deaths. Second is we're getting better at treating the disease. So we may have somebody who spends two or three weeks in the ICU and walks out, they're still going to be pretty sick with a lot of suffering but they're less likely to die.
So I think it's a bunch of factors. Of course, the third is a younger population, which we know is less likely to die from this disease. So a combination of age, better treatment and the lagging indicator.
EMANUEL: Any signs of COVID-19 weakening perhaps?
JHA: There's a lot -- there's always talk about mutations and is a strain getting more virulent, less virulent, so far not really. No evidence that the virus is getting any less lethal. Thankfully no evidence it's getting any more lethal. But I do think doctors and nurses are getting better at treating it and we're getting some new therapies and that's helping.
EMANUEL: Dr. Anthony Fauci painted a pretty dire picture this week on Capitol Hill.
(BEGIN CLIP)
DR. ANTHONY FAUCI, NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY AND INFECTIOUS DISEASES: We are now having 40 plus thousand new cases a day. I would not be surprised if we go up to 100,000 a day if this does not turn around. And so I am very concerned.
(END CLIP)
EMANUEL: Doctor, do you think it's that bad?
JHA: Mike, you know, when he said that last week we were at about 40,000 per day, we are in the 50s now and heading in the wrong direction. So are we going to get to 100,000? It depends on us, right?
If we act smartly, and we know what to do to prevent that -- if we do those things, yes, I think we can avoid it, but if we don't and kind of let this go the way we're going, I think 100,000 is entirely possible and that's what we have to avoid.
EMANUEL: Stunning. In places where there are spikes, do you think they have to close down again?
JHA: Well, you know, look, shelter in place, shutting down the economy, should absolutely be the last thing that you want to get to. And so you want to be aggressive on this and ahead of it. I am very worried as I look at data from parts of Texas and parts of Florida and Arizona that unless they get very aggressive, I don't really see how you stop the increases in this virus.
I think some places are heading there and I think we're sounding the alarm because none of us want to go back to a shutdown. That's what we want to avoid.
EMANUEL: Looking at the images of the president out at Mount Rushmore, a spectacular venue for the Independence Day holiday, with masks optional and no social distancing. Was that a mistake?
JHA: Those are just risky things. Like any large gathering where people are not socially distancing and not wearing a mask is risky. Outdoors is better than indoors, so I was happy to see that, but my take is, the president should stick with the science here, encourage people to wear masks, you can build in a bit of social distancing. It would have made that safer.
So this is just about risk management and I'm perplexed why we're not doing the things we can do pretty easily to lower the risk.
EMANUEL: Every parent in America wants to know about schools reopening in the fall. You've talked about restricting bars, gyms, maybe even restaurants. Is that really the trade-off communities across the country must make?
JHA: Yes, look, I am deeply worried about this. I have (ph) three kids who go to school and the last four months of them being out of school was pretty tough. I'm sure parents around the country are feeling that.
And my point on this is if you -- if we see large outbreaks happening across communities, it's going to be very hard to keep schools open. The good news is we think kids transmit less. They are certainly less likely to get sick but if I -- imagine Arizona right now. If schools were open right now, they would not be able to stay open.
So the number one task I think of governors around the country is get the virus under control or we're going to have schools shut down for many, many months this fall. And, obviously, none of us want that that.
EMANUEL: What does school in the fall look like for much of the country? Are children of all ages going to be wearing masks all day? Is it realistic for first and second graders to keep a mask on all day? And how are teachers and students going to understand each other with masks on their faces?
JHA: Yes, so that's a great question. Obviously schools range from kindergarten all the way through seniors in high school who are essentially adults. I think high schools, middle schools it's going to be easier, hopefully, to get kids to put on masks and keep them on. It's obviously going to get harder in elementary school.
I think we're just going to have to make some trade-offs. My take is if you're in a community without a large outbreak, with low number of cases, you can probably get away without the little ones wearing a mask. We have got to also think about the fact that it's not just kids, our teachers and staff there. You can't run a school without teachers and staff so you got to protect everybody.
It's going to be a challenge, but the single biggest thing that will help us out is if we keep the virus in the community at a low level.
EMANUEL: The question everyone I know is asking, how optimistic are you that there will be drug therapies for COVID-19 and a vaccine in the coming months?
