This is not about our divisions. Ebola is not going to check republicans or democrats, western africans or eastern europeans. We all must rise above our differences and our divisions and unite to contain this problem. Thanks for watching. Im al sharpton. Hardball starts right now. Ebola steals the election. Its not only topic a, its topic a to z. Lets play hardball. Good evening, im Chris Matthews in washington, which is now ground zero for the ebola fear. Its now official, ebola is now the number one focus in the nations capital, as well as the rest of the country where now its the most watched news
event, believe this or not, since the entire Obama Presidency began. The most watched news event ebola. Politicians are at their battle stations, with many on the right calling for an allout travel ban of anyone coming from infected west africa. The call were hearing is to stop all human traffic, period. And Government Experts are saying, theyre open to any step that will protect americans. Joining me now is peter welsh of vermont who sits on the committee, and also msnbc political analyst. Todays hearing, lawmakers say their jittery constituents want to know about the feasibility of an allout travel ban to contain the spread of ebola. Congressman welsh tried to get an answer. Lets listen. Why, from a medical standpoint you have concluded that a total travel ban is inappropriate and not effective . First off, many of the people
coming to the u. S. From west africa are american citizens, american passport holders. People travel and people will be coming in. As i understand it, you say theres basically a tradeoff. If you have a full ban, there will be ways around it and youll be losing the benefit of tracking folks who may be infected which could lead to a greater incidence of outbreak, so its a tradeoff, is that whats going on . Were open to any possibility that will increase the safety of americans. Right. So are there some mid points in terms of travel restrictions as opposed to a ban that would make sense . We would look at anything that would improve the safety of the americans. When the witness freezes like that and gives the same answer a second time. You heard something then. What did you hear that witness saying, dr. Frieden . Is he saying, two weeks from now, if this thing grows, well shut down the traffic from west africa . He was trying to thread a needle. He didnt want to say he opposed
the possibility of a ban, but he was embracing the approach that whatever is ultimately required in his judgment and the administrations judgment, to protect the American People, theyre open to it. But the Committee Hearing really did start coming down to travel ban or not. And that has obviously for a lot of politicians, enormous political appeal, because it says, were, quote, doing something. But the Gold Standard on this, who for me are Doctors Without Borders, they say, medically speaking, that wouldnt be good. It might do more harm than good. Now we have 435 members of congress in their white coats acting like theyre doctors. Why does this strike me that its ideology cal . When dond trump comes out, its a rightwing position, and antiobama position, and the liberals just as instinctively, say we cant have a travel ban against africa. Is this an emotional, go to your battle stations left and right thing . Let me ask Michael Steel about
that, because it seems like its what you would expect. Republicans say, shut it down, we dont want anybody in africa. We dont want to meet anybody from there anyway. I dont have any relatives coming over. [ laughter ] im serious. But thats ridiculous. Why are people on the right pushing for a travel ban . Because it makes sense. The American People are pushing for that. Their constituents are pushing for that. [ all speak at once ] you got to ask the libs that. Theres your political shot im sure their constituents are, and the fact that this question was skirted around and was not answered directly, i thought was do you want a ban . Yes, why not . Absolutely. Tell me about this thinking, the democratic side about why you dont want to rush to a ban and shut down the traffic . The question is, whether a ban would be effective. The Doctors Without Borders basically say it would hurt. You would have a lot of issues
getting your medical personnel in and out. Problems getting some of the Medical Equipment back and forth. Then when you have a ban, the experience has been, people will find a way around it. If they find a way around it, and an infected person gets here, legally, without having any monitoring and review of their Health Status situation, it means that were not going to be able to get them the treatment right away that they need. And this is the most important, we wont be able to know who they had contact with, and thats essential for public safety. May i ask a question . Has that been the experience of the african nations that surround sierra leone and the other infected areas . They dont seem to have that problem, yet they have a full ban in human traffic across their borders, as do now several other countries. So i dont understand the u. S. Position that were concerned about commerce and how people feel, when you have this issue of potential outbreak, that the American People are concerned about. Two things, michael. Number one, dr. Frieden was asked specifically and said those countries didnt have the blanket ban that youre talking about. Number two, im open to anything. But the bottom line is, what is the medical step that we should take, or what steps should we take with respect to travel restrictions that would be most effective . Thats really the question. Its not a political judgment. I dont think its ideology cal, but i do see the pattern here. The chief clinical officer in texas with health resources, the group that overseas texas presbyterian hospital. He took a grilling from the Ranking Committee member, diana. Shes a democrat. Dr. Vargas appeared in a video conference, apologized for the incorrect initial diagnosis of the first ebola patient in the u. S. Then he faced questions on the hospitals lack