Election. Mitt romney the last potential swing vote announces his support as the nation honors the groundbreaking justice. Air scare. Vice president pences plane, air force two, forced to land after a bird strike. The details this morning. Crossing the aisle. Cindy mccain, the widow of senator john mccain, announces shes endorsing joe biden. She joins us this morning. Why she says shes putting country over party. Making waves. The video of this 6monthold waterskiing baby with his dad beside him getting backlash online. Our exclusive interview with his parents, how they are responding this morning. And icy expedition. Two explorers surviving this chilling climb in the north pole when they were suddenly flipped into the freezing waters. How they narrowly escaped the frigid fright of their lives. Good morning, america. Its good to be with you, and of course, its great to be with george and robin. And i know thats something they will never see happen to any of us. An iceberg . Mmhmm. Why get off a perfectly good boat to do that . Or slip off that perfectly good iceberg. It looks a little crazy, but you know what, were going to get past that, because we have a lot of news to get to this wednesday morning. We certainly do, michael. We have two big stories in particular this morning, including Justice Ruth Bader ginsburg being honored at the Supreme Court. Theres going to be a private ceremony with family, Close Friends and fellow justices. Afterwards, the late justice will lie in repose at the Supreme Court, and we will have much more also on the showdown to fill the groundbreaking justices seat, and that will be in just a few moments, george. But first, the sad milestone in the coronavirus crisis. More than 200,000 americans have now died of covid19, the highest death toll of any nation in the world, equivalent to the entire population of salt lake city, utah. There was a moment of silence on the floor of the house, and there you see a breathtaking tribute to the lives lost, 20,000 american flags at the base of the washington monument. Four Top Health Officials including the heads of the cdc and the fda and Anthony Fauci will testify before the senate today, and in just a moment, we will speak with the u. S. Surgeon general as well, but lets go right to Steve Osunsami outside the cdc with the latest on the race for the vaccine. Good morning, steve. Reporter good morning to you all. A safe and effective vaccine would of c erye, ident ing to s s ay. Ces g safe and effective Covid Vaccine by the november election are sinking fast this morning with a new report from the washington post. The paper is reporting that the fda is ready to announce, quote, tough and rigorous new rules for the various drugmakers, including a requirement that the Drug Companies monitor volunteers who are testing these new drugs for about two months after they get their second dose of the potential vaccine. The fda this morning isnt confirming the report, but tells abc news it previously noted that it intends to issue Additional Guidance shortly. They need to hurry. Johnson johnson has announced they are accepting volunteers for the last stage of testing for their potential vaccine. Four other drugmakers are in the final stretch. Already Health Authorities are reporting that more than 200,000 americans have died from covid19, a tall and tragic number that the country hurdled on tuesday. On this same day, friends and family remembered the life of nativeamerican lawmaker Angela Mccarthy in oklahoma who was killed by the coronavirus. She passionately cared about her people and she took her role very seriously. Reporter theyre grieving in spartanburg, South Carolina too. 44yearold Michael Horton was a retired Deputy Sergeant who died this weekend after fighting the coronavirus for weeks in an area hospital. Michael was my best friend. We shared we shared everything. Reporter the president had little to say to reporters who asked about the tragic milestone. Anybody else . Reporter later at a crowded rally, he talked about the former Vice President wearing a mask. Hes like 100 yards from the nearest human being. Hes got a mask. He feels good about the mask. I wonder in the debate, it will be him and i on the stage. Is he going to walk in with a mask . Reporter Public Health experts underline that the United States has only 4 of the worlds population but more than 20 of the deaths from covid19. Former Vice President joe biden sees this as a losing issue for the president and says the president was wrong to say that the coronavirus has hurt, quote, virtually nobody. This virus spares no one. Donald trump sees these people as nobodies. I dont. We lost 200,000 moms and dads, sons and daughters, friends and coworkers. Not a single one of them was a nobody. Reporter medical professionals here are now worried about something that theyre calling a twindemic, a large number of covid19 cases and flu cases hitting at the same time. George . Okay, steve, thanks very much. Lets talk to americas top medical professional right now, the u. S. Surgeon general, dr. Jerome adams. Thanks for joining us again this morning. More than 200,000 deaths, cases rising in more than half our states. Positivity rates are going up. As Surgeon General of the United States, can you say that we have done and are doing everything we can to get this virus under control . Well, good morning, george. Thank you for having me, and thank you to the passamaquoddy tribe in maine for giving me that mask. Every death that occurs in this country thats preventable is a tragedy, and