Welcome to part III of the Trump Transgressions Timeline, which has a start date of March 1, 2020, and runs all the way up to the November 3, 2020 election. Use the following links to get to Part I, Part II, Part IV and Part V of the timeline:
Trump Transgressions Timeline Part I - 1927 to June 14, 2019
Trump Transgressions Timeline Part II - June 17, 2019 to February 28, 2020
Trump Transgressions Timeline Part IV - November 4, 2020 to January 6, 2022
Trump Transgressions Timeline Part V - January 7, 2022 to March 29, 2023
Trump Transgressions Timeline Part VI - March 30, 2023 to the Present
May 6, 2020 - Trump announced via twitter that the coronavirus task force will "continue on indefinitely with its focus on SAFETY & OPENING UP OUR COUNTRY AGAIN". According to the ADP Research Institute, US companies lost more than 20 million jobs in April. During an interview with MSNBC, Nancy Pelosi insisted that Trump should follow the scientific guidance of experts to determine when the country should start to reopen, rather than "cheering people on, going with guns and swastikas to the Michigan legislature and saying these are really good people." Trump acknowledged today that his administration will continue with legal efforts to invalidate Obamacare, despite concerns that the pending case could further destabilize the healthcare system amid a global pandemic. According to Axios: "A senior administration official said he expects the president to begin publicly questioning the death toll as it closes in on his predictions for the final death count and damages him politically." Dr Deborah Birx and Dr Anthony Fauci were asked about Fox News Host Tucker Carlson's suggestion last month that pneumonia deaths were being miscounted as coronavirus deaths, and other Fox commentators who had suggested that some coronavirus patients had actually died of their preexisting conditions. Birx responded with "Those individuals will have an underlying condition, but that underlying condition did not cause their acute death when it’s related to a covid infection. In fact, it’s the opposite." Fauci responded with "You will always have conspiracy theories when you have a very challenging public health crisis. They are nothing but distractions. Let somebody write a book about it later on. But not now." The Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of Pennsylvania governor Tom Wolf's shutdown order in Friends of Danny Devito et al. v. Wolf, Gov. of PA et al. Trump was asked about Dr Rick Bright, the vaccine expert who was demoted for refusing to promote hydroxychloroquine as a potential coronavirus treatment. Trump responded: "I never met him, I know nothing about him, but he’s a disgruntled guy. And I don’t think disgruntled people should be working for a certain administration." News surfaced that Gerald Fauth, an appointee on the National Mediation Board, and brother-in-law to Republican Senator Richard Burr, dumped between $97,000 and $280,000 in stock right before the stock market fell due to the coronavirus crisis. Kayleigh McEnany, the White House press secretary, held her second briefing. Here are some highlights:
- McEnany denied reports that Trump believes the coronavirus death toll has been exaggerated.
- McEnany defended Trump's decision to block Fauci from testifying before the House saying he made the move to prevent officials from taking questions from a "bunch of Trump haters" and that "We don't have time in the middle of a pandemic for publicity stunts."
- McEnany was asked about her comment in February that "We will not see diseases like the coronavirus come here. And isn’t it refreshing when contrasting it with the awful presidency of President Obama?" McEnany responded by citing some headlines from news outlets that she said downplayed the pandemic. McEnany then left the briefing room without taking any more questions.
May 5, 2020 - The US now has 1,200,000 confirmed cases of covid-19. Confirmed deaths from covid-19 stand at 68,934. Rick Wilson, a former Republican strategist, offered the following criticism of the Trump Administration: "They’ve decided in a very utilitarian kind of way that the political damage from a collapsed economy is greater than the political damage from losing as many as 90,000 more Americans just in June. We’re witnessing the full-scale application of a kind of grisly realpolitik that is a clear willingness to trade lives for the Dow Jones." John Ratcliffe, Republican congressman, is testifying before the Senate intelligence committee after being nominated to become the next director of national intelligence. Highlights from Ratclicffe's testimony:
- Mark Warner, top Democrat on the committee stated: "I don’t see what has changed since last summer when the president decided not to proceed with your nomination over concerns about your inexperience, partisanship and past statements that seemed to embellish your record."
- Ratcliffe stated regarding Russian interference in the 2016 election: "They may have been successful in [sowing discord], but they have not been successful in changing votes or the outcome of any election." Note: It is not known whether the disinformation campaign made the difference in Trump's victory.
Trump was asked why he won't let Fauci testify before the House. Trump's response: "Because the House is a set up. The House is a bunch of Trump haters ... they, frankly, want our situation to be unsuccessful, which means death." Trump told reporters before boarding Air Force One that "We did everything right, but now it’s time to go back to work." According to the Washington Post, a volunteer for Jared Kushner's coronavirus response effort filed a complaint with the House oversight committee. According to the story: "The document alleges that the team responsible for PPE had little success in helping the government secure such equipment, in part because none of the team’s members had significant experience in health care, procurement or supply-chain operations. In addition, none of the volunteers had existing relationships with manufacturers or a clear understanding of customs requirements or Food and Drug Administration rules, according to the complaint and two senior administration officials." As new cases of coronavirus continue to rise, the New York Times is reporting that the White House is looking to wind down the coronavirus task force in the coming weeks. During an interview with CBS News, Anthony Fauci was asked about news that the task force is winding down to which he replied "That's not true. I’ve been in every task force meeting, and that’s not what they are doing." Mike Pence was asked about the news the task force is winding down. Pence responded: "We're having conversations about that ... I think we’re starting to look at the Memorial Day window, early June window as a time when we could begin to transition back to having our agencies begin to manage -- begin to manage our national response in a more traditional manner." The contradicting answers from Pence and Fauci have raised concerns that the government's top infectious disease expert may not be entirely in the loop on what the administration is doing, and intensifies existing concerns that the Trump administration is sidelining health experts while it increasingly focuses on reopening the US economy. According to the AP, Dr Rick Bright, the former director of Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority, who was demoted for refusing to promote hydroxychloroquine, has officially filed a whistleblower complaint. From the story: "Bright also said the Trump administration rejected his warnings on COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus. Bright said he ‘acted with urgency’ to address the growing spread of COVID-19 after the World Health Organization issued a warning in January. He said he ‘encountered resistance from HHS leadership, including Health and Human Services Secretary (Alex) Azar, who appeared intent on downplaying this catastrophic event.’ Bright alleges in the complaint that political appointees at the Department of Health and Human Services had tried to promote hydroxychloroquine ‘as a panacea.’ The officials also ‘demanded that New York and New Jersey be ‘flooded’ with these drugs, which were imported from factories in Pakistan and India that had not been inspected by the FDA,’ the complaint says. But Bright opposed broad use of the drug, arguing the scientific evidence wasn’t there to back up its use in coronavirus patients. He felt an urgent need to tell the public that there wasn’t enough scientific evidence to support using the drugs for COVID-19 patients, the complaint states." After Trump landed in Arizona, he told the press that it is time to reopen businesses, followed with: "Will some people be affected? Yes. Will some people be affected badly? Yes. But we have to get our country open and we have to get it open soon ... I’m viewing our great citizens of this country to a certain extent and to a large extent as warriors." An opinion piece in the Guardian by Francine Prose asks if Americans will ever be able to forgive Trump for his heartless lack of compassion. From the piece: "One’s heart goes out to the reporters who have sifted through the Donald Trump’s press briefings on the current pandemic – hour after hour of bombast, self-promotion, vitriol, lies and recklessly unscientific speculation – for any evidence of sympathy for those who are in pain. It’s hardly a shock to learn that our president’s expressions of care and compassion have occupied a total of less than five minutes, out of all that time. After all, a man who mocked a disabled journalist and boasted about grabbing women wasn’t elected for the depths of his kindness and the purity of his moral conscience. And it seems unrealistically optimistic to have hoped that the extremity of this crisis should have inspired, in our leader, a deep and essential change of heart." Trump sat down with David Muir of ABC News, here are some highlights from that interview:
- Regarding the decision to reopen Trump said "Will some people be affected? Yes. Will some people be affected badly? Yes. But we have to get our country open and we have to get it open soon."
- Trump claimed "Don't forget, the cupboard was bare, the other administration, the last administration left us nothing. We didn't have ventilators, we didn't have medical equipment, we didn't have testing, the tests were broken, you saw that. We had broken tests. They left us nothing. And we've taken it, and we've built an incredible stockpile. A stockpile like we've never had before." Fact Check: The novel coronavirus did not exist during the Obama administration, and therefore, there were no tests for the Trump administration to inherit from the Obama administration.
- David Muir asked Trump "What did you do when you became president to re-stock those cupboards that you say were bare?" Trump's response: "Well, I'll be honest, I have a lot of things going on. We had a lot of people that refused to allow the country to be successful. They wasted a lot of time on Russia Russia Russia. That turned out to be a total hoax. Then they did Ukraine Ukraine and that was a total hoax. Then they impeached the president of the United States for absolutely no reason."
May 4, 2020 - The US now has 1,157,875 confirmed cases of covid-19. Confirmed deaths from covid-19 stand at 67,677. Donald Trump sent the following tweet: "'Concast' should open up a long overdue Florida Cold Case against Psycho Joe Scarborough. I know him and Crazy Mika well, used them beautifully in the last Election, dumped them nicely, and will state on the record that he is 'nuts'. Besides, bad ratings! #OPENJOECOLDCASE". Donald Trump retweeted a tweet posted by David J Harris Jr, an African American conservative, with a headline of "Evidence has surfaced that indicates Barack Obama was the one running the Russian hoax." The accompanying story opens with: "In the new releases it appears to be saying that Operation Hurricane was being run from the Oval Office. This would be huge if true." Don Lemon, of CNN, responded to Trump's retweet on his show saying: "In a time when we need leadership, when we need compassion, this is the crap that you're peddling? Conspiracy theories? ... What is it about President Obama that really gets under your skin? Is it because he’s smarter than you? Better-educated? Made it on his own, didn’t need daddy's help? Wife is more accomplished? Better looking? I don’t know, what is it, what is it about him? That he's a black man that's accomplished being president? That he punked you on the whole birth certificate thing? What is it about him? Just wondering." According to the New York Times: "[The Trump administration] is privately projecting a steady rise in the number of cases and deaths from coronavirus over the next several weeks, reaching about 3,000 daily deaths on June 1, according to an internal document obtained by The New York Times, nearly double from the current level of about 1,750. The projections, based on modeling by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and pulled together in chart form by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, forecast about 200,000 new cases each day by the end of the month, up from about 25,000 cases now. The numbers underscore a sobering reality: While the United States has been hunkered down for the past seven weeks, not much has changed. And the reopening to the economy will make matters worse." The Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington (IHME) has revised their modeling, and now predicts at least 134,000 deaths from covid-19 by early August. Calvin Munerlyn, a security guard at a Flint, Michigan Family Dollar store was fatally shot after telling a woman that she could not enter the store without wearing a mask. Three individuals have been arrested for the shooting. One notable response to the murder of Calvin Munerlyn:
"Top officials are refusing to wear masks. Gun extremists and white supremacists are fomenting outrage over stay-at-home orders. There are 400M+ guns in the hands of civilians. And Calvin Munerlyn was a Black man. This is a tragic, but logical, outcome of COVID-19 in America." - Shannon Watts
May 2, 2020 - The US now has 1,103,615 confirmed cases of covid-19. Confirmed deaths from covid-19 stand at 65,063. Note: The transgressions timeline has switched from using covidtracking.com for covid-19 numbers to instead use figures from Johns Hopkins University in Maryland. One sign at an anti-lockdown protest in Chicago inspired condemnation from the Auschwitz memorial. The sign contained the phrase "Arbeit macht frei, JB". JB refers to JB Pritzker, the governor of Illinois, who is Jewish, and the German phrase translates to "work sets you free", which was the Nazi slogan displayed above the entrance of the Auschwitz concentration camp, where 1.1 million men, women and children were murdered. The Aushwitz memorial tweeted: "Arbeit macht frei’ was a false, cynical illusion the SS gave to prisoners of Auschwitz. Those words became one of the icons of human hatred. It’s painful to see this symbol instrumentalised and used again to spread hate. It’s a symptom of moral and intellectual degeneration." John Roberts, a Fox News reporter sent the following tweet: "A Senior Intelligence Source tells me there is agreement among most of the 17 Intelligence agencies that COVID-19 originated in the Wuhan lab. The source stressed that the release is believed to be a MISTAKE, and was not intentional." According to CNN, Michael Caputo, a spokesman for the Department of Health and Human Services, and staunch ally of Donald Trump, sent multiple sexist and derogatory tweets over the last few years, and has since deleted them. According to the story, Caputo called multiple women "dogface" and told another to "go f**k yourself".
May 1, 2020 - The US now has 1,097,064 confirmed cases of covid-19. Confirmed deaths from covid-19 stand at 59,059. Georgia is lifting its statewide shelter-in-place order today. According to Politico, testing capacity is so low, even the Capitol's attending physician doesn't have enough tests for all the US senators. From the story: "The Capitol’s attending physician said Thursday that coronavirus tests will be available for staffers and senators who are ill, but not enough to proactively test all 100 senators as the chamber comes back in session, according to two people familiar with the matter." Trump sent the following tweet regarding the armed protesters in Michigan: "The Governor of Michigan should give a little, and put out the fire. These are very good people, but they are angry. They want their lives back again, safely! See them, talk to them, make a deal." Governor Whitmer responded to Trump's statements saying in part: "We’re not in a political crisis where we should just negotiate and find some common ground here. We’re in a public health crisis. We’re in the midst of a global pandemic that has already killed almost 4,000 people in our state." Whitmer also said that she will continue to listen to public health experts, "not to pollsters and not to people with political agendas." Joe Biden, the Democratic nominee for president, released a statement denying sexual misconduct allegations by Tara Reade. Senior White House adviser Kellyanne Conway criticized Biden't statement by accusing Biden of applying a different standard to himself than he has for other politicians. a Few select responses to Biden's statement, and Kelly Anne Conway's criticism:
"A spokesperson for the first president in modern history to refuse to release his tax returns and who demanded that numerous women sign non-disclosure agreements making a case for Joe Biden to be more transparent is pretty rich" - Aaron Rupar
"Today, Vice President Joe Biden sat down and directly addressed the allegation against him with the seriousness it deserves, something that the current president has never done" - Tina Tchen, President and CEO of TIME's UP Now
According to the Guardian: "Scientists working for the US military have designed a new Covid-19 test that could potentially identify carriers before they become infectious and spread the disease ... 'The concept fills a diagnostic gap worldwide,' the head of Darpa’s biological technologies office, Dr Brad Ringeisen, told the Guardian, since it should also fill in testing gaps at later stages of the infection. If given FDA approval, he said, it had the potential to be 'absolutely a gamechanger'". According to ABC News, Michael Cohen, Trump's former lawyer/fixer and convicted felon, received a letter from a lawyers representing the Trump Organization demanding that he halt writing a "tell-all book" about his time working fro Trump. According to the story: "Charles Harder, the attorney representing the company, writes that Cohen signed a non-disclosure agreement when he joined the Trump Organization and thus it would prohibit him from disclosing certain information about the president, his family and the company." In response to Trump's claim that he has seen evidence that the coronavirus was created in a Chinese government lab, Michael J Ryan, the WHO executive director stated: "We have listened again and again to numerous scientists who looked at the sequences and looked at this virus and we are assured that this virus is natural in origin" Kaleigh McEnany, the new White House press secretary, held a press briefing, making this the first formal press briefing by a press secretary in more than a year. Some highlights from the press briefing:
- McEnany told the gathered reporters: "I will never lie to you. You have my word on that."
- McEnany said the sexual misconduct allegations against Brett Kavanaugh were a "grave miscarriage of justice" and were "salacious, awful and verifiably false."
- After being asked about the dozens of women that have accused Trump of sexual misconduct, McEnany accused the media of unnecessarily resurrecting a years-old issue saying "The president has swiftly denied all of these allegations that were raised four years ago" and that questions about the allegations were "asked and answered in the form of the vote of the American people."
- McEnany said the FBI's handling of Michael Flynn "should scare every American". Note: Flynn plead guilty to lying to investigators about his contact with the former Russian ambassador to the US.
- McEnany presented a misleading and in some cases false account of WHO's record as the pandemic unfolded. Here's a fact check from the Guardian's world affairs editor Julian Borger:
McEnany: "On December 31 you had Taiwanese officials warning about human-to-human transmission and WHO did not make that public."
Borger: "The 31 Dec email did not warn about human-to-human transmission but noted Wuhan reports about a pneumonia cluster and asked for further info"
McEnany: "On January 9, the WHO repeated China's claim that the virus does not transmit readily between people."
Borger: "In an initial statement reporting a novel coronavirus, the WHO reported the Chinese initial assessment on transmission but added more information was needed. On Jan 10, the WHO circulated technical guidance to national health authorities, US included, urging precautions against possible H2H transmission."
McEnany: "On January 14, WHO again repeated China's talking points about human to human transmission."
Borger: "On 14 Jan, WHO's (American) technical lead, @mvankerkhove briefed that while there was evidence of limited H2H, there was a "possibility of super-spreading events. On Jan 14, to balance Van Kherkove's warnings, WHO put out a tweet noting preliminary Chinese studies found no clear evidence of H2H. It was factually correct, but was considered a mistake by some WHO officials, giving prominence to a dubious finding."
McEnany: "On 22 and 23 Jan, they said - this is incredible - the pandemic didn't represent a public health emergency of international concern."
Borger: "On 22/23 Jan, the Emergency Committee (of 15 experts from around the world), was split on whether to advise calling a PHEIC. At the time there were 4 cases outside China and no fatalities. A PHEIC decision was put off pending new info. The Emergency Cttee called for a PHEIC on 30/1. In hindsight, the PHEIC should have been declared on 22/1, but the evidence was hazy, and the experts were divided."
McEnany: "On Feb 29, you had the WHO...- when the coronavirus was spreading around the world - they chose political correctness first by opposing life saving travel restrictions."
Borger: "On Feb 29, the WHO recommended against travel restrictions, saying 'evidence shows that restricting the movement of people and goods during public health emergencies is ineffective in most situations and may divert resources from other interventions.' The advice largely reflected the sense of the current International Health Regulations, which the US took a lead role in framing in 2005. The seriousness of the US outbreak suggests the Trump travel restrictions were not decisive, certainly in absence of other measures."
McEnany also accused the WHO of praising "China's leadership on the 22nd and 23rd" of January, but failed to mention that Trump himself did the same thing on January 24th.
According to the Guardian: "A coalition of states is suing the Trump administration’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) over its so-called 'dirty water rule,' which eliminates legal protections for hundreds of thousands of streams, creeks and wetlands across the country." Gavin Newsom, the governor of California was asked for his response to protesters in his state who are calling him a tyrant and a fascist. Newsom's response: "All I ask for is: Take care of yourself. Wear a face covering. Do justice to physical distancing. You don’t want to contract this disease." The House appropriations committee confirmed to the Washington Post that a request had been made to have Anthony Fauci appear on May 6th, but the White House is blocking his testimony. The White House confirmed this in a statement which read in part: "While the Trump administration continues its whole-of-government response to Covid-19, including safely opening up America again and expediting vaccine development, it is counter-productive to have the very individuals involved in those efforts appearing at congressional hearings. We are committed to working with Congress to offer testimony at the appropriate time." Donald Trump sent the following tweet regarding mail-in-ballots: "Don't allow RIGGED ELECTIONS!" Note: According to the Guardian "There is no evidence of widespread voting fraud. The non-partisan Brennan Center for Justice found in 2017 that the risk of voting fraud is between 0.00004% and 0.0009%. Moreover, Trump’s own voting integrity commission found no evidence to support claims of widespread fraud." The White House ousted Christi Grimm, the IG of the Department of Health and Human Services, who had recently authored a report regarding shortages of health equipment. Grimm is the fourth government watchdog to be ousted by the Trump administration in recent weeks.
April 30, 2020 - The US now has 1,063,842 confirmed cases of covid-19. Confirmed deaths from covid-19 stand at 57,320. Donald Trump sent the following tweet: "What happened to General Michael Flynn, a war hero, should never be allowed to happen to a citizen of the United States again!" Donald Trump Jr sent the following tweet: "Not only should general Flynn’s charges be dropped immediately but the treasonous actors who set him up should be in jail!!!" Trump claimed during a White House interview that he was looking into consequences for Beijing over the coronavirus. He also claimed "China will do anything they can to have me lose this race." Anthony Fauci confirmed that he is part of a secretive team rushing to develop a vaccine for coronavirus called Operation Warp Speed. Roger Stone, confidant of Donald Trump and convicted felon, filed notice that he is appealing his conviction. Trump sent the following tweet: "Does anybody really believe that Roger Stone, a man whose house was raided early in the morning by 29 gun toting FBI Agents (with Fake News @CNN closely in toe), was treated fairly. How about the jury forewoman with her unannounced hatred & bias. Same scammers as General Flynn!" The office of the director of national intelligence released a statement saying "The Intelligence Community also concurs with the wide scientific consensus that the COVID-19 virus was not manmade or genetically modified ... The IC will continue to rigorously examine emerging information and intelligence to determine whether the outbreak began through contact with infected animals or if it was the result of an accident at a laboratory in Wuhan." Trump was asked about his administration's response to the pandemic to which he responded: "I think our whole group has been spectacular." Trump was also asked this question by CNN's Jim Acosta: "You say you had "broken tests" from Obama -- the coronavirus is a new virus, so how could the tests be broken?" Trump's response: "We have broken tests. We had tests that were obsolete. We had tests that didn't take care of people." Democratic congressman Ted Lieu responded to Trump's "broken tests" claim saying on twitter: "Dear @realDonaldTrump: It was YOUR Administration that created the #COVID__19 test. First version failed. That’s why tests were 'broken.' Because your Administration screwed up. Stop making up stuff. You are the President. Act like it. Accept responsibility for your mistakes." Protests erupted at the Michigan capitol today, with many of the protesters not wearing masks, carrying assault rifles, and sporting Donald Trump paraphernalia. Some of the protesters attempted to enter the floor of the legislative chamber, but were held back by a line of state police. Many of the armed protesters chanted "Let us in!" along with anti-government slogans, including comparing the state's Democratic governor, Gretchen Whitmer, to Hitler. Spotted in the crowd were swastikas, Confederate flags, nooses and assault weapons. Michigan Republican legislators pushed to end the stay-at-home declaration. Whitmer ended the original declaration, then issued another order extending the stay-at-home date to May 28. Mike Pence made the following statements about former national security adviser, and convicted felon, Gen. Michael Flynn: "I think Gen. Michael Flynn is a patriotic American who served with great distinction in the armed forces. I’m deeply troubled by the revelations of what appears to have been investigative abuse by officials in the Justice Department and we are going to continue to look into that very carefully." Note: Flynn plead guilty to lying to the FBI about his contacts with the Russian ambassador to the US. During a proclamation declaring May as Older Americans Month, Trump took credit for Veterans Choice legislation that was signed into law by Obama in 2014. Trump was asked about the statement from the office of the DNI regarding the origins of the coronavirus, Trump responded that he's confident the virus originated from the Wuhan Institute of Virology. When asked what evidence he had seen, Trump responded: "I can’t tell you that. I’m not allowed to tell you that."
April 29, 2020 - The US now has 1,034,474 confirmed cases of covid-19. Confirmed deaths from covid-19 stand at 55,182. According to a PBS NewsHour/NPR/Marist poll, only 14% of Americans think it's a good idea for students to return to schools without further coronavirus testing. 8% felt the same way about large groups of people attending sporting events. The longest economic expansion in US history officially came to a close when the commerce department announced that the economy shrank 4.8% in the 1st quarter of this year. According to NBC News, Trump has instructed US intelligence agencies to investigate whether China or the World Health Organization concealed early information about coronavirus. From the story: "As part of the tasking, intelligence agencies were asked to determine what the WHO knew about two research labs studying coronaviruses in the Chinese city of Wuhan, where the virus was first observed. NBC News has previously reported that the spy agencies have been investigating the possibility that the virus escaped accidentally from one of the labs, although many experts believe that is unlikely." During an interview with Fox News, Jared Kushner, Trump's son-in-law, and senior adviser, said of the federal government's response to coronavirus: "We’re on the other side of the medical aspect of this. The federal government rose to the challenge, and this is a great success story, and I think that’s really what needs to be told." A federal appeals court has ruled that a 2013 Kansas law that required residents to prove their citizenship when registering to vote is illegal and unconstitutional. Before the law was initially blocked by a lower court in 2016, 30,000 were prevented from registering to vote. The law was championed by Kris Kobach, the former Kansas secretary of state, and chair of Donald Trump's voter fraud commission. Dale Ho, the director of the ACLU's voting rights project reacted to the ruling saying "This law disenfranchised tens of thousands of Kansans, denying them the most fundamental right in our democracy ... We are gratified the court struck it down, and now call upon Kansas Secretary of State Scott Schwab to turn the page on Kris Kobach’s sorry legacy of voter suppression, drop any further appeals, and work with us collaboratively in the interests of all Kansas voters." Anthony Fauci told reporters that the drug remdesivir provided a "clear-cut positive effect in diminishing time to recover" from covid-19. Vice president Mike Pence claimed that "We expect by next month very quickly to be at a capacity to do more than 2 million tests a week." A new study found that demand for the anti-malaria drug hydroxychloroquine surged by more than 1,000% after Trump endorsed it as a potential treatment for covid-19. Highlights from Trump's meeting with industry executives:
- Trump claimed that municipalities that prevent their law enforcement from cooperating with immigration authorities shouldn't get federal coronavirus aid saying "I don’t see protecting cities and states if they’re going to be sanctuaries."
- Trump said "If you don’t have a vaccine, if the virus is gone, you’re like where we were before ... It’s gonna go, it’s gonna leave. It’s gonna be eradicated."
- Trump stated "Hopefully in the not too distant future we’ll have some massive rallies and people will be sitting next to each other. I can’t imagine a rally where you have every fourth seat full, every six seats are empty for everyone you have full. That wouldn’t look too good."
April 28, 2020 - The US now has 1,007,288 confirmed cases of covid-19. Confirmed deaths from covid-19 stand at 52,482. Donald Trump sent the following tweet: "We are doing far more, and better, Testing than any other country in the world, and yet the media does nothing but complain. No matter how good a job is done, the same as with the Ventilators, they will never say we are doing a great job, they will only viciously gripe!" Fact Check: The US has not done more tests per capita. Testing is improving in the US, but health experts say it needs to get much better before the economy can properly reopen. A model often cited by the White House from the University of Washington, now projects that as many as 74,000 Americans will die of coronavirus by August 4th. This is up from the 67,000 predicted a week ago, in part due to signs of increasing activity among Americans. Vice President Mike Pence toured the Mayo Clinic facilities in Minnesota. Footage of his visit shows that he was the only one without a face covering, thus ignoring mask guidelines in the facility. The Mayo Clinic released a statement that "Mayo Clinic had informed @VP of the masking policy prior to his arrival today." Democratic senator Brian Schatz tweeted the following in response to Mayogate: "When you don't wear a mask, especially inside the Mayo Clinic, you are not being brave. You are showing that you think the rules don't apply to you. And you are setting a dangerous example by ignoring experts." Trump met with small business owners today where he once again falsely claimed that his daughter Ivanka Trump has created 15 million American jobs. For perspective, there were are about 152 million Americans employed in January, so 15 million would represent about 10% of all US jobs. Trump also claimed that he was optimistic about a coronavirus vaccine, then added "But I think what happens is, it’s going to go away. This is going to go away. And whether it comes back in a modified form in the fall, we’ll be able to handle it. We’ll be able to put out spurts. And we’re very prepared to handle it." Anthony Fauci was asked on CNN when everyone who needs a test can get a test, to which he replied "hopefully we should see that as we get to the end of May and beginning of June." A new Pew Research Center survey found that 70% of Americans are at least "somewhat" in favor of allowing voters to vote by mail. Highlights from today's coronavirus press briefing:
- Trump was asked about warnings he received regarding the virus in his Presidential Daily Briefing (PDB) in January and February, to which he responded that he "would have to check" the dates of the warnings. According to a story in the Washington Post: "U.S. intelligence agencies issued warnings about the novel coronavirus in more than a dozen classified briefings prepared for President Trump in January and February, months during which he continued to play down the threat, according to current and former U.S. officials. The repeated warnings were conveyed in issues of the President’s Daily Brief, a sensitive report that is produced before dawn each day and designed to call the president’s attention to the most significant global developments and security threats. For weeks, the PDB — as the report is known — traced the virus’s spread around the globe, made clear that China was suppressing information about the contagion’s transmissibility and lethal toll, and raised the prospect of dire political and economic consequences. But the alarms appear to have failed to register with the president, who routinely skips reading the PDB and has at times shown little patience for even the oral summary he takes two or three times per week, according to the officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss classified material."
- Trump was asked about a Harvard study recommending that the US be able to conduct 5m tests per day. Trump responded: "We are going to be there very soon. If you look at the numbers, it could be that we are getting very close." For perspective, the US has so far conducted 5.6 million tests since the beginning of the pandemic.
April 27, 2020 - The US now has 982,177 confirmed cases of covid-19. Confirmed deaths from covid-19 stand at 50,354. Georgia is set to reopen restaurants and cinemas today. Yanis Ben Amor, the executive director of the Center for Sustainable Development in the Earth Institute responded saying "I don’t think the US is ready, there are 50 states all at different points in their epidemic. We aren’t diagnosing enough people and if we don’t have a testing system in place it will flare up again badly. We just don’t have that testing system and as a human being I’m deeply concerned about the consequences for people who think their governor is saying it’s safe now." Donald Trump retweeted this tweet written by John 'Muder Hornet' Cardillo: "Three failed coup attempts: 1 - Russia Collusion hoax during campaign 2 - Mueller's sham 3 - Illegitimate impeachment Do you really think these lunatics wouldn't inflate the mortality rates by underreporting the infection rates in an attempt to steal the election?" During a call with governors, Trump made the following comment: "Some of you might start thinking about school openings, because a lot of people are wanting to have school openings. It’s not a big subject, young children have done very well in this disaster that we’ve all gone through. So a lot of people are thinking about the school openings. And I think it’s something ... they can seriously consider and maybe get going on it." Lynette "Diamond" Hardaway and Rochelle "Silk" Richardson, two prominent African American supporters of Trump, have been removed from their slot at Fox News due to their "bonkers coronavirus claims". Here are some of the claims that have been made by "Diamond and Silk" on Fox News:
- The number of US coronavirus deaths has been inflated to make Trump look bad
- The disease was “man-made” and “engineered”
- That people should expose themselves to the virus by breaking lockdown
- That Bill Gates wants to develop vaccines in order to practice population control
- That 5G technology might be being used to infect people and fill up hospitals
Highlights from today's coronavirus task force briefing:
- Trump was asked if he takes any responsibility for reports of people ingesting disinfectant after he made his remarks. Trump responded: ""No, I don't."
- Trump made the following claims: "It could have been stopped and it could have been stopped faster but someone a long time ago decided not to do it that way ... We’re doing very serious investigations ... We are not happy with China ... We believe it could have been stopped at the source. It could have been stopped quickly and it wouldn’t have spread all over the world."
April 26, 2020 - The US now has 961,030 confirmed cases of covid-19. Confirmed deaths from covid-19 stand at 49,164. Dr Deborah Birx, Donald Trump's Coronavirus Response Coordinator, appeared on CNN where she was asked about Trump's disinfectant comments. Birx responded: "It bothers me that this is still in the news cycle. I worry that we don’t get the information to the American people that they need when we continue to bring up something that was from Thursday night." According to Politico, a new Republican party attack memo advises GOP candidates to aggressively target China in their public remarks on the pandemic. From the story: "The memo includes advice on everything from how to tie Democratic candidates to the Chinese government to how to deal with accusations of racism. It stresses three main lines of assault: That China caused the virus 'by covering it up,' that Democrats are 'soft on China,' and that Republicans will 'push for sanctions on China for its role in spreading this pandemic' ... The document urges candidates to stay relentlessly on message against the country when responding to any questions about the virus. When asked whether the spread of the coronavirus is Trump’s fault, candidates are advised to respond by pivoting to China." According to the AP, a Louisiana pastor held services today in defiance of house arrest oders. From the story: "A livestream from Life Tabernacle Church on Sunday showed Tony Spell walking among more than 100 congregants, often repeating the phrase, 'I’ve just got to get to Jesus. ... Come on America, let’s get back to Jesus.' Nearly all parishioners were not wearing face masks, and social distancing was not being practiced." Larry Hogan, Maryland's Republican governor, told CBS's Face the Nation audience that his state's covid-19 hotline received "hundreds of calls" following Trump's disinfectant comments. According to Hogan "[It’s] hard to imagine that people thought that [Trump’s comment] was serious". Kevin Hassett, the White House economic adviser, declared that unemployment levels could approach those seen during the Great Depression. Donald Trump sent the following unintentionally funny tweet: "When will all of the 'reporters' who have received Noble [sic] Prizes for their work on Russia, Russia, Russia, only to have been proven totally wrong (and, in fact, it was the other side who committed the crimes), be turning back their cherished 'Nobles' so that they can be given ....to the REAL REPORTERS & JOURNALISTS who got it right. I can give the Committee a very comprehensive list. When will the Noble Committee DEMAND the Prizes back, especially since they were gotten under fraud." After it was pointed out on twitter that there is no prize called the Noble, but there is a Nobel prize, and that the prize for good writing is a Pulitzer, Trump deleted his "Noble" tweets. During an appearance on NBC, Deborah Birx stated that "social distancing will be with us through the summer."
April 25, 2020 - The US now has 933,896 confirmed cases of covid-19. Confirmed deaths from covid-19 stand at 48,069. Global deaths now exceed 200,000. According to a story in the Guardian "The vast illegal wildlife trade and humanity’s excessive intrusion into nature is to blame for the coronavirus pandemic, according to a leading US scientist who says 'this is not nature's revenge, we did it to ourselves'. Scientists are discovering two to four new viruses are created every year as a result of human infringement on the natural world, and any one of those could turn into a pandemic, according to Thomas Lovejoy, who coined the term 'biological diversity' in 1980 and is often referred to as the godfather of biodiversity. 'This pandemic is the consequence of our persistent and excessive intrusion in nature and the vast illegal wildlife trade, and in particular, the wildlife markets, the wet markets, of south Asia and bush meat markets of Africa… It’s pretty obvious, it was just a matter of time before something like this was going to happen,' said Lovejoy, a senior fellow at the United Nations Foundation and professor of environment science at George Mason University." New York City's Poison Control Center has reported a doubling of calls regarding exposure to disinfectants since Trump's disinfectant comments two days ago. Dale Zorn, a Republican state senator from Michigan, apologized for wearing a facemask on the floor of the Michigan Senate that depicted the Confederate flag. When confronted about it yesterday, Zorn claimed "it was not a Confederate flag".
April 24, 2020 - The US now has 897,971 confirmed cases of covid-19. Confirmed deaths from covid-19 stand at 46,251. News surfaced that a few days before Trump peddled the idea that disinfectant could be used to treat covid-19, Mark Grenon, a man who identifies himself as the "archbishop" of a Florida-based outfit called Genesis II, which claims to be a church, wrote a letter to Trump about industrial bleach as a "miracle cure" for coronavirus. In Glenon's letter, he described how chlorine dioxide bleach, which he calls MMS or "miracle mineral solution", is "a wonderful detox that can kill 99% of the pathogens in the body". He also said that it "can rid the body of covid-19". Glenon has also been known to claim the solution can cure 99% of all illnesses, including cancer, malaria, HIV/Aids, as well as autism. Since the start of the pandemic, Genesis II has been marketing MMS as a cure for covid-19, and advises users, including children, to mix three to six drops of bleach in water and drink it. Ironically, just last week, the FDA obtained a federal court order barring Genesis II from selling MMS as "an unproven and potentially harmful treatment for covid-19", and ordered Kerri Rivera, a disciple of Genesis II, to remove false cure claims about MMS from her website. In addition, last August, the FDA issued an urgent warning urging Americans not to buy or drink MMS, which it described as a "dangerous bleach which has caused serious and potentially life-threatening side effects." Alan Keyes, a former ambassador and adviser to Ronald Reagan, has featured Genesis II bleach products as a miracle cure on his online conservative TV show, Let's Talk America. Bob Sisson, another conservative host, has also promoted MMS on his show, and in one show, held up two bottles of MMS and said: "Gonna meet Trump, it’s only a matter of time. President Trump’s gonna invite us up there, when he finds out about this stuff." Trump now claims he was only being "sarcastic" when he made his disinfectant remarks saying "I was asking a question just sarcastically, to reporters like you, just to see what would happen." Anderson Cooper of CNN responded to Trump's sarcasm claim saying "We have the president of the United States just lying, just there. He was lying about that, we witnessed him saying it yesterday to his own task force. We have the tape, we’re going to play it to you." According to Politico, Donald Trump "is tens of millions of dollars in debt to China." From the story: "In 2012, his real estate partner refinanced one of Trump’s most prized New York buildings for almost $1 billion. The debt includes $211 million from the state-owned Bank of China — its first loan of this kind in the U.S. — which matures in the middle of what could be Trump’s second term, financial records show." The Navy has confirmed that at least 18 members of the USS Kidd have tested positive for covid-19. According to the AP, the US Food and Drug Administration released an alert warning doctors against prescribing hydroxychloroquine. From the story: "The warning comes as doctors at a New York hospital published a report that heart rhythm abnormalities developed in most of 84 coronavirus patients treated with hydroxychloroquine and the antibiotic azithromycin, a combo Trump has promoted. Both drugs are known to sometimes alter the heartbeat in dangerous ways, and their safety or ability to help people with COVID-19 is unknown." Highlights from today's coronavirus task force briefing:
- Trump claimed that "Over the last three years we built the strongest economy and the most successful country the world has ever seen greatest economy, the world has ever seen. We will rebuild that economy, our economy in the not too distant future."
- Trump left abruptly without taking questions, leading many to believe he did not want to again address disinfectantgate.
April 23, 2020 - The US now has 863,726 confirmed cases of covid-19. Confirmed deaths from covid-19 stand at 44,409. According to a story in Reuters, Alex Azar, the US health and human services secretary, appointed Brian Harrison to oversee the department's daily response to coronavirus as the pandemic struck. From the story: "[A]t the dawn of the coronavirus crisis, Azar appointed his most trusted aide and chief of staff, Harrison, as HHS’s main coordinator for the government’s response to the virus. Harrison, 37, was an unusual choice, with no formal education in public health, management, or medicine and with only limited experience in the fields. In 2006, he joined HHS in a one-year stint as a ‘Confidential Assistant’ to Azar, who was then deputy secretary. He also had posts working for Vice President Dick Cheney, the Department of Defense and a Washington public relations company. Before joining the Trump Administration in January 2018, Harrison’s official HHS biography says, he ‘ran a small business in Texas.’ The biography does not disclose the name or nature of that business, but his personal financial disclosure forms show that from 2012 until 2018 he ran a company called Dallas Labradoodles." Gretchen Whitmer, Michigan's governor, addressed that state's stay-at-home protests, saying "The worst irony that could come about from these demonstrations is that they force us to stay in this posture longer than we’re already planning to. That’s the last thing any of us wants." According to a Fox News poll, 63% of Michigan voters approve of Whitmer's job performance, while 47% approve of Trump's performance. News surfaced that Trump's reversal regarding Georgia governor Kemp's reopening plan came about because the scientists on the coronavirus task force let Trump know that he would be asked about Kemp's plan, and that they would not be able to defend it publicly, which would pose a problem for the administration. According to CNN, a new spokesperson for the department of health and human services sent a series of racist tweets about Chinese people, which have now been deleted. According to the story "Michael Caputo, a longtime New York Republican political operative who worked on Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign, was appointed last week as Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs at HHS, a prominent communications role at the department which serves a central role in the federal government’s response to the coronavirus pandemic ... In a series of tweets on March 12, Caputo responded to a baseless conspiracy theory that the United States brought the coronavirus to Wuhan, China, by tweeting that 'millions of Chinese suck the blood out of rabid bats as an appetizer and eat the ass out of anteaters.' He followed up at another user, 'Don’t you have a bat to eat?'" An AP/NORC poll found that only 23% of Americans have a high level of trust in information about coronavirus that comes from Trump. Another 21% have a moderate amount of trust in Trump's information. Dr Rick Bright, the vaccine expert who claims to have been ousted because he challenged Trump's claims regarding hydroxychloroquine, is filing a whistleblower complaint against the government. The House voted today to create a select committee to review the distribution of coronavirus relief funds. Every Democrat voted yes, every Republican voted no. During an interview with Fox News, Mike Pence made this statement: "If you look at the trends today, I think by Memorial Day Weekend we will largely have this coronavirus epidemic behind us." Note: Memorial Day is May 25. The Clorox Company posted the following disclaimer on Clorox.com: "Bleach and other disinfectants are not suitable for consumption or injection under any circumstances. People should always read the label for proper usage instructions. Disinfecting surfaces with bleach and other disinfecting products is one of the ways to help stop the spread of COVID-19, according to the Centers for Disease Control. Our products are safe when used as directed. It’s critical that everyone understands the facts in order to keep themselves safe and healthy." Highlights from today's coronavirus task force briefing:
- Trump muses that "you won't even believe" how the virus reacts to sunlight, then says "Supposing you brought the light inside the body - either through the skin or some other way" and then said this while looking directly at Dr Deborah Birx: "And then I see the disinfectant, where it knocks it out in a minute. One minute! and is there a way we can do something like that by injection inside, or almost a cleaning. It gets in the lungs and it does a tremendous number, so it would be interesting to check that." Dr Birx looked very uncomfortable while Trump was stating this, and did not make eye contact with him, but instead stared straight ahead. Here are some select responses to Trump's disinfectant comment:
"Injecting disinfectant into your body will kill you. While it feels completely unnecessary to even say this, people drank fish tank cleaner containing chloroquine because of what they heard from rumors about the substance. We must fight deadly misinformation no matter how stupid." - Eugene Gu, MD
"As a physician, I can’t recommend injecting disinfectant into the lungs or using UV radiation inside the body to treat COVID-19. Don’t take medical advice from Trump." - Kashif Mahmood
"The President of the United States is calling for UV light therapy for COVID (External or endoluminal?!?!). Also injecting or ingesting disinfectants.....I just can’t believe that after almost 900k cases and 50k deaths in 60 days...this is our elected leader :(" - Robert Lookstein MD, MHCDL
"We must be clear that under no circumstance should our disinfectant products be administered into the human body (through injection, ingestion or any other route)." - Reckitt Benckiser, British based maker of Dettol and Lysol
"Trump’s briefings are actively endangering the public’s health. Boycott the propaganda. Listen to the experts. And please don’t drink disinfectant." - Robert Reich, Professor of Public Policy at the University of California at Berkeley
"It is incomprehensible to me that a moron like this holds the highest office in the land and that there exist people stupid enough to think this is OK. I can’t believe that in 2020 I have to caution anyone listening to the president that injecting disinfectant could kill you." - Walter Schaub, former director of the Office of Government Ethics
"Never apply the product to yourself or others. Do not ingest disinfectant products." - Environmental Protection Agency
"Please don’t poison yourself because Donald Trump thinks it could be a good idea." - Hillary Clinton, former first lady and US secretary of state
April 22, 2020 - The US now has 831,925 confirmed cases of covid-19. Confirmed deaths from covid-19 stand at 42,595. Health officials in California are reporting that two people died from coronavirus weeks before the first official reported death of the disease in the US. One died on February 6, and the other died on February 17. Treasury secretary Steven Mnuchin predicted that "most if not all" of the US economy will reopen later in the summer. Andrew Cuomo, the governor of New York, responded to a common argument from stay-at-home protesters, which is "the cure cannot be worse than the illness" saying "How can the cure be worse than the illness if the illness is potential death?" The World Health Organization held a press conference, where they addressed the claim by Trump that the WHO was privy to information about covid-19 that it hid from the US. Michael Ryan, the head of the WHO health emergencies programme said that there were 31 US nationals on his team. He also pointed out that the WHO technical lead on covid-19, who was present for the press conference, is an American epidemiologist. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the director of Who stated that "Since our CDC colleagues also know that we give information immediately to anyone, they also can pass information to their institution. No problem. There is no secret in the WHO, because keeping things confidential or secret is dangerous." Kayleigh McEnany, the White House press secretary, claimed CDC director Robert Redfield's statement yesterday that a second wave may be worse than the first, was actually referring to the seasonal flu only, and that he would be putting out a statement clarifying the claim. An AP/NORC poll found that the majority of Americans (61%) believe steps taken to slow the spread of coronavirus are about right. 26% believe the measures do not go far enough. 12% believe the restrictions go too far. Carolyn Goodman, the independent mayor of Las Vegas, made the following statements during an interview with CNN's Anderson Cooper: "I’d love everything open because I think we’ve had viruses for years that have been here." Rick Bright, the former director of the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), said he was ousted from his position after he questioned the effectiveness of hydroxychloroquine. Bright issued a statement through his lawyer which said in part "Specifically, and contrary to misguided directives, I limited the broad use of chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine, promoted by the administration as a panacea, but which clearly lack scientific merit ... While I am prepared to look at all options and to think ‘outside the box’ for effective treatments, I rightly resisted efforts to provide an unproven drug on demand to the American public ... I insisted that these drugs be provided only to hospitalised patients with confirmed Covid-19 while under the supervision of a physician. These drugs have potentially serious risks associated with them, including increased mortality observed in some recent studies in patients with Covid-19 ... I am speaking out because to combat this deadly virus, science — not politics or cronyism — has to lead the way." Art Reingold, the head of the epidemiology and biostatistics division at UC Berkeley's school of public health offered this view on reopening: "As we look to reopen, we should have in place a system where we can much more easily, quickly test more people. Then we can determine who is infected, isolate those individuals, and the people they were in contact with." Highlights from today's coronavirus task force briefing:
- Trump claimed Robert Redfield was "totally misquoted" by the Washington Post regarding a second wave of the coronavirus potentially being worse than the current wave, adding "As I say, it’s fake news."
- Robert Redfield, the CDC director, addressed his interview with the Washington Post, confirming that "I'm accurately quoted in the Washington Post" but said the headline was misleading, because it said a "second wave is likely to be even more devastating" when it should have used the word "difficult" instead of "devastating".
- Trump predicted that "if it comes back, though, it won’t be coming back in the form that it was. It will be coming back in smaller doses that we can contain."
- Anthony Fauci said that whether or not the outbreak in the fall will be "big or small is going to depend on our response ... Nobody can predict what’s going to happen with an outbreak."
- Trump said he disagreed "very strongly" with Georgia governor and Republican Brian Kemp's decision to reopen that state saying they have not met the requirements to enter "Phase 1" of White House plan to reopen the country. This came as a reversal from yesterday when Trump expressed confidence in Kemp's leadership.
- Trump said that "On July 4, we will be doing what we had at the Mall. As you know, we’re gonna be doing it. Last year was a tremendous success and I would imagine we’ll do it, hopefully, I can use the term ‘forever.’ That was a great success, as you remember."
- Trump said he had just signed an executive order restricting immigration.
- Trump claimed that before the pandemic, the US had the "best employment numbers ever, including for African Americans." Fact Check: Prior to the pandemic, unemployment was rising for African Americans, going from a low of 3.5% in December 2019, to 5.9% just before the pandemic began. In addition, many of the new jobs created under Trump were low wage.
- Trump was asked about Rick Bright, the vaccine expert who said he was ousted for questioning the effectiveness of hydroxychloroquine, to which Trump responded: "Maybe he was, maybe he wasn’t. I’ve never heard of him."
- Trump claimed that "Not everybody believes as strongly on testing".
April 21, 2020 - The US now has 803,283 confirmed cases of covid-19. Confirmed deaths from covid-19 stand at 40,554. The following exchange took place on twitter this morning:
Donald Trump: "Watched the first 5 minutes of poorly rated Morning Psycho on MSDNC* just to see if he is as ‘nuts’ as people are saying. He’s worse. Such hatred and contempt! I used to do his show all the time before the 2016 election, then cut him off. Wasn’t worth the effort, his mind is shot!"
Joe Scarborough: "Donald, thanks for being our most loyal viewer*. Now please get to work. Over 40,000 Americans have died from the pandemic. America has the most gifted scientists, doctors, and technology leaders. Please use them and take charge of testing so we can get America working again! #USA."
Donald Trump: "It is amazing that I became President of the United States with such a totally corrupt and dishonest Lamestream Media going after me all day, and all night. Either I’m really good, far better than the Fake News wants to admit, or they don’t have nearly the power as once thought!"
Mica Brzezinski: "Since u are watching, can you imagine a president who would allow a pandemic to sweep in on his watch, fail to prepare, tens of thousands die, refuse to do national testing and drive the economy into the ground .. Oh wait..."
Donald Trump: "I’ve had great ‘ratings’ my whole life, there’s nothing unusual about that for me. The White House News Conference ratings are ‘through the roof’(Monday Night Football, Bachelor Finale , @nytimes) but I don’t care about that. I care about going around the Fake News to the PEOPLE!"
Van Johnson, the Democratic mayor of Savannah, Georgia, criticized Republican governor Brian Kemp's decision to re-open the state this week, calling that decision "reckless, premature and dangerous" and "not based in any type of science or best practices". A Washington Post/University of Maryland poll found that 54% of Americans have a negative opinion on Trump's handling of the coronavirus crisis, and 72% say the nation's governors have manged their states well. Nurses protested outside the White House today regarding shortages of PPE. Robert Redfield, the director of the CDC, made the following statement during an interview with the Washington Post: "There’s a possibility that the assault of the virus on our nation next winter will actually be even more difficult than the one we just went through. And when I’ve said this to others, they kind of put their head back, they don’t understand what I mean. We’re going to have the flu epidemic and the coronavirus epidemic at the same time." Highlights from today's coronavirus task force meeting:
- Trump says that immigration will be suspended for 60 days.
- Trump was asked about a study that linked hydroxychloroquine to higher death rates for Veterans Affairs patients. TRump said he would "take a look" at the evidence.
April 20, 2020 - The US now has 777,275 confirmed cases of covid-19. Confirmed deaths from covid-19 stand at 37,999. According to a story in the Washington Post, US experts were working at the WHO when covid-19 emerged, which undercuts Trump's claim that the organization failed to adequately warn countries about the threat out of alleged deference to China. From the story: "More than a dozen U.S. researchers, physicians and public health experts, many of them from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, were working full time at the Geneva headquarters of the World Health Organization as the novel coronavirus emerged late last year and transmitted real-time information about its discovery and spread in China to the Trump administration, according to U.S. and international officials. A number of CDC staff members are regularly detailed to work at the WHO in Geneva as part of a rotation that has operated for years. Senior Trump-appointed health officials also consulted regularly at the highest levels with the WHO as the crisis unfolded, the officials said." During an appearance on ABC News, Dr Anthony Fauci warned that moving too quickly to end stay-at-home orders could cause a surge in covid-19 cases saying "If you jump the gun and go into a situation where you have a big spike, you’re gonna set yourself back. So as painful as it is to go by the careful guidelines of gradually phasing into a re-opening, it’s going to backfire. That’s the problem ... Unless we get the virus under control, the real recovery economically is not going to happen." Scott Gottlieb, the former FDA commissioner, warned that optimal levels of testing would probably not be in place until September saying "I think a good rule of thumb would be (to test) about 1% of the population on a weekly basis – so the ability to test about 3 million people ... Hopefully, we’ll be there by September." According to a poll done for the Detroit Regional Chamber, 57% of Michigan residents approve of Democratic governor Whitmer's handling of the coronavirus crisis in that state. 44% support Trump's handling of the crisis. Hundreds of anti-lockdown protesters marched on Pennsylvania's capitol in Harrisburg. Many protesters were not wearing masks, or practicing social distancing. During a press conference, WHO director Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus stated that "For WHO, we are open we don’t hide anything... We want all countries to get the same message immediately because that helps countries to prepare well and to prepare quickly... Not only the US but all countries get information immediately." Maryland governor Larry Hogan confirmed that his state obtained 500,000 coronavirus tests from LabGenomics in South Korea. Oil prices have gone negative for the first time in history, due to a lack of demand amid the coronavirus crisis. Brian Kemp, the Republican governor of Georgia, announced that gyms, barbers, and hair stylists could reopen this week, and that theaters and restaurants will reopen next week. Highlights from today coronavirus task force meeting:
- Trump claimed there is no shortage or issue with personal protective equipment. Fact Check: According to the Guardian "for weeks healthcare workers have been speaking out and even demonstrating outside hospitals at the life-threatening shortages of PPE. Medical staff are reusing and recycling masks and gowns. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has already published crisis guidelines, which include workers potentially wearing homemade masks. Doctors, nurses and other front-line health workers in the coronavirus crisis have taken to begging for equipment online, using the Twitter hashtag #GetMePPE."
- The following stunning exchange took place between Trump and PBS News Yamiche Alcindor:
Alcindor: "A man said his entire family got sick because they listened to you and didn’t stay home. Are you concerned that downplaying the virus got people sick?"
Trump: "A lot of people love Trump, right. A lot of people love me, you see them all the time, right. I guess I’m here for a reason. To the best of my knowledge, I won, and I think we’re gonna win again. I think we’re gonna win in a landslide."
- Trump announced that he will temporarily ban immigration to stem the spread of covid-19.
April 19, 2020 - Today is the 25th anniversary of the second deadliest act of terrorism on US soil. On this day in 1995, a right-wing extremist used a truck bomb to blow up the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, killing 168, and injuring hundreds more. There are now 751,958 confirmed cases of coronavirus in the US. 36,300 Americans have died. According to an NBC/WSJ poll, 58% of Americans are worried the US will move too quickly to ease stay-at-home restrictions, causing further spread and more deaths, while 32% were worried the US will take too long to loosen the restrictions and hurt the economy. Nancy Pelosi was asked about Trump's almost daily attacks on her and other members of the Democratic leadership, to which she responded: "Frankly, I don’t pay that much attention to the president’s tweets against me. As I’ve said, he’s a poor leader. He’s always trying to avoid responsibility and assign blame." Pelosi was also asked about protests against stay-at-home measures to which she responded: "I wouldn’t exaggerate the protests across the country. There are some in some places, largely where there’s a Democratic governor. But I think of it largely as a distraction and the president’s embrace of it as a distraction from the fact that he has not appropriately done testing, treatment, contact tracing, and quarantine." Washington governor Jay Inslee offered the following criticism of Trump's support for protests against stay-at-home measures n ABC's This Week saying: "To have an American president encourage people to violate the law, I can’t remember any time during my time in America where we have seen such a thing. And it is dangerous because it can inspire people to ignore things that actually can save their lives ... It is doubly frustrating to us governors because this is such a schizophrenia, the president is basically asking people, ‘Please ignore Dr Fauci and Dr Birx [White House task force medical advisers], please ignore my own guidelines that I set forth,’ because those guidelines made very clear… that you cannot open up Michigan today, or Virginia, under those guidelines. You need to see a decline in the infections and fatalities. And that simply has not happened yet." During an interview on NBC, Vice President Mike Pence claimed the US has "sufficient capacity" for testing for any state to go to phase one level of reopening. According to the New York Times "Researchers at Harvard University have suggested the US cannot safely reopen unless it conducts more than three times the number of coronavirus tests it is currently administering over the course of the next month." Democratic governor Ralph Northam of Virginia responded to Pence's claim that the states have plenty of tests as "just delusional" saying "We have been fighting for testing. We don’t even have enough swabs, believe it or not. For the national level to say that we have what we need, and really to have no guidance to the state levels, is just irresponsible, because we’re not there yet." Republican governor Larry Hogan of Maryland responded to Pence's remarks saying "The administration I think is trying to ramp up testing, they are doing some things with respect to private labs. But to try to push this off, to say the governors have plenty of testing and they should just get to work on testing, somehow we aren’t doing our jobs, is just absolutely false."
April 18, 2020 - There are now 724,529 confirmed cases of coronavirus in the US. 34,641 Americans have died. An anti-stay-home protest took place at the capital building in Austin Texas, which was organized by the conspiracy theory website InfoWars. The crowd chanted "Fire Fauci!" and Owen Shroyer, the InfoWars personality who organized the protest told the crowd: "What are they going to do if we have events like this all over the country, with thousands of people showing up, and the virus doesn’t spread like they told us? If I want to go out to the gym or the club, or a restaurant, I’m not going to wear a mask." New Jersey governor Phil Murphy sent the following in tweets: "If you think this is 'just the flu' – you are 100% wrong. In just six weeks, we’ve lost 4,070 New Jerseyans to #COVID19. That’s more than @CDCgov statistics show we’ve lost over the past three entire flu seasons COMBINED. #COVID19 is more virulent than the flu. One person with COVID-19 can infect many, many more without showing any symptoms. Once someone is exposed, it can take a long time – as much as 14 days – to develop illness. The hospitalization rate for #COVID19 is far greater than what it is for the flu. The general hospitalization rate for the flu is about one-tenth of 1% of cases. For #COVID19, it’s roughly 10%. You are 100 TIMES MORE LIKELY to end up in the hospital. We have vaccines that can protect against the flu. We have proven anti-flu therapies. We’re at least a year away from a vaccine for #COVID19, and there are currently no proven therapies." Some highlights from today's coronavirus task force meeting:
- Trump stated "The United States has produced dramatically better health outcomes than any other country with the possible exception of Germany." Fact Check: According to research by the US's Johns Hopkins Univrsity, as of April 13, the death rate in the US was 4% of cases and 6.73 deaths per 100,000, which is higher than Germany, South Korea, Japan, Australia and many other countries.
- Trump claims regarding tests that he "inherited broken junk." Fact Check: There were no tests to inherit for a novel coronavirus.
April 17, 2020 - There are now 696,537 confirmed cases of coronavirus in the US. 32,854 Americans have died. During a meeting with the states' governors, Trump seemed to walk back his "total" authority claim made last week regarding re-opening the states saying "Governors will be empowered to tailor an approach that meets the diverse circumstances of their own states". China revised the coronavirus death toll in its Wuhan region from 2,579 to 3,869, while denying there had been any cover-up of the extent of the outbreak. Public health experts believe the number is probably closer to 42,000 based on heightened activity at funeral homes in the Wuhan region. According to a study by researchers at Stanford University, vote by mail systems modestly increase voter turnout, but do not favor one party over another. This study contradicts a belief among Republicans that vote by mail favors Democrats. Hundreds of demonstrators have gathered outside the Minnesota governor's mansion to protest statewide stay-at-home order. Few demonstrators are wearing masks, and most are disregarding social distancing guidelines. One day after releasing federal guidelines on reopening the economy and acknowledging that governors would make the ultimate decision on how and when to reopen their respective states, Trump sent the following incendiary tweets: "LIBERATE MINNESOTA!", "LIBERATE MICHIGAN!" and "LIBERATE VIRGINIA, and save your great 2nd Amendment. It is under siege!" A few select responses to these tweets:
"Reminder as Trump tweets about ‘liberating' Democratic-run states: A Pew poll out yesterday found that about twice as many Americans say their greater concern is that state governments will lift restrictions on public activity too quickly (66%-32%)." - Kyle Griffin
"'liberate the country from the will of the majority' is a pretty good summary of where the republican party is these days" - b-boy bouiebasse
"Nearly 30,000 people in the U.S. have died from COVID-19, including over 200 Virginians, and the president is tweeting aggressive appeals to gun rights activists" - Grace Segers
"Trump's reckless rhetoric could encourage--let's be honest, it will encourage, and it's intended to encourage--his followers to ignore lawful state orders. It will lead to lawless acts that endanger the well-being of other Americans. Republicans, conservatives--you ok with that?" - Bill Kristol
"LIBERATE AMERICA from Trump’s failure to come up with a plan for testing." - Jon Favreau
Trump sent the following tweet today: "The States have to step up their TESTING!". Andrew Cuomo, the governor of New York, responded to Trump's statement that governors will be empowered to open up their states saying "I didn’t need the president of the United States to tell me I’m governor". Cuomo also said of Trump "He’s doing nothing. All he’s doing is walking in front of the parade ... The federal government cannot wash its hand of this. We cannot do it without federal help ... If we don’t have federal help on testing, that’s a real problem." Joe Biden, the Democratic nominee for president, and former Vice President under Barack Obama, sent this tweet: "The uncomfortable truth is that Donald Trump left America exposed and vulnerable to this pandemic. He ignored the warnings of health experts and intelligence agencies and put his trust in China's leaders instead. Now, we're all paying the price." During an interview with Vice News, Senator Kamala Harris accused Trump of making the crisis in the United States worse than it needed to be through "His failure to take this seriously, from the time of calling it a hoax, to getting rid of the Obama administration’s focus through the White House on pandemics, to him trivializing the issue including the importance of social distancing.” Some Democratic Senators reacted angrily to a call between them and Vice President Mike Pence:
"I have never been so mad about a phone call in my life" - Senator Angus King
"New plan sounds like the old plan, which is to declare victory and engage in magical thinking to try to survive another 24-hour news cycle. But they have not actually assessed how many tests they need every day." - Senator Brian Schultz
According to the Miami Herald, state attorneys and lawmakers in Florida attempted to block covid-19 information from being released to the public. This was occurring at the same time that Republican Governor Ron DeSantis was touting Florida as one of the most transparent states in coronavirus reporting. Minnesota governor Tim Walz called the White House regarding Trump's tweet to liberate Minnesota, but he wasn't able to reach the president, and his call was not returned. Washington governor Jay Inslee made the following statements in a series of tweets: "The president’s statements this morning encourage illegal and dangerous acts. He is putting millions of people in danger of contracting COVID-19. His unhinged rantings and calls for people to 'liberate' states could also lead to violence. We’ve seen it before. The president is fomenting domestic rebellion and spreading lies - even while his own administration says the virus is real, it is deadly and we have a long way to go before restrictions can be lifted ... Yesterday, the president told the nation science would guide his plan for easing restrictions. The White House released a sensible plan to resume economic activity. 24 hrs later he is off the rails, ignoring his own plan and spewing dangerous, anti-democratic rhetoric." Trump sent the following tweet: "Biden/Obama were a disaster in handling the H1N1 Swine Flu. Polling at the time showed disastrous approval numbers. 17,000 people died unnecessarily and through incompetence! Also, don’t forget their 5 Billion Dollar Obamacare website that should have cost close to nothing!" Samantha Power, the former US ambassador to the United Nations under Obama responded to Trump tweeting: "Facts on #H1N1: Within 2 wks of the id of the outbreak, @FDA approved CDC-created test kits. By September 2009 FDA had approved 4 influenza vaccines. During the crisis @CDCgov released 11 million treatment courses of Tamiflu & Relenza. #Obama led & USG agencies saved lives." According to a story on NBC News "Anti-government sentiment has percolated among far-right extremists in recent weeks over the stay-at-home orders governors have issued to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. Trump’s tweets, however, pushed many online extremist communities to speculate whether the president was advocating for armed conflict, an event they’ve termed 'the boogaloo,' for which many far-right activists have been gearing up and advocating since last year. There were sharp increases on Twitter in terms associated with conspiracies such as QAnon and the 'boogaloo' term immediately following the president’s tweets, according to the Network Contagion Research Institute, an independent nonprofit group of scientists and engineers that tracks and reports on misinformation and hate speech across social media. Posts about the 'boogaloo' on Twitter skyrocketed in the hours after the president’s tweets, with more than 1,000 tweets featuring the term, some of which received hundreds of retweets." South Dakota governor Kristi Noem announced that South Dakota will begin a clinical trial of hydroxychloroquine to fight coronavirus. Highlights from today's coronavirus task force briefing:
- Trump announced $19bn in "direct payments to farmers as well as mass purchases". This is in addition to $28bn in bailout money to offset impacts of tariffs on imports.