of preparedness. This is where it gets very american, very local, lets watch. Your hospital received the first cdc Health Advisory about ebola on july 28th. It was given to the directors of your Emergency Departments and signage was posted in your emergency room, is that right . Yes, maam. Now was this information given to your emergency room personnel and was there any persontoperson training at texas presbyterian for the staff at that time . Yes or no . Was given to the emergency department. Was there actual training . No. Congressman, this is where we get to that old political problem of mistakes were made, in the passive voice, but nobody made any mistakes. Mistakes were made by what human being and now were finding this guy, you put in the box or the barrel today. Hes the guy getting hit with this. Who is the responsible officers that make sure that hospitals handle the first case properly . Whos the officer that didnt do it right . Ultimately, the head of the hospital. But obviously they blew it at the er room. This man was incredibly sick and he was sent home with
antibiotics. Then he came back of course with fullblown ebola. So they blew it there. But have some context. Weve had one person from liberia come to this country. Thats dangerous, people fear ebola and its a dangerous disease. But weve had two people infected. And our hospitals havent had a lot of experience. How many hospitals, even wellrun hospitals would have it on the radar that somebody is going to show up with a disease from africa . So some of this, to some extent, i think is going to happen no matter how well run an operation is. But if you look at the progression of this, you know the phrase rolling disclosure. It always gets politicians in trouble. Ill tell you when i want to tell you, not when i know. Here we have the president saying it was unlikely it would ever get here. Then were told nobody would catch it from anybody. Its very hard to catch. Two people caught it. Then we were told, nobody would be allowed to travel. Then we found this woman going from dallas to cleveland and back again, after she told the cdc she had the symptoms, and the wall keeps falling. The walls keep falling. How can we keep confidence if they do . Well, thats a good point. You just laid out the rolling train wreck that the handling of this has been. Everywhere from the hospital to some extent the administration. When you have that applied to this disease, it is just horrid. Its incredibly painful and incredibly infectious, it stokes a lot of public fears and undercuts the confidence we need in institutions. And were in a political season what are you hearing in vermont . Vermont is a progressive state, especially with the flat landers. How are they reacting to this . Theyre sophisticated people in vermont. What are they saying about there . Theyre concerned about it. Theres two things. Number one, theres just this enormous concern about and all the publicity about ebola and could it happen. When you saw that it did happen in texas, which then it could happen anywhere, including vermont. Secondly, people are concerned that were going to handle it well. They want an answer. That is spoke to some extent by all the public discussion and the politicians debate. The easiest thing to call for is a ban, but thats not necessarily whats going to provide the greatest protection to the public. So theres concern there, as there is any time there is that much publicity about something. The president signed an executive order that authorizes military reservists to support humanitarian efforts to combat ebola in west africa. Our Pentagon Team says this initial deployment would include eight guard and reserve engineers, eight people, and logistic specialists. Their task, to help build 17 Treatment Centers housing 100 patients each. The initial deployment of eight is a small be in, but its openended to send more as needed. The president is taking what we
used to call neyo con position. Fight them there or here. Hes saying, unless we fight it there, well have it here. I think the president is right, if thats the assumption on the table. You have to go where the problem is. What happens if our guys get it . Hopefully we have the protocols in place to deal with that. You laid it out. The timetable from the president saying the likelihood of it coming here, to where we are today is why people are asking, why dont we just cut down the border traffic, so we can control it that way . And what are the protocols put in place for the military going there . Congressman, my sense is the least effective thing to say today is keep calm. People dont want to hear that. They want to hear what the news is. Thats what they go by. Thats exactly right. They want very specific things. The one thing that dr. Frieden said that made some sense is that if the hospital has a patient with ebola symptoms show up, put that person in isolation. Call cdc, walk through it with them. Number three, cdc will come. That was in response to a question from corey gardner. What would i tell my hospital in the event somebody appeared with these types of symptoms. So i think getting specific with the plan makes sense. I also agree with michael. Our military is particularly suited to these incredible challenges and you do have to stop it at its source. Its not humanitarian. Its really selfdefense. The people watching this, winston churchill, who always told the people the bad news first. He laid it out to the people, thats why they trusted him. Even Rudy Guiliani during 9 11 and the anthrax scare, he gave the information as he was getting it, boy was that
powerful stuff. Thats why hes still a good rep. Thank you for asking the right questions today in the hearing. Thank you, Michael Steele. Coming up, fear and loathing on the campaign trail. Republicans are playing up the ebola scare in campaigns. Its topic a everywhere. May be working, but its not going to help the incumbents. And later, the most bizarre beginning to a political debate perhaps ever. The issue, a fan. Not a human fan, an electronic fan. The thing that blows the wind. This is hardball, the place for politics. Protecting my future. Thank you for being my hero and my dad. Military families are uniquely thankful for many things, the legacy of usaa Auto Insurance could be one of them. If youre a current or former military member or their family,
