but i feel like with my kids, they measurably get more than i ever got. and i get to do that. i get to provide that for them. the number of states with increases in new cases keeps going up. nearly 50,000 new cases a day. >> we are heading into a fall and winter without a national plan. too many states are letting their guard down. president trump staged yet another potential super spreader event in iowa. >> when people are close to each other and you don't have virtually everyone wearing a mask, that is a risky situation. >> one thing we know is that just basic competence can end up

saving lives. when we had a pandemic, we had competent people in place who would deal with it. >> announcer: this is "new day" with alisyn camerota and john berman. welcome to our viewers in the united states and all around the world. this is "new day." it's thursday, october 15th. it's 6:00 here in new york. and this morning, doctors tell us they are running out of beds in some hospitals in wisconsin. running out of beds. that is where we are again. five states are seeing more hospitalizations than they have at any point in this pandemic. nearly 60,000 new coronavirus cases reported overnight. that's the highest daily total since early august. 985 new deaths reported, each one matters. the maps show rising cases across the country. look at all the states in orange and red there? dr. anthony fauci issued a warning to all of us for thanksgiving. he says, bite the bullet.

steer clear of family gatherings. on the subject of large gatherings, the president violating the recommendations from the white house coronavirus task force. the task force calls des moines, iowa, a yellow zone, meaning no gatherings of more than 25 people. the president's rally overnight easily closer to 2,500. most of the people there, unmasked. this in a state where hospitalizations are accelerating, where one in five people tested are positive for the virus. it's little wonder the president hasn't stopped the spread, even into his own house, where we learned his son, barrett, was al also infected. >> more than 14 million americans have already cast their ballots. voter enthusiasm is at record highs. yesterday, we saw another day of very long lines for early voting across the country. and former president barack obama is speaking out in a new interview about president trump and joe biden. president obama is expected to hit the campaign trail for biden

next week. but we begin with the pandemic. cnn's adrienne broadus live in wisconsin where they're seeing a record number of hospitalizations. what's the latest, adrienne? >> reporter: good morning, wisconsin is in crisis. the state's positivity rate is 22%. icus are strained and every region of the state is reporting hospitals with one or more current or imminent staff shortages. this morning, the united states is facing dangerous coronavirus wave. new cases are on the rise in at least 35 states over the past week and the country is averaging more than 50,000 new cases per day for the first time in about two months, recording nearly 60,000 new cases on wednesday, the highest since august. >> for the short-term, we have to hunker down. we have to get through this season. >> reporter: with holidays like thanksgiving just weeks away, dr. anthony fauci encouraging

americans to rethink travel plans. >> that is a risk. you may have to bite the bullet and sacrifice that social gathering unless you're pretty certain that the people that you're dealing with are not infected. >> reporter: as iowa reached a positivity rate over 18%, president trump held a rally in des moines, with few masks in the crowd and no social distancing. trump is also scheduled to hold an event in wisconsin saturday, as the state experiences a coronavirus surge, reporting more than 3,100 new infections wednesday. a circuit judge temporarily blocking governor tony evers efforts to restrict public gatherings to 25%. >> just because some folks out there want to see full bars and full hospitals, doesn't mean we have to listen. the longer it takes for folks to take this virus seriously, the longer it will take to get our economy and our communities

back. >> reporter: fauci says holding large gatherings like the president's campaign rallies are dangerous. >> when people are close to each other and you don't have virtually everyone wearing a mask, that is a risky situation that could very well lead to the kind of spreader events that we have seen in similar settings. >> reporter: meanwhile, the virus sidelining the university of florida football program after at least 21 players tested positive. and alabama football coach nick saban is now self-isolating at home after a positive covid test. >> this was routine every day, we test our players every day, i get tested every day. i feel fine, i felt fine. i was very surprised, you know, by this. >> reporter: and back here in wisconsin, the field hospital is reserved for patients who are nearing the end of their treatment. and here's something to look forward to. as we look ahead, dr. anthony

fauci says a safe and effective covid-19 vaccine should be or may be widely available by april 2021, a year after the start of the pandemic. back to you. >> that is a high note to end on, adrienne, thank you very much. so president trump and joe biden were supposed to face off in a debate tonight. but instead, both men will be competing for prime-time viewers in dueling town halls. cnn's joe johns is live at the white house for us with more. hi, joe. >> hi, alisyn. yes, dueling town halls, indeed. so these two candidates are going to be squaring off on competing television networks at the same time tonight. this was supposed to be debate night in america, as you said, but the debate got canceled due to the fact, essentially, that the president backed out after the debate commission said, look, we need you to do this virtually, because of covid