- Trump was asked about his "LIBERATE" tweets to which he responded that some states are going too far with social distancing measures saying "I think some things are too tough." Fact check: The states mentioned in Trump's tweets are following federal guidelines that encourage Americans to stay home.
- Trump was asked about the protesters around the country who are flouting social distancing measures, to which Trump responded: "They seem to be very responsible people to me."
April 16, 2020 - More than 22 million Americans have lost their jobs since 14 March when nationwide stay at home orders went into effect. Trump responded to criticism from Nancy Pelosi regarding his handling of coronavirus saying on twitter: "Crazy 'Nancy Pelosi, you are a weak person. You are a poor leader. You are the reason America hates career politicians, like yourself.' @seanhannity She is totally incompetent & controlled by the Radical Left, a weak and pathetic puppet. Come back to Washington and do your job!" Pelosi responded to Trump's tweet saying "Every knock from him is a boost. It’s difficult to imagine more projection in one tweet." Defense secretary Mark Esper made the following statement regarding the origins of the novel coronavirus: "A majority of the views right now is that it was natural, that it was organic." Roger Stone, longtime confidant and former aide to Trump, has been denied a new trial. Stone has been ordered to appear within 14 days to serve out his sentence of 40 months in prison. Some highlights from today's coronavirus task force briefing:
- Trump introduced new guidelines for reopening the economy called Opening Up America Again. News surfaced that Trump asked every Republican Senator except for Mitt Romney to be on his bipartisan congressional task force on re-opening the country.
- Trump claimed "We’ve done the most advanced and robust testing of anywhere in the world." Fact Check: Some of the initial tests sent out to states were seriously flawed. Part of the problem came from the CDC shunning the World Health Organization (WHO) template for tests, and insisted on developing a more complicated version that correctly identified Covid-19, but also flagged other viruses - resulting in false positives.
- Trump complained "People should have told us about this." Fact Check: Trump was warned at the end of January by one of his top White House advisers. The US intelligence community, public health experts and officials in Trump's own administration warned for years that the country was at risk form a pandemic, including specific warnings about a coronavirus outbreak. An October 2019 draft report by the Department of Health and Human Services expressed how underfunded, under-prepared and uncoordinated the federal government would be for a life-or-death battle with a virus for which no treatment existed.
April 15, 2020 - There are now more than 600,000 confirmed cases of coronavirus in the US. 26,059 Americans have died. 2 million cases have been confirmed worldwide, and globally, 128,071 deaths have been recorded. Some notable responses to Trump's decision to cut off US funding from the World Health Organization:
"Halting funding for the World Health Organization during a world health crisis is as dangerous as it sounds. Their work is slowing the spread of COVID-19 and if that work is stopped no other organization can replace them. The world needs @WHO now more than ever." - Bill Gates
"Now is the time for unity and for the international community to work together in solidarity to stop this virus and its shattering consequences." - Antonio Guterres, UN Secretary-General
"At a time like this when we need to be sharing information and we need to have advice we can rely on, the WHO has provided that." - Jacinda Ardern, New Zealand Prime Minister
"Cutting the WHO’s funding during the COVID-19 pandemic is not in U.S. interests given the organization’s critical role assisting other countries — particularly in the developing world — in their response." - US Chamber of Commerce
"This decision is dangerous, illegal and will be swiftly challenged" - Nancy Pelosi, House Speaker
"I am distressed by the decision to withhold critically needed US funding for the World Health Organization, especially during an international pandemic. WHO is the only international organization capable of leading the effort to control this virus." - Jimmy Carter, former US President
In an open letter to her colleague's, Nancy Pelosi wrote: "The truth is that Donald Trump dismantled the infrastructure handed to him which was meant to plan for and overcome a pandemic, resulting in unnecessary deaths and economic disaster." Via facebook, the Michigan Conservative Coalition organized a protest outside the Michigan State Capitol called "Operation gridlock". The group wanted to protest Michigan governor Gretchen Whitmer's strict stay at home orders, which were put in place to slow the spread of covid-19. Most of the protesters stayed in their cars, but about 150 protesters gathered around the capital building, where they could be heard chanting "lock her up!" Among those in attendance were far right groups like the Michigan Proud Boys. Whitmer, who is a Democrat, has been attacked by Trump relentlessly on twitter. Whitmer responded to the protesters saying "The sad irony here, the protest is they don't like being in this stay at home order, and they may have just caused a need to lengthen it." According to CNN: "In the first phone call convened between President Donald Trump and some members of his newly formed business council, industry leaders reiterated to the President what public health experts and governors have been telling him for weeks: that there would need to be guarantees of ramped-up coronavirus testing before people return to work, according to one person briefed on the discussions." A study published by ProPublica found that the death count for coronavirus may be much higher than initially thought. According to the study: "As of Tuesday afternoon, the United States had logged more than 592,000 cases of COVID-19 and more than 24,000 deaths, the most in the world, according to the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University. But the official COVID-19 death count may, at least for now, be missing fatalities that are occurring outside of hospitals, data and interviews show. Cities are increasingly showing signs of Americans succumbing to the coronavirus in their own beds."
April 14, 2020 - There are now 592,431 confirmed cases of covid-19 in the US. 25,000 Americans have died. Representative Trey Hollingsworth, a Republican from Indiana, made the following statement in an interview with radio station WIBC: "it is always the American government's position to say, in the choice between the loss of our way of life as Americans and the loss of life, of American lives, we have to always choose the latter." Hollingsworth went on to say "The social scientists are telling us about the economic disaster that is going on. Our (Gross Domestic Product) is supposed to be down 20% alone this quarter. It is policymakers' decision to put on our big boy and big girl pants and say it is the lesser of these two evils. It is not zero evil, but it is the lesser of these two evils and we intend to move forward that direction. That is our responsibility and to abdicate that is to insult the Americans that voted us into office." Howell Raines, former executive editor of the New York Times, was interviewed on MSNBC, and offered this critique of the Trump presidency: "I think this is one of the astonishing acts of disinformation we’ve seen from a White House since the Vietnam era and the five o’clock follies* of the Lyndon Johnson administration. What we are seeing here, I think, is a kind of imploding presidency. And with an implosion, you have to have a black hole at the center. And I think what we have here is a black hole that consists of two elements: President Trump’s extremely fragile ego, and his distrust of government experts." Raines added that Dr Fauci and other White House experts "remind me of nervous parents trying to cope with a three-year-old on a sugar high." Andrew Cuomo was asked about Trump's claim that he alone has the authority to open the states. Cuomo responded: "If he ordered me to reopen in a way that would endanger the public health of the people of my state, I wouldn't do it ... I don't know what the president is talking about, frankly. We have a constitution ... We don’t have a king ... the president doesn't have total authority ... It has to be phased. It has to be balanced. It's a public health strategy and an economic reactivation strategy. The key to me is testing. People have to know that they are safe and the testing actually works to make people feel safe, and we don't have that capacity now ... We have to develop that widespread testing capacity." Three pastors in California are suing state officials who have placed restrictions on people gathering at church services due to coronavirus. The lawsuit alleges they have been denied their "fundamental rights" of freedom of religion, speech and assembly due to the restrictions. Dr Anthony Fauci, the country's top infectious disease specialist, told the AP that May 1st might be "a bit overly optimistic" to start reopening. Fauce also said of testing: "We have to have something in place that is efficient and that we can rely on, and we’re not there yet." According to the Washington Post, Donald Trump has been making on average, 15 false or misleading claims a day, or 18,000 false or misleading claims since taking office. A Liberty University student has filed a lawsuit against the school alleging they put students at severe physical risk and refused to refund thousands of dollars in fees. Highlights from today's coronavirus task force briefing:
- Trump announced that funding will be cut off to the World Health Organization while the US conducts a "review". According to Trump the WHO has "problems the likes of which no one can believe." Trump also bashed the WHO for praising China's "transparency", which is something Trump himself did on January 24th. Here's a the response to Trump's announcement from the DNC: "In the middle of a global pandemic, Trump wants to stop funding the preeminent organization in charge of combating global pandemics. Trump is willing to put global health further at risk to try to deflect blame from his own failures."
- Trump claimed that "China has paid tens of billions of dollars" to the US in tariffs. Fact Check: This is not how tariffs work. Tariffs are taxes on goods coming into the US, which gets passed along to consumers in the form of higher prices. Here's what economists from Princeton, Columbia and the Federal Reserve of New York concluded from their analysis of how Trump's tariffs on Chinese goods have played out: "Although in principle the effect of higher tariffs on domestic prices could be offset by foreign exporters lowering the pre-tariff prices that they charge for these goods, we find little evidence of such an improvement in the terms of trade up to now, which implies that the full incidence of the tariff has fallen on domestic consumers so far. Our results imply that the tariff revenue the U.S. is now collecting is insufficient to compensate the losses being born by the consumers of imports."
- Trump denied - falsely - that he had previously called China transparent, then stated "If I'm so good to China, how come I was the only person, the only leader of a country, that closed our borders tightly against China?" Fact check #1: According to the Washington Post, 38 countries imposed major China restrictions before or at the same time that Trump did. Fact check #2: According to the New York Times, the US did not completely shut down travel from China; there were exemptions for citizens/green card holders/some of their family members, and thus 40,000 flew to the US from China after the restrictions were put into place.
April 13, 2020 - There are now 557,000 confirmed cases of covid-19 in the US. 22,107 Americans have died. Following yesterday's bombshell statement from Anthony Fauci which confirmed part of a bombshell report from the New York Times - that Trump rebuffed public health advisers who pushed for social distancing measures in February - Trump has angrily tweeted about the controversy including this retweet "Fauci is now saying that had Trump listened to the medical experts earlier he could've saved more lives. Fauci was telling people on February 29th that there was nothing to worry about and it posed no threat to the US public at large. Time to #FireFauci". Here's one of Trump's tweets: "The @nytimes story is a Fake, just like the 'paper' itself. I was criticized for moving too fast when I issued the China Ban, long before most others wanted to do so. @SecAzar told me nothing until later, and Peter Navarro memo was same as Ban (see his statements). Fake News!" A sailor from the USS Theodore Roosevelt has died from coronavirus, becoming the first active duty service member to die of the virus. Trump sent the following tweet: "For the purpose of creating conflict and confusion, some in the Fake News Media are saying that it is the Governors decision to open up the states, not that of the President of the United States & the Federal Government. Let it be fully understood that this is incorrect. It is the decision of the President, and for many good reasons. With that being said, the Administration and I are working closely with the Governors, and this will continue. A decision by me, in conjunction with the Governors and input from others, will be made shortly!" This statement contradicts a statement Trump made on April 4th in which he said he prefers the governors of the states run things. The statement also defies Trump's constitutional authority according to some constitutional scholars. Justin Amash, who left the ?Republican party over his opposition to Trump sent the following reply to Trump's tweet: "President Trump is flat-out wrong. The president has no authority to 'close down' or 'open up' the states. He's the one creating conflict and confusion. Put down the authoritarianism and read the Constitution." NPR looked into the pledges Trump made during his March 13 declaration of a national emergency, and filed this report: "NPR’s Investigations Team dug into each of the claims made from the podium that day. And rather than a sweeping national campaign of screening, drive-through sample collection and lab testing, it found a smattering of small pilot projects and aborted efforts. In some cases, no action was taken at all. Target did not formally partner with the federal government, for example. And a lauded Google project turned out not to be led by Google at all, and then once launched was limited to a smattering of counties in California. The remarks in the Rose Garden highlighted the Trump administration's strategic approach: a preference for public-private partnerships. But as the White House defined what those private companies were going to do, in many cases it promised more than they could pull off." According to a Pew Research Center survey, 29% of Americans believe coronavirus was most likely created in a lab, while 43% say it most likely came about naturally. Another conspiracy theory making the rounds is that there is a link between coronavirus and 5G technology, which has led to vandalism of cell towers in Britain. According to an AP story: "Scientists in Brazil have stopped part of a study of a malaria drug touted as a possible coronavirus treatment after heart rhythm problems developed in one-quarter of people given the higher of two doses being tested." The malaria drug referenced by the story is one that has been touted by Trump, which is chloroquine. Highlights from today's coronavirus task force briefing:
- Trump pointed to his travel restrictions as evidence that he'd acted early to stop the spread of coronavirus. Fact Check: Bill Hanage, an epidemiologist at Harvard's TH Chan School of Public Health, responded this way to Trump's travel restrictions: "Unfortunately, travel bans sound good ... But we're way past the point where simply restricting travel is a reasonable response." A recent article in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences found that travel restrictions and airport screenings in several countries "likely slowed the rate of exportation from mainland China to other countries, but are insufficient to contain the global spread of Covid-19."
- Trump played a video that showed clips of state leaders offering praise for him. Not included in the video were clips of Trump playing down the severity of the virus.
- Trump was asked if he was planning to fire Fauci, Trump responded: "I’m not firing him. No I like him. I think he’s terrific. Not everybody is happy with Anthony. Not everybody is happy with everybody."
- Trump said he will decide by the end of the week whether the US will continue to fund the World Health Organization.
- Regarding antibody tests for covid-19, Trump said "It's a test that's been going along for many many years, except now we have very modern, very incredible versions of it." Fact Check: Antibody tests for covid-19 are new, because covid-19 is new, and the many versions being created around the world are still being vetted for accuracy.
- Trump claimed that making sure sick Americans have hospital beds and ventilators is "not even really our responsibility."
- Trump stated "When somebody is the president of the United States, the authority is total." Fact Check: No, it isn't.
- Trump indicated that he'd like to reopen the shuttered US economy on May 1st. Trump's health advisers have said that reopening too quickly could cause a resurgence of covid-19 cases. Trump says the decision to open is his alone, that he'll listen to his advisers, and also rely a lot on "instinct".
- Trump once again highlighted his decision to ban some flights from China in late January. Fact Check: Nearly 400,000 people traveled to the US from China before the restrictions were in place, and 40,000 have arrived since the restrictions were put into place. After Trump made this argument and played the video, the following exchange took place between Trump and CBS News correspondent Paula Reid:
REID: "The argument is that you bought yourself some time. You didn't use it to prepare hospitals. You didn’t use it to ramp up testing. Right now, nearly 20m people are unemployed. Tens of thousands of Americans are dead."
TRUMP: "You're so disgraceful the way you say that."
REID: "How is this newsreel or this rant supposed to make people feel confident in an unprecedented crisis?"
TRUMP: "You know you're a fake, your whole network the way you cover it is fake ... That’s why you have a lower approval rating than probably you've ever had before times three."
Following the news briefing, Adam Schiff, the chair of the House intelligence committee, sent the following tweet: "Why do reputable news organizations carry these daily Trump press conferences live? They are filled with misinformation and propaganda. From the president himself, no less. The country would be far better served and informed if they used highlights later. Enough is enough." David Smith, Washington bureau chief for the Guardian, described today's coronavirus task force briefing this way: "A toddler threw a self-pitying tantrum on live television on Monday night. Unfortunately he was 73 years old, wearing a long red tie and running the world’s most powerful country."
April 12, 2020 - There are now 530,000 confirmed cases of covid-19 in the US. 21,300 Americans have died. During an appearance on CNN's State of the Union, Dr Anthony Fauci was asked by CNN's Jake Tapper why the administration did not act when he and other officials advised them to act, Fauci responded: "You know ... as I have said many times, we look at it from a pure health standpoint. We make a recommendation. Often, the recommendation is taken. Sometimes, it’s not ... It is what it is. We are where we are right now." Jake Tapper also asked Fauci if "lives could have been saved if social distancing, physical distancing, stay-at-home measures had started [in the] third week of February, instead of mid-March" to which Fauci responded: "It’s very difficult to go back and say that. I mean, obviously, you could logically say, that if you had a process that was ongoing, and you started mitigation earlier, you could have saved lives. Obviously, no one is going to deny that. But what goes into those kinds of decisions is complicated. But you’re right. I mean, obviously, if we had, right from the very beginning, shut everything down, it may have been a little bit different. But there was a lot of push-back about shutting things down back then." The White House issued physical distancing guidelines on 16, March. According to the New York Times, Fauci was pushing for severe measures in February. Maggie Haberman, one of the New York Times reporters who broke the bombshell story about the Trump administration's failure to act adequately, and squandered precious time as the pandemic crisis unfolded, and as numerous government figures were sounding the alarm about coronavirus, responded to Fauci's comments saying "This is confirmation of our story, which focused on various moments the president had to take the threat more seriously and didn't, in no small part due to the culture of government he's created." WHO special envoy Dr David Nabarro appeared on NBC's Meet the Press, and was asked about Trump's threat to withdraw US funding for the international healthcare body. Nabarro responded: "The World Health Organization actually works on behalf of all the governments in the world. And it operates within mandates that are given to it. And, and we have to rely on information that's received from different governments. And that then permits us to work out what's going on ... but we know that there will be many things that are found to have perhaps not been done as well as they could have been done. And we’re anticipating there'll be lots of examinations afterwards." Nabarro also said regarding the novel coronavirus "We think it is going to be a virus that stalks the human race for quite a long time to come until we can all have a vaccine that will protect us and that there will be small outbreaks that will emerge sporadically and they will break through our defenses." Ariel Dorfman, who warned in 2017 of the dangers of Donald Trump's attack on science, says now his dire predictions then didn't go far enough saying "Today’s chaotic and bumbling response to this emergency is no accident, but deeply rooted and systemic, the direct result of a pattern of callow benightedness that verges on the criminal and that goes back to the very start of Trump’s regime, embedded in the very recalcitrant anti-intellectual DNA of this president and his followers." Peter Navarro appeared on CBS 60 Minutes where he defended the administration's pandemic response, and during the interview, issued this challenge: "I challenge you, show me the 60 Minutes episode a year ago, two years ago, or during the Obama administration, during the Bush administration that said, 'Hey, global pandemic's coming, you gotta do x, y and z and by the way we gotta shut down the economy to fight it. Show me that episode. Then you'll have some credence in terms of attacking the Trump administration for not being prepared." So, 60 minutes played clips from a 2009 feature on the fight against H1N1 (swine flu), which was described as "a pandemic, meaning it's a global epidemic, the first flu pandemic in 41 years" and a 2005 segment on the fight against H5N1 (avian flu) which the show said had "the potential to cause an influenza pandemic similar to the one that killed 50m people in 1918".
April 11, 2020 - Donald Trump sent the following tweet: "So now the Fake News @nytimes is tracing the CoronaVirus origins back to Europe, NOT China. This is a first! I wonder what the Failing New York Times got for this one? Are there any NAMED sources? They were recently thrown out of China like dogs, and obviously want back in. Sad!" Dean Baquet, the executive editor of the Times responded to Trump's tweet saying the story was "based on many on-the-record interviews, documents. There is a tremendous email chain among scientists inside and outside the government where they talk about the growing crisis. So, I would suggest that people read it, rather than take the president’s tweet at its word. It is a very well-documented, powerful chapter in understanding why the government was so slow in dealing with this pandemic." A 36 year-old Arkansas man was arrested in Texarkana, Texas, after police were tipped off that he had threatened to ambush and kill a police officer on a facebook live video. The man's facebook page includes references to the "boogaloo" movement, which is code for a second civil war.
April 10, 2020 - According to the Washington Post, Trump wants to re-open businesses by May 1st, despite health experts warning that reopening prematurely could dramatically reverse some of the progress the country has already made fighting the virus. Some top Republicans are urging Trump to let the experts play a larger role in his coronavirus task force meetings. Nikki Haley, the former Trump ambassador to the United Nations, said Trump should let "his experts speak ... I don't think he needs to feel like he needs to answer everything." South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham is on record urging Trump to cut down to once a week. Trump responded to the critiques on twitter saying: "Because the T.V. Ratings for the White House News Conference’s are the highest, the Opposition Party (Lamestream Media), the Radical Left, Do Nothing Democrats &, of course, the few remaining RINO’S, are doing everything in their power to disparage & end them. The People’s Voice!" From an AP story: "President Donald Trump is warning without evidence that expanding mail-in voting will increase voter fraud. But several GOP state officials are forging ahead to do just that, undermining one of Trumps arguments about how elections should be conducted amid the coronavirus outbreak. While Trump has complained that voting by mail was ripe for fraud, Republican state officials in Iowa, Ohio and West Virginia have all taken steps to ease access to mail-in ballots, following health officials warnings that voting in person can risk transmission of the deadly virus. The Republican governor of Nebraska urged voters to apply for absentee ballots. Florida’s GOP chairman says the party will continue to run a robust vote-by-mail program." CNN looked into the comments Peter Navarro was making publicly around the same time he was warning the Trump administration of possible catastrophe surrounding the coronavirus. Turns out he was publicly saying there's nothing to worry about. From the story: "In Navarro’s second memo, dated 23 February, he urged for immediate funding to 'minimize economic and social disruption'. 'Any member of the Task Force who wants to be cautious about appropriating funds for a crisis that could inflict trillions of dollars in economic damage and take millions of lives has come to the wrong administration,' Navarro wrote. But at a press gaggle on 24 February, Navarro assured that coronavirus was 'nothing to worry about for the American people' under Trump’s leadership. 'Since the day that President Trump pulled down the flights from China to the US, he has been actively leading the situation in terms of this crisis with the task force. Nothing to worry about for the American people. This country’s done a beautiful job under [the] president’s leadership [sic] in terms of managing this situation. He’s working on a daily basis with the task force and we’re taking steps to anticipate ... where the puck’s gonna be. We’re skating there in defense of the American people and the American economy. So you can be sure that you're in great hands with the Trump administration.'" Here are highlights from today's coronavirus task force meeting:
- Dr Fauci warned that it is too early to relax restrictions on Americans saying "the one thing you don’t want to do is you don’t want to get out there prematurely and then wind up back in the same situation ... Now is not the time to back off."
- Trump claimed "We’re saving hundreds of lives compared to what it could have been" and claimed that the final death toll will be substantially under 100,000.
- Trump again touted hydroxychloroquine as a cure for coronavirus. Fact Check: In the week beginning 30 March, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) provided hydroxychloroquine with an "emergency use authorization" to use on coronavirus patients in some circumstances.
- Trump claimed that the rate of infection is slowing down across the country "without exception" and that the death rate in the US is lower than anywhere else in the world. Fact Check: The current US death rate is 54 per million, which far exceeds Germany's 31 per million, Portugal's 43 per million, and Canada's 14 per million.
- Trump was asked if he would heed the warnings of health officials as to whether the country could reopen by early May, to which Trump responded: "I will certainly listen. I will certainly listen. There are two sides. Remember, I understand both sides of an argument very well."
- Trump bragged that "we've done more testing than anywhere in the world." Fact Check: The US has done more tests overall, but has not done more than any nation on a per capita basis. According to Jennifer Horney, founding director of the University of Delaware's epidemiology program: "I think the important clarification is that we should be considering the number of cases per 1 million population and considering a rate of people tested and not the absolute numbers ... the absolute number of tests is not very meaningful."
- Trump claimed the US has enough beds, ventilators, and personal protective equipment (PPE) including masks. Fact Check: Healthcare workers in many parts of the country are reporting shortages of PPE. Here is a quote taken directly from the CDC website: "PPE shortages are currently posing a tremendous challenge to the US healthcare system because of the Covid-19 pandemic. Healthcare facilities are having difficulty accessing the needed PPE and are having to identify alternate ways to provide patient care."
April 9, 2020 - According to CNN: "Pence’s office has declined to allow the nation’s top health officials to appear on CNN in recent days and discuss the coronavirus pandemic killing thousands of Americans, in an attempt to pressure the network into carrying the White House’s lengthy daily briefings in full. Pence’s office, which is responsible for booking the officials on networks during the pandemic, said it will only allow experts such as Dr. Deborah Birx or Dr. Anthony Fauci to appear on CNN if the network televises the portion of the White House briefings that includes the vice president and other coronavirus task force members." From a Wall Street Journal editorial: "The briefings began as a good idea to educate the public about the dangers of the virus, how Americans should change their behavior, and what the government is doing to combat it. But sometime in the last three weeks Mr. Trump seems to have concluded that the briefings could be a showcase for him. Perhaps they substitute in his mind for the campaign rallies he can no longer hold because of the risks. Perhaps he resented the media adulation that New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has been receiving for his daily show. Whatever the reason, the briefings are now all about the President." Trump responded to the editorial by stating that the ratings for the task force briefings are "through the roof". According to two separate research projects, one from the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, and the other from the NYU Grossman School of Medicine, the novel coronavirus may have been circulating in New York City earlier than thought and the earliest cases likely originated with travelers coming from Europe and other parts of the United States, not Asia. Some highlights from today's coronavirus task force briefing:
- Trump announced that "Hopefully we’re going to be opening up —opening very very, very, very soon, I hope."
- Trump again touted the efficacy of hydroxychloroquine, which has seen a surge in demand which threatens shortages for those who need the drug, some of which are complaining the drug is now harder to come by.
- Trump once again states that the US has done more testing than other countries, which is true for number of actual tests, but the US does not lead in per capita tests. That title goes to South Korea.
- Trump was asked how the country could reopen without an effective national system for coronavirus testing. Trump responded that "there are certain sections of the country that are in phenominal shape already". Trump did not specify what those areas are. Trump also stated regarding a national system for testing: "Do you need it? No. Is it a nice thing to do? Yes ... We’re talking about 325 million people and that’s not going to happen, as you can imagine. And it would never happen with anyone else either."
April 8, 2020 - There are now 400,000 confirmed cases of coronavirus in the US. Nearly 13,000 Americans have died. According to ABC News the US military's National Center for Medical Intelligence (NCMI) compiled a November intelligence report in which "analysts concluded it [coronavirus] could be a cataclysmic event". The intelligence report was then briefed "multiple times" to the Defense Intelligence Agency, the Pentagon's Joint Staff, and the White House. A detailed outline of the threat appeared in the President's Daily Brief in early January. Trump sent the following tweet: "Republicans should fight very hard when it comes to state wide mail-in voting. Democrats are clamoring for it. Tremendous potential for voter fraud, and for whatever reason, doesn’t work out well for Republicans." According to Reuters "The University of Washington’s Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation model is one of several that the White House task force has cited. It now projects U.S. deaths at more than 60,000 by Aug. 4, down from the nearly 82,000 fatalities it had forecast on Tuesday. The White House coronavirus task force has previously projected 100,000 to 240,000 Americans could die." The White House announced that Alyssa Farah will become the White House's new director of strategic communications. Farah previously worked as press secretary of the defense department. Trump sent the following tweet: "Once we OPEN UP OUR GREAT COUNTRY, and it will be sooner rather than later, the horror of the Invisible Enemy, except for those that sadly lost a family member or friend, must be quickly forgotten. Our Economy will BOOM, perhaps like never before!!!" Fox News host Laura Ingraham sent the following tweet: "At some point, the president is going to have to look at Drs. Fauci and Birx and say, we're opening on May 1. Give me your best guidance on protocols, but we cannot deny our people their basic freedoms any longer." News surfaced that Linda Tripp, the civil servant who secretly recorded Monica Lewinsky discussing her sexual relationship with then-president Bill Clinton, died today. Tripp was 70. When Monica Lewinsky learned that Tripp was ill, she sent the following tweet: "no matter the past, upon hearing that linda tripp is very seriously ill, i hope for her recovery. i can’t imagine how difficult this is for her family." WHO director-general Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus responded to Trump's repeated attacks on the World Health Organization saying "When there are cracks at the national level and global level, that’s when the virus succeeds. Please quarantine politicizing Covid. That’s the way if we want to win." Trump sent the following tweet: "Absentee Ballots are a great way to vote for the many senior citizens, military, and others who can’t get to the polls on Election Day. These ballots are very different from 100% Mail-In Voting, which is “RIPE for FRAUD,” and shouldn’t be allowed!" Here are some highlights from today's coronavirus task force briefing:
- Trump said the national stockpile is now equipped with 30m hydroxychloroquine pills.
- Trump criticized WHO saying they were initially "minimizing the threat" and got everything "wrong". Fact Check: WHO tweeted o January 14 that a preliminary investigation by Chinese officials found no evidence of human-to-human transmission. But, WHO declared coronavirus a "public health emergency" on January 30th. Trump continued to downplay the crisis through February and March. WHO declared coronavirus a pandemic on March 11.
- Trump claimed "we're testing more than anybody" despite the fact that the US still lags behind other countries on a per capita basis.
- Trump again claimed he hadn't seen the memos Peter Navarro issued in January and February warning of coronavirus's potential disastrous impact. "Peter sends a lot of memos" said Trump.
- Trump told the reporters "People were shocked I acted so quickly ... And everybody thought I was wrong because I did act so quickly as you know with respect to closing the borders." Fact Check: The Trump administration didn't move to allow laboratories and hospitals to conduct their on covid-19 tests until 6 weeks after the first case of coronavirus was confirmed in the US.
- Trump was asked if there was evidence of widespread voting fraud. Trump's response: "I'll provide you with some ... We're going to find out about the proof ... You're going to see what's going on."
April 7, 2020 - There are now more than 368,000 confirmed cases of coronavirus in the US. 10,982 Americans have died. Michigan governor Gretchen Whitmer was asked about plans to re-open the economy. Whitmer's response: "It is too early to start implementing anything. We know yesterday we had 110 Michiganders lose their battle with covid-19. When the White House says stop the spread for 30 days, I'd love to see them follow up with a national policy that does that." News surfaced that Stephanie Grisham, the White House press secretary, who has been in the role for 9 months, and has never held a press briefing, will be relinquishing her dual roles as press secretary and communications director to become the first lady's chief of staff and spokesperson. According to the New York Times, Kayleigh McEnany, who currently serves as a spokesperson for Trump's reelection campaign, will become the new White House press secretary. Here's a quote from an interview McEnany did on Fox Business on February 25th: "This president will always put America first. He will always protect American citizens. We will not see diseases like the coronavirus come here, we will not see terrorism come here, & isn’t that refreshing when contrasting it with the awful presidency of President Obama?" Here are some notable responses to McEnany being selected for White House press secretary:
"I have debated her a couple times on TV. I am struggling for a diplomatic way to put this but … when the producer told me she was a graduate of Harvard Law I thought I was being pranked." - Norm Eisen, fellow of the Brookings Institute
"I saw that movie! [legally blond] Except Reese Witherspoon was actually smart." - Jared Huffman, California Democratic congressman
"All I have to say is that law schools don't have to report LSATs of transfer students which means they can take big risks... sometimes that just don't pan out." - Asha Rangappa, CNN analyst
"Just like I thought I was being pranked when I was told that Jared Kushner had graduated from Harvard. Or when I was told that Donald Trump graduated from Wharton. I’m beginning to question the accreditation of each of these entities." - Norman Ornstein, fellow of the American Enterprise Institute
"We’ve had three White House press secretaries, we've had – I guess depends on how you count – three or four communications directors in the Trump White House, but in reality we've really only had one. Donald Trump has always been the press secretary, the spokesperson, the communications director for Donald Trump. That was true in 1994 when I first encountered him and it’s absolutely true in 2020." - Jon Karl, ABC News Chief White House correspondent
Various groups are urging Iowa governor Kim Reynolds to implement a stay-at-home order, including the Iowa Board of Medicine and the Iowa Medical Society. But Reynolds has thus far refused. There are currently 8 states that have not instituted a statewide order. Iowa is one of them. Many health care groups are also calling for Donald Trump to instigate a nationwide shelter-in-place, but Trump too is resisting. According to Politico, Trump removed a Pentagon official who was supposed to oversee implementation of the $2 trillion coronavirus bill from his post. From the story: "A panel of inspectors general had named Glenn Fine — the acting Pentagon watchdog — to lead the group charged with monitoring the coronavirus relief effort. But Trump on Monday removed Fine from his post, instead naming the EPA inspector general to serve as the temporary Pentagon watchdog in addition to his other responsibilities." House speaker Nancy Pelosi has called for the removal of acting Navy secretary Thomas Modly in the wake of his comments about Captain Brett Crozier. From Pelosi's statement: "Acting Secretary Modly’s actions and words demonstrate his failure to prioritize the force protection of our troops ... He showed a serious lack of the sound judgment and strong leadership needed during this time. Acting Secretary Modly must be removed from his position or resign ... Our oath of office is to protect and defend the Constitution, and therefore our first responsibility is to protect and defend the American people ... To that end, our priority is force protection of our men and women in uniform who sacrifice to keep Americans safe. That is exactly what Captain Crozier was doing when he called for help for the men and women in his charge." News surfaced that acting Navy secretary Thomas Modly has apologized for his comments about Captain Brett Crozier, and he has offered to resign. According to the Wall street Journal, James McPherson, the acting undersecretary of the army, will succeed Thomas Modly as acting Navy secretary. During a meeting on small business relief, Trump told the attendees that his daughter Ivanka Trump "created over 15 million jobs.' Fact Check: There are between 150-160 million jobs in the entire United States, so for this claim to be true, Ivanka would be responsible for creating around 10% of all the jobs in the US. Also, this number represents about twice the number of jobs created in the US since Trump became president. Here are some highlights from today's coronavirus task force briefing:
- Trump claimed, without offering any evidence, that reporting from other countries about coronavirus numbers is false or misleading, saying "When you look at some of these large countries, I know for a fact they have more cases than we do but they don’t report them."
- DR Fauci talked about the disproportionate impact of coronavirus on Black communities because of diabetes, hypertension, obesity and asthma, but didn't address why people of color are at greater risk for those things, which includes lack of access to health care, preventative care, and the "weathering" effect of racism.
- Trump claimed the US will stop sending money to the World Health Organization saying "They called it wrong. They called it wrong ... They missed the call. They could’ve called it months earlier." Fact Check: Trump himself continued to downplay the crisis even after WHO called it a pandemic.
- Trump claimed he had "no role" in Navy secretary Thomas Modly's resignation, and added that Captain Crozier shouldn't have written a letter because "he's not Ernest Hemingway".
- When asked about his statement that the US will stop funding WHO, Trump responded "No I didn’t say it. I said I’d look at it." Trump added that "they did give us some pretty bad play-calling" and that "they're taking a lot of heat" and that "social media" suggested to him that the organization is biased toward China.
- Trump took credit for "closing down the borders" to China, and then later Europe. Fact Check: Restrictions were placed on travel from China, but it was not totally closed down. Travel restrictions from Europe included only 26 countries that are part of Schengen area. Ireland and UK were added later, but there were still other European countries that were excluded.
- Trump talked about mail-in ballots saying "Mail ballots are a very dangerous thing for this country ... You get thousands and thousands of people sitting in somebody’s living room, signing somebody’s ballot ... forgeries in many cases - it’s a horrible thing." No evidence was offered for these claims, plus, Trump himself voted by mail in March. Trump also claimed that millions voted illegally in 2016 which cost him the popular vote. Fact Check: 5 states have moved to an entirely vote-by-mail system, and no evidence has surfaced of widespread fraud in any of them. More states are considering expanding vote-by-mail systems to protect voters and poll workers during the current pandemic. Republican officials widely oppose these moves. As an aside, the most significant episode of mail-in ballot fraud that occurred in recent years involved a Republican congressional candidate in North Carolina. That election was overturned.
- Trump again touted hydroxychloroquine saying "I really think it’s a great thing to try, just based on what I know ... Again, I’m not a doctor. Get a physician’s approval."
- Trump was asked about death counts from coronavirus, which doctors believe are undercounted due to a lack of widespread testing. Trump's response: "I think they’re pretty accurate on the death counts." According to Jennifer Nuzzo, a senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins University Center for Health Security, which studies global health threats and is closely tracking the pandemic "We definitely think there are deaths that we have not accounted for."
- Trump claimed "continues to perform more tests than anywhere else in the world, and that’s why we have more cases". Fact Check: On a per capita basis, the US has administered 582 tests per 100,000 compared to 709 per 100,000 in South Korea and 600 per 100,000 in Italy.
- Trump claimed he never saw White House adviser Peter Navarro's memos, which warned in late January that coronavirus could put millions of American's health at risk, and could cost trillions.
April 6, 2020 - There are now more than 337,000 confirmed cases of coronavirus in the US, 10,000 Americans have died. Globally, 70,000 have died. According to a story in the Washington Post, the Trump administration missed key opportunities to prepare for the coronavirus crisis. From the story: "The failure has echoes of the period leading up to 9/11: Warnings were sounded, including at the highest levels of government, but the president was deaf to them until the enemy had already struck. The Trump administration received its first formal notification of the outbreak of the coronavirus in China on Jan. 3. Within days, U.S. spy agencies were signaling the seriousness of the threat to Trump by including a warning about the coronavirus — the first of many — in the President’s Daily Brief. And yet, it took 70 days from that initial notification for Trump to treat the coronavirus not as a distant threat or harmless flu strain well under control, but as a lethal force that had outflanked America’s defenses and was poised to kill tens of thousands of citizens. That more-than-two-month stretch now stands as critical time that was squandered." While addressing the crew of the USS Theodore Roosevelt, Navy secretary Thomas Modly made th following statement regarding former commanding officer Brett Crozier: "If he didn’t think, in my opinion, that this information wasn’t going to get out to the public, in this day and information age that we live in, then he was either A, too naïve or too stupid to be a commanding officer of a ship like this. The alternative is that he did this on purpose." Senator Tim Kaine responded to Modly's comments saying: "Based on the transcript I’ve read, Secretary Modly’s comments were completely inappropriate and beneath the office of the Secretary of the Navy." Navy secretary Thomas Modly defended his attack on Captain Brett Crozier saying "I stand by every word." The Office of Inspector General of the Department of Health and Human Services released a report today regarding Hospitals that are responding to the pandemic. According to the report, hospitals are facing severe shortages in hospital equipment needed to combat the virus.During an appearance on CNN, White House trade adviser Peter Navarro was asked about news that he had engaged in a heated disagreement with Dr Anthony Fauci about the use of an anti-malarial drug as a coronavirus treatment. According to the story, Navarro showed up at a meeting with a stack of papers that he declared were proof that hydroxychloroquine could work to treat coronavirus, to which Fauci disagreed because it was not data. CNN's John Berman asked Navarro what qualified him to question Fauci on the issue, to which Navarro responded: "Doctors disagree about things all the time. My qualifications in terms of looking at the science is that I'm a social scientist. I have a Ph.D. and I understand how to read statistical studies, whether it's in medicine, the law, economics or whatever." Here are some highlights from today's coronavirus task force briefing:
- Trump claimed, as he often has, that the US has tested more people than any country in the world. On a per capita basis, the US has administered 582 tests per 100,000 compared to 709 tests per 100,000 in South Korea and 600 per 100,000 in Italy.
- Whenever a reporter attempted to ask Trump a question about the OIG report released today, Trump would interrupt, or in some cases personally attack the reporter who was asking the question. To one reporter Trump said: "You should say congratulations, great job, instead of being so horrid ... I wish we had a fair media in this country and we don't." The question Trump thought was horrid is this one: "Testing is still a big issue in this country. When can hospitals expect to receive a quick turn-around of test results?" Trump also called Christi Grimm, the IG for the department of health and human services, biased, and therefore politically motivated against him since she was appointed by Barack Obama.
- Trump claimed that nobody thought a pandemic like this would happen. Note: the US intelligence community, public health experts and even officials in Trump's own administration have warned for years that the country was at great risk from a pandemic. According to the New York Times, an October draft report by the Department of Health and Human Services "drove home just how underfunded, underprepared and uncoordinated the federal government would be for a life-or-death battle with a virus for which no treatment existed."
- Trump falsely claimed regarding H1N1 pandemic: "The other administration, they didn’t even know — it was like they didn’t even know it was here." Note: the Obama administration declared a public health emergency within two weeks of the first confirmed US case of H1N1.
April 5, 2020 - There are now 312,085 cases of covid-19 in the US, 8,499 Americans have died. Defense secretary Mark Esper was asked about the firing of Capt Brett Crozier, the commanding officer of the USS Theodore Roosevelt. According to Esper, 155 sailors have tested positive for coronavirus aboard the Roosevelt. Esper claimed that the decision to fire Crozier was made by Navy leadership, because the navy secretary had lost confidence in him. These statements conflict with reporting in the Washington Post that navy secretary Thomas Modly "told one colleague Wednesday, the day before he announced the move: 'Breaking news: Trump wants him fired.'" Joe Biden, the Democratic nominee for president called the dismissal of Crozier "close to criminal". Washington governor Jay Inslee gave the following critique of Trump's performance in addressing the coronavirus outbreak: "This is ludicrous that we do not have a national effort in this. To say we are a backup ... Can you imagine if Franklin Roosevelt said 'I'll be right behind you Connecticut, good luck building those battleships'?" During an appearance on CBS's Face the Nation, Dr Anthony Fauci stated that states without stay-at-home orders are "putting themselves at risk." News surfaced that Capt Brett Crozier, the former commanding officer of the USS Theodore Roosevelt, has tested positive for coronavirus. Nadia, a four-year-old female Malayan tiger at the Bronx Zoo, has tested positive for covid-19. During an appearance on CNN's State of the Union, governor of Illinois JB Pritzker made the following statement regarding the federal govt's response to coronavirus: "If they had started in February building ventilators, getting ready for this pandemic, we would not have the problems we are having today and, frankly, very many fewer people would die." Here some highlights from today's coronavirus task force briefing:
- Trump once again promoted the use of hydroxychloroquine saying the US has ordered 29m pills, and wondered aloud what Americans "have to lose" by taking it. Then muses "what do I know? I'm not a doctor."
- Trump claimed the US is close to a vaccine saying "We are very far down the line on vaccines". Fauci stepped up to the microphone and said that a vaccine is at least a year away.
- Trump was asked why he is promoting hydroxychloroquine, an unproven treatment for coronavirus, to which Trump responded "what do they have to lose? We don't have time to take a couple years to test it out."
- Trump was asked if he would follow CDC guidelines and wear a mask in public, to which Trump responded: "I would wear a mask if I thought it was important"
- An AP reporter tried to ask the health professionals at the briefing about the efficacy of hydroxychloroquine to which Trump responded: "You should be thanking them, not always asking wise guy questions."
April 4, 2020 - According to researchers at Johns Hopkins University, there are now 278,000 confirmed cases of covid-19 in the US. More than 7,000 Americans have died. John Karl, an ABC News Chief White House correspondent, had the following to say when interviewed about a book he wrote called "Front Row at the Trump Show: "We’re at a point where nearly half the country doesn’t believe what this president and White House says and we have nearly half the rest of the country that's been told not to believe what they see in a newspaper or see in television news or any other form of mainstream news. That’s a deeply troubling, deeply dangerous place to be where there isn't a shared agreement and sense of some basic facts, especially now where reliable information, and believing you have reliable information, can literally be a matter of life and death." Sean Hannity, a Fox News host, replied to criticism of him and his network in a letter signed by seventy four journalism professors, saying he was ahead of most media in taking covid-19 seriously. Hannity was asked about his claim that Democrats and media overplayed coronavirus to "bludgeon Trump with this new hoax" to which he responded "I never called it a 'hoax,' I said it was a hoax for them to be using it as a bludgeon on Trump." According to Reuters, Donald Trump pressed federal officials to make anti-malarial drugs like chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine available to treat covid-19. From the story: "'The president is short-circuiting the process with his gut feelings,' Jeffrey Flier, a former dean of Harvard Medical School, told Reuters. 'We are in an emergency and we need to rely on our government to ensure that all these potential therapies are tested in the most effective and objective way.'" Highlights from today's coronavirus task force briefing:
- Trump stated that his administration wants "as few lives lost as possible" and then ranted against the media saying "It’s therefore critical that certain media outlets stop spreading false rumors and creating fear and even panic with the public ... It’s just incredible. I could name them but it’s the same ones. Always the same ones. I guess they looking for ratings. I don’t know what they’re looking for. So bad for our country. The people understand it. Look at the levels and approval ratings, they’re the lowest they’ve ever been for media. So bad for our country, so bad for the world. Put it together for a little while. Get this over with and then go back to your fake news."
- Trump expressed that he wants the country re-opened saying "We want to finish this war. We have to get back to work. We have to open our country again. We have to open our country again. We don’t want to be doing this for months and months and months. We have to open our country again. This country wasn’t meant for this. Few were, few were. But we have to open our country again."
- Trump claimed his administration was invoking the Defense Production Act "very powerfully ... We need the masks ... You could call it retaliations because that’s what it is, it’s a retaliation. If people don’t give us what we need for our people, we’re going to be very tough."
- Trump spoke about Michael Atkinson, the inspector general of the US intelligence community, whom he had fired recently, saying Atkinson was a "total disgrace" and that Atkinson should have looked at the transcript of his "perfect call" with the Ukrainian president before taking any action.
- Trump was asked about a tweet by Joe Biden where Biden said Trump was not responsible for the virus, but "he is responsible for failing to prepare our nation to respond to it" Trump's response: "He didn’t write that. That was done by a Democrat operative. He doesn’t write. He’s probably not even watching right now. And if he is, he doesn’t understand what he’s watching."
- Trump made the following statements regarding hydroxychloroquine, a drug which has yet to be approved by the Food and Drug Administration for covid-19, and is needed by people who have lupus: Says he may start to take it because it may be a "game changer" and said "If it were me, in fact, I might do it anyway ... I may take it. OK? I may take it. And I’ll have to ask my doctors about that but I may take it ... I just hope that hydroxychloroquine wins, coupled with perhaps the Z-Pak as we call it, depending totally on your doctors and the doctors there. There is a possibility – a possibility – and I say it: what do you have to lose? I’ll say it again: what do you have to lose? Take it. I really think they should take it. But it’s their choice and it’s their doctor’s choice, or the doctors in the hospital. But hydroxychloroquine. Try it, if you like."
- Trump cut off Fauci while he is talking about the efficacy of social distancing and stated "mitigation does work but again, we’re not going to destroy our country. At a certain point you'll lose more people this way through all of the problems caused. We have a big decision to make at a certain point. OK?"
- Trump was confronted by a reporter about the disparity of him promoting an unproven drug while public health experts are warning that there is only "anecdotal evidence" that the drug could be helpful, to which Trump responded: "I'm a smart guy ... I've been right a lot."
- Trump was asked about the firing of Capt Brett Crozier, the former commanding officer of the USS Theodore Roosevelt, to which Trump responded: "He shouldn’t be talking that way in a letter ... I thought it was terrible what he did."
- Trump was asked why he has not mandated a federal lockdown in response to coronavirus: "We have a thing called the Constitution, which I cherish, number one. Number two, those governors ... they're doing a great job. They're being very, very successful in what they're doing. And as you know, I want the governors to be running things."
April 3, 2020 - The CDC has recommended that the public wear non-medical grade masks while outside. According to the US jobs report, which was released this morning, the unemployment rate, which was at a 50-year low of 3.5% last month, is now at 4.4%. Adam Schiff, the House intelligence committee chairman, drafted a bill to form a 9/11 style commission to investigate the US response to coronavirus. According to Schiff, the commission will be comprised of 10 members from both parties and wouldn't be formed until February of 2021. Schiff also stated "This is not an exercise in casting blame or scoring political points, but something that the American people should rightly expect from their government as an exercise in accountability." Trump dismissed the idea saying "This is not the time for politics. You see what happens. It’s witch-hunt after witch-hunt after witch-hunt and, in the end, the people doing the witch-hunt have been losing, and they’ve been losing by a lot. It’s not any time for witch-hunts." News surfaced that African Americans seem to be dying in larger numbers from coronavirus than other groups. News surfaced that the description of the Strategic National Stockpile on the HHS website has been modified. This comes 24 hours after Jared Kushner, Trump's son-in-law, made this statement: "And the notion of the federal stockpile was it’s supposed to be our stockpile. It’s not supposed to be states’ stockpiles that they then use." Here's the old description that was in place when Kushner made his statement:
"Leave it to Trump to use a global pandemic as cover for his retaliation against those who helped bring to light his wrongdoing. Disgusting." - Neera Tenden, President of the Center for American Progress, a think tank in Washington DC
"President Trump fires people for telling the truth. Michael Atkinson is a man of integrity who has served our nation for almost two decades. Being fired for having the courage to speak truth to power makes him a patriot." - Chuck Schumer, the Democratic Senate Minority Leader
"Yet another blatant attempt by the president to gut the independence of the intelligence community and retaliate against those who dare to expose presidential wrongdoing. At a time when our country is dealing with a national emergency and needs people in the intelligence community to speak truth to power, the president’s dead of night decision puts our country and national security at even greater risk." - Adam Schiff, Chairman of the House Intelligence Committee
Here are some highlights from today's coronavirus task force briefing:
- Trump touted hydroxychloroquine, the unproven drug that Dr Fauci warned was only supported by anecdotal evidence as a drug that could be helpful to fight covid-19. Regarding the drug, Trump stated "I don’t know it’s looking like good results."
- Regarding the CDC recommendation to wear a mask in public, Trump said "I won’t be doing it, personally ... I don’t know, somehow, I don’t see it for myself."
- Trump was asked why it is that there aren't enough masks. His response: "Speak to the people from the previous administration. The shelves were empty."
- Trump was asked to explain Kushner's comment that the national stockpile is "our stockpile" and not for states, to which Trump responded: "You know what 'our' means? The United States of America. Our, our, and then we take that 'our' and we distribute it to the states." The reporter then asked "so why did he say it's not supposed to be the states' stockpiles?" to which Trump responded: "Because we need it for the government, we need it for the federal government. To keep for our country because the federal government needs it, too, not just the states. But out of that we choose oftentimes, as an example, we have almost 10,000 ventilators and we are ready to rock ... we are going to bring them to various areas of the country that need them. But when he says 'our' he is talking about 'our country' he is talking about the federal government. You should be ashamed of yourself ... don’t make it sound bad ... you just asked your question in a very nasty way."
- Trump was asked about mail-in voting to which he responded: "A lot of people cheat ... all sorts of bad things can happen". Note: there is no evidence of widespread cheating when people vote by mail, and there is evidence that vote by mail removes barriers for many people.
April 2, 2020 - According to Johns Hopkins, global coronavirus deaths have surpassed 50,000. The number of confirmed cases worldwide is around 980,000. In the US, there are more than 236,000 confirmed cases, and more than 5,000 Americans have died. Donald Trump responded to comments made yesterday by Chuck Schumer tweeting: "Somebody please explain to Cryin’ Chuck Schumer that we do have a military man in charge of distributing goods, a very talented Admiral, in fact. New York has gotten far more than any other State, including hospitals & a hospital ship, but no matter what, always complaining. It wouldn’t matter if you got ten times what was needed, it would never be good enough. Unlike other states, New York unfortunately got off to a late start. You should have pushed harder. Stop complaining & find out where all of these supplies are going. Cuomo working hard!" Trump also sent the following in a tweet: "Massive amounts of medical supplies, even hospitals and medical centers, are being delivered directly to states and hospitals by the Federal Government. Some have insatiable appetites & are never satisfied (politics?). Remember, we are a backup for them. The complainers should have been stocked up and ready long before this crisis hit. Other states are thrilled with the job we have done. Sending many Ventilators today, with thousands being built. 51 large cargo planes coming in with medical supplies. Prefer sending directly to hospitals." A record 6.65 million Americans filed for unemployment last week. Brian Kemp, the Republican governor of Georgia, announced a statewide "stay at home" order" yesterday, and while doing so, made the following statement: "Individuals could have been infecting people before they ever felt bad, but we didn’t know that until the last 24 hours." This was a stunning admission, as health experts have warned for weeks that those without symptoms can still spread the virus. Asked about comments made by Trump that making it easier to vote would be bad for Republicans, David Ralston, the Georgia House Speaker responded "The president said it best. This will be extremely devastating to Republicans and conservatives in Georgia." House speaker Nancy Pelosi announced the formation of the select committee on the coronavirus crisis, with House majority whip Jim Clyburn as the chair. The committee will be made up of members from both parties and will ensure the aid money allocated in the $2 trillion stimulus bill is spent wisely. Trump issued order to use Defense Production Act to make ventilators. According to the LA Times, the Trump administration ended a $200m early-warning program for infectious disease a few months before the coronavirus outbreak. From the story: "The project, launched by the U.S. Agency for International Development in 2009, identified 1,200 different viruses that had the potential to erupt into pandemics, including more than 160 novel coronaviruses. The initiative, called PREDICT, also trained and supported staff in 60 foreign laboratories — including the Wuhan lab that identified 2019-nCoV, the new coronavirus that causes COVID-19. Field work ceased when the funding ran out in September, and organizations that worked on the PREDICT program laid off dozens of scientists and analysts, said Peter Daszak, president of EcoHealth Alliance, a key player in the program." During an appearance on CNN's Anderson Cooper, Dr Anthony Fauci expressed concern that some governors have not issued statewide stay at home orders saying "if you look at what’s going on in this country, I just don’t understand why we’re not doing that." News surfaced that Captain Brett Crozier, the commander of the USS Theodore Roosevelt, who had written a letter to his superiors requesting assistance in the midst of a covid-19 outbreak aboard his chip, was dismissed by Navy secretary Thomas Modly for showing "poor judgment", not using his chain of command and creating a "panic". Video of Crozier's departure from the ship showed hundreds of sailors gathered together chanting his name. Here are some highlights from today's coronavirus task force briefing:
- Trump claimed "I will always protect your Social Security, your Medicare and your Medicaid". Note: in 2017 Trump and the Republicans supported an 834bn cut to Medicaid program.The proposal failed. In January of this year, Trump said cuts to Medicare and Social Security were something Republicans were "going to look at" by "the end of the year".
- Trump claimed the United States is testing more people than any country in the world, including on a per capita basis. Note: The US has performed 385 tests per 100,000, while South Korea is at 709 per 100,000 and Italy is at 600 per 100,000.
- Mike Pence claimed America has the "greatest healthcare system in the world". Note: According to a 2014 report from the Urban Institute, when the US is ranked alongside its peers, it ranks dead last in metrics like access, efficiency, equity, healthy lives and health expenses.
- Trump blamed the states for a shortage of medical supplies saying the federal government is "a backup."
- Trump claimed "I cut off China very early ... I cut off Europe very early." Note: The travel restrictions did not "cut off" travel from Europe or China, as several exemptions allowed for tens of thousands to continue traveling from those destinations, plus,the restrictions were put into place too late according to epidemiologists, who say the virus was already spreading in the US when the restrictions were enacted.
- Trump repeatedly referenced the pandemic in "1917", except that the only pandemic around that time was the Spanish Influenza outbreak, which lasted from 1918 to 1919.
- Jared Kushner, the Trump's son-in-law, made the following statement: "And the notion of the federal stockpile was it’s supposed to be our stockpile. It’s not supposed to be states’ stockpiles that they then use." Note: On the department of health and human services' website, the national stockpile is defined like this: "When state, local, tribal, and territorial responders request federal assistance to support their response efforts, the stockpile ensures that the right medicines and supplies get to those who need them most during an emergency."
April 1, 2020 - Congressman Adam Schiff has called for the creation of a commission to review the government's response to coronavirus. Chuck Schumer, the Senate minority leader, complained on CNN that the country is facing "a dramatic shortage of all the needed supplies” and that “we have no one really in charge." Schumer called on the Trump administration to select "one person, a military person, a general who knows how to deal with logistics and order mastering, who knows command and control” to coordinate the federal government’s use of the Defense Production Act to speed up the production of medical equipment. According to Bloomberg News: "China has concealed the extent of the coronavirus outbreak in its country, under-reporting both total cases and deaths it’s suffered from the disease, the U.S. intelligence community concluded in a classified report to the White House, according to three U.S. officials." Dr Robert Redfield, the director of the CDC warned that up to a quarter of those infected with coronavirus may not show symptoms. Mike Pence was interviewed by CNN's Wolf Blitzer. Here are some notable comments by Pence during the interview:
- "We could’ve been better off if China had been more forthcoming."
- "I don’t believe the president has ever belittled the threat of the coronavirus."
- Pence argued that respecting social distancing guidelines would save lives and "hasten the day when we can put this behind us" by early June if guidelines are observed.
Republican governor Ron DeSantis, who has been heavily criticized for not issuing a statewide stay at home order, has finally done so today. Donald Trump sent the following tweet: "Upon information and belief, Iran or its proxies are planning a sneak attack on U.S. troops and/or assets in Iraq. If this happens, Iran will pay a very heavy price, indeed!" An AP/NORC poll found that 44% of Americans support Trump's handling of the pandemic, which mirrors his overall approval rating. During an interview with CNN, Nancy Pelosi responded to comments made by Mitch McConnell in which McConnell suggested that impeachment distracted the government from responding earlier to the coronavirus. Pelosi responded saying "I think that's an admission that perhaps the president and the majority leader cannot handle the job ... We have a life and death situation in our country and they should not try to hide behind an excuse for why they did not take action, but it does admit that they did not take action." The Dow closed down 973 points, or 4.4% due to concerns over coronavirus. Seventy four journalism professors signed an open letter criticizing Fox News for spreading "misinformation" about the coronavirus outbreak. According to the letter: "viewers of Fox News, including the president of the United States, have been regularly subjected to misinformation relayed by the network – false statements downplaying the prevalence of Covid-19 and its harms ... misleading recommendations of activities that people should undertake to protect themselves and others, including casual recommendations of untested drugs; false assessments of the value of measures urged upon the public by their elected political leadership and public health authorities." Here are some highlights from today's coronavirus task force meeting:
- Trump claimed as he has many times "Nobody could’ve known a thing like this would happen." According to the Washington Post: "Donald Trump may not have been expecting this, but a lot of other people in the government were – they just couldn’t get him to do anything about it. The system was blinking red."
- Trump deflected blame for the country's slow start in testing saying he "inherited a very broken system".
- Trump claimed that "After a month or so, I think once this passes, we’re not going to have to be hopefully worried too much about the virus."
March 31, 2020 - There are 164,000 confirmed cases of covid-19 in the US. 3,161 Americans have died. Regarding coronavirus, Trump stated "It's not the flu. It's vicious." Andrew Cuomo, the governor of New York complained that states are bidding against each other to obtain ventilators. According to Cuomo "You have 50 states competing to buy the same item. It’s like being on Ebay. How inefficient!" During an interview with conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt, Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell claimed that the coronavirus "came up while we were tied down on the impeachment trial. And I think it diverted the attention of the government, because everything every day was all about impeachment." Note: the impeachment trial ended February 5th, and over the next several weeks, Trump downplayed the threat of coronavirus. Chuck Schumer, the Senate minority leader responded to McConnell's comment saying in a tweet: "Senator Mitch McConnell: You may have been distracted by impeachment from acting to fight coronavirus, but not everyone was. I called for President Trump to declare a public health emergency to fight coronavirus on January 26!" Captain Brett Crozier, the commanding officer of the USS Theodore Roosevelt, sent an urgent message to Navy leaders asking that the ship be allowed to dock and let the 5,000 sailors on board quarantine after at least 70 cases of coronavirus were confirmed among the crew. From Cozier's letter: "We are not at war. Sailors do not need to die ... If we do not act now, we are failing to properly take care of our most trusted asset—our sailors." According to Bloomberg News: hospitals are threatening to fire staff who publicly share concerns about working conditions amid the pandemic. Mark Meadows, a Republican representative, resigned today to become Trump's new chief of staff. Here are some highlights from today's coronavirus task force briefing:
- Trump claimed that Europe "took a much different route than we did, a much different route ... they’re having tremendous problems."