get an Auto Insurance quote and see why 92 of our members plan to stay for life. [ male announcer ] you wouldnt ignore signs of damage in your home. Are you sure youre not ignoring them in your body . Even if youre treating your Crohns Disease or ulcerative colitis, an occasional flare may be a sign of damaging inflammation. And if you ignore the signs, the more debilitating your symptoms could become. Learn more about the role damaging inflammation may be playing in your symptoms with the expert advice tool at crohnsandcolitis. Com. And then speak with your gastroenterologist. You wont want to miss the fantastic debate were going to show you tonight between Charlie Crist and rick scott down in florida. Scott refused to come out to the stage because he said he was upset that crist was having a
fan there to cool him off. Anyway, the governor finally came out, but his supporters are worried about the damage has already been done. This is weird. Charlie crist will join us tonight in just a few minutes on hardball. Priority boardin g is really important to us. You can just get on the plane and relax. I love to travel, no foreign transaction fees means real savings. We can go to any country and spend money the way we would in the us. When i spend money on this card i can see brazil in my future. I use the explorer card to earn miles in order to go visit my family which means a lot to me. Could mean less waiting for things like security backups and file downloads youd take that test, right . What are you waiting for . You could literally be done with the test by now. Now you could have done it twice. This is awkward. Go to comcastbusiness. Com checkyourspeed. If we cant offer faster speeds
or save you money well give you 150. Comcast business. Built for business. Welcome back to hardball. Now more on the tonights big story, the pandemic of fear in this country over ebola. Right now the mantra is think ebola. Last night that fear drove the conversation and debates in kansas and colorado. Lets watch. Senator roberts has come back and has made some very strong statements about ebola, when hes back in kansas. But it just came out the other day that when he was in washington last month, he skipped a hearing on the ebola virus. This is a difference between congressman gardner and me. Hes voted to cut cdc spending of almost 770 million. Were not going to beat ebola by cutting back the cdc and our Public Health systems. This is the most followed
news stories of the Obama Presidency. We just found out today. And were just 19 days from the november elections. I want to go to joan first on this. You never know whats going to happen in october. Right. And this is a National Event which normally we could consider in a real country that doesnt fight about everything, wed all be looking for the right program, the protocol a word ive come to hate, and breach, which is even worse. Wed all agree to figure out this thing which is brand new, and it is isolated. Absolutely. Already, donald trump who speaks for a certain point of view in this country, which is in the necessarily nice, did you definitely hardnosed. Keep them out. Keep them all out from west africa. You might have thought that extreme, but one republican after the other is joining it. Now 2 3 of the American People say slam the door on west africa and well be safer. Your thoughts . Because the democrats arent going along with it . No. And its great theyre not going along with it, because its the wrong thing to do. We know that. Its a scary disease, and there are questions to be asked on both sides. Im not going to argue that politics should be kept out of this. Thats unrealistic. However, the level at which people are fear mongering on this is really all about getting out the Republican Base. The American People are nervous for sure, but the latest nbc poll shows that most people trust that the government knows how to handle this. There was two exceptions. The Tea Party Voters say they dont trust the government. And rural voters. So its really the Republican Base that is ready for this volatile mix of politics and obama hatred. And the usual suspects are out there putting it out. You know, right behind you is this beautiful picture of a manmade wonder, which is the golden gate bridge. Ive always said its the one
time mans improved on nature. It is really beautiful. But if you knew there was a lot of disease at the other side of that bridge, and somebody said, keep the bridge open, wouldnt you think that odd . Just going back to gut thinking. You dont think its a gut reaction by the people to say no more people from west africa because they brought it here in the first place . I thought you were going to Say Something really different about the golden gate bridge, which is something that we did back when we used to do big things. And this is another big thing that we need to do. Youre a peace corps person. We shouldnt be nation building in iraq and syria, but we should be Public Health building in liberia and sierra leone and guinea. This is something we can do. A travel ban is so silly. We cannot seal their borders. So then youre having people lying about their health, leaving those countries and getting in here somehow anyway. So the point is be calm, its hard to tell people to be calm,
but for the people in control to be calm and do what they need to do and not to fear monger. I know that people feel, would i go over to the other side if i thought there was ebola . I hope i would want sick people if they needed treatment in San Francisco to come here. But its a natural human response to fear, i know that its called a leprechaun mentality. Why are so Many Americans speaking like donald trump on this thing . Its not only good politics, but it will restore from calm with people. Boehner has it exactly right. Have a temporary travel ban so we can sort this out. The administration hasnt appeared very competent in this whole thing. All the explanations that proved not to be true. This is a problem for the administration. The best thing they could do is have a temporary travel ban, let them sort it out, come up with procedures that everyone can understand, and get the cdc