i want you to know that the public Health Officials everythat we can t thmessage out that the power to stop this virus spread lies in our hands. Wearing a mask, washing your hands, watching your distance, what i call the three ws. But as fall comes up its important to note that theres one more thing that we can do and thats get our flu shot. 40,000 people died last year from the flu, and we dont want this double whammy of flu on top of covid. We want people to understand that if you are pregnant, that if you are older, you can decrease your risk of hospitalization by 40 if you get your flu shot, and you can prevent healthcare workers having to having to be overwhelmed simply by doing something that has been around for decades. Get your flu vaccine. Important reminder right there, and you have been so vigilant about wearing a mask. You wore one as we were coming on the air right now. You urge others to do it all the time. How do you square that with the president s rally last night . You saw him tweet out that photo of the packed, packed rally. Many people in the crowd not Wearing Masks. He made light of Vice President biden wearing a mask. How do you square that with your message . Well, i appreciate the question, george, and im literally standing here in washington, d. C. , looking at the capitol with the Supreme Court behind me. Ive got democrats who want me to condemn people who were out at the president ial rally. Ive got republicans who want me to condemn people going to vigils, and at the end of the day, the virus doesnt care about your politics. It doesnt care what you are going out for. It only cares whether or not youre following Public Health measures. What i would say to everyone, politics aside, wear a mask if you cant stay more than 6 feet away from other people. Watch your distance, and make sure youre washing your hands as frequently as you can, because the way we all come out of this is by doing our part. As steve reported, the fda is planning to issue new guidelines for emergency use of a vaccine. Can you explain why this is important . What do you make of the fact that americans say theyre afraid to take the vaccine and they wont do it . Again, i think its become politicized and its important for people to understand we have a process. We have a data safety monitoring board. We have institutional review boards. We have independent people who are going to look at safety and efficacy before it ever gets to the point of approval or authorization, and i will be in line to get that vaccine when they tell me i can and when they its safe and effective. Again, we have a vaccine right now, and i hope this is an opportunity for people to have a conversation about the safety and efficacy of vaccines for the flu. Get your flu vaccination. Talk to your doctor about the process and become comfortable with it because what would be a shame is if we actually have a vaccine thats safe and effective against covid, and we dont use it to stop this pandemic. And it would be a shame if we ecausee. Tr time. 0 owustice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. That was the scene moments ago. She will lie in repose for the next two days. Her pallbearers, former clerks, more than 100 former clerks served with justice ginsburg. Theres a private Memorial Ceremony for the 8 other remaining justices and the family of justice ginsburg. Eulogy offered by chief Justice John Roberts. Objected to discrimination in law school and the job market because she was a woman. Ruth would grow to become the leading advocate fighting such discrimination in court. She was not an opera star but she found her stage rightn our. There she won famous victories that helped move our nation closer to equal justice under law, to the extent that women are now a majority in law schools, not simply a handful. Later she became a star on the bench where she sat for 27 years. Her 483 majority concurring and dissending opinions will steel the court for decades. Terry moran is at the court. You covered the court for so many years, and chief Justice Roberts found the words to meet the moment. Reporter he did and you could hear in chief Justice Roberts words the emotion. He was very close to Ruth Ginsburg as were all the justices who were there. Here this morning they are preparing the grand plaza in front of the Supreme Court and those steps for a public viewing that will begin in just a while, 11 00 all the way to 10 00 tonight. People are lining up down the block, already hundreds of them, socially distancing. This place has become not just the place that she gave so much to the country but a place where people have come to pay tribute to say thank you, especially the children. You see the girls and the boys here. As she went into the hall, those words equal justice under law over the doors, that is a summary of her lifes work. Thanks very much. Kate shaw, its hard to overestimate the contribution Justice Ruth Bader ginsburg made to American Life as an advocate, as a justice on the Supreme Court. So many have compared her saying she was the Thurgood Marshall of the womens rights movement. Reporter thats right. She systematically dismantled a lot of racial inequality under the law and did the same thing with sex equality. She changed the meaning of the cons constitution. I think you saw in the chief justices very moving words both a recognition that she believed that you had to fight for what you believed in, that you had to challenge inequality and injustice but also that it was possible to do that without questioning