Transcripts For KPIX CBS Weekend News 20200927

The Airline Industry buckles up for tens of thousands of layoffs. And later, the secret to success for a struggling taco truck business. There are too many businesses going under, so were doing what we can to support our community. This is the cbs weekend news. Yuccas good evening. Im jamie yuccas in los angeles. President trump today named judge Amy Coney Barrett as his choice to succeed the Late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader ginsburg. The selection is sure to energize conservatives. The 48yearold indiana judge and mother of seven has been described as a judicial disciple of justice antonin scalia. The nomination kicks off a furious and unprecedented scramble to confirm her in the senate with just 38 days to go before the election. Today, joe biden said in a statement, the senate should not act on this vacancy until after the American People select their next president and the next congress. If confirmed, barrett could shift the high court further right. Reshaping american law on abortion rights, health care, religion, and guns for decades. Nikole killion at the white house begins our coverage. Reporter this is President Trumps third Supreme Court nominee and the first woman he has appointed to the high court. applause in the white house rose garden, President Trump made his Supreme Court selection official. She is a woman of unparalleled achievement, towering intellect, sterling credentials and unyielding loyalty to the constitution, judge Amy Coney Barrett. applause . Reporter the announcement of judge Amy Coney Barrett was widely expected. The 48yearold mother of seven emerged as an early frontrunner. The president considered her to replace Justice Anthony kennedy in 2018. She also clerked for the late justice antonin scalia. His judicial philosophy is mine, too. A judge must apply the law as written. Judges are not policy makers, and they must be resolute in setting aside any policy views they might hold. Reporter the decision was instantly cheered among many religious conservatives and activists who support barretts antiabortion views do you want to see roe v. Wade overturned . You know, what we want is to restore the rights guaranteed in th democratic process to people in states to pass laws that reflect the will of the states. I dont know what that will look like. Reporter liberal groups braced for a fight. Most americans support roe v. Wade. They support reproductive freedom. Reporter the president has indicated he wants his nominee confirmed before the november election. Republican leaders plan to push forward with the timetable, despite democrats objections. Shes been vetted in a previous appointment, so that shortens the timeline. It is nothing short of outrageous that they want to approve her in fewer than 30 days. Reporter seb cbs news has learned the white house has already begun reaching out to g. O. P. Senators to set up meetings with the president s new nominee next week. Confirmation hearings could get uder way by midoctober. Jamie. Yuccas nikole, thanks. For more were joined by cbs news chief Legal Correspondent jan crawford. Jan, thanks so much for being with us. Lets get straight into this. Why Amy Coney Barrett . Reporter well, i mean, shes a highly regarded federal Appeals Court judge. She was considered a brilliant academic. He sees the the law a lot like the late justice antonin scalia. That would make her one of the courts staunchest conservatives and it would make this court solidly conservative potentially for decades. Yuccas we keep hearing opponents say she would vote to overturn roe v. Wade and is hostile to the Affordable Care act. What would this mean, do you think, for abortion rights . Reporter i mean, she said she doesnt think the court will ever overturn the core of roe. And shes indicated shed be more respectful of Supreme Court precedent, than some of the justices, like justice thomas. But she could be, i think, a vote to chip away at roe. As an Appeals Court judge she destined dissented from opinions that struck down some state for abortion including parental notification for minors seeking abortion. On health care, she has been critical of the Affordable Care act requirement which the Supreme Court struck down which requires religious employers to provide access to Birth Control and abortion drugs. But its unclear how she would rule. Theres a different obama case before the court being argued in november, unclear how she would vote on that. But the fate of the law could hang in the balance, jamie yuccas the president has said he wants her confirmed before november 3, so its not a 44 tie if the election goes to the Supreme Court. Reporter democrats are going to do everything they can to block it, but if republicans hold together, i mean, theres not a lot of democrats can do. Remember, its 38 days until the election. Another important date 99 days before this session of congress ends. So they could get it done. Is it unprecedented . No, congress has in the past confirmed justices in less than a month. But todays confirmation battles, theyre a war. Its going to be interesting to see if they can do it in less han the average now which is two and a half months. Jamie. Yuccas jan crawford, thank you so much. This programming note, tomorrow on face the nation, Margaret Brennan has an exclusive interview with whitehouse chief of staff mark meadows. White House Counsel don mcgahn in his first interview since leaving the administration, and American Airlines c. E. O. Doug parker. A rally today by right wing extremists has portland in a state of emergency. Members of the socalled proud boys lined up for a picture chanting, back the blue. The group put out a nationwide call to converge in portland, predicting thousands would show up. These pictures show their actual numbers to be much smaller. Police are now on alert for clashes with counterdemonstrators. Protesters