working in a way that inspires confidence. Theres no confidence in this country, and thats why people are worried and theyre right to be worried. How do you do a travel ban . You say, you cant come out of those countries to come to our countries. You cant go through belgium, london or paris. You just cant come here. So you got to shut off all the traffic. But can you really stop them if most people go through europe from africa to get here. How do you stop it . You need passports, right . There might be some people trying to sneak through [ all speak at once ] what about our doctors . Sort out the procedures. I think its reasonable to do it. And most americans think its reasonable to do it. The third countries in africa think its reasonable to do it. Theyre saying lets not have folks come over here with this disease, this virus. Lets find a way to handle this. And i think thats what the American People are, thats why republicans are saying, lets do this. Heres a question for both of
you. Republicans have been also latched on the issue the government competence. Mitt romney in new hampshire. Hes running for something. Hes supposedly campaigning for scott brown, but i think hes back running for president. Here he is. Look, this administration couldnt run the irs right and apparently, not the cdc right. You ask yourself, what is it going to take to have a president who really focuses on the American People . When we have elections. Anyway, this is what rand paul said a few weeks ago about this thing. It is absolutely a mistake to take Political Correctness and say they know with certainty its not going to spread and as a consequence so play down fears that we dont take precautions. So, yeah, i think its a huge mistake and this is a guy that fed us obamacare, so hes not high on my list of people to listen to. So theyre stacking up the tuna cans again. Put irs in there and everything
else. This is just another can in the stack, ebola. For rand paul to say that its Political Correctness, again, you can have a debate about whether the president has done enough, or whether the cdc has done enough. You can even have a debate about competence, but to get that point in there, and other people are doing it blatantly, that its Political Correctness to keep him from doing more, its his african sympathies, its his african heritage. I dont think theyre saying that. I think thats ridiculous. I think the fact of the matter is, the Obama Administration doesnt have a lot of credibility. You think about the rollout of obamacare, which was a complete disaster. Obamacare is now doing very well [ all speak at once ] raising premiums 20, 30 . Thats not true. Just stick to this issue. I want you to back up one thing. Who is out there saying its his african roots showing . I was just listening to alex wagner, some talk show host, im sorry i dont have the name right now. Listen, i think they have that insynoduation. This president doesnt have the credibility and i think thats why people will vote against it in the polls. Its confusing the whole culture. Just to clarify this, i will be arbiter here. The right dan esh d souza, Newt Gingrich have pushed the issue saying obama is influenced by some kenyan, anticolonial experience. Thats whats used against obama in response. That hes somehow an african. If not a muslim. Anyway, thank you. And by the way, whats his name . Count on donald trump to lead the way on this. Up next, the incredible scene from last nights governors debate. Rick scott refused to even come out on the debate floor or show up because Charlie Crist had an electric fan under his lectern. This is hardball, the place for politics. The green lights y . No. Its called grid iq. The 4 51 is leaving at 4 51. They cut the power. Itll fix itself. Powers back on. Quick thinking traffic lights and self correcting power grids make the world predictable. Thrillingly predictable. And for many, its a struggle to keep your a1c down. So imagine, what if there was a new class of medicine that works differently to lower blood sugar . Imagine, loving your numbers. Introducing oncedaily invokana®. Its the first of a new kind of prescription medicine thats used along with diet and exercise to lower blood sugar in adults with type 2 diabetes. Invokana® is a oncedaily pill that works around the clock to help lower a1c. Heres how the kidneys allow sugar to be absorbed back into the body. Invokana® reduces the amount of sugar allowed back in, and sends some sugar out through the process of urination. And while its not for weight loss, it may help you lose some weight. Invokana® can cause important side effects, including dehydration, which may cause some people to have loss of body water and salt. This may also cause you to feel dizzy, faint, lightheaded, or weak especially when you stand up. Other side effects may include kidney problems, genital yeast infections, urinary tract infections, changes in urination, high potassium in the blood, or increases in cholesterol. Do not take invokana® if you have severe kidney problems or are on dialysis or if allergic to invokana® or its ingredients. Symptoms of allergic reaction may include rash, swelling, difficulty breathing or swallowing. If you experience any of these symptoms, stop taking invokana® and call your doctor right away or go to the nearest hospital. Tell your doctor about any medical conditions, medications you are taking, and if you have kidney or liver problems. Using invokana® with a sulfonylurea or insulin may increase risk of low blood sugar. Its time. Lower your blood sugar with invokana®. Imagine loving your numbers. Ask your doctor about invokana®. Twhat do i do . You need to catch the 4 10 huh . The Equipment Tracking system will get you to the loading dock. There should be a truck leaving now. I got it. Now jump off the bridge. What . In 3. 2. 1. Are you kidding me . Go. Right on time. Right now, over 20,000 trains are running reliably. We call that predictable. Thrillingly predictable. The governors debate in florida got off to a late start after republican governor rick scott refused to even appear on the stage. He wouldnt even walk out, all because his opponent, Charlie Crist, had a small fan behind his lectern. Crist was on the stage alone for seven minutes before scott finally relented and came out and began the debate. Heres how that bizarre scene played out last night. Ladies and gentlemen, we have