concerns. now, the president will be in miami. the vice president, vice president biden, will be in philadelphia. both in town halls. now, these town halls were held on the condition or the town hall for the president, i should say, is held on the condition that he take an independent test for covid to show that he's in the clear. and he's done that. there were two experts who had to review that test. one of them was dr. anthony fauci. dr. fauci had a warning for people who were placing too much stock in the president's recovery. listen. >> when people say, the president beat it, i'm not worried about it, what's your response? >> well, that's sort of like saying, somebody was speeding in a car at 95 miles an hour and didn't get in an accident, so i can go ahead and speed and not get in an accident. we're very, very pleased that the president did so well when

he was infected with coronavirus, but there are also a lot of people who are his age and his weight which did not do as well as the president did. >> reporter: now, the president is expected to have a busy day today, besides this town hall in miami. he's also supposed to have a rally in north carolina. and then he's going to have a fund-raiser at his doral property just outside miami. john, back to you. >> look, he might need the money. the biden campaign announcing record-breaking fund-raiser numbers. joe johns at the white house, thank you very much. >> reporter: you bet. so a brand-new interview with former president obama. he's speaking out about president trump criticizing him and previewing what he will say when he goes on the campaign trail next week for former vice president biden. cnn's jessica dean live in washington with the latest on this. jessica? >> reporter: well, good morning to you, john. yeah, we heard from president obama in this new podcast on the popular podcast pod save

america. it's hosted by former obama white house alums. so you can imagine that most of the listeners already listening to this are planning to support the biden/harris ticket. but now it is time for the biden campaign to convert support into actual votes. and that's where we see them deploying president obama, first on this podcast, then to the campaign trail. i want to talk for a moment about what he said on the podcast. he did, as you mentioned, criticize president trump on a host of issues, including foreign policy. he also made a big pitch for his friend and his former vice president, joe biden, specifically to young voters and to black and latino men. take a listen. >> a lot of times, when you're thinking about the presidency, it's great to look at policy and, you know, do they have -- what were their ten-point plans on this, that, or the other. but a lot of it is, what's their basic character?

right? are they people who instinctively care about the underdog? are they people who are able to see the world through somebody else's eyes? and stand in their shoes? are they people who are instinctively generous in spirit, right? and that is who joe is. >> so we're expecting president obama to hit the campaign trail next week. take a look at some of the states under consideration for him to go to. they include florida, north carolina, and wisconsin. critical swing states and we're told he's really being deployed to places where early voting is underway. that is part of the strategy for the biden campaign. they want their voters voting early, either by mail or in person. they're sending obama into places where early voting is already underway. this also comes as we hear that the biden campaign broke another

record, bringing in $383 million in the month of september. that leaves him with $432 million cash on hand as we head into this final stretch of the campaign. and those are massive numbers for this stage of the game. it allows the biden campaign a lot of leeway in terms of where they want to go up on the air with advertising and how they want to spend that money. we also did reach out to the trump campaign to see what their numbers were for september, but we haven't heard back. we're going to see joe biden, as joe johns mentioned, at his town hall this evening in philadelphia. >> $432 million cash on hand is insane. >> it's insane. >> with a month left to go. that's what he was talking about at the beginning of october. that's so much money, it's hard to know how to spend it all. jessica dean, thanks very much. so more than 60,000 new coronavirus cases reported overnight. that's the highest number since the beginning of august.

what's the country going to do to stop it? where's the plan? that's next. (vo) i'm a verizon engineer and today, we're turning on 5g across the country. with the coverage of 5g nationwide. and, in more and more cities, the unprecedented performance of ultra wideband. the fastest 5g in the world. it will change your phone and how businesses do everything. i'm proud, because we didn't build it the easy way, we built it right. this is the 5g america's been waiting for. only from verizon.

monitoring patients in hospitals around the world so that doctors and nurses can make sure you feel safe. as new challenges have arisen, we've grown to bring that same safety and support to the place that you want to be most. together.

masimo. together in hospital. together at home. omnipod delivers insulin through a discreet waterproof pod... to help simplify life. no more daily injections. it's game-changing. and the wireless controller helps deliver the right amount of insulin. plus, take your insulin anywhere with a small tubeless pod. get started with a free 30-day omnipod dash trial today. go to omnipod.com for risk information, instructions for use and free trial terms and conditions. consult your healthcare provider before starting on omnipod. simplify diabetes. simplify life. omnipod. simplify life. aso the national eye instituteon did 20 years of clinical studies on a formula only found in preservision. if it were my vision, i'd ask my doctor about preservision.

