Independence day with American Strike the balance between safety and celebration. As of this week 2 german women occupy the use most powerful roles to be w. s bandleaders asks the chancellor is the e. U. In danger of becoming too german. And the mysterious fate of botswanas elephants investigation is underway into whats killing hundreds of. Welcome to the program its all change at the top of the french government after Prime Minister it was philip handed in his governments resignation to president in Manuel Michael phillips decision to stand down paves the way for reshuffle which was widely expected to win is a palace says the new Prime Minister will be announced in the next few hours president mccoy has promised to chart a new course for the last 2 years of his term that will focus on efforts to relaunch the french economy. Lets go to paris and bring in our correspondent lisa lewis of Prime Minister phillips resignation been expected but why is the whole government resigning while now this is not the 1st time that the whole government resigns in france it happened under in a man like course predecessor the socialist francois or longer but it does indicate that the president really wants to bring fresh impetus into his reign to his government just 2 years ahead of the next president ial elections he said in an interview with a local and regional newspapers this morning that he would invest more money in the economy that he would do something for young people who were now struggling to find jobs after the cave in lockdown he would also help elderly people who needed assistance but he also said that he wouldnt completely change course and he would stick to the reforms he had announced when coming to power for example the very controversial pension reform against which at the french demonstrated for months on end just before the lockdown so it does mean that you might not call wants to bring in fresh wind he wants to say im changing but not completely and hopes that that will give him a chance to win the president ial elections in 2022 did mccall so maybe just want to get rid of philip was he too popular maybe. Well thats one idea it roughly was is very popular indeed more than at least half of the french have a positive opinion of him compared to only 38 percent when it comes to him out of my class so it might be that in my marco was thinking that it was stealing the limelight but he might also. Might also be creating a problem for himself because it is that popular and he might actually have the idea of running for president himself in 2022 and that might be a strong opponent for him on my call though obviously the president is trying to prevent that and you can see that the the way hes doing this today so he hasnt actually given the name of the new Prime Minister hes waiting for a few hours so that pass the time to say goodbye to his team but also that also gives journalists and commentators to talk about iraq for leave to pay homage to him and to do this in the smooth right so imagine my close obviously hoping that it roughly will not become become a strong opponent and 2022 so the big question is who is going to be the next Prime Minister or there is some speculation going on 3 names 1st of all john usually on the current foreign and europe minister whos a heavyweight or Florence Parly shes the minister of armed forces at the moment and would be more discreet or 3rd name john caustics who had been in charge of putting in place the strategy to come out of the lock down his relatively unknown to the french especially the 2 last people would give more place for an unmarked car and enjoy a victory are would take more take up more of the limelight it remains to be seen we should know in the coming hours well talk to you about that later in the day thank you very much lisa lose him. Some of the other stories making headlines around the world today indian Prime MinisterNarendra Modi has made an unannounced visit to a military base in the remote dark region bordering china its where the 2 countries have been facing off for nearly 2 months in june a confrontation left 20 indian soldiers dead. According turkey has opened the trial of 20 saudi nationals for their role in the 2800. 00 killing of dissidents journalist to mark a shock sheet at the saudi consulate in istanbul the suspects are being tried in absentia. As position leader one guy though has praised the u. K. Ruling that sides with him in a dispute over gold on thursday a judge ruled that since the British Government recognises why do as venezuelas president he indeed controls the countrys 1000000000. 00 gold reserves stored in londons incumbent president Nicolas Maduro socialist government has tried to get its hand on the gold and plans and you can appeal to the honorable people of the us has reported a Record Number of new corona virus infections there were 55000 new covert 900 cases on thursday as the country gears up for the 4th of july Independence Day weekend with many u. S. States re imposing restrictions among the steep rise in cases this years celebrations may be more muted now lets have a look at the data showing daily new cases from the beginning of the outbreak in the u. S. After rising steadily to begin with the flattens and cases leveled off and even dropped from the end of april to mid june but with the widening easing of lockdown restrictions new infections have shot up again. And then express its Independence Day events have been scaled back and officials urging caution of both public and private. Washington bureau chief in a spoilage visited a popular beach resort to gauge the mood. For Many Americans this is the 1st time after