an extremely peculiar situation right now. We have governor Charlie Crist. [ cheers and applause ] we have been told that Governor Scott will not be participating in this debate. Governor crist has asked to have a fan, a small fan placed underneath his podium. The rules of the debate that i was shown by the Scott Campaign say that there should be no fan. Somehow there is a fan there and for that reason, i am being told that Governor Scott will not join us for this debate. Frank, have you ever seen anything like this . No, i havent. This is remarkable over a trivial issue no matter which side you believe youre on. [ cheers and applause ] that has to be the most unique beginning to any debate. I dont think well forget. Not only in florida, but i think anywhere in the country. Now, from florida, the man with the tan, a fan, and a plan. Floridas democratic candidate for governor, Charlie Crist. Were you aware he was going to pull that stunt . I i guess its to avoid sweating on camera. They knew about it. Why do you think he pulled this stunt right before an election . I dont know. If my wildest imagination, chris, i cant tell you why. It defies logic to me. And whenever theres something that im asked about that is illogical in my mind, its really hard for me to explain it. I cant explain it. The latest polling down there, im sure you must go to bed at night with this, has you tied, 4444. Now your campaign is using this incident to make up fund raising points. And your fan has become famous
on the web. Take a look at this. With your supporters today, i am a fan of Charlie Crist. [ laughter ] is this making lemonade out of lemons . It seems like youve made an issue out of this guys weirdo number on you. Yeah, its really strange. This is really kind of a trivial issue. Whats really important are issues like education, ethics, the environment, the economy, you know, the kind of things that floridians are concerned about, that im concerned about going forward. To make sure that our teachers are appropriately paid, that we care for our environment, have an economy thats good for the middle class, those are issues that are meaningful to all of us. Let me ask you this, who did you vote for for president in 2008 and 2012 . In 2008, i voted for john mccain. As you know, i was almost his
running mate. In 2012, i voted for barack obama. Campaigned hard for him, as a matter of fact. Why did you change your mind . The direction of my former party. I mean, jeb bush said it better than anybody. Todays leadership in the Republican Party is appears to be antiwomen, antiminority, antigay, antiimmigrant, antieducation, antienvironment. Its pretty clear. Is the party not just looked at that way, is it that way . Is it antiminority . I looked at the partys reaction to the ebola issue. Theyre saying slam the door shut. The democrats are thinking, is that going to work . Is that something we should be doing . A little more thoughtful on the dems side, i think. Yeah, i think so too. Its a shame to see it. And what it has become. I want to be careful here because my mom and dad are still republicans. Theres a lot of good republicans across the country. But the leadership of the party, i mean, just look at the house
of representatives in washington. They cant get anything done. They wont agree to do anything. They cant reach across the aisle. Its sad to see. They cant even agree on a fan. Heres what you and the governor had to say when the moterator asked you both about that fan. This is how trivial its got, i agree with you, governor. Lets watch it. Why did you insist on bringing a fan here when your campaign knew this would be a contentious issue . [ cheers and applause ] why not . Is there anything wrong with being comfortable . I dont think there is. And Governor Scott, why the delay in coming out over a fan . I waited until we figured out if he was going to show up. He said he wasnt going to come to the he said he wasnt going to come to the debate. So i came out until hes ready. What an articulate man. Anyway, Charlie Crist, that was a clown act by him. Much more on the fan and what it
means for the race in florida. Thats going to be with your round table. Plus Hillary Clinton hits the campaign trail in kentucky with a preview of coming attractions, i think. And Alison Lundergan grimes still wont say whether she voted for obama. Youre watching hardball, the place for politics. After meeting with his team the president has made this statement in the oval office. Mr. Duncan, when he was in dallas, it is typical of what nurses do each and every day, caring for us. And one has now been transferred to nih, National Institute of health facilities, the other has now been transferred to emory university. They are getting the best possible care. Our thoughts and prayers are with them and their families and were continuing to monitor their conditions. Number two, the second nurse to be diagnosed, as all of you are
aware, traveled from dallas to cleveland and back. As a consequence, its very important for us to make sure that we are monitoring and tracking anyone who was in close proximity to this second nurse, to make sure that their temperatures are being taken and we know that they are receiving the kind of attention that they need to ensure theres not additional spread of the disease. I spoke to governor kasich in ohio today who is on top of it. Weve deployed cdc personnel there to make sure theyre getting all the support they need. And well continue to work, both with them, as well as the airlines, getting the manifests and assuring that we are keeping
