WEBVTT 00:00.440 --> 00:01.770 - [Maria] Joining me right now is the Commander 00:01.770 --> 00:03.190 of the US Northern Command, 00:03.190 --> 00:06.160 General Terrence J. O'Shaughnessy. 00:06.160 --> 00:08.270 And General, it's great to have you this morning. 00:08.270 --> 00:09.770 Thanks so much for being here. 00:10.930 --> 00:12.073 - Yeah, thank you Maria. 00:12.073 --> 00:14.119 Great to be with you. 00:14.119 --> 00:16.870 - [Maria] And sir, I'd like to start first 00:16.870 --> 00:19.160 by well, thanking you for your great service 00:19.160 --> 00:20.840 to our country, number one. 00:20.840 --> 00:22.550 And number two is get your reaction 00:22.550 --> 00:23.508 to what the president said yesterday 00:23.508 --> 00:27.590 when he said, "it's gonna be a horrific couple of weeks." 00:27.590 --> 00:29.440 What does that mean to you, horrific? 00:31.590 --> 00:33.810 - Well Maria, I think the president has exactly right. 00:33.810 --> 00:35.190 We have some challenging times ahead of us, 00:35.190 --> 00:37.130 but I also share the optimism of the panel 00:37.130 --> 00:38.518 that you were just talking to. 00:38.518 --> 00:40.080 We are going to get through this. 00:40.080 --> 00:40.913 We will prevail. 00:40.913 --> 00:43.430 We'll get to a better side on the other side, 00:43.430 --> 00:45.360 but it's gonna be some tough challenging times. 00:45.360 --> 00:47.500 And what we're trying to do at US Northern Command 00:47.500 --> 00:50.040 and the Department of Defense is to bring some relief 00:50.040 --> 00:51.650 to some of the local conditions. 00:51.650 --> 00:52.880 And so for example, you mentioned 00:52.880 --> 00:55.030 the USNS Comfort in New York city. 00:55.030 --> 00:57.723 We also have two army medical hospitals 00:57.723 --> 01:00.860 that have deployed to that same area in the Javits Center. 01:00.860 --> 01:03.750 We're trying to build relief for the hospital system 01:03.750 --> 01:05.220 in New York city. 01:05.220 --> 01:06.730 We see the same thing in California. 01:06.730 --> 01:08.320 We're doing the same thing in new Orleans 01:08.320 --> 01:12.100 as well as in Dallas because this is all of the nation, 01:12.100 --> 01:13.600 not just in New York city. 01:13.600 --> 01:15.840 And so we were trying to bring everything we can to bear 01:15.840 --> 01:18.120 from the US military to help bring relief, 01:18.120 --> 01:20.240 help us in the whole of America approach that we see. 01:20.240 --> 01:22.660 And I've just been so proud to see the public private 01:22.660 --> 01:25.134 partnerships all the way through the inner agency support, 01:25.134 --> 01:27.581 the local, state and federal all working together. 01:27.581 --> 01:30.350 It's actually been, I think a very good to see 01:30.350 --> 01:31.690 and I we're gonna prevail. 01:34.086 --> 01:35.890 - [Maria] It's actually extraordinary. 01:35.890 --> 01:39.500 When you look and you see these sites of Central Park 01:39.500 --> 01:42.440 being turned into a clinic and a hospital 01:42.440 --> 01:47.440 and obviously the Comfort ship, which is just dynamic. 01:48.240 --> 01:50.210 Or like you said, Jacob Javits, 01:50.210 --> 01:51.810 the president said we are at war. 01:51.810 --> 01:53.149 And that's certainly what it feels like. 01:53.149 --> 01:56.760 Tell me general, how are our first responders feeling? 01:56.760 --> 01:57.820 How are they doing? 01:57.820 --> 01:59.880 Let's let, let's look at that for a moment. 01:59.880 --> 02:02.610 Whether it be our military, great men and women 02:02.610 --> 02:04.643 or our healthcare, great men and women. 02:06.480 --> 02:08.440 - Well clearly our healthcare workers on the front line, 02:08.440 --> 02:10.690 and this is a military operation, as you mentioned, 02:10.690 --> 02:13.430 the Commander in Chief has declared a war on Covid-19. 02:13.430 --> 02:15.110 That's the way we're approaching it. 02:15.110 --> 02:17.560 We've sent our force out to be part of the solution. 02:17.560 --> 02:19.460 But as you mentioned, the healthcare workers 02:19.460 --> 02:20.570 that are on the frontline, 02:20.570 --> 02:22.420 they're the ones who are doing the heavy lifting. 02:22.420 --> 02:24.750 And I'll tell you what, I, my heart goes out to them. 02:24.750 --> 02:25.840 I salute them. 02:25.840 --> 02:27.300 They need all the support they can get. 02:27.300 --> 02:29.430 I love to see things like you were covering earlier 02:29.430 --> 02:31.130 where the pizzas are being sent to them. 02:31.130 --> 02:31.963 But it's more than that. 02:31.963 --> 02:33.680 We need to give them everything they need 02:33.680 --> 02:35.490 for them to be able to do the job. 02:35.490 --> 02:38.000 It's going to be a tough a few weeks, 02:38.000 --> 02:39.580 at least couple of weeks, month. 