it's the most studied eye vitamin brand. if it were my vision, i'd look into preservision. only preservision areds2 contains the exact nutrient formula recommended by the nei to help reduce the risk of moderate to advanced amd progression. i have amd. it is my vision so my plan includes preservision. stop struggling to clean tough messes with sprays. try clean freak! it has three times the cleaning power to dissolve kitchen grease on contact. it works great on bathtubs. and even stainless steel. try clean freak from mr. clean.

alarming new numbers again this morning about the pandemic in america. nearly 60,000 new coronavirus cases were reported overnight. that is the highest daily total since early august. five states are seeing record hospitalizations this morning. joining us now, cnn political correspondent, abby phillip. and dr. ali khan with colleges of public health. dr. khan, let's start with you, because nebraska is in the red. the states with record hospitalizations yesterday, iowa, kansas, missouri, nebraska, wisconsin. in terms of the positivity rate in some of the rural areas in the center of the country, i want to read those also, because they're just so stallering.

wyoming, 40% positivity rate. south dakota, 32%. wisconsin, 22%. idaho, 22%. iowa, 20%. what are we supposed to do, dr. khan? >> so thank you, good morning, alisyn. good morning, john. i have to be honest with you, this is now unconscionable this late into the outbreak. for nine months into the outbreak, we know exactly what we need to do to control this outbreak. and essentially, this is predictable, right? the virus is still a contagious disease and 80% of americans are still susceptible to be snes infected. . and we have now explicitly stated that we're using a herd immunity strategy that's untested and unethical, which essentially means a no-response strategy. you couple the inappropriate response with a contagious disease and this is exactly what you're going to see. and it's all a misguided political calculus that if you minimize the disease and promote

under the guise of personal freedoms, that you can somehow get adults back to doing what they want to do and public health officials will tell you, that's a way to maximum the number of people who die and the fed chair will tell you, that's the way you prevent the economic recovery. >> 985 new deaths reported overnight. nearly 60,000 new cases. hospitalizations at a level we have not seen since august. it is just so clearly moving in the wrong direction, dr. khan. and i keep saying this, i think alisyn gets sick of me saying it, but it's only the middle of october. we're not even in the bad part of the fall or winter yet. this will get worse, which is why i think the warning from dr. fauci, such a simple sentence about thanksgiving, may be what cuts through. let's listen so what dr. fauci said. >> it is unfortunately, because that's such a sacred part of american tradition, the family gathering around thanksgiving, but that is a risk.

you may have to bite the bullet and sacrifice that social gathering, unless you're pretty certain that the people that you're dealing with are not infected. >> he's being somewhat delicate, dr. khan, probably more delicate than he needs to be at this point, but what do americans need to know about thanksgiving at this point. the idea of getting together in a house around a table with a group of even your family when some of them are almost definitely in that vulnerable age group? >> again, this coronavirus is still an infectious disease. it spreads from person to person, and the more people you put together, the more likely you are to have people get infected and the more likely you are to create these super spreader events which is spreading this outbreak across america. it's about 20% of events that's spreading 80% of the disease. and again and again, we come back to these settings where people come together. not just thanksgiving, but parties, weddings, you know, meat packing facilities, prisons.

you put people together and virus loves it. >> i'm just not emotionally ready to give up on thanksgiving. i'm just -- i know i'm going to have to -- >> you've got to face it. i think we have to face it. i think dr. fauci is helping us get there, but at some point, someone has to say out loud, you can't do it. >> i'm just trying to get through halloween. >> at some point, somebody needs to say, we could -- we have the tools to get rid of this disease! right?! so we're making these draconian choices because we refuse to make the appropriate choice, which is contain the virus. >> abby, of course there has been this big outbreak at the white house and people connected to the white house and it was alarming and i don't know if it was surprising, but we hadn't known that barron trump got sick until -- he didn't get sick, he got infected. so we hadn't known that until yesterday, when melania wrote this personal essay and she said that her symptoms had been a roller coaster, which i think is very typical of most people's symptoms, but that barron hadn't had any symptoms whatsoever. and i think what both she and