- The task force projects that there will be 100,000 to 240,000 deaths in the US from coronavirus, even with mitigation measures. Without mitigation, the numbers would be closer to 2.2m.
- Trump claimed "We are doing more than anybody else in the world, by far” on testing “and they’re very accurate tests." Fact check: Some of the initial coronavirus tests that were sent out were seriously flawed, and some didn't work. Part of the problem came from the CDC insisting it would manufacture the test itself. On February 29th, 6 weeks after the first case was confirmed, the US started to allow laboratories and hospitals to conduct their own tests. Also, on a per capita basis, the US has conducted 287 tests per 100,000 people, whereas South Korea has conducted 709 per 100,000 and Italy 600 per 100,000.
- Trump claimed that had the country done nothing "You would have had people dying all over the place ... You would have seen people dying in airplanes, you would have seen people dying in hotel lobbies ... How many people have even seen anybody die? You would have seen death all over ... 100,000 is, is — according to modeling, a very low number."
- With no sense of irony, Trump made the following comment: "For whatever reason, New York got off to a very late start. And you see what happens when you get off to a late start." Dani Lever, the communications director for New York governor Andrew Cuomo responded to this comment saying "This is not the time to debate but the states were not slow to respond – the federal government was absent." Note: New York has confirmed more than 83,000 cases of coronavirus, and 1,941 New Yorkers have died.
- Trump touted hydroxychloroquine as a coronavirus cure, asserting that it won't hurt anyone because it is already used to treat other conditions, like malaria, lupus, and arthritis. Note, the drug can have serious side effects even when used as directed. Also, according to the Guardian "public health experts including his own top infectious diseases adviser, Dr Fauci, have previously warned that there was only 'anecdotal evidence' that the drugs could be helpful ... The French health ministry has warned against the use of hydroxychloroquine for Covid-19 ... Trump’s pushing of the treatment has reportedly caused stockpiling of hydroxychloroquine."
- Trump claimed "we stopped all of Europe" even though his travel restrictions didn't apply to all of Europe.
- Trump claimed he "stopped" travel from Italy, but in reality his administration issued travel advisories for parts of Italy. There was never a ban on travel from Italy.
- Trump claimed that "Nobody knew how contagious this was. I don’t think any doctor knew it at the time. People have not seen anything like this." Note: as the disease spread through China, public health experts were warning for weeks that coronavirus could grow into a pandemic. Also, according to the Guardian "The US intelligence community, in its January 2019 Worldwide Threat Assessment, wrote: 'We assess that the United States and the world will remain vulnerable to the next flu pandemic or large-scale outbreak of a contagious disease that could lead to massive rates of death and disability, severely affect the world economy, strain international resources, and increase calls on the United States for support.'" The intelligence community's 2018 threat assessment warned that a "novel strain of a virulent microbe that is easily transmissible between humans continues to be a major threat." Also in 2018, a warning came from the now-defunct White House National Security Council team then responsible for pandemics. Dr Luciano Borio, the council's director of medical and biodefense preparedness wrote at the time "The threat of pandemic flu is the number one health security concern. Are we ready to respond? I fear the answer is no." Borio's team was disbanded by John Bolton shortly after Borio made the comments.
March 30, 2020 - The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in the US has reached 143,000. More than 2,500 have died. Trump was interviewed on Fox and Friends, here are some highlights from that interview:
- Trump reacted to Nancy Pelosi's claim that Trump is responsible for US deaths related to covid-19 saying she is "a sick puppy" and that her statement is a "disgrace to her family, her country".
- Trump finishes a question about truck drivers and face masks by saying "I know a lot about trucks."
- Trump claims he expects to have good idea regarding the effectiveness of hydrochloriquine, an anti-malaria drug, "within three days".
During an interview with NBC News, Dr Deborah Birx, the White House coronavirus response coordinator, claimed that "If we do things together well, almost perfectly, we could get in the range of 100,000 to 200,000 fatalities". News surfaced that the Justice Department is investigating some lawmakers' stock trades in the weeks leading up to the steep decline in US markets. One of the things that Democrats tried to included in the stimulus bill, which was ultimately rejected, was money to help states make it easier for people to vote, whether by increasing voting days, early voting, online voting or mail in voting. Trump made the following comment about those provisions: "The things they had in there were crazy. They had things, levels of voting that if you’d ever agreed to it, you’d never have a Republican elected in this country again ... They had things in there about election days and what you do and all sorts of clawbacks. They had things that were just totally crazy and had nothing to do with workers that lost their jobs and companies that we have to save." According to the Guardian: "At least one student who returned to Liberty University last week has tested positive for the coronavirus, according to the conservative, Christian school's lead physician ... Lead physician Thomas W Eppes Jr confirmed in the report that nearly a dozen Liberty students showed symptoms of Covid-19 since returning to campus." The decision to call students back to the campus has angered area residents, including Marybeth Davis Baggett, an English professor at Liberty University, who said Jerry Falwell Jr's decision put the "health and lives" of the Lynchberg community at risk. Falwell responded to Baggett on twitter, calling her "the 'Baggett' lady". Rodney Howard-Browne, a pastor at The River at Tampa Bay Church in Tampa, Florida, has been asked to turn himslef in after violated a safer-at-home order, and held two services with hundreds of parishoners. According to the Guardian "the pastor has an arsenal of weaponry and a vast security force." News surfaced that Trump's advocacy for the drug hydroxychloroquine is causing people to stockpile the drug, resulting in shortages for people who need it. CBS News obtained audio of a meeting between Trump and governors in which one of the governors raised concerns regarding testing to which Trump responded "I haven't heard anything about testing being a problem." Federal judges are allowing abortion providers in Texas and Ohio the ability to continue operating despite orders to cease operations during the pandemic. According to Judge Lee Yeakel: "Patients will suffer serious and irreparable harm ... Only the Supreme Court has the power to decide whether a ban on abortions during a national crisis is constitutional". Here are some highlights from the coronavirus task force briefing:
- Trump declared that the US has processed a million tests. This is more than any other country in total, but on a per capita basis (287 per 100,000), it is much less than South Korea (709 per 100,000) or Italy (600 per 100,000).
- Trump asked reporters, "Do you know how many people there are in Seoul? 38 million." There are in fact only 9.7m people in Seoul.
March 29, 2020 - The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in the US has reached 125,000. More than 2,000 people have died. During an interview on CNN's State of the Union, Nancy Pelosi made the following comments:
- "The president’s denial at the beginning was deadly. His delay in getting equipment to where it’s needed is deadly ... As the president fiddles, people are dying."
- "What did he know? When did he know it?"
- "We still don’t have adequate testing, and we still don’t have protective equipment for our health workers who are risking their own lives to save lives."
- "Don’t fiddle while people die, Mr President."
Dr Anthony Fauci, the leading US government infectious disease expert, made the following prediction on CNN's State of the Union: "I mean, looking at what we’re seeing now, I would say between 100,000 and 200,000 cases. But I don’t want to be held to that, because it’s – excuse me – deaths." Donald Trump sent the following tweet: "Because the 'Ratings' of my News Conferences etc. are so high, 'Bachelor finale, Monday Night Football type numbers' according to the @nytimes, the Lamestream Media is going CRAZY. 'Trump is reaching too many people, we must stop him.' said one lunatic. See you at 5:00 P.M.!" Here are some highlights from today's coronavirus task force press briefing:
- Trump says 1,100 people in NY are being administered hydrochloroquine and "we will see what happens".
- Trump claimed that "we’ve been doing more testing than any other country in the world. Because we’ve been doing more testing, so we have bigger numbers to look at." Fact check, on a per capita basis, South Korea has tested more than five times as many of its population compared to the US.
- To illustrate his claim that he inherited a "broken" system of medical testing, Trump told a story he's told often during his presidency, about a general who approached him in his first week of his presidency. The story has evolved through Trump's presidency, initially the general told him they were low on ammunition, and in this telling, the general told him "we have no ammunition", and Trump then says "that was the military and we've now rebuilt our military ... you wouldn't believe how much ammunition [we have now]." This story has been investigated, and according to the Washington Post, which gave the story three Pinoccios, there was concern among the military leadership that stockpiles of certain munitions were running low, which US officials took steps to address. The Post found in their investigation that these events occurred prior to Trump taking office.
- Trump was asked about a statement he made yesterday on Sean Hannity's Fox News show where he said that some governors don't need the equipment they're requesting, Trump responded to the question saying "Why don’t you people ask ... why don't you act a little more positive? It's always trying to getcha', getcha’, getcha’. That’s why you used to work for the Times and now you work for somebody else. Look, let me tell you something: Be nice. Don’t be threatening. Be nice ... Just so you know: you, me, everybody, we’re all on the same team."
- Trump was asked about the decision by some network affiliates to cease airing the daily coronavirus task force meetings due to the inability to fact-check his statements in real time. Trump responded by bragging about the ratings of the briefings, comparing them to "Monday Night Football and the Batchelor finale" and noted that Fauci and Birx have become "big stars".
- Trump pointed out that according to modeling, up to 2.2m Americans could die had no steps been taken to mitigate the pandemic, thus implying that the 100,000 to 200,000 predicted by Anthony Fauci would represent a successful response by his administration. In Trump's own words: "And so, if we could hold that down, as we’re saying, to 100,000 – it’s a horrible number, maybe even less, but to 100,000, so we have between 100 [thousand] and 200,000 – we altogether have done a very good job."
- Trump said that federal social distancing guidelines are being extended to April 30.
March 28, 2020 - The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in the US has surpassed 100,000, with 1,541 confirmed to have died from the virus. With no sense of irony, Donald Trump sent the following tweet: "I love Michigan, one of the reasons we are doing such a GREAT job for them during this horrible Pandemic. Yet your Governor, Gretchen 'Half' Whitmer is way in over her head, she doesn’t have a clue. Likes blaming everyone for her own ineptitude! #MAGA" In other tweets today, Trump re-tweeted tweets that were tweeted in support of Trish Regan. Once of those tweets, from the far-right site Gateway Pundit, said "FOX Business Network Fires [Regan] for Telling the Truth About How Liberal Media Was Using Coronavirus to Take Down Trump." Rudy Giuliani, former New York mayor, and Trump personal attorney, sent a tweet claiming "hydroxychloroquine has been shown to have a %100 effective rate treating Covid-19 Yet Democrat Gretchen Whitmer is threatening doctors who prescribe it." The tweet was removed by twitter which claimed it violated twitter rules. Trump floated the idea of an "enforceable quarantine" of parts of New York and New Jersey due to coronavirus. Andrew Cuomo, the governor of New York called the idea of the quarantine "preposterous" and a recipe for "chaos and mayhem".
March 27, 2020 - Boris Johnson, the prime minister of the UK, has tested positive for coronavirus. Trish Regan, a Fox Business Network host, has been fired following comments she made in which she claimed "many in the liberal media" were using the coronavirus pandemic "in an attempt to demonize and destroy" Trump. She also claimed "this is impeachment all over again" and suggested Trump's critics were using the pandemic to spark panic and destabilize the economy to harm Trump's chances of being re-elected. A boy from Los Angeles is believed to be the first teenager in the United States to die from covid-19, was denied treatment at an urgent care clinic because he didn't have health insurance. Donald Trump sent the following tweet: "General Motors MUST immediately open their stupidly abandoned Lordstown plant in Ohio, or some other plant, and START MAKING VENTILATORS, NOW!!!!!! FORD, GET GOING ON VENTILATORS, FAST!!!!!!" Following the tweet, the White House confirmed that it is invoking the Defense Production Act to require General Motors to start making ventilators. Trump claimed in an a press interview that in the next 100 days, the US will produce 100,000 ventilators. Donald Trump signed into law a $2.2tn stimulus package called the CARES Act (Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act). The NRA filed suit against California, after officials there designated gun and ammunition sellers as "non-essential" during the pandemic, which forced them to close. In a tweet, the NRA said "California officials are exploiting the Coronavirus to close gun stores. Today, the @NRA filed suit." A national poll released by Survey 160 and Gradient Metrics found that viewers of conservative Fox News were much less likely to take the pandemic seriously. Trump posted the following tweet: "Just finished a very good conversation with President Xi of China. Discussed in great detail the CoronaVirus that is ravaging large parts of our Planet. China has been through much & has developed a strong understanding of the Virus. We are working closely together. Much respect!" Some highlights from today's coronavirus briefing:
- Trump told the press that the US is now testing 100,000 people per day for coronavirus. According to the Covid Tracking Project, about 65,000 coronavirus tests a day are currently being done on Americans.
- Trump claimed the US has the smartest people in the world. According to research done by Vouchercloud, which quantifies intelligence using number of Nobel Prizes, average IQ and education attainment etc., the US ranks fourth behind Japan, Switzerland and China.
- Trump was asked by a reporter "will everyone who needs a ventilator get one?" to which Trump replied "Don’t be a cutie pie. Everyone who needs one? ... Nobody’s ever done what we’ve done ... It was a broken country in so many ways. We had a bad testing system. We had a bad stockpiling system." Trump went on to accuse the reporter of "being a wise guy."
- Trump says of coronavirus "You can call it a germ, a flu, a virus, you can call it many things. I’m not sure people know what it is." Fact check: people do know what it is (coronavirus disease or covid-19, is an infectious disease caused by a newly discovered coronavirus called Sars-CoV-2).
- Trump once again claimed he has always taken the pandemic seriously saying "I was the first one to say to China, when they had the problem, not to come in and that was a long time ago." Fact check, as recently as yesterday, Trump claimed the pandemic was completely unpredictable, and by the time Trump announced travel restrictions from China on 31 January, most major airlines had already suspended flights from there.
- Trump said he told Vice President Mike Pence not to call the governors of Washington and Michigan saying "I want them to be appreciative ... if they don't treat you right, I don't call."
March 26, 2020 - The US now has 82,404 confirmed cases of covid-19, more than any other nation. Asked about Trump's proposal that Easter be the target for re-opening the economy, Dr Anthony Fauci said that "You’ve gotta be realistic and you’ve gotta understand that you don’t make the timeline. The virus makes the timeline." According to the Guardian, nurses at Mount Sinai West Hospital have complained that they have been forced to use garbage bags to protect themselves due to a shortage of protective equipment. Planned Parenthood has filed suit against Texas in response that staet's attorney general Ken Paxton ordered a ban on nearly all abortions in the state as part of an effort to conserve medical supplies during the pandemic. According to Nancy Northup, head of the Center for Reproductive Rights, a legal nonprofit, "It’s unconscionable that the Texas Attorney General is exploiting this pandemic to end abortion in the state. Abortion care is time-sensitive and essential health care that has a profound impact on a person’s health and life, which is why it is protected as a constitutional right." According to the Washington Post, after Washington Governor Jay Inslee pushed for Trump to do more to assist the states hardest hit by the pandemic during a conference call with all of the governors, Trump only offered to "backup" the states. Inslee then responded, "we don't need a backup, we need Tom Brady." World Health Organization director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has this message for the world: "You cannot fight a fire blindfolded, and we cannot stop this pandemic if we don’t know who is infected. We have a simple message for all countries: Test, test, test." Approximately 103,200 tests have been conducted in the US thus far. Here are some highlights to today's coronavirus briefing:
- Trump was asked why he no longer uses the term "Chinese virus" to which Trump responded "I think it was time ... I don’t have to say it if they feel so strongly about it". Trump also pointed out that he has the right to use the term.
- Trump stated that "Nobody would have ever thought a thing like this could have happened." Fact check: The US intelligence community, pubic health experts and officials in Trump's own administration have warned for years that the country was at risk of a pandemic, including specific warnings about a coronavirus outbreak. Health experts warned early in the current outbreak that it could turn into a global health crisis. According to Marc Lipsitch, director of Harvard's Center for Communicable Disease Dynamics "This was foreseeable and foreseen, weeks and months ago, and only now is the White House coming out of denial and heading straight into saying it could not have been foreseen." On a side note, Lipsitch has predicted that between 20% and 60% of adults worldwide will ultimately get infected before a vaccine becomes available.
March 25, 2020 - Working overnight, the congress agreed to an economic stimulus package worth $2tn. While giving a briefing on the virtual G7 foreign ministers meeting, Mike Pompeo, the US secretary of state, referred to the coronavirus as "Wuhan virus". The group has not been able to agree on a joint statement regarding coronavirus because of Pompeo's insistence on calling it "Wuhan virus" which is considered objectionable by other members of the group. According to the Washington Post: "Other nations in the group of world powers rejected the term because they viewed it as needlessly divisive at a time when international cooperation is required to slow the global pandemic and deal with the scarcity of medical supplies, officials said. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has brushed off criticism of his use of the term, saying it’s important to point out that the virus came from the Chinese city of Wuhan and that China’s government had a special responsibility to warn the world about its dangers. When asked about a report that his insistence on including the term caused a rift at the Group of Seven meeting, Pompeo did not deny the charge but said that any disagreements among the group were tactical and not sweeping in nature." It's important to note here that the CDC and WHO have both warned against describing the virus in geographical terms, especially amid rising reports of discrimination against Asian Americans. Joe Biden, the former vice president and 2020 presidential candidate, held a virtual town hall meeting where he criticized Trump for downplaying the seriousness of the outbreak saying "As a result, this virus will hit all of us harder than it otherwise might have hit us, and it’s going to take us longer to recover". KUOW Public Radio, and affiliate of NPR, announced that it will no longer air Trump's daily briefings of the coronavirus pandemic, saying "KUOW is monitoring White House briefings for the latest news on the coronavirus — and we will continue to share all news relevant to Washington State with our listeners. However, we will not be airing the briefings live due to a pattern of false or misleading information provided that cannot be fact checked in real time." According to White House reporter who was interviewed by Vanity Fair, the coronavirus briefings "are a clown show, just a daily advertisement for Trump. He’s smart to do them, dominating earned media and blocking out the sun for [Joe] Biden." The Centers for Medicaid Services is reporting that 140 nursing homes are experiencing coronavirus outbreaks. Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the Director-General of WHO, warned against lifting social distancing measures too soon saying "The last thing any country needs is to open schools and businesses, only to be forced to close them again because of a resurgence." Gavin Newsom, the governor of California, announced that 1 million have applied for unemployment in the state since March 13th. Donald Trump sent the following tweet: "The LameStream Media is the dominant force in trying to get me to keep our Country closed as long as possible in the hope that it will be detrimental to my election success. The real people want to get back to work ASAP. We will be stronger than ever before!" Here are some highlights from today's coronavirus task force briefing:
- Trump was asked about his tweet in which he claimed the media was inflating the crisis, Trump responded: "I think there are certain people who would like [the country] to do financially poorly" to prevent his reelection. Trump added: "I think it’s very clear that there are people in your profession who write fake news."
- Dr Anthony Fauci stated "I know we’ll be successful in putting this down now. But we really need to be prepared for another cycle."
March 24, 2020 - The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in the US has surpassed 46,000, with 100 people dying in the last 24 hours. Nearly one in three Americans are currently living under stay-at-home orders. The World Health Organization warns that the "large acceleration" of US coronavirus infections means the US has the potential of becoming the new epicenter of the global crisis. Japan announced that the 2020 Summer Olympics will be delayed by around one year due to the coronavirus pandemic. According to the Guardian "A Phoenix-area man has died and his wife was in critical condition after the couple took chloroquine phosphate, an additive used to clean fish tanks that is also found in an anti-malaria medication touted by Donald Trump as a treatment for Covid-19 ... 'Trump kept saying it was basically pretty much a cure,' the woman told NBC. She said her advice would be: 'Don’t take anything. Don't believe anything. Don’t believe anything that the president says and his people ... call your doctor.'" According to the Richmond times-Dispatch: "As the coronavirus threatens to spread across the Lynchburg region, Liberty University officials are preparing to welcome back up to 5,000 students from spring break this week. Defying a national trend of campus closures, President Jerry Falwell Jr. has invited students to return to residence halls and has directed faculty members to continue to report to campus even as most classes move online. In an interview Sunday night, Falwell said somewhere between several hundred to more than 5,000 students are expected to live in campus dorms, where they will continue coursework online rather than in classrooms. Meanwhile, hundreds of professors and instructors without a valid health exemption will come to campus to hold office hours. 'I think we have a responsibility to our students — who paid to be here, who want to be here, who love it here — to give them the ability to be with their friends, to continue their studies, enjoy the room and board they’ve already paid for and to not interrupt their college life,' Falwell said." Mike Pence was asked during an interview how long before the entire country has access to coronavirus tests, to which Pence responded: "Literally testing is expanding all across the country by the tens of thousands every day. By last Monday we had tested roughly 50,000 people across the country". Kevin Cramer, a Republican Senator from North Dakota, sent a tweet in which he referred to Nancy Pelosi as "retarded". Cramer, who deleted the tweet within about 10 minutes, apologized, claiming he would never use that word to describe a person, but instead had typed ridiculous, and the phone, autocorrect must have changed it to retarded. Timothy Wilson, 36, of Raymore, Missouri, was killled in a firefight with FBI agents who were serving a probable cause arrest warrant. Wilson, who has ties to a movement known as boogaloo, was planning to bomb a hospital in Kansas City on the day a covid-19 stay-at-home order was scheduled to take effect. Wilson's goal according to an informant was to "kick start a revolution" and referred to his plans as "operation boogaloo". Trump held a town hall meeting, and a coronavirus task force meeting, here are some highlights:
- Trump was asked when he first decided to take coronavirus seriously. Trump responded that was when he first saw it moving across China. Trump went on to say "I made a decision to close off China. That was weeks early and honestly I took a lot of heat. Sleepy Joe Biden said it was xenophobic -I don’t know what that means." Fact check, there is no record of Biden specifically criticizing the decision, although Biden did say on the same day the decision was made that Trump has a "record of hysteria and zenophobia -- hysterical xenophobia -- and fear-mongering."
- Trump downplayed the need for stay-at-home orders saying "Well you have to make the decision. I brought some numbers here. We lose thousands and thousands of people per year to the flu. We don’t turn the country off. We lose thousands of people a year to the flu. We never turn the country off. We lose thousands of people per year to automobile accidents."
- Trump stated "We did not screw up. I don’t think CDC screwed up either. I don’t think – in all fairness to CDC. Nobody ever expected a thing like this. Nobody expected that millions and millions of people would have to be tested."
- Trump responded to New York Governor Cuomo's request for more ventilators saying Cuomo "should've ordered ventilators. He had a chance in 2016 to buy 16,000 at a very low price and he didn’t do that."
- Trump declared that "I would love to have it open by Easter. I would love to have it open by Easter. I would love to have the country opened up and just raring to go by Easter." When pressed about that date, Trump responded "I think it’s possible. Why isn’t it? We’ve never controlled the country before and we’ve had some flus and some viruses. I think it’s absolutely possible ... We have to get our country back to work. Our country wants to go back to work ... If we delay this thing out you’re going to lose more people than with the situation as we know it. So I think it’s very important for the country to go back ... Otherwise it’s going to be very hard to start it up again ... Easter is a very special day for me. And I say, wouldn’t it be great to have all the churches full?"
- Trump claimed "This experience shows how important borders are".
- Anthony Fauci emphasized the need to test more widely, to gather more data that can inform public health officials as they develop policies.
- Larry Kudlow claimed the impact of coronavirus will last "weeks," not much longer. "It's only going to be weeks ... weeks and months, not years."
- Mike Pence said he sees no need to invoke the Defense Production Act to compel companies to produce vital supplies since "we see industries stepping up".
- When asked about the fixation with Easter for easing distancing measures, Trump said "I just thought it was a beautiful time" but insisted he would "be guided very much by Dr Fauci" and Dr Deborah Birx.
March 23, 2020 - There are now 41,000 confirmed cases of covid-19 in the US. The CDC reported that coronavirus survived in the Princess Cruise ship cabins for up to 17 days after passengers left. Dr Jerome Adams, the US surgeon general, warned that "This week it's going to get bad." Adams also said that testing has "significantly increased" but added that "We aren’t testing the people who are at highest risk right now ... We need to make sure we’re prioritizing testing for our health care workers." Dr Anthony Fauci, the head of the US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases was interviewed by Science magazine and was asked how it felt to "stand there as the representative of truth and facts [when] things are being said that aren’t true and aren’t factual", to which Fauci responded: "I can’t jump in front of the microphone and push him down. OK, he said it. Let’s try and get it corrected for the next time." Fauci added that he and the rest of the task force, "the next time they sit down with him and talk about what he’s going to say, they will say, 'By the way, Mr President, be careful about this and don’t say that.'" Fauci also stated that Trump "could lead to some misunderstanding about what the facts are about a given subject." Andrew Cuomo, the governor of New York, urged Trump to invoke the Defense Production Act to nationalize the production of medical equipment, and also complained about having to compete with other states for medical equipment to meet current needs saying "This is not the way to do it. This is ad hoc. I'm competing with other states, I'm bidding up other states on the prices. Why are we competing?" Cuomo went on to explain that masks that previously cost $0.85 now cost $7. Cuomo implored Trump to "order the production of masks and gowns and ventilators" from private industry, "give them a deadline, don't get into this mad bidding war ... the president can do this." The Dow is down 35% from its high in February, and according to finance experts, is having its worst month since 1931, the first year of the Great Depression. Mark Esper, the Defense secretary, confirmed that the US military is preparing to deploy field hospitals to New York City and Seattle. Esper also acknowledged that the pandemic could have an adverse impact on US military readiness. Trump has been hinting at lifting social restrictions over fears for the nation's economy, but is getting push back from health experts. According to the Washington Post: "Fauci, a member of the president’s coronavirus task force, and other leading public health experts have told administration officials and Republican lawmakers that prematurely scaling back social distancing measures would hamper efforts to contain the virus and devastate U.S. hospitals, according to the people with knowledge of the conversations who, like others, spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe the private deliberations. More than 30,000 people in the United States have tested positive for coronavirus, a number expected to dramatically increase in the coming days and potentially overwhelm America’s health care infrastructure." Ken Paxton, the Texas attorney general, clarified the staet's ban on unnecessary surgeries during the pandemic to include abortions, unless they are needed to preserve the health or life of the mother. Trump sent the following tweet: "It is very important that we totally protect our Asian American community in the United States, and all around the world. They are amazing people, and the spreading of the Virus is NOT their fault in any way, shape, or form. They are working closely with us to get rid of it. WE WILL PREVAIL TOGETHER!" This tweet comes as Asian Americans are increasingly being harassed, attacked, spat upon, and blamed for the spread of the virus. Lt Governor Dan Patrick, a Texas Republican, appeared on Fox News with Tucker Carlson, and during the interview, made the following statement: "You know, Tucker, no one reached out to me and said, 'As a senior citizen, are you willing to take a chance on your survival in exchange for keeping the America that all America loves for your children and grandchildren?' And if that’s the exchange, I’m all in. And that doesn’t make me noble or brave or anything like that. I just think there are lots of grandparents out there in this country like me." There are currently 14 states with active stay-at-home orders. Here are some highlights from Trump's daily Coronavirus Task Force briefing:
- Trump opened the briefing saying "the hardship will end. It will end soon ... our country was not built to be shut down. This is not a country that was built for this. It was not built to be shut down ... we're not going to let the cure be worse than the problem."
- Dr Deborah Birx, the response coordinator for Trump's coronavirus task force said that "less than 1% of all mortality" is people younger than 50.
- Trump claimed "we're going to be opening up our country". A reporter asked if that meant "weeks or months" to which Trump responded "I'm not looking at months, I can tell you right now."
- Trump suggested that a damaged American economy could be the cause of more deaths than is caused by coronavirus saying "People get tremendous anxiety and depression and you have suicide over things like this, when you have a terrible economy, you have death, definitely would be in far greater numbers than we’re talking about with regard to the virus."
- Dr Fauci was not present at today's briefing, so a reporter asked Trump if Fauci agreed with him about the need to restart the economy, Trump's response "He doesn’t not agree. He understands there’s a tremendous cost to our country."
March 22, 2020 - Coronavirus cases in the US are now past 33,000, with 417 deaths. A group of Democratic lawmakers have expressed concern that they have to compete with other states to acquire medical resources, and questioned why Donald Trump hasn't yet made military resources available despite triggering the Defense Production Act. Trump responded by tweeting they "shouldn’t be blaming the Federal Government for their own shortcomings. We are there to back you up should you fail, and always will be!" Republican Senator Rand Paul, of Kentucky, announced that he has tested positive for covid-19, making him the first member of the Seante to test positive for the coronavirus. Ohio and Louisiana have joined other states in issuing stay at home orders to combat coronavirus. Here are some highlights from today's Coronavirus Task Force press briefing:
- Trump once again went against the advice of experts, calling covid-19 "the Chinese virus".
- Trump suggests that any problems with the federal govt response is not his fault but rather because of the "broken" system he inherited.
- Trump was told that a number of senators are in isolation after coming into contact with Rand Paul, one of them being Mitt Romney. When Mitt Romney's name was mentioned, Trump perked up and said "Mitt Romney?" And then with a small hint of a smile said "Gee, that's too bad." The reporter then asked if he was being sarcastic, to which Trump responded "no".
- Trump criticized China saying he wished China "had told us three months sooner" and adds that "we could have saved a lot of lives."
- Trump complained that no one said "thank you" after he gave away his salary as US president.
- Trump was asked if he sold stock in the run up to the outbreak. Trump described it as a "nasty" question. Then said "it cost me billions of dollars to be president".
According to a story by Reuters: "Several months before the coronavirus pandemic began, the Trump administration eliminated a key American public health position in Beijing intended to help detect disease outbreaks in China, Reuters has learned ... The American disease expert, a medical epidemiologist embedded in China’s disease control agency, left her post in July, according to four sources with knowledge of the issue. The first cases of the new coronavirus may have emerged as early as November, and as cases exploded, the Trump administration in February chastised China for censoring information about the outbreak and keeping U.S. experts from entering the country to help. 'It was heartbreaking to watch,' said Bao-Ping Zhu, a Chinese American who served in that role, which was funded by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, between 2007 and 2011. 'If someone had been there, public health officials and governments across the world could have moved much faster.' Zhu and the other sources said the American expert, Dr. Linda Quick, was a trainer of Chinese field epidemiologists who were deployed to the epicenter of outbreaks to help track, investigate and contain diseases. As an American CDC employee, they said, Quick was in an ideal position to be the eyes and ears on the ground for the United States and other countries on the coronavirus outbreak, and might have alerted them to the growing threat weeks earlier."
March 21, 2020 - According to the Washington Post, Trump ignored early warnings from US intelligence agencies about the threat posed by the coronavirus outbreak while downplaying it publicly and privately. According to the story: "the reports and warnings painted an early picture of a virus that showed the characteristics of a globe-encircling pandemic that could require governments to take swift actions to contain it. But despite that constant flow of reporting, Trump continued publicly and privately to play down the threat the virus posed to Americans." Trump was asked about the story during the daily White House coronavirus task force briefing and responded: "I saw the story. I think it’s a disgrace but it’s the Washington Post and I guess we have to live with it. It’s a very inaccurate -" as a journalist tried to interject, Trump raised his hand and snapped: "Quiet, quiet." Trump then touted his decision to restrict travel from China saying "I didn’t act late. I acted early. I acted far before anybody thought I should be. I took tremendous criticism from the various papers." Hillary Clintomn responded to the story saying "The Trump administration was told in January that coronavirus was likely to become a pandemic. They refused to act for fear of spooking the markets, losing weeks of time to prepare that we won’t get back."
March 20, 2020 - Bill de Blasio, the mayor of New York, criticized the Trump administration's response to the coronavirus pandemic saying "A lot of people are going to die who don’t have to die. If the president doesn’t act within days to maximize production, to get surgical masks, if he doesn’t mobilize the US military, people will die." Dr Anthony Fauci was asked today how long Americans will need to stay at home and avoid other people, to which he responded "I cannot see that all of a sudden, next week or two weeks from now, it’s going to be over. I don’t think there’s a chance of that. I think it’s going to be several weeks." Andrew Cuomo, the Governor of New York, announced that all non-essential workers in the state must stay at home until the pandemic is under control. Mike Pompeo, the secretary of state, announced the US will be closing the US-Mexican border to non-essential travel. Trump was asked during a news briefing what he had to say to Americans who are scared about the spread of coronavirus, to which Trump responded: "I say that you’re a terrible reporter. The American people are looking for answers, and they’re looking for hope. That’s really bad reporting." Trump was asked again by another reporter what message he had for Americans who are currently scared. Trump's response: "There is a very low incidence of death". Fact Check: Health experts put the rate of death from coronavirus at about 1%, which is ten times more deadly than the flu. Sean Spicer, Trump's former press secretary, sat in the press briefing representing his new employer, conservative website Newsmax. Spicer asked Trump about reports of senators selling stock last month after being briefed on coronavirus. Trump's response: "I’m not aware of it. I find them all to be very honorable people, and they said they did nothing wrong." Trump introduced secretary of state Mike Pompeo, and in doing so, referred to the State Department as the "Deep State Department." The derisive name prompted Dr Anthony Fauci to chuckle, and to place his hand over his face. Fauci was asked about the comments that were made yesterday by Senator Ron Johnson in an attempt to downplay the threat of coronavirus, to which Fauci responded by saying it was a "false equivalency to compare traffic accidents" to coronavirus, and also emphasized that a drastic response is necessary when a new and dangerously contagious virus is uncovered. Trump claimed chloroquine, an anti-malaria drug has been approved by the FDA for treating coronavirus, and added "I sure as hell think we ought to give it a try" because it could be "one of the biggest game changers in the history of medicine". The FDA later released a statement denying the drug had been approved for treating coronavirus. Fauci was asked about Trump's promotion of the drug, to which he stated that the evidence of the drug's benefits against coronavirus are "anecdotal," and it should not be viewed as some kind of miracle cure. Senator Kelly Loeffler, a Republican, is under scrutiny for millions of dollars in stock sales she made in February after receiving private Congressional briefings on the coronavirus outbreak in January. Joe Biden, the former vice president, offered the following criticism of Donald Trump: "In times of crisis the American people deserve a president who tells them the truth and takes responsibility. Unfortunately, President Trump has not been that president." Following the lead of New York and California, Illinois governor J.B. Pritzker has ordered all 13 million residents of Illinois to shelter in place until at least April 7. The Dow closed 900 points down, marking the worst week since the financial crisis. An ABC News/Ipsos poll this week found that 87% of Democrats are concerned about coronavirus, compared to 66% of Republicans. Last week only 56% of Republicans reported being concerned about the virus. Doctors and nurses are increasingly voicing frustration at the lack of testing ability, and a lack of personal protective equipment (PPE).
March 19, 2020 - A bipartisan group of More than 80 national security professionals penned an open letter accusing Trump of being an "existential Danger" to the United States, and endorsed Joe Biden for president. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has called upon Trump to "immediately use the powers of the Defense Production Act to speed up production of medical supplies saying in part: "Right now, shortages of critical medical and personal protective equipment are harming our ability to fight the coronavirus epidemic, endangering frontline workers and making it harder to care for those who fall ill ... The President must immediately use the powers of the Defense Production Act to mass produce and coordinate distribution of these critical supplies, before the need worsens and the shortages become even more dire. There is not a day to lose." Jobless claims for week ending March 14 were 281,000. That was an increase over the prior week's 211,000. In a recording obtained by NPR, Senator Richard Burr, the Republican chairman of the Senate intelligence committee warned of the aggressive spread of coronavirus on February 27, saying in part "There’s one thing that I can tell you about this: It is much more aggressive in its transmission than anything that we have seen in recent history. ... more akin to the 1918 pandemic." During a press briefing, Trump mentioned the malaria drug chloroquine, which according to early research, may work as a coronavirus treatment. Trump was asked why his administration was not better prepared to fight coronavirus, considering it was first reported in China a month ago. Trump responded: "We were very prepared. The only thing we weren’t prepared for was the media. The media has not treated it fairly ... I was the first one to do the ban. Now other countries are doing what I did, but the media doesn’t want to write about that." Trump also accused the press of being "very dishonest" and of "siding with China" in their criticism of him using the term "Chinese flu". A photographer managed to get a picture of the notes Trump was reading from during his news briefing, which went viral, as it showed the word Corona with a line through it, and the word Chinese written above it. Professor Neil Ferguson, who heads modeling at Imperial College London's MRC centre for global infectious disease analysis, and who spurred the United States and United Kingdom into action after his modeling predicted that without aggressive social distancing and containment measures, as many as 2.2 million Americans could die from coronavirus, has announced that he has tested positive for covid-19. According to ProPublica, Richard Burr, the head of the Senate intelligence committee, and North Carolina Republican, sold somewhere between $582,029 and $1.56 million in stock holdings after reassuring the public that the government had a handle on the coronavirus outbreak. The stock market began to drop about a week after Burr's sell-off, and has lost about 30% since. In response to the story about Burr, Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez sent the following tweet: "As Intel chairman, @SenatorBurr got private briefings about Coronavirus weeks ago. Burr knew how bad it would be. He told the truth to his wealthy donors, while assuring the public that we were fine. THEN he sold off $1.6 million in stock before the fall. He needs to resign." Gavin Newsom, the Governor of California, ordered all of the state's 40 million residents to stay indoors except for essential activities.
March 18, 2020 - Confirmed cases of coronavirus in the US has reached 6,500. Trump sent the following in a tweet: "For the people that are now out of work because of the important and necessary containment policies, for instance the shutting down of hotels, bars and restaurants, money will soon be coming to you. The onslaught of the Chinese Virus is not your fault! Will be stronger than ever!" Trump also sent this jaw dropping tweet: "I always treated the Chinese Virus very seriously, and have done a very good job from the beginning, including my very early decision to close the 'borders' from China - against the wishes of almost all. Many lives were saved. The Fake News new narrative is disgraceful & false!" The Trump administration announced that the border with Canada will be closed to "non-essential traffic" due to the coronavirus pandemic. Speaking at a press conference, Deborah Birx, the White House coronavirus response coordinator, warned that social distancing needs to be practiced across the US. During a White House press conference, Trump once again referred to the coronavirus as the "China virus". When asked why he insisted on using the term even as there have been reports of bias against Chinese and Asian people due to coronavirus, just as experts have warned there would be, Trump responded that he used the term "Because it comes from China" and "it's not racist at all". Trump was also asked about Treasury secretary Steven Mnuchin's assessment that unemployment could skyrocket to 20% due to the pandemic, to which Trump responded "I don't agree with that ... That's an absolute worst case scenario." Trump was also asked about the fact that the well-connected seem to have ways of getting tested for coronavirus while others do not, to which Trump replied: "Perhaps that’s the story of life." For the 4th time in 2 weeks trading was halted at the New York Stock Exchange due to steep losses over fears regarding the coronavirus crisis. The cumulative drops have now wiped out all of the gains since Trump's inauguration. Ford, GM and Fiat Chrysler have agreed to temporarily close their US plants to protect its workers against coronavirus. The US Census Bureau has suspended field operations for 2020 census, and is encouraging people to respond online or by telephone. During a press briefing, Trump said he sees himself "in a sense as a wartime president" and said he would invoke the Defense Protection Act (DPA) to help provide "health and medical resources needed to respond to the spread of COVID-19, including personal protective equipment and ventilators." However, Trump later sent the following tweet: "I only signed the Defense Production Act to combat the Chinese Virus should we need to invoke it in a worst case scenario in the future. Hopefully there will be no need, but we are all in this TOGETHER!" Representative Mario Diaz-Balart, a Republican from Florida, was the first member of congress to test positive for covid-19. Senator Ron Johnson, a Republican from Wisconsin raised eyebrows for comments he made in an attempt to downplay covid-19. Behold, some of Ron Johnson's comments:
"Right now, all people are hearing about are the deaths. I’m sure the deaths are horrific, but the flip side of this is the vast majority of people who get coronavirus do survive" - Ron Johnson, Republican Senator from Wisconsin
"I’m not denying what a nasty disease COVID-19 can be, and how it’s obviously devastating to somewhere between 1 and 3.4 percent of the population. But that means 97 to 99 percent will get through this and develop immunities and will be able to move beyond this. But we don’t shut down our economy because tens of thousands of people die on the highways. It’s a risk we accept so we can move about. We don’t shut down our economies because tens of thousands of people die from the common flu" - Ron Johnson, Republican Senator from Wisconsin
March 17, 2020 - Confirmed cases of coronavirus in the US has reached 4,000. The US supreme court has postponed oral arguments for the first time in more than a century. The last time was in 1918, due to the Spanish flu epidemic. Trump held a conference call with governors, where he reportedly told them: "Respirators, ventilators, all of the equipment – try getting it yourselves. We will be backing you, but try getting it yourselves. Point of sales, much better, much more direct if you can get it yourself." After the call, Trump sent the following tweet: "Just had a very good tele-conference with Nation’s Governors. Went very well. Cuomo of New York has to 'do more'." Andrew Cuomo, the governor of New York responded by tweeting: "I have to do more? No YOU have to do something! You’re supposed to be the President. Happy to do your job, too. Just give me control of the Army Corps of Engineers and I’ll take it from there." Trump sent the following tweet: "Cuomo wants 'all states to be treated the same.' But all states aren’t the same. Some are being hit hard by the Chinese Virus, some are being hit practically not at all. New York is a very big 'hotspot', West Virginia has, thus far, zero cases. Andrew, keep politics out of it." Trump also sent the following tweets: "Failing Michigan Governor must work harder and be much more proactive. We are pushing her to get the job done. I stand with Michigan!" and "Federal Government is working very well with the Governors and State officials. Good things will happen! #KILLTHEVIRUS" The Trump administration unveiled social distancing guidelines, urging Americans to avoid gatherings of more than 10 people, should avoid going to bars, restaurants, food courts or gyms, and should avoid discretionary travel. Older people, who are more at risk, have been asked to stay at home. Adam Gaffney, the president of the advocacy organization Physicians for a National Health Program, wrote the following regarding Trump's handling of the coronavirus pandemic: "Trump’s response goes beyond incompetence – it’s a political abomination. However uncoordinated his administration’s moves have been, Trump has made it clear he sees this pandemic chiefly as a threat to the market and wealthy peoples’ personal interests (and relatedly, his own political future) – not to the people whose lives it will threaten or claim." Geng Shuang, China's foreign ministry spokesman, reacted to Trump's labeling of the coronavirus as "the Chinese virus" saying "Some US politicians have tried to stigmatise China ... which China strongly condemns. We urge the US to stop this despicable practice. We are very angry and strongly oppose it." An editorial by the state news agancy Xinhua Today stated "Using racist and xenophobic names to cast blame for the outbreak on other countries can only reveal politicians’ irresponsibility and incompetence." During a press conference, Andrew Cuomo, the governor of New York, made the following statement: "this [state] government cannot meet this crisis without the resources and capacity of the federal government. I spoke to the president this morning, and he is ready, willing and able to help. We need your help with hospital capacity." Steven Mnuchin, the US Treasury Secretary, declared the current situation "worse than 9/11 for the airline industry". Trump, who has repeatedly downplayed the seriousness of the coronavirus, made the following jaw dropping statement: "This is a pandemic. I felt it was a pandemic long before it was called a pandemic. I have always viewed it as very serious." Trump was asked about his continued use of the term "Chinese virus" to which he replied "China was putting out information that our military gave it to them. We have to call it where it came from, it came from China." Duncan Hunter, former California Republican congressman, was sentenced to 11 months in prison after pleading guilty to stealing his campaign funds and spending the money on vacations, school tuition, and shopping sprees. During a coronavirus briefing, Trump accused the Obama administration of making "terrible" and "horrific" mistakes in handling a swine flu outbreak in 2009 saying "seventeen thousand people died" despite the actual number being 12,469. Trump also said "They shouldn’t be criticising because we’ve done a fantastic job. The only thing we haven’t done well is to get good press. We’ve done a fantastic job but it hasn’t been appreciated. Even the closing down of the borders, which had never been done, and not only did we close them but we closed them early. The press doesn’t like writing about it. So we’ve done a poor job on press relationships and I guess I don’t know who to blame for that. I don’t know, maybe I can blame ourselves for that. I will blame ourselves."
March 16, 2020 - Ron Paul, former Republican congressman from Texas, and father of US senator Rand Paul, wrote an article titled: The Coronavirus Hoax. In the article, Paul accused Democrats of using coronavirus to "grab more power and authority in the name of fighting a virus that thus far has killed less than 100 Americans". Notable news regarding the novel coronavirus (Covid-19):
- The CDC is recommending that people practice "social distancing" and that gatherings of 50 people or more in the US be canceled or postponed over the next 8 weeks.
- California, Ohio, Illinois, Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey, Connecticut and Washington have closed all but essential businesses.
- There are 3,774 confirmed cases in the US, with 69 deaths.
- The US Federal Reserve announced it would cut its benchmark interest rate to near zero, and said it would buy US $700bn in Treasury and mortgage-backed securities.
- The White House announced that the annual Easter Egg Roll was cancelled.
- When asked to rate his administration's response to the coronavirus on a scale of 1 to 10, Trump responded "I'd rate it a 10. I think we've done a great job."
- The White House released "The President's Coronavirus Guidelines for America: 30 Days to Slow the Spread. Here are some highlights from that document:
- Governor Jim Justice of West Virginia, a Republican, downplayed the seriousness of coronavirus when he told residents of his state "If you want to go to Bob Evans and eat, go to Bob Evans and eat."
News surfaced that the servers at the US Health and Human Service Dept was the target of a cyber-attack yesterday, which is believed to have been intended to slow the agency's systems down. US trading was halted seconds after the opening bell as the market plunged 7%. According to the Washington Post: "President Trump gambled very early and very often on the idea that the coronavirus wouldn’t turn out to be nearly as severe as some health officials have warned it could get. The thrust of Trump’s statements about the virus has been almost relentlessly optimistic, which is a marked contrast to those of some health officials who prefer that people be overly prepared rather than underestimate the threat. Trump has frequently suggested that the United States is winning the battle against the virus, and he has regularly promoted the idea that it could suddenly disappear." The Dow closed down nearly 3,000 points, the worst one-day drop in history. Senator Ron Johnson, a Republican from Wisconsin, said he will continue to investigate Joe Biden and his son Hunter, and their ties to Burisma, a Ukrainian gas company. Donald Trump sent the following tweet: "The United States will be powerfully supporting those industries, like Airlines and others, that are particularly affected by the Chinese Virus. We will be stronger than ever before!"
March 15, 2020 - During a press briefing, Donald Trump acknowledged to reporters that the coronavirus is "very contagious" adding that "It’s incredible. But it’s something that we have tremendous control over". Trump also said "Relax, we're doing great." Anthony Fauci, Trump's lead infectious disease expert, warned that "The worst is ahead of us" and described the growing crisis as reaching a "very, very critical point now". Trump also urged Americans against hoarding supplies. Governor Kevin Stitt of Oklahoma, a Republican, downplayed the seriousness of coronavirus when he tweeted a picture of himself and his two sons at a restaurant, saying "Eating with my kids and all my fellow Oklahomans at the @CollectiveOKC. It's packed tonight! #supportlocal #OklaProud" Stitt later deleted the tweet.
March 14, 2020 - Elaine Karmack, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution think tank in Washington, made the following comment regarding Trump's handling of the coronavirus pandemic: "He’s an idiot. He’s handled it horribly. When things are rough, you want somebody who can exude confidence and competence and Trump does not do that. We’ve been incredibly lucky. For the last three years, there was nothing big going on that had a real bearing on the lives of the ordinary American. This does." Moe Vela, a former senior adviser to Joe Biden, responded to Trump's response to coronavirus saying "He is unable to express compassion and empathy; I don’t believe he possesses those two values. This was his chance to show that he could lead, to show that he was as tough as he said he was for three years. And then what does he do? He falls on his face. We’re walking around in ghost towns. Kids aren’t going to school. Not enough people are getting tested. We have no clue what the reality of this pandemic is because information is being withheld and reaction from this administration was slow at best. It’s disgusting. It’s disconcerting. It’s scary as hell." According to the Guardian: "The coronavirus outbreak plays to the weaknesses of Trump, a germaphobe and gut instinct politician who prefers to slug it out with human foes on Twitter. He has spent years undermining experts, institutions, scientists, media outlets, global alliances and trust in government, all of which are now needed more than ever. His first misstep came two years ago when he disbanded the global health security team on the National Security Council (NSC) that was responsible for preparing for a pandemic. The NSC’s global health security chief, Rear Admiral Tim Ziemer, was fired the day after an Ebola outbreak was declared in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Last year intelligence agencies warned that the US remained vulnerable to the next flu pandemic but Trump, it seems, hoped that his long streak of political luck would hold. Distracted by impeachment in January, the president showed little urgency when the coronavirus exploded in China, apparently unwilling to sour his relationship with authoritarian leader Xi Jinping, whom he praised for having the outbreak 'totally under control' even as it raced across that country and beyond. The White House did impose a limited travel ban on China but that alone was not enough. Former US Food and Drug Administration commissioner David Kessler told the Politico website: 'They needed and still need to be searching for where the cases are, instead of trusting that limited travel bans were keeping out a virus that was probably already on the march.' Perhaps Trump’s greatest blunder was turning down the offer of a German-made diagnostic test approved by the World Health Organization and taken up by many countries. The US government’s own painfully slow progress led to a nationwide shortage of test kits at the most critical moment. It was reported that just 11,000 tests have been conducted in America so far, whereas South Korea is carrying out 10,000 tests per day. Ashish Jha, director of the Harvard Global Health Institute, told the Bloomberg news agency: 'This is an unmitigated disaster that the administration has brought upon the population, and I don’t say this lightly. We have had a much worse response than Iran, than Italy, than China and South Korea.'" Robert Shrum, a political science professor at the University of Southern California, and Democratic strategist, responded to Trump's handling of the coronavirus pandemic saying: "Before it happened, he dismantled a lot of the preparedness that had been put in place under Obama and Ron Klain [Ebola czar] and Joe Biden, I suppose because they were things Obama had done so he wanted to get rid of them, like the Paris climate accords. And since then he has over and over again contradicted his own health people and at one point tried to muzzle them. He called the coronavirus 'a Democratic hoax' and then they ran out to explain, 'No, no, the hoax was that they were blaming Trump for not handling it well'. Well, I think almost universally people would say Trump has not handled this well."
March 13, 2020 - Trump began today by tweeting criticism of the CDC and the Obama Administration: "For decades the @CDCgov looked at, and studied, its testing system, but did nothing about it. It would always be inadequate and slow for a large scale pandemic, but a pandemic would never happen, they hoped. President Obama made changes that only complicated things further. Their response to H1N1 Swine Flu was a full scale disaster, with thousands dying, and nothing meaningful done to fix the testing problem, until now. The changes have been made and testing will soon happen on a very large scale basis. All Red Tape has been cut, ready to go!" YouGov and Yahoo! News released poll results that showed that 53% of the polled US adults did not have faith in Trump's ability to tell the truth about the threat of the new coronavirus. According to an LA Times story regarding coronavirus: "One reason federal health officials have not acted appears to be President Trump’s reluctance to declare a national emergency. That’s a key step that would clear the way for states to get Medicaid waivers to more nimbly tackle coronavirus, but it would conflict with Trump’s repeated efforts to downplay the seriousness of the epidemic. Another element may be ideological: The administration official who oversees Medicaid, Seema Verma, has been a champion of efforts by conservative states to trim the number of people enrolled." Donald Trump sent out the following tweet: "To this point, and because we have had a very strong border policy, we have had 40 deaths related to CoronaVirus. If we had weak or open borders, that number would be many times higher!" Donald Trump held a press conference to declare a national emergency to address the Coronavirus pandemic. Trump's declaration included the phrase "National Emergency, two very big words." Trump also declared that "half a million additional tests will be available early next week ... Which will bring probably 1.4 million tests next week and five million in a month." Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer responded to the declaration saying in part: "I’m pleased the president heeded our calls to invoke the Stafford Act to extend vital financial assistance to help keep communities safe from the coronavirus outbreak. I urge New York and other states to immediately request these newly available funds and for the Trump administration to approve these requests without delay." After Trump made the emergency declaration, he was asked by a reporter: "Do you take responsibility for the lag in coronavirus testing?" Trump's response: "No, I don't take responsibility at all." Here are a few notable reactions to Trump's comment on twitter:
"Every democrat running for office this fall should write Trump a thank you note for that clip of the president saying he doesn’t take responsibility for a failure of the government he leads, what a great closer for an ad." - Erin Ryan
"Trump in 2016: 'I alone can fix it.' Trump just now: 'I don't take responsibility at all'" - Dan Pfeiffer
"'I don't take responsibility at all' is perhaps the most honest thing Trump has ever said." - Matthew Yglesias
"Harry S. Truman, January 19, 1953: 'The President has to decide. He can't pass the buck to anybody. No one else can do the deciding for him. That's his job.' Donald J. Trump, March 13, 2020: 'I don't take responsibility at all.'" - Matthew Champion
Yamiche Alcindor, a reporter from PBS, asked Trump the following question: "What responsibility do you take for disbanding the White House pandemic office?" Trump's response: "it's a nasty question ... we saved thousands of lives because of the quick closing. And when you say me, I didn't do it... I don't know anything about it...I don't know anything about it." According to the Guardian "Yamiche Alcindor’s 'nasty' question to Trump was about the axing of the Global Health Security team in the National Security Council, which was set up in the wake of the Ebola outbreak to make sure that the government response to a pandemic would be coordinated. Former officials describe it as the lynchpin of the response mechanism. In May 2018, John Bolton, national security adviser at the time, got rid of the whole office, as he did not see pandemics as a priority national security threat. Trump’s claim that he knew nothing about it, and still knows nothing about it (on a day he declares a national emergency over a pandemic) is extraordinary."
March 12, 2020 - There are 1,312 known cases of coronavirus in the US, with 38 deaths. Through today, the CDC has completed only 4,000 tests, not the 1m promised by Alex Azar. The Dow is down 20% below its record high, set last month. Republican Senator Tom Cotton released a statement which stated in part "I have every confidence America will once again marshal the resolve, toughness, and genius of our people to overcome the serious threat to our health and well-being posed by the Wuhan coronavirus. We will emerge stronger from this challenge, we will hold accountable those who inflicted it on the world, and we will prosper in the new day." It should be noted that the World Health Organization has designated the illness caused by the coronavirus as Covid-19, and that group strongly discourages the use of geographical locations in the naming of illnesses because of the stigma it would attach to the peoples occupying those geographical regions. Trading was halted on the New York Stock Exchange after the S&P 500 index dropped 7%. Trump yells out to reporters, "markets are gonna be just fine." News surfaced that Trump didn't warn European leaders before imposing travel restrictions from Europe, which has created anger among European leadership. According to the AP: "House lawmakers expressed alarm Thursday after a private briefing with Dr. Anthony Fauci, the National Institute of Health’s infectious disease chief, and other public health officials, Lawmakers were particularly frustrated that U.S. officials have tested relatively few patients suspected to be infected. 'We’re basically, in my opinion, flying blind,' said Representative Susie Lee, Democrat of Nevada. Others described the meeting as heated, testy with many lawmakers leaving flooded with graver concerns about the administration’s response. 'We should be exuding confidence nationally,' said Representative Anna Eshoo, Democrat of California. 'The confusion is damaging.'" Speaking to a congressional committee, Dr Anthony Fauci admitted that the US is "failing" on coronavirus testing saying "The system is not really geared to what we need right now, what you are asking for. That is a failing. Let’s admit it." According to AHIP, health insurance providers agreed to cover the cost of diagnostic tests to see if people have Covid-19, but they did not agree to test treatments, contrary to Trump's claim during his address to the nation. In a private briefing today, some congressional leaders were shocked to find out that so far, only 11,000 tests for coronavirus have been conducted in the US. By contrast, South Korea, tests roughly that same number every day. When asked about testing, Trump responded: "Frankly, the testing has been going very smooth ... we have heavily tested ... million tests out now ... if you go to the right agency, if you go to the right area, you get the test".
March 11, 2020 - The World Health Organization declared Covid-19 a global pandemic and expressed concern saying "We are deeply concerned both by the alarming levels of spread and severity and by the alarming levels of inaction" and added "We have called every day for countries to take urgent and aggressive action. We have rung the alarm bell loud and clear". While testifying on Capitol Hill, Dr Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, claimed that Covid-19 is "10 times more lethal than the seasonal flu" and also claimed that "things will get worse than they are right now". Donald Trump addressed the nation. Here are some highlights from that address:
- Trump opened the address by saying he will speak about his administration's "unprecedented response" to the Coronavirus pandemic.
- Trump announced that the US "will be suspending all travel from Europe to the United States for the next 30 days" and that the UK is exempt. Trump stated that his "prohibitions will not only apply to the tremendous amount of trade and cargo, but various other things as we get approval. Anything coming from Europe to the United States is what we are discussing." Following Trump's address to the nation, Trump tweeted a clarification that it is "very important for all countries & businesses to know that trade will in no way be affected by the 30-day restriction on travel from Europe. The restriction stops people not goods." European governments were blindsided by the announcement of the travel ban.
- Downplayed warnings of a potential recession saying "This is not a financial crisis, this is just a temporary moment of time that we will overcome as a nation and as a world."
- Declares that "We are all in this together. We must put politics aside, stop the partisanship, and unify together as one nation and one family."
- States that "No nation is more prepared or more resilient than the United States. We have the best economy, the most advanced healthcare, and the most talented doctors, scientists, and researchers anywhere in the world."
- States "We are at a critical time in the fight against the virus. We made a life-saving move with early action on China. Now we must take the same action with Europe. We will not delay. I will never hesitate to take any necessary steps to protect the lives, health, and safety of the American people. I will always put the well being of America first."
- Claimed the insurance industry agreed to waive co-payments for treatment of Covid-19.
Daniel Drezner, a professor of international politics at Tufts University, responded to Trump's address saying "It seems to me that Stephen Miller was looking for a boogeyman and he found one in Europe." Drezner added that limiting travel from Europe would "be a drop in the bucket compared with the number of cases already in the US." In a joint statement, Chuck Schumer and Nancy Pelosi, the Democratic leaders of the Senate and House stated in part: "We have a public health crisis in this country and the best way to help keep the American people safe and ensure their economic security is for the president to focus on fighting the spread of the coronavirus itself. Alarmingly, the president did not say how the administration will address the lack of coronavirus testing kits throughout the United States."
March 10, 2020 - The World Health Organization has reported that there are nearly 4,000 confirmed deaths worldwide from coronavirus. Donald Trump re-tweeted the following Charlie Kirk tweet: "This is your daily reminder that it took Barack Obama until October of 2009 to declare Swine Flu a National Health Emergency. It began in April of ‘09 but Obama waited until 20,000 people in the US had been hospitalized & 1,000+ had died. Where was the media hysteria then?" According to Politifact, which rated this claim as false: "In October 2009, after more than 1,000 people in the United States had died of swine flu, also known as H1N1, Obama declared a national emergency. But six months earlier, his administration declared H1N1 a public health emergency. At that point, no deaths in the United States had occurred." News surfaced that the following Republicans are now in self-quarantine after having been in contact with a person infected with coronavirus at CPAC last week: incoming White House chief of staff Mark Meadows, Ted Cruz, Paul Gosar, Doug Collins and Matt Gaetz, who mocked the media attention over the spread of Covid-19 by posting a picture of himself working while wearing a gas mask. Fox Business host Trish Regan lashed out at criticism against Trump's handling of the Covid-19 outbreak saying: "A chorus of hate being leveled at the president is nearing a crescendo as Democrats blame him and only him for a virus that originated halfway around the world. This is yet another attempt to impeach the president and sadly it seems they care very little for any of the destruction they are leaving in their wake. Losses in the stock market, all of this, unfortunately just part of the political casualties for them." Conservative commentator Tomi Lahren, made the following statement: "The sky is falling because we have a few dozen cases of coronavirus on a cruise ship? I am far more concerned with stepping on a used heroin needle than I am getting the coronavirus, but maybe that's just me." According to the Washington Post: "The US Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit upheld a lower court order that gives Congress access to certain secret material from Robert S. Mueller III’s investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election." Vice president Mike Pence says there will be 4 million more coronavirus tests made available by end of the week. Trump told the press after meeting with Republican senators: "And we’re prepared, and we’re doing a great job with it. And it will go away. Just stay calm. It will go away." Trump also stated "When people need a test, they can get a test. When the professionals need a test, when they need tests for people, they can get the test. It’s gone really well."