02:39.580 --> 02:41.493 but we were going to get through it. 02:43.800 --> 02:46.450 - [Maria] General, the president yesterday talked about 02:46.450 --> 02:49.930 two additional ships coming and potentially being turned 02:49.930 --> 02:50.763 into hospitals as well. 02:50.763 --> 02:52.840 What can you tell us about that? 02:52.840 --> 02:56.080 And are these ships predominantly taking the overflow? 02:56.080 --> 02:57.790 Because someone had said to me the other day, 02:57.790 --> 02:59.490 look, there are certain hospitals 02:59.490 --> 03:01.500 that can't take in a stroke victim 03:01.500 --> 03:03.390 can't take in I heart attack victim 03:03.390 --> 03:06.150 because they're overrun with Corona viruses. 03:06.150 --> 03:09.180 So that's what some of these other alternatives are doing. 03:09.180 --> 03:12.023 Like in Central Park like, like the Comfort ship. 03:13.700 --> 03:14.800 - Yeah, Maria, you have it exactly right. 03:14.800 --> 03:16.740 I'll just use the Comfort as a great example. 03:16.740 --> 03:18.260 You know that that ship is really designed 03:18.260 --> 03:20.490 for the high trauma, the high end care. 03:20.490 --> 03:22.820 And so what we're trying to do with specifically 03:22.820 --> 03:25.276 with the Comfort is to take those trauma victims, 03:25.276 --> 03:28.900 maybe vehicle accidents, heart attacks, 03:28.900 --> 03:31.610 surgeries, the really high end things that need 03:31.610 --> 03:34.285 to be done and relieve them from the other hospitals 03:34.285 --> 03:37.590 and they can focus on the Covid-19, just like a, 03:37.590 --> 03:38.440 as you would imagine, you know, 03:38.440 --> 03:41.360 ship is just so close quarters, so tremendous capability 03:41.360 --> 03:44.800 but not necessarily suited specifically for the Covid-19. 03:44.800 --> 03:46.880 And so we see, we see though this has been a very 03:46.880 --> 03:48.390 important role that they can play. 03:48.390 --> 03:51.240 And for example, in the Mercy on the California side, 03:51.240 --> 03:53.280 we've done some intimate surgeries already, 03:53.280 --> 03:55.060 some fairly high end things, stab wounds, 03:55.060 --> 03:56.560 accidents, amputees. 03:56.560 --> 03:58.910 It's, it's been a fairly high end 03:58.910 --> 04:00.510 medical care being provided. 04:00.510 --> 04:01.343 - [Maria] Right. 04:02.810 --> 04:04.760 So are there going to be two new ships? 04:06.330 --> 04:07.690 - We're looking at all options. 04:07.690 --> 04:09.850 And so whether it be ships or whether it be continued 04:09.850 --> 04:12.683 use of some of these transition of other areas. 04:12.683 --> 04:14.890 And so we're looking at the Department Defense 04:14.890 --> 04:15.723 looking at all options. 04:15.723 --> 04:17.810 In fact, I have a meeting in 15 minutes 04:17.810 --> 04:19.480 with the Secretary of Defense to look at some 04:19.480 --> 04:20.680 of the other options that we could do 04:20.680 --> 04:22.140 with the Department of Defense. 04:22.140 --> 04:23.760 But we're in, this is a whole nation approach, 04:23.760 --> 04:25.170 whole of America. 04:25.170 --> 04:26.180 We're proud to be part of it. 04:26.180 --> 04:28.820 Just like so many companies and, and other folks are. 04:28.820 --> 04:29.653 And again, the health, 04:29.653 --> 04:31.440 the front frontline healthcare workers. 04:33.500 --> 04:35.310 - [Maria] Yeah, I mean, I guess because the president 04:35.310 --> 04:37.510 said "we've got to prepare for the worst." 04:37.510 --> 04:40.380 Is that part of this preparing for the worst means preparing 04:40.380 --> 04:43.083 two more ships to come to become hospitals? 04:44.690 --> 04:46.240 Well, again, it's a, I won't necessarily say 04:46.240 --> 04:47.780 that two ships will be the final answer. 04:47.780 --> 04:49.750 I think that the tasks that we've been given 04:49.750 --> 04:52.130 is we were tasked to find what's the best solution 04:52.130 --> 04:53.456 to provide support. 04:53.456 --> 04:55.751 For example, one of the things you've been highlighting 04:55.751 --> 04:57.470 is the grocery stores. 04:57.470 --> 04:59.650 You know, we have to make sure that those food supply lines 04:59.650 --> 05:00.890 are able to get through. 05:00.890 --> 05:02.570 And my hats off to all the folks 05:02.570 --> 05:04.910 that have to work to make that happen. 05:04.910 --> 05:06.760 And so this, this whole of America approach 05:06.760 --> 05:08.110 is the right approach. 05:08.110 --> 05:10.174 We're a part of that and we're looking to bring 05:10.174 --> 05:11.883 additional assets to bear on this. 05:14.380 --> 05:15.213 - [Maria] Thank you, sir. 05:15.213 --> 05:16.046 You make us all proud. 05:16.046 --> 05:17.510 General, thank you so much for joining us. 05:17.510 --> 05:19.353 We so appreciate it this morning.