president trump have been trying to do over the past couple of days, her in her personal essay is be like, we feel your pain, we've been there, we can now relate. but it's hard to see them as everyman, because, you know, president trump got this treatment that he was one of maybe ten people on earth who have been able to have this combo of drugs and were able to immediately rushed to the hospital, which most people don't check themselves into the hospital at his level of symptoms and most people don't have all the doctors around melania trump. so what do you think? is that message resonating? >> first of all, i think this entire situation is a real cautionary tale for the american people about how quickly this virus can spread, as we were just talking about thanksgiving, within family settings. and the one astounding thing to me about it is that, that is not how the president and the white house are kind of using their experience with the coronavirus to sort of give the american

public a sense of, hey, here's the risk to you and your family, and here's what you can do to protect yourself. they're, of course, not doing that, because that would require the president to talk about mask wearing and social distancing. but i will say that melania trump's letter, i found, to be a lot more clear, a lot more transparent about what she experienced, about how difficult it was for her, even though her symptoms were, as she described it, relatively mild. she -- you know, you even sort of gathered from her comments, her concern for her child, that luckily he was not symptomatic, according to the letter. but, you know, i thought that it was genuine in a way that's very different from the way that the president talks about his illness. i mean, he was sent to the hospital and he talks about it now as if it was sort of like a brief trip to go visit a friend and not that he was hospitalized and treated with some very serious medications. so the president keeps displaying what he experienced, and i think that does a real

disservice to the american public. >> he held an unmasked mass gathering in a yellow stone, in a state with nearly a 20% positivity rate. so his behavior on its face is a lot different than any kind of message about how to battle this virus. abby, an important story in "the new york times" overnight from mark mazzetti and others, which deals with what administration officials were saying behind the scenes to money nrs investors a maybe donors as compared to what they were saying out loud. "the new york times" reports behind the scenes to wealthy donors connected to the hoover institute, they were saying something different. the president's aides appear to be giving wealthy party donors an early warning of an potentiallily impactful technolo contagion at a time president trump was publicly insisting that the threat was nonexistent. elite traders had access to the

information from the administration that helped them gain financial advantage during a chaotic three days when global markets were teetering. what do you make of that? >> i think it's an incredible report, but it confirms a lot of what we knew at the time and what we know now, is that people in the administration were aware of how serious this was. they were concerned. the president in particular was concerned about the impact on markets, almost exclusively at the beginning. and that's one of the reasons he tried to downplay the virus publicly, was to sort of prevent a public panic. particularly financially, but at the same time, the president was aware that this was contagious, that it was likely airborne, that it affected people not just older people, but younger people, too. and people with pre-existing conditions. the reason the president and the white house and his allies have been downplaying this virus is completely political. we know that, because we know that they have experienced a real outbreak, that they could have prevented, had they just

worn masks like they do on the other side of the white house, and they don't do it because it doesn't jive with the political measure that the president wants to run on this november. >> dr. ali khan, abby phillip, thank you both very much. great to see you. >> thank you very much, mask on, everybody. >> we saw it! former president barack obama getting ready to hit the trail for joe biden. hear what he thinks president trump has done to u.s. foreign policy, next. these days, we found smarter ways to do things.

find a smarter way to learn with flexpath from capella university. you might even earn your masters degree in 12 months for under $11,500. capella unversity. don't just learn. learn smarter. don't just learn. you can't claim that because it's inanimate! [ sigh ] people ask ... what sort of a person should become a celebrity accountant? and, i tell them, "nobody should." hey, buddy. what's the damage? [ on the phone ] i bought it! the waterfall? nope! my new volkswagen. a volkswagen?!

i think we're having a breakthrough here. welcome to caesar's palace. thank you. ♪

so you're a small bor a big one. you were thriving, but then... oh. ah. okay. plan, pivot. how do you bounce back? you don't, you bounce forward, with serious and reliable internet. powered by the largest gig speed network in america. but is it secure? sure it's secure. and even if the power goes down, your connection doesn't. so how do i do this? you don't do this. we do this, together. bounce forward, with comcast business.