March 9, 2020 - According to the World Health Organization, there are now 106,000 confirmed cases of coronovirus worldwide, which has killed 3,500 people. News surfaced that Matt Gaetz, a representative from Florida, and vocal Trump supporter, has decided to self-quarantine after determining that he was in contact with a person at CPAC who has tested positive for coronavirus. News also surfaced that Gaetz was seen getting off of Air Force One this morning. Donald Trump sent the following tweet: "The Fake News Media and their partner, the Democrat Party, is doing everything within its semi-considerable power (it used to be greater!) to inflame the CoronaVirus situation, far beyond what the facts would warrant. Surgeon General, 'The risk is low to the average American.'" More than 500 cases of coronavirus have been diagnosed in 35 states and District of Columbia. Trump claimed at a news conference "This blindsided the world, and I think we've handled it very, very well, they've done a great job." Alex Azar, the US health secretary, claimed during the news conference that 1m tests for coronavirus had been shipped and that 4m tests per week would be made available at the end of the week. From a story on CNN: "For a self-described germophobe, Trump has continued to shake hands and interact with people like normal. While a bottle of hand sanitizer has been a staple in his life for decades now, people said they did not notice the President taking any extra precautions, despite being in the age bracket that health officials say should be most concerned about coronavirus." The stock market has been dropping precipitously over concerns regarding the coronavirus, and new concerns over the global impact of lower oil prices caused by Saudi-Russian tensions. In response to these events, Trump sent the following tweets: "Good for the consumer, gasoline prices coming down!" and "Saudi Arabia and Russia are arguing over the price and flow of oil. That, and the Fake News, is the reason for the market drop!" Trump also tried to minimize the coronavirus threat tweeting: "So last year 37,000 Americans died from the common Flu. It averages between 27,000 and 70,000 per year. Nothing is shut down, life & the economy go on. At this moment there are 546 confirmed cases of CoronaVirus, with 22 deaths. Think about that!" Ironically, this tweet was sent 6 minutes after Alex Azar, the health and human services secretary told a Fox News interviewer "This is a very serious health problem, nobody is trying to minimize that. It is a very serious public health threat to the people of the United States and that's why president Trump from day one has been aggressive with a whole of government approach, and will continue to do so." Fox News contributor, Lou Dobbs made the following statement: "The national left-wing media, playing up fears of the coronavirus". The New York Stock Exchange halted trade today as the markets dropped. The Dow dropped more than 2,000 points today over intensifying fears regarding coronavirus. This is now the worst day for the Dow since 2008, at the start of the Great Recession. Kevin McCarthy, the Republican House minority leader, is being criticized for referring to Covid-19 as "Chinese coronavirus". Geng Shuang, a spkokesman for the foreign ministry of China, responded to McCarthy and other Republicans who are choosing to use a geographical marker while referring to the virus saying "Despite the fact that the WHO [World Health Organization] has officially named this novel type of coronavirus, certain American politician[s], disrespecting science and the WHO decision, jumped at the first chance to stigmatize China and Wuhan with it. We condemn this despicable practice". The World Health Organization sent a memo to governments and media organizations at the end of February, urging them to avoid phrases like "Wuhan virus", "Chinese virus" or "Asian virus" saying "Governments, citizens, media, key influencers and communities have an important role to play in preventing and stopping stigma surrounding people from China and Asia in general". Notable reactions to the racist labeling:
"One reason @POTUS & his enablers failed to contain #COVID2019 is due to the myopic focus on China. The virus was also carried into the US from other countries & US travelers. Calling it Chinese coronavirus is scientifically wrong & as stupid as calling it the Italian coronavirus." - Ted Lieu, Democratic Congressman
"I’m embarrassed to be his [Kevin McCarthy] colleague. I’m so disgusted. We await his apology to the nation, the Chinese-American and #AAPI (Asian and Pacific Islander) community and to his own constituents." - Grace Meng, Democratic Congresswoman
March 8, 2020 - Fox News contributor, Pete Hegseth, stated "This is one of those cases where the more I learn about coronavirus, the less concerned I am. There's a lot of hyperbole". According to immigration experts, Trump's immigration policies may put people at risk for coronavirus. According to Max Hadler, the director of health policy at the New York Immigration Coalition: "If you continue to discourage people from seeking services under normal circumstances, you cannot expect them necessarily to seek those services just because you as the racist, anti-immigrant president have decided that now it’s a good idea. That’s not gonna work."
March 7, 2020 - Fox News host, Jeanine Pirro, made the followng statement: "It's a virus. Like the flu. All the talk about coronavirus being so much more deadly, doesn't reflect reality." Trump was asked if he was concenred about the arrival of coronavirus in Washington DC area, his response: "No, I’m not concerned at all. No, we’ve done a great job with it."
March 6, 2020 - Trump was asked about Elizabeth Warren dropping out of the race to become the Democratic nominee, to which he responded, with no sense of irony "She is a mean person. They like a person like me that’s not mean." Trump announced that Mick Mulvaney, the chief of staff, will be replaced by Congressman Mark Meadows. Mulvaney will become the US special envoy for Northern Ireland. Mike Pompeo, the secretary of state, raised eyebrows by referring to Covid-19 as "Wuhan coronavirus". Fox News medical correspondent, Dr Marc Siegel, made the following statement: "This virus should be compared to the flu, 'cause at worst, at worst, worst-case scenario, it could be the flu." Donald Trump signed the Coronavirus Preparedness and Response Supplemental Appropriations Act, and during a Q&A with reporters, made the following statements: "But it’s an unforeseen problem. What a problem. Came out of nowhere, but we’re taking care of it" and "this came unexpectedly a number of months ago. I heard about it in China. It came out of China, and I heard about it. And made a good move: We closed it down; we stopped it." Alex Azar, the Secretary of Health and Human Services made the following statement regarding coronavirus tests: "The production and shipping of tests that we’ve talked about all week is completely on schedule. All of the CDC tests — the tests that are available to test up to 75,000 people — CDC has shipped to America’s public health labs. Those are out. Then, IDT, the private contractor working with CDC to ship to the private sector and hospitals, has already shipped enough tests for 700,000 tests. And the remaining lots are arriving at CDC this morning for quality control and should get out, as we forecast, this weekend. And then next week, we’ll keep ramping up production. So as many as 4 million tests next week are going to be driving forward. So everything is on schedule for the tests." Kellyanne Conway, senior counselor to Donald Trump, was asked why testing wasn't ramped up earlier to get ahead of the novel coronavirus while it was contained, Conway's response "It is being contained and - do you not think it's being contained in this country?" The reporter responded, "I'm not a doctor, I'm a lawyer." Conway continued: "You said it's not being contained, are you a doctor or a lawyer when you say it's not being contained? That's false. You just said something that's not true." Larry Kudlow, a Trump economic advisor, was on CNBC where he urged long term investors to buy into the market right now, saying "I would still argue to you that this is contained, it can't be airtight, but we are, you look at the numbers here, and I know there are things in front of us, more testing is going to uncover more cases, but in a relative sense, relative to our population, relative to ordinary flus, I don't want to downgrade this thing ... but I think it is relatively contained." Trump visited the CDC today, where he held a press conference. Here are some highlights from the visit and press conference:
- Trump toured the CDC while wearing his re-election hat which has the inscription "Keep America Great".
- Trump asked a Fox News reporter if a town hall he had on the network yesterday got good ratings.
- Trump was asked if he has considered cancelling his MAGA rallies because of the risk to 1000s of attendees. Trump's response: "Doesn't bother me at all and it doesn't bother them at all."
- With regard to tests for coronavirus, while Alex Azar, the HHS Secretary was trying to explain that more tests are coming, Trump cut him off and said "anyone who wants a test can get a test ... the tests are all perfect like the letter was perfect. The transcription was perfect. Right? This was not as perfect as that but pretty good."
- Trump attacked Jay Inslee, the Democratic governor of Washington state, who is currently managing the nation's biggest coronavirus outbreak, saying "I told Mike not to be complimentary of that Gov because that Gov is a snake...Let me just tell you we have a lot of problems with the Gov and the Gov of WA, that's where you have many of your problems, OK? So Mike may be happy with him but I'm not OK?"
- Trump made the following statement: "You know, my uncle was a great person. He was at MIT. He taught at MIT for, I think, like a record number of years. He was a great super genius. Dr. John Trump. I like this stuff. I really get it. People are surprised that I understand it. Every one of these doctors said, 'How do you know so much about this?' Maybe I have a natural ability. Maybe I should have done that instead of running for president."
- Regarding the Grand Princess cruise liner which contains 21 passengers that have tested positive for the coronavirus, Trump said he would prefer they remain quarantined on the ship so that the US numbers don't go up. According to Trump "I like the numbers being where they are. I don’t need to have the numbers double because of one ship that wasn’t our fault."
Some select responses to Trump's CDC press conference:
"The CDC presser was among the most frightening Trump appearances I’ve ever seen, on the level of Charlottesville — a horrifying and surprising (even for him!) callousness in the face of death and suffering, an inability to see anything through a lens other than his own ratings" - Farhad Manjoo
"Ok, the CDC appearance was the most disturbing one yet from Trump. He literally said experts were telling him to take sick Americans off a cruise ship but he doesn't want to do it because it WILL MAKE THE NUMBERS GO UP and it 'wasn't our fault.' Holy Jesus." - Chris Hayes
"Tough to decide what the worst part of Trumps CDC visit was
- Saying he wanted to keep sick people on a ship to fudge the numbers
- lashing out at the gov of the worst hit state
- being preoccupied w/ the ratings he got on Fox
- or saying anyone can get tested when they can't" - Sam Stein
March 5, 2020 - Mike Pence, the Vice President, announced that there are not enough coronavirus tests available to meet demand. The international criminal court (ICC) in the Netherlands, has authorized an investigation into alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in Afghanistan. Included in the scope of the war crimes investigation are CIA black sites operated in Poland, Lithuania, and Romania, where some detainees have been taken. Trump sent the following tweet in response to accusations that he said it was ok for people to go to work with coronavirus: "I NEVER said people that are feeling sick should go to work. This is just more Fake News and disinformation put out by the Democrats, in particular MSDNC. Comcast covers the CoronaVirus situation horribly, only looking to do harm to the incredible & successful effort being made!" Speaking at a town hall meeting in Scranton, Pennsylvania, Trump made the following statement regarding the upside of the coronavirus outbreak: "I have to say, people are now staying in the United States, spending their money in the US— and I like that" As part of a lawsuit by BuzzFeed News, the Department of Justice has been ordered to turn over an unredacted copy of the Mueller report by March 30, so a judge can assess what can be further released publicly. In the ruling William Barr, the attorney general, is accused of misrepresenting the findings of the report before handing it over to Congress. Reggie Walton, the federal judge writing the opinion, wrote in part: "The inconsistencies between Attorney General Barr’s statements made at a time when the public did not have access to the redacted version of the Mueller Report to assess the veracity of his statements, and portions of the redacted version of the Mueller Report that conflict with those statements cause the Court to seriously question whether Attorney General Barr made a calculated attempt to influence public discourse about the Mueller Report in favor of President Trump despite certain findings in the redacted version of the Mueller Report to the contrary ... These circumstances generally, and Attorney General Barr’s lack of candor specifically, call into question Attorney General Barr’s credibility." Trump sent the following tweet: "Gallup just gave us the highest rating ever for the way we are handling the CoronaVirus situation. The April 2009-10 Swine Flu, where nearly 13,000 people died in the U.S., was poorly handled. Ask MSDNC & lightweight Washington failure @RonaldKlain, who the President was then?"
March 4, 2020 -While speaking with airline CEO's, Trump stated "[W]e have a very small number of people in this country [infected]. We have a big country. The biggest impact we had was when we took the 40-plus people [from a cruise ship] ... We brought them back. We immediately quarantined them. But you add that to the numbers. But if you don’t add that to the numbers, we’re talking about very small numbers in the United States." during the same White House meeting, Trump told reporters that "The Obama administration made a decision on testing that turned out to be very detrimental to what we’re doing, and we undid that decision a few days ago so that the testing can take place in a much more accurate and rapid fashion. That was a decision we disagreed with. I don’t think we would have made it, but for some reason, it was made." According to the Guardian "experts on lab testing have said they are unaware of an Obama administration rule that would have hindered the use of tests developed at university or private labs in an emergency. The responsibility for the coronavirus test kit shortage appears to lie with the CDC’s choice to develop and distribute its own kit rather than use the one recommended by the World Health Organization, according to ProPublica. But the CDC’s tests didn’t work, falsely flagging harmless samples that contained viruses other than Covid-19. Moreover, Trump ordered the dissolution of the National Security Council’s global health security unit and reassigned its head. The former national security adviser John Bolton also pressured the team’s counterpart at the Department of Homeland Security to resign. Trump attacked Democrats for warning of the seriousness of the crisis while spreading disinformation and downplaying the outbreak, his critics have said." During an interview with Fox News host Sean Hannity, Trump said that the World Health Organization's figure of a 3.4% death rate from coronavirus is "really a false number" and that his "hunch" is that the level is "way under 1%." Trump provided no evidence to back up his hunch. Trump also said to Hannity "Because a lot of people will have this and it’s very mild. ... So if, you know, we have thousands or hundreds of thousands of people that get better, just by you know, sitting around and even going to work, some of them go to work, but they get better." Wendy Wagner, a University of Texas expert in how policy-makers use science, offered the following critique of Trump's rhetoric, which mixes inaccuracies with wild speculation and nationalism saying "The scientific ‘truth’ about the virus may not match what the administration wants to hear, so the scientific ‘truth’ is at risk of being compromised before it is made public." According to the Guardian: "This situation is exacerbated by a downsizing of scientific expertise within the US government. The EPA’s staff numbers, for example, are a third smaller than they were when Trump took power. In the first two years of the Trump administration, more than 1,600 federal scientists left various government agencies, according to Office of Personnel Management employment data. The administration has attempted even deeper cuts: Trump’s 2021 budget proposal, submitted just days after international alarm was raised over the coronavirus, included a 16% reduction in funding for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)."
March 2, 2020 - Trump held a White House meeting with pharmaceutical executives and public health officials. Here are some highlights from that meeting:
- Trump said to the attendees: "So you have a medicine that’s already involved with the coronaviruses, and now you have to see if it’s specifically for this. You can know that tomorrow, can’t you?" This statement drew the following rebuke from Judith Enck, a former regional administrator for the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA): Trump "doesn’t seem to understand what a clinical trial is".
- Trump wondered aloud why the flu vaccine can't be used for the coronavirus.
- Trump announced that a vaccine could be ready in as little as "two months" insisting that it was "very close". Anthony Fauci, the head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases corrected Trump, saying that it could be up to 18 months before a vaccine is available to the public. Trump responded: ""I mean, I like the sound of a couple months better, if I must be honest."
Despite what he had learned in the White House meeting earlier in the day, Trump held a political rally in Charlotte, North Carolina, where he told the crowd that a vaccine will be available "relatively soon". Trump also told the crowd that "fringe globalists that would rather keep our borders open than keep our infection – think of it – keep all of the infection, let it come in."
March 1, 2020 - Mike Pence was asked about Donald Trump Jr's statement that Democrats want coronavirus to "kill millions of people". Pence's response: "It is time for the other side to turn down the volume."
Post-impeachment/Pandemic Transgressions Cont'd
November 3, 2020 - Election day! Here are the final results of the election, which were not known for nearly a week after the election:
Popular Vote:
Biden 81,281,888
Trump 74,223,251
Electoral Votes:
Biden 306
Trump 232
Numerous states have put national guard troops on notice in anticipation of election day violence. As of today, over 100m Americans have voted early. Here's a breakdown:
- In-person votes: 35,901,138
- Mail ballots: 64,709,932
Trump sent a tweet that claimed that a Supreme Court decision which allows Pennsylvania absentee ballots to be counted that are received up to three days after November 3, will "allow rampant and unchecked cheating" and will "induce violence in the streets". Twitter labeled the tweet as containing disputed or misleading content about the election.
Dana Milbank wrote an op-ed in the Washington Post titled: "Vote as if our way of life depends on it. It does." From the article:
"Election Day is here, and Americans have reason to be tense. President Trump has told confidants he'll declare victory Tuesday night, even before the votes get counted. Federal authorities were building a 'non-scalable' fence around the White House Monday to protect a man who refuses to commit to a peaceful transfer of power. The FBI said Sunday it is investigating a convoy of Trump supporters who apparently attempted to run a Biden campaign bus off a Texas interstate; Trump praised the perpetrators and condemned the FBI. The Democratic Party of Georgia was forced to cancel a Biden rally in Rome, Georgia, on Sunday because of a 'large militia presence' accompanying a nearby Trump visit. Elsewhere, gangs of Trump supporters blocked traffic, provoked confrontations and violated rules at early voting places over the weekend. In Topeka, Kansas, three teens were allegedly shot Saturday by a man who thought they stole his Trump yard signs. But there is one way to assuage our fears about political violence overtaking the election and its aftermath: Vote. Vote as though democracy depends on it. Vote as though your country depends on it. Vote as though our way of life depends on it. For surely they all do."
Writing for the Guardian, Samer S Shehata, an associate professor of Middle East Studies at the University of Oklahoma, wrote about what he says is the real reason Trump is terrified to lose the election. From the story:
"If Trump loses the election, there may be calls to investigate and prosecute him for possible crimes involving obstruction of justice, violating the emolument clause of the constitution, and/or tax fraud, among others. Citizen Trump would face investigation without the luxury of 'executive privilege' or the legal chicanery of the attorney general, William Barr, who has acted more like Trump's personal lawyer than the nation's top law enforcement official, to protect him. Accordingly, Trump has even more reason to lie, cheat and sow discord in order to retain office, because losing the White House could land him in court or even behind bars. Although special prosecutor Robert Mueller did not produce a smoking gun proving Trump conspired with Russia in the 2016 election, he clearly stated that the investigation did not exonerate Trump of wrongdoing. After the investigation, over a thousand former federal prosecutors from both parties signed a letter stating that Trump's conduct as described in the investigation would warrant 'multiple felony charges for obstruction of justice' were it not for the Office of Legal Counsel’s policy of not indicting a sitting president. More recent criticisms of Mueller from top aides within the investigation allege Mueller did not go far enough in exposing collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia. At the very least, there is a strong case that Trump obstructed the investigation. After he leaves office there will be vocal calls to get to the bottom of Russian election interference, his campaign's alleged collusion, and to hold the former president accountable for obstruction of justice. The outcome could very well be a subpoena for the ex-president or even an indictment."
Donald Trump Jr, the president's eldest son, sent the following in a tweet:
"Vote like your freedoms depend on it... because they do! This election is Freedom vs Marxism. Choose wisely and vote Trump."
Writing for the Guardian, Ed Pilkington wrote about the steps newsrooms are taking to handle the declaration of victory by candidates. From the story:
"Newsrooms across the United States are bracing for a potentially volatile election night, after reports suggested that Donald Trump is planning to declare 'victory' on Tuesday even before results from critical battleground states have been determined. The president's reported intention to make a premature – and potentially false – victory speech by the end of Tuesday night, with large numbers of mail-in ballots yet to be counted, has provoked intense journalistic debate. TV channels would be under pressure to air such an event on grounds that it is 'news', while aware that it amounted to dangerous misinformation that could stir violence across the nation and undermine the democratic process. Such a clash of responsibilities would amount to a heady climax in the American media's extremely vexed relationship with Trump over the past four years. Were Trump to try to stage such a 'victory' stunt it would chime with the relentless doubt that he has sown for months around the election, with repeated false claims that mail-in voting is riddled with fraud. His comments suggest that his aim is to create the illusion that the election is being stolen from him in states such as Pennsylvania where early results from in-person voting might favor Trump in a so-called 'red mirage', only for the balance to swing to Biden as absentee ballots are counted beyond election day."
Donald Trump called into Fox News. Here are some highlights:
- Trump predicted he'll get "at least" 306 electoral votes.
- Trump said he'll declare victory "only when there's victory. There's no reason to play games."
Chad Wolf, the acting US Department of Homeland Security secretary, stated:
"We have no indications that a foreign actor has succeeded in compromising or manipulating any votes in this election."
Gretchen Whitmer, the governor of Michigan criticized Trump's recent blitz of rallies, saying:
"Contact tracing shows they are super-spreader events ... Joe Biden has a unifying message, whereas at these Trump rallies, where they talk about locking up his opponents, and attacks on Fauci ... America wants and needs a president who can bring us together and solve problems ... when he targets Fauci or a sitting governor, it's anti-American." NOTE: Trump held ten rallies in seven states over forty-eight hours. A large portion of his attendees do not wear masks.
Writing for Axios, Jonathan Swan provided this scoop:
"Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley held an off-the-record video call with top generals and network anchors this weekend to tamp down speculation about potential military involvement in the presidential election, two people familiar with the call tell Axios. The nation's top military official set up Saturday's highly unusual call to make clear that the military's role is apolitical, one of the sources said — and to dispel any notion of a role for the military in adjudicating a disputed election or making any decision around removing a president from the White House."
USA Today has a report about the heightened fear of violence around the 2020 election. From the story:
"President Donald Trump, who has falsely claimed voter fraud is widespread, has called for an army of poll watchers to ensure the election is fair. Right-wing extremist groups have signaled they plan to heed the call. Left-wing groups have vowed to confront people they believe are engaged in voter suppression. Extremist groups are planning actions in key states, including Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, according to the Institute for Research and Education on Human Rights, which has been tracking extremists on social media. Those states, along with Georgia and Oregon, face the highest risk of election-related activity by armed vigilante groups, according to a report by MilitiaWatch and the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project. The leader of a right-wing extremist group in Georgia said he has 'troops' ready to descend on polling places if he hears reports of voter fraud. 'We're going in undercover to start with,' Justin Thayer said. 'We don’t want to intimidate anyone, and we're not aligned with any political party, but if we do discover fraud, we have guys on standby, and if we need to shut down a precinct, we will.'"
Donald Trump sent the following in a tweet:
"WE ARE LOOKING REALLY GOOD ALL OVER THE COUNTRY. THANK YOU!"
Some Notable Election Day Results:
- Sarah McBride of Delaware became the first openly trans person to be elected a state senator in US history.
- Marjorie Taylor Greene, a supporter of the far-right conspiracy theory known as QAnon, has won a US House seat.
Lauren Boebert, who has previously expressed support for QAnon, has won a US House seat.
- Collin Peterson, the only Democratic House member to vote against impeaching Donald Trump lost his re-election bid in Minnesota to Republican Michelle Fischbach.
Donald Trump sent the following tweets:
"I will be making a statement tonight. A big WIN!"
- and -
"We are up BIG, but they are trying to STEAL the Election. We will never let them do it. Votes cannot be cast after the Polls are closed!"
NOTE: Twitter flagged both tweets with the label "Some or all of the content shared in this Tweet is disputed and might be misleading about an election or other civic process."
November 2, 2020 - In an interview with the Washington Post, Anthony Fauci warned:
"we're in for a whole lot of hurt" regarding coronavirus, saying "It's not a good situation. All the stars are aligned in the wrong place as you go into the fall and winter season, with people congregating at home indoors. You could not possibly be positioned more poorly."
Fauci also spoke of Dr. Scott Atlas, a White House coronavirus adviser saying:
"I have real problems with that guy. He's a smart guy who's talking about things that I believe he doesn't have any real insight or knowledge or experience in. He keeps talking about things that when you dissect it out and parse it out, it doesn't make any sense."
Reacting to a claim by Donald Trump at a recent rally in Iowa that the United States is "rounding the corner" on coronavirus, the AP issued this fact check:
"No, the coronavirus isn't going away, and Trump is contradicted by his own top health experts. New cases are on the rise toward their summer peak. Deaths have also been increasing. The United States is averaging about 76,000 new confirmed cases a day, a rate that is up 43% over the past three weeks and the highest since the pandemic began. The number of confirmed coronavirus deaths in the U.S. is now over 230,000, the most in the world. It is averaging just over 800 coronavirus deaths a day, up 14% over the past two weeks. Rebutting Trump, Dr. Anthony Fauci, the government's top infectious diseases expert, says the U.S. will grapple with 'a whole lot of hurt' in the weeks ahead due to surging coronavirus cases. He told The Washington Post the U.S. 'could not possibly be positioned more poorly' to stem cases as more people gather indoors during the colder fall and winter months. He said the country could surpass 100,000 new coronavirus cases a day and predicted rising deaths in the coming weeks. Dr. Scott Gottlieb, a former head of the Food and Drug Administration under Trump, agreed Sunday that 'things are getting worse.' I think as we get into the next two or three weeks, it will be unmistakable what's happening around the country, and we're going to have to start taking tough steps,' Gottlieb told CBS' 'Face the Nation.' I think December is probably going to be our toughest month.'"
Tom Wolf, the governor of Pennsylvania, urged residents to be patient regarding election results saying:
"These are unprecedented times. Because of the coronavirus, there were millions of votes cast by mail so it may take longer than usual to count every vote. The folks in our election offices – your neighbors, family and friends are working hard ensuring every single vote is counted. So it may take a little longer than we're used to, even a few days, but that's okay, because it's critical that your vote is counted – and it will be."
In the wake of businesses in Washington DC boarding up their windows in anticipation of violence breaking out after the election, Tim Murtaugh, Trump's director of communications, tweeted the following:
"It bears repeating that buildings are being fortified to protect them from RAMPAGING LEFTISTS who will erupt when @realDonaldTrump is re-elected."
Josh Kaul, the attorney general of Wisconsin, sent the following tweet:
"I don’t think anybody's actually confused about this, but just to be super clear: Counting all lawfully cast ballots is NOT stealing the election. Not counting all lawfully cast ballots WOULD BE stealing the election. Anyone who says otherwise doesn't really support democracy."
US District Judge Andrew Hanen has rejected Republican efforts to toss out 127,000 ballots cast at drive-through polling stations in Harris county, Texas. Republicans filed an appeal, that too was blocked.
According to the Washington Post, Deborah Birx, a top White House coronavirus adviser, says the US is "entering the most concerning and most deadly phase of this pandemic". From the story:
"'We are entering the most concerning and most deadly phase of this pandemic ... leading to increasing mortality,' said the Nov. 2 report from Deborah Birx, coordinator of the White House coronavirus task force. 'This is not about lockdowns — It hasn't been about lockdowns since March or April. It's about an aggressive balanced approach that is not being implemented.' Birx's internal report, shared with top White House and agency officials, contradicts Trump on numerous points: While the president holds large campaign events with hundreds of attendees, most without masks, she explicitly warns against them. While the president blames rising cases on more testing, she says testing is 'flat or declining' in many areas where cases are rising. And while Trump says the country is 'rounding the turn,' Birx notes the country is entering its most dangerous period yet and will see more than 100,000 new cases a day this week."
November 1, 2020 - More than 230,000 Americans have died from coronavirus.
Writing for the Portland Press Herald, Bill Nemitz offers this analysis of the upcoming election:
"As surely as the pendulum had swung toward what was once unthinkable – a Black family occupying the White House – it swung back. The racism that still festers across this land, coupled with the anger across blue-collar America that it had been taken for granted and left behind long enough, gave us first the tea party and then, alas, Donald Trump. These are perilous times. We've had violence in the streets. We've had political paralysis. We have a president whose utterances grow more bizarre, more detached from reality, by the day. And yes, we have a resurgent pandemic. Yet, as we hurtle toward this climactic moment, I'm more excited than exhausted. I believe in my gut that the pendulum is moving once again, away from the hate and animosity that have defined the past four years and toward an essential goodness that has always guided this country in theory if not always in practice."
According to an article in Newsweek, pro-Trump demonstrators gathered outside Attorney General William Barr's house to protest that he had not done enough to lock up Joe Biden. From the story:
"Protesters carrying Trump flags picketed Attorney General William Barr's home on Saturday because they believe he isn't doing enough to bring former Vice President Joe Biden to justice. President Donald Trump has referred to Biden as a criminal and said he and his son, Hunter Biden, are part of an 'organized crime family.' This is due in part to unsubstantiated allegations about the Bidens' business dealings with foreign countries. Social media users also shared photos of the scene, with one picture featuring a white horse. AP journalist Mike Balsamo reported that the Department of Justice had said Barr went out to speak to the picketers. 'Let me tell you something, Joe Biden is a criminal and he's been a criminal for a long time, and you're a criminal and the media for not reporting it,' Trump told reporters on 20 October."
According to Axios, Trump plans to ignore the actual results of the election, and declare victory if the early results show him ahead. From the story:
"Trump has privately talked through this scenario in some detail in the last few weeks, describing plans to walk up to a podium on election night and declare he has won. For this to happen, his allies expect he would need to either win or have commanding leads in Ohio, Florida, North Carolina, Texas, Iowa, Arizona and Georgia."
Trump sent the following in a tweet: "Biden wants to LOCKDOWN our Country, maybe for years. Crazy! There will be NO LOCKDOWNS. The great American Comeback is underway!!!"
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo sent thee following in a tweet: "Journalists perform a critical role in society, but they are too often threatened, attacked, or murdered – crimes that often go unpunished. On International Day to #EndImpunity for Crimes against Journalists, we call on all governments to investigate and redress these crimes." Critics of the Trump administration were quick to point to a report from earlier this year regarding the Trump administration's attacks on the press. From the Guardian:
"The report is based on interviews with nearly 40 journalists, academics, media lawyers, and press freedom advocates. [It] cited a long list of examples of Trump demeaning the press. These include Trump belittling reporter's questions on the Justice Department investigating journalists' sources, calls for changes in libel laws to punish reporting he dislikes, and ending the White House daily press briefings for more than a year. 'Trump devoted increasing amounts of time to angrily denouncing the press at his large rallies of ardent supporters around the country, encouraging the boisterous crowds to react. He regularly pointed to the mass of reporters, photographers, and videographers penned up in the raised press section behind the crowd, prompting people to turn around, boo, and shout things like, 'CNN sucks,'' the report reads. It additionally highlights journalists and news organizations he dislikes receiving threats, like when CNN was sent a package-bomb by a supporter."
Writing for the Guardian, Bhaskar Sunkara claims the US is a failing state that establishment politics can't solve. From the essay:
"In 2020, America has shown itself to be exceptional in the worst possible ways. No other rich country has such a poor public health infrastructure or such a tattered social safety net. America's levels of both police violence and violent crime find their closest peers in countries like Venezuela and South Africa, not Canada and Germany. And even Cuba and Bosnia and Herzegovina beat the world’s only superpower in infant mortality and other key social indicators. In the most powerful country on Earth, 29.3 million people say that they 'sometimes' or 'often' do not have enough to eat. Forty million Americans are impoverished, according to the UN. Half a million are homeless. And all this was true before the full brunt of the pandemic's economic recession hit. Given these stark figures, the relative stability of the United States is a wonder. The country has maintained popular suffrage and democratic institutions (for white males, at least) for two centuries and married that form of government with a dynamic capitalist economy capable of creating vast wealth. In fact, American business owners have managed to avoid even the rise of a major social-democratic or labor party; in the US, demands for economic justice are filtered through – and watered down by – a centrist Democratic party and a byzantine system of government deliberately designed to limit popular passions. But perhaps that muzzling is reaching its limit."
Republicans in Texas are arguing in court that more than 100,000 votes cast in Harris County should be voided because they were cast at a drive-thru polling station, which was set up due to coonavirus, and were set up with the involvement of Republicans.
According to a story in the New York Times:
"Caravans of President Trump's supporters blockaded the Mario M. Cuomo Bridge and the Garden State Parkway on Sunday, snarling traffic on two of the busiest highways in the New York metropolitan area just two days before Election Day."
While standing on the tarmac at Charlotte Douglas International Airport in North Carolina, Trump was asked about a report in Axios that he planned to declare victory prematurely. Trump's response:
"No, no, that's a false report ... I think it's a terrible thing when ballots can be collected after an election. I think it's a terrible thing when states are allowed to tabulate ballots for a long period of time after the election is over. I think it's terrible that we can't know the results of an election the night of the election. ... We're going to go in the night of, as soon as that election's over, we're going in with our lawyers."
Benjamin L Ginsberg, a Republican election lawyer, published an op-ed in the Washington Post regarding attempts by Trump to challenge the ballots of individual voters. From the op-ed:
"These are painful words for me to write. I spent four decades in the Republican trenches, representing GOP presidential and congressional campaigns, working on Election Day operations, recounts, redistricting and other issues, including trying to lift the consent decree... The truth is that over all those years Republicans found only isolated incidents of fraud. Proof of systematic fraud has become the Loch Ness Monster of the Republican Party. People have spent a lot of time looking for it, but it doesn’t exist. As he confronts losing, Trump has devoted his campaign and the Republican Party to this myth of voter fraud. Absent being able to articulate a cogent plan for a second term or find an attack against Joe Biden that will stick, disenfranchising enough voters has become key to his reelection strategy."
Following confirmation that the FBI was looking into an incident in which Trump supporters surrounded a Biden campaign bus and collided with a Biden staffer who was following the bus, Trump sent the following tweet:
"In my opinion, these patriots did nothing wrong. Instead, the FBI & Justice should be investigating the terrorists, anarchists, and agitators of ANTIFA, who run around burning down our Democrat run cities and hurting our people!"
According to NBC News, starting on November 2nd, a "non-scalable" fence will be erected around the White House complex, Ellipse and Lafayette Square, and 250 National Guardsmen have been put on standby. Donald Trump sent the following in a tweet: "Biden will repeal your Second Amendment and Pack the Court!"
Trump held a rally in Miami, here are some highlights:
- The crowd began chanting "Fire Fauci! Fire Fauci!" Trump responded: "Don't tell anybody, but let me wait 'til a little bit after the election, please. I appreciate the advice."
- Regarding the Biden campaign bus incident, Trump told the crowd: "They escorted the bus. And the radical left said 'oh what a horrible thing that is, to escort the bus.'"
October 31, 2020 - Scientists at Stanford University released a study that looked at "the effects of large group meetings on the spread of Covid-19 by studying the impact of 18 Trump campaign rallies" over "up to 10 post-rally weeks for each event". The study concluded that recent Trump rallies probably produced more than 30,000 confirmed cases of Covid-19 and "likely led to more than 700 deaths".
Texas Democrats cancelled a campaign event after their Biden-Harris bus was surrounded by Trump supporters while driving on a highway outside of Austin. During the incident, one of the Trump vehicles made contact with one of the Democrat vehicles that was trailing the bus.
October 30, 2020 - According to the Guardian, Americans bought nearly 17m guns so far in 2020, which is a record. Experts believe the record sales were driven by fears of the coronavirus pandemic, and also by massive racial justice protests that broke out across the country.
According to the Guardian, US unions have begun discussing the idea of a general strike if Donald Trump refuses to accept an election result favoring Joe Biden. From the story:
"Dan Maloney, president of the Rochester-Genesee Valley Area Labor Federation, said his 100,000-member group adopted the resolution to get people discussing the idea – from local unions to the AFL-CIO, the nation's main labor federation which represents more than 12.5 million people. On 8 October, the Rochester federation voted to support preparing for and holding 'a general strike of all working people, if necessary, to ensure a constitutionally mandated peaceful transition of power as a result of the 2020 presidential elections.' The union leaders voted to stand 'firmly in opposition to any effort to subvert, distort, misrepresent or disregard the final outcome' of the election."
Trump held a rally in Michigan today. Here are some highlights:
- Trump told the crowd: "You know, everything is Covid Covid Covid. You know that. You turn on the news, Covid Covid Covid Covid Covid. And you know, cases are up. Why are cases up? Because we test more than anyone in history."
- Trump claimed: "Our doctors get more money if someone dies from Covid. You know that, right? I mean, our doctors are very smart people."
Dr Deborah Birx, the White House coronavirus task force coordinator, warned of a "broad surge" of covid-19 cases during a call with the nation's governors.
October 29, 2020 - Larry Krasner, the top prosecutor of Philadelphia, has issued a warning to Donald Trump over concerns that he will call on his supporters to descend on the city in the wake of civil unrest following the police killing of Walter Wallace Jr. Krasner's message: "Keep your Proud Boys, goon squads, and uncertified 'poll watchers' out of our city, Mr. President. Break the law here, and I've got something for you."
Alexandria Ocasio Cortez sat for an interview with Vanity Fair, here are some highlights:
- Cortez addressed her friendship with Reps Ilhan Omar, Ayanna Pressley and Rashida Tlaib saying: "There have been many times, especially in the first six months, where I felt like I couldn't do this, like I didn't know if I was going to be able to run for reelection. There was a time where the volume of threats had gotten so high that I didn't even know if I was going to live to my next term. Their sisterhood and their friendship, it's not some political alliance. It's a very deep, unconditional human bond."
- Cortez addressed Trump's taxes saying: "These are the same people saying that we can't have tuition-free public colleges because there's no money, when these motherfuckers are only paying $750 a year in taxes."
Julian Castro, former housing secretary, warned that Republicans might try to take advantage of a "red mirage" on election night to try to declare victory before all the votes are counted. From his warning:
"If Donald Trump is going to steal this election, it'll probably start with the blue shift. The blue shift sounds like a smurf migration, but really, it's a way to describe why Democratic votes are often counted later in the process. There are a few reasons for this, and they're pretty simple. The first one is a matter of population. Liberty, a bright red county in Florida has about 8,400 people in it. Broward, a deep blue county, has almost 2 million. Which do you think is gonna finish counting first? Reason number 2 is mail ballots. A lot of states don't start counting mail ballots until election day, and those ballots get counted after the in-person votes are tallied. The mail ballots have to be opened, have their signatures verified, and then counted. It takes time. As for why these votes tend to break blue, that's pretty simple also. Historically, Democrats have been more likely to vote by mail. And in 2020, that's expected to be even more true ... So it makes sense that some votes get counted later, and those votes tend to favor Democrats. That's called 'The Blue Shift.' But that doesn't stop Republicans from accusing Democrats of cheating when their ballots are counted later. This just happened in 2018 - Florida's Broward County was still counting ballots after Election Day, and the Republican running for Senate, then-Governor Rick Scott, made it sound like fraud ... An official investigation into Florida's 2018 election came back saying nothing shady or unusual was going on ... Prsident Trump got in on the action, tweeting 10 times to complain or spread conspiracy theories about the election. Keep in mind that Scott squeaked out a win and now serves in the U.S. Senate. If that's the kind of malarkey Republicans pull when they win, imagine what Trump will do if it looks like he's gonna lose. Waht they were playing into is called the 'Red Mirage.' Which sounds like a supervillian and it's just as insidious. On election night, there's a real possibility that the data will show Republicans leading early, before all the votes are counted. Then they could pretend somethign sinister is going on when the counts change in Democrats' favor. Rick Scott's accusations were a dry run for this tactic ... Some members of the GOP are already gearing up for this strategy. They're referring to Election Day as 'game day,' as if legal votes counted later chouldn't count ... The danger is Trump declares victory on election night, before the votes are all counted. Then he argues that late-counted ballots are somehow fraudulent and launches a legal fight in the swing states he lost to get these legitmiate votes discounted. He's already refused to say he'll accept the results - unles she wins, of course ... Could he win in the courts? It actually doesn't matter. They could delay things long enough for the vote counting and certification deadlines to expire, then argue the counts should be stopped. Not unlike Florida in the 2000 election. And these challenges would be heard by a judiciary that Donald Trump and Mitch McConnell have spent the last four years packing with right-wing judges ... So, we need to be vigilant. The first line of defense is to know about the 'Blue Shift,' and to insist that we count every single vote."
The Economist, which has now endorsed Joe Biden, is forecasting that Joe Biden has a 96% chance of winning the electoral college, and a more than 99% chance of winning the popular vote. From their endorsement:
"Tribal politics predated Mr Trump. The host of 'The Apprentice' exploited it to take himself from the green room to the White House. Yet, whereas most recent presidents have seen toxic partisanship as bad for America, Mr Trump made it central to his office. He has never sought to represent the majority of Americans who did not vote for him. All politicians prevaricate, but his administration has given America 'alternative facts'. Nothing Mr Trump says can be believed—including his claims that Mr Biden is corrupt. Partisanship and lying undermine norms and institutions. This president calls for his opponents to be locked up; he uses the Department of Justice to conduct vendettas; he commutes the sentences of supporters convicted of serious crimes; he gives his family plum jobs in the White House. When a president casts doubt on the integrity of an election just because it might help him win, he undermines the democracy he has sworn to defend. Look at Covid. Mr Trump had a chance to unite his country around a well organised response—and win re-election on the back of it, as other leaders have. Instead he saw Democratic governors as rivals or scapegoats. He muzzled and belittled America's world-class institutions. He sneered at science. And, unable to see beyond his own re-election, he has continued to misrepresent the evident truth about the epidemic and its consequences."
Writing for Politico, David Siders and Zach Montellaro offer the following anaysis of Republican efforts to suppress the vote:
"Donald Trump won the presidency with 46 percent of the popular vote. His approval rating, according to Gallup, has never hit 50 percent. He remains under 50 percent in national polling averages. The president's inability to capture a majority of support sheds light on his extraordinary attempts to limit the number of votes cast across the battleground state map — a massive campaign-within-a-campaign to maximize Trump's chances of winning a contest in which he's all but certain to earn less than 50 percent of the vote. In Philadelphia, his campaign is videotaping voters as they return ballots. In Nevada, it's suing to force elections officials in Nevada's Democratic-heavy Clark County to more rigorously examine ballot signatures for discrepancies. The Trump campaign has sued to prevent the expanded use of ballot drop boxes in Ohio, sought to shoot down an attempt to expand absentee ballot access in New Hampshire and tried to intervene against a lawsuit brought by members of the Navajo Nation in Arizona which sought to allow ballots received from reservations after Election Day because of mail delays. And that's just a few of its efforts. 'What we have seen this year which is completely unprecedented ... is a concerted national Republican effort across the country in every one of the states that has had a legal battle to make it harder for citizens to vote,' said Trevor Potter, a former chair of the Federal Election Commission who served as general counsel to Republican John McCain's two presidential campaigns. 'There just has been this unrelenting Republican attack on making it easier to vote.'"
Nancy Pelos responded to Trump's recent plea to suburban women saying: "And whats the president's message to women? We’re getting your husbands back to work. Well, factually, it isn't even true. But in addition to that, what decade is he living in? What century is he living in? So completely removed from the realties of life. And that has caused death."
Donald Trump held a rally in Tampa, Florida. Here are some highlights:
- Trump told the crowd: "Joe Biden's plan is to deliver punishing lockdowns, he's going to lock you down."
- Trump told the crowd: "I'm running against the worst candidate in the history of presidential politics."
- Trump attacked "anonymous" author Miles Taylor as a "low life" who engaged in "treasonous" activities.
- After Trump mentioned Joe Biden's son Hunter, the crowd chanted "Lock him up!"
- Regarding coronavirus, Trump said: "You know the bottom line though? You're going to get better. You're going to get better. If I can get better, anybody can get better, and I got better fast." NOTE: Trump received arguably the best medical treatment available in the world from doctors at Walter Reed, treatment that is not available to most Americans.
According to NBC, a fake "intelligence" document is the source of unsubstantiated Hunter Biden conspiracy theories being pushed by Republicans. From the story:
"One month before a purported leak of files from Hunter Biden's laptop, a fake 'intelligence' document about him went viral on the right-wing internet, asserting an elaborate conspiracy theory involving former Vice President Joe Biden's son and business in China. The document, a 64-page composition that was later disseminated by close associates of President Donald Trump, appears to be the work of a fake 'intelligence firm' called Typhoon Investigations, according to researchers and public documents. The author of the document, a self-identified Swiss security analyst named Martin Aspen, is a fabricated identity, according to analysis by disinformation researchers, who also concluded that Aspen's profile picture was created with an artificial intelligence face generator. The intelligence firm that Aspen lists as his previous employer said that no one by that name had ever worked for the company and that no one by that name lives in Switzerland, according to public records and social media searches. One of the original posters of the document, a blogger and professor named Christopher Balding, took credit for writing parts of it when asked about it and said Aspen does not exist. Despite the document's questionable authorship and anonymous sourcing, its claims that Hunter Biden has a problematic connection to the Communist Party of China have been used by people who oppose the Chinese government, as well as by far-right influencers, to baselessly accuse candidate Joe Biden of being beholden to the Chinese government. The fake intelligence document, however, preceded the leak by months, and it helped lay the groundwork among right-wing media for what would become a failed October surprise: a viral pile-on of conspiracy theories about Hunter Biden."
During an interview on Fox News' "The Ingraham Angle," Donald Trump Jr, the president's son, stated that medical experts who have been talking about a surge in coronavirus cases are "truly morons." Jr continued: "I went through the CDC data, because I kept hearing about new infections, but I was like, 'Well why aren't they talking about this?' Oh, oh, because the number is almost nothing. Because we've gotten control of this thing, we understand how it works. They have the therapeutics to be able to deal with this. Its gone to almost nothing" NOTE: At least 1,049 Covid-19 deaths have been reported so far today.
October 28, 2020 - Over 226,000 Americans have died from coronavirus.
Rudy Giuliani, Donald Trump's personal attorney, appeared on Fox Business where he spoke to host Lisa Kennedy Montgomery. Giuliani responded to questions about a video showing him touching his genitals in a Borat video by claiming he was merely tucking in his shirt while lying down on the bed. Montgomery then suggested that stories emanating from the "found" Hunter Biden laptop were similar to the kind of broad smear that the Christopher Steele dossier made about president Trump. This made Giuliani angry, who reacted by saying: "You better apologize for that! I’ve been a United States attorney, associate attorney general, mayor of New York City and a member of the bar for 50 years ... outrageous defamation ... repeating lying propaganda ... I think our interview is now over. I don't talk to people who accuse me."
Writing for Politico, Tina Nguyen provides this analysis of Giuliani's "October surprise":
"Weeks ago, when Rudy Giuliani first threw the contents of Hunter Biden's alleged laptop online, he promised a trove of even more damning information 10 days before the election. Yet with less than a week to go, Giuliani, President Donald Trump's personal lawyer, is still moving down the conservative media food chain, looking for takers. The Wall Street Journal and Fox News have both reported finding no evidence that former Vice President Joe Biden benefited from the Hunter Biden business dealings that have drawn scrutiny. More explicitly pro-Trump media outlets — OAN, Breitbart, Newsmax — have mostly shied away from publishing fresher, more salacious allegations. And conservative talking heads — pundits, politicians and loud MAGA Twitter personalities alike — have been more focused on the meta narrative around the laptop, arguing that mainstream media, social media companies and the deep state are conspiring to prevent president Donald Trump's reelection by suppressing the story. Giuliani has groused on his podcast, 'Common Sense,' that the public can only find out the truth from him, 'because I'm not allowed on main television to tell you these things.'"
According to the Washington Post, Biden leads Trump in both Michigan and Wisconsin. From the story:
"Former vice president Joe Biden continues to outpace President Trump in two crucial Midwest battlegrounds, currently holding a slight lead over the president in Michigan while showing a much more substantial advantage in Wisconsin, according to a pair of Washington Post-ABC News polls. The surveys show Biden narrowly ahead of Trump among likely voters in Michigan by 51 percent to 44 percent, with Libertarian Party nominee Jo Jorgensen at 3 percent. In Wisconsin, likely voters favor Biden by 57 percent to 40 percent, with Jorgensen at 2 percent. Among registered voters, Biden's edge in Michigan is five points, while he leads by 17 points in Wisconsin."
Donald Trump sent the following in a tweet: "Covid, Covid, Covid is the unified chant of the Fake News Lamestream Media. They will talk about nothing else until November 4th., when the Election will be (hopefully!) over. Then the talk will be how low the death rate is, plenty of hospital rooms, & many tests of young people."
Hogan Gidley, the press secretary of Trump's reelection campaign, was asked why the White House listed "ending the Covid-19 pandemic" as one of Trump's accomplishments in a press release. Gidley's response: "We're moving in the right direction ... I'm not looking at the document. I don't know what the document says or how it characterizes the word 'ending,' but I'm not going to quibble over semantics." When Gidley was then asked whether he thought the pandemic was over, he responded: "We're moving in the right direction. I didn't write the document."
Alyssa Farah, the White House communications director, was asked about the press release that cited "ending the Covid-19 pandemic" as one of Trump's accomplishments. Her response: "I think that was poorly worded. The intent was to say that it is our goal to end the virus. But what I would say is this, because of the president's leadership, we are rounding the corner on the virus." NOTE: According to Johns Hopkins University, 985 Americans died of coronavirus yesterday, and the country confirmed 73,240 new cases yesterday.
According to CNN, Jared Kushner, a Senior White House adviser, bragged in April about Trump's actions to cut health experts out of conversations about the government's response to the pandemic. From the story:
"In a taped interview on April 18, Kushner told legendary journalist Bob Woodward that Trump was 'getting the country back from the doctors' in what he called a 'negotiated settlement.' Kushner also proclaimed that the US was moving swiftly through the 'panic phase' and 'pain phase' of the pandemic and that the country was at the 'beginning of the comeback phase. That doesn't mean there's not still a lot of pain and there won't be pain for a while, but that basically was, we've now put out rules to get back to work,' Kushner said. 'Trump’s now back in charge. It's not the doctors.'"
During a press conference at a Las Vegas hotel, Trump stated: "We'll see what happens at the end of [election day] Hopefully it won’t go longer than that. Hopefully the few states remaining that want to take a lot of time after November 3rd to count ballots, that won't be allowed by the various courts." NOTE: States have until December 8 to tabulate their election results. That date is known as the "safe harbor" deadline.
The identity of "Anonymous," the Trump official who wrote a New York Times op-ed in 2018 that there was a "quiet resistance within the administration of people choosing to put country first", has been revealed. According to the New York Times:
"Miles Taylor, the former chief of staff at the Department of Homeland Security, was the anonymous author of The New York Times Op-Ed article in 2018 whose description of President Trump as 'impetuous, adversarial, petty and ineffective' roiled Washington and set off a hunt for his identity, Mr. Taylor confirmed Wednesday. Mr. Taylor was also the anonymous author of 'A Warning,' a book he wrote the following year that described the president as an 'undisciplined' and 'amoral' leader whose abuse of power threatened the foundations of American democracy. He acknowledged that he was the author of both the book and the opinion article in an interview and in a three-page statement he intended to post online."
Miles Taylor has endorsed Joe Biden for president, and explained why he wrote the book and the op-ed:
"We do not owe the President our silence. We owe him and the American people the truth. Make no mistake: I am a Republican, and I wanted this President to succeed. That's why I came into the Administration with John Kelly, and it's why I stayed on as Chief of Staff at the Department of Homeland Security. But too often in times of crisis, I saw Donald Trump prove he is a man without character, and his personal defects have resulted in leadership failures so significant that they can be measured in lost American lives. ... Much has been made of the fact that these writings were published anonymously. The decision wasn't easy, I wrestled with it, and I understand why some people consider it questionable to levy such serious charges against a sitting President under the cover of anonymity. But my reasoning was straightforward, and I stand by it. Issuing my critiques without attribution forced the President to answer them directly on their merits or not at all, rather than creating distractions through petty insults and name-calling. I wanted the attention to be on the arguments themselves."
Kayleigh McEnany, the White House press secretary, responded to the unveiling of "anonymous" saying:
"President Trump is focused on leading the great American comeback and keeping his promises to the American people. This low-level, disgruntled former staffer is a liar and a coward who chose anonymity over action and leaking over leading. The American people elected President Trump to carry out his vision for the country, not an arrogant deep state operative trying to put their agenda ahead of the President's America First policies."
Donald Trump responded to the unveiling of "anonymous" by calling Miles Taylor a "low level ... sleaze-bag" along with "He should be prosecuted".
Jessica Denson, a former Trump campaign staffer, details in a minute long commercial why she has switched her loyalties to Joe Biden saying:
"I thought that the Trump campaign posed a unique opportunity to help the American people ... but what I came to realize was that the campaign was a vile, self-serving branding exercising for one man and his family."
Tucker Carlson, a Fox News host and Trump loyalist, who had promised his audience that he was going to be sharing with them documents that are damning to the Bidens, instead told his audience this:
"On Monday we received from a source, a collection of confidential documents related to the Biden family. We believe those documents are authentic, they're real, and they're damning ... we texted a producer in New York and we asked him to send those documents to us in LA ... he shipped those documents overnight to California with a large national carrier brand ... But the Biden documents never arrived in Los Angeles. Tuesday morning we received word from the shipping company that our package had been opened, and the contents were missing, the documents had disappeared ... They searched the plane and the trucks that carried it, they went through the office in New York where our producer dropped that package off, they combed their entire cavernous sorting facility. They used pictures of what we had sent so that searchers would know what to look for. They went far and beyond. But they found nothing, those documents have vanished. As of tonight the company has no idea – and no working theory even – about what happened to this trove of materials documents that are directly relevant to the presidential campaign." NOTE: Tucker Carlson, who has served as one of the main conduits of conspiracy theories about Hunter Biden, said this with a straight face.
Here are some notable reactions to Carlson's "the documents disappeared" statement:
"BREAKING: Documents Tucker Carlson never actually had that would allegedly blow up the election were so important that they were sent via DHL, and now can't be found despite copiers, iPhone cameras and security cameras." - Shannon Watts
"did you check underneath Trump's healthcare plan" - Chuck Wendig
"Like Tucker, I also send my super secret documents through the mail and fail to make a copy." - Drew Savicki
According to the Guardian, the Trump administration announced that it will lift protections in Alaska's Tongass national forest - which experts call the "lungs of the country" - thus allowing logging in the world's largest intact temperate rainforest. Notable response from Ken Rait, the project director of the Pew Charitable Trust: "It's ironic that this administration is trying to tout this president's environmental record when [Trump is] unwinding environmental safeguards all over the place. And lifting protections on the Tongass, the nation's flagship forest, is about the most egregious of all of them."
October 27, 2020 - One of Donald Trump's tweets was flagged by twitter with a note that reads: "Some or all of the content shared in this Tweet is disputed and might be misleading about how to participate in an election or another civic process." Trump had declared in his tweet that counting votes in the election must be completed on 3 November. NOTE: Counting in US elections always extends beyond midnight on election day. This year, it is well known that Democratic areas in battleground states are relying heavily on mail-in ballots due to the pandemic, and because of that, counting will not only go past midnight, but may take multiple days. Critics of Trump are accusing him of trying to disenfranchise Democratic voters with his made up rule about vote counting.
In what is being seen as a blow to voting rights, The US supreme court sided with Republicans to prevent Wisconsin from counting mail-in ballots received after election day. From a story in the Guardian:
"In a 5-3 ruling, the justices on Monday refused to reinstate a lower court order that called for mailed ballots to be counted if they are received up to six days after the 3 November election. A federal appeals court had already put that order on hold. The ruling awards a victory for Republicans in their crusade against expanding voting rights and access. It also came just moments before the Republican-controlled Senate voted to confirm Amy Coney Barrett, a victory for the right that locks in a conservative majority on the nation's highest court for years to come."
The New York Times editorial board offered this anaysis of the confirmation of Amy Coney Barrett:
"When she takes her seat on the bench at One First Street, it will represent the culmination of a four-decade crusade by conservatives to fill the federal courts with reliably Republican judges who will serve for decades as a barricade against an ever more progressive nation. This is not a wild conspiracy theory. Mitch McConnell, the Senate majority leader and one of the main architects of this crusade, gloated about it openly on Sunday, following a bare-majority vote to move Judge Barrett's nomination to the Senate floor. 'A lot of what we've done over the last four years will be undone sooner or later by the next election,' Mr. McConnell said. 'They won't be able to do much about this for a long time to come.' That's the perfect distillation of what this has been all about. It also reveals what it was never about. It was never about letting the American people have a voice in the makeup of the Supreme Court."
Trump sent the following tweet: "ALL THE FAKE NEWS MEDIA WANTS TO TALK ABOUT IS COVID, COVID, COVID. ON NOVEMBER 4th, YOU WON'T BE HEARING SO MUCH ABOUT IT ANYMORE. WE ARE ROUNDING THE TURN!!!"
Twitter announced that it will begin "pre-bunking" misinformation at the top of users' timelines in the final week before the US election. From Twitter's announcement:
"Election experts confirm that voting by mail is safe and secure, even with an increase in mail-in ballots. Even so, you might encounter unconfirmed claims that voting by mail leads to election fraud ahead of the 2020 US elections."
Kayleigh McEnany, the White House press secretary, referred to Joe Biden as "an empty vessel for the liberal elites and far left". NOTE: In a 2015 interview, McEnany said this about Joe Biden: "When you have Joe Biden here who's funny and likeable and can resonate with the middle class, he really can speak to the average, everyday American, versus Hillary Clinton who's cold and somber."
A federal judge has ruled that the justice department cannot intervene on Trump's behalf in a defamation lawsuit brought by E Jean Carroll. From the ruling:
"The President of the United States is not an 'employee' of the Government within the meaning of the relevant statutes. Even if he were such an 'employee,' President Trump's allegedly defamatory statements concerning Ms. Carroll would not have been within the scope of his employment."
The Trump team tweeted a video that is edited to make it look like Hillary Clinton and Joe Biden are being hit by Make America Great Again hats that are being tossed by Donald Trump. NOTE: Hillary Clinton is not on the 2020 ballot
Gretchen Whitmer, the governor of Michigan, wrote a piece for the Atlantic regarding the plot to kidnap her. From the oped:
"When I put my hand on the Bible at my inauguration, it did not occur to me that less than two years later, I would have to tell my daughters about a plot against me. But earlier this month, I learned that a multistate terrorist group was planning to kidnap and possibly kill me. Law-enforcement announced charges against 14 people as part of the plot. As jarring as that was, just over a week later, President Donald Trump traveled to Michigan, and when a crowd chanted 'Lock her up' after he mentioned me, he said, 'Lock them all up.' I am not surprised. I have watched the president wedge a deeper divide in our country; refuse to denounce white supremacists on a national debate stage; and launch cruel, adolescent attacks on women like Senator Kamala Harris and public-health leaders like Anthony Fauci. And while I won't let anything distract me from doing my job as governor, I will not stand back and let the president, or anyone else, put my colleagues and fellow Americans in danger without holding him accountable. Every time the president ramps up this violent rhetoric, every time he fires up Twitter to launch another broadside against me, my family and I see a surge of vicious attacks sent our way. This is no coincidence, and the president knows it. He is sowing division and putting leaders, especially women leaders, at risk. And all because he thinks it will help his reelection."
Donald Trump sent the following tweet: "Obama is drawing VERY small (tiny) numbers of people. Biden is drawing almost no one. We are drawing tens of thousands of people. You’ll see that again today. The Great Red Wave is coming!!!" NOTE: The Biden campaign has been restricting attendance at Biden's rallies because of the ongoing pandemic.
Speaking to reporters, Trump stated: "It would be very, very proper and very nice if a winner were declared on Nov. 3, instead of counting ballots for two weeks, which is totally inappropriate, and I don't believe that's by our laws."
Trump held rally in Lansing, Michigan, here are some highlights:
- Trump stated: "Ilhan Omar, who truly does not like our country ... she likes telling us what we should do, how we should run our country ... she hates our country." Trump then warned the crowd that Democrats would allow more refugees from countries like Syria and Somalia (where Omar is from) if they gain power.
- Trump spoke about the plot against Michigan governor Whitmer saying: "I don't think she likes me too much. [crowd cheered] Hey, hey, hey, hey, I'm the one, it was our people that helped her out with her problem. And we'll wait to see if it is a problem, right? People are entitled to say, 'Maybe it was, maybe it wasn't.' It was our people, my people, our people, that helped her out. And then she blamed me for it."
- Speaking to suburban women, Trump said: "I'm also getting your husbands — they want to get back to work, right? They want to get back to work. We're getting your husbands back to work."
According to the Washington Post, Trump's businesses have received at least $8.1 million since he took office from hosting meetings and events at his properties. According to the story, Trump has made more than 280 visits to his hotels and clubs in his official capacity as president.
According to ProPublica, Trump's border wall has costed about 5 times more than fencing built by the Bush and Obama administrations, and many of the firms that have won contracts for the wall have executives who have donated to the campaigns of Trump or other Republicans.
According to the US Elections Project, more than 70 million Americans have already voted early for the November 3rd election.
According to the Daily Beast, health officials and scientists in the Trump administration were offended by a White House press release that listed "ending the Covid-19 pandemic" as a major accomplishment of Donald Trump's. From the story:
"In a statement released Tuesday afternoon The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy said that it considered 'ending the COVID-19 pandemic' to be one of President Donald Trump's major first term accomplishments. The office released a corresponding report that listed achievements of the Trump administration in the area of science and innovation. 'It's mind boggling,' one official said of the White House's assertion it had ended the pandemic. 'There's no world in which anyone can think that [statement] is true. Maybe the president. But I don't see how even he can believe that. We have more than 70,000 new cases each day.' Four officials working with the White House coronavirus task force told The Daily Beast that they viewed the White House's statement as a personal slight and a public rebuke of their efforts to try and get control of the virus. Officials described the report as the latest example of the president and his team of advisers refusing to acknowledge that the U.S. is experiencing a worrying resurgence of the virus. 'We have exploding case counts. Death rates will undoubtedly rise. They are living in a parallel universe that bears no relation to the reality that Americans are living,' said Dr. Tom Frieden, former director of the Centers for Disease Control in the Obama administration. 'And this idea that we should let it spread and protect the vulnerable is a really dangerous mistake. The idea that it [containing the virus] can't be done ignores reality.'"
The US diplomats union has denounced an attempt by Michael Pack, the CEO of the US Agency for Global Media (USAGM), a Trump appointee, to remove the "firewall rule" protecting the editorial independence of the Voice of America, Radio Free Europe and other US overseas broadcasters. Pack argued the rule was "in tension with the law and harmful to the agency and the US national interest" and also that "The rule threatened constitutional values because the constitution gives the president broad latitude in directing the foreign policy of the United States". The union argued that this was an attempt to turn these media outlets into vehicles for "government propaganda".
In a press release, the White House announced that over the next fiscal year, it will admit no more than 15,000 refugees, down from 18,000 last year, and 30,000 the year before that. NOTE: The Obama administration admitted 110,000 refugees during its final year.
Speaking at a rally in Wisconsin, Trump told the crowd: "These people don't believe in science, they believe in power and whatever gives them control." Trump also claimed the media would say the country is doing "extremely well" one day after the election.
October 26, 2020 - Over 225,000 Americans have died from coronavirus.
CBS' 60 Minutes released the transcript from the interview that Trump abruptly walked out on. Here are some notable exchanges from that interview:
Lesley Stahl: Let me ask you what you think your-- the biggest domestic priority is for you right now.