JHA: Yes, so we've got two drugs that seem to work. They're both really for people who are pretty sick, Remdesivir and Dexamethasone. So these are for hospitalized patients who have substantial lung issues and evolvement (ph) already.
Am I optimistic we're going to get an oral therapy that you can just take when you get sick? I'm not super -- look, a lot of clinical trials going on, I would love to be wrong. But the history of antiviral therapy is not a glorious one. We just have not been able to come up with oral drugs that will work super well.
Vaccines I am very optimistic we're going to have one in early 2021. The challenge here, Mike, is that there are seven plus billion people in the world and there is going to be a race to vaccinate everybody. We're going to need billions of doses and I'm very worried about supply chains, about having enough vials and syringes and all the stuff. So I suspect spring to summer of 2021 before everybody's going to be able to get vaccinated in the United States.
EMANUEL: And how effective would a vaccine be? Do you expect a vaccine that would work with just about everybody or are we talking about a limited percentage of success?
JHA: Yes, that's a great question. Look, the good news here is we've got a ton of vaccine candidates, over 100. We've got more than a dozen in clinical trials. I'm guessing here, but my best guess is we won't have one vaccine, we'll have multiple vaccines that work.
My best guess is that we'll have -- probably China might get to it first with a vaccine later this fall, but we're also racing, the Europeans are and my hope is that we'll have a vaccine that will at least stop you from getting very sick from the virus. So you may still get a mild -- you still might get mild disease but you won't get very sick.
Also maybe the kind of vaccine where we need to get one every year. But that's fine. I get my flu shot every year. If I have to get a COVID shot every year, that's fine.
EMANUEL: Dr. Jha, thank you. Thanks for your time. Please come back.
JHA: My pleasure. Thanks for having me on.
EMANUEL: Up next, the White House faces new pressure to explain when the president was told Russians may have offered money to Afghan militants to kill U.S. troops. We will speak to the leading Democrat on the Armed Services Committee when we come back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
EMANUEL: Coming up, President Trump cast doubt on allegations that Russians put bounties on U.S. troops in Afghanistan.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: I think it's a host for the newspapers and the Democrats. If it did happen, the Russians would hear about it and anybody else would hear about it, that was involved.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
EMANUEL: We'll ask Senator Jack Reed about the intelligence and the U.S. response, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
EMANUEL: There was bipartisan outcry this week over reports rush offered bounties to Afghan militants to target U.S. troops. The administration says the intelligence is debatable. My next guest is pressing for cabinet officials to testify.
Joining us now from Rhode Island, Democratic Senator Jack Reed, a former Army Ranger and the ranking member of the Armed Services Committee.
Senator, welcome back to FOX NEWS SUNDAY.
SEN. JACK REED (D-RI): Thanks, Mike.
EMANUEL: Classified briefings at the end of this week about the possibility of Russian bounties on U.S. troops in Afghanistan. Reports are the administration is not planning to take any action in response. How concerned are you and what would you do to advise them to, you know, take action?
REED: Well, I'm very concerned. And this is based upon just the public reports. If there's credible evidence that Russia is trying to entice Afghanis to kill American servicemen, that is a serious issue. Involvement of Russia in Afghanistan with the purpose of trying to kill individuals, American soldiers, is something that can't be accepted. It should have gone to the president. He should have been aware of it. In fact, there's some indication that it was in his presidential decision brief in the early part of the year, but he did not read it or did not pay attention to it. But that's the type of information that has to be seized by the president, because he's at the intersection of all the different roads of intelligence that come together. And, also, he's the one that's talking to Putin. He's had five or six conversations with Putin. And if this is an issue at all, even if it's one you just want to warn him away from not even thinking about, that discussion might have been very useful.
EMANUEL: Republicans like your college Senator Joni Ernst of Iowa say leading Democrats, quote, had access to that same sort of information months ago, so what's the big deal?
Is this a failure across our government, sir?
REED: I -- it's not a failure across the government. The way the information is structured in terms of the presentation is first the president, as you would expect, every day gets a daily briefing, which is the most sensitive information that the intelligence community can come together. One of the things we've heard about President Trump is that he seldom reads them every day, maybe once a day, maybe once every three or four days, so there's, I think, a gap that has to be filled.