and the thing that over the last four years, it's not as if trump has been all that active internationally. i mean, the truth is, he doesn't have the patience and the focus to really substantially change a

lot of u.s. foreign policy. what he's done is he's systemically tried to decimate our entire foreign policy infrastructure. >> so former president barack obama speaking out in a brand-new interview, blasting the president for his handling of foreign policy. perhaps the most important thing is that former president obama is getting ready to get out on the campaign trail for joe biden. abby phillip back with us this morning. abby, that interview was interesting. it was with jon favreau and tom tommy vetter, his guys for eight years in the administration. i'm not sure the discussion in and of itself will necessarily animate voters, but the president hitting the campaign trail, i know the biden team does think will help. how? and with whom can president obama help? >> that is a very interesting question, i think, this cycle. you know, president obama went out on the campaign trail four years ago for hillary clinton, kind of playing the same role as

the closer in that race, too. and -- but i think that there was then a misconception about who president obama actually can move. i do think that there is a segment of the democratic party, but it's a more moderate sort of center-left segment of the democratic party, that obviously loves president obama and the levels of enthusiasm definitely are affected by his presence on the campaign trail. i definitely think there's been a shift away from president obama among the most liberal of liberals, like sort of the bernie sanders liberals out there. so i really don't think those are the kinds of people that he is really trying to appeal to. but you heard him talking specifically to minority men, in particular, black voters, in particular. you know, it's worth a try. again, four years ago, he had the same message, telling black voters, get out there. saying to black voters, if you don't get out there, i will view it as a personal insult to me.

so it is really an open question to me whether that kind of message is going to work again. i think the circumstances obviously are different, but president obama really has to kind of give it his all, because he's tried to motivate democratic voters in the past and it hasn't always worked. >> abby, i want to talk about what was supposed to be happening tonight and what will be happening tonight. so there was supposed to be the second presidential debate, but instead, there'll be dueling town halls. why you cue it up perfectly during the commercial break -- every time i have said dueling, abby, during the commercial break, john does this. it's quite distracting. >> because i'm contractually obligated when anyone says the word "dueling," you've got to play dueling banjos. >> that's what's going on behind the scenes. here's my question, abby -- >> you can keep playing it. >> i can't tell if the dueling

town halls create a problem for voters or solve a problem for voters. so meaning, like, now you'll have to click back and forth if you want to compare and contrast, or each candidate will be able to finish a sentence. >> honestly, this is, to be honest, it's ridiculous, if you're a voter. what are you supposed to get out of it? what we're going to see tonight are people who are inclined to vote for biden tuning into biden, people who are inclined to vote for president trump tuning into president trump. that is not the purpose of debate night, what this was supposed to be. i think that tonight is going to be a travesty for the american public in terms of really seeing these two candidates up against each other, unless you're really, really committed and you tivo the whole thing and watch it back later. and if you're that kind of person, you probably already know who you're going to vote for. so, look, i mean, i don't know

that there's anything that can be done about it tonight, but i think that this is going to be really people with preconceived notions tuning into what they want to listen to and i don't think it's going to do anything to move the ball forward in terms of what we know about the differences between the two, but how they stack up against each other, how they can really go up against each other in terms of policy and character and temperament and all of those other things. >> i know there was a lot of outrage out there in the liberal twitt twittersphere over the fact that nbc is doing this, but i also know that there are people within biden world who don't mind the idea of a lot of people watching president trump on tv? when was the last time he went on tv in front of millions of people and helped himself? in all honesty, it's not clear to me that his desire to maybe pull more ratings than joe biden is going to help him the way he thinks it will. >> totally. obviously, the president is focused on this idea of ratings. but that really doesn't matter, if the people who are tuning

into you either already agree with you or already disagree with you and you're not changing their mind. the president needs to have a good session and i think it would be a mistake, though, for the biden campaign or biden allies or whoever to assume that it will definitely be a terrible town hall session for the president. i don't think that you can assume that. i think that it is definitely possible. like, we've seen president trump, you know, four years ago, have decent town hall sessions. he has the able to do it. the question is, does he want to? so far, i haven't seen any evidence that he's willing to sort of moderate his demeanor for, you know, independent voters. but i think that he has the ability to, so we'll see what happens tonight. >> abby, thank you. thank you. john's going to play us out. >> it's your walk off music. >> i love it. >> abby phillips, thank you, thank you very much for being with us this morning. >> and --

>> okay, wait. there we go. so other major news overnight. we learned that alabama coach nick saban, legendary college football coach, has tested positive for coronavirus. this has just huge implications in the sports world. that's next. your journey requires liberty mutual.

they customize your car insurance so you only pay for what you need. wow. that will save me lots of money. this game's boring. only pay for what you need. liberty. liberty. liberty. liberty.