a month. They are hungry for fun and some. Want to celebrate this 4th of july weekend as they normally do. To keep moving on do the fireworks continue normality as much as we can moving back to normalcy is what wed like to do i think if you take the right precautions theres nothing to be scared they dont want your party to know what you enjoy yourself but you have you know how many thousands in a group want to protest. How to deal with the pandemic is highly politicized some fear that the restrictions are taking away their personal freedom others just see in the responsible actions. I expect here on our community in maryland because its tourist season now like that these cases are going to come back as people do not socially distance or where there are visiting our beaches i dont think president. I think he will continue to say its a hoax and not believe in the science that is there so many places and. This lack of guidance creates attend them off for Business Owners between Health Concerns and remaining competitive. Brenda pollack who runs the in the bar and grill in the 5th generation. We want them to wear a mask but if they dont want to wear a mask we can tell them where im at because its their right to wear a mask or not i dont feel safe with them and not when im at you know that class where im at. But yeah and i would rather that where. They can make it you can make it a law that you know that we have to wear it if its recommended and if there are safety in our health. You know you can make it where you know you get fined 500. 00 if you compare. The United States are facing a new record high of who with 19 infections but little who do you know here at the boardwalk in ocean city maryland the majority of the people is not wearing a mosque they tell us we are here to fund we want to celebrate we are done with this why was the Business Owners obviously do have a different approach they fear that after the weekend they will face a new wave which will lead to a new lock down and that would bring them to their knees in 2 weeks time we will know whether the right steps were taken if people celebrated this unprecedented for them to live in a responsible way for the worst fears of the next wave. To come true. Ill now joined by the double reporter william drew croft whos looked a bit deeper into this story william what can we expect this week well thats the big question that Public OfficialsPublic Health officials are worried about just how many people are going to go out to beaches barbecue is a mix of a lot of people have more or less normal Independence Day to celebrate freedom and theyre saying maybe you can celebrate freedom in a different way stay home Donald Trumps been sending mixed messages hes going today july 3rd to Mount Rushmore the. Famous monument to americas great president s for a fireworks display in the governor there in south dakota said there will be no kinds of restrictions no kinds of social distancing enforced and thats open to the public and tomorrow in july 4th back in washington he wants to have a scaled down in comparison to last year but still quite a large fireworks display at the white house on the National Mall of the d. C. City government is absolutely dead set against this but its federal property they really have very little power over whether people can go or not as many as 7000 people are expected to show up to this massive fireworks display that donald trump is supporting they say theyll be masks but Public Health officials and many particularly democratic politicians are saying please dont go please be careful it was how do you explain trumps approach to this crisis is not guided by reason is it has been very erratic hes now come out and said yes i believe in masks you should wear one if you want its recommended but not required remember this is a country that put up a fierce fight to have Health Insurance be required so to be able to be required to wear a mask is another thorn in the side for Many Americans donald trump and many of his allies get around this question by saying refer to the states as the states issue talk to your governors see what your governors are are requiring are recommending but the problem is these the policies at the state level have been very mixed. Red states blue states also regardless of Political Party there has been just a very confusing amount of mix messaging for americans to know what exactly to do which which shows a lot of doubt and gives a lot of leeway for people who dont want to follow these rules you have the president ial elections in the u. S. Coming up in november what kind of role will trumps of the Coronavirus Crisis play i mean of course were still very far from that a lot can happen with the conventions coming up in august we dont know where this virus and other other developments are going to go but it has been has been taking a hit his do. Approval ratings are at an all time high for him in the low to mid fiftys depending on what poll youre looking at a New York TimesSienna College poll was very interesting looking at voters who voted for trump in 201686 percent of according to this poll show theyre still going to vote for trump but 14 percent are either uninsured or absolutely not going to vote for donald trump now that may seem like not a huge number but remember the voting margins are so razor thin the United States as we remember from the truth is 2016 election going back for the 2000 election as george w. Bush it could take just a few Percentage Points here or there that could really tip the election and thats what donald trump really has to be worried about going into november thats going to be an exciting