And then there's another level of information, highly classified information, that goes to the big eight. Those are the -- the ranking Democrats. But the rank and file Democrats and rank and file Republicans don't typically get access to these kinds of very, very highly sensitive reports.
EMANUEL: President Trump is threatening to veto the bipartisan National Defense Authorization Act over renaming military installations that bear confederate names. As a former Army Ranger who served it Fort Benning and Fort Bragg, what about this name issue?
REED: I think we've finally come to grips with our history and we've come to grips with it in the appropriate way. This was a bipartisan initiative. It came out of the Armed Services Committee on a bipartisan basis. It wasn't a Republican initiative or Democratic initiative. It was supported by the committee by and large with very few exceptions. And it's coming to the floor of the Senate as a bipartisan initiative.
And I think what it recognizes is that these individuals defied their country, abandoned their uniform, and fought against the United States of America. And to later on, and in many cases it was 50 or 60 years later, to name a post after these individuals does not represent what I think should be consistent with our, you know, honoring of American military heroes.
The -- the factor, I think, that is important today is when you look at a post in the United States military, it is composed of men and women, it's composed of Americans of all different races. It cannot be named, I think, for someone who basically pledged his service to a system that was based on slavery. That has to be changed. And it will. It's a three-year process. At the end of those three years, with local import, with military import, with historic input, we will have a name, I think, that is much more fitting for the institution and for the history of the country.
EMANUEL: As the ranking Democrat on the Armed Services Committee, what's the big picture impact if the president vetoes the defense authorization?
REED: It would be reckless. He would be abandoning the -- the welfare of the troops, their pay raises, their quality living, the -- the housing improvements we've made, the platforms that they need, the -- the -- literally the ammunition that they'll need. All of it for not an issue that I think is comparable and indeed an issue which is being advanced on a bipartisan basis.
This is not an example of the -- the -- the president responding to the cries of the entire country and -- and helping save us from ourselves. I mean when you have situations where the -- the assembly in the state of Mississippi chooses to recommend the elimination of the confederate battle flag, that show something about where the country is headed. And the president does not want to go and lead the country. He wants to pull them back. And that's wrong.
EMANUEL: The Supreme Court's about to wrap its term. As always, there is speculation about possible retirements. What would be the impact of one or possibly even two retirements in this political season?
REED: Well, first of all, I think a -- a justice that would retire for such a transparently political reason would have to think twice, I would hope. Second, it would be the height of hypocrisy if Mitch McConnell tried to drive a nomination through within a few months when he refused to allow Merrick Garland's nomination to come up for over a year when President Obama made the appointment.
So I think what's -- and I think the court, because it should represent -- regard its reputation as paramount, I think they would be not particularly wise if they chose to do that and nor would Senator McConnell be, I think, appropriate in trying to ram through a nomination at this point.
EMANUEL: Does President Trump have the right to fill one or more Supreme Court seats, particularly if they are conservative justices in this election year?
REED: Again, I think it looks on precedent where you have a situation where President Obama certainly had the same constitutional right as President Trump and yet the -- Leader McConnell said, no, I'm not going to let you get your nominee up. So in terms of rights and responsibilities, they're the same. But I think what we have to recognize is, you know, what's fair, what's most deserving of the American people? I don't think they want to see a slapdash nomination of a Supreme Court justice in a few weeks. And I -- again, I think the court themselves, these justices, are extraordinarily eminent personalities. They've dedicated themselves to the law. And their last act to be something of looking like a political expedience is something I don't think that would be favorably viewed by history or by -- by their colleagues.
EMANUEL: What can your side do to stop the president if he wants to go forward other than perhaps taking it to the American people, and what does that do to the already heated 2020 race?
REED: Again, there are the constitutional provisions that if a seat is vacant on the court, the president has the right to do that. The Senate considers it. That's all there. Those are the mechanics.
The reality, the substance is, this is close to an election. The American people want to go ahead and make decisions about their future, including the -- the future of their courts. And I think they should be allowed to do that.
This is about letting America speak, not letting people who are conveniently located in the process to exercise their will. Let -- this is about the Americans speaking.
EMANUEL: Senator Reed, how are you feeling about the Senate races this fall? Do you see perhaps Democrats taking back the majority in the Senate and perhaps you becoming the chairman of the Armed Services Committee?