track of anybody who was in close proximity to the second nurse. Number three, we remain focused on the situation at texas presbyterian in dallas. As ive said before, when we have tight protocols with respect to the treatment of patients, then our Health Care Workers are safe. But because of these two incidents, we know now that there may have been problems in terms of how protective gear was worn or removed, or some of the additional treatment procedures may have impacted potential exposure. We dont know yet exactly what happened. But in the meantime, we have a number of Health Care Workers at texas presbyterian who did provide care to mr. Duncan, and we are instituting a constant monitoring process with them,
giving them the information that they need, in order to keep themselves and their families as safe as possible, as the period in which they potentially could get the disease, you know, remains in place. And i also spoke to governor perry today about making sure that dallas and the state of texas had the resources that it needed in order to respond effectively if National Workers at texas presbyterian are determined, in fact, to have been exposed and have contracted ebola. And governor perry, as well as mayor rollings in dallas obviously have been extraordinarily cooperative, working with the cdc, working with health and Human Services. They have legitimate concerns in terms of making sure that the federal government is surging the kinds of resources that they need in order to handle any eventuality there, to make sure
that folks not just at texas presbyterian, but potentially at other health care facilities, have the training and the equipment that they need. So were going to be working very closely with them over the course of the next several days and weeks, in order to assure that they have exactly what they need to get the job done. Throughout this process, ive been focused on making sure that we are dealing with this problem at the source. The most important thing, in addition to treating and monitoring anybody who even has a hint of potential exposure here in this country, the most important thing that i can do for keeping the American People safe is for us to be able to deal with ebola at the source, where you have a huge outbreak in west africa. And the United States is obviously leading the way in terms of providing resources, equipment, and mobilizing the
worlds community. So over the last several days, i continue to call other World Leaders to get them to up their pledges of equipment, of personnel, logistical capabilities, to make sure that were getting all workers on the ground there. Weve seen some progress in liberia, sierra leone, and guinea. But we havent seen enough. Weve got more work to do. And the good news is, is that increasingly when i talk to these World Leaders, what youre seeing is a recognition that the sooner we control this outbreak at the source in west africa, the less our people are going to be at risk. And i think more and more of them are stepping up, although its, i think, taking a little longer than it should. And thats something that all of us should recognize. One issue that i want to address, because i know its been a topic consistently in the news, is the issue of a travel
ban. I know that youve heard from some Public Health experts about this, but i want to make sure that everybodys clear about the issue. I dont have a philosophical objection necessarily to a travel ban, if that is the thing that is going to keep the American People safe. The problem is, in all the discussions ive had thus far, with experts in the field, experts in infectious disease, is that a travel ban is less effective than the measures that we are currently instituting, that involve screening passengers who are coming from west africa. First of all, screening them before they get on the plane there, to see whether theyre showing signs of the disease, and screening them again when they get here, taking their temperature, and now what the cdc is doing is gathering all their information, assuming that theyre not showing any signs of illness. Because if they are showing
signs of illness, obviously we want to make sure theyre directed to a well equipped and well prepared facility. But if theyre not showing any signs, we still want to have their information, where they live, where theyre staying, multiple contact information, that not only the federal government keeps, but that will also be forwarded to the state where they reside. If we institute a travel ban instead of the protocols that weve put in place now, history shows that theres a likelihood of increased avoidance. People do not readily disclose their information. They may engage some something called broken travel, essentially breaking up their trips so they can hide the fact that they have been to one of these countries where theres a disease in place. As a result, we may end up getting less information about who has the disease. Theyre less likely to get
streeted properly, screened properly, quarantined properly. As a consequence, we could end up having more cases rather than less. Now, i continue to push and ask our experts whether, in fact, we are doing whats adequate in order to protect the American People. If they come back to me and they say theres some additional things we need to do, i assure you, we will do it. But its important in these circumstances, for us to look at the history of how these Infectious Diseases are best dealt with. And its currently the judgment of all those involved that a flatout travel ban is not the best way to go. But we will continue to monitor this. Im asking these questions, and if in fact, it turns out that im getting different answers, i will share that with the American People and we will not hesitate to do whats necessary, in order to maximize the chances that we avoid an outbreak here in the United States. Which means me to my last point. I understand that people are worried. This is a disease that is new to our shores, although it is something that has crapped up periodically in other countries. Because of the virulence of the disease and the way its transmitted and the symptoms that occur, i understand that people are scared. But what i want to emphasize once again, right now, we have one individual who came in with the disease. We have two nurses who have been diagnosed with the disease as a consequences in some fashion of being exposed during treatment. What remains true, its not an airborne disease, its not easy to catch. You can only catch it by being