President Donald Trump: Well--
Lesley Stahl: Or next year.
President Donald Trump: Ultimately, le-- let me-- and I-- I'll tell ya, it was happening. We created the greatest economy in the history of our country. And the other side was--
Lesley Stahl: You know that-- you know--
President Donald Trump: --coming in-
Lesley Stahl: --that's not true.
President Donald Trump: It is totally true.
Lesley Stahl: No.
...
Lesley Stahl: Four years ago, you were behind in the polls, as you are now, and you pulled it out. But this time, you have kind of a double migraine. You have unemployment claims going up. You have COVID cases going up. I mean, it's like the gods have suddenly decided-- decided to conspire against you--
President Donald Trump: I don't think so at all, no. I think we've done--
Lesley Stahl: Well, what about the--
President Donald Trump: --a great job with COVID.
Lesley Stahl: Sir, excuse me, cases are up in about 40 states.
President Donald Trump: Okay-- you know why cases are up also? Because we do more testing. The fake news media loves to say cases are up. The fact is, we've done a very, very good job--
Lesley Stahl: Cases are up.
President Donald Trump: We have done-- that's right because we're doing so much testing.
...
Lesley Stahl: Can we go back for one second to the pandemic, because-- you called Dr. Fauci and other health officials idiots.
President Donald Trump: Where did I call him an idiot?
Lesley Stahl: You called them "idiots." I wonder if you think--
President Donald Trump: Well, he's been wrong a lot. I like him, but he's been wrong a lot.
...
President Donald Trump: It's the biggest -- second-biggest scandal. The biggest scandal was when they spied on my campaign. They spied on my campaign, Lesley-
Lesley Stahl: Well, there's no-- real evidence of that.
President Donald Trump: Of course there is. It's all over--
Lesley Stahl: No--
President Donald Trump: --the place. Lesley, they--
Lesley Stahl: Sir--
President Donald Trump: --spied on my campaign and they got caught--
Lesley Stahl: Can I-- can I say something? You know, this is 60 Minutes. And we can't put on things we can't verify--
President Donald Trump: No, you won't put it on because it's bad for Biden. Look, let me tell you--
Lesley Stahl: We can't put on things we can't verify--
President Donald Trump: Lesley, they spied on--
Lesley Stahl: And--
President Donald Trump: --on my campaign.
Lesley Stahl: Well, we can't verify that--
President Donald Trump: It's been totally verified.
Lesley Stahl: No.
President Donald Trump: It's been-- just go down and get the papers. They spied on my campaign, they got caught.
Lesley Stahl: No.
President Donald Trump: And then they went much further than that and they got caught. And you will see that, Lesley. And you know that. But you just don't wanna put it on the air--
Lesley Stahl: No-- as a matter of fact, I don't know that.
President Donald Trump: Okay.
Lesley Stahl: And you're out there--
President Donald Trump: So why don't you get back to your interview, and let's go.
...
Lesley Stahl: Do you know what you told me a long time ago when I asked why you keep saying "fake m-- media"--
President Donald Trump: Yeah? Yeah?
Lesley Stahl: You said to me, "I say that because I need to dis-- discredit you so that when you say negative things about me, no one will believe you."
President Donald Trump: I don't have to discredit you.
Lesley Stahl: But that's what you told me--
President Donald Trump: You've discredited yourself.
Lesley Stahl: You know, I didn't want to have this kind of angry--
President Donald Trump: Of course you did.
Lesley Stahl: No, I didn't--
President Donald Trump: Of course you did--
Lesley Stahl: --no, I didn't.
President Donald Trump: Well, then you brought up a lot of subjects that were inappropriately brought up--
Lesley Stahl: Well, I said, I'm gonna ask you tough questions. But--
President Donald Trump: They were inappropriately brought up. Right from the beginning. No, your first question was, "This is going to be tough questions." You don't ask Joe Biden, I saw your interview with Joe, the interview with Joe Biden.
Lesley Stahl: I never did a Joe Biden interview-
President Donald Trump: It was a joke. The interview, 60 Minutes. I see Joe Biden, giving softball after softball. I've seen all of his interviews. He's never been asked a question that's hard.
Lesley Stahl: Okay, but forget him for a minute. You're President--
President Donald Trump: No, but you start with me.
Lesley Stahl: You're President, and-
President Donald Trump: Excuse me, Lesley, you started with me. Your first statement was, "Are you ready for tough questions?"
Lesley Stahl: Are you?
President Donald Trump: That's no way to talk. That's no way to talk.
NOTE: Trump walked out of the interview right after this exchange. A few minutes after he walked out, Kayleigh McEnany showed up with a very large book, and then this exchange took place:
Kayleigh McEnany: Lesley, the president wanted me to deliver his health care plan, it's a little heavy.
Lesley Stahl: Oh my god. This is his health care plan?
Kayleigh McEnany: Yes.
NOTE: Stahl later stated that the book was big and heavy, and filled with executive orders, and congressional initiatives, but no comprehensive health care plan.
According to a new international study by the V-Dem Institute at the University of Gothenburg in Sweden to measure and quantify the health of the world's democracies at a time when authoritarianism is on the rise, the Republican party has become dramatically illiberal in the past two decades, and now more closely resembles ruling parties in autocratic societies than its former centre-right equivalents in Europe. The study points out that the GOP has taken to demonising and encouraging violence against its opponent, by adopting attitudes and tactics comparable to ruling nationalist parties in Hungary, India, Poland and Turkey. Anna Luhrmann, V-Dem's deputy director, called the Republican transformation "the most dramatic shift in an established democracy".
Jacob Candelaria, a state senator from New Mexico, has fled his home in Albuquerque after receiving threatening message following an appearance on a news broadcast where he criticized people for gathering without masks at a political demonstration outside the state capitol.
Donald Trump sent the following tweet: "We have made tremendous progress with the China Virus, but the Fake News refuses to talk about it this close to the Election. COVID, COVID, COVID is being used by them, in total coordination, in order to change our great early election numbers. Should be an election law violation!"
For the 1st time in 100 years, the New Hampshire Union Leader, a conservative newspaper, endorsed a Democrat (Joe Biden) for president, saying Biden "is caring, trustworthy and experienced. He should be the next president of the United States because he has committed to following the science and leading our country out of this pandemic."
Donald Trump sent the following tweet: "Cases up because we TEST, TEST, TEST. A Fake News Media Conspiracy. Many young people who heal very fast. 99.9%. Corrupt Media conspiracy at all time high. On November 4th., topic will totally change. VOTE!" Daniel Dale, a CNN fact-checker, offered this rebuttal to Trump's tweet: "While the number of daily tests has indeed been rising, there is no doubt there has been an increase in the actual spread of the virus, not just that more cases are being captured. One telltale sign is that hospitalizations are also rising, setting records in some states. Also, the percentage of US tests coming back positive has also been rising since late September. And deaths have started to rise again, too, after the usual lag following the spike in cases."
According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution poll conducted by the University of Georgia's School of Public and International Affairs, Biden leads Trump by 1 point among Georhia's likely voters. Trump won Georgia by 5 points in 2016.
Trump held a rally in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Here are some highlights:
- Trump claimed: "We're rounding the turn. You know, all they want to talk about is Covid. By the way, on November 4, you won't be hearing so much about it. 'Covid Covid Covid Covid.'"
- After Trump mentioned Joe Biden, the crowd began chanting "Lock him up!"
During an interview, Dr Anthony Fauci was asked what wave of the virus are we in. Fauci's answer: "I look at it more as an elongated and exacerbation of the original first wave. We never really cleared and got down to a very low baseline ... No matter how you look at it, it's not good news."
According to Politico, Miles Taylor, the former chief of staff to former Secretary of Homeland Security Kirstjen Nielsen, claims that Trump wanted to withhold California wildfire money for political reasons. From the story:
"President Donald Trump wanted to shut off emergency relief for California amid devastating wildfires because it was a blue state, and he tried to deliberately separate families to deter immigration, according to a scathing account given by a former administration official on Monday."
At a rally in Lititz, Pennsylvania, Trump responded to Biden's "dark winter" comment saying: "No it's not going to be a 'dark winter'. It's going to be a great winter."
The United States Senate voted to confirm Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court. The vote was along party lines (52 to 48) with the exception of Republican Susan Collins of Maine who joined Democrats in voting against Barrett's confirmation. One notable reaction to Barrett's confirmation:
"Today Republicans denied the will of the American people by confirming a Supreme Court justice through an illegitimate process—all in their effort to gut the Affordable Care Act and strip health care from millions with pre-existing conditions. We won’t forget this." - Kamala Harris
October 25, 2020 - During an interview with Jake Tapper of CNN's State of the Union, Mark Meadows, the White House chief of staff stated: "We're not going to control the pandemic. We are going to control the fact that we get a vaccine, therapeutics and other mitigation." Tapper then asked why the administration was not going to control Covid-19. Meadows responded: "Because it is a contagious virus." Joe Biden reacted to Meadows' comments saying "This wasn't a slip by Meadows, it was a candid acknowledgement of what President Trump's strategy has clearly been from the beginning of this crisis: to wave the white flag of defeat and hope that by ignoring it, the virus would simply go away. It hasn't, and it won't."
Marc Short, the chief of staff to Mike Pence, and four others in Pence's inner circle, have all tested positive for coronavirus.
Dr Anthony Fauci was interviewed by the BBC's Andrew Marr, where he said this: "We will know whether a vaccine is safe and effective by the end of November, the beginning of December. When you talk about vaccinating a substantial proportion of the population, so that you can have a significant impact on the dynamics of the outbreak, that very likely will not be until the second or third quarter of the year."
October 24, 2020 - A reporter said to Trump: "You called testing 'foolish.' Why would you call it 'foolish' while cases are spreading?" Trump's response: "I don't - I don't - I can't hear you with your mask on. Thank you very much."
A New York City police officer has been suspended without pay for using his patrol vehicle's loud speaker to say "Trump 2020."
Trump held a rally in North Carolina. Here are some highlights:
- Trump told the crowd: "We are going to quickly end this pandemic."
- Trump stated: "Remember when I first started campaigning, department stores, they wouldn't use the words 'Merry Christmas'? They'd say 'Happy New Year' ... And I said, they will soon start saying 'Merry Christmas' again. Now they're all saying 'Merry Christmas' again, right?"
Trump sent the following in a tweet: "The Fake News is talking abou CASES, CASES, CASES. This includes many low risk people. Media is doing everything possible to create fear prior to November 3rd. The Cases are up because TESTING is way up, by far the most, and best, in the world."
Scott Atlas, a coronavirus advisor to Trump, who is not an expert on the subject of infectious disease, responded to Trump's tweet saying: "Spot on, POTUS. Cases are not most important metric. Almost like Einstein said about insanity... #RefractoryToLearning #LogicMatters #FactsMatter".
October 23, 2020 - US deaths from coronavirus exceeds 223,000.
Writing for the Los Angeles Times, Molly O'Toole wrote the following regarding the scandal regarding "medically unnecesary" surgeries that took place at a Georgia immigration facility:
"The 19 women were all patients of Dr. Mahendra Amin, the primary gynecologist for the Irwin County Detention Center, the report says. The records, including pathology and radiology reports, prescriptions, surgical impressions and consent forms, sworn declarations and telephone interviews, detail and support the women's allegations of medical abuse by the doctor, according to the report. The medical experts found an 'alarming pattern' in which Amin allegedly subjected the women to unwarranted gynecological surgeries, in most cases performed without consent, according to the five-page report, which was submitted Thursday to members of Congress. 'Both Dr. Amin and the referring detention facility took advantage of the vulnerability of women in detention to pressure them to agree to overly aggressive, inappropriate, and unconsented medical care,' the report states."
Writing for NBC News, Ben Collins and Brandy Zadrozny offer the following anaysis of what used to be fringe conspiracy theories in right-wing circles. From the story:
"Some of the same people who pushed a false conspiracy theory about Hillary Clinton that first emerged in 2016 are now targeting Hunter Biden, Joe Biden's son, with similar falsehoods. Their online posts are garnering astronomical numbers of shares on social media. The fantastical rumors, which NBC News is declining to repeat verbatim, echo specific plot points central to 'pizzagate,' a viral disinformation campaign that predates QAnon but also falsely alleges a vast conspiracy of child abuse. There is an important difference, however. The pizzagate-style rumors in 2016 were largely confined to far-right message boards like 4chan and parts of Reddit. But the Hunter Biden iteration of the same conspiracy theory took off last weekend with the help of speculation from conservative TV hosts and members of Congress. Their theorizing can be traced back to a new website that has been promoted by president Donald Trump and his surrogates. The path of the conspiracy theory highlights how once-obscure and fringe claims are now able to reach mainstream conservative media and even elected officials in the run-up to the 2020 election. The disinformation campaign appears to have been successful in its goal of generating a smear against the former vice president's son. According to Google Trends, 'human trafficking' is now the third-most common related search term for 'Hunter Biden' in the last year, after 'laptop' and 'New York Post,' which point to search interest around the unconfirmed allegations that a laptop belonging to Hunter Biden contained evidence of crimes."
Writing for CNN, Stephen Collonson and Maeve Reston offered the following analysis of last night's presidential debate:
"While much more subdued than his destructive performance in the first presidential debate, Trump's remarks were still threaded with lies and occasional slashing personal attacks. At such a late stage of the presidential campaign, Trump entered the night looking for something that would help him catch up to Biden in key battleground states. In order to win in 11 days, Trump needed to halt his precipitous slide among seniors and suburban women, while winning back some voters within his core constituency, non-college educated White voters, who have increasingly drifted to Biden – with even male voters becoming a new area of alarm for his advisers. But while the President was more focused in his attacks on Biden as a tool of the radical left who would raise taxes, lead the country toward socialized medicine and kill energy sector jobs with his moves toward more renewable energy, he was still deeply defensive about his handling of the pandemic, failing to connect at a human level with voters who have lost loved ones. And when the debate moved to the topic of immigration, he was appallingly callous about the toll that his policies have taken on children who were separated from their parents at the border."
Writing for the Atlantic, David Frum offered the following anaysis of Trump's performance at last night's debate:
"You're losing. You're losing bad. You're out of money. Your ads are coming off the air in must-win states. Here it is, the last chance to speak to a big national audience—and for free, really the last opportunity to win back voters who have drifted away from you. Trump behaved better at this second debate than at the first. The mute button was his good friend, and so was the pad of paper on which for the first 10 to 12 minutes he pretended to take notes whenever it was Biden’s turn to speak. The rules of debate two curbed him, restrained the spectacular bad behavior of debate one. But Trump still arrived with only one plan: Attack and attack. Some of the attacks were wholly phony: Biden as the beneficiary of Chinese cash. Some of the attacks had a basis in reality: Incarceration of under-age border-crossers did begin under Barack Obama and Biden, not Trump. But none of them did what Trump so desperately needed to do: reach voters who suspect he doesn't care about them at all. These have been difficult months. I feel it. I understand. He could not say it; he could not do it. He could only offer a false promise of vaccines before the end of the year, a promise he hastily retracted under pressure from the moderator for more specifics."
Charles Beckham III, who is running as a Republican for the Arkansas state Senate, had to admit, after initially denying it, that he had been kicked out of school for wearing a KKK outfit for Holloween in 2000. The admission came after the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette published court records about the incident.
Speaking to MSNBC, Dr Anthony Fauci claimed that Trump hasn't been to a White House COVID task force meeting in several months.
During an interview with Sinclair, Trump was asked "With COVID, is there anything that you think you could have done differently, if you had a mulligan or a do-over on one aspect of the way you handled it, what would it be?" Trump's response: "Not much." Joe Biden reacted to Trump's comment saying: "If this is a success, what's failure look like?"
According to modeling by scientists from the University of Washington, as many as 511,000 lives could be lost by 28 February next year. The study also found that the death toll could top 1 million by that date if states ease off on measures to restrict the spread of the virus.
Trump held a cmpaign rally in The Villages, Florida, where it was noted that few attendees were wearing masks, and there was virtually no social distancing for the outdoor event.
Ivan Harrison Hunter, a 26-year-old Texas resident, and member of the far-right "boogaloo Bois" movement, has been charged with setting fire to a police precinct in Minneapolis during the George Floyd protests. After setting the fire, Hunter sent a message to Steven Carrillo, urging him to "go for buildings". Carrillo responded "I did better, lol". Carrillo's response was a reference to the shooting of two federal officers guarding a federal courthouse in downtown Oakland in which one of them, David Patrick Underwood, was killed.
The Republican National Committee sent the following tweet:
"Pres. Trump is fighting for YOU! Here are some of his priorities for a 2nd term:
*Establish Permanent Manned Presence on The Moon
*Send the 1st Manned Mission to Mars
*Build World’s Greatest Infrastructure System
*Establish National High-Speed Wireless Internet Network"
Critics were quick to notice that ending the coronavirus pandemic wasn't on the list in the tweet. Here are some notable reactions to the RNC tweet:
"OMG this isn't a parody." - George Takei
"In my second term, my main focus will be to perfect the Everlasting Gobstopper and confirm the moon is made of cheese" - Adam Rippon
October 22, 2020 - James Dale Reed, a Maryland resident, was charged with making threats against Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden, and his running mate Kamala Harris. Reed had left a note on his neighbor's doorstep which threatened violence against Democrats, and said that "Grandpa Biden" and Harris would be attacked and executed.
According to the Washington Post, Trump is averaging more than 50 false or misleading claims per day. From the story:
"As President Trump entered the final stretch of the election season, he began making more than 50 false or misleading claims a day. It's only gotten worse — so much so that the Fact Checker team cannot keep up. As of 27 August, the tally in our database that tracks every errant claim by the president stood at 22,247 claims in 1,316 days. Note the date. That was when he gave his speech accepting the Republican presidential nomination. We've been able to update the database only to that point as of today — so already we are eight weeks behind. (We maintain this database mostly in our spare time, in addition to our day jobs.) In 2017, Trump's first year as president, he averaged six claims a day. That jumped to 16 a day in 2018 and 22 in 2019. So far in 2020, the president has averaged 27 claims a day. At his current pace, the president will surely exceed 25,000 claims before Election Day. In fact, he probably crossed that threshold this week. But who knows when we will be able to confirm that. Down in the polls, the president has amped up his rhetoric and often scheduled two or three rallies, interviews with friendly TV hosts and repeated press availabilities in a single day. That has left us swamped and exhausted as we plow through tens of thousands of presidential words a day."
Donald Trump sent the following in a tweet: "I will soon be giving a first in television history full, unedited preview of the vicious attempted 'takeout' interview of me by Lesley Stahl of @60Minutes. Watch her constant interruptions & anger. Compare my full, flowing and 'magnificently brilliant' answers to their 'Q's'."
Writing for the Guardian, Julian Borger offers the following analysis of Ice officers use of force to get Africans to sign own deportation orders. From the story:
"US immigration officers allegedly tortured Cameroonian asylum seekers to force them to sign their own deportation orders, in what lawyers and activists describe as a brutal scramble to fly African migrants out of the country in the run-up to the elections. Many of the Cameroonian migrants in a Mississippi detention centre refused to sign, fearing death at the hands of Cameroonian government forces responsible for widespread civilian killings, and because they had asylum hearings pending. According to multiple accounts, detainees were threatened, choked, beaten, pepper-sprayed and threatened with more violence to make them sign. Several were put in handcuffs by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Ice) officers, and their fingerprints were taken forcibly in place of a signature on documents called stipulated orders of removal, by which the asylum seekers waive their rights to further immigration hearings and accept deportation."
Donald Trump's twitter account was hacked by a Dutch researcher who correctly guessed Trump's password. The password was "maga2020!"
A new analysis from the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data project (ACLED) and Militia Watch, identifies the Proud Boys and the Boogaloo Bois as the right-wing groups at "highest risk" of committing violence after the election, and the Three Percenters at "high" risk.
The White House released footage of the Trump 60 Minutes interview, prompting 60 Minutes to respond with "The White House's unprecedented decision to disregard their agreement with CBS News and release their footage will not deter 60 Minutes from providing its full, fair and contextual reporting which presidents have participated in for decades" Here is one exchange from the 60 Minutes interview:
- Trump was asked about his repeated claim that he would soon be releasing a health care plan. Here's part of the exchange:
TRUMP: "It is developed. It's fully developed. It's going to be announced very soon."
STAHL: "When? You say that over and over."
TRUMP: "When we see what happens with Obamacare, which is not good. ... I hope they end it. It'll be good if they end it. ... we will come up with a plan."
According to the New York Times, Russia has hacked into state and local computer networks in recent days. From the story:
"While senior Trump administration officials said this week that Iran has been actively interfering in the presidential election, many intelligence officials said they remained far more concerned about Russia, which has in recent days hacked into state and local computer networks in breaches that could allow Moscow broader access to American voting infrastructure. The discovery of the hacks came as American intelligence agencies, infiltrating Russian networks themselves, have pieced together details of what they believe are Russia’s plans to interfere in the presidential race in its final days or immediately after the election on Nov. 3. Officials did not make clear what Russia planned to do, but they said its operations would be intended to help President Trump, potentially by exacerbating disputes around the results, especially if the race is too close to call. There is no evidence that the Russians have changed any vote tallies or voter registration information, officials said. They added that the Russian-backed hackers had penetrated the computer networks without taking further action, as they did in 2016. But American officials expect that if the presidential race is not called on election night, Russian groups could use their knowledge of local computer systems to deface websites, release nonpublic information or take similar steps that could sow chaos and doubts about the integrity of the results, according to American officials briefed on the intelligence."
A team of disaster preparedness and public health experts at Columbia University released a report regarding the Trump administration's response to the pandemic. From the report:
"The United States has turned a global crisis into a devastating tragedy. We estimate that at least 130,000 deaths and perhaps as many as 210,000 could have been avoided with earlier policy interventions and more robust federal coordination and leadership. The team calculated avoidable deaths by estimating how many people would have died in other nations, like Japan and South Korea, if they had the same population as the US, and comparing those figures to the US death rate. Many of the underlying factors amplifying the pandemic's deadly impact have existed long before the novel coronavirus first arrived in Washington state on January 20th – a fractured healthcare system, inequitable access to care, and immense health, social and racial disparities among America's most vulnerable groups. Compounding this is an Administration that has publicly denigrated its own public health officials – and science more generally -- thereby hamstringing efforts by its vaunted public health service to curb the pandemic's spread."
Donald Trump and Joe Biden faced off for their final debate at Belmont University in Nashvill. Here are some highlights:
- Trump claimed a coronavirus vaccine is "ready" and "going to be announced in weeks." Trump was then asked if that was a guarantee. His response: "No, it's not a guarantee, but I think it will be by the end of the year."
- Kristen Welker noted that experts have said it will be months before a vaccine is widely available, and that masks will continue to be necessary well into 2021. Trump responded: "I think my timeline is going to be more accurate."
- Biden stated "This is the same fellow who told you it was going to end by Easter. He has no clear plan." Biden also predicted the country was about to enter a "dark winter."
- Trump claimed "2.2m would have died" if not for him. NOTE: Recent analysis by a team of disaster preparedness and public heatlth experts estimate that somewehre between 130,000 and 210,000 deaths could have been prevented if the administration had coordinated a faster response based on science.
- Trump claimed of coronavirus: "It's going away". NOTE: Cases in the US are rising.
- Trump claimed Biden called his action to shut down travel from China "xenophobic". Biden responded: "He is xenophobic, but not because he shut down access from China".
- Trump stated "I take full responsibility. It's not my fault that it came here. It's China’s fault."
- Trump stated he was only kidding about studying bleach as a coronavirus cure. NOTE: Video of the incident contradicts this claim.
- Trump accused Dr Anthony Fauci of political bias. NOTE: Fauci is not registered with a political party and was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by Republican George W Bush.
- After Biden called on Trump to release his tax returns as he has promised to do since his 2016 campaign, Trump claimed he has "prepaid millions and millions of dollars in taxes".
- Trump claimed "China is paying" for the tariff money Trump gave to farmers. NOTE: The Federal Reserve Bank of New York, Princeton and Columbia universities estimated that tariffs from Trump's trade dispute with China is costing taxpayers $831 per household.
- Trump claimed he terminated the individual mandate of the Affordable Care Act. NOTE: The individual mandate still exists, but the penalty for not having healthcare was reduced to zero dollars.
- Trump claimed be the "least racist person in the room". Biden responded by saying Trump is "one of the most racist presidents we've had in modern history". Biden added "this guy is a dog whistle about as big as a foghorn".
October 21, 2020 - Writing for the Guardian, David Smith offers the following analysis of Donald Trump Jr:
"'They pander,' he said of the Democratic party, according to the Arizona Daily Sun newspaper. 'They tell you everything you want to hear and do exactly the opposite. They lie to you for years – you guys understand that better than everyone.' It was one of numerous campaign stops for Trump's eldest son, seen by many as the heir apparent to the 'Make America Great Again' movement. Like his father, Don Jr delivers fiery populist speeches, tweets conspiracy theories and, above all, relishes goading, shocking and outraging liberals on air and online. Like his father, he has come to personify modern Republicanism. And as Trump continues to trail his Democratic challenger, Joe Biden, in the polls, attention has turned to who may take up his mantle after November. 'Trumpism replaced conservatism as the ideological underpinning of the Republican party and, because of that, they don't really fight about issues any more,' said Rick Wilson, a longtime Republican strategist co-founder of the anti-Trump group the Lincoln Project. 'They fight about affect and whether or not they're winning these ephemeral social media battles and, in that world, the highest order goal is the 'owning of the libs'. It is a throwaway phrase substituting the validity or strength of an argument with a sort of self-satisfaction that you have been transgressive in some way towards liberals or progressives. Donald Trump Jr is a master of that. He is a post-Republican Republican.'"
According to the Washington Post, Democratic voters in multiple states are receiving intimidating emails. From the story:
"Authorities in Florida and Alaska on Tuesday were investigating threatening emails sent to Democratic voters that claimed to be from the Proud Boys, but appeared instead to be a deceptive campaign making use of a vulnerability in the organization’s online network. The emails, which appeared to target Democrats using data from digital databases known as 'voter files,' told recipients the group was 'in possession of all your information' and instructed voters to change their party registration and cast their ballots for Trump. 'You will vote for Trump on election day or we will come after you,' warned the emails, which by Tuesday night were said to have reached voters in four states, three of them hotly contested swing states in the coming presidential election. The emails were reported in Pennsylvania, Arizona, Florida and Alaska. Only Alaska is not a major focus of the presidential campaign, but it does have a closely watched race for the US Senate. Enrique Tarrio, the chairman of the Proud Boys and the Florida state director of Latinos for Trump, denied involvement."
Writing for the Guardian, Diane Taylor offers this analysis of the Trump administration's efforts to downplay human rights abuses in its reports:
"The Trump administration has omitted or altered vital information about human rights – including torture, reproductive rights and persecution based on sexuality – from its annual assessments of human rights, a new report reveals. The state department's annual reports have long been relied upon by governments, judges and lawyers – as well as the United Nations – as a 'gold standard' of objective information about the human rights situation in countries around the world. The US began compiling these reports in 1976. The Asylum Research Centre conducted a line-by-line analysis and comparison between US state department human rights reports in the last year of the Obama administration and the first three years of the Trump administration. The ARC focused on five countries with serious human rights abuses – Eritrea, Iran, Iraq, Pakistan and Sudan – to conduct its analysis. It found that sections of the US reports were not consistent with the situation on the ground as documented by other reliable sources of information and had the effect of downplaying the seriousness of the human rights situations in these countries. The principal changes related to women's rights, civil and political rights, and issues relating to LGBTQ+ people."
According to a new Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Opinion Research and USAFacts survey, more than 8 in 10 Americans rated the spread of misinformation about government a "major problem" in the US today. The survey also concluded that nearly a quarter of Republican supporters say Donald Trump's messages are "rarely" or "never" based in fact.
Mark Meadows, the White House chief of staff, responded to reports that Trump walked out of his "60 Minutes" interview yesterday saying:
"Well, he didn't walk out. I mean, the characterization of that -- he spent over 45 minutes with Lesley Stahl. I've looked at every single minute of the interview, and then some. We have tape of every single minute. ... Listen, when you have a '60 Minutes' reporter, they should be a reporter, not an opinion journalist. And she came across more like an opinion journalist than a real reporter. Journalism should have standards, and we need to get to the bottom of it, so I think the American people will be able to see it."
In a new Sacha Baron Cohen film, which is a follow-up to Borat, Rudy Giuliani can be seen reaching into his trousers while lying on a bed in the presence of a girl Giuliani was led to believe is a 15 year-old journalist. In the scene, Cohen runs into the room screaming "She's 15. She's too old for you." Giuliani then quickly leaves the room.
Barack Obama campaigned for Biden in Pennsylvania. Here are some highlights:
- Obama mentioned recent reporting in the New York Times that Trump has an undisclosed bank account in China saying: "Can you imagine if I had a secret Chinese bank account when I was running for re-election? You think Fox News might have been a little concerned about that? They would have called me Beijing Barry."
- Obama stated: "We literally left this White House a pandemic playbook. They probably used it to – prop up a wobbly table somewhere." NOTE: The pandemic playbook is a 70-page document titled "Playbook for Early Response to High-Consequence Emerging Infectious Disease Threats and Biological Incidents" which was created in 2016 which shared lessons learned during the Ebola and Zika outbreaks.
Christopher Wray, the FBI director, issued the following warning regarding misinformation surrounding the election: "You should be confident your vote counts. Early unverified claims to the contrary should be viewed with a healthy dose of skepticism." According to the Washington Post, Trump and his advisers have discussed whether to fire Wray. From the story:
"The conversations among the president and senior aides stem in part from their disappointment that Wray in particular but [attorney general William Barr] as well have not done what Trump had hoped — indicate that Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden, his son Hunter Biden, or other Biden associates are under investigation, these people say. Like others, they spoke on the condition of anonymity to disclose internal discussions. In the campaign's closing weeks, the president has intensified public calls for jailing his challenger, much as he did for Hillary Clinton, his opponent in 2016. Trump has called Biden a 'criminal' without articulating what laws he believes the former vice president has broken. People familiar with the discussions say that Trump wants official action similar to the announcement made 11 days before the last presidential election by then-FBI Director James B. Comey, who informed Congress he had reopened an investigation into Clinton's use of a private email server while she was secretary of state after potential new evidence had been discovered."
Writing for the Guardian, Kari Paul reports that Julia Hahn, Donald Trump's deputy communications director, had connections to white nationalism when she joined the White House as an aide. From the story:
"Leaked emails published Wednesday in a report from the Southern Poverty Law Center show Hahn, who previously worked at right wing propaganda site Breitbart News, was close with Peter Brimelow, founder of the white nationalist hate group VDARE. The group promotes the idea of 'white genocide', the conspiracy theory that suggests white people are systematically being replaced by non-white people. VDARE has also published commentary from a chief organizer of white supremacist 'Unite the Right' rally, an event in Charlottesville, Virginia that led to the murder of one counter-protestor. Emails from Hahn revealed additional connections to white supremacist groups and individuals. The communications were leaked by her former colleague Breitbart News editor Katie McHugh. The trove included text messages, Google Chat transcripts, and more than 600 emails taken from Hahn’s private and Breitbart News work emails. McHugh once espoused right wing views including anti-immigration hate and rubbed shoulders with open white nationalists, but has since renounced far-right extremism and racism."
October 20, 2020 - USA Today, which has never before endorsed a candidate for president, has decided to endorse Joe Biden in the 2020 election. From the endorsement:
"Maybe you backed Trump the last time around because you hoped he'd shake things up in Washington or bring back blue-collar jobs. Maybe you liked his populist, anti-elitist message. Maybe you couldn't stomach the idea of supporting a Democrat as polarizing as Clinton. Maybe you cast a ballot for a minor party candidate, or just stayed home. Now, two weeks until election day, we suggest you consider a variation of the question Republican Ronald Reagan asked voters when he ran for president in 1980: Is America better off now than it was four years ago? Beset by disease, economic suffering, a racial reckoning and natural disasters fueled by a changing climate, the nation is dangerously off course. If this were a choice between two capable major party nominees who happened to have opposing ideas, we wouldn't choose sides. Different voters have different concerns. But this is not a normal election, and these are not normal times. This year, character, competence and credibility are on the ballot. Given Trump's refusal to guarantee a peaceful transfer of power if he loses, so, too, is the future of America's democracy."
Michael Steele, the former chairman of the Republican National Committee, has endorsed Joe Biden for president. From the endorsement:
"I was, and am, convinced that conservative principles, individual initiative, and free enterprise are the most effective means of empowering people to achieve the American Dream. Yet, I cannot support the nominee of my party. Rather than binding up the nation's wounds, Trump exacerbates division. Rather than standing up to the world's dictators, Trump cravenly seeks the favor of thugs. Rather than fostering free enterprise, Trump embraces economic principles not only outdated in Lincoln's time, but made even worse today by a leader who lost close to a billion dollars in a single year running a casino. Rather than seeking to build on the legacy of the Republican Party's founders, of which Trump is surely ignorant, Trump has posited a single purpose for the GOP — the celebration of him. Consequently, America has watched as the Republican Party stopped pursuing its animating principles of freedom and opportunity. It has given up its voice on things that mattered and instead bent the arc of the party towards the baser motives of one man, who is neither a Republican nor a conservative."
Writing for the Guardian, Ashley Dawson, a professor of postcolonial studies at the City University of New York, warns that Trump may try to steal the election, and is urging people to begin preparing for that possibility. From the write-up:
"Donald Trump has told us openly that he is planning to steal the election. In recent months he has explicitly declared that any election in which he does not win will have been rigged and illegitimate. He has claimed repeatedly and against all evidence that mail-in ballots are invalid. There has been remarkably little discussion of how to stop Trump. In the face of open declarations of plans to overthrow the tattered remnants of democracy in this country, American exceptionalism seems to have lulled many people into a false sense of complacency that a coup cannot happen in the US. But a coup will have taken place if all votes are not counted and honored, and Trump's attacks on mail-in ballots suggests this is exactly the strategy he intends to pursue. According to the civil rights activist George Lakey, planning to defeat a coup can actually help reduce the chances of attempts to overthrow democracy since plotters are likely to think again if they know the public is well prepared. In addition, power grabs tend to succeed or fail in a matter of weeks or months. Scholars have shown that opposition forces that did not prepare for a coup often lost valuable time building alliances and mobilizing for action subsequently. Advance preparation often made a decisive difference in defeating coup attempts."
Kristen Welker, the NBC News reporter who will serve as the moderator for the upcoming third presidential debate, has become the subject of attacks on twitter from Donald Trump. Over the weekend, Trump called her "terrible & unfair".
Daniel Ubeda, a Miami, FL, police officer, was admonished by his department for wearing a Trump 2020 mask, while in full uniform, inside a polling location in a government center. Steve Simeonidis, chairman of the Miami-Dade Democratic Paty, whose cell phone image of Ubeda went viral online, stated: "This is city-funded voter intimidation. Ubeda should be suspended immediately".
Trump sent the following tweet following an interview with 60 Minutes' Host Lesley Stahl: "Lesley Stahl of 60 Minutes not wearing a mask in the White House after her interview with me. Much more to come." This tweet raised the prospect that pehaps the interview didn't go well. This thinking was confirmed by a tweet from CNN White House correspondent Kaitlan Collins who tweeted: "Apparently there was some drama while President Trump was taping his 60 Minutes interview today. He abruptly ended his solo interview after around 45 minutes & did not return for a scheduled walk & talk he was supposed to tape with Pence, @abdallahcnn and I are told by sources." Trump then tweeted the following: "I am pleased to inform you that, for the sake of accuracy in reporting, I am considering posting my interview with Lesley Stahl of 60 Minutes, PRIOR TO AIRTIME! This will be done so that everybody can get a glimpse of what a FAKE and BIASED interview is all about..."
News surfaced that lawyers working for a committee assigned to reunify families that were separated under Trump's 2018 "zero tolerance" policy have not been able to reach the families of 545 children. According to a court filing, it is believed that up to "two-thirds" of the parents may have been deported without their children.
Elliott Broidy, a major fundraiser for Republicans and for Trump, has pleaded guilty to a charge of conspiring to violate the Foreign Agents Registration Act.
Donald Trump held a rally in Erie, Pennsylvania. Here are some highlights:
- Trump told the crowd: "You have to watch what we do to 60 Minutes. You'll get such a kick out of it, you're going to get a kick out of it. Lesley Stahl is not going to be happy."
- Trump said "If you want depression, doom and despair. Vote for sleepy Joe Biden. And boredom."
October 19, 2020 - Dr Anthony Fauci was asked if he was surprised that Trump contracted coronavirus. Fauci responded:
"Absolutely not. I was worried that he was going to get sick when I saw him in a completely precarious situation of crowded, no separation between people, and almost nobody wearing a mask."
Chad Wolf, the acting secretary of homeland security, released his department's assessment of violent threats to the nation. In the foreword, Wolf wrote that he was "particularly concerned about white supremacist violent extremists who have been exceptionally lethal in their abhorrent, targeted attacks in recent years. [They] seek to force ideological change in the United States through violence, death, and destruction."
Writing for the Washington Post, James Downie offers the following analysis of a Biden presidency should he win in November:
"The night of Barack Obama's inauguration, congressional Republicans committed to block every bill — including desperately needed economic aid. In a Biden administration, we'll see the same. We'll hear wails about the national debt, fake fury about small programs that right-wing outlets have turned into scandals, and nonsense about balancing the budget like a family checkbook, all amplified by credulous media. Never mind that Republicans blew hundreds of billions on ineffective tax cuts for the wealthiest and ran a $3.1 trillion deficit. Without stimulus, Americans will continue to suffer, and Republicans want to benefit politically from that. How a Biden administration deals with this depends on whether Democrats also retake the Senate. If McConnell remains majority leader, Biden's presidency will be in trouble even before Inauguration Day."
The New York Times provided an interactive designed to educate voters about how they can make sure their mail-in ballots get counted. In the interactive, they provide this observation:
"All these rules exist, we're told, to ensure a free and fair election. Yet there is no widespread voter fraud in America. The real risk is that your vote will be thrown out on technicalities that were designed to disenfranchise left-leaning voters"
According to Newsweek, the twitter account of Charlie Kirk was locked after being flagged fro spreading misinformation. From the story:
"The Twitter account of conservative activist and author Charlie Kirk was locked over the weekend for spreading misinformation. Kirk, founder and president of Turning Point USA, a student-focused right-wing activism organization, confirmed on Sunday that he did not have access to his profile, telling Fox News he was in a 'hostage situation' with the social networking platform. Twitter said in a lock notification to Kirk that one of his posts had violated rules 'against posting misleading information about voting.' Elaborating, Twitter warned: 'You may not post content providing false information about voting or registering to vote.' Kirk's Twitter account was locked after he falsely asserted it was 370,000 mail-in ballots that were rejected by Pennsylvania state officials, not ballot applications."
Writing for Politico, Natasha Bertran and Kyle Cheney offer this analysis of Trump's relationship with the intelligence community:
"What initially seemed like [Trump's] mere boredom — which demoralized intelligence officials but could potentially be managed by including pictures and charts in briefings to hold the president's attention — later morphed into something the officials saw as more sinister: an interest in wielding intelligence as a political cudgel. Whether selectively declassified by spy chiefs he installed for their loyalty, or obscured from congressional and public scrutiny if it conflicted with his preferred narrative, intelligence became just another weapon in the president's arsenal. Trump's actions, and the endless partisan battles over the Russia probe and impeachment, have left the intelligence community bruised and battered ... The Biden campaign has been considering a couple of veteran national security hands who could serve in senior intelligence roles in a Biden administration and hit the ground running to repair what they see as the damage Trump has done to the intelligence community over the last four years. 'There is no question that Biden and his team will have an urgent task in restoring faith, trust, competence, and morale in the intelligence community,' said former NSA general counsel Glenn Gerstell, who retired earlier this year. 'It's going to be a huge effort.'"
Rolling Stone magazine has endorsed Joe Biden for president saying:
"We've lived for the past four years under a man categorically unfit to be president. Fortunately for America, Joe Biden is Donald Trump’s opposite in nearly every category: The Democratic presidential nominee evinces competence, compassion, steadiness, integrity, and restraint. Perhaps most important in this moment, Biden holds a profound respect for the institutions of American democracy, as well as a deep knowledge about how our government — and our system of checks and balances — is meant to work; he aspires to lead the nation as its president, not its dictator. The 2020 election, then, offers the nation a chance to reboot and rebuild from the racist, authoritarian, know-nothing wreckage wrought by the 45th president. And there are few Americans better suited to the challenge than Joe Biden ... As much as any specific policy, this election is a referendum on character — the character of the president and the character of the nation. America doesn't need a saint in the Oval Office. But the country has been reeling with a broken man at the Resolute Desk. Trump is a narcissist and an egotist, a shameless liar and an open bigot, a man who simply cannot understand the notion of sacrifice for the greater good, even as he demands unthinking fealty from those in his service."
Writing for New York Magazine, Matt Stieb offers the following analysys of recent Trump insults:
"At a rally in Carson City, Nevada, he told a crowd of unmasked supporters that Joe Biden will 'listen to the scientists,' in a rigid tone and posture that suggested that only a sucker or loser would do such a thing. The insult may not be as barbed as the president thinks it is. In the midst of a pandemic which has killed almost 220,000 Americans, voters still fear the threat of the virus and wish for a more competent and robust federal response. Two out of three Americans are concerned that they or someone close to them will contract the virus, while a similar number (65 percent) agreed that 'Trump has not taken the coronavirus outbreak in the U.S. seriously enough,' according to a poll taken shortly after the outbreak in the White House was made public ... While the president has long trafficked in the conservative fable that Democrats are out to ruin Christmas, he directly blamed his opponent for any holiday interruptions this year. 'The Christmas season will be canceled,' Trump said, describing a Biden win — without accounting for the fact that he will still be president either way come December 25."
The Washington Post offered the following analysis of the White House coronavirus task force, which they call "Trump's den of dissent":
"As summer faded into autumn and the novel coronavirus continued to ravage the nation unabated, Scott Atlas, a neuroradiologist whose commentary on Fox News led President Trump to recruit him to the White House, consolidated his power over the government's pandemic response. Discord on the coronavirus task force has worsened since the arrival of Atlas, whom colleagues said they regard as ill-informed, manipulative and at times dishonest. White House coronavirus response coordinator, Deborah Birx, recently confronted vice president Pence, about the acrimony, according to two people familiar with the meeting. Birx, whose profile and influence has eroded considerably since Atlas's arrival, told Pence's office that she does not trust Atlas, does not believe he is giving Trump sound advice and wants him removed from the task force, the two people said. The result has been a US response increasingly plagued by distrust, infighting and lethargy, just as experts predict coronavirus cases could surge this winter and deaths could reach 400,000 by year’s end ... Twitter on Sunday removed a tweet from one of President Donald Trump's top Covid-19 advisers, which falsely claimed that masks don’t work to prevent the spread of coronavirus. The tweet no longer appeared on the site Sunday morning, replaced with a note saying 'This Tweet is no longer available' and a link to Twitter's rules and policies explaining why the company removes or limits certain posts. The tweet in question, posted Saturday by Dr. Scott Atlas, read: 'Masks work? NO: LA, Miami, Hawaii, Alabama, France, Phlippnes, UK, Spain, Israel. WHO:'widesprd use not supported' + many harms; Heneghan/Oxf CEBM:'despite decades, considerble uncertainty re value'; CDC rvw May:'no sig red'n in inflnz transm'n'; learn why.' In a follow-up tweet posted later Saturday, Atlas wrote: 'That means the right policy is @realDonaldTrump guideline: use masks for their intended purpose — when close to others, especially hi risk. Otherwise, social distance. No widespread mandates.' Later Sunday, the coordinator of the Trump administration's testing response, Dr. Brett Giroir, the assistant secretary for health at the Department of Health and Human Services, tweeted: '#Masks work? YES!'"
Joe Biden sent the following tweet in response to Trump's claim that he will listen to the scientists:
"...yes" - Joe Biden
While speaking to his campaign staff on a conference call, Trump said the following:
"People are tired of coronavirus. People are tired of hearing Fauci and all these idiots ... Fauci is a disaster ... Every time he goes on television, there's always a bomb, but there's a bigger bomb if you fire him"
According to a New York Times/Siena College survey, 67% of American voters say they trust Fauci as a source of information on the pandemic, compared to 26% who trust Trump. NOTE: The Trump campaign recently used a quote by Dr Fauci in one of its ads, one on which Fauci stated: "That ad clearly implies strongly that I'm endorsing a political candidate, and I have not given them my permission to do that." Thus, Trump is calling Fauci a disaster while simultaneously using the expert's words to bolster his own credibility on the pandemic response. At the same time that Trump was calling Fauci a disaster, Fauci was accepting an award for "exemplary leadership". While accepting the award, Fauci stated that "We have a lot of challenges ahead of us, and I can't help thinking that we're really going through a time that's disturbingly anti-science in certain segments of our society."
Writing for the New York Times, Maggie Haberman writes that many Trump allies are privately pessimistic about Trump's chances for victory. From the story:
"Away from their candidate and the television cameras, some of Mr. Trump's aides are quietly conceding just how dire his political predicament appears to be, and his inner circle has returned to a state of recriminations and backbiting. Mark Meadows, the White House chief of staff, is drawing furious blame from the president and some political advisers for his handling of Mr. Trump's recent hospitalization, and he is seen as unlikely to hold onto his job past Election Day. Mr. Trump's campaign manager, Bill Stepien, has maintained to senior Republicans that the president has a path forward in the race but at times has conceded it is narrow. ... Less than three weeks before Election Day, there is now an extraordinary gulf separating Mr. Trump's experience of the campaign from the more sobering political assessments of a number of party officials and operatives, according to interviews with nearly a dozen Republican strategists, White House allies and elected officials. Among some of Mr. Trump's lieutenants, there is an attitude of grit mixed with resignation: a sense that the best they can do for the final stretch is to keep the president occupied, happy and off Twitter as much as possible, rather than producing a major shift in strategy."
Donald Trump took questions from reporters after landing in Arizona. While answering questions, Trunp said to one of the repoters regarding suposed emails of Joe Biden's son Hunter:
"You're a criminal for not reporting it. You are a criminal for not reporting it."
Trump held a rally today in Prescott, Arizona. Here are some highlights:
- Trump attacked CNN saying: "They're getting tired of the pandemic, aren't they? You turn on CNN, that's all they cover. 'Covid, Covid, Pandemic, Covid, Covid.' You know why? They're trying to talk everybody out of voting. People aren't buying it, CNN, you dumb bastards."
- Trump mentioned Joe Biden, which led to the crowd chanting "Lock him up!" Trump responded by saying "I know people that would've had him locked up five weeks ago".
October 18, 2020 - Over 218,000 Americans have died from covid-19.
David Rothkopf, the former editor of Foreign Policy, has a new book called "Traitor: A History of American Betrayal from Benedict Arnold to Donald Trump." Charles Kaiser, writing for the Guardian, offers the following review:
"One of the most important qualities a good reporter can have is a very low threshold for outrage. Useful, critical coverage of your subject becomes impossible once nonchalance or indifference has inured you to scandal. This has become a huge problem during Donald Trump's presidency. Inside the souls of far too many Washington reporters, a never-ending wave of scandals, crimes, indictments and assorted obstructions of justice has washed away this essential capacity for indignation – just when the republic needs it most. That's why a book like David Rothkopf's Traitor still serves a vital purpose, even after dozens of other books and thousands of articles about the president's felonious behavior. A former senior official in the Clinton administration and editor of Foreign Policy who has taught at Columbia and Georgetown, Rothkopf still has all of the anger a good chronicler of the Trump administration requires."
Trump was asked if holding large rallies during the pandemic sends the wrong message. Trump's response:
"Well, I don't think [holding a rally sends the wrong message] because I'm not a big shutdown believer. If you take a look at your state, which I love very much and, you know, we had a great victory there, but if you take a look at your state, they've been shut down and they’ve been locked down and locked up and, you know, they've been doing it for a long time and, at some point, you also have to be able to understand the disease." NOTE: These comments were made in Wisconsin, which is not engaged in a complete lockdown.
Nancy Pelosi, the House speaker, was asked about Trump making light of the plot to kidnap Gretchn Whitmer. Pelosi responded:
"The president has to realize that words of the president of the United States weigh a ton ... the biggest antidote to his poison is the vote."
Appearing on This Week with George Stephanopoulos, Ronna McDaniel, the chair of the Republican National Committee, was asked if she condemns the QAnon conspiracy theory. McDaniel's response:
"I knew you were going to ask me that question. I knew it because it's something the voters are not even thinking about. It's a fringe group. It's not part of our party. The vice president said, I dismiss it out of hand. The president said, you know what, I don't know anything about this group. But, of course, you're going to ask me about that because it has absolutely nothing to do with this election."
During an interview with NBC's Meet the Press, Michigan governor Gretchen Whitmer was asked about Trump's encouragement of "lock her up" chants at his Michigan rally. Whitmer's response:
"It's incredibly disturbing, that the president of the United States, 10 days after a plot to kidnap me, put me on trial and execute me was uncovered, the president is at it again and inspiring and incentivising and inciting this kind of domestic terrorism. It is wrong. It's got to end. It is dangerous not just for me and my family, but for public servants everywhere who are doing their jobs and trying to protect their fellow Americans. People of goodwill on both sides of the aisle need to step up and call this out and bring the heat down. This is the United States of America. We do not tolerate actions like that. He has given comfort to and that's why we all have to be in this together."
JB Pritzker, the governor of Illinois, offered the following commentary on the handling of the pandemic:
"People are not following the mitigations, because the modeling is so bad at the leadership level, the federal level. We are trying to get the word out and you're trying to continue to convince people to do the right thing but it is the president's allies in our state, all across the state, who are simply saying to people don't pay any attention to the mitigations, don't follow the rules."
Regarding Trump specifically, Pritzker said:
"He's modeling bad behavior. He doesn't wear a mask in public. He has rallies where they don't encourage people to wear masks in public. Truly, this is now rhetoric that people understand, particularly in rural areas in my state, 'Well, the president doesn't wear a mask; we don't need to wear a mask. It's not that dangerous.' The truth of the matter is that it is very dangerous."
According to the Washington Post, the Sturgis motorcycle rally in South Dakota, may be linked to a covid outbreak in the upper midwest. From the story:
"Within weeks of the gathering, the Dakotas, along with Wyoming, Minnesota and Montana, were leading the nation in new coronavirus infections per capita."
At a drive-in rally in North Carolina, Joe Biden said the following regarding Trump:
"As my grandfather would say, 'This guy's gone around the bend if he thinks we've turned the corner. Things are getting worse, and he continues to lie to us about circumstances."
Dr Scott Atlas, one of Trump's top coronavirus advisers, tweeted the following:
"Masks work? NO." NOTE: Twitter removed the tweet saying it violated its misleading information policy on covid-19.
October 17, 2020 - Over 215,000 Americans have died from Covid-19. Anthony Fauci told a reporter that the White House coronavirus task force is hardly meeting anymore. Writing for the Guardian, Richard Wolffe offers the following commentary on QAnon:
"There is something worse than Donald Trump's takeover of the Republican party. Yes, even worse than a party that doesn’t take seriously a pandemic that has killed more than 217,000 Americans. Worse than a party that doesn't care about locking up children in cages at the border or separating them permanently from their parents. Worse than a party that celebrates a leader who was impeached for abusing overseas military aid as a tool to smear his political opponent. What could be worse than Trump's version of Republican politics? It's the Trump-driven conversion of the Grand Old Party into a cult of unhinged conspiracy wingnuts. The QAnon cult is a bizarre world where everything makes sense of nonsense: where Trump is a savior of the nation's children from a secret pedophile ring of satanic Democrats and deep state officials, who will be overthrown in some great awakening. And that's the sane, simplified version of the story. It should be easier to condemn these fringe-heads than the white supremacists who form such a loyal base for this white supremacist president. But it isn't. Because to the spiritual leader of the cult of Trump – Donald himself – there are no fringe-heads who think he's a savior. They are all just very fine people."
During a town hall meeting, Ben Sasse, a Republican senator from Nebraska told the crowd that Trump "flirted with white supremacists", "kisses dictator's butts" and also criticized him for the "way he treats women and spends like a drunken sailor."
Meredith Dowty, a 59-year-old resident from Wichita, Kansas, was arrested over allegations he had threatened to kidnap and kill Brandon Whipple, the city's mayor, over discontent about the city's mask mandate. According to Whipple, Dowty "said he was going to kidnap me and slash my throat and he needed my address because I needed to see the hangman – me and everyone who, something about tyranny".
Trump held two rallies, one in Michigan, and one in Wisconsin. Trump is behind in the polls in both states. Here are some highlights from the rallies:
- Trump accused Joe Biden and the left of wanting to "erase American history" and "purge American values".
- Trump claimed Democrats are "anti-American radicals" and because of that, moderates have "a moral duty" to joint the Republican party.
- Trump claimed a Joe Biden presidency would spur "the single biggest depression in the history of our country" and "turn Michigan into a refugee camp".
- Trump claimed that Biden will "shut down the country, delay the vaccine and prolong the pandemic".
- Trump said "Can you imagine if I lose? I will have lost to the worst candidate in the history of American politics. What do I do?"
- Trump made the following comments regarding Michigan governor Gretchen Whitmer: "They said she was threatened. And she blamed me ... You’ve got to get your governor to open up your state okay. Hopefully you’ll be sending her packing pretty soon." The crowd responded to the comments by chanting "lock her up". Trump responded with "lock them all up".
Tori Saylor, governor Whitmer's digital director, reacted to the "lock her up" chants saying:
"Every single time the president does this at a rally, the violent rhetoric towards [the governor] immediately escalates on social media. It has to stop. It just has to."
Governor Whitmer responded on twitter saying:
"This is exactly the rhetoric that has put me, my family, and other government officials' lives in danger while we try to save the lives of our fellow Americans. It needs to stop."
October 16, 2020 - Writing for the Guardian, Adam Gabbatt offered the following analysis of Trump's town hall yesterday:
"Guthrie challenged Trump over QAnon, a baseless online conspiracy theory that the FBI believes is a potential domestic terror threat. Asked by Guthrie if he would denounce the QAnon theory and 'just say it's crazy and not true', Trump responded: 'I don't know about QAnon. What I do hear about it, they are very strongly against pedophilia,' Trump said. Trump then seemingly offered a tacit defense of QAnon, whose adherents believe that a cabal of Satan-worshipping Democrats, Hollywood celebrities and billionaires runs the world while engaging in pedophilia. This week Trump shared a post from a QAnon Twitter account which claimed, baselessly, that Joe Biden had had a navy Seal team killed. Guthrie asked Trump why he had done so. 'That was a retweet! People can decide for themselves!' Trump said. Guthrie responded: 'I don't get that. You're the president, not someone's crazy uncle.' On Twitter, Trump's niece, who wrote the book Too Much and Never Enough documenting her experiences with her uncle, appeared to suggest Guthrie could be mistaken."
"Actually ..." - Mary L Trump, Niece of Donald Trump
Writing for the Washington Post, Aaron Blake and Eugene Scott offered the following takeaways from last night's competing town halls:
"1 - Trump's smorgasbord of misinformation was deftly called out in real time. In the approximately 20 minutes before the town hall was turned over to audience questions, Guthrie thoroughly grilled him.
2 - Biden had the steady showing he needed with the clock ticking down. Biden didn't make any glaring mistakes that would jeopardize his position.
3 - Trump steps into another non-denouncing minefield — on QAnon. In the span of less than a minute Trump sought to once and for all put to bed the denounce-white-supremacy issue that dogged him after the debate two weeks ago — then almost immediately created another not-denouncing issue.
4 - Biden opens the door further on court-packing and says he'll confirm a stance soon. Biden has been cagey in his answers about this. He has said that if he gives an answer that will dominate the conversation, rather than the nomination of Amy Coney Barrett itself. Biden said he'll take a firm position by election day.
5 - Trump's last negative test before his coronavirus diagnosis: Still clear as mud. He said he was 'probably' tested the day of the debate. Then added, 'Possibly I did, possibly I didn’t.'"
Writing for the Guardian, Lois Beckett offered this analysis of the violence linked to QAnon:
"QAnon adherents believe that Donald Trump is trying to save the world from a cabal of satanic pedophiles. The conspiracy theory's narrative includes centuries-old antisemitic tropes, like the belief that the cabal is harvesting blood from abused children, and it names specific people, including Democratic politicians and Hollywood celebrities, as participants in a global plot. Experts call these extreme, baseless claims 'an incitement to violence'. The conspiracy theory's claims have put ordinary people at risk. The FBI identified QAnon in 2019 as a potential domestic terror threat and the Combating Terrorism Center at West Point described it as a 'novel challenge to public security'. QAnon supporters believe that there will soon be mass arrests, and members of the cabal will be brought to justice. If supporters of the conspiracy theory begin to lose faith in Trump's ability to stop the cabal of child abusers, said Travis View, one of the hosts of the QAnon Anonymous podcast, that might inspire them to begin taking more direct violent action themselves."
Donald Trump retweeted an article from the Babylon Bee, which is a satirical site. Trump's tweet: "Twitter Shuts Down Entire Network To Slow Spread Of Negative Biden News https://t.co/JPmjOrKPcr via @TheBabylonBee Wow, this has never been done in history. This includes his really bad interview last night. Why is Twitter doing this. Bringing more attention to Sleepy Joe & Big T". NOTE: Here are some examples of other articles that have appeared recently on the Babylon Bee:
"Mark Zuckerberg pops out of man's shower to warn him the story he's reading is fake news"
"Senator Hirono demands Amy Coney Barrett be weighed against a duck to see if she is a witch"
"Man forced to resign as patriarch after failing to bring all groceries inside in one trip"
Notable response to Trump's tweet:
"The President obviously falls for obvious satire and his Twitter followers call it 'trolling' and declare it brilliant." - Tim Carney
CNN offered the following fact check of some of Trump's claims during his town hall:
"* 85% of people who wear masks get the coronavirus – false
* US deaths from Covid were expected to exceed 2 million – misleading
* Biden called him 'xenophobic' – misleading
* Biden wants to 'quadruple' taxes – false
* We set a record on jobs – misleading
* 'Thousands of ballots' were found in dumpsters – false
* He'll protect people with pre-existing conditions – false
* He'll 'take care' of DACA recipients – misleading
* Obama and Biden never tried criminal justice reform – false
* He has done more for the Black community than any president but Lincoln – false
* People can decide for themselves if Osama bin Laden is alive – 'a baseless claim with no evidence to back it up. The facts around the killing of bin Laden are not a debatable opinion.'"
ProPublica published an investigative report on how the CDC succumbed to political pressure and infiltration from the Trump administration to issue advice its own scientists disagreed with. From the story:
"How could an agency that eradicated smallpox globally and wiped out polio in the United States have fallen so far? ProPublica obtained hundreds of emails and other internal government documents and interviewed more than 30 CDC employees, contractors and Trump administration officials who witnessed or were involved in key moments of the crisis. Although news organizations around the world have chronicled the CDC's stumbles in real time, ProPublica's reporting affords the most comprehensive inside look at the escalating tensions, paranoia and pained discussions that unfolded behind the walls of CDC's Atlanta headquarters. And it sheds new light on the botched COVID-19 tests, the unprecedented political interference in public health policy, and the capitulations of some of the world's top public health leaders. Senior CDC staff describe waging battles that are as much about protecting science from the White House as protecting the public from COVID-19. It is a war that they have, more often than not, lost. Employees spoke openly about their 'hill to die on' — the political interference that would prompt them to leave. Yet again and again, they surrendered and did as they were told. It wasn't just worries over paying mortgages or forfeiting the prestige of the job. Many feared that if they left and spoke out, the White House would stop consulting the CDC at all, and would push through even more dangerous policies. To some veteran scientists, this acquiescence was the real sign that the CDC had lost its way. One scientist swore repeatedly in an interview and said, 'The cowardice and the caving are disgusting to me.' Collectively, the interviews and documents show an insular, rigorous agency colliding head-on with an administration desperate to preserve the impression that it had the pandemic under control."
According to Variety, the Biden town hall averaged 13.9 million viewers, while the Trump town hall averaged 13 million. Trump reportedly told aides he wanted to get better ratings than Biden, then use the numbers to humiliate his rival. Trump geld an event in Fort Myers, Florida, called "protecting America's seniors." Here are some highlights:
- Trump told the crowd regarding coronavirus: "we are rounding the turn. I say that all the time." NOTE: Coronavirus cases are on the rise across the country. New coronavirus cases yesterday marked the highest single-day total since mid-August.
- Trump told the crowd regarding children being at school: "We cannot allow unscientific, panic-driven, fear-based policies to deny our children and grandchildren their future and their dreams."
- Trump told the crowd that the Bidens are a "crime family".
According to the AP, the US has posted a record-high federal budget deficit of 3.1tr, due to decreased revenue and increased government spending amid the coronavirus pandemic. From the story:
"The Trump administration reported Friday that the deficit for the budget year that ended on 30 September was three times the size of last year's deficit of $984bn. It was also $2tr higher than the administration had estimated in February, before the pandemic hit. It was the government's largest annual shortfall in dollar terms, surpassing the previous record of $1.4tr set in 2009. At that time, the Obama administration was spending heavily to shore up the nation's banking system and limit the economic damage from the 2008 financial crisis. ... The administration's final accounting of the 2020 budget year shows that revenues fell by 1.2% to $3.42tr, while government spending surged 47.3% to $6.55tr. That spending reflects the relief programs Congress passed in the spring to support the economy as millions of Americans were losing their jobs."