are vowing to stay on the streets of louisville, kentucky for a fourth day people demonstrated after now Police Officers were directly charged with the killing of breonna taylor. Shes the black woman fatally shot in her apartment in march as Police Performed a noknock warrant. Cbs adriana diaz is in louisville with the latest. Reporter protesters are gathering again tonight at Breonna Taylors memorial. Activist jeff compton arrived early this morning waiting for a friend to be released from jail. They have locked up almost 700 people in the past 124 days now. That is insane. Almost 700 people. And you cant even arrest four cops or find they made a mistake or even fire them . Somethings not right. Reporter least 22 protesters were arrested overnight, most for breaking curfew. But activists say many are being overcharged with felonies. Felonies. State representative attica scott, who introduced breonnas law in kentucky, to ban noknock warrants and increase body camera use, was arrested thursday while filming. Okay. I didnt know until we got here to correction corrections that e being charged with felony rioting. Reporter since wednesdays grand Jury Announcement of the at least 182 protesters arrested, at least 29 were charged with felony rioting. Thats a class d felony, the same level as the wanton endangerment charge brought against one officer for firing into a neighbors apartment. Taylors killing was not ruled a crime as the grand jury decided the officers decided in selfdefense. From washington, d. C. , today. Say her name reporter . To l. A. Last night. Theyre basically calling for justice for breonna taylor. Reporter in louisville yesterday, Police Deployed flash bangs after they say protesters ignored orders to move off the street. Protesters say theyll stay in the streets until they get the justice they seek. Adriana diaz, cbs news, louisville. Yuccas now to the covid crisis. Tonight, the heart of the outbreak is shifting to the heartland. The midwest seeing the worst of it. As of today, more than seven million americans are known to have been infected. And the death toll now tops 204,000, the most of any country by far. Cbs Danya Bacchus has the latest. Reporter across the heartland and parts of the west, coronavirus cases are spiking. Wisconsin is one of the states where cases are rising fastest, averaging more than 2,000 new cases a day, hospitalizations an alltime high. The increases that we saw across the rest of the nation are now making it to us here in central wisconsin. Reporter in missouri, a state with rising cases and no mask mandate, the governor and his wife have tested positive. For the most part, no symptoms for me. Im feeling good. Reporter tonight, as the global death toll from the pandemic closes in on 1 million, the World Health Organization warns that number could double before a vaccine is available. Unless we do it all, the numbers you speak about are not only imaginable but, unfortunately, and sadly, very likely. Reporter across the country, some states are doing their best to provide a safe sense of normalcy. In texas, a visit to the state fair now means a drivethrough, masks, and timed entry tickets. Its a lot of fun to get out of the house and do Something Like this, even under the circumstances. Reporter new york city continues to open with caution, making Outdoor Dining permanent. I feel like its really nice to get back to normal and i also think its really good for the restaurants. Reporter but others are taking a controversial approach. Floridas governor is lifting all restrictions on bars, restaurant, and others businesses. Were prepared if we see an increase. Were not closing anything going forward. Were going to be able to host the super bowl in february. Reporter here in california, Health Officials say there could be an 89 increase in coronavirusrelated hospitalizations over the next month. Jamie. Yuccas dania, thank you. Hot, dry, and windy weather is expected for a large part of the west this weekend, adding fuel to what is already the worst wildfire season ever. In california, oregon, and washington. In arizona today, the sears fire burning near phoenix is growing. Flames near denver prompted new evacuation orders as well well and in california thousands are bracing for Power Outages so new fires arent spark bide debris hitting lines. So far, more than five million acres in the west have burned. Straight ahead on the cbs weekend news. Thousands of Airline Workers face unemployment if new federal aid doesnt land fast. The embattled founder of wikileaks fights extradition as secrets are revealed about his life. And later, the humble plea that led to this taco trucks sudden success. Yuccas the u. S. Aviation industry could soon have its wings clipped. Since the pandemic struck billions in federal emergency aid has kept airlines fully staffed. That was a condition of accepting it. But that money runs out next week, and massive layoffs could follow. Cbs kris van cleave has more. Reporter American Airlines Flight Attendant Phillip Delahunty will be out of a job, furloughed on thursday. We got the furlough notice. It was devastating for everybody. Reporter american started the year as the Worlds Largest airline with about 140,000 employees. Covid has defit staked its business. When the governments Payroll Support Program runs out next week, american will be 30 smaller. Overnight, 19,000 will lose their jobs and 15 cities will lou air service. C. E. O. Doug parker i just cant believe that we we may not be able to do the right thing simply because our elected officials cant come to any sort of compromise agreement. Were better than that. Reporter in a show of unity outside the capitol this week, airline c. E. O. S, Union Leaders and employees pleaded with congress for payroll support to halt as many as 76,000 furloughs and layoffs through at least march. This is real people moving their stuff into their cars and trying to figure