in contact with an individual with the disease, who is shows symptoms of the disease. So its important for all of us to keep perspective in terms of how we handle this. We are taking this very seriously, at the highest levels, starting with me, and my entire team has been essentially deputized to work with health and Human Services and cdc. And that includes, by the way, the department of defense, and our National Security teams. We understand why its important for us to provide assurances to the public, that folks are taking this very seriously, and they are. And obviously, because of the two nurses getting sick, that has made people that much more concerned. So all thats understood. But i do want everybody to understand, it remains a very
difficult disease to catch, and if we continue to take the steps that we need to, then this will be contained. And the main thing that Everybody Needs to focus on is that the risks involved remain relatively low, extremely low for ordinary folks. The biggest thing we need to do is make sure that Health Workers have more confidence. Because they are on the front lines. And were entering into flu season, which means there are a lot of people who may be coming in with symptoms, and there may be false alarms and concerns. So well spend a lot of time working with our Public Health workers to make sure they feel safe and adequately protected. But i want to assure the American People, were taking this seriously. But this is something thats really hard to catch. And if we do what we need to do,
and we stay focused, then this is going to be something that is contained here. The work that we have to do overseas is going to be a lot tougher because frankly they dont have a Public Health infrastructure. Theyre not well organized. Theyre poor countries, and the epidemic is already raging there. So thats going to take several months for us to be able to start seeing the kinds of progress that we need to see. But in the meantime, i want everybody to know that everybody heres on the case. All right . Thank you very much, everybody. Thank you. I will answer this one question about an ebola czar. The truth is that up until this point, the individuals here have been running point and doing an outstanding job in dealing with what is a very complicated and
fluid situation. Those of you who dont know, lisa monaco who does a lot of my counterterrorism work, as well as National Security work, has been working with our secretary of health and Human Services and tom frieden at the cdc. It may be appropriate for me to appoint an additional person, not because the three of these folks have not been doing an outstanding job, and i should mention susan rice, my National Security adviser. Its not that they havent been doing an outstanding job, working hard on this issue, but theyre also spokesman for a whole bunch of other stuff. Lisa is also dealing, as susan is, with isil. And were going into flu season, which means, by the way, people should be looking to get their flu shots. We know that every year, tens of thousands of people potentially die of the flu and 100,000 or more go into the emergency room, hospitalized, because of the
flu. So thats something also that tom is responsible for. So it may make sense for us to have one person, in part just so that after this initial surge of activity, we can have a more regular process, just to make sure that were crossing all the ts and dotting all the is going forward. Okay . [ inaudible question ] if i appoint somebody, ill let you know. All right, thank you so much, everybody. Thank you, guys. Appreciate it. Have a good evening. Thank you. That was president obama just moments ago from the oval office after meeting with his Ebola Response team. Kristen welker is with us, also with us ryan grimm. Kristen, what was the answer . Do you sense hes going to pick a czar . That was my sense. And that was the headline that came out of the meeting tonight, president obama saying it may be appropriate for him to pick one
person to be in charge of all of this. I thought it was striking, because this is the first time that weve heard that message coming out of the white house. Weve been asking press secretary josh ernest if there needs to be a point person specifically in charge. But a very different message from president obama tonight. He said it may be appropriate to pick one person to make sure that all of the is are being dotted and the ts are being crossed. You heard him say all of these people who are here do have other, major things that theyre working on, like combatting isis. We are also heading into the flu season. That is something that cdc director will be very busy working on. Tonight, president obama certainly indicating that he is seriously committing appointing an ebola czar, if you want to use that term. Chris, i asked him, who he was thinking about appointing and you heard him at the very end saying when i decide to make that appointment, ill let you know. Chris . It looks like hes heading in that direction. Stay with us, christin. What do you think the purpose of that briefing was . I think he kind of wants to turn the temperature down. He wants to depoliticize it. The last thing you want is for our broken political system to get in the way. I think he wanted to say, look, im on top of this. And he made two concessions. The ebola czar was the one. He also said, look, im not philosophically opposed to a travel ban. Hes saying, look, if the cdc comes back to me and theyve reevaluated the situation, hes willing to implement one. Hes trying to take it out of