Barbera A Res, a former Trump Organization staffer, has published a book called Tower of Lies: What My 18 Years of Working with Donald Trump Reveals About Him. The Los Angeles Times obtained an early copy, and released this preview:
"The book recounts racist, anti-Semitic and sexist behavior, along with Trump's ability to lie 'so naturally' that 'if you didn't know the actual facts, he could slip something past you.' ... recalled Trump berating her when he spotted a Black worker on a construction site. 'Get him off there right now,' he said, 'and don't ever let that happen again. I don't want people to think that Trump Tower is being built by Black people.' Trump turned red-faced when she brought a young Black job applicant into the lobby of another building, she wrote. 'Barbara, I don't want Black kids sitting in the lobby where people come to buy million-dollar apartments!' Res wrote that Trump hired a German residential manager, believing his heritage made him 'especially clean and orderly', and then joked in front of Jewish executives that 'this guy still reminisces about the ovens, so you guys better watch out for him'. Trump and his campaign often pointed to Res during the 2016 election as an example of his progressive history of hiring and promoting women. But during her 18-year tenure, she wrote, Trump talked frequently and graphically about women’s looks and his own sexual exploits – and forced Res to fire a woman because she was pregnant and bar her own secretary from important meetings because she did not look like a model."
According to the Wall Street Journal, More than 1,000 current and former officers of a disease-fighting program at the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have authored an open letter criticizing the US response to Covid. From the story:
"The absence of national leadership on Covid-19 is unprecedented and dangerous. CDC should be at the forefront of a successful response to this global public health emergency."
The Minnesota department of health reports that a Covid-19 "outbreak" in Minnesota has been traced to a Trump rally in Bemidji in September.
October 15, 2020 - According to an NBC/WSJ poll, Biden holds an 11 point lead nationally over Trump. According to the Daily Beast, conservative media mogul Rupert Murdoch believes Joe Biden will win the November election. During an interview on Fox Business with anchor Stuart Varney, Trump claimed "The media in our country are the enemy of the people. Remember that." Varney did not push back on the claim. Writing for the Guardian, Kari Paul offers the following analysis of a controversy surrounding a New York Post story about emails supposedly found on a laptop owned by Hunter Biden:
"Facebook and Twitter took steps on Wednesday to limit the spread of a controversial New York Post article critical of Joe Biden, sparking outrage among conservatives and stoking debate over how social media platforms should tackle misinformation ahead of the US election. In an unprecedented step against a major news publication, Twitter blocked users from posting links to the Post story or photos from the unconfirmed report. Users attempting to share the story were shown a notice saying: 'We can't complete this request because this link has been identified by Twitter or our partners as being potentially harmful.' Users clicking or retweeting a link already posted to Twitter are shown a warning the 'link may be unsafe'. Twitter said it was limiting the article's spread due to questions about 'the origins of the materials' included in the article, which contained material supposedly pulled from a computer that had been left by Hunter Biden at a Delaware computer repair shop in April 2019. Twitter policies prohibit 'directly distribut[ing] content obtained through hacking that contains private information'.
...
The article implicates the former vice-president in connection with his son Hunter's Ukraine business and was headlined: 'Smoking-gun email reveals how Hunter Biden introduced Ukrainian businessman to VP dad.' The unnamed owner of the computer repair shop told the newspaper he passed a copy of the hard drive on the seemingly abandoned computer to Rudy Giuliani, Trump's personal lawyer. The story focused on one email from April 2015, in which a Burisma board adviser thanked Hunter for inviting him to a Washington meeting with his father. But there was no indication of when the meeting was scheduled or whether it ever happened."
Trump held a rally today in Greenville, NC. Here are some highlights:
- Regarding coronavirus, Trump claimed: "It's going to peter out and it's going to end."
- Trump said of Anthony Fauci: "He said do not wear a mask, do not wear a mask under any circumstances. Then they say, 'Oh, wear a mask'." FACT CHECK: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention initially said healthy people without any known exposure to coronavirus did not have to wear masks, but the agency altered that guidance after evidence showed masks could help limit the spread of the virus from people who are asymptomatic or not yet showing symptoms.
- Trump said of Fauci: "He's a Democrat; everybody knows that." FACT CHECK: Anthony Fauci has no political affiliation.
Greta Thunberg responded on twitter to Amy Coney Barrett's comments on climate change yesterday, tweeting: "To be fair, I don't have any 'views on climate change' either. Just like I don't have any 'views' on gravity, the fact that the earth is round, photosynthesis nor evolution ... But understanding and knowing their existence really makes life in the 21st century so much easier." According to the Washington Post, the White House was warned that Rudy Giuliani was the target of a Russian influence operation. From the story:
"The warnings were based on multiple sources, including intercepted communications, that showed Giuliani was interacting with people tied to Russian intelligence during a December 2019 trip to Ukraine, where he was gathering information that he thought would expose corrupt acts by former vice president Joe Biden and his son Hunter. The intelligence raised concerns that Giuliani was being used to feed Russian misinformation to the president, the former officials said, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive information and conversations. The warnings to the White House, which have not been previously reported, led national security adviser Robert O'Brien to caution Trump in a private conversation that any information Giuliani brought back from Ukraine should be considered contaminated by Russia, one of the former officials said. The message was, 'Do what you want to do, but your friend Rudy has been worked by Russian assets in Ukraine,' this person said. Officials wanted 'to protect the president from coming out and saying something stupid,' particularly since he was facing impeachment over his own efforts to strong-arm Ukraine's president into investigating the Bidens. But O'Brien emerged from the meeting uncertain whether he had gotten through to the president. Trump had 'shrugged his shoulders' at O'Brien's warning, the former official said, and dismissed concern about his lawyer's activities by saying, 'That's Rudy.'"
Donald Trump and Joe Biden held dueling town halls, after Trump pulled out of a planned debate. Biden is doing his town hall in Philadelphia, Trump is doing his in Miami. Here are some highlights:
- Trump claimed that the CDC found that "85% of people who wear a mask catch it". FACT CHECK: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention study that Trump is citing (and has done before) found that 85% of a small group (about 150) of Covid-19 patients surveyed said they had often or always worn a mask in days before their diagnoses.
- Trump was asked if he took a test for coronavirus the day of the first presodential debate. His response: "Possibly I did, possibly I didn't"
- Trump was asked about QAnon. Here are some notable exchanges with NBC host Savannah Guthrie:
TRUMP: "I do know they are very much against pedophilia. They fight it very hard."
TRUMP: "I just don't know about QAnon."
GUTHRIE: "You do know!"
TRUMP: "No, I don't know!"
NOTE: QAnon adherents believe that a cabal of Satan-worshipping Democrats, Hollywood celebrities and billionaires runs the world while engaging in pedophilia, human trafficking and the harvesting of a supposedly life-extending chemical from the blood of abused children. The conspiracy theory has roots in antisemitic tropes.
- Here are some notable exchanges after Guthrie asked Trump about a conspiracy theory he retweeted from a QAnon Twitter account, that Obama had SEAL Team 6 killed:
TRUMP: "That was a retweet! People can decide for themselves!"
GUTHRIE: "I don't get that - you're the president, you're not like someone's crazy uncle who can retweet whatever."
- When asked about white supremacy, Trump claimed he has denounced white supremacy for years. Trump then denounced Antifa and people on the left burning down buildings.
- Trump was asked why he didn't do more to stop coronavirus from spreading though the US. Trump then touted his travel "ban". FACT CHECK: The Trump administration did not ban travel. While non-US citizens were prohibited from entering the country of they traveled to China within the previous two weeks, American citizens, permanent residents and their immediate family members were exempt. This allowed tens of thousands to fly into the US from China after the restrictions took effect. Similarly, Trump's European travel restrictions exempted citizens, residents and their families. And, initially, the European restrictions exempted the UK and Ireland, as well as most eastern European countries. According to Bill Hanage, an epidemiologist at Harvard's TH Chan School of Public Health, stated at the time: "Unfortunately, travel bans sound good, but we're way past the point where simply restricting travel is a reasonable response."
- Regarding attempts to overturn Obamacare, Trump claimed his administration will "Always ... We will protect people with pre-existing conditions." Guthrie pointed out that "You’ve been in office for almost four years - you had both houses of Congress – Senate and House – in Republican hands, and there is not a replacement yet." Trump then said, as he has many times, "We're going to have new healthcare, much better and much less expensive."
- Trump claimed he would not release his tax returns because of "common sense".
- Trump was asked why voters should give him a second chance. Trump's response: "Because I've done a great job".
Notable responses to the competing town hall meetings between Biden and Trump:
"Biden's town hall is just a series of calm answers on actual policy questions. Trump's town hall was basically an hour of 'many people are saying that the Satanic pedophiles who could be running the Democratic party also may have tried to kill Seal Team 6.'" - Zack Beauchamp
"I so appreciate that Savannah Guthrie is fact checking @realDonaldTrump in real time and refusing to allow him to spread conspiracy theories unchecked. What a welcome change from the first presidential & vice presidential debates." - Mai El-Sadany
Following Trump's town hall, Tim Murtaugh, the Trump campaign's communications director stated: "Even though the commission canceled the in-person debate that could have happened tonight, one occurred anyway, and President Trump soundly defeated NBC's Savannah Guthrie in her role as debate opponent and Joe Biden surrogate." NOTE: Guthrie has been widely praised for pressing Trump on his coronavirus testing history and the QAnon conspiracy theory, which Trump refused to denounce. According to NBC News, the FBI has seized the laptop that Rudy Giuliani claims contains emails that incriminate Joe Biden and his son Hunter.
October 14, 2020 - More than 215,914 Americans have died from coronavirus. Writing for the Washington Post, Dana Milbank offered the following analysis of the Barrett hearing yesterday:
"'President Trump made claims of voter fraud and suggested he wanted to delay the upcoming election,' Sen. Dianne Feinstein, the ranking Democrat on the Judiciary Committee, observed. 'Does the Constitution give the president of the United States the authority to unilaterally delay a general election under any circumstances? Does federal law?' This should have been a gimme. There was only one correct answer: No. But this is not the answer Barrett gave. 'Well, Senator, if that question ever came before me, I would need to hear arguments from the litigants and read briefs and consult with my law clerks and talk to my colleagues and go through the opinion-writing process,' she answered. She said she didn't want to give 'off-the-cuff answers' like a 'pundit' but rather approach matters 'with an open mind.' What? Sure, nominees try to avoid the slippery slope of opining on potential cases, but there is no room for argument here, especially from a self-proclaimed 'originalist' and 'textualist.'"
A federal judge has ruled that a law in Tennessee that requires a 49-hour waiting period for a woman to have an abortion is unconstitutional. Donald Trump was interviewed by Newsmax, here are some highlights:
- Trump was asked if he would keep William Barr as attorney general if he wins reelection. Trump's response: "I have no comment. Can't comment on that. It's too early. I'm not happy with all of the evidence I have, I can tell you that. I'm not happy."
Today is day 3 of the Amy Coney Barrett confirmation hearings. Here are some highlights:
- Barrett was asked if she believed human beings were causing climate change. Barrett's response: "I don’t think I’m competent to opine on what causes global warming or not."
- The following exchange took place between Kamala Harris and Amy Coney Barrett:
HARRIS: "Do you think COVID-19 is infectious?"
BARRETT: "Yes"
HARRIS: "Do you think smoking causes cancer?"
BARRETT: " I'm not sure exactly where you're going with this ... Yes, every package of cigarettes warns that smoking causes cancer."
HARRIS: "Do you think climate change is happening?"
BARRETT: "Senator, again ... You have asked me a series of questions that are completely uncontroversial, and then trying to elicit an opinion from me that is on a very contentious matter of public debate."
NOTE: According to a Kaiser Family Foundation poll, 8 in 10 Americans say that human activity is fueling climate change. The consensus among the world's climate experts is that human activities are fueling climate change.
Melania Trump released a statement about her experience with coronavirus. In the statement, Melania revealed that her son Barron had also tested positive for coronavirus.
October 13, 2020 - According to the Guardian, a Nevada man became infected with coronavirus for the second time - this is believed to be a first in the US. Trump held a campaign rally in Florida last evening, where he told the crowd that he was now "immune" to the virus. He also told them "I feel powerful. I'll kiss the guys and the beautiful women and everybody". Trump sent the following tweet this morning: "Mitt can't be thrilled about this! Joe also said yesterday he's running for the U.S. Senate (again) and totally forgot where he was (wrong State!). Joe has never been a nice or kind guy, so it's easier to find this obvious & rapidly getting worse 'dementia' unacceptable for USA!" According to the Guardian:
"Five men accused in a plot to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer will appear in federal court today, for a hearing on whether they should be detained before trial. Associated Press report that US Magistrate Judge Sally Berens will oversee the bail and detention proceeding in Grand Rapids for Adam Fox, Ty Garbin, Kaleb Franks, Daniel Harris and Brandon Caserta, who are all Michigan residents. A sixth man, Barry Croft, was being held in Delaware. The FBI made arrests last week after using confidential sources, undercover agents and clandestine recordings to foil the alleged kidnapping conspiracy. Some defendants had conducted coordinated surveillance of the Democratic governor's vacation home in northern Michigan in August and September, according to a criminal complaint. The men were trying to retaliate against Whitmer due to her 'uncontrolled power' amid the coronavirus pandemic, authorities said. They said four of the men had planned to meet last week to pay for explosives and exchange tactical gear. The state capitol Lansing has been the site of many rallies, including ones with gun-toting protesters calling for her ouster. Whitmer put major restrictions on personal movement and the economy, although many of those limits have been lifted since spring. The investigation is ongoing, and the defendants face up to life in prison if convicted. In the wake of the FBI's announcement last week, Whitmer was highly critical of president Donald Trump, accusing him of failing to discourage white supremacist groups. 'Each time he has tweeted about me, each time that he has said 'liberate Michigan' and said I should negotiate with the very people who are arrested because they're 'good people', that incites more domestic terror,' Whitmer told ABC News. 'And I am not the only governor going through this. Certainly it's been worse for me than most, but it is not unique to me, it is not even unique to Democrats. This White House has a duty to call it out and they won't do it – in fact, they encourage it.'"
Activists in Santa Fe, New Mexico, toppled an obelisk which was dedicated to "the heroes who have fallen in various battles with savage indians in the territory of New Mexico". A commission had been announced in June to decide the fate of monuments in the city, but no action had been taken to date. Writing for CNN, Stephen Collinson offered this analysis of Trump continuing to hold large rallies during a global pandemic:
"Taken in isolation, Trump's rally looked like any other big campaign event three weeks before an election day. While some supporters wore masks behind him in the camera shot, many people in the big, outdoor crowd did not. And despite presiding over a botched pandemic response, Trump claimed he had saved millions of lives. After turning his White House into a superspreader event that caused multiple infections, the president also criticized Biden for holding socially distanced events in which attendees sit in designated circles. 'They only have the circles because that's the only way they can fill up the room,' the President said, before gazing out at his own large and raucous crowd that contravenes every government recommendation on combating the virus and saying: 'These are the real polls.' But medical experts expressed despair at Trump's decision to gather huge crowds. 'I promise you, the virus is there, whether it is an indoor event or an outdoor event in these large gatherings,' said Dr. William Schaffner, professor of health policy and preventive medicine at Vanderbilt University. He added that the images of Trump's rally made him 'weep.' 'Some of those people will become sick, they will spread it to others when they get home and they will become sick. These are accelerator events that promote the distribution of the virus,' Schaffner said. Trump's mockery of his own government's recommendations – his rallies are almost the only mass participation events taking place in the world right now – came amid fast darkening warnings about the months ahead."
Trump sent the following tweet regarding Anthony Fauci: "Actually, Tony's pitching arm is far more accurate than his prognostications. 'No problem, no masks'. WHO no longer likes Lockdowns - just came out against. Trump was right. We saved 2,000,000 USA lives!!!" Today is day 2 of the Amy Coney Barrett confirmation hearings. Here are some highlights:
- Barrett said she considers herself an originalist, which means she considers the Constitution to "have the meaning that it had at the time that people ratified it" in 1790. NOTE: Hillary Clinton responded to this comment on twotter saying: "At the time the Constitution was ratified, women couldn't vote, much less be judges."
- Barrett declined to give an opinion on Roe v Wade. NOTE: Barrett signed on to a 2006 advertisement that called the Roe v Wade decision "barbaric".
- Barrett claimed "I'm not here on a mission to destroy the Affordable Care Act. I'm just here to apply the law." NOTE: Trump has explicitly stated he hopes his supreme court nominee will rule to dismantle the Affordable Care Act.
- Regarding same-sex marriage, Barrett said "I have never discriminated on the basis of sexual preference and would not ever discriminate on the basis of sexual preference". NOTE: Critics were quick to point out that "sexual preference" is an outdated and offensive term that implies sexuality is a choice. Mitt Romney, a senator from Utah, released a statement on the state of politics in the US in which he stated:
- Barrett declined to say whether she would recuse herself in decisions regarding the upcoming election, but did say this: "One of the beauties of America from the beginning of the republic is that we have had peaceful transfers of power. I think it is part of the genius of our Constitution and the good faith and goodwill of our people."
- Regarding climate change, Barrett said "I have read things about climate change. I would not say I have firm views on it."
The Supreme Court has ruled that the Trump administration can shut down the census count before the October 31 deadline set by a lower court. Sonia Sotomayor, in her dissent stated:
"The harms caused by rushing this year's census count are irreparable. And respondents will suffer their lasting impact for at least the next 10 years."
Trump held a rally in Pennsylvania today. Here are some highlights:
- Trump stated "Suburban women, will you please like me? I saved your damn neighborhood!"
- Trump told the crowd, as he does regularly at his rallies, that he saw CNN's camera light go off right after he insulted the news station. NOTE: CNN fact-checker Danial Dale pointed out that "CNN doesn't broadcast these rallies live, doesn't turn off its cameras when he insults CNN, and doesn't use any visible camera light when recording at rallies."
October 12, 2020 - Protestors in Portland, who have held over 100 consecutive days of #BlackLivesMatter demonstrations, toppled statues of Theodore Roosevelt and Abraham Lincoln. Last night's event was promoted on social media as an "Indigenous Peoples Day of Rage." Donald Trump sent the following tweets today:
"California is going to hell. Vote Trump!"
- and -
"New York has gone to hell. Vote Trump!"
Donald Trump also sent the following tweet:
"We will have Healthcare which is FAR BETTER than ObamaCare, at a FAR LOWER COST - BIG PREMIUM REDUCTION. PEOPLE WITH PRE EXISTING CONDITIONS WILL BE PROTECTED AT AN EVEN HIGHER LEVEL THAN NOW. HIGHLY UNPOPULAR AND UNFAIR INDIVIDUAL MANDATE ALREADY TERMINATED. YOU'RE WELCOME!" NOTE: The Trump administration supports a lawsuit before the supreme court challenging the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act, which could jeopardize protections for those with preexisting conditions. While Trump says repeatedly that he wants to protect those with preexisting conditions, he has not laid out a substantive plan to do so.
Dr Anthony Fauci was asked about the use of one of his statements in a Trump reelection ad that misrepresented his intent. Fauci responded: "I think it's really unfortunate and really disappointing that they did that. I have never either directly or indirectly endorsed a political candidate." Fauci was then asked what he would say if he learned the Trump campaign was planning to do another add featuring his words. Fauci responded: "That would be terrible. That would be outrageous if they do that. In fact, that might actually come back to backfire on them. I hope they don't do that."
October 11, 2020 - Trump was interviewed by Fox News Host Maria Bartiromo. Here are some highlights:
- Trump claimed that Joe Biden wants to get rid of guns, cars, fracking and God. He also said that everything Joe Biden says "is a lie".
- Trump claimed, without evidence, that Democrats are "trying to steal the election".
- Trump claimed that "there are those that say we did a phenomenal job" regarding covid.
According to the New York Times, Trump leveraged his position as president to bring revenue into his hotels and golf courses. Twitter flagged a tweet of Trump's where the president claimed he is immune from coronavirus. The twitter message reds in part:
"This Tweet violated the Twitter rules about spreading misleading and potentially harmful information related to COVID-19."
The Trump campaign has come under fire for using a clip of Dr Anthony Fauci in one of its campaign ads to make it look like Fauci was complimenting Donald Trump. The ad's purpose is to boast about Trump's response to Covid-19, and in the ad, Fauci can be heard saying "I can't imagine that ... anyone could be doing more". In reality, Fauci's comments were describing the work that he and other members of the coronavirus task force undertook to respond to the virus. The statements were not directed at Trump. Fauci responded to the ad saying:
"In my nearly five decades of public service, I have never publicly endorsed any political candidate. The comments attributed to me without my permission in the GOP campaign ad were taken out of context from a broad statement I made months ago about the efforts of federal public health officials."
The Trump campaign responded to criticism of their ad, which included comments by Dr Fauci, saying:
"These are Dr. Fauci's own words. The video is from a nationally broadcast television interview in which Dr. Fauci was praising the work of the Trump Administration. The words spoken are accurate, and directly from Dr. Fauci’s mouth".
October 10, 2020 - The death toll in the United States from coronavirus now exceeds 210,000. Writing for the Guardian, David Smith offers the following analysis of Trump and covid:
"It was the week the men in white coats finally came for Donald Trump. Seven doctors in face masks emerged from Walter Reed military hospital outside Washington attempting to assure a skeptical world that its most famous patient was beating the coronavirus. They had rushed the US president on to experimental antiviral drugs and prescribed an aggressive course of steroids not available to the average patient. But they could not cure what many critics regard as Trump's chief pathology: chronic narcissism. He took a triumphant helicopter flight back to a White House ravaged by Covid-19, staged a tough guy 'Mussolini moment' on its balcony and unleashed a blitzkrieg of tweets so erratic that they shocked even battle-hardened Trump watchers. Doctors said his physical vital signs were improving; pollsters said his political vital signs were flatlining, with his rival, Joe Biden, leading by 16 percentage points in a CNN survey less than a month before the presidential election. Some said that, if Trump was deliberately trying to sabotage his own campaign, he could hardly do a better job than the past week."
Judge Robert Pitman, a federal judge, has blocked a proclamation by Texas governor Greg Abbott that counties can offer only one drop-off site for mail-in ballots. In his decision, Pitman wrote that the current policy would result in "creating voter confusion ... causing absentee voters to travel further distances ... causing absentee voters to wait in longer lines ... [and] causing absentee voters to risk exposure to the coronavirus when they hand deliver their absentee ballots on Election Day. Police in Maryland are investigating an incident where a threatening letter was left at a house with a Biden-Harris sign in the front yard. The letter reads in part:
"If you are a Biden-Harris supporter, you will be targeted. We have a list of homes by your election signs. We will not comply or give anything up, especially our guns."
Donald Trump addressed a group of 2000 from the balcony of the White House. Reporters observed very few masks, and no social distancing. Here are some highlights:
- Trump referred to coronavirus using the racist name "China Virus".
- Trump claimed Democrats will reduce law enforcement, which will put communities of color in danger. NOTE: Biden has stated repeatedly that he does not support the "defund the police" movement.
- Trump claimed Joe Biden will ban fracking. NOTE: Biden has stated repeatedly that he will not ban fracking.
- Trump claimed there will be widespread election fraud in the November election.
- Trump claimed the Democrats have "communist" policies.
- Trump called the lockdown policies during covid-19 "unscientific".
According to CBS News, the Taliban has endorsed Donald Trump for president. From the story:
"Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid told CBS News in a phone interview: 'We hope he will win the election and wind up U.S. military presence in Afghanistan.' The militant group expressed some concern about Mr. Trump’s bout with the coronavirus. 'When we heard about Trump being COVID-19 positive, we got worried for his health, but seems he is getting better,' another Taliban senior leader told CBS News."
Greta Thunberg, a climate activist, endorsed Joe Biden for president. According to the AP, a federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit filed by the Trump campaign which sought to block the use of drop boxes as receptacles for mail ballots. From the story:
"The ruling by U.S. District Judge J. Nicholas Ranjan who was appointed by Trump in Pittsburgh also poured cold water on Trump's claims that Pennsylvania is fertile ground for election fraud. Trump's campaign said it would appeal at least one element of the decision, with barely three weeks to go until Election Day in a state hotly contested by Trump and Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden. The lawsuit was opposed by the administration of Gov. Tom Wolf, a Democrat, the state Democratic Party, the League of Women Voters, the NAACP's Pennsylvania office and other allied groups. 'The ruling is a complete rejection of the continued misinformation about voter fraud and corruption, and those who seek to sow chaos and discord ahead of the upcoming election,' Wolf's office said in a statement. The state's attorney general, Josh Shapiro, a Democrat whose office fought the Trump campaign's claims, called the lawsuit a political stunt designed to sow doubt in the state's election. 'We told the Trump campaign and the president, 'put up or shut up' to his claims of voter fraud in Pennsylvania,' Shapiro told the Associated Press. 'It’s important to note they didn't even need to prove actual voter fraud, just that it was likely or impending, and they couldn’t even do that.' Trump's campaign said in a statement that it looked forward to a quick decision from the appeals court 'that will further protect Pennsylvania voters from the Democrats’ radical voting system.'"
October 9, 2020 - Writing for the Guardian, Adam Gabbatt offers the following analysis of the plot against Michigan governor Gretchen Whitmer:
"'Snatch and grab, man,' Adam Fox told an FBI informant in July. 'Grab the fuckin' governor. Just grab the bitch. Because at that point, we do that, dude – it's over.' Fox, from Michigan, is now facing a potential life sentence, along with five other men, for an elaborate plan to kidnap the state's Democratic governor, Gretchen Whitmer, and put her on trial for 'treason', according to the FBI. The chilling plot, revealed in an FBI affidavit released on Thursday, was a months-long effort that also saw members of a rightwing militia consider forgoing the kidnapping and instead executing Whitmer on her doorstep. The FBI document showed just how far along the men got in their planning, and how credible the threat became against Whitmer. In recent months, Whitmer has become a focal point of anti-government sentiment and anger over coronavirus lockdown measures. According to the affidavit, plotters twice surveilled the governor's vacation home and discussed blowing up a bridge leading to the house and using a boat to flee with the captured Whitmer."
Writing for the Washington Post, Eugene Robinson offers the following analysis of the prospect of Trump mitigating the worst excesses of his behavior ahead of the November election:
"Predictions are risky these days, but I make this one confidently: President Trump's frantic desperation at the prospect of losing the election will only get worse. Probably much worse. I know that seems impossible, given the volume of vitriol now spewing hourly from the president. And I know it makes no political sense for Trump to continue to sound like a deranged end-of-days preacher yelling at random passersby. But nothing in Trump's history suggests he will abandon his reelection 'strategy' of unceasing bombast, transparent lies, manufactured grievance, unhinged conspiracy-mongering and an unforgivable attempt to disrupt the electoral process itself. Another day, another flood of dangerous and offensive nonsense: In a single telephone interview Thursday with Fox Business Network, Trump vowed not to attend a virtual debate next week complaining that the moderator would actually be able to cut him off; called Biden's running mate a 'monster' and a 'communist,' among other insults; and described himself as a 'perfect physical specimen,' saying he believed he had been 'cured' of Covid-19, a disease for which there is no known cure. Trump has two good reasons to panic. Foremost are the recent polls showing that his political support is clearly eroding. The other calamity Trump faces is his own diagnosis. It is hard to argue that Covid is under control when the most powerful, most heavily protected man in the nation became a victim of the pandemic."
According to Axios, the Durham report into the Russian investigation will not be released before the election. From the story:
"Attorney General Bill Barr has begun telling top Republicans that the Justice Department's sweeping review into the origins of the Russia investigation will not be released before the election, a senior White House official and a congressional aide briefed on the conversations tell Axios. Republicans had long hoped the report, led by U.S. Attorney John Durham, would be a bombshell containing revelations about what they allege were serious abuses by the Obama administration and intelligence community probing for connections between President Trump and Russia. 'This is the nightmare scenario. Essentially, the year and a half of arguably the number one issue for the Republican base is virtually meaningless if this doesn’t happen before the election,' a GOP congressional aide told Axios."
During an interview on Fox and Friends, Kayleigh, McEnany claimed Trump won't participate in a virtual debate because Biden would be "in a forum where he'd have access to maybe teleprompters, who knows, the president certainly wouldn't be there to hold him accountable." Nancy Pelosi announced that the House will invoke the 25th Amendment, which gives Congress some power to evaluate the health and stability of the president to conduct the duties of his office, and create a Commission on Presidential Capacity to Discharge the Powers and Duties of Office. The commission will have 17 members, 8 members will be medical personnel and the other 8 will be high-ranking former members of the executive branch. Mike Bost, a GOP Congressman from Illinois, announced he has tested positive for coronavirus. During an interview with CBS News Radio, Dr Anthony Fauci called the White House Rose Garden event to nominate Amy Coney Barrett to the supreme court a "superspreader event" adding "The data speak for themselves." According to the New York Times, the Trump administration blocked a CDC mandate that would have required masks on all public transportation. From the story:
"The order would have been the toughest federal mandate to date aimed at curbing the spread of the coronavirus, which continues to infect more than 40,000 Americans a day. The officials said that it was drafted under the agency's 'quarantine powers' and that it had the support of the secretary of health and human services, Alex M. Azar II, but the White House Coronavirus Task Force, led by Vice President Mike Pence, declined to even discuss it."
Trump did his first on-camera interview since contracting coronavirus. Here are some highlights:
- Asked what he had learned from his experience, Trump responded that "this is a contagious disease" and that "generally you get better from it."
- Trump claimed he never had trouble breathing during his battle with covid, which conflicts with information from his medical team who stated that Trump was on oxygen after having trouble breathing.
October 8, 2020 - Donald Trump released a video of himself talking about the drug Regeneron, that he took while he was hospitalized at Walter Reed. Trump stated in the video: "I feel great. I feel like, perfect. I think this was a blessing from God, that I caught it. This was a blessing in disguise. I caught it, I heard about this drug, I said let me take it, it was my suggestion." Breaking with nearly two-centuries of tradition, 35 editors of Scientific American signed onto an editorial called "Dying in a leadership vacuum" which lambasts US politicians for their handling of the coronavirus pandemic. From the editorial:
"When it comes to the response to the largest public health crisis of our time, our current political leaders have demonstrated that they are dangerously incompetent ... We should not abet them and enable the deaths of thousands more Americans by allowing them to keep their jobs. ... The response of our nation's leaders has been consistently inadequate ... The federal government has largely abandoned disease control to the states. Governors have varied in their responses, not so much by party as by competence. But whatever their competence, governors do not have the tools that Washington controls."
According to a memo obtained by ABC News, which was distributed among senior leadership at FEMA, "34 White House staffers and other contacts" have been infected with coronavirus in recent days. Writing for the Guardian, Rebecca Solnit offers the following analysis of current Republican ideology:
"The pandemic focused and intensified the need to recognize the interconnectedness of all things—in this case the way that viruses spread and the responsibility of those in power and each of us to do what we can to limit that spread, and to recognize the consequences that could break our educational system, our economy, and our daily lives and hopes and dreams if we did not take care, of ourselves, each other, and the whole. The contemporary right has one central principle: nothing is really connected to anything else, so no one has any responsibility for anything else, and any attempt to, say, prevent a factory from poisoning a river is an infringement on freedom. They reject the evidence of climate change and other scientific realities on the grounds that it displeases them by undermining their ideology, rather than on the evidence. Freedom as they uphold it is the right to do anything you want with utter disregard for others. In their logic, poverty must be caused by individual failings, not by systematic inequality and obstacles. Gun deaths must be disassociated from the deregulation and proliferation of guns. Taxes are a form of oppression, since no one owes anyone anything. Those who benefit from the system that taxes underwrite – infrastructure, law enforcement, education of workers – deny that their success has anything to do with anything but their own bootstrapping virtue and hard work. Climate change's underlying message that what we do has longterm planetary consequences outrages their sense of autonomy."
Writing for the Washington Post, Philip Bump offered the following analysis of Pence's performance at last night's VP debte:
"The first claim that Vice President Pence made in the vice-presidential debate on Wednesday night was not true. He claimed that President Trump had 'suspended all travel from China' in order to stem the spread of the novel coronavirus in the United States. The travel restrictions were sufficiently porous that nearly 40,000 people traveled from China to this country after the restrictions went into place. Pence's second claim wasn't much better, insisting that former vice president Joe Biden had called the restrictions 'xenophobic.' Biden did call Trump xenophobic, but not obviously in relation to the restrictions that had been announced only minutes before and of which Biden was not aware. Hitting two-for-two on false or misleading claims right out of the gates is hardly a novelty in the Trump administration. The difference between Pence and Trump is largely one of style. ... The more egregious aspect of Pence's response, of course, was Pence's insistence that Harris not 'play politics with people's lives.' This is the vice president serving Donald Trump, saying that a politician should not play politics with the pandemic. That's the Donald Trump who has encouraged states to reject economic closures, risking broader spread of the virus, in hopes that the economy would rebound before Election Day. The Donald Trump who refused to wear a mask or embrace social distancing and mocked Biden for embracing those measures, relishing the applause of his base when he did so. The Donald Trump who has talked about how the death toll in the United States should be blamed on deaths in states that didn't vote for him in 2016."
Mike Lee, a Republican Senator from Utah, sent out the following tweet: "Democracy isn't the objective; liberty, peace, and prospefity are. We want the human condition to flourish. Rank democracy can thwart that." Ironically, Mike Pompeo, the secretary of state, sent out the following tweet very shortly after Mike Lee's tweet: "The United States is committed to supporting free and fair elections, including the upcoming elections across Africa. We will not hesitate to consider consequences – including visa restrictions – for those who undermine democracy." The FBI announced today that it had thwarted a plot by rightwing militia groups to violently overthrow the government of Michigan, and kidnap/kill its governor, Gretchen Whitmer. From the announcement:
"Several members talked about murdering tyrants or taking a sitting governor. ... The group decided they needed to increase their numbers and encouraged each other to talk to their neighbors and spread their message."
Six people have been charged in the plot to kidnap Whitmer, another seven have been charged with plotting to attack law enforcement and attack the state capitol. Michigan governor Gretchen Whitmer held a news conference regarding these plots. Here are some highlights:
- Whitmer thanked law enforcement officials and said the criminal charges will "hopefully lead to convictions, bringing these sick and depraved men to justice."
- Whitmer stated: "Our head of state has spent the past seven months denying science, ignoring his own health experts, stoking distrust, fermenting anger and giving comfort to those who spread fear and hatred and division ... Just last week the president of the United States stood before the American people and refused to condemn white supremacists and hate groups like these two Michigan militia groups. 'Stand back and standby,' he told them. 'Stand back and stand by'. Hate groups heard the president's words not as a rebuke but as a rallying cry, as a call to action".
- Whitmer stated: "We have to call it out for what it is – it is domestic terrorism."
- Whitmer stated that while Joe Biden had checked up on her, the White House had not. Referring to Biden, Whitmer said: "That's what decent people do."
- Whitmer stated: "Every time that this White House identifies me or takes a shot at me, we see an increase in rhetoric online – violent rhetoric. [The foiled kidnapping plot] took it to a whole new level."
Shortly after the news surfaced of the Michigan overthrow plot, Jason Miller, a Trump campaign official, had this to say about governor Whitmer: "If we want to talk about hatred, then Gov Whitmer, go look in the mirror - the fact that she wakes up every day with such hatred in her heart towards President Trump." The Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD) announced that the October 15th presidential debate will be conducted virtually due to concerns over White House covid infections. Trump responded to CPD's announcement saying "I'm not gonna waste my time on a virtual debate." Speaking to the press, Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell stated: "I actually haven't been to the White House since August the 6th because my impression was their approach to how to handle this was different than mine and what I insisted that we do in the Senate, which is to wear a mask and practice social distancing".
October 7, 2020 - Facebook announced it is banning QAnon-themed groups, pages and accounts. Writing for the Guardian, David Smith offers the following analysis of Trump after his bout with covid:
"There was a school of thought that Donald Trump might be humbled by becoming infected himself with the coronavirus, see the light and encourage Americans to stay safe. It lasted about as long as the hope that he would 'pivot' to a traditional presidency after his inauguration. Instead Trump has sought to project the strongman image, flying to the White House by helicopter at sunset, standing on the balcony and taking off his face mask while still contagious, bragging that he feels better than he did 20 years ago and urging the public to neither fear the virus nor let it dominate their lives. His campaign has sent out fundraising emails preaching a similar if-I-can-beat-it-so-can-you-message, hoping to turn personal and political disaster to their electoral advantage against the cautious Joe Biden. It is very on-brand for a president who views illness as a weakness and seeks each day to make himself the hero of his own reality TV show. Gwenda Blair, a Trump biographer, said: 'Now he is going to be an 'expert': he's had it so nobody can tell him anything. If he ever even paused for a second for any medical advice before, that's over. He knows more about wars than the generals; he will now know more about the coronavirus than any doctors.'"
Writing for the Guardian, Julian Borger offers the following analysis of Trump contracting covid:
"What makes Washington different is that a significant part of the coronavirus threat comes from a single address, whose tenants have blatantly ignored the rules – and who have not even returned calls from Mayor Muriel Bowser's office offering to help with contact tracing. That address is 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue: the White House, where more than a dozen workers have tested positive for Covid-19 in recent days, including the chief executive. That is compared to 28 new cases recorded on Tuesday across the whole city of over 700,000 people. 'We have reached out to the White House on a couple of different levels: a political level and a public health level,' Bowser said. A city health official managed to get through by telephone, the mayor added, but only 'had a very cursory conversation that we don't consider a substantial contact from the public health side'."
Writing for the Guardian, Nathan Robinson offers the following analysis of Trump contracting covid:
"Donald Trump has one particular skill: pretending things are different than they seem. He was never a good businessman, but he was fantastic at playing a good businessman on TV. His coronavirus response has been abysmal, but his public insistence that everything is fine has somehow managed to keep him from losing significant support. Trump's specialty is PR – spinning bad things rather than doing good things. But PR can only do so much. Trump has consistently downplayed the seriousness of the pandemic and encouraged people to resist public health measures. He mocked Joe Biden for wearing a mask. Then, having taken few precautions to protect himself or others, he landed in the hospital with Covid-19. Trump has not, of course, responded by humbly admitting that he behaved stupidly and should have listened to his critics. Instead, he is reacting in the only way he knows: pretending nothing is wrong."
Donald Trump sent the following tweets:
"DEMS WANT TO SHUT YOUR CHURCHES DOWN, PERMANENTLY. HOPE YOU SEE WHAT IS HAPPENING. VOTE NOW!"
- and -
"NOW THAT THE RADICAL LEFT DEMOCRATS GOT CAUGHT COLD IN THE (NON) FRIENDLY TRANSFER OF GOVERNMENT, IN FACT, THEY SPIED ON MY CAMPAIGN AND WENT FOR A COUP, WE ARE ENTITLED TO ASK THE VOTERS FOR FOUR MORE YEARS. PLEASE REMEMBER THIS WHEN YOU VOTE!"
According to the Guardian, at least 27 people in Trump's inner circle have tested positive for coronavirus. According to the AP:
"Donald Trump's accountant must turn over the president's tax records to a New York state prosecutor, an appeals court ruled on Wednesday in a decision that almost certainly sets up a second trip to the US supreme court over the issue. The second US circuit court of appeals in Manhattan said in a written decision that a stay of a lower-court decision will remain in effect so Trump's lawyers can appeal the ruling to the high court. In August, a district court judge had rejected their renewed efforts to invalidate a subpoena that the office of Manhattan district attorney Cyrus Vance Jr issued to Trump's accounting firm last year. Part of Vance's probe pertains to an investigation related to payoffs to two women, adult film star and producer Stormy Daniels and model Karen McDougal, to keep them quiet during the 2016 presidential campaign about alleged extramarital affairs with Trump in the past. Trump has denied the affairs."
Mike Pence and Kamala Harris met in Salt Lake City to debate. Here are some highlights:
- Kamala Harris stated that "The American people have witnessed what is the greatest failure of any presidential administration in the history of our country. ... This administration has forfeited their right to re-election based on this."
- Pence repeatedly tried to talk over Kamala Harris, who responded: "Mr Vice President, I'm speaking. I'm speaking."
- Kamala Harris stated: "Let's talk about respecting the American people. You respect the American people by telling them the truth" to which Pence responded: "Which we've always done". NOTE: The Washington Post has documented over 20,000 false or misleading claims made by Trump since he was elected.
- Pence claimed: "With regard to climate change, the climate is changing, but the issue is, what's the cause and what do we do about it? President Trump has made a commitment to conservation and to the environment." NOTE: The consensus view among climate scientists is that greenhouse gases are the cause.
- Pence claimed that: "When President Trump and I took office, America had gone through the slowest recovery since the Great Depression." NOTE: Obama and Biden presided over the longest stretch of job growth in history.
- Harris stated that Trump has "embraced dictators around the world" and that "America's intelligence community told us Russia interfered in the election in 2016. But Donald Trump prefers to take the word of Vladimir Putin over the word of the U.S. intelligence community".
- Pence was asked if Breonna Taylor was denied justice. Pence responded in part: "This idea that America is systemically racist, that there's implicit bias in law enforcement, is a great insult to the men and women who work in law enforcement."
- During the debate, a fly landed on Mike Pence's head, and stayed there for two minutes.
Some notable reactions to the fly on Pence's head:
"Oh my God. He's so full of crap, a fly has landed on his head." - Ana Navarro-Cardenas
"Can someone get the fly a covid test" - Liz Plank, MSc. phD in adhd & depression
"EWWWWWWWWW that fly has Mike Pence on his stomach." - Patton Oswalt
"A fly landing on Pence's head while he's saying 'systemic racism isn't real' is the universe's way of saying 'this is bullshit.'" - Nate Dern
- Harris reminded the audience that Trump had told the Proud Boys to "stand back and stand by" at the recent presidential debate. Pence responded saying "Not true". NOTE: Harris' statement was true.
- In an attempt to downplay climate change, Pence claimed that the number of hurricanes today is similar to the number of hurricanes 100 years ago. NOTE: Here's a response in the Guardian from Oliver Milman to the notion that climate change theory is not true if we are not observing "more" hurricanes:
"While the overall number of hurricanes has remained roughly the same in recent decades, there is evidence they are intensifying more quickly, resulting in a greater number of the most severe category four and five storms. The proportion of tropical storms that rapidly strengthen into powerful hurricanes has tripled over the past 30 years, according to recent research. A swift increase in pace over a 24-hour period makes hurricanes less predictable, despite improving hurricane forecasting systems, and more likely to cause widespread damage. The devastation unleashed by recent hurricanes has led to warnings that premiums may rise as insurers face ballooning claims. A record $135bn was paid out by insurers in North America in 2017, mostly as a result of hurricane damages. 'We have a new normal,' says Ernst Rauch, a senior executive at insurance company Munich Re. 'We must have on our radar the trend of new magnitudes.'"
Some notable responses to the Vice Presidential Debate:
"The. Head. Of. The. Coronavirus. Task. Force. Is. Debating. Half. A. Year. Later. Through. Two. Layers. Of. Plexiglass." - Jordan Klepper
"Stop playing politics with people's lives says the VP for president who just killed a coronavirus relief bill so he could put a justice on the supreme court to help him rig an election" - Ari Berman
"Pence didn't come to debate, he came to play dodge ball. He dodged on COVID-19 response, dodged on pre-existing conditions, dodged on abortion, dodged on peaceful transfer of power. #MikePence dodged everything but that fly #Debates2020" - Ayanna Pressley, Congresswoman
"The fly needs to be quarantined." - Ilhan Omar, Congresswoman
October 6, 2020 - Writing for the Guardian, Francine Prose offers the following analysis of Trump contracting covid:
"Trump was hospitalized with Covid-19. The first lady has been infected, as have a several of Trump's close associates – Chris Christie, Kellyanne Conway, and Kayleigh McEnany, among others. It's striking that we've heard so little about the severity of their symptoms, now that Donald Trump effectively appears to have become the nation's only Covid-19 patient. At least 11 people have tested positive for the virus after a 26 September gathering convened to celebrate the nomination of Amy Coney Barrett for supreme court justice. The party, which began in the Rose Garden and moved indoors, is now considered to have been a super-spreader event. We'd like to believe that suffering instructs and ennobles; that our grief, fear and pain increases our sympathy for the grief, fear and pain of others. But again, Donald Trump seems to be ineducable, impervious to shame, guilt, or any sense of personal responsibility, unaffected by anything except vanity, selfishness and reckless self-regard. Certainly, the experience of having his blood oxygen level drop so low that supplemental oxygen was required must have been alarming, and yet the president continues to believe that bluster is the best medicine. At a moment when our need for truth and transparency has never been so great, the president and his cohorts continue to lie, to get caught in lies, and to lie again to cover up the previous lies."
Writing for the Washington Post, Robin Givhan offers this analysis of Trump contracting covid:
"When he arrived at the White House, he walked up the steps, stood in front of four American flags. And removed his mask. He removed his mask in a show of what? Ego. Recklessness. Selfishness. He is still convalescing from Covid-19, a highly unpredictable and deadly disease. He remains contagious. His doctor has noted that he may not be 'entirely out of the woods.' And since he has been at Walter Reed, the White House has become a coronavirus hot spot. Press secretary Kayleigh McEnany on Monday added her name to the list of staff, residents and recent visitors who have tested positive in the past week, which also includes the first lady. But no matter. Image is Donald Trump's everything. Health — his, others', yours — be damned. Trump announced his return in a victorious tweet in which he described Covid-19 as nothing to worry about despite the fact that more than 210,000 people have died in the United States. After receiving treatment unavailable to the average American, he declared himself feeling better than he did 20 years ago, as if he had just spent a few days at a spa."
Writing for Slate, Rick Hasen offers the following analysis of Trump eroding trust in the November election:
"As Donald Trump has been flailing in the polls, he has been ramping up his attacks on voting. Remember, this is a guy who claimed there was massive voter fraud in the election he won back in 2016. But now, much of it is targeted at the use of mail-in balloting, but it's not only that. He's talking about sending poll watchers to places. When he says that in a debate at the same time he's talking about the Proud Boys standing by, it's very worrisome. And he won't commit to a peaceful transition to power. I think we're still in a situation where the election's going to have to be very close for any of this to matter, but in terms of the statements that Trump is making that undermine democratic elections and the rule of law, we're kind of off the charts. It's hard to imagine any US presidential candidate or president from a major political party making the kind of incendiary, unsupported statements undermining our election process like Donald Trump has done."
Donald Trump sent the following tweet: "Biden and Democrats just clarified the fact that they are fully in favor of (very) LATE TERM ABORTION, right up until the time of birth, and beyond - which would be execution. Biden even endorsed the Governor of Virginia, who stated this clearly for all to hear. GET OUT & VOTE!!!"
Writing for the New York Times, Pam Belluck wrote the following analysis of Trump's use of the phrase "late term abortion":
"Late-term abortion is a phrase used by abortion opponents to refer to abortions performed after about 21 weeks of pregnancy. It is not the same as the medical definition obstetricians use for 'late-term,' which refers to pregnancies that extend past a woman's due date, meaning about 41 or 42 weeks. Contrary to Mr. Trump's claim, late-term abortions do not allow 'a baby to be ripped from the mother's womb moments before birth.' ... Abortions after 24 weeks comprise less than one percent of all abortions. When they occur, it is usually because the fetus has been found to have a fatal condition that could not be detected earlier, such as a severe malformation of the brain, or because the mother's life or health is at serious risk."
Donald Trump sent the following tweet: "Flu season is coming up! Many people every year, sometimes over 100,000, and despite the Vaccine, die from the Flu. Are we going to close down our Country? No, we have learned to live with it, just like we are learning to live with Covid, in most populations far less lethal!!!" NOTE: Trump's prior comments to Bob Woodward directly contradict his statement here. Also, Facebook removed Trump's comment saying it violated their policy against "misinformation that could contribute to imminent physical harm." Also, Twitter flagged the comment saying it violated Twitter rules about "spreading misleading and potentially harmful information related to COVID-19".
Michelle Obama offered the followng analysis of Trump's response to coronavirus:
"In the greatest crisis of our lifetimes, he doubled-down on division and resentment, railed against measures that could have mitigated the damage, and continues to hold massive events, without requiring masks or social distancing knowingly exposing his own supporters to a dangerous virus. Today, more Americans have died from this virus than died in the wars in Iraq, Afghanistan, Vietnam and Korea combined. Take all those lives bravely sacrificed and double it. That is roughly the scale of this tragedy. And our commander in chief, sadly, has been missing in action."
News surfaced that a military valet who comes in contact with Trump has tested positive for covid-19. This infection is the 15th known infection for those who either work in the White House, or work in close contact with Trump. Donald Trump sent out a tweet demanding that negotiations with Democrats over covid economic relief, cease. The tweet caused the Dow Jones Industrial Average to plunge 309.6 points, which represents a drop of 1.1%. The S&P 500 lost 37.53 point, or 1.10%, and the Nasdaq Composite fropped 139.42 points, or 1.23%. Notable responses to Trump's stop the negotiations tweet:
"Wait, so Trump not only rejects stimulus funds that would probably have helped his re-election chances, but *also* does so in a way to make sure that he personally will take blame for it?" - Nate Silver
"Mindbogglingly insane." - Henry Olsen, Senior Fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center
"The only logical response to this fuckery, is to vote them out. Not by analyzing their cruelty, inaction and irresponsible politics. It's about power and the people need to reclaim that power on Nov. 3rd." - Ilhan Omar
Speaking at Gettysburg, Joe Biden told his audience, "Wearing a mask is not a political statement, it's a scientific recommendation". Jerome Powell, the Federal Reserve chair, warned that failure to provide more support for households and businesses affected by coronavirus could have "tragic" economic consequences. Dr Rick Bright, the government scientist who was demoted for resisting pressure to make "potentially harmful drugs widely available", has resigned from the National Institutes of Health. News surfaced that Stephen Miller, a senior adviser to Trump, has tested positive for coronavirus. According to the New York Times, US attorneys along the border with Mexico were told in 2018 by top Trump administration officials to prosecute undocumented immigrants who crossed the border, even if it meant separating them from their children who were barely more than infants. From the story:
"Government prosecutors reacted with alarm at the separation of children from their parents during a secret 2017 pilot program along the Mexican border in Texas. 'We have now heard of us taking breastfeeding defendant moms away from their infants,' one government prosecutor wrote to his superiors. 'I did not believe this until I looked at the duty log.' Border Patrol officers missed serious felony cases because they were stretched too thin by the zero-tolerance policy requiring them to detain and prosecute all of the misdemeanor illegal entry cases. One Texas prosecutor warned top Justice Department officials in 2018 that 'sex offenders were released' as a result. Senior Justice Department officials viewed the welfare of the children as the responsibility of other agencies and their duty as tracking the parents. 'I just don't see that as a D.O.J. equity,' Mr. Rosenstein told the inspector general. The failure to inform the U.S. Marshals Service before announcing the zero-tolerance policy led to serious overcrowding and budget overruns. The marshals were forced to cut back on serving warrants in other cases, saying that 'when you take away manpower, you can't make a safe arrest.'"
October 5, 2020 - Trump sent the following tweet: "IF YOU WANT A MASSIVE TAX INCREASE, THE BIGGEST IN THE HISTORY OF OUR COUNTRY (AND ONE THAT WILL SHUT OUR ECONOMY AND JOBS DOWN), VOTE DEMOCRAT!!!" Writing for Axios, Sam Baker offers the following analysis of poor job the US has done controlling the virus:
"We saw it in the early reopening debate and the political and legal battles over whether churches should be exempt from bans on large indoor gatherings. The virus doesn't know it's spreading through a church. It doesn't know what religion is. The political rush to open the economy before controlling the virus itself caused cases and hospitalizations to soar. The virus isn't cowed by economic growth. If you don't take it seriously and don't do much to protect yourself, the virus is likely to find you, no matter who you are. It doesn't know it's infecting the president. ... Testing is a source of information: It tells you who has the virus. But it has gaps. Recently infected people may be able to spread the virus before they test positive for it. Sen. Mike Lee has said he felt comfortable going maskless and ignoring social distancing at the Rose Garden event for Amy Coney Barrett because he had just recently tested negative. He is now infected, as are many other people who attended that event. And if you don't do anything with the information it gives you, it's not going to be much help. Sen. Ron Johnson, for example, tested positive and then went to a public event anyway. The results speak for themselves: Even with abundant testing, the West Wing is very obviously the locus of a significant outbreak."
Michael D Shear, a White House correspondent for the New York Times, tested positive for coronavirus, and believes he picked up the virus while covering events at the White House. Shear made the following statement during an interview with CNN:
"It's now, you know, 10 days ... 11 days, whatever, since I think that I was probably infected on that Saturday. I've not been contacted by the White House. Nobody from the White House has said 'boo' and asked anything about where I was or who I talked to, or who else I might have infected. And so I think that that just shows you that they're not taking it seriously, at least as it pertains to themselves."
In light of Trump's drive-by with his supporters outside of Walter Reed hospital, two tweets that Trump published in 2014 are now making the rounds. First: "The Ebola doctor who just flew to N.Y. from West Africa and went on the subway, bowling and dining is a very SELFISH man-should have known!" Second: "If this doctor, who so recklessly flew into New York from West Africa,has Ebola,then Obama should apologize to the American people & resign!" From the Guardian:
"Spencer did not know he had the Ebola virus when he used public transport or met up with friends. And, critically, people infected with Ebola cannot spread the disease until they begin to show symptoms, and it cannot be spread through the air. As such, his travel and activities were not deemed to be a risk to the public because it occurred before he displayed symptoms. No one is known to have contracted the virus from Spencer. Trump's allies have defended his decision to leave Walter Reed. On Monday, Corey Lewandowski said he was told the Secret Service agents 'volunteered for that assignment.'"
Speaking from Walter Reed hospital, Trump stated: "This is the real school." And also stated: "I get it and understand it. [It is] a very interesting thing and I'm going to be letting you know about it." Kayleigh McEnany, the White House press secretary announced she has tested positive for coronavirus. Chad Gilmartin and Karoline Levitt, who are both White House communications aides, have both tested positive for coronavirus. Speaking to reporters, Erin M Perrine, a Trump campaign spokesperson claimed about Trump: "He has experience now fighting the coronavirus as an individual ... Joe Biden doesn't have that." NOTE: Critics were quick to point out how the campaign is now trying to seel the notion that Trump's mishandling of Covid, even in his own innner circles, gives him a leg up on the guy who follows the health protocals and has not become infected.
According to the Guardian, the CDC has released new guidance regarding coronavirus. From the story:
"'There is evidence that under certain conditions, people with COVID-19 seem to have infected others who were more than 6 feet away,' the CDC website says. 'These transmissions occurred within enclosed spaces that had inadequate ventilation. Sometimes the infected person was breathing heavily, for example while singing or exercising. Under these circumstances, scientists believe that the amount of infectious smaller droplet and particles produced by the people with COVID-19 became concentrated enough to spread the virus to other people. The people who were infected were in the same space during the same time or shortly after the person with COVID-19 had left.'"
Trump tweeted the following from Walter Reed hospital: "Feeling really good! Don't be afraid of Covid. Don't let it dominate your life. We have developed, under the Trump Administration, some really great drugs & knowledge. I feel better than I did 20 years ago!" Despite still being contageous with coronavirus, Trump left Walter Reed hospital and returned to the White House. According to the New York Times, White House officials are interfering with efforts by the Food and Drug Administration to release strict guidelines for the emergency authorization of a coronavirus vaccine. From the story:
"The FDA has been trying to release guidelines for vaccine development that include a recommendation that participants in the trials be tracked for two months after they receive their final dose, according to the report. The proposed follow-up period would help to catch possible side effects, as well as ensure that a vaccine provides long-term immunity. But the two-month period would also almost certainly delay any announcement of emergency authorization for a vaccine until after the 3 November election. White House chief of staff Mark Meadows is blocking release of the guidelines, according to the report."
The Trump administration released a short video of Trump, filmed shortly after he returned from Walter Reed, in which Trump states in part:
"Don’t let it dominate. Don’t let it take over your lives. Don't let that happen. We have the greatest country in the world. We're going back. We're going back to work. We're going to be out front. As your leader I had to do that. I knew there was danger to it but I had to do it. I stood out front. I led. Nobody that's a leader would not do what I did. And I know there's a danger, but that's okay."
Following the release of the video, the Trump campaign sent an email with the following message:
"I just left Walter Reed after receiving incredible care and I'm feeling really good! In fact, I feel better than I did 20 years ago. I'm telling you: Don't be afraid of Covid. Don’t let it dominate your life! This is the greatest country in the world, and under the Trump Administration, we have developed some really great drugs and knowledge. WE WILL BEAT THIS, TOGETHER! ... Now, I am fired up and ready to KEEP FIGHTING FOR YOU! This is the FINAL STRETCH of the Election and we can't take any days off."
Some notable reactions to Trump's video and email messages:
"I was aghast when he said Covid should not be feared. This is a disease that is killing around a thousand people a day, has torpedoed the economy, put people out of work. This is a virus that should be both respected and feared" - William Schaffner, Professor of Preventative Medicine and Infectious Disease at Vanderbilt University Medical Center
"This is a tragic failure of leadership" - Chris Coons, Democratic Senator
During a townhall meeting, Biden said of Trump: "I would hope that the President having gone through what he went through will communicate the right lesson to the American people: Masks matter. They save lives. ... Anybody who contracts the virus by essentially saying, 'masks don't matter, social distancing doesn't matter,' I think is responsible for what happens to them." Megachurch pastor Greg Laurie announced that he tested positive for coronavirus. Laurie was at the Amy Coney Barrett White House SCOTUS announcement ceremony.
October 4, 2020 - Bill Stepien, Trump's campaign manager, has tested positive for coronavirus. Writing for the Guardian, David Smith offers this analysis of recent revelations by the New York Times:
"One man was not surprised by revelations that Donald Trump does not deserve his reputation as a preternaturally successful businessman and deal maker. The man who helped create the illusion. Tony Schwartz spent hundreds of hours with Trump to ghostwrite his bestselling 1987 book The Art of the Deal, effectively creating the origin story of the brash property tycoon. It was Schwartz who coined the phrase 'truthful hyperbole', which neatly foreshadowed Trump and his supporters' attempts to rationalize many of his false and misleading claims. The 68-year-old writer has long disowned the president as a malignant narcissist and expressed regret for his part in constructing the mythology. So the New York Times report, detailing chronic financial losses and vast outstanding loans, confirmed his view that Trump was always better at cutting fantasy deals than making real ones. 'It's the ultimate unmasking of the emperor with no clothes,' Schwartz said by phone from Riverdale in the Bronx, New York. 'There's nothing more important to Trump than being seen as very, very rich, which is why he's expended so much effort in trying to claim a net worth far beyond what he actually was worth. The fact the evidence is unequivocal that he was not the person he claimed to be means that he's lost the central premise on which he's based his own self-worth, because Trump confuses personal worth with net worth. There's nothing Trump hates more than to feel weak and vulnerable and like a failure, so he won’t allow himself to acknowledge those feelings, but they’ll be there and they will affect him. Unfortunately, should he be re-elected, one of the ways he'll respond to that is he'll take it out on everyone who he thinks diminished or belittled him along the way.'"
Trump left Walter Reed hospital today for a short period, where he drove by and waved at supporters gathered outside the hospital. Some notable reactions to Trump's drive-by outside Walter Reed hospital:
"That Presidential SUV is not only bulletproof, but hermetically sealed against chemical attack. The risk of COVID19 transmission inside is as high as it gets outside of medical procedures. The irresponsibility is astounding. My thoughts are with the Secret Service forced to play." - Dr. James P. Phillips, MD
"so reckless, so careless, so heartless" - Anonymous Secret Service Agent
October 3, 2020 - Senator Ron Johnson, Republican from Wisconsin, has tested positive for coronavirus. Chris Christie, the former Republican governor of New Jersey, has tested positive for coronavirus. Christie had worked as Trump's debate coach before the 1st presidential debate. Speaking to reporters outside of Walter Reed hospital, Dr Sean Conley offered the following status of Trump's Covid: "At this time the team and I are extremely happy with the progress the president has made. Thursday, he had a mild cough and some nasal congestion and fatigue, all of which are now resolving and improving." Speaking to reporters outside the White House, Mark Meadows, the White House chief of staff offered the following status of Trunp's Covid: "The President's vitals over last 24 hours were very concerning and the next 48 hours will be critical in terms of his care. We are still not on a clear path to a full recovery." Nick Luna, a top Trump aid, has tested positive for coronavirus.
October 2, 2020 - News surfaced overnight that Donald and Melania Trump have tested positive for coronavirus. Hope Hicks, one of Trump's most senior advisers, has also tested positive. Writing for the Guardian, David Smith offers this analysis of Trump testing positive:
"It is likely to go down as the biggest 'October surprise' in the history of US presidential elections. Yet anyone who was paying attention could have seen it coming. Donald Trump tested positive for the coronavirus after claiming 'it will disappear', telling the journalist Bob Woodward he was downplaying it deliberately, failing to develop a national testing strategy, refusing to wear a face mask for months, floating the idea of injecting patients with bleach, insisting to one of his many crowded campaign rallies that 'it affects virtually nobody' and, at Tuesday's debate, mocking rival Joe Biden: 'He could be speaking 200 feet away and he shows up with the biggest mask I've ever seen.' It suggested a sense of invincibility even as more than 200,000 Americans died. But now chickens have come home to roost, just as they did for the similarly cavalier British prime minister, Boris Johnson, and Brazilian president, Jair Bolsonaro. Covid-19, described as the 'invisible enemy' by Trump, has penetrated the Oval Office. Thirty-two days before an election often described as the most important in living memory, this changes everything."