out how to survive. Reporter for flyers, the furloughs could mean longer travel times and fewer options. Critics say giving the airlines more money wont necessarily save jobs because theyre preparing for potentially a fouryear recovery. United c. E. O. Scott kirby disagrees. We will be ready to bounce back, even if its not 100 . We wont need all of that support but we need support to get through until will vaccine is available and widely distributed. Reporter there is rare bipartisan support congress and the white house that something needs to be done, but a covid relief package is stalled. Americans are hurting and we need things that work efficiently to get them help. We absolutely cannot let an entire sector of the economy collapse. Reporter for delahunty political gridlock means an uncertain countdown to potential unemployment. Kris van cleave, cbs news, washington. Yuccas still ahead on the cbs weekend news, the founder of wikileaks fights extradition to the United States as his own secrets are revealed. Yuccas wikileaks founder Julian Assange appeared this week in a london court fighting extradition to the u. S. The 49yearold faces charges over the release of secret government documents. Were also learning new details about his secret life. Cbs news senior Foreign Correspondent Elizabeth Palmer has the story. Its the same one reporter gabriel and max are the sons fathered in secret of one of the most controversial figures of our time. The revered and reviled Julian Assange, founder of wikileaks, whose been in hiding, or as he is now in jail, since before they were born. Stella moris is the boys mother. I tried to give them as normal a feeling of a family as i can. Reporter currently, assange is battling extradition to the u. S. Where hes charged with conspiracy to hack a pentagon computer and using wikileaks to publish thousands of classified documents. My work will not be cowed. Reporter its something assange argues was in the public interest. Moris met assange a decade ago when she joined his legal team, and then they became lovers while he was a fugitive holed up in Ecuadors Embassy in london. We found ways to be private. We had a tent in his room we put, you know, fairy lights in. Reporter a tent . A tent. Yeah, we had a you know, like a camping tent. Reporter was that so even if there were cameras they wouldnt be able to see you . Right, yes. Reporter then last year, assange was dragged out of embassy and arrested. Why should julian not be extradited to the u. S. . You know, theres no way julian will face a fair trial in the u. S. Reporter going public now when assange could be looking at decades of u. S. Prison time is a calculated emotional appeal to the british court. Well, i think the court has to deal with the reality that he has a family in the u. K. Reporter what do you tell the kids about daddy . You know, i tell them that julian is a hero, and they speak to him every day. Reporter whatever the courts decide, stella moris stands by her man. Elizabeth palmer, cbs news, london. Yuccas next on the cbs weekend news, well take you to the place where the buffalo still roam and stampede. Yuccas today the senior conference kicked off football season with unity. Coaches and players took a knee before the Season Opener in oxford, mississippi. The two teams agreed to jointly acknowledge the quote unrest in our country surrounding the treatment of african americans. They werent just roaming. Buffalo were rumbling in south dakota. The last friday of september is roundup day at Custer State Park as some 1400 bison stampede down the hills and into corals, as you see there. In hot pursuit, dozens of wranglers on horseback. The buffalo are counted, checked by vets, and some sold to keep the herd healthy. Well it turns out rode ents can be heroes, too. Meet magawa the rat. He was just awarded an International Gold medal for potentially saving numerous lives by clearing landmines in cambodian fields. His beady eyes found 39 landmines and 28 unexploded items. Forget the medal. Get that rat some cheese. Am i right . When we return, a struggling Small Business gets a big boost with a special ingredient money cannot buy. Texas man whose Small Business has been struggling has his daughter to thank for his reversal of fortune. Heres cbs oma mireya villarre. Reporter elias aviles spent more than 20 years working in other peoples restaurants before he saved enough money to open his own food truck. Taqueria el torito sits in humble, texas. He said this was his way of leaving a legacy behind for his children. But when the pandemic hit, people stopped coming. He told me what his sales were, and he told me he sold 6 on one saturday. Reporter when you get that call from your dad, what does that do to your heart . It was heartbreaking. He was here just trying to make money and serve people, but he had no client that day. Reporter was it hard to see your dad struggle at one point . It was. It was like what can i do to help. Reporter giselle turned to social media for help and her twitter plea has been retweeted more than 10,000 times i just wanted retweets for some people, but it ended up,ic look going all over the place. I told him, get ready. Have some stuff ready because youre going to have people. There was a line on monday morning. Reporter and the customers keep coming. Thank you so much. There are too many businesses going under, so were doing what we can to support our community. Everybody is saying its really good. Gracias. He gets to cook now because he missed cooking, putting his hands on the grill and having as people as he has now. Reporter the secret to el toritos success boils down to one ingredient you cant find in stores lif love. Mireya villarreal, cbs news, humble, texas. Garrett way to go, giselle. And it reminds me of my favorite saying, you cant make everybody happy. Youre not a taco. Thats the cbs weekend news for this saturday. Im jamie yuccas in los angel