REED: Well, I feel very good. I think we have extraordinary candidates and I think they are working very hard. And I think one of the problems that my colleagues in the Republican side, and particularly the president, is that we see a situation where the Covid virus is not being effectively dealt with. It's causing huge economic problems. So you have a combination of a pandemic and economic disarray that is affecting every American. And I think, again, people want to see common sense solutions.
And what we have seen from the White House has not been the kind of consistent, thoughtful use of the powers the president has. The powers initially to use the Defense Production Act to buy protective equipment so that all of our health care workers would be protected without excessive cost and without excessive delay. We haven't yet seen an aggressive testing program so that we can test throughout the United States so people feel confident that they know they don't have it, nor does anyone else they're likely to see.
We've got a whole issue that we have to do in terms of making sure we can go back to school in the fall. I know you're talking to the expert from Harvard Medical School. That's going to be a real, serious challenge. We have to, right now, provide more resources, I believe, for our local schools and local states so that we can get children back to school. And if you don't have kids back in school, you don't have workers back in the workplace because who is going to take care of their children? None of this is being dealt with on a comprehensive, coordinated way. And that has been the situation since the very beginning.
EMANUEL: All right.
REED: The president has tried to ignore the problem. The president dismissed it. The president went out for his Fourth of July speech, who I think there's one phrase about Covid, when, in fact, Covid is probably -- and the economy are probably the two greatest issues.
EMANUEL: Senator Reed, thank you. Thanks for your time.
REED: Thanks, Mike.
EMANUEL: Always good to speak with you. See you soon back on The Hill.
REED: Likewise. Thank you.
EMANUEL: Up next we'll bring in our Sunday group on the president's tough rhetoric over historical statues and the state of play in the 2020 campaign. We'll discuss when we come back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: There is a new, far left fascism that demands absolute allegiance if you do not speak his language, perform its rituals, recite its mantras and follow its commandments, then you will be censored, banished, blacklisted, persecuted and punished.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
EMANUEL: President Trump delivers a passionate and fiery speech Friday night, marking Independence Day at Mount Rushmore.
And it's time now for our Sunday group. Former Republican Congressman Jason Chaffetz, Susan Page of "USA Today," and Charles Hurt of "The Washington Times."
Panel, welcome.
JASON CHAFFETZ: Good morning.
CHARLES HURT, "THE WASHINGTON TIMES" AND FOX NEWS CONTRIBUTOR: Thank you.
EMANUEL: Charlie, that sounded targeted at the president's base for months ahead of Election Day. Is it effective?
HURT: I think it is because, you know, everyone is talking about try -- you know, whether the president wants to drag people back to history. It's really not about that. It's -- it's about freedom of speech. It's about the fact that people are being shut down in this environment. It's about people marauding in the streets and tearing down statues and doing it without going through any sort of legal process. And -- and people -- lawful, peaceful people sitting at home are watching this happen and -- and they have no voice. And so -- so it -- it really -- it goes much farther than just celebrating or -- or acknowledging our past, acknowledging a history. It has to do with upholding the rule of law and the concept -- the very principles and concepts that were -- were enshrined in the Constitution by these people that we choose to venerate and -- and -- and now we're watching their statues getting torn down. I think it's a very powerful thing.
EMANUEL: Susan, what about reaching the political center? Does in the president need to broaden, expand his support in the closing months?
SUSAN PAGE, WASHINGTON BUREAU CHIEF, "USA TODAY": Yes, you know, the -- I think -- I think Charlie's right, that this helps him with his base, which is so solidly for President Trump. But that does not get him to a majority of the electorate. And when we talk to voters, we find them talking not about cancel culture or the culture wars, we find them talking about Covid- 19, about the state of the economy and, to some degree, about this movement for racial justice where the majority of Americans in polls anyway tell us they feel sympathy, they are moved by these largely peaceful protests around issues like police violence. They do not see this as a battle against Marxism and anarchy.
EMANUEL: Jason, what's your take on the present going to Mount Rushmore in the middle of this statue removal controversy?
JASON CHAFFETZ, FORMER CONGRESSMAN (R-UT) AND FOX NEWS CONTRIBUTOR: Well, I know that the president went there in part because of an invitation from Governor Kristi Noem that started back in 2017. I think it was the right move.