Trump sent the following tweet: "Tonight, @FLOTUS and I tested positive for COVID-19. We will begin our quarantine and recovery process immediately. We will get through this TOGETHER!" Notable response to Trump's tweet:
"Funny how when other people get it, it's the Democrat hoax, or the China virus or Kung Flu. When he gets it, suddenly it's Covid-19." - Robert B. Weide, American Screenwriter and Director
Cornell University researchers have analyzed 38m English-language articles about the pandemic, and they found that Donald Trump was the largest driver of Covid misinformation in the media during the first half of this year. Ronna McDaniel, the chairwoman of the Republican national committee, has tested positive for coronavirus. A video surfaced from 2016 showing Donald Trump mocking Hillary Clinton, his political opponent for president, after she had contracted pneumonia during the 2016 presidential campaign, and required assistance walking to her vehicle. In the video, Trump says: "Here's a woman, she's supposed to fight all of these different things, and she can't make it 15 feet to her car. Give me a break." Mike Lee, Republican senator from Utah, has tested positive for coronavirus. Rev John Jenkins, the president of the University of Notre Dame, has tested positive for coronavirus. Lee and Jenkins were at the White House recently for the Amy Coney Barrett SCOTUS announcement. The White House announced that TRump will be admitted to Walter Reed medical center for "the next few days". News surfaced that three White House reporters have tested positive for coronavirus. Thom Tillis, a Republican senator from NC, has tested positive for coronavirus. He too was at the SCOTUS event at the White House. Kellyanne Conway has tested positive for Covid-19, making her the 7th person at the Rose Garden event announcing Amy Coney Barrett's nomination to the supreme court to confirm she has tested positve for coronavirus. According to the Washington Post, Secret Service agents are frustated at Trump's behavior during the pandemic. According to one agent: "He's never cared about us. This administration doesn't care about the Secret Service."
Stephanie Winston Wolkoff, the author of Melania & Me: The Rise and Fall of My Friendship with the First Lady, has released some taped recordings of conversations with Melania. Here are some highlights from the tapes:
MELANIA: "I'm working ... my ass off on the Christmas stuff, that you know, who gives a fuck about the Christmas stuff and decorations? But I need to do it, right?"
MELANIA: "OK, and then I do it and I say that I'm working on Christmas and planning for the Christmas and they said, 'Oh, what about the children that they were separated?' Give me a fucking break. Where they were saying anything when Obama did that? I cannot go, I was trying to get the kid reunited with the mom. I didn't have a chance – [it] needs to go through the process and through the law."
October 1, 2020 - According to the BBC, the Trump campaign is running ads on social media that push baseless conspiracy theories about Joe Biden. From the story:
"US President Donald Trump's re-election campaign is running hundreds of Facebook advertisements pushing an unfounded conspiracy theory that Joe Biden cheated during the first US presidential debate. The adverts show the Democratic Party challenger with an earpiece, and say that he refused to have his ears checked for devices prior to the debate. The Biden campaign rejected the claims. The Trump campaign adverts ask: 'Why won’t Sleepy Joe commit to an ear test?' and 'Who is in Joe's ear?'"
Writing for the Guardian, Jason Wilson offers this analysis of the Proud Boys:
"The far-right Proud Boys group whom Donald Trump told to 'stand by' during this week's presidential debate is seen as a dangerous organization by law enforcement, according to leaked assessments of the organization from federal, state and local agencies. Trump's refusal to condemn white supremacists during the debate, and his suggestion that the Proud Boys 'stand by' during the current 2020 election campaign sent shockwaves through American politics. The Southern Poverty Law Center calls the Proud Boys a hate group. Files from the Blueleaks trove of leaked law enforcement documents reveal warnings that the Proud Boys, who some of the US agencies label as 'white supremacists' and 'extremists', and others as a 'gang', show persistent concerns about the group's menace to minority groups and even police officers, and its dissemination of dangerous conspiracy theories. Repeated warnings about the Proud Boys, and descriptions of them as a dangerous white supremacist group, were issued by members of the national network of counterterrorist fusion centers. The Colorado Information Analysis Center (CIAC) showed particular, repeated concerns about the group, and their activities in that state."
According to Politico, the Agriculture Department has mandated that millions of boxes of surplus food for needy families have to include a letter from Donald Trump claiming credit. The letter reads in part: "As President, safeguarding the health and well-being of our citizens is one of my highest priorities. As part of our response to coronavirus, I prioritized sending nutritious food from our farmers to families in need throughout America." Some notable responses to the surplus food letter:
"In my 30 years of doing this work, I’ve never seen something this egregious" - Lisa Hamler-Fugitt, Executive Director of the Ohio Association of Food Banks
"This is supposed to be about helping hungry people. It is one of the worst things I've seen in a long time" - Marcia Fudge, Democratic Representative
According to NBC News, the Department of Homeland Security was instructing officials to paint Kyle Rittenhous in a sympathetic light. From the story:
"Federal law enforcement officials were directed to make public comments sympathetic to Kyle Rittenhouse according to internal Department of Homeland Security talking points obtained by NBC News. In preparing Homeland Security officials for questions about Rittenhouse from the media, the document suggests that they note that he 'took his rifle to the scene of the rioting to help defend small business owners.' Another set of talking points distributed to Homeland Security officials said the media were incorrectly labeling the group Patriot Prayer as racists after clashes erupted between the group and protesters in Portland, Oregon. It is unclear whether any of the talking points originated at the White House or within Homeland Security's own press office."
According to the Guardian: "Republicans in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives are moving forward with a proposal to create an 'election integrity committee' to investigate the results of the election. ... Pennsylvania Democrats warned the committee represented a threat to democracy and could be a sign that Trump allies are prepared to disregard the outcome of the election. 'This is an unprecedented attack on non-partisan election administrators at a time when we should all be doing everything we can to instill confidence in our elections,' Democratic governor Tom Wolf said in a statement." Kayleigh McEnany, the White House press secretary, held press briefing. Here are some highlights:
- McEnany was asked if she would, right now, condemn white supremacy on behalf of the president. McEnany declined, and instead read from a list of Trump's past quotes on the issue, and also stated: "He has condemned white supremacy more than any president in modern history". McEnany then criticized the CNN reporter for posing a "partisan attack question."
- McEnany claimed supreme court nominee Amy Coney Barrett is a Rhodes Scholar. NOTE: Amy Coney Barrett is not a Rhodes Scholar. Barrett graduated from Rhodes College in Tennessee.
- McEnany was asked if Trump had "misspoke" when he refused to condemn white supremacy at the presidential debate. McEnany responded that "No, he did not misspeak" noting that Trump initially said "sure" when asked to condemn white supremacy.
- The following exchange took place regarding a statement made recently by Trump that "They found a lot of ballots in a river.":
Q Thank you, Kayleigh. As you know, the President has criticized the mail-in voting process quite a bit over the last few weeks. The other day, he said, “They found a lot of ballots in a river.” Who is “they”?
MS. MCENANY: So what the President was referring to are something that we've seen just in the last seven days where, in Wisconsin, there were trails of mail ending up in a ditch. So that's, I believe, the specific he was referring to, and that included absentee ballots.
Q Where specifically — in this particular statement though, who is “they” that found those ballots, and where is this river anywhere in this country?
MS. MCENANY: The local authorities. It was a ditch in Wisconsin that they were found in. And I can get the article to your inbox, if you'd like. And beyond that —
Q So he mis — but that’s fine. If he misspoke, that's fine. So he meant —
MS. MCENANY: No that's — that's — I believe —
Q He meant a di- — he meant a ditch rather than a river?
MS. MCENANY: That's what the President was referring to. And you're really — you're missing the forest for the trees here. The point is —
Q No, I just wanted to know where — I cover the news, and I like to report accurately in the news. And when the President says, “They found a lot of ballots in a river,” I simply want to know where the river is.
MS. MCENANY: No, you simply want to ignore the fact of the matter.
Q I don't.
MS. MCENANY: Again, please —
Q I got asked — I got asked so many questions about this by my Fox affiliates —
MS. MCENANY: — allow me to respond. Allow me to respond.
Q — “Where is this river?”
MS. MCENANY: Allow me to respond to you.
Q And I can’t give them accurate information —
MS. MCENANY: Allow me to respond.
Q — and that's why I'm asking you.
MS. MCENANY: This is — this is what is happening here: You are ignoring the problem here, which is, last week, in Pennsylvania, you had ballots found in a ditch. That is a fact. In Wisconsin, seven military ballots, all marked for Trump, were found cast aside. There are problems with mass mail-in voting. I under- — I actually don't understand the lack of journalistic curiosity and reporting on this. There used to be —
Q I want to know where the river is.
MS. MCENANY: There used to be curiosity.
Q Where is the river?
MS. MCENANY: In fact, the Washington Post, before President Trump, highlighted the problems with mail-in voting. They said the result was an “unexpected stress test of mail balloting systems,” when this was tried, “many of which were designed to handle only a small portion of the vote and are not ready to scale up in response to the pandemic.”
So the media once said —
Q So there is no river?
MS. MCENANY: — mail-in voting is “not ready to scale up” in the middle of a pandemic. Now there’s no journalistic curiosity when we're finding Trump ballots —
Q There's no river then?
Q He's asking you about it.
MS. MCENANY: — cast aside. There's no journalistic curiosity when —
Q I'm asking you where the river is, and you can't give an answer.
MS. MCENANY: — 100,000 ballots were sent out in Brooklyn.
Q If you say the President meant a ditch, then say he meant a ditch.
MS. MCENANY: They were inaccurate ballots, and then 100,000 more.
Q I just want to know where the river is.
MS. MCENANY: Shameful filibustering and lack of journalistic curiosity.
Yes. [while pointing to another reporter]
Q I'm very curious. Where's the river?
MS. MCENANY: Yes. [while pointing to another reporter]
Q That's curiosity.
A resolution condemning white supremacy passed in the House unanimously. Senate Republicans blocked the resolution. Notable response to the action of Senate Republicans:
"Every voter needs to focus on this. The Republican party in the Senate will not pass a resolution condemning white supremacy groups and the violent threat they pose to our country. The 'law and order' party won't confront what the FBI calls our top terrorism risk. Now go vote" - Joe Lockhart, Political Commentator
NOTE: FBI Director Christopher Wray told Congress that racially motivated extremism makes up the majority of domestic terrorism threats.
Donald Trump responded to news the Commission on Presidential Debates were planning to change the rules for future debates, tweeting: "Why would I allow the Debate Commission to change the rules for the second and third Debates when I easily won last time?" NOTE: Polls show that a majority of American voters believe Joe Biden won the debate. Greg Abbott, the Republican governor of Texas, issued a proclamation that counties can only have 1 dropoff point. Critics are calling this proclamation voter suppression. Texas already severely limits mail-in voting to those who are 65 and older, and the state has aggressively opposed lawsuits seeking to ease those restrictions amid a global pandemic. According to the Guardian, two conservative operatives have been charged with felony voter intimidation for their role in orchestrating racist robocalls that spread false information about voting. From the story:
"Michigan attorney general Dana Nessel filed a number of charges against Jacob Wohl and Jack Burkman, including conspiracy to commit an election law violation and using a computer to commit crimes. In what appeared to be a blatant attempt to scare Black voters away from casting a mail-in ballot, Detroit residents were targeted with messages that claimed, falsely: 'Mail in voting sounds great, but did you know that if you vote by mail, your information will be part of a public database that will be used by police departments to track down old warrants? And will be used by credit card companies to collect outstanding debt? The CDC is even pushing to give preference to mail-in voting to track people for mandatory vaccines.' The calls went out to nearly 12,000 Detroit residents in August, according to the attorney general. 'Any effort to interfere with, intimidate or intentionally mislead Michigan voters will be met with swift and severe consequences,' Nessel said. 'This effort specifically targeted minority voters in an attempt to deter them from voting in the November election.' Michigan is a battleground state in the presidential election, and recent polls have shown Democrat Joe Biden with a consistent lead."
According to the New Yorker, Fox News agreed to pay a former employee $4m in order to avoid going to trial over sexual harassment allegations. The subject of the allegations were Kimberly Guilfoyle, a former Fox News host, who was forced out amid reports she acted inappropriately toward colleagues. Guilfoyle is a current Trump adviser, and current partner of Donald Trump Jr. From the story:
"[The former assistant] said that she was frequently required to work at Guilfoyle's New York apartment while the Fox host displayed herself naked, and was shown photographs of the genitalia of men with whom Guilfoyle had had sexual relations. The draft complaint also alleged that Guilfoyle spoke incessantly and luridly about her sex life, and on one occasion demanded a massage of her bare thighs; other times, she said, Guilfoyle told her to submit to a Fox employee's demands for sexual favors, encouraged her to sleep with wealthy and powerful men, asked her to critique her naked body, demanded that she share a room with her on business trips, required her to sleep over at her apartment, and exposed herself to her, making her feel deeply uncomfortable."
September 30, 2020 - Writing for the New York Times, Frank Bruni offers the following assessment of last night's debate:
"I wasn't in the crowd of people who believed Joe Biden shouldn't deign to debate President Trump, but put me in the crowd that believes he shouldn't debate him again. Not after Tuesday night's horror show: a disgrace to the format, an insult to the country, a nearly pointless 90 minutes. And, I should add, a degradation of the presidency itself, which Trump had degraded so thoroughly already. He put on a performance so contemptuous, so puerile, so dishonest and so across-the-board repellent that the moderator, Chris Wallace, morphed into some amalgam of elementary-school principal, child psychologist, traffic cop and roadkill. ... Here's the deal, as Biden would say: Only one man on that stage persuasively communicated that he has the interests of the American people at heart. Only one man on that stage seemed at all interested in maintaining a tether to the truth. Only one man demonstrated any respect for Wallace or for the process. Only one man would be bearable for the next four years. I needn't spell out who that man is."
Kayleigh McEnany tweeted the following regarding last night's debate: "I feel bad for all the 'journalists' and 'analysts' who had pre-written 'Biden Dominates' articles but then had to revise because... Joe was WEAK and RATTLED!" Writing for the Los Angeles Times, Carla Hall offered this assessment of Trump's failure to disavow white supremacists at the debate:
"I can't believe in debate prep Chris Christie, the Republican former New Jersey governor, or anyone else said to Trump, 'Hey, if the moderator asks you whether you support white supremacists, dodge the question and attack antifa'. And if they did, they should never get invited back to the White House for … anything. Trump answered that he would tell the Proud Boys — a violent group described by the Anti-Defamation League as 'misogynistic, Islamophobic, transphobic and anti-immigration,' to “stand back and stand by.' (Huh?) Then he pivoted back to his diatribe on antifa: 'I'll tell you what. Someone has got to do something about antifa and the left. Because this is not a right-wing problem. This is a left-wing problem.' OK. Let's just say, for argument's sake, that he's right (and there's no evidence he is) that antifa is the bigger threat. What does he lose by disavowing the white supremacists we know have become more public and outspoken in the last four years and have shown up at various protests to stir up mayhem? Whose votes does he lose?"
Writing for Mother Jones, David Corn offered the following analysis of last night's debate:
"The Trump campaign obviously needs to expand his vote count beyond FoxWorld. He needs some of those suburban 'housewives' he has been trying to scare with his racist demagoguery. But many of those voters are not with Trump or have left him because of his divisiveness, his lack of decency, and his penchant for chaos. Trump's historic (in not a good way) performance is likely to alienate these folks further. He did absolutely nothing to change minds, to persuade, to coax, to win over. And that set up one of Biden’s best lines of the night, when the former veep slammed Trump's callous remark about the Covid-19 deaths and said to him, 'It is what it is because you are who you are.' This was Biden's main attack on Trump; he's a self-obsessed jerk who cannot act as a responsible adult during a national crisis. At the debate, Trump proved him right."
Writing for the Guardian, David Smith offered the following analysis of last night's debate:
"Cry, the beloved country. Donald Trump ensured Tuesday's first US presidential debate was the worst in American history, a national humiliation. The rest of the world – and future historians – will presumably look at it and weep. More likely than not, according to opinion polls, his opponent Joe Biden will win the November election and bring the republic back from the brink. If Trump is re-elected, however, this dark, horrifying, unwatchable fever dream will surely be the first line of America’s obituary. Only one man looked remotely presidential on the debate stage in Cleveland, Ohio, and it was not the incumbent. He interrupted, ranted, raged, spewed lies and interrupted some more. Oh, and he passed on an opportunity to condemn white supremacists, instead telling them to 'stand back and stand by'. The debate moderator, Chris Wallace of Fox News, did not cover himself in glory either. He was a like a school supply teacher, hopelessly out of his depth as unruly children run riot. He did not enforce the rules or cut the president’s mic. Facing this asymmetric bullying, Biden showed self-control and stood his ground. He spoke for tens of millions of Americans when he demanded: 'Will you shut up, man?' – the Biden campaign rushed out this slogan on a T-shirt before the debate was even over."
According to the Washington Post: "Democratic voters who have requested mail ballots — and returned them — greatly outnumber Republicans so far in key battleground states, causing alarm among GOP party leaders and strategists that President Trump's attacks on mail voting could be hurting the party's prospects to retain the White House and the Senate this year." Senator Tim Scott, a Republican from South Carolina, who is the only black Republican in the Senate, was asked by a reporter if he found the president's refusal to condemn white supremacist groups, concerning. Scott's response: "I think he misspoke. I think he should correct it. If he doesn't correct it, I guess he didn't misspeak." Jason Miller, an adviser for Trump's reelection campaign, explained Trump's refusal to condemn white supremacist violence by saying that Trump was telling the Proud Boys to "stand by the wayside and get out of the way" of law enforcement. James Comey, the former director of the FBI, testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee. Here are some highlights:
- Comey was asked about Attorney General William Barr's comments that the FBI's investigation of the Trump campaign was "completely baseless". Comey responded: "He says that a lot. I have no idea on earth what he's talking about. This was an investigation that was appropriately predicated and that had to be opened and it was in the main conducted in the right way, picked up by the special counsel, led to indictment of dozens of people and a finding by your colleagues in the Senate that the head of Trump's campaign was a grave counterintelligence threat because he was funneling information to a known Russian intelligence officer. The notion that the attorney general believes that was an illegitimate endeavor to investigate mystifies me."
The Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD) released a statement which reads in part:
"Last night's debate made clear that additional structure should be added to the format of the remaining debates to ensure a more orderly discussion of the issues."
Trump was asked about his Proud Boys comment at the debate last night. Trump's response: "I don't know who the Proud Boys are. Whoever they are, they need to stand down, let law enforcement do their work." Trump then said that Biden "has to say something about Antifa. It's not a philosophy." NOTE: Christopher Wray, the director of the FBI, testified that Antifa is "not a group or an organization," but is "a movement or an ideology."
September 29, 2020 - Trump sent out the following tweet: "Now Fake News @CNN is actually reporting that I wanted my daughter, Ivanka, to run with me as my Vice President in 2016 Election. Wrong and totally ridiculous. These people are sick!" NOTE: The story comes from a book written by Rick Gates, who worked as a campaign deputy for Donald Trump. Shira A Scheindlin, a former United States district judge, offers the following analysis of what she calls the Republicans assault on the supreme court:
"In a naked acknowledgment of his true motivation, Trump recently said that the country needs a ninth justice because the pending election could well end up before the court and a 4-4 court would be a bad thing. Yet, in 2016, the Republicans were content with a 4-4 court with an election around the corner. Indeed, Republicans threatened that if Hillary Clinton won the election, no new justice would be confirmed, leaving the court with only eight justices throughout her term. This election is already in progress with thousands (and soon millions) of Americans voting during what will inevitably be a highly contentious confirmation process. This process will inevitably affect the election and thereby politicize the supreme court as never before. The political branches of our government – the executive and legislative branches – are elected by voters; the court, on the other hand, is supposed to be non-partisan. While appointed by the president and confirmed by Congress, the justices are not beholden to any political party but rather to the rule of law. This is no longer the case. Public confidence and public perception that the courts are non-partisan has eroded. The Republican boycott of Garland, together with Trump’s unprecedented nomination of Barrett and her likely confirmation, will seal the Republican theft of two supreme court seats, at least in the eyes of more than half the electorate, and will ensure conservative control of the court for decades to come."
During an interview with CNN, Olivia Troye, a former adviser to vice president Mike Pence, confirmed that the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention was pushed to play down the risks of the coronavirus pandemic in reopening schools for in-person classes saying "Unfortunately, this was an effort, you know, at times where I would get blindsided, where there would be junior staffers being tasked to find different data for charts to show that the virus wasn’t as bad for certain populations, ages or demographics." Chris Bryant, a British member of parliament, announced that he had nominated Joe Biden for the Nobel peace proze saying: "When others have resorted to violent solutions, he has argued that the best force is the force of argument. Because guns can stop a heart but well-placed words can change many hearts, and many hearts can change a world." NOTE: Christian Tybring-Gjedde, a far-right member of the Norwegian Parliament, nominated Donald Trump in both 2018 and in 2020 for the same prize. Joe Biden and Kamala Harris released their 2019 tax returns today. Ruth Bader Ginsburg was buried today in Arlington National Cemetery. According to the Guardian: "The House intelligence committee has subpoenaed the Department of Homeland security, as part of an ongoing investigation into whether top officials at the agency pressured DHS officials to modify intelligence reports to fit the president’s agenda." Approximately two hours before the first presidential debate, the Trump campaign sent out the following email:
"I finished debating Joe Biden. This debate will go down in HISTORY. I showed the American People that I will ALWAYS fight to put America First no matter what and that I wll NEVER stop."
Seven former Food and Drug commissioners have written an op-ed in the Washington Post which is highly critical of the Trump Administration. From the op-ed:
"In 1906, when President Theodore Roosevelt signed a bill to create what is now the FDA, one of his first actions was to delegate the oversight of food and drug safety to the agency's scientists. In the 114 years since, FDA professionals have created a consumer safety net that has been a worldwide model for evidence-based public health policy. Indeed, for decades, when we and our predecessors spoke as FDA commissioners about issues of regulation and people's health, the public knew we were speaking on behalf of experts whose judgments were grounded in science. That is changing in deeply troubling ways. The White House has said it might try to influence the scientific standards for vaccine approval put forward by the FDA or block the agency from issuing further written guidance on its criteria for judging the safety and benefits of a potential Covid-19 vaccine. This pronouncement came just after key leaders at the FDA, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the National Institutes of Health all publicly supported that guidance."
A federal appeals court has upheld a ruling that extends the deadline for counting absentee ballots in Wisconsin, meaning ballots postmarked by 3 November will be counted as long as they arrive before 9 November. NOTE: The RNC and state Republican leaders oppose the extension, despite an expected increase in vote by mail because of the pandemic, and changes at the US Post Office which have slowed the mail. The first debate of the 2020 presidential election took place today in Cleveland, Ohio. Here are some highlights:
- In violation of Cleveland Clinic rules, more than half of Trump's guests, which includes his four children, are not wearing masks. All of Biden's guests are wearing masks.
- After Trump repeatedly mocked Biden, Biden responded by calling Trump a "liar" and a "clown".
- While Trump was repeatedly interrupting Biden, Biden told Trump "Will you shut up, man?"
- As he has done before, Trump questioned the effectiveness of masks as a means of mitigating the spread of coronavirus. Biden responded that health experts have said "the opposite" about masks.
- Trump claimed "I'm the one that brought back football." NOTE: According to leaders of Big 10 football, which was resumed with a shorter season after initially being cancelled, Trump had nothing to do with their decision to hold a shortened season.
- Biden told Trump: "You are the worst president America has ever had."
- Trump, who has blocked federal employees from receiving racial sensitivity training, called that type of training "racist" and said it teaches people to "hate our country".
- Trump was asked "Are you willing tonight to condemn white supremacist and militia groups and to say that they need to stand down and not add to the violence?" Trump responded: "Sure. I’m willing to do that, but I would say ... almost everything I see is from the left wing, not from the right wing. Proud Boys, stand back and stand by. But I'll tell you what, somebody's gotta do something about antifa and the left because this is not a rightwing problem, this is a leftwing problem." NOTE: According to the Guardian "A new database of nearly 900 politically motivated attacks and plots in the United States since 1994 includes just one attack staged by an anti-fascist that led to fatalities. In that case, the single person killed was the perpetrator. Over the same time period, American white supremacists and other rightwing extremists have carried out attacks that left at least 329 victims dead, according to the database."
- Biden argued that the country had become "weaker", "sicker" and "more divided" since Trump took office. Biden also called Trump "Putin's puppy".
- Trump declared the need for law and order to protect the suburbs, to which Biden responded that Trump "wouldn’t know a suburb unless he took a wrong turn. I was raised in the suburbs. This is not 1950. All these dog whistles and racism don't work any more."
- Trump stated: "I'm urging my supporters to go into the polls and watch very carefully, because that's what has to happen. I'm urging them to do it."
Notable reactions to the debate:
"That was a hot mess, inside a dumpster fire, inside a train wreck. That was the worst debate I have ever seen. It wasn't even a debate. It was a disgrace. And it's primarily because of President Trump." - Jake Tapper, CNN Anchor
"That was a shitshow." - Dana Bash, CNN Correspondent
"Trump basically said to go fuck them up! this makes me so happy." - Joe Biggs, Proud Boy
"Donald Trump is a white supremacist. People have been warning about this for a long time. They were ridiculed, called hyperbolic & radical - not bc they were wrong, but bc others couldn't accept that our country elected a supremacist as President. This is fascism at our door." - Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
"Only three things happened tonight:
1. #DonaldTrump refused to condemn white supremacy.
2. The #POTUS refused to condemn white supremacy.
3. The #CommanderInChief REFUSED to condemn white supremacy on the GLOBAL STAGE. NOW LOOK AT WHAT IS HAPPENING ONLINE. THIS IS NOT OKAY." - Van Jones
According to NPR, attorneys for Fox News successfully defended Fox host Tucker Carlson in a defamation lawsuit, by arguing that no reasonable viewer would take what Carlson says literally. During arguments, the Fox News lawyers mocked the legal case brought by Karen McDougal's legal team, stating McDougal alleged "a reasonable viewer of ordinary intelligence listening or watching the show ... would conclude that [she] is a criminal who extorted Trump for money" and that "the statements about [her] were fact." The lawyers then countered, saying "Context makes plain that the reasonable viewer would do no such thing." US District Judge Mary Kay Vyskocil, a Trump appointee, agreed with the Fox lawyers saying in her decision that the "'general tenor' of the show should then inform a viewer that [Carlson] is not 'stating actual facts' about the topics he discusses and is instead engaging in 'exaggeration' and 'non-literal commentary.' ... Fox persuasively argues, that given Mr. Carlson's reputation, any reasonable viewer 'arrive[s] with an appropriate amount of skepticism' about the statement he makes. ... Whether the Court frames Mr. Carlson's statements as 'exaggeration,' 'non-literal commentary,' or simply bloviating for his audience, the conclusion remains the same — the statements are not actionable."
September 28, 2020 - Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez weighed in on revelations regarding Trump's taxes tweeting: "In 2016 & '17, I paid thousands of dollars a year in taxes *as a bartender.* Trump paid $750. He contributed less to funding our communities than waitresses & undocumented immigrants. Donald Trump has never cared for our country more than he cares for himself. A walking scam." Cortez also tweeted: "Last year Republicans blasted a firehose of hatred + vitriol my way because I treated myself to a $250 cut & lowlights on my birthday. Where's the criticism of their idol spending $70k on hairstyling? Oh, it's nowhere because they're spineless, misogynistic hypocrites? Got it." According to a forthcoming book by Trump's deputy campaign manager Rick Gates, Trump initially wanted to select his daughter Ivanka Trump as his running mate in 2016. According to Gates, Trump tried to sell the idea to his campaign staff repeatedly, and only dropped the idea after Ivanka herself told him it was not a good idea. With Trump's taxes being a major discussion theme online, the following Trump tweet is being shared widely: "@BarackObama who wants to raise all our taxes, only pays 20.5% on $790k salary. http://1.usa.gov/HFZJKH Do as I say not as I do." According to NBC News, Robert Redfield, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and prevention, was overheard raising concerns about Dr Scott Atlas. From the story:
"Dr Robert Redfield, who leads the CDC, suggested in a conversation with a colleague Friday that Dr Scott Atlas is arming Trump with misleading data about a range of issues, including questioning the efficacy of masks, whether young people are susceptible to the virus and the potential benefits of herd immunity. 'Everything he says is false,' Redfield said during a phone call made in public on a commercial airline and overheard by NBC News. Redfield acknowledged after the flight from Atlanta to Washington, D.C., that he was speaking about Atlas, a neuroradiologist with no background in infectious diseases or public health. Atlas was brought on to the White House task force in August."
The editorial board of the Washington Post has endorsed Joe Biden for president saying:
"In order to expel the worst president of modern times, many voters might be willing to vote for almost anybody. Fortunately, to oust president Trump in 2020, voters do not have to lower their standards. ... In contrast to Trump's narcissism, Biden is deeply empathetic; you can't imagine him dismissing wounded or fallen soldiers as 'losers.' To Trump's cynicism, Biden brings faith — religious faith, yes, but also faith in American values and potential. In place of Trump's belittling and demonizing of opponents and allies alike, Biden offers a deep commitment to finding common ground in service to making government work for the greatest number. He has demonstrated that commitment in reaching across the aisle to Republicans, and also — most recently — in bringing unity to the Democratic Party without compromising his own fundamental convictions. ... [Trump has] few accomplishments in his first term and no agenda for his second. ... If he takes the oath in the midst of the pandemic's second wave, as is quite possible, with the economy in a tailspin, we can be confident Biden will rise to the occasion. Why? Because when President Barack Obama and he took office in 2009, the nation was in a similarly frightening tailspin. Mr. Obama trusted his vice president to work with Congress to deliver a bipartisan recovery package and then to help administer it."
Appearing on Fox News "Fox and Friends", Kayleigh McEnany called the New York Times story on Trump's taxes a "hit piece about the president's taxes just before a debate. This is the same playbook they tried in 2016, the same playbook that the American people rejected." Trump sent the following tweet in response to the New York Times tax story: "The Fake News Media, just like Election time 2016, is bringing up my Taxes & all sorts of other nonsense with illegally obtained information & only bad intent. I paid many millions of dollars in taxes but was entitled, like everyone else, to depreciation & tax credits." Here is more from the New York Times tax story:
"As the president wages a re-election campaign that polls say he is in danger of losing, his finances are under stress, beset by losses and hundreds of millions of dollars in debt coming due that he has personally guaranteed. Also hanging over him is a decade-long audit battle with the Internal Revenue Service over the legitimacy of a $72.9 million tax refund that he claimed, and received, after declaring huge losses. An adverse ruling could cost him more than $100 million. The tax returns that Mr. Trump has long fought to keep private tell a story fundamentally different from the one he has sold to the American public. His reports to the I.R.S. portray a businessman who takes in hundreds of millions of dollars a year yet racks up chronic losses that he aggressively employs to avoid paying taxes. Now, with his financial challenges mounting, the records show that he depends more and more on making money from businesses that put him in potential and often direct conflict of interest with his job as president."
According to the Washington Post, "morale is at an all-time low" at the CDC. There is also concern among CDC staffers that Robert Redfield is not the right person to lead the agency during a global pandemic, but there is concern about who Trump might pick to replace him. From the story:
"Inside the CDC, staffers acknowledge Redfield's limitations as a leader but are fearful that, if he is ousted or quits, the White House will install someone of a more distinctly political or ideological bent — such as Scott Atlas, a Stanford University neuroradiologist and Trump pandemic adviser. Atlas, who has said pandemic fears are overblown, has become a Trump favorite and has publicly criticized Redfield in recent days. Atlas has no experience in public health but attends all meetings of the White House coronavirus task force. Moving to replace Redfield with someone such as Atlas would further erode morale and probably lead to resignations, staffers say."
According to the Miami Herald, Brad Parscale, Trump's previous campaign manager, was taken by force to a medical center. From the story:
"Brad Parscale, 44, was involuntarily hospitalized under Florida's Baker Act by officers and taken to Broward Health Medical Center Sunday after barricading himself in the $2.4 million home he shares in Fort Lauderdale's Seven Isles with his wife, Candice. In reports released Monday, police documented a tense scene in which Parscale — after possibly firing a shot inside his house — refused to leave and was ultimately tackled by SWAT officers outside the home when he emerged shirtless with a beer in his hand. 'I initiated a double leg take down,' wrote Sgt. Matthew Moceri, one of the responding officers, noting that the 6-foot-8-inch Parscale towered over him and ignored his commands to get down. ... Officers say they were first called to the Parscale home around 3:36 p.m. Sunday by a neighbor who'd encountered Candice Parscale. When they arrived, police said the two women were in a parked car outside the couple's home. Officers said Parscale's wife told them the couple had been arguing and her husband had pulled out a handgun and loaded it. Officers also wrote in their reports that Parscale's wife told them he had post-traumatic stress disorder and had become violent in recent weeks. She showed them bruises on her arms from an argument two days prior, they said. Police say they took photos of injuries."
According to the Guardian, a federal judge in Philadelphia has ordered the Postal Service to halt recent service cuts that critics say are causing mail delays and threatening the integrity of the presidential election. According to the story:
"Six states and the District of Columbia presented 'compelling evidence' from the US Postal Service itself that shows 'a pronounced increase in mail delays across the country' since July, the judge found, and The Associated Press reported. 'In a pandemic, states are even more reliant on the mail, especially when it comes to administering elections,' US district judge Gerald McHugh wrote in granting a preliminary injunction."
According to CBS News, Joe and Jill Biden paid $3.7 million and $1.5 million in taxes for 2017 and 2018, according to the tax returns they've released. Dr Sctott Atlas told the press today that the country has a handle on the virus. Trump told the press the US is "rounding the corner". These comments from Trump and Atlas were at the same press conference where Mike Pence told the press that Americans should expect the number of cases to rise in the weeks ahead. During an interview with the Today show, Andrew Weismann, a key lawyer on the special counsel that investigated Russian interference in the 2016 election, Weismann said that Donald Trump tried to interfere with the inquiry. Weismann also said that if he had been able to, he would have subpoenaed Trump's tax returns, saying "We did not do a full financial investigation relating to the president." Dr Anthony Fauci was asked during an interview with CNN's Brian Stelter, if he shared concerns that Dr Scott Atlas was spreading misleading and incorrect information. Fauci's response: "Well yeah, I'm concerned that sometimes things are said that are really taken either out of context or actually incorrect." In defiance of a federal judge's order, Wilbur Ross, the commerce secretary, stated that the end of counting for the 2020 census is October 5th, despite a judge ordering the count to continue through October 31st.
September 27, 2020 - Trump sent the following tweet regarding the upcoming presidential debate: "I will be strongly demanding a Drug Test of Sleepy Joe Biden prior to, or after, the Debate on Tuesday night. Naturally, I will agree to take one also. His Debate performances have been record setting UNEVEN, to put it mildly. Only drugs could have caused this discrepancy???" Tom Ridge, the former governor of Pennsylvania and secretary of homeland security under George W Bush, has endoresed Joe Biden for president saying that Donald Trump "routinely dismisses the opinions of experts who know far more about the subject at hand than he does – intelligence, military, and public health ... our country has paid dearly in lives lost, social unrest, economic hardship and our standing in the world." Ridge also voiced disapproval of Trump's attacks on mail-in voting saying: "Can you imagine any other president in our lifetime – or ever – saying something so dangerous and un-American? We are in the midst of a health crisis, when we should be doing all we can to help citizens vote safely, yet he continues to cast doubt on the sanctity of the vote." The New York Times obtained tax return data for Donald Trump that goes back more than two decades. From the story:
"Donald J. Trump paid $750 in federal income taxes the year he won the presidency. In his first year in the White House, he paid another $750. He had paid no income taxes at all in 10 of the previous 15 years — largely because he reported losing much more money than he made. As the president wages a re-election campaign that polls say he is in danger of losing, his finances are under stress, beset by losses and hundreds of millions of dollars in debt coming due that he has personally guaranteed. Also hanging over him is a decade-long audit battle with the Internal Revenue Service over the legitimacy of a $72.9 million tax refund that he claimed, and received, after declaring huge losses. An adverse ruling could cost him more than $100 million. ... Even while declaring losses, he has managed to enjoy a lavish lifestyle by taking tax deductions on what most people would consider personal expenses, including residences, aircraft and $70,000 in hairstyling for television."
Donald Trump held a press briefing. Here are some highlights:
- Trump was asked if he was joking when he called for Biden to take a drug test before the debate. Trump's response: "I'm not joking. I'm willing to take a drug test and I think he should, too. Because he's had a very uneven – I watched him when he was debating Pocahontas and Harris, who treated him so badly – but I watched him and he was out of it."
- Trump was asked about the tax return story in the New York Times. Trump's response: "It's fake news. It's totally fake news. Made up, fake. We went through the same stories, you could have asked me the same questions four years ago, I had to litigate this and had to talk about it. Totally fake news. Actually, I paid tax. And you'll see that as soon as my tax returns – it's under audit, they've been under audit for a long time, the IRS does not treat me well, they treat me like the Tea Party, like they treated the Tea Party, and they don't treat me well. They treat me very badly. You have people in the IRS that treat me very, very badly. But they're under audit. And when they're not, I would be proud to show you. But that's just fake news."
- Trump was asked if he could give the American people a sense of what he pays in taxes. Trump's response: "First of all, I've paid a lot and I've paid a lot of state income taxes, too. ... It'll all be revealed. It's going to come out, but after after the audit. They're doing their assessment. We've been negotiating for a long time. Things get settled, like in the IRS. But right now when you're under audit, you don't do it. You don't do that. So we're under audit. But the story is a total fake."
September 26, 2020 - Americans who have died from coronavirus now exceeds 203,000. The CEO for the Center for Reproductive Rights issued a statement regarding the nomination of Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court which reads in part:
"At this unprecedented time, and while the nation is still mourning and paying tribute to Justice Ginsburg’s tremendous contributions to advancing equality, President Donald Trump has nominated a replacement who would gut Justice Ginsburg’s legacy and turn back five decades of advancement for reproductive rights ... The Senate Majority's attempt to bulldoze this deeply troubling nomination through before the inauguration in January is unconscionable, an insult to the American public, an assault on the integrity of the Supreme Court, and a threat to critical constitutional rights. Americans need to make clear that their fundamental rights for generations to come will not be pawns in a political power grab."
Brett Hartl, the government affairs director at the Center for Biological Diversity, offered this analysis regarding the nomination of Amy Coney Barrett:
"Judge Barrett is an ideological fanatic who lacks the temperament to rule fairly in the interests of all Americans ... Her slim judicial record shows that she's hostile to the environment and will slam shut the courthouse doors to public interest advocates, to the delight of corporate polluters. Environmental justice, our climate and wildlife on the brink of extinction will all suffer if Barrett is confirmed."
September 25, 2020 - Writing for the Guardian, Ankita Rao offers the following anaysis of Trump's claims about crime in US cities:
"Big American cities are largely run by Democrats, with only few under Republican leadership, making comparisons almost impossible, and the increase in crime has hit Republican areas too. But Trump's 'law-and-order' narrative is now successfully deepening political fissures in the country, without addressing the actual issue of community violence at time of a pandemic which has cost 200,000 American lives, an economic collapse that has killed millions of jobs and widespread civic unrest. Crime in US cities has been steadily trending down in recent decades, even with prevalent mass shootings and gun violence. This year, however, is an anomaly. At the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, as cities such as New York and Chicago went under various types of lockdown, certain types of crime – murder and burglary – dropped precipitously. Then, as the summer started, things changed. 'What we're seeing in the US is a lot of communities under significant stress related to Covid and the economy. Stress causes violence to get worse,' said Charles Ransford, the director of policy and science at Cure Violence, an international anti-violence organization which has been credited with driving down gun violence in Chicago by more than 30% in 2008 by treating it as a disease."
Judge Lucy Koh, a US District judge, has ordered the count for the 2020 US census to continue through the end of October, overruling attempts by the Trump administration to end the count at the end of September. According to a story in the New York Times, there us anxiety at the Pentagon that Donald Trump may try to drag the military into post-election chaos. From the story:
"President Trump gave officials no solace on Wednesday and Thursday when he again refused to commit to a peaceful transfer of power no matter who wins the election, and on Thursday, he doubled down by saying he was not sure the election could be 'honest.' His hedging, along with his expressed desire in June to invoke the 1807 Insurrection Act to send active-duty troops onto American streets to quell protests over the killing of George Floyd, has incited deep anxiety among senior military and Defense Department leaders, who insist they will do all they can to keep the armed forces out of the elections. 'I believe deeply in the principle of an apolitical US military,' General Mark A. Milley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said in written answers to questions from House lawmakers released last month. 'In the event of a dispute over some aspect of the elections, by law, US courts and the US Congress are required to resolve any disputes, not the US military. I foresee no role for the US armed forces in this process.' But that has not stopped an intensifying debate in the military about its role should a disputed election lead to civil unrest."
According to Reuters, President Vladimir Putin has called for an agreement between Russia and the United States to guarantee not to engage in cyber-meddling in each other's elections. Writing for the Guardian, Tom McCarthy provides the following thoughts about William Barr's role should Trump try to steal the upcoming election:
"To some observers, the attorney general appears to have also laid the groundwork for a further alarming step, one that would answer the question of what action the Trump administration is prepared to take if a contested election in November gives rise to large new protests. In order for Trump to steal the election and then quell mass demonstrations – for that is the nature of the nightmare scenario now up for open discussion among current and former officials, academics, thinktankers and a lot of other people – Trump must be able to manipulate both the levers of the law and its physical enforcement. In Barr, Trump not only gets all of that, critics say but he also enjoys the partnership of a man whose sense of biblical stakes around the election imbues him with a deep sense of mission about re-electing Trump."
Mark Meadows, the White House chief of staff, was asked about comments made by FBI director Christopher Wray, in which he did not back up Trump's baseless claims about voter fraud. Meadows responded saying: "With all due respect to Director Wray, he has a hard time finding emails in his own FBI, let alone figuring out whether there's any kind of voter fraud." Donald Trump has a rally scheduled for tonight at the Newport News/Williamsburg International Airport. In response to the rally, Natasha Dwamena, a department of public health district director, wrote a letter to the private company that leases the hangar saying "The rally poses a concerning public health risk." Virginia is currently under an executive order from governor Ralph Northam which bans gatherings of more than 250 people. The rally is expected to draw around 4,000. NOTE: There is no expectation that the letter will have any affect, as Trump has repeatedly flouted public health guidelines intended to halt the spread of covid-19. In Florida, Republican governor Ron Desantis has lifted all restrictions on restaurants and other businesses, despite the current spread of coronavirus. News surfaced that Trump's pick to replace Ruth Bader Ginsburg will be Amy Coney Barrett. During a rally in Atlanta, Trump claimed Black Lives Matter is "really hurting the black community" and that their aims are to "achieve the destruction of the nuclear family, abolish the police, abolish prisons, abolish border security, abolish capitalism and abolish schools". James D Herbert, a current assistant US attorney for the district of Massachusetts, wrote a letter to the editor titled "Barr dishonors Justice Department". From the op-ed:
"While I am a federal prosecutor, I am writing to express my own views, clearly not those of the department, on a matter that should concern all citizens: the unprecedented politicization of the office of the attorney general. The attorney general acts as though his job is to serve only the political interests of Donald J. Trump. This is a dangerous abuse of power."
September 24, 2020 - A group of 489 national security experts, including former military leaders, ambassadors and White House officials, have released a letter endorsing Joe Biden. From the letter: "Thanks to his disdainful attitude and his failures, our allies no longer trust or respect us, and our enemies no longer fear us." The group refers to itself as "National Security Leaders for Biden". Writing for the Guardian, Sabeel Rahman offers the following analysis of Republican election strategy:
"The strategy is clear: rig and skew elections to win legislative power in states and in the Senate despite the party's minority level of popular support; use that leverage to pack the courts with partisans; and then use those packed courts to further skew the electoral process and to block rival legislation, as a way to hold on to power. These moves amount to an attempt to election-proof conservative control, reserving for the right the ultimate trump card that would block legislative and electoral shifts needed to rebalance democratic fairness and advance progressive policies."
Writing for Axios, Sam Baker and Andrew Witherspoon offer the following view of the pandemic response, as cases of covid are rising in 22 states:
"There isn’t one big event or sudden occurrence that explains this increase. We simply have never done a very good job containing the virus, despite losing 200,000 lives in just the past six months, and this is what that persistent failure looks like."
Donald and Melania Trump visited the Supreme Court to pay respects to Ruth Bader Ginsburg who is lying in repose. As they stood by Ginsburg's casket, a large crowd gathered in front of the Supreme Court chanted "Vote him out!" Kayleigh McEnany held a White House briefing. Here are some highlights:
- McEnany opened the briefing by saying "The radicals are in control of the Democrat party" and also stated that Democrats are working to "shatter norms". NOTE: The irony that this statement comes a day after Trump refused to commit to a peaceful transition of power was not lost on the reporters who were gathered in the briefing room.
- McEnany was asked if Trump would commit to a peaceful transition of power. Her response: "The president will accept the results of a free and fair election."
- McEnany responded to the crowd booing and chanting "vote him out!" as Trump payed respects to Rugh Bader Ginsburg saying: "Everyone has a First Amendment in this country, but I thought it was an appalling and disrespectful thing to do."
Christopher Wray, the FBI director, testified before the Senate homeland security committee today where he was asked about voter fraud in the upcoming election. Wray's response: "We have not seen historically any kind of coordinated national voter fraud effort in a major election, whether it's by mail or otherwise. We have seen voter fraud at the local level from time to time." Speaking at George Washington University, former presidential candidate Bernie Sanders told the audience: "This is not just an election between Donald Trump and Joe Biden. This is an election between Donald Trump and democracy – and democracy must win." Speaking to reporters, Trump claimed: "We want to make sure the election is honest, and I'm not sure that it can be. I don’t know that it can be with this whole situation, unsolicited ballots." Trump gave a talk that he called the unveiling of his healthcare plan called "America First Healthcare Plan" that he says is "much better" than Obamacare. While talking, Trump veered off to attack "socialism" by Democrats. Trump held a rally in Jacksonville, Florida, where most of the attendeed were not wearing masks. Here are some highlights:
- Trump claimed the "Democratic party has been completely taken over by socialist, marxist and far-left. We will ensure that Americans never becomes a socialist or communist country. These people are crazy."
- Trump jokingly recounted for the crowd how a reporter and a protester were struck by teargas cannisters at a protest in Minneapolis. The crowd laughed.
September 23, 2020 - Lauren Witzke, a Republican Senate candidate, who subscribes to the QAnon conspiracy theory, was asked about QAnon at a campaign rally. Witzke's response: "From what I understand about QAnon, that's just a bunch of people who want pedophiles held accountable. From what I understand, it's absolutely harmless." NOTE: The FBI has determined QAnon to be a potential source of domestic terrorism. Writing for the Guardian, Cacilia Saixue Watt wrote the following regarding QAnon:
"Susan and her partner, Mike, have been together for seven years. In the beginning, Susan was drawn to Mike's kindness and altruism. 'He's really thoughtful and always really positive,' said Susan. 'He was always pushing me to do better things.' Mike had long been interested in conspiracies, and had said strange things about aliens and water fluoridation, but Susan had found it 'endearing and weird and harmless', she said. But over a year ago, Mike began talking about QAnon. After the pandemic hit and Mike spent more time indoors, on social media, he became obsessed. 'It's been an exponential thing,' said Susan. 'He'll spend hours 'researching', which is just watching YouTube videos and going on Twitter.' Susan and Mike began to fight frequently. Mike continuously tried to convince her, sending her videos she found upsetting. 'He would get so mad that I wasn't 'open-minded',' she said. 'He'll say I'm programmed, or that I don't realize I'm a slave, or that there's a secret war. He has all the information and I haven't 'done the research'. It got to a point where I just didn't care.' Susan researched how to speak to loved ones who have joined cults. She attempted to establish common beliefs with Mike, and encourage him to examine cognitive dissonance and confirmation bias, to no avail . Susan now believes that her relationship is over. 'I would like to help him navigate out of QAnon, if that's something he wants to do,' she said, 'but it doesn't seem like it is.'"
Writing for CNN, Stephen Collinson and Caitlin Hu wrote the following regarding Trump's combative address to the United Nations yesterday:
"If President Donald Trump's grievance-filled video rant to the UN General Assembly proved anything, it's that he doesn’t really have a foreign policy. Trump lashed out at China and critics of his climate-change-denying environmental record, celebrated sparse diplomatic achievements and lied about the US fight against the pandemic. His speech encapsulated how he wields power abroad — in service of domestic and personal political goals, rather than based on a traditional calculation of wider US interests. All Trump's foreign moves are expected to pull their political weight at home. When he wanted a trade deal with Beijing, Trump was Chinese President Xi Jinping's best friend — offering unwarranted praise over his pandemic leadership. But when his own disastrous handling of the virus threatened hopes of a second term, he chose China as a scapegoat even at the expense of triggering a new Cold War. The US pullout from the Iran nuclear deal left Tehran closer to a bomb, but it sure helped destroy Barack Obama's legacy. US-backed normalization deals between Israel and the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain also aimed to please evangelicals in the US. And while the President's love fest with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un did nothing to dismantle his nukes, it yielded great photo ops."
US Senate Republicans released an 87 page report titled: "Hunter Biden, Burisma,and Corruption:The Impact on U.S.Government Policy and Related Concerns". Politico offers the following analysis of the report:
"The report adds little new to a discussion first raised by president Donald Trump's defense team in his impeachment trial before the Senate earlier this year, when the president was acquitted on charges of abusing his power by seeking to pressure Ukraine to investigate the Bidens. The report relies on vague assessments already revealed publicly — namely, from top State Department official George Kent, who said Hunter Biden's role on the board of a Ukrainian energy company was 'very awkward' for US officials. The GOP senators have been investigating allegations that a Democratic public-relations firm, Blue Star Strategies, sought to influence the Obama-era State Department by leveraging Hunter Biden's role on the board of Burisma. The investigation found that two officials, including Kent, raised conflict-of-interest concerns to Biden when he served as vice president. Trump's allies allege that Biden — who led anti-corruption efforts for the Obama administration in Ukraine — forced the removal of a Ukrainian prosecutor who was investigating Burisma while Hunter Biden sat on the board. But high-level State Department witnesses repeatedly discredited this claim, emphasizing that Biden's removal of the prosecutor, who was widely seen as corrupt, was official US policy and actually made it likelier that Burisma would face a serious corruption investigation."
Donald Trump sent the following tweet in response to news that Cindy McCain endorsed Joe Biden for president: "I hardly know Cindy McCain other than having put her on a Committee at her husband's request. Joe Biden was John McCain's lapdog. So many BAD decisions on Endless Wars & the V.A., which I brought from a horror show to HIGH APPROVAL. Never a fan of John. Cindy can have Sleepy Joe!" Dr Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Dr Robert Redfield, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Stephen Hahn, the director of the Food and Drug Administration, and Brett Giroir, the assistant health secretary, testified today before the Senate health, education, labor and pensions committee. Here are some highlights:
- Fauci addressed the progress of a coronavirus vaccine saying "As these trials go on, we predict that sometime by the end of this year—let’s say November or December—we will know whether or not these are safe and effective."
- Hahn emphasized that the FDA will make a vaccine decision "based on science and data, not politics."
- What follows is a shortened version of an exchange that took place between Republican Senator Rand Paul, and Anthony Fauci:
PAUL: "You've lauded New York for their policy. New York had the highest death rate in the world. How can we possibly be jumping up and down and saying 'oh, governor Cuomo did a great job?' He had the greatest death rate in the world."
FAUCI: "No, you misconstrued that Senator. And you've done that repetitively in the past. They got hit very badly, they made some mistakes. Right now, if you look at what's going on right now, the things that are going on in New York, to get their test positivity to 1% or less, is because they are looking at the guidelines we have put together from the task force, of the four or five things of masks, social distancing, outdoors more than indoors, avoiding crowds and washing hands."
PAUL: "Or they've developed enough community immunity that they're no longer having the pandemic because they have enough immunity in New York City to actually stop it."
FAUCI: "I challenge that Senator. [crosstalk] Please, sir, I would like to be able to do this because this happens with Senator Rand all the time. You were not listening to what the director of the C.D.C. said, that in New York, it's about 22%. If you believe 22% is herd immunity, I believe you're alone in that."
The Jefferson county grand jury indicted one of the officers involved in the shooting of Breonna Taylor. Former Louisville police officer Brett Hankinson faces three felony counts of first-degree wanton endangerment, which is for shooting into adjacent apartments, but no charges were issued for shooting into Breonna Taylor's apartment, or for killing her. Some notable reactions to the grand jury announcement:
"Grossly insufficient" - Al Sharpton, Civil Rights Leader
"If Brett Hankison's behavior was wanton endangerment to people in neighboring apartments, then it should have been wanton endangerment in Breonna Taylor’s apartment too. In fact, it should have been ruled wanton murder." - Ben Crump, Civil Rights Attorney
"Legalized genocide of people of color, because no matter how much evidence we have, they always find a way to try to legally justify it." - Ben Crump
"Police murdered Breonna Taylor while she was asleep in her own home. Today, our justice system decided that these officers will not be held accountable. This is a grave and shameful injustice." - Ed Markey, Massachusetts Senator
"Once again, the law says that property is more valuable than Black life. We cannot let up in our fight for justice for Breonna Taylor and every Black and brown person murdered at the hands of police. We will fight to end qualified immunity." - Ilhan Omar. Minnesota Congresswoman
"The white supremacist institution of policing that stole Breonna Taylor's life from us must be abolished for the safety and well being of our people." - Colin Kaepernick, Former NFL Quarterback and Current Civil Rights Activist
"My message is that I love the black community, and I've done more for the black community than any other president, and I say with the possible exception of Abraham Lincoln. Abraham Lincoln, let's give him the nod. But beyond that, nobody's done more. I love the black community." - Donald Trump
Trump was asked today about seating a ninth justice on the supreme court before the election. His response: "I think this will end up in the supreme court, and I think it's very important that we have nine justices, and I think the system is going to go very quickly ... This scam that the Democrats are pulling, it's a scam, the scam will be before the United States supreme court, and I think having a 4-4 situation is not a good situation." Mike Parson, the governor of Missouri, who is a vocal mask skeptic, announced that he and his wife have both tested positive for Covid-19. Trump held a press conference today, here are some highlights:
- Scott Atlas, a White House advisor on the covid-19 pandemic, told reporters that CDC director Robert Redfield had "misstated" things when he testified before congress that 90% of the population remains susceptible to covid-19. Atlas then claimed that Redfield had been looking at "old" data. A reporter then asked whetehr Americans should believe CDC or himself. Atlas responded: "You're supposed to believe the science, and I'm telling you the science."
- Trump was asked if he would commit himself to a peaceful transfer of power after the election. Trump's response: "Well, we're going to have to see what happens. I’ve been complaining strongly about the ballots, and the ballots are a disaster. Get rid of the ballots ... and there won't be a transfer, frankly. There will be a continuation."
Protests have broken out in over a dozen cities in response to the grand jury decision in the Breonna Taylor case. Two police officers were shot in Louisville. Trump responded to the Breonna Taylor protests across the nation tweeting: "LAW & ORDER!"
September 22, 2020 - The American death toll from coronavirus now exceeds 200,000. The Washington Post published an article about Andrew Weissmann's new book, which is a view behind the scenes of the Mueller investigation. From the story:
"A former prosecutor on special counsel Robert S. Mueller III’s team writes in a new book that the group failed to fully investigate President Trump's financial ties and should have stated explicitly that they believed he obstructed justice, claiming that their efforts were limited by the ever-present threat of Trump disbanding their office and by their own reluctance to be aggressive. He lays particular blame on Mueller's top deputy, Aaron Zebley, for stopping investigators from taking a broad look at Trump's finances and writes that he now wonders whether investigators had 'given it our all,' knowing they left many important questions unanswered. 'As proud as I am of the work our team did — the unprecedented number of people we indicted and convicted and in record speed for any similar investigation — I know the hard answer to that simple question: We could have done more,' Weissmann writes."
According to the Washington Post, taxpayer money that was meant for masks and swabs was used instead for Jet engine parts and body armor. From the story: "A $1 billion fund Congress gave the Pentagon in March to build up the country's supplies of medical equipment has instead been mostly funneled to defense contractors and used for making things such as jet engine parts, body armor and dress uniforms." Kayleigh McEnany held a press briefing today. Here are some highlights:
- A reporter pointed out that the death toll in the US from coronavirus is higher than anywhere else in the world. McEnany responded that the death toll could have been much higher and the president deserved credit for his response.
- McEnany was asked about Trump's comment at a rally last evening in which he claimed the coronavirus "affects virtually nobody" below the age of 18. When asked why Trump wasn't telling the truth to the American people, McEnany responded that "The president is telling people the truth."
- McEnany claimed "The president never downplayed critical health information." NOTE: Trump is on tape telling Bob Woodward that he has downplayed the virus, and continues to do so.
- A reporter asked when the president will be releasing his health care plan, and noted that Democrats have suggested the plan doesn't exist. McEnany responded: "It certainly does exist. The president in the next week or so will be laying out his vision for health care."
- McEnany called Keith Kellog, the national security adviser to Mike Pence, to the podium. Kellog then denounced Olivia Troye, the former member of the White House coronavirus task force who recently criticized Trump's response to the pandemic. Kellog claimed "What she has said, I have never heard. That never happened." He also claimed he fired her, and escorted her out. McEnany referred to her as a "disgruntled former detailee."
- McEnany defended a comment Trump made yesterday when he said "I like Putin, he likes me" by saying "There's been no one tougher on Russia."
Olivia Troye responded to Kellog's comments tweeting: "Sad that Gen. Kellogg is telling a bald faced lie to protect the President. I resigned on my own accord & was asked to stay. He never escorted me out. He knows this. I wrote a note thanking all the colleagues who had worked so hard with me in spite of POTUS & I stand by that." Mitch McConnell, the Senate majority leader, was asked how he could justify moving forward with a supreme court vote, when Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg's dying wish was for the new president to fill her seat. McConnell responded: "I prefer another thing she said recently, which was she thought the number of the supreme court ought to be nine." NOTE: McConnell kept the supreme court stuck at eight justices for more than a year as he refused to consider Barack Obama's nominee in 2016. Authorities in Louisville, Kentucky have declared a "state of emergency" in anticipation of protests following an imminent grand jury decision on the police killing of Breonna Taylor. According to the Washington Post, a new analysis by the CIA found that Vladimir Putin is likely continuing to try and influence the US election in favor of Donald Trump and his top aides are "probably directing" a Russian foreign influence operation to interfere in the election against Joe Biden. Donald Trump Jr and his girlfriend Kimberly Guilfoyle held a campaign rally in Chandler, Arizona. The event was indoors, and the supporters were not wearing masks, or social distancing. Cindy McCain, the widow of Senator John McCain, endorsed Joe Biden for president tweeting: "My husband John lived by a code: country first. We are Republicans, yes, but Americans foremost. There's only one candidate in this race who stands up for our values as a nation, and that is @JoeBiden." McCain was motivated in part by recent reports that Trump had privately called soldiers "losers and suckers" and that he had cancelled a visit to pay respects at a military cemetery. According to Reuters: "US federal law enforcement and cybersecurity agencies warned today that 'foreign actors' and 'cybercriminals' will likely try to discredit the November presidential election by taking advantage of the slow counting of mail-in ballots." While being interviewed on Fox News, Mike Pence urged the Senate to confirm SCOTUS nominee quickly so that the president's pick will be seated in time to "resolve" any issues that arise from a contested election. A reporter asked Trump: "Why haven't you said anything about the US hitting 200,000 deaths from Covid?" Trump's response: "Go ahead, uh, anybody else?" Trump held a rally in Pittsburgh. Here are some highlights:
- Trump claimed Biden is "against God".
- Trump claimed Biden would immediately end all fracking. NOTE: Biden has repeatedly stated that is not his stance, saying recently: "I am not banning fracking. Let me say that again. I am not banning fracking. No matter how many times Donald Trump lies about me."
- Trump claimed Democrats are "trying to make our numbers look bad" by implementing Covid restrictions.
- Trump mocked Joe Biden for wearing a mask and for practicing social distancing on the campaign trail.
- Trump claimed "we did a great job" handling coronavirus.
Vice presidential candidate Kamala Harris made the following comments today:
"We are looking at now the marker, the sad, awful marker of 200,000 lives that have perished in just the last several months. Almost 7 million people who have contracted the virus, and to this day, we have a commander in chief of the United States of America who is holding rallies, with no masks because you see he has convinced everyone that you're on one side of his ledger if you wear a mask, and you're on the other side of his ledger if you don't, making value judgments about people who are concerned with not dying. We're talking about the President of the United States. We deserve better."