the of the political round here. It certainly wasnt a hawall against the travel ban. No, he said i dont have a philosophical objection to it. He basically indicated he is in the process of reevalwaiting how they are handling this. He n he knows that mistakes have been made and that essentially, this needs to be stopped here. So certainly, he made the point that if his experts, he says hes been coordinating with them, if they recommend that a travel ban is the right path forward, he would be open to that. But he said that all of the evidence that hes been getting so far, all of the input has indicated that thats not the right path forward. That, in fact, it could make things worse. His argument tonight was that you would have people withholding information about where they have been which could actually slow down the efforts to try to fight ebola. But i do think that was another headline here tonight. Hes trying to depoliticize this and trying to reassure americans. Because chris, you and i have been talking about the fact that he has cancelled a second day of campaign events. Highly unusual for that president to do. I want to starpt with you on
this, ryan, and then go to christin. I think he is trying to do even more tonight. I understand the American People are scared. One of the knocks on this president is that hes aloof. Here he was showing true, it seems to me, im not a cynic, true sympathy for the American Peoples worries. That if he werent in public life, hed be worried about it. It was almost nice the way he did this thing tonight. Right. It wasnt a staged event where he walked out to a lectern, delivered some e veblts and walked back. It was like this is what i just heard from the experts and im going to tell you immediately so that you all have as much information as i do. Thats what was done during t 9 1 1. I really thought it was a fire side chat from the f. D. R. Days. Ive got some points i want to share with you. Here they are right away. Im not hiding anything. I think thats absolutely right, chris. I think its a shift that weve been starting to see the past couple months from this president and from this administration. Theyve been making a real attempt to make him more accessible not only to the press but to the American People. Certainly, when you have a situation like this, it is the perfect opening and opportunity for him as you point out to be candid. Talk about and acknowledge the fact that people are concerned and to make the point that hes holding on going meetings to try to address the issue. Ill make one more point, chris, there have been a lot of discussions. How would he address the American People. And he chose to do it in that formalt. I do think it was cig nif kantd. So much of a point of connecting to the people. Heres the story. Heres the scoop. Heres the skipny. Im telling you what i know. I dont know all the things, bud i know this and im telling you that. People have been dying for that in the whole politics of this country. They want truth as aget it. Thank you for coming in here from the huffington post. Just a few minutes ago, we saw the texas nurse dana fomm who was infekted boarding a plane. Here she is again. Shes on the way to bethesda maryland, thats a big place for this kind of thing for her further treatment. Well be right back. I use shorthand to talk to them and tell them what i need. And when i need to talk directly to my fans. But the most meaningful shorthand of all is the one i use when im about to drive x. Its an easy way to tell everyone that im about to drive. And i do it every time before i get behind the wheel. Use x to pause the conversation before you drive. Because no text is worth a life i lochecked bag. Free with my united mileageplus explorer card. I have saved 75 in checked bag fees. Priority boarding is really important to us. You can just get on the plane and relax. I love to travel, no foreign transaction fees means real savings. We can go to any country and spend money the way we would in the us. When i spend money on this card i can see brazil in my future. I use the explorer card to earn miles in order to go visit my family which means a lot to me. A wakeup call. But its not happening out there. Its happening in here. [ sirens wailing ] inside of you. Even if youre treating your Crohns Disease or ulcerative colitis, an occasional flare may be a sign of damaging inflammation. Learn more about the role damaging inflammation may be playing in your symptoms with the expert advice tool at crohnsandcolitis. Com. And then speak with your gastroenterologist. With the expert advice tool at crohnsandcolitis. Com. Philosophy is, reynolds . No. Not exactly. To attain success, one must project success. Thats why we use fedex one rate®. Their flat rate shipping. Exactly. It makes us look topnotch but we know its affordable. garage door opening sighs honey, havent i asked you to please use the. We dont have a reception entrance. Ship a pak via Fedex Express saver® for as low as 7. 50. [safety beeping] [safety beeping] [safety beeping] the nissan rogue, with safety shield technologies. The only thing left to fear is your imagination. Nissan. Innovation that excites. Let me finish tonight with this wild stuff that happens in
campaigns at the 1 1th hour. Things happen. The calendar doesnt stop flipping just because a certain percentage of the people havent decided who to vote for. Events dont cease to occur because the deadline for deciding is coming on strong. But here we are with election campaigns so close in their appeal or lack of appeal, that the littlest episode is able to throw the whole thing in one direction. This says less about the importance of the episode than it does about the razor sharp polls today. So in kentucky, refusing to say who she voted for for president would at least carry some sway. Or a candidate in florida likes to have a fan cooling him that that, too, could turn into a topic of debate. Whats really going to be turning to minds of voters is this emerging effect of ebola. Its real. Its lethal and its here. Remember that little political slogan all politics is local