And I've got to tell you, I think Americans are tired. I think they're fed up with having the far left tell them that everything is wrong in America, that the statues you've been looking at, the history of the America -- of America is wrong and that the flag is something you shouldn't stand and salute and -- and I -- I just think America is tired of that. And I -- I think the president standing tall for America and saluting the flag, going to Mount Rushmore, is a good and positive thing and I think it will pay dividends and I don't think that Democrats and Joe Biden have an answer to that because it is just negative, negative, negative and it's not about the future.
EMANUEL: Now there's also the effort to lay out camping strategy and define the opponent. Trump campaign manager Brad Parscale saying in a "Washington Post" op-ed, Biden wrote the 1994 crime bill. He championed China's entry to the World Trade Organization and he voted for the war in Iraq. He goes on to write, every single one of those major decisions that make up Biden's legacy contributed to the electorate's pushed back against the status quo.
Charlie, is Biden's nearly five decades of public service a liability?
HURT: I think it's -- I think it is a liability. And you have this strange dynamic where you have a sitting president who gets to run for re-election a second time as an outsider. You've got a guy like Joe Biden, who's been here for 47 -- been in Washington, been, quote/unquote, part of the problem for 47 years. It's a pretty hard thing.
And -- and to listen to Joe Biden, well, you know, one of the sort of more amusing parts of this debate about -- that troubles -- I do think troubles a lot of Americans is to listen to Joe Biden talk about how he finally wants to see America address systemic racism. Well, he had eight years in - - in -- in the administration as vice president. You mean you did nothing during eight years to address systemic racism? We're only now finally addressing it?
And then, of course, before he was in the White House, he was in Congress for 40 years. And-- and -- and this -- and so, you know, if -- if you do make the argument that there are all of these problems and that there are these systemic racism pervades every aspect of our -- our country, well, I mean, I don't know who you look to, to blame for that, but somebody who's been in Washington, part of the legislature for 40 years who was in the White House for -- for eight years.
EMANUEL: Susan, how do you assess enthusiasm? Are Democrats fired up about Joe Biden or are they just motivated to get rid of President Trump?
PAGE: Well, you know, we had a "USA Today"/Suffolk poll out this week that showed Biden with a 12-point lead. That's pretty -- a pretty muscular lead, but President Trump continued to have an edge on enthusiasm.
President Trump's supporters were more -- much more enthusiastic about voting for him than Biden's supporters were about voting for Biden. But Biden's supporters were extremely enthusiastic about this. They were enthusiastic about voting against President Trump.
So this is an election like some elections that we see with incumbents running for re-election where President Trump is defining both sides of this contest. He is the motivator both for those who are voting for him and for those who are voting for the other guy.
EMANUEL: Jason, as a former chairman in the United States Congress, where does this Russia bounty story go and if top intelligence Democrats were briefed on it in February, how big of a failure is it across our government?
CHAFFETZ: Well, I do think the administration needs to continue to provide information for Congress. Think Congress is right for asking for it. The question I have personally is, why do we still have troops in Afghanistan? I mean that -- that still bothers me, the longest war. The president promised we were going to bring those troops home. They can't kill them if they're not there.
If we have actionable intelligence, go out and take them and kill the enemy. I don't have a problem with that at all. But I -- I -- I do think that there is more information that needs to be gleaned. I think that Nancy Pelosi and others trying to blame Donald Trump, that he's too close to Putin, that is so yesterday. We had a Mueller report. There is nothing to any of those stories and it's shameful that Nancy Pelosi would try to pain then on Donald Trump. I think that was totally wrong.
EMANUEL: Susan, briefly, does this Afghanistan story have legs?
PAGE: Yes, there is no issues that unites Americans of all stripes more than protecting our troops in battle. And I think a lot of Americans, on both sides, are looking for President Trump to address this, to criticize it and to say, if it's true, how is the United States going to respond and retaliate? That is something he has not yet done.
EMANUEL: Charlie, final thought on this? Does this story go anywhere in the fall?
HURT: I have a hard time seeing that it's going to make much of a difference in terms of the election. Largely because, you know, we've sort of been through this -- this fever dream that Republic -- that Democrats have pushed for four years now about Trump and Russia. And --and -- and it's -- and it underscores the perils of -- of trying to politicize absolutely everything. There are a lot of things that we don't know about this case, but -- but one thing is for certain, there are some very damaging leaks that are coming out of the -- the -- the government based on all this stuff and -- and, you know, that's -- those are -- those are serious problems.