the good faith of those around you. She was able to maintain warm relationships with chief Justice Roberts, justice scalia, with the conservatives on the court, and that, i think, is an important lesson and takeaway for a very polarized moment. Kate shaw, thanks very much. Were about to be reminded just how polarized that moment is. Across the way from the Supreme Court, of course the u. S. Capitol, where confirmation hearings for whoever President Trump choose to replace Justice Ruth Bader ginsburg will begin likely in the next week or two. The president is expected to make an announcement on saturday. Senior Congressional Correspondent mary bruce is there on capitol hill. A fierce, unprecedented fight ahead. Reporter george, the fight to replace the seat began almost immediately upon the news of ginsburgs death and has been moving quickly. We have seen key republicans lining up behind the president and it seems all but certain that republicans will have the votes to confirm the president s eventual nominee. We know hes going to be announcing that pick on saturday. Amy Coney Barrett weve learned is at the top of that list. Shes a religious conservative, a devout catholic, and we do believe that we may see hearings here on whomever is the nominee in early october. The president making it clear he wants a vote by electionday, now just 41 days away, george. First there will be a memorial for Ruth Bader Ginsburg ro at the capitol. She will lie in state, the first woman in American History to receive that honor. Well have full coverage of that and the confirmation hearings as well. For now, lets go to michael. Now to a city on edge. Were hearing from one of those officers for the first time from an email he sent. Alex perez has the story. Reporter overnight protestors in downtown louisvil marching past barricades and boarded up businesses. The mayor declaring a state of emergency as the city braces for a decision on possible criminal charges against the officers involved in the Fatal Shooting of breonna taylor. My hope is that we will continue to see peaceful, lawful protests. Reporter one of the officers involved for the first time speaking out, Sergeant Jonathan mattingly who was shot in the leg during the botched raid at taylors home in march sending an email to over 1,000 personnel early Tuesday Morning. In the email obtained by our affiliate, mattingly telling his fellow officers, you do not deserve to be in this position, the position that allows thugs to get in your face and yell, curse and degrade you, throw bricks, bottles and urine on you and expect you to do nothing. Mattingly also writing, i know we did the legal, moral and ethical thing that night. Its sad how the good guys are demonized and criminals are canonized. His attorney defending the email saying he was expressing his support for his police colleagues. Activist Tamika Mallory who has led a massive social Media Campaign for charges against the preparing for a decision. If you dont have a situation where there are charges brought against those cops, then you dont start the process, the real process towards justice for breonna taylor. Reporter and its important to note the majority of protests here over the last several weeks have been peaceful. The mayor and other city officials here say they do not know whe unment george . Alex perez, thanks very much. Now to that air scare for air force two. The plane carrying Vice President pence was forced to return to the airport after a bird strike. Gio benitez has the details. Reporter overnight air force two striking a bird on takeoff. The plane carrying Vice President pence forced to make a rapid return to safety. Are you declaring an emergency . Negative for air force 2. Reporter this video shows the moment of impact, one of the engines seen smoking and sparking just seconds after lifting off from the manchester boston regional airport. This angle also showing the strike and then you can even hear the engine sound change. Airport has a ramp freeze right now and the airport is closed. Reporter the expert pilots quickly turning, the runway cleared for an crews seen ins t inspecting the engine. Even Vice President pence taking the opportunity to inspect the damage. Then he was transferredo a backup c17 cargo plane for the flight back to washington. Arriving a little later than planned. Now, the faa tells us that about 39 strikes are reported every single day. 97 of those are birds, the rest are other animals. Robin, you can see in that video just how dangerous this could be. You can see that, indeed. Okay, gio, thank you. Now to the crackdown in the nfl. Las vegas raiders coach jon gruden and new Orleans Saints coach sean payton both fined 100,000 by the nfl for not Wearing Masks throughout monday nights game. The teams were each fined an additional 250,000. Payton was the first person in the nfl community known to test positive for covid19. This was back in march. After the raiders win, gruden revealing hes also recovered from the virus. The league taking a very hard stance, handing out nearly 2 million in fines, george and michael. 2 million, okay. A lot more is coming up including that 6monthold baby you see right therewaterskiing. Its drawing quite reaction online. Well tell you about it. And the dramatic 911 call after a man was bitten by a shark by snorkeling. First lets go to ginger. Good morning, michael. This is whats left of beta. Flash flood warnings alexandra to green wood. Your local weather in 30 seconds. First the sunny cities sponsored by verizon. Stay there. Well be