car vending machines and buying a car 100% online.vented now we've created a brand new way for you to sell your car. whether it's a year old or a few years old, we want to buy your car. so go to carvana and enter your license plate, answer a few questions, and our techno-wizardry calculates your car's value and gives you a real offer in seconds. when you're ready, we'll come to you, pay you on the spot, and pick up your car. that's it. so ditch the old way of selling your car, and say hello to the new way-- at carvana.

developing overnight, major news in college football. alabama head coach nick saban announced that he has tested positive for coronavirus and is isolating at home. the news comes three days before the crimson tide scheduled to face off with georgia. joining us now, nicole hourback, the senior college football writer for "the athletic." great to have you with us. for our purposes, i'm not interested in how saban may coach from home over the phone during the game, but for our viewers who may not watch college football, this guy is a towering figure in all of sports. alabama is the team in college athletics. so talk to me about the

symbolism of coach saban, who has been masking and promoting social distancing, the symbolism of him testing positive. >> it's a big deal. it was one of those moments where you go, wow, you know, this virus really is in control. because as you mentioned, he has been masking. he has been tested daily. alabama has been really a model for testing and behavior, but as we know, you can't test your way out of a pandemic. and there have still been a lot of issues, every week. even those with a lot of resources like the sec had two other games postponed this week in addition to now the key game of the weekend, not having the hall of fame head coach. the good news is nick saban is asymptomatic, so that's great and he's feeling good and he practiced via zoom the other day, yesterday. but yeah, this is absolutely a wake-up call for anyone who felt like sports returning was a sense of normalcy. and the virus wasn't that big of a deal. >> well, the s.e.c., which is

the conference that alabama plays in, they are the conference that basically said, we're going to play no matter what. they were playing anyway, and they have had some games, but they've also had to cancel some games. lsu, national champion, just had to cancel a game they played this weekend. florida has nearly two dozen players who just tested positive. so what does that mean for the efforts to play at all costs? >> well, honestly, it's not going to change much in terms of protocol. these were disruptions that those in charge of the s.e.c. and other conferences felt were going to happen. they built in extra buy weeks in the back end of the schedule so they could make up games that mattered for conference races. they had coaches come up with plans like nick saban is dealing with right now for if they were unable to coach a game, who would take over, who would be a head coach in waiting. so these were part of the plan all along. i think they said, if we are going to have a college football

season, we will play through these issues and disruptions so i don't think it will ultimately change anything, but it certainly reminds you who's actually in charge, and that's the virus. >> look, the big 10 postponed their season and is now coming back to play. president trump is taking credit for that, i don't know that it was necessarily president trump as much as college football fans and college football reality. but what does it mean for them? i mean, it's clear that people will get sick. as you say, the virus is in charge. people will get sick, and they have no pad in terms of their schedule. >> the big 10 is interesting. and like you said, it certainly wasn't one phone call from the president and more so that everyone else was playing and that there were advances in testing to make it possible to justify returning, but the big 10 has no wiggle room. no buy weeks to make up any games and there's a 21-day shutdown period, which is more than the other league. so if a player or coach tests

positive, they're out for three weeks minimum, no matter what, even if they have no symptoms. so they're playing, moving forward in a way that they can say, we're playing in the fall, but they're going at it with really strict protocols that are going to make it very difficult. but again, they will get through some sort of a season. >> you say that. i do wonder, with several dozen or nearly two dozen players in florida testing positive, it does seem to be moving about the country, what it would take for there to be a complete reckoning or rethinking of college football? >> i personally thought we would get there earlier in the calendar when regular students returned to these campuses. but you saw college football programs power on, alabama in particular. there were over a thousand positive cases in the regular student body and they were still practicing and moving forward with games. that is still something that they were able to play through and continue to play through. so i think that obviously, it's a possibility that a place like florida or vanderbilt which also

had to cancel their games could get to a point where they can't finish the season. we haven't had that happen yet, but it's possible that if multiple teams and programs get to that point, baylor's another potential candidate, that have kind of been dealing with ongoing outbreaks, it is possible you could get to the point where other people decide, it's not worth it for them. but like i said, i thought we would get to that point earlier and people decided to play through. it. >> it will be interesting to see. you can't will this virus away. as you said, the virus is in charge. and let's just hope that all of these players and the coaches and all of their families remain safe and as healthy as can be. nico nico nicole auerbache, great to have you on. trefusing to remove unofficial ballot boxes. what is this going to do? that's next if try my favorite, turkey. order on the app. anything for my fans. try the new subway buffalo chicken