EMANUEL: Insight four months to Election Day promises to be a very spirited race to the finish line.
Panel, thanks very much. See you next Sunday.
CHAFFETZ: Thank you.
EMANUEL: Up next, our "Power Players of the Week." It's one of the Army's proudest and loudest units that fires those 21 gun salute for presidents. We will take you behind the scenes.
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EMANUEL: They are rarely seen, but you can certainly hear their work from miles away, members of the Artillery Unit that honors presidents and other dignitaries with remarkable precision. As Chris Wallace first told you last summer, they are our "Power Players of the Week.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SFC. JOSHUA WOOD, U.S. ARMY: The Old Guard bases itself on perfection.
SGT. DANIEL STEWART, U.S. ARMY: If we mess up, people know. So I like the fact that we tend to not do that.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Ready, (INAUDIBLE).
WALLACE: Sergeant Daniel Stewart and Sergeant First Class Joshua Wood are members of the Presidential Salute Battery.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Standby. Fire.
WALLACE: That fires cannons at all the big events in Washington, presidential inaugurations and funerals, special concerts, and visits by distinguished guests, and burials at Arlington National Cemetery.
WOOD: When you are shooting for a president, like, that's -- that's the biggest -- that's like the Super Bowl. There is no room for error. The whole world is watching you.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Ready battery.
WALLACE (voice over): We got a rare look behind the scenes --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Settle down.
WALLACE: At the extraordinary precision in everything the PSB does.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Fire.
WALLACE: There's a five-man staff and two men on each canon. The watchmen orders each fire. But in the echo of the booms, they found yelling one, two, three got lost.
STEWART: Tap (ph).
Three.
(INAUDIBLE). Step (ph). Ready (ph). Cut (ph).
WALLACE (on camera): And you do that every three seconds?
STEWART: Every three seconds. Yes, sir.
WALLACE (voice over): What if the watchman loses his voice? The PSB has a plan for that.
STEWART: Top (ph).
WOOD: (INAUDIBLE).
WALLACE (on camera): He messes up, and now who does it?
WOOD: The chief next to him.
WALLACE: Because there's no room for error?
WOOD: There's not.
WALLACE (voice over): They guns are M-5 anti-tank canons from World War II, that saw action from North Africa to the Battle of the Bulge.
Three teams are usually assigned to a ceremony. But if there's a misfire, there's a backup unit just in case.
WOOD: My left hand is on my side. As soon as I lift it up, the back-up gunner, like you said, is looking at this hand. As soon as it moves, he pulls his lanyard (ph), which basically sets the gun off.
WALLACE: And if there's another misfire, the backup crew has to be ready to go again.
WOOD: As a loader, I'll load the rounds in three seconds, putting it inside the breach (ph). Close the breach (ph). And then re-fire. And the same process is done until the ceremony is complete.
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: So help me God.
WALLACE: If you think that's overkill, it happened at the Trump inauguration.
WOOD: There was actually two or three misfires during the inaugural honors that were being rendered. And I was loading fast enough that it didn't even skip a beat. It didn't sound like anything happen.
WALLACE: The PSB is part of the Old Guard, the longest-serving active infantry unit in the Army, that's also charged with standing watch at the Tomb of the Unknowns, which brings us to watch they see as their main mission.
WALLACE (on camera): With the military at war and some of your colleagues in actual combat, why is the Presidential Salute Battery important?
STEWART: Every family that is in that cemetery, they only get one funeral, so it needs to be the best ceremony you can give.
WOOD: You want to give them protection because their loved one served their country.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Stand by.
STEWART: I -- I just -- I love it. The firing canons. I love the honoring the fallen. And just paying my respects.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
EMANUEL: Their precision and professionalism are pretty awesome. This year the team marked the holiday from a distance, firing cannons at noon yesterday, at Joint Base Meyer, Henderson Hall, across the river in Virginia. And however you are celebrating, we want to wish you a very safe and happy and healthy Independence Day weekend.
And that's it for today. Chris is back next Sunday. Have a great week and we will see you next FOX NEWS SUNDAY.
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