election thats exciting is one way to put it with him to prove thank you very much now time to bring up to date with some of the other developments in the coronavirus pandemic mexico has reported a record daily tally of new cases almost 7000 in a single day the number of confirmed corona virus infections there was approaching 240000 in japan the capital tokyo has recorded its highest daily number of new virus cases however the japanese government has stressed that there is no need to reintroduce a state of emergency and the u. K. Government says that from july 10th it will lift its quarantine requirements for people arriving in england from countries including france spain italy and germany to the philippines now where the Health Ministry has reported more than 1500 new Coronavirus Infections the biggest single day jump so far but that hasnt stopped the government from easing some coronavirus restrictions starting today all forms of public transport are allowed back on the roads including the countrys iconic g. P. S. On the streets of manila the brightly colored bus jeep hybrids known as jeepneys are back. But the notoriously packed vehicles have some new restrictions to start less than 10 percent of the countrys jeepney fleet are allowed back on the roads commuters and drivers must wear face masks and rider capacity has been slashed by half. But drivers say even with reduced passenger numbers they are glad to be back at work. Full of im very happy that we are back on the road but this is our only source of income our everyday expenses and Childrens School fees depend on our jobs as drivers. And at 9 pesos per ride or less than 0. 20 writers are also happy for the return of the jeepney is. Expensive travel costs are too high without the jeepneys the price our only alternative is taking a taxi or motorbike which costs us 100. 00 pesos one way one going to the grocery we can save much more now that the jeepneys are back. With enough to fill. Routes around the capital are limited as businesses and public transport are still under a General Community quarantine new numbers from the filipino government show nearly 39000 coronavirus cases with over 1200 deaths right now only 6000 jeepneys are allowed on the roads but transportation Officials Say they are prepared for an increase if demand grows. Germany is holding the hughes rotating presidency for the next 6 months and chancellor Angela Merkel will be working closely with European Commission president also a frontal im form of its something of a focused to german women at the helm of the e. U. Correspondent ben they got have the opportunity to oss the 2 about the impact they will have on the block this. Then we go to the question to both president s its a coincidence that 2 very powerful german women lead these negotiations about the Recovery Fund and you know each other or oh is that helpful or is it a hindrance with respect to the other 26 other maybe afraid of too much germany. You want me to start do you want to start. By ive got soaked all pearsons and were talking about 2 dedicated europeans thats whats more important here thats an interesting fact but of course i cant forget my german interests either minutely. This is when i see president s often we are aware that the presidency also brings us an additional responsibility. And im very pleased that its 2 women in germany there has never been a female chancellor before me in europe theres never been a female Commission President. In the past 2 men have always managed all this now we 2 women have to handle it and we are confident that we can do it right ursula. Is their fight and that is indeed the case and the good thing is that weve known each other a long time and we trust each other deeply knowing someone well allows you to speak efficiently and openly in seattle articulation we can dive deep into the details and achieve a lot to tell you that in the teeth again this up of shuffle. Joining me now is our chief Political Correspondent linda crane and our brussels correspondent bandleader who we saw that press conference with was a lot on the line and on the america but lets start with you why did you ask that question is this fear of germany possibly dominating the use something that no one really dares to ask about brussels. Well many people are talking about this question in brussels in the bubble maybe nobody so far that to us mrs merkel this question directly but seriously germany is of course the biggest member state and also after the pandemic the most powerful economic powerhouse in the European Union germany pays the biggest share into the common e. U. Budget so to say blunt the has the money and of course theres always a fear that the biggest member state can dominate in these budget talks 27 Member States but 14 of them have less than 10000000 inhabitants they are small and the standing of mrs merkel in other Member States is not as good as it is in germany for example in poland hungary greece and also in italy people who view mrs merkel still as the queen of steerage tea or politicising that tried to dominate these countries in the past so theres a long way to go to couldnt vince them to follow the german leadership in the e. U. But in the end she has to succeed because she needs all 27 Member States everybody has to say yes to this budget and in that what do you think is the e. U. Going to be more german centric with these 2 women at the helm and is that a good thing or about thing. Well i think the fact is nobody is more concerned about germany possibly being overbearing than germans themselves for absolutely clear historical reasons now the fact is germans often wield quite a bit of