or bbq chicken. understanding how to talk to your doctor about treatment options is key. today, we are redefining how we do things. we find new ways of speaking, so you're never out of touch. it's seeing someone's face that comforts us, no matter where. when those around us know us, they can show us just how much they care. the first steps of checking in,

the smallest moments can end up being everything. there's resources that can inform us, and that spark can make a difference. when we use it to improve things, then that change can last within us. when we understand what's possible, we won't settle for less. the best thing we can be is striving to be at our best. managing heart failure starts now with understanding. call today or go online to understandhf.com for a free hf handbook. i had this hundred thousand dollar student debt. two hundred and twenty-five thousand dollars in debt. ah, sofi literally changed my life. it was the easiest application process. sofi made it so there's no tradeoff between my dreams and paying student loans. student loans don't have to take over for the rest of your life. thank you for allowing me to get my money right. ♪

developing this morning, california's republican party is refusing to comply with a judge's order to stop using unofficial ballot drop boxes. cnn's kristen holmes joins us now with more. so, this is a twist.

>> yeah, alisyn, this is a really striking escalation in what is likely to be a political showdown ahead of november 3rd. they didn't just say they weren't going to comply, they actually said that they might add more blallot boxes because the program is going so well. just a reminder here, the california republican party started putting up these unofficial ballot boxes in at least four counties. this alarmed election officials, who said it was illegal. they then issued a cease and desist, and we know that the party will not comply, however, they say they will take down any boxes that are labeled as official. and this decision to not comply came after president trump tweeted at the party, saying, stay strong. >> that's very interesting. that's an important note. there was also this major development, kristen, overnight in regards to absentee ballots in north carolina. so what's happening there? >> reporter: so it was a mixed decision. a judge was overseeing three big

voting cases there, but he essentially said that the state must ensure that every single ballot has a witness signature. so earlier on in the year, around september, the state issued out a directive that said that if there were missing witness signatures from an absentee ballot, that that was okay. the voter would have to be notified and issue an affidavit saying that it was, in fact, their ballot. the judge is saying absolutely not, that there must be witness signatures. but in a small twist, he is allowing some other things to be fixed during what is called the ballot curing process. and i want our listeners, our viewers to be very aware of that term, ballot curing. it's something they're going to hear a lot about in the days up to the election and afterwards. this is the fixing of a ballot, an absentee ballot, that has some sort of correct information. he is allowing for some of these minor fixes and have the ballot still count, but witness signatures will not be one of them. and a win for voting rights advocates, he has said that the ballots can be counted up to november 12th, if they're

received up to november 12th, after the election. >> thank you for alerting us to yet another strange voting phrase that will become part of our lexicon. thank you very much. okay, now to this, breonna tayl taylor's boiyfriend speak out fr the first time. what he says happened the night breonna was killed. and you're going to find yourself where you need to be. ♪ the race is never over. the journey has no port. the adventure never ends, because we are always on the way. ♪ ♪

stayingtakes a plan.ur game that's why at aetna, we take a total, connected approach to your health and wellness. with medicare advantage plans designed to surround you with the care you need every day. aetna medicare advantage plans.

...this one's for you. you inspired us to make your humira experience even better... with humira citrate-free. it has the same effectiveness you know and trust, but we removed the citrate buffers, there's less liquid, and a thinner needle... with less pain immediately following injection. ask your doctor about humira citrate-free. and you can use your co-pay card to pay as little as $5 a month. humira can lower your ability to fight infections. serious and sometimes fatal infections,... ...including tuberculosis, and cancers, including lymphoma, have happened,... ...as have blood, liver, and nervous system problems,... ...serious allergic reactions, and new or worsening heart failure. tell your doctor if you've been to areas where certain fungal infections are common... and if you've had tb, hepatitis b, are prone to infections,...

or have flu-like symptoms or sores. don't start humira if you have an infection. ask your doctor about humira citrate-free. the same humira you trust with less pain immediately following injection. if you can't afford your medicine, abbvie may be able to help. if you can't afford your medicine, with this seal, this restaurant is committing to higher levels of cleanliness. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ the expertise that helps keep hospitals clean, is helping keep businesses clean too. look for the ecolab science certified seal. less oral steroids. taking my treatment at home. nucala is a once-monthly add-on injection for severe eosinophilic asthma. not for sudden breathing problems. allergic reactions can occur. get help right away for swelling of face,

mouth, tongue, or trouble breathing. infections that can cause shingles have occurred. don't stop steroids unless told by your doctor. tell your doctor if you have a parasitic infection. may cause headache, injection site reactions, back pain, and fatigue. ask your doctor about nucala at home. find your nunormal with nucala. breonna taylor's boyfriend speaking out for the first time since a grand jury declined to indict the police officers in connection with her death. cnn's brin gingras joins us now with the very latest. brin? >> reporter: hey, john, good morning. yeah, kenneth walker goes into vivid details of the events that happen on march 13th, when police say they were serving a warrant connected to a drug trafficking case, even though no drugs were ever found in breonna taylor's apartment. and walker describes the panic he felt, the fear, the confusion about not knowing that it was

police that were barging through the door that night. and those final moments where he just continued to hold the hand of his girlfriend. >> i don't think i ever heard so many gunshots, like, all at the same time. i never been to war, but i assume that's probably what war sounds like. >> reporter: breonna taylor's boyfriend speaking out about the night that she was shot and killed by police. >> it was a loud bang at the door. and nobody was responding and we were saying, who is it? >> you all did ask, who is it? >> several times. several times. both of us. and there was no response. i'm sure nobody identified themselves. >> police knocked and say they did identify themselves before breaking the door down. kenneth walker fired one shot from his licensed gun. it's uncertain if that was the shot that hit sergeant jonathan mattingly in the leg. the three police officers at the scene fired 32 shots back. >> she screamed. like, i was holding her hand.

>> you were holding her hand. >> yeah, like while this was happening. i pulled her down to the ground. she was just scared, so she just didn't get down. >> so in the middle of all of this, you realize that she's been hit. was she alive at the time? >> she was still and when all the gunfire stopped. and i was holding her. >> reporter: once the shooting stopped, walker called his mother, then 911, still not realizing it was the police who fired at them. >> 911, operator, what is your emergency? >> i don't know what's happening. somebody kicked in the door and shot my girlfriend. >> reporter: walker went outside, seeking help for his girlfriend. there he saw police with guns drawn, threatening him with police dogs. >> officer asked me, was i hit by any bullets, i said, no. he said, that's unfortunate. >> walker was arrested outside the house. officers then entered taylor's home where she lay on the floor. >> they're still like casing the apartment with her laying right

there on the ground. disrespectful. >> reporter: walker says he learned from the news that his girlfriend had died. he was charged with attempted murder of a police officer and assault. the charges were later dropped. >> according to kentucky law, the use of force by mattingly and cosgrove was justified to protect themselves. >> reporter: at the conclusion of a grand jury last month, kentucky attorney general, daniel cameron announced that the three officers involved in the shooting of breonna taylor would not be charged for her death. officer brett hankinson was indicted on three counts of felony wanton endangerment for shots fired into a neighbors apartment in the raid. he pleaded not guilty. >> reporter: protesters marched through louisville after the decision. taylor's family still wants justice. >> what does justice look like for you for breonna taylor? >> breonna taylor should be right here next to me. that's the only justice for me.

>> reporter: and something else that was very striking about this interview is walker says he firmly believes, had he not lived, we may never have known anything about breonna taylor or kenneth walker or what really happened inside that apartment. walker has filed a $10.5 million lawsuit alleging malicious prosecution and false arrest and assault. john? >> clearly still in a lot of pain. brynn gingras, thank you very much. "new day" continues right now. across this country, we're averaging more than 50,000 new cases a day for the first time in two months. >> the family gathering around thanksgiving is a risk. you may have to bite the bullet and sacrifice that social gathering. >> reporter: president trump and former vice president joe biden participating in dueling town halls after their second debate was canceled. >> trump wants this. trump wants a head-to-head

matchup. >> the biden campaign deploying former president obama as we get ever-closer to the general election. >> he reminded us what a president should do. >> this is "new day" with alisyn camerota and john berman. >> we want to welcome our viewers in the united states and all around the world. this is "new day." happy new day to you, john. >> happy new day. are the stockings up or something? >> no, but you have set the tone by playing music throughout this. and i hope you will for the rest of the program, because we need some levity. because hospitals in wisconsin are running out of beds this morning. they're quickly filling up with coronavirus patients. wisconsin is having a particularly hard time getting their arms around this outbreak, but four other states are also seeing record hospitalizations. now, overnight, the u.s. reported nearly 60,000 new cases. that's the highest daily total since early august. dr. anthony fauci is now warning all of us that we may need to steer clear of family gatherings on thanksgiving. of course, that's n