September 21, 2020 - Tony Tenpenny, a former council member for Nashville, TN, died of complications from COVID-19. Tenpenny, who was 57, was a vocal skeptic of the severity of cornavirus, and had shared several posts on social media that spread disinformation about the pandemic. Trump was asked about Justice Ginsberg's dying wish. His response: "I don't know that she said that, or was that written out by Adam Schiff or Pelosi? I would be more inclined to the second." Trump was asked if he was considering a replacement for Justice Ginsberg to come from either Michigan or Florida because he needed those states for his reelection. Trump's response: "I try not to say so. I think probably automatically it is." According to the New York Post: "New York City was among three cities labeled 'anarchist jurisdictions' by the Justice Department on Sunday and targeted to lose federal money for failing to control protesters and defunding cops, The Post has learned. Portland, Ore., and Seattle, Wash., were the other two cities on the list, which was approved by US Attorney General William Barr. 'When state and local leaders impede their own law enforcement officers and agencies from doing their jobs, it endangers innocent citizens who deserve to be protected, including those who are trying to peacefully assemble and protest,' Barr said in a statement set to be released Monday. 'We cannot allow federal tax dollars to be wasted when the safety of the citizenry hangs in the balance,' the AG added." Andrew Cuomo, the governor of New York, responded to the Post story saying: "President Trump has actively sought to punish NYC since day one. He let COVID ambush New York. He refuses to provide funds that states and cities MUST receive to recover. He is not a king. He cannot 'defund' NYC. It's an illegal stunt." Adam Schiff,the house intelligence committee chairman, responded to Trump's accusation that he may have written Justice Ginsberg's dying wish saying: "Mr. President, this is low. Even for you. No, I didn’t write Ruth Bader Ginsberg's dying wish to a nation she served so well, and spent her whole life making a more perfect union. But I am going to fight like hell to make it come true. No confirmation before inauguration." According to the Guardian the CDC published information online about airborne transmission of coronavirus, which warned that the virus can be spread over a distance beyond six feet, particularly in poorly ventilated areas, but that information was abruptly taken down after only 3 days. According to the Daily Beast, William B. Crews, who works as a public affairs specialist for the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), moonlights as a writer for RedState under the pseudonym "streiff". According to the story: "The managing editor of the prominent conservative website RedState has spent months trashing U.S. officials tasked with combating COVID-19, dubbing White House coronavirus task force member Dr. Anthony Fauci a 'mask nazi,' and intimating that government officials responsible for the pandemic response should be executed." Following the publication of the Daily Beast story, William B. Crews informed the NIAID that he would be retiring. News surfaced that Ruth Bader Ginsberg will lie in state at the US Capitol, becoming the first woman to do so. NOTE: Rosa Parks was the first woman to lie in "honor" at the US Capitol, but she did not lie in state.
September 20, 2020 - The American death toll from coronavirus now exceeds 198,000. Trump sent the following tweet: "VIRGINIA, and everywhere else for that matter, I am the only thing standing between you and your 2nd Amendment. If I am re-elected, it is 100% SAFE. If not, it is GONE!" According to an ABC News/Ipsos poll, 69% of Americans have no confidence in Trump's promises of a safe and widely available Covid-29 vaccine within weeks. According to a Reuters/Ipsos poll, 62% of American adults believe the current Supreme Court vacancy should be filled by the winner of the November 3rd election. Donald Trump spent today at one of his golf clubs, marking the 297th time since he has done so since being elected. According to the Guardian: "Thousands of documents detailing $2 trillion of potentially corrupt transactions that were washed through the US financial system, including activity linked to former Donald Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort, have been leaked to an international group of investigative journalists."
September 19, 2020 - In the wake of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg's death, statements made in the past by Senate Republicans regarding Supreme Court picks in an election year, are now getting scrutinized. Here are some examples that have come to light:
"I want you to use my words against me. If there's a Republican president ... and a vacancy occurs in the last year of the first term, you can say Lindsey Graham said, 'Let's let the next president, whoever it might be, make that nomination." - Lindsey Graham
"I would not vote to confirm a supreme court nominee. We are 50-some days away from an election." - Lisa Murkowski NOTE: The presidential election is now 46 days away.
Donald Trump sent out the following tweet: ".@GOP We were put in this position of power and importance to make decisions for the people who so proudly elected us, the most important of which has long been considered to be the selection of United States Supreme Court Justices. We have this obligation, without delay!" Lindsey Graham is offering the following rational for ignoring what he said in 2016: "Well, Merrick Garland was a different situation. You had the president of one party nominating, and you had the Senate in the hands of the other party. A situation where you’ve got them both would be different. I don’t want to speculate, but I think appointing judges is a high priority for me in 2020." Republican Senator Susan Collins released a statement regarding the death of Justice Ginsberg saying in part: "In order for the American people to have faith in their elected officials, we must act fairly and consistently – no matter which political party is in power. President Trump has the constitutional authority to make a nomination to fill the Supreme Court vacancy, and I would have no objection to the Senate Judiciary Committee's beginning the process of reviewing his nominee's credentials. Given the proximity of the presidential election, however, I do not believe that the Senate should vote on the nominee prior to the election." Trump was asked about Collins' statement to which he responded: "I totally disagree with her. We won."
September 18, 2020 - The American death toll from coronavirus now exceeds 197,000. A lawyer representing Julian Assange, claimed in a London court that Dana Rohrabacher and Charles Johnson, two US congressmen, told Assange that Donald Trump would offer him a pardon if he would say the source of the DNC leaks was not Russia. The AP has a story about women who say they were operated on without their informed consent by a gynecologist, Dr Mahendra Amin, at an Ice facility in Georgia. From the story:
"An Associated Press review of medical records for four women and interviews with lawyers revealed growing allegations that Amin performed surgeries and other procedures on detained immigrants that they never sought or didn’t fully understand. Although some procedures could be justified based on problems documented in the records, the women’s lack of consent or knowledge raises severe legal and ethical issues, lawyers and medical experts said."
According to the Washington Post, the voting habits of Trump and his top advisers have attracted scrutiny because of Trump's repeated attacks against voting by mail. According to the story, at least 16 Trump administration officials have mailed in their ballots in recent years, including Trump himself. The New York Times is reporting that they obtained emails showing how HHS spokesperson Michael Caputo and his deputy sought to silence the CDC. From the story:
"On June 30, as the coronavirus was cresting toward its summer peak, Dr. Paul Alexander, a new science adviser at the Department of Health and Human Services, composed a scathing two-page critique of an interview given by a revered scientist at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Dr. Anne Schuchat, a 32-year veteran of the C.D.C. and its principal deputy director, had appealed to Americans to wear masks and warned, 'We have way too much virus across the country.' But Dr. Alexander, a part-time assistant professor of health research methods, appeared sure he understood the coronavirus better. 'Her aim is to embarrass the president,' he wrote, commenting on Dr. Schuchat's appeal for face masks in an interview with the Journal of the American Medical Association. ... Dr. Alexander's point-by-point assessment, broken into seven parts and forwarded by Mr. Caputo to Dr. Robert R. Redfield, the C.D.C. director, was one of several emails obtained by The New York Times that illustrate how Mr. Caputo and Dr. Alexander attempted to browbeat career officials at the C.D.C. at the height of the pandemic, challenging the science behind their public statements and attempting to silence agency staff."
Donald Trump held a press briefing today, here are some highlights:
- Trump claimed a vaccine will be available to every American by April of next year. NOTE: CDC director Robert Redfield said recently that the vaccine will not be widely available to the American public until "late second quarter, third quarter 2021."
- Trump announced that his administration will be sending $13bn in aid to Peurto Rico to help in the recovery from Hurrican Maria. Trump then claimed "Biden’s devastated the island of Puerto Rico. I'm the best thing that ever happened to Puerto Rico." A reporter then asked Trump why he was sending the aid now, when Hurricane Maria struck in 2017. Trump responded that his administration had been working on the package for a while. When the reporter then asked if the announcement had anything to do with Puerto Rican voters in the crucial swing state of Florida, Trump pivoted to attacking Biden's tenure as vice-president under Barack Obama.
Notable response to Trump's Puerto Rican aid announcement:
"Donald Trump has consistently treated Puerto Ricans as second-class citizens. His administration failed Puerto Rico when Hurricane Maria made landfall and the people desperately needed help, and throughout the recovery process. Puerto Ricans will not be fooled by his empty promises – the deaths, the suffering, and the struggles Puerto Ricans still face are a constant reminder that Trump talks plenty but does very little." - Tom Perez, Chairman of the Democratic National Committee
- Trump disagreed with the assessment of Christopher Wray who testified recently that Russia is interfering in the 2020 election "primarily to denigrate vice-president Biden and what the Russians see as kind of an anti-Russian establishment". Trump responded: "I think we have a bigger problem with China than we do with Russia."
- Trump was asked if he believes he knows better than the experts in his administration. Trump's response: "Yeah, in many cases, I do".
- Trump was asked about a report that the US Postal Service scrapped a plan to send 650 million masks to Americans. Trump's response: "I don’t know. I don’t run it" Trump then went on to complain that the USPS has been "a mess for many, many generations". Trump then spread falsehoods about voting by mail saying: "I think it's going to be a terrible time for this country ... this is going to be the scam of all time." Trump then abruptly ended the press briefing.
Trump held a campaign rally in Bemidji, Minnesota. Here are some highlights:
- Trump opened the rally by talking about Somali refugees as a threat, encouraging the crowd to boo the idea of more Somali Americans in their state. According to Trump: "just today we deported dozens of Somali refugees ... Sleepy Joe will turn Minnesota into a refugee camp."
While Trump was speaking at his rally in Minnesota, the Supreme Court announced that Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, 87, had died from complications of pancreatic cancer. NOTE: When conservative supreme court justice Antonin Scalia died in the last year of Barack Obama’s last presidential term in 2016, Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell blocked Obama from confirming a replacement for months, arguing that the appropriate choice was to wait for the voters to choose a new president. According to Ginsberg's niece, her dying message was "My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed."
Mitch McConnell released a statement regarding Justice Ginsberg's death saying in part: "President Trump's nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate." Joe Biden responded to news of Ginsberg's death saying: "In the coming days, we should focus on the loss of [RBG] & her enduring legacy. But there is no doubt - let me be clear - that the voters should pick the POTUS & the POTUS should pick the Justice for the Senate to consider. This was the position the GOP Senate took in 16".
September 17, 2020 - Nancy Pelosi has demanded an investigation into a whistleblower's complaint that there were forced hysterectomy procedures at an Ice center in Georgia. Maj. Adam D. DeMarco, a member of the DC National Guard, filed a whistleblower complaint that outlines the extent to which law enforcement officials were trying to stockpile ammunition and source weapons before clearing protesters from Lafayetter Square in Washington DC. From the story: "DeMarco's account contradicts the administration’s claims that protesters were violent, tear gas was never used and demonstrators were given ample warning to disperse — a legal requirement before police move to clear a crowd. His testimony also offers a glimpse into the equipment and weaponry federal forces had — and others that they sought — during the early days of protests that have continued for more than 100 days in the nation's capital." According to DeMarco, the weapons included "devices that could emit deafening sounds and make anyone within range feel like their skin is on fire". DeMarco claimed they were looking to use crowd control technology deemed too unpredictable to use in war zones. ILhan Omar, a congresswoman from Minnesota, responded to the whistleblower complaint tweeting: "These are not the actions of a liberal democracy. They are the actions of a military dictatorship. All the officials responsible for any of this need to face justice. This is beyond politics, it's a test of the strength of our Constitution." According to the Guardian: "A former model has come forward to accuse Donald Trump of sexually assaulting her at the US Open tennis tournament more than two decades ago, in an alleged incident that left her feeling 'sick' and 'violated. In an exclusive interview with the Guardian, Amy Dorris alleged that Trump accosted her outside the bathroom in his VIP box at the tournament in New York on 5 September 1997. Dorris, who was 24 at the time, accuses Trump of forcing his tongue down her throat, assaulting her all over her body and holding her in a grip she was unable to escape from." The accusation from Amy Dorris makes her the 26th woman to come forward and accuse Donald Trump of some form of sexual assault. In an op-ed in the New York Times, Dan Coats, the former director of national intelligence from 2017 to 2019, has called on Congress to establish a bipartisan commission to monitor voting and ensure that laws and regulations are followed in the upcoming November election. From the op-ed:
"Our democracy's enemies, foreign and domestic, want us to concede in advance that our voting systems are faulty or fraudulent; that sinister conspiracies have distorted the political will of the people; that our public discourse has been perverted by the news media and social networks riddled with prejudice, lies and ill will; that judicial institutions, law enforcement and even national security have been twisted, misused and misdirected to create anxiety and conflict, not justice and social peace. If those are the results of this tumultuous election year, we are lost, no matter which candidate wins. No American, and certainly no American leader, should want such an outcome. Total destruction and sowing salt in the earth of American democracy is a catastrophe well beyond simple defeat and a poison for generations. An electoral victory on these terms would be no victory at all. The judgment of history, reflecting on the death of enlightened democracy, would be harsh. The most urgent task American leaders face is to ensure that the election’s results are accepted as legitimate. Electoral legitimacy is the essential linchpin of our entire political culture. We should see the challenge clearly in advance and take immediate action to respond."
Writing for the Guardian, Michael Stipe, the former singer of REM, offered the following analysis of pandemic handling in his home state of Georgia saying in part:
"Early this year, great friends in Italy, and later in NYC, witnessed suffering and community-wide devastation that should have presaged wise action around the globe, so others would not have to experience the same pattern of heartbreaking deaths. Unfortunately, cities here in Georgia were soon to face the burden of some of America's worst tendencies toward magical thinking and ignorance of science, and the most basic of disease prevention tactics. Our leaders are largely to blame. Georgia's Republican governor, Brian Kemp, a Donald Trump acolyte, was slow to order safety measures and quick to lift them, even limiting individual cities' abilities to create a stronger framework than his recommendations. Despite weak steps from state leadership, Athens was full of smart and careful residents, and the community remained much lower in case and death metrics than other population centers in Georgia throughout the spring and summer. Hold tight. The return of tens of thousands of young university students to the University of Georgia here has upended this sense of relative safety."
Donald Trump sent the following in a tweet: "Because of the new and unprecedented massive amount of unsolicited ballots which will be sent to 'voters', or wherever, this year, the Nov 3rd Election result may NEVER BE ACCURATELY DETERMINED, which is what some want. Another election disaster yesterday. Stop Ballot Madness!" Twitter added the following label to this tweet: "We've added a label to this Tweet for making a potentially misleading statement regarding the process of mail-in voting, and to offer more context for anyone who may see the Tweet. This action is in line with our recently-updated Civic Integrity Policy." The Washington Post published a story about the United States Postal Service (USPS). From the story: "In April, USPS leaders drafted a news release announcing plans to distribute 650 million masks nationwide. The idea had originated out of the department of Health and Human Services, and appears to have been further along than previously thought. The plan was stopped by the White House." During an event hosted by Hillsdale College, William Barr, the attorney general, made the following comments: "You know, putting a national lockdown, stay at home orders, is like house arrest. Other than slavery, which was a different kind of restraint, this is the greatest intrusion on civil liberties in American history." Barr also attacked more junior justice department staffers who have accused Barr of inappropriately interfering in cases involving Trump associates saying: "Name one successful organization or institution where the lowest level employees' decisions are deemed sacrosanct, there aren't. There aren't any letting the most junior members set the agenda. It might be a good philosophy for a Montessori preschool, but it is no way to run a federal agency." Sally Yates, the former acting attorney general responded to Barr's remarks tweeting: "This is the AG demeaning the career men and women of his own department, comparing them to preschoolers. These dedicated public servants are working hard every day to try to get it right. They deserve his respect, not disdain." Christopher Wray, the FBI director, testified before the House intelligence committee on homeland security. Here are some highlights:
- Wray said that he has witnessed "very active efforts by the Russians to influence our election in 2020" and that foreign election interference this cycle is aimed "primarily to denigrate Vice President Biden, and what the Russians see as kind of an anti-Russian establishment."
- Wray was asked about threats of domestic terrorism, specifically in terms of Antifa, which Trump denigrates regularly. Wray's response: "We're focused on the violence, not the ideology ... racially motivated violent extremists ... anti-government, anti-authority violent extremists ... We look at antifa as more of an ideology or a movement than an organization."
Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer responded to Trump's comment from yesterday about deaths in "blue" states saying "What a despicable man. How low can he go?" According to the Washington Post, Trump's businesses have charged the US government more than $1.1 million since Trump took office. According to Bloomberg News, Trump, who will be delivering remarks today at the National Archives. From the story: "The president will deliver remarks on his administration's efforts to promote a more balanced, accurate, and patriotic curricula in America's schools,’ the White House said in a statement. That includes criticizing what the White House calls 'the liberal indoctrination of America's youth.' Trump is expected to explicitly fault the New York Times' '1619 Project.' The Pulitzer-Prize winning public school curriculum developed by the newspaper orients American history from the date that the first slave ship arrived in what later became the U.S." According to the Guardian, The Pennsylvania Supreme Court has ordered the state to count ballots as long as they are postmarked by election day and arrive by November 6th. The court also ruled "that counties could offer voters ballot drop boxes and that the state could only allow people to serve as poll workers in the county where they live. Donald Trump's campaign had filed a separate suit in federal court seeking to block both requirements." Both Donald Trump and Mike Pence spoke today at the National Archives, here are some highlights:
- Pence stated: "Sadly we live in a time when some are seeking to erase our history."
- Trump stated: "Our children are instructed from propaganda tracts, like Howard Zinn. The left has warped, distorted, and defiled the American story."
- Trump stated that children should know "they are citizens of the most exceptional nation in the history of the world."
- Trump said the government is planning to introduce "pro-American education – that celebrates the truth about our country’s great history." This project will be called the 1776 Commission.
- Trump claimed the 1619 project "warped" the American story by claiming the US was "founded on the principle of oppression, not freedom."
- Trump claimed "America’s founding set in motion the chain of events that abolished slavery."
- Trump claimed "leftwing mobs have torn down statues of our founders."
Here are some notable reactions to Trump's speech at the National Archives:
"Pres Trump said this of history to loud applause: 'A radical movement is attempting to demolish this treasured and precious inheritance. We can't let that happen.' Context: A movement is happening to look at America's flaws and it's original sins of slavery and stealing land." - Yamiche Alcindor
"The White House Conference on American History has not a single Black historian on it. Strange." - Nikole Hannah-Jones, 1619 Project's Author
"I tried to ask @BetsyDeVosED why Trump was establishing his commission on patriotic education now just weeks from the election. After all, he's had four years. Her press team shooed me away." - Philip Melanchthon Wegmann
According to the Guardian: "The US House energy and commerce committee announced it has called on Alex Azar, US secretary for health and human services, following an NBC News report detailing White House senior adviser Stephen Miller's 'show-of-hands' vote on family separations." According to news correspondent Jacob Soboroff: "HHS spokesman Michael Caputo said at the time of publication of the NBC News story, 'This never happened.' Caputo has recently taken a leave of absence following comments he made on his Facebook page about the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention." According to the Washington Post, a federal judge has temporarily blocked proposed operational changes within the US postal service, while accusing Donald Trump and Postmaster General Louis DeJoy of being "involved in a politically motivated attack on the efficiency of the Postal Service'" From the story:
"Stanley A. Bastian, chief judge of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Washington, said that harm to the public 'has already taken place' by changes put in place under DeJoy. Bastian ruled from the bench Thursday afternoon after a two-and-a-half hour hearing. 'The states have demonstrated that the defendants are involved in a politically motivated attack on the efficiency of the Postal Service. They have also demonstrated that this attack on the Postal Service is likely to irreparably harm the states' ability to administer the 2020 general election,' he said."
Olivia Troye, a former homeland security counter-terrorism advisor to Mike Pence, who also served as Pence's lead staff member on his Covid-19 response, was featured in a two minute "Republican Voters Against Trump" (RVAT) ad. In the ad, Troye described herself as a lifelong Republican, having supported George W Bush and John McCain, but said "at this point, it's country over party". Troye also stated that Trump's response to the pandemic has showed a "flat-out disregard for human life". Eric Trump, the president's second-oldest son, agreed through his lawyers to be interviewed by the New York attorney general's office for an investigation into the Trump Organization, as long as the interview takes place after the election in November due to his "extreme travel schedule and related unavailability between now and the election' along with his desire to "avoid the use of his deposition attendance for political purposes"." Scott Atlas, a Trump coronavirus adviser, has threatened to sue a group of over 100 Stanford professors who wrote an open letter that called statements made by Atlas "counter to established science" which "undermine public-health authorities and the credible science that guides effective public health policy." NOTE: In recent weeks, Atlas has questioned the use of masks, and has embraced the controversial "herd immunity" response to the pandemic. Trump responded to criticism from Olivia Troye, a former Pence aid, saying "I never met her."
September 16, 2020 - American deaths from coronavirus now exceeds 195,000. Trump, who presided over the signing of an agreement between Israel, UAE and Bahrain to establish formal ties, sent the following tweet: "Trump had a historic event for world peace today, and the only thing the media reported on was who was wearing masks." NOTE: Here are today's headlines from some major media outlets:
"Israel, UAE and Bahrain sign accords, with an eager Trump playing host" - New York Times
"Israel signs deal establishing formal ties with two Arab states at the White House" - Washington Post
"Two Gulf nations recognized Israel at the White House. Here's what's in it for all sides" - CNN
Japan elected Yoshihide Suga as their new prime minister. Donald Trump sent a tweet with video of Joe Biden that was manipulated to make it appear that Biden played NWA's "Fuck tha Police" at a campaign event. In the original video, Biden pulls out his phone and plays Luis Fonsi's international Latino smash hit "Despacito". Daniel Dale, a CNN reporter, described Trump's appearance last night at a town hall in Philadelphia as a "fire hose of lying from the president." Trump sent the following tweet: "Democrats are 'heartless'. They don't want to give STIMULUS PAYMENTS to people who desperately need the money, and whose fault it was NOT that the plague came in from China. Go for the much higher numbers, Republicans, it all comes back to the USA anyway (one way or another!)." NOTE: Democrats have called for a $2.2 trillion relief package, but Republicans have dismissed that amount as a non-starter, offering instead a fraction of that amount. CDC director Dr Robert Redfield testified before a Senate subcommittee today. Here are some highlights:
- Redfield testified that "These facemasks are the important, powerful public health tool we have ... I might even go so far as to say that this facemask is more guaranteed to protect me against COVID than when I take a COVID vaccine."
- Redfield said he was confident a vaccine will be developed by November or December of this year, but he does not expect it to be widely available to the American public until "late second quarter, third quarter 2021."
News surfaced that Michael Caputo, the assistant secretary of public affairs for the department of health and human services (HHS), is taking a 60 day leave of absence to "focus on his health and the well-being of his family". This news comes on the heels of multiple controversies involving Caputo. One controversy was news that Caputo had urged the CDC to alter reports on coronavirus because they "would undermine the president's optimistic messages about the outbreak". In another controversy Caputo stated on social media that CDC officials were forming a "resistance unit" to undermine Trump. In a facebook live video, Caputi said "There are scientists who work for this government who do not want America to get well, not until after Joe Biden is president." According to HHS, Dr Paul Alexander, one of Caputo's deputies, is permanently leaving HHS. Kayleigh McEnany held a press briefing today. Here are some highlights:
- McEnany stated that "The president has always supported mask-wearing". Regarding Trump's comments about masks at a recent town hall, McEnany said Trump was simply trying to highlight the potential "unintended consequences" if masks are not worn properly.
- McEnany was asked about Trump's health care plan, which he has been promising to release for more than a year. The reporter noted in the question that three senior health officials had testified today that they were not involved in the formulation of such a plan. When asked who was working on it, McEnany responded "multiple stakeholders". When pressed for a more specific answer McEnany snapped: "I'm not going to give you a readout of what our health care plan looks like and who's working on it. if you want to know, come work here at the White House."
- McEnany was asked about Trump retweeting a baseless accusation that Joe Biden is a pedophile. When asked for evidence of the extraordinary allegation, McEnany responded: "I’m not here to talk about Joe Biden." NOTE: McEnany has repeatedly attacked Joe Biden by name from the podium of the White House briefing room.
Joe Biden spoke in Wilmington, Delaware today. Here are some highlights:
- Biden responded to Trump's recent townhall saying: Trump had once again offered Americans "weak and feckless inaction" as wel as "lies and empty promises".
- Biden warned that "We’re heading into a very dangerous autumn." Biden also urged Americans to wear masks to limit spread of the coronavirus.
- Biden stated "I trust vaccines. I trust the scientists. But I don't trust Donald Trump. At this point the American people can't either."
Patagonia, an outdoor clothing company, has sown the message "vote the assholes out" into some of its 2020 apparel. According to Yvon Chouinard, Patagonia's founder, the message is meant to urge voters to vote Donald Trump out of office. Donald Trump held a press briefing today. Here are some highlights:
- Trump claimed a vaccine should be ready by "mid-October" and that there will be "a hundred million vaccine doses by the end of 2020". Trump also accused Joe Biden of spreading "anti-vaccine theories".
- Trump was asked why he says a vaccine will be available by mid-October, when Dr Robert Redfield testified today that a vaccine will likely be available in the "second or third quarter" of 2021 at the earliest. Trump responded that Robert Redfield was "confused" when he said that a vaccine will only be available for first responders if it is developed by November or December.
- Trump stated: "Our biggest threat to this election is governors from opposing parties controlling millions of ballots, that's a much bigger threat than from foreign countries."
- Trump claimed it is a "disgrace" that states are allowing ballots without signatures.
- Trump stated that Robert Redfield "made a mistake" when he said that masks are "the most important, powerful public health tool we have." Trump stated that a vaccine will be more effective as masks have to be "handled very gently, very carefully ... Masks have problems too ... A lot of people did not like the concept of mask initially, Dr. Fauci didn't like it initially". NOTE: Fauci initially advised against masks out of fear that the guidance would create a panic-induced shortage on personal protective equipment for essential workers.
- Trump confirmed that someone in the White House has tested positive for coronavirus, but wouldn't say who, just that "it's not anybody that was near me".
- Trump claimed regarding the coronavirus death toll: "If you take the blue states out, we're at a level that I don’t think anybody in the world would be at. We're really at a very low level. But some of the states, they were blue states and blue state-managed."
An appeals court in Michigan has upheld a ruling that said the sending of unsolicited absentee voter applications by mail to registered voters in the state is lawful.
September 15, 2020 - According to an NBC News poll, 52% of Americans do not trust what Donald Trump has said about a coronavirus vaccine. According to the Guardian, Kim Darroch, the former UK ambassador to the US, believes the prospect of violence following the November election is high. From the story: "'Postal voting is clearly going to play a big part in this election, and it feels to me like the Trump campaign are building this up, especially if it's close, to declare it rigged or invalid,' the former ambassador, now Lord Darroch of Kew, said. 'If Biden wins, there is a question whether the Trump base will really support or accept that as the outcome. Equally, if it looks like postal votes have been under counted or there is serious voter suppression you worry about the other side of the argument,' he added. 'It feels very volatile.' Asked about the risk of violence on the streets, Darroch said: 'I think it's there. All of us have watched Portland and Kenosha, and it feels like a genuine risk. That 17-year-old who shot the demonstrators and the reaction in alt-right circles is really scary." Chuck Schumer, the Senate minority leader, has called for the resignation of Alex Azar, the secretary of health and human services amid reports that Michael Caputo, a senior HHS official, pushed for changes to key reports on coronavirus because they "would undermine the president's optimistic messages about the outbreak." From Schumer's remarks: "Too many people within HHS are trying to suppress the science ... [Azar] has been almost entirely silent about the chaos and mismanagement in his own agency. ... So today, I'm calling on Secretary Azar to resign immediately. We need a secretary of health and human services who will look out for the American people, not President Trump's political interests." According to the New York Times, the department of justice has launched a criminal investigation into the publication of John Bolton's book, which the Trump administration failed to block. The investigation will seek to determine whether Bolton mishandled classified information. Greg Fischer, the Mayor of Louisville, confirmed that Breonna Taylor's family would receive a financial settlement of $12 million. Taylor was fatally shot by police earlier this year. Judge Richard Frye, ruled that Frank LaRose, the Ohio Secretary of State, acted "arbitrarily" and unlawfully when he issued an order in August only allowing each of the state's 88 counties to offer a single drop box for voters to return absentee ballots. From the ruling: "The factual record contains no evidence from which one can reasonably question the wisdom of allowing local boards of elections to consider additional ballot drop boxes, or perhaps other ways that permit voters to safely deliver absentee ballots. No evidence has been produced that allowing additional boxes or other new means for delivery of ballots will result in a partisan advantage to one party over another." According to the Texas Tribune, the US government deported a key witness in an ongoing investigation into sexual assault and harassment at a US Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention center in El Paso. According to the Washington Post, teenagers, including minors, are being paid to publish pro-Trump social media posts at the direction of Turning Point Action, an affiliate of Turning Point USA, a prominent conservative organization led by activist Charlie Kirk. Donald Trump retweeted an image of Joe Biden whispering into an adult woman's ear, with the hash #PedoBiden, which is meant to suggest that Biden is a pedophile. Jared Kushner was asked about the tweet during an interview with CNN's Wolf Blitzer. Kushner responded with what has become a common response when Republicans are asked about Trump's tweets, Kushner's response: "I haven't seen the tweet." Donald Trump participated in a town hall on ABC. Here are some highlights:
- In response to a question about downplaying the virus, Trump responded that he hadn't saying: "Actually, in many ways, I up-played it, in terms of action." Trump then repeated his false claim regarding travel restrictions from China and Europe by calling them "travel bans".
- Trump was asked: "Why don’t you support a mandate from national mask wearing and why don’t you wear a mask more often?" Trump's response: "Well, I do wear them when I have to, and when I'm in hospitals and other locations. But I will say this, they said at the Democratic Convention, they're going to do a national mandate. They never did it. Because they've checked out and they didn't do it. And a good question is you ask like Joe Biden, they said, we're going to do a national mandate on masks. He didn't do. I mean, he never did it."
Some notable responses to Trump's answer:
"The President attempts to blame Joe Biden for not implementing a national mask mandate" - Acyn Torabi
"To be clear: I am not currently president. But if you chip in now, we can change that in November" - Joe Biden
- Trump further stated regarding masks: "A lot of people don't want to wear masks. There are a lot of people think that masks are not good. ... The concept of a mask is good, but it also does ... you're constantly touching it."
- Regarding a vaccine, Trump said "We’re within weeks of getting it. You know, could be three weeks, four weeks, but we think we have it."
September 14, 2020 - Donald Trump held his first indoor rally since the start of the pandemic in Nevada. The event defied state regulations and Trump's own administration's pandemic health guidelines. The only attendees who were required to wear masks, were the ones sitting directly behind Trump, since they would appear on television. The rest of the crowd was mostly maskless. Here are some highlights for from the rally:
- Trump told the crowd: "Biden wants to appease domestic terrorists and my plan is to arrest domestic terrorists. If Biden wins, the mob wins."
- Trump boasted about getting the "Bay of Pigs Award". NOTE: There is no Bay of Pigs Award.
Steve Sisolak, the Democratic governor of Nevada, made the following comment about Trump's rally in his sate: "Tonight, President Donald Trump is taking reckless and selfish actions that are putting countless lives in danger here in Nevada. ... The President appears to have forgotten that this country is still in the middle of a global pandemic. Writing for the Guardian, Tom McCarthy offers the following analysis of the upcoming election:
"If Biden can win in Florida, most analysts believe, an electoral college victory is probably his. But the added uncertainty of mail-in voting creates an extra opportunity for Trump to sow chaos, his critics believe, envisioning scenarios in which Trump declares premature victory or denies the election result outright. The Biden campaign announced in July that it had hired an army of 600 lawyers to fight any election night 'chicanery' by Republicans."
The Washington Post's fact checkers have counted 20,055 false or misleading claims made by Trump since becoming president. Donald Trump sent the following tweet: "His handlers and the Fake News Media are doing everything possible to get him through the Election. Then he will resign, or whatever, and we are stuck with a super liberal wack job that NOBODY wanted!" Trump can be heard saying the following in another of Bob Woodward's tapes: "I get on very well with Erdoğan. Everyone says 'what a horrible guy' but for me it works out. It's funny, the relationships I have, the tougher and meaner they are, the better I get along with them. Explain that to me someday, OK, but maybe it's not a bad thing. The easy ones are maybe the ones I don't like as much or don't get along with as much." Trump was asked about concerns that his indoor rally in Nevada could further spread coronavirus. Trump's response: "I'm on a stage and it's very far away. And so I'm not at all concerned." Alexander Vindman, the former official on Trump's National Security Council, was asked by the Atlantic's Jeffrey Goldberg if he thought Trump was a Russian intelligence asset. Vindman's response: "President Trump should be considered to be a useful idiot and a fellow traveler, which makes him an unwitting agent of Putin." Vindman went on to explain that his use of "fellow traveler" means that both Trump and Putin oppose many democratic norms. Vindman was also asked if he thinks Trump is being blackmailed by Putin. Vindman responded: "They may or may not have dirt on him, but they don't have to use it. They have more effective and less risky ways to employ him. He has aspirations to be the kind of leader that Putin is, and so he admires him. He likes authoritarian strongmen who act with impunity, without checks and balances. So he'll try to please Putin. In the Army we call this 'free chicken,' something you don't have to work for—it just comes to you. This is what the Russians have in Trump: free chicken." Trump traveled to California to survey damage done by massive wildfires. While speaking to the press, Trump explained how poor forest management leads to wildfires saying: "When trees fall down after a short period of time -- about 18 months -- they become very dry. They become really like a matchstick. They just explode. They can explode. Also leaves. When you have years of leaves, dried leaves on the ground, it just sets it up. It's really a fuel for a fire. So they have to do something about it." Trump met with officials from California, including governor Gavin Newsom. During their meeting, the following exchange took place between Donald Trump and Wade Crowfoot, the secretary of California's Natural Resources Agency:
CROWFOOT: "We want to work with you to really recognize the changing climate and what it means to our forests, and actually work together with that science. If we ignore that science and sort of put our head in the sand and think it's all about vegetation management, we're not going to succeed together protecting Californians."
TRUMP: "It'll start getting cooler, you just watch."
CROWFOOT: "I wish science agreed with you."
TRUMP: "I don’t think science knows actually."
Michael Caputo, the assistant secretary of public affairs at the department of health and human services, accused scientists at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention of "sedition" during a live video hosted on his personal facebook page. According to Caputo, officials at the CDC were forming a "resistance unit" aimed at undermining Trump. Caputo also claimed that left-wing groups were preparing for armed conflict after the presidential election saying: "And when Donald Trump refuses to stand down at the inauguration, the shooting will begin. The drills that you've seen are nothing. ... If you carry guns, buy ammunition, ladies and gentlemen, because it's going to be hard to get." Dawn Wooten, a nurse at an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Ice) detention center in Georgia, filed a whistleblower complaint stating that immigrants are being subjected to horrific conditions and treatment including "jarring medical neglect" and mass hysterectomies of immigrant women. According to Wooten, Immigrants who spoke out against these conditions were regularly pushed into solitary confinement.
September 11, 2020 - Writing for the New York Times, Timothy Egan offers the following criticism of Donald Trump's response to wildfires that are raging out of control on the nation's west coast:
"'I have no patience for climate change deniers,' said Gov. Gavin Newsom of California, a state with 150 million dead trees and temperatures that recently reached 121 degrees in Los Angeles County. Meanwhile, the world's most dangerous climate change denier continued to spout gibberish. 'You gotta clean your floors, you gotta clean your forests,' said president Trump, scolding California. That's like telling people to drain their wading pools in advance of a hurricane. Nearly 48 percent of the land in California is federally owned. Those are his floors. And this West in distress is made sicker by his defiance of the globe's existential threat. If ash were falling on his hair, he'd be more alert."
Dr Anthony Fauci was asked by MSNBC anchor Andrea Mitchell if he agrees with Trump's assessment that the US is "rounding the final turn" of the coronavirus crisis. Fauci's response: "I have to disagree with that, because if you look at ... the statistics they are disturbing. We're plateauing at around 40,000 cases a day. And the deaths are around a thousand." Fauci also said that normality probably won't return until "well into 2021. Maybe even towards the end of 2021." Mark Milley, the chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, spoke today at the Pentagon, where he stated in part: "The idea of a free press, free speech, due process ... the right to peacefully assemble, and demonstrate and protest. Those ideas were and still are hated by our enemies – by fascists, Nazis, communists, al-Qaida, Isis, authoritarians, dictators and tyrants of all kinds. They hate those ideas. They hate those values." According to the Hartford Courant: "Federal prosecutor Nora Dannehy, a top aide to U.S. Attorney John H. Durham in his Russia investigation, has quietly resigned from the U.S. Justice Department probe - at least partly out of concern that the investigative team is being pressed for political reasons to produce a report before its work is done, colleagues said. ... Colleagues said Dannehy is not a supporter of President Donald J. Trump and has been concerned in recent weeks by what she believed was pressure from Barr - who appointed Durham - to produce results before the election. They said she has been considering resignation for weeks, conflicted by loyalty to Durham and concern about politics." Here are some notable responses to Dannehy's resignation:
"Canary in coal mine dead. Looks like profound corruption in Barr-Durham probe—attempted October surprise. Top Durham aide, Nora Dannehy resigns partly because 'team is being pressed for political reasons to produce a report before its work is done'!" - Ryan Goodman, Former Special Counsel to the General Counsel of the Department of Defense
"Really big. Nora Dannehy is an incredibly well-respected prosecutor - not the type of person who would take this step for no reason." - Matthew Miller, Former Spokesperson for the Justice Department
"Nora Dannehy is highly regarded. She investigated the firings of 9 US Attys during the Bush administration & is widely viewed as a non-partisan professional." - Joyce Alene, University of Alabama Law Professor
During an interview on Fox News, Donald Trump said of Joe Biden: "I think there's probably — possibly — drugs involved. That’s what I hear. I mean, there's possibly drugs. ... I don’t know how you can go from being so bad where you can't even get out a sentence. I mean, you saw some of those debates with the large number of people on the stage. He was — I mean, I used to say, 'How is it possible that he can even go forward?'" The Portland office of the FBI released a statement to counter misinformation that leftist anti-fascist activists or antifa are behind the massive fires burning along the west coast. From the FBI's statement: "FBI Portland and local law enforcement agencies have been receiving reports that extremists are responsible for setting wildfires in Oregon. With our state and local partners, the FBI has investigated several such reports ans found them to be untrue."
September 10, 2020 - American deaths from coronavirus now exceeds 190,000. Donald Trump called into Sean Hannity's show on Fox News, here are some highlights:
- Trump told Hannity that the US could have lost 2 million or 2.5 million if not for the actions he took regarding coronavirus.
- Trump blamed China for the virus saying: "It was China's fault. They sent this to us."
- Trump claimed Fauci and Biden were opposed to his China travel ban. NOTE: Travel restrictions put on China were part of a partial ban, not a total ban.
- Trump claimed "nobody had any idea [coronavirus] would be as violent as it turned out to be."
- Trump claimed: "It’s amazing what we've done, we've been able to do something especially with the kind of size [of country] we're dealing with. We've done an incredible job."
- Trump claimed regarding downplaying the coronavirus: "I'm the leader of the country. I can't be jumping up and down and scaring people. I don't want to scare people. I want people not to panic."
A new piece in Time Magazine by Alex Fitzpatrick and Elijah Wolfson is highly critical of Trump's handling of the pandemic. Here's an excerpt:
"Although America's problems were widespread, they start at the top. A complete catalog of President Donald Trump's failures to address the pandemic will be fodder for history books. There were weeks wasted early on stubbornly clinging to a fantastical belief that the virus would simply 'disappear'; testing and contact tracing programs were inadequate; states were encouraged to reopen ahead of his own Administration's guidelines; and statistics were repeatedly cherry-picked to make the US situation look far better than it was, while undermining scientists who said otherwise. 'I wanted to always play it down,' Trump told the journalist Bob Woodward on March 19 in a newly revealed conversation. 'I still like playing it down, because I don’t want to create a panic.' Common-sense solutions like face masks were undercut or ignored. Research shows that wearing a facial covering significantly reduces the spread of Covid-19, and a pre-existing culture of mask wearing in East Asia is often cited as one reason countries in that region were able to control their outbreaks. In the US, Trump did not wear a mask in public until July 11, more than three months after the CDC recommended facial coverings, transforming what ought to have been a scientific issue into a partisan one."
According to Reuters, Russian state hackers are suspected of targeting a firm working on the Joe Biden campaign. From the story: "The hacking attempts targeted staff at Washington-based SKDKnickerbocker, a campaign strategy and communications firm working with Biden and other prominent Democrats, over the past two months. A person familiar with SKDK's response to the attempts said the hackers failed to gain access to the firm's networks. 'They are well-defended, so there has been no breach' Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov dismissed the allegations as 'nonsense'. Moscow has repeatedly denied using hacking to interfere in other countries' elections." Writing for the Guardian, Barry Eichengreen, a professor of economics at the University of California, Berkeley, writes that the most dangerous phase of the coronavirus pandemic may be yet to come. Here's an excerpt:
"Mortality is only one aspect of the virus's toll. Many surviving Covid-19 patients continue to suffer chronic cardiovascular problems and impaired mental function. If 40,000 cases a day is the new normal, then the implications for morbidity – and for human health and economic welfare – are truly dire. And, like it or not, there is every indication that many Americans, or at least their current leaders, are willing to accept 40,000 new cases and 1,000 deaths a day. They have grown inured to the numbers. They are impatient with lockdowns. They have politicised masks. This is also a more perilous phase for the economy. In March and April, policymakers pulled out all the stops to staunch the economic bleeding. But there will be less policy support now if the economy again goes south ... Congress seems incapable of replicating the bipartisanship that enabled passage of the Cares Act. The $600 weekly supplement to unemployment benefits has been allowed to expire. Divisive rhetoric from Donald Trump and other Republican leaders about 'Democrat-led' cities implies that help for state and local governments is not in the cards."
Donald Trump sent the following tweet: "Bob Woodward had my quotes for many months. If he thought they were so bad or dangerous, why didn't he immediately report them in an effort to save lives? Didn't he have an obligation to do so? No, because he knew they were good and proper answers. Calm, no panic!" NOTE: Trump's critics are pointing out that for the past few months, Trump has been warning that "violent anarchists" are overrunning American cities, but now wants us to believe that he didn't come clean with coronavirus because he didn't want to cause panic. Chuck Schumer, the Senate minority leader, appeared on MSNBC where he stated: "This time he said he didn't want to panic people. Really? Is this the same president who's busy panicking America right now? Telling women in the suburbs that your safety is at risk ... he doesn't mind panicking people when it serves his interest." Trump sent the following in a tweet: "The Democrats never even mentioned the words LAW & ORDER at their National Convention. That's where they are coming from. If I don't win, America's Suburbs will be OVERRUN with Low Income Projects, Anarchists, Agitators, Looters and, of course, 'Friendly Protesters'." Nancy Pelosi was asked about Woodward's tapes of Trump sharing knowledge of how deadly the virus is, but nonetheless wanting to play it down to the public. Pelosi's response: Trump "showed his contempt -- contempt for the American people and their health, contempt for science, contempt for any real effort to crush the virus, contempt for his supporters, their children, their parents. He hid the facts and refused to take the threat seriously, leaving the entire country exposed and unprepared. He didn't want to cause a panic. Why? Because of the stock market? Nobody wants to cause a panic. We want to show leadership, show a strategic plan, following the science [and] allocating the resources in order to get the job done. Even now, he refuses to listen to science, which is just a tragedy." A 63-page report from the IZA Institute of Labor Economics classifies the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally last month as a "super-spreader" event which led to an increase in cases in South Dakota and across the country, and is associated with "public health costs of approximately $12.2 billion."
https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/7203635-IZA-Sturgis-Report.html#document/
Krisi Noem, the governor of South Dakota, called the report "an attack on those who exercised their personal freedom to attend Sturgis." The Treasury department announced that Andy Derkach, a pro-Russian Ukranian lawmaker, who previously met with Rudy Giuliani who was seeking dirt on Democratic nominee Joe Biden, has been sanctioned for "his efforts to influence the 2020 U.S. presidential election." According to the Treasury's announcement: "Derkach, a Member of the Ukrainian Parliament, has been an active Russian agent for over a decade, maintaining close connections with the Russian Intelligence Services. Derkach has directly or indirectly engaged in, sponsored, concealed, or otherwise been complicit in foreign interference in an attempt to undermine the upcoming 2020 U.S. presidential election." Another tape from Woodward's conversations with Trump has emerged. In this tape, Trump brags that he provided cover for Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman following the murder of dissident journalist Jamal Khashoggi. On the tape, Trump says: "I saved his ass. I was able to get Congress to leave him alone. I was able to get them to stop. He will always say that he didn’t do it. He says that to everybody, and frankly I'm happy that he says that. But he will say that to you, he will say that to Congress, and he will say that to everybody. He's never said he did it." Donald Trump held a press briefing today. Here are some highlights:
- Trump claimed that if elected, Joe Biden would "shut down the entire country". NOTE: Biden has said he does not think that will be necessary.
- Trump claimed regarding coronavirus: "We're rounding the final turn, and a lot of good things are happening". NOTE: Dr Anthony Fauci said today: "We need to hunker down and get through this fall and winter, because it's not going to be easy."
- Trump claimed Biden was "perfectly happy" to endanger American lives for political gain. NOTE: See Trump's comments to Bob Woodward about downplaying coronavirus.
- Trump claimed "I didn't lie" to the American people about the seriousness of coronavirus.
- Trump claimed his administration has done a "phenomenal job" responding to the pandemic NOTE: The US death toll is far higher than that of any other country in the world.
- The following exchange took place during the briefing:
TRUMP: "If Bob Woodward thought what I said was bad, then he should have immediately, right after I said it, gone out to the authorities so they can prepare and let them know."
REPORTER: "Bob Woodward is not the president."
- Trump was asked about his Fox viewing habits. Trump responded: "I watch some of the shows. I watch Liz MacDonald, she's fantastic. Fox Business. I watched Lou Dobbs last night. Sean Hannity last night, Tucker last night, Laura. I watched 'Fox & Friends' in the morning." NOTE: Trump also claimed he probably wouldn't read Bob Woodward's new book because "I don't have time."
Attorneys for the Trump campaign have filed documents in US district court to block a new state law in Nevada in an attempt to prevent mail-in ballots from going out to all active Nevada voters. During an interview with CNN, Joe Biden offered the following comments about Donald Trump: "This is the guy who said maybe the way to deal with a hurricane is drop a nuclear bomb on them. I mean – seriously, he said it! I mean, God. Or you know, the problem with the Revolutionary War was they didn't have enough airports. I mean, I just – it is beyond my comprehension." The Los Angeles Times has endorsed Joe Niden for president. From the endorsement:
"The presidential election confronts voters with the most consequential choice they have faced in decades, and for many, their lifetimes: between a divisive, authoritarian-leaning incumbent and a seasoned patriot who brings not only five decades of experience, ability and commitment to American values, but also bold ideas at a time of national crisis. ... So stark is the contrast between Donald Trump and Joe Biden that we feel compelled to announce our endorsement of the Democratic nominee a ... before the candidates take part in televised debates."
According to the Guardian: "A panel of three federal judges blocked the Trump administration on Thursday from excluding undocumented immigrants from the census totals used to determine how many seats in Congress each state gets. Trump acted unlawfully in July when he ordered the Commerce Department to produce data that would allow him to exclude undocumented immigrants from the count, the panel said. Federal law is clear that only a single data source – the census count of total population – can be used to apportion the 435 seats in the US House among states, the judges wrote. The decennial census does not ask about citizenship status and by requesting a second set of data outside of the decennial census, Trump ran afoul of the law." Donald Trump held a rally in Freeland, Michigan, where supporters were mostly unmasked and packed into an airport hangar. During the rally, Trump warned the crowd about Joe Biden saying: "He's promised to flood your state with refugees from terrorist hotspots like Syria and Yemen." Kathy Gray, a New York Times reporter who tweeted out photos of unmasked people at the rally, was tracked down by the Trump campaign, and was kicked out of the rally. Jim Acosta, a CNN reporter, asked one attendee why he wasn't wearing a mask. The attendee's response: "Because there's no Covid. It's a fake pandemic, created to destroy the United States of America." Another told Acosta: "The good Lord takes care of me. If I die, I die."
September 9, 2020 - According to a Reuters/Ipsos poll, Joe Biden leads Donald Trump by 12 percentage points nationally. According to the Guardian, Kim Reynolds, Iowa's Republican governor, is refusing to close bars and require masks. From the story:
"Iowa’s governor, Kim Reynolds, is refusing to enforce a White House coronavirus taskforce recommendation to close bars and require people to wear masks after Covid-19 infections in some of the state’s cities surged. Meanwhile, coronavirus cases have risen sharply across the whole midwest in recent weeks putting the region at the forefront of America’s pandemic. The region accounted for six of the eight states with the highest number of new Covid-19 cases by early September even as infections fell in other parts of the US previously among the worst hit. North Dakota has the largest number of positive cases per capita in the country over the past 14 days. Iowa and South Dakota are enduring the highest percentage increases. Missouri has seen more than 1,300 new cases a day on average over the past week."
According to the Washington Post, the Trump campaign had to pony up funds for repairs to the White House rose garden after a 27 August gathering of 1500 people, and the placement of massive equipment, damaged the rose garden lawns. Jean Guerrero, the author of "Hatemonger: Stephen Miller, Donald Trump and the White Nationalist Agenda" wrote an op-ed in the Guardian about how Stephen Miller's rhetoric echoes the rise of white supremacist theories in his home state. From the op-ed: "One of the main recruiting tactics of white supremacists was popularized for the first time in the United States in Mille's home state of California during the nineties. It's the white genocide theory. Formerly articulated in terms of threats to the white race, the conspiracy theory is now frequently packaged in terms of threats to Western heritage – to make it more palatable to average Americans who might be turned off by overt racism." Christian Tybring- Gjedde, a far-right politician who is a member of the Norwegian parliament, nominated Donald Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize, for Trump's efforts to normalize relations between Israel and the United Arab Emirates. News of the nomination were leaked by Tybring-Gjedde. NOTE: Any politician in the world can nominate any other politician for the Peace Prize. The commander of US Central Command announced that the United States has decided to reduce troop levels in Iraq from 5,200 to 3,000 during the month of September. NOTE: Trump met with Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi at the White House last month. Bev Veals, a three-time cancer survivor, contacted the office of North Carolina Senator Thom Tillis over concerns that she might lose her health insurance now that her husband has been furloughed due to the pandemic. During her call, the following exchange took place between her and one of Tillis' staffers:
VEALS: "You’re saying that, if you can’t afford it, you don’t get to have it, and that includes healthcare?"
STAFFER: "Yeah, just like if I want to go to the store and buy a new dress shirt. If I can’t afford that dress shirt, I don’t get to get it."
VEALS: "But healthcare is something that people need, especially if they have cancer."
STAFFER: "Well, you got to find a way to get it."
Tillis' office issued a public apology after the audio surfaced, saying the staffer violated the Senator's code of conduct and will be disciplined. Tommy Vietor, a former National Security Council spokesperson under the Obama administration responded to the Veals story tweeting: "This isn't a story about a rude person in @ThomTillis's office, this is a staffer accurately describing the Republican approach to health care. Get sick? Tough luck. Vote Tillis out by supporting @CalforNC:" Newly released audio of Trump speaking to Bob Woodward for his upcoming book "Rage" reveals that Trump knew the virus was very serious in late January, but spent months downplaying its severity in public. Here are some highlights:
- On January 28th, national security adviser Robert O'Brian told Trump: "This is going to be the greatest threat of your presidency."
- On February 7th, Trump told Woodward: "It goes, it goes through air Bob. That's always tougher than the touch. You know, the touch, you don't have to touch things. Right? But the air, you just breathe the air and that's how it's passed. And so, that's a very tricky one. That's a very delicate one. It's also more deadly than your, you know, your, even your strenuous flus. You know, people don't realize, we lose 25,000, 30,000 people a year here. Who would ever think that, right? I mean, it's pretty amazing. And then I said, well, is that the same thing? This is more deadly. This is five per, you know this is five percent versus one percent and less than one percent. You know? So, this is deadly stuff."
- On March 19th, Trump told Woodward: "Now it's turning out it's not just old people, Bob. But just today and, and yesterday, some startling facts came out. It's not just old, older. Young people too, plenty of young people. ... Well I think, Bob, really, to be honest with you, I wanted to, I wanted to always play it down. I still like playing it down, because I don't want to create a panic."
- Woodward told Trump he believed "white privileged" people had to work to understand "the anger and the pain" of African Americans. Trump's response: "You really drank the Kool-Aid, didn't you? Just listen to you. Wow. No, I don’t feel that at all."
- According to Woodward, two of Trump's most senior advisers, former defense secretary James Mattis and former director of national intelligence Daniel Coats, expressed serious concerns about the president's leadership and discussed the need to speak out publicly against him. From the book: "Mattis is quoted as saying Trump is 'dangerous,' 'unfit,' has 'no moral compass' and took foreign policy actions that showed adversaries 'how to destroy America.' After Mattis left the administration, he and Coats discussed whether they needed to take 'collective action' to speak out publicly against Trump. Mattis says he ultimately resigned after Trump announced he was withdrawing US troops from Syria, 'when I was basically directed to do something that I thought went beyond stupid to felony stupid.'"
- According to Woodward, Daniel Coats "continued to harbor the secret belief, one that had grown rather than lessened, although unsupported by intelligence proof, that Putin had something on Trump." According to Woodward, Coats could find no other explanation for Trump's behavior towards Russia.
- Trump told Woodward "I have built a nuclear — a weapons system that nobody’s ever had in this country before." NOTE: Administration officials expressed shock that Trump disclosed this information to a journalist.
- An aide to Jim Mattis reported that Trump made the following statement in a meeting: "My fucking generals are a bunch of pussies."
- Trump told Woodward the following regarding generals who emphasized the importance of alliances with Nato and South Korea: "I wouldn't say they were stupid, because I would never say that about our military people. But if they said that, they -- whoever said that was stupid. It's a horrible bargain ... they make so much money. Costs us $10 billion. We're suckers."
Kayleigh McEnany held a press briefing today. Here are some highlights:
- McEnany was asked whether Trump had intentionally downplayed the threat of coronavirus. McEnany's response: "Absolutely not. ... The president has never lied to the American public on Covid. ... always been clear-eyed with the American people."
Joe Biden responded to Bob Woodward's new book saying of Trump: "He had the information. He knew how dangerous it was. He failed to do his job on purpose ... It was a life and death betrayal of the American people. It's beyond despicable. It's a dereliction of duty, a disgrace." Brian Murphy, former acting undersecretary for intelligence and analysis at the Department of Homeland Security, filed a whistleblower complaint. Here are some highlights from that complaint:
- Murphy accused acting DHS secretary Chad Wolf of telling him to stop providing intelligence analysis of Russia's attempts to interfere in the 2020 elections because it made the president look bad. Murphy objected, stating that it was improper to hold a vetted intelligence product for reasons of political embarrassment. In response, Mr Wolf took steps to exclude Mr. Murphy from relevant future meetings on the subject.
- Murphy claimed he was told in May to stop providing intelligence assessments of Russian interference and to instead focus on interference activities by China and Iran. Murphy informed Mr Wolf he would not comply with these instructions, as doing so would put the country in substantial and specific danger.
- Murphy was told to modify the section of the Homeland Threat Assessment on White Supremacy in a manner that made the threat appear less severe, as well as include information on the prominence of violent Left-Wing groups.
Adam Schiff, the Democratic chairman of the House intelligence committee responded to Murphy's complaint saying "Mr Murphy's allegations are serious — from senior officials suppressing intelligence reports on Russia's election interference and making false statements to Congress about terrorism threats at our southern border, to modifying intelligence assessments to match the President's rhetoric on Antifa and minimizing the threat posed by white supremacists." According to emails obtained by Politico, Dr Paul Alexander, a senior adviser to Michael Caputo, the Department of Health and Human Services' (HHS) assistant public affairs secretary, has been working to prevent Dr Anthony Fauci from talking about the dangers that Covid-19 poses to children. In the emails, Alexander told media liaisons at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) about what Fauci should discuss during interviews. In one of the emails, Alexander said: "I continue to have an issue with kids getting tested and repeatedly and even university students in a widespread manner ... and I disagree with Dr Fauci on this. Vehemently." In another email Alexander said: "Can you ensure Dr Fauci indicates masks are for the teachers in schools. Not for children. There is no data, none, zero, across the entire world, that shows children, especially young children, spread this virus to other children, or to adults or to their teachers. None. And if it did occur, the risk is essentially zero." According to the AP, Mike Pence and other top officials from the Trump campaign (i.e Kimberly Guilfoyle, Ronna McDaniel, Todd Ricketts and Tommy Hicks Jr) are planning to attend a fundraiser in Montana next week which will be hosted by Caryn and Michael Borland. The Borlands have expressed support for the QAnon conspiracy theory by posting memes and retweeting posts QAnon accounts on their social media accounts. NOTE: QAnon posits that Trump is fighting entrenched enemies in the government and also involves satanism and child sex trafficking.
September 8, 2020 - American deaths from coronavirus now exceeds 189,000. The Washington Post's editorial board published an op-ed that is highly critical of Donald Trump titled: "Four more years of Trump's contempt for competence would be devastating". From the op-ed:
"The so-called adults in the room in the early days of this term have left and written books about how unpleasant it was to be in that room. Often it didn't matter anyway, because this president rarely listens and almost never reads. He has been called 'unbriefable.' Only once or twice a week does he bother to listen to the intelligence briefings other presidents received daily, and even then he reportedly interrupts with kooky conspiracy theories, or spends his time marveling over a miniature weapon constructed as a visual aid to hold his wayward attention. He takes the advice not of the most qualified, or even most persuasive, person around him but of the person who manages to sneak in the last word. ... manifestations of deliberate ignorance come together in a disdain for gathering information at all ... If we don't gather information, we cannot see the depth of Mr. Trump's failures. Another term could allow Mr. Trump to complete the demoralization, politicization and destruction of a workforce that was once the envy of the world: the American civil service, health service, Foreign Service and uniformed military. In everything from consumer safety to air quality to life expectancy, the results would be catastrophic. But there would be nobody left to measure them."
According to the Guardian, the Covid-19 death rate among African Americans and Latinos is rising sharply. From the story:
"New figures compiled by the Color of Coronavirus project shared with the Guardian show that both total numbers of deaths and per capita death rates have increased dramatically in August for black and brown Americans. Though fatalities have also increased for white Americans, the impact on this group has been notably less severe. That striking disparity underlines a major failing at the heart of the US response to Covid. It has been known now for several months that the virus is extracting an especially punishing toll among communities of color, yet federal and state governments have not taken steps effectively to ameliorate the disaster."
CNN published an analysis piece regarding the upcoming election where he describes Trump's attempts to shore up base supporters using appeals to White grievance:
"Trump has made championing nascent culture wars a central aspect of his political persona and has scaled up his efforts in recent days. He instructed the White House budget chief to withdraw funding from federal agencies for racial sensitivity training that he deemed 'divisive, anti-American propaganda.' He also threatened to pull funding from public schools that teach an interpretation of US history that uses the arrival of the first slave ships on American shores to reframe traditional narratives. The actions seem to codify Trump's dismissive views of systemic racism, which he says isn't a worthy area of focus, while violence persists on American streets. 'We grew up with a certain history and now they're trying to change our history,' Trump said."
Trump sent the following tweet: "The Democrats will open up their states on November 4th, the day after the Election. These shutdowns are ridiculous, and only being done to hurt the economy prior to the most important election, perhaps, in our history! #MAGA". According to a story in the New York Times, Trump's campaign held a cash advantage over Joe Biden's, but that advantage has evaporated. From the story: "Brad Parscale, the former campaign manager, liked to call Mr. Trump’s re-election war machine an ‘unstoppable juggernaut.’ But interviews with more than a dozen current and former campaign aides and Trump allies, and a review of thousands of items in federal campaign filings, show that the president’s campaign and the R.N.C. developed some profligate habits as they burned through hundreds of millions of dollars. Since Bill Stepien replaced Mr. Parscale in July, the campaign has imposed a series of belt-tightening measures that have reshaped initiatives, including hiring practices, travel and the advertising budget." While speaking with reporters, Trump claimed Pentagon leaders weren't happy with his leadership, saying: "The top people in the Pentagon probably aren't because they want to do nothing but fight wars so all of those wonderful companies that make the bombs and make the planes and make everything else stay happy." According to the Washington Post, House Democrats plan to investigate Louis DeJoy, the postmaster general, over allegations he encouraged employees at his former business to donate to Republican candidates in violation of campaign finance laws. From the story: "Five people who worked for DeJoy's former business, New Breed Logistics, say they were urged by DeJoy's aides or by the chief executive himself to write checks and attend fundraisers at his 15,000-square-foot gated mansion beside a Greensboro, N.C., country club. There, events for Republicans running for the White House and Congress routinely fetched $100,000 or more apiece. Two other employees familiar with New Breed's financial and payroll systems said DeJoy would instruct that bonus payments to staffers be boosted to help defray the cost of their contributions, an arrangement that would be unlawful." Mark Meadows, the White House chief of staff, responded to the Louis DeJoy campaign finance violations story by telling a reporter: "I think you would acknowledge covering Congress as much as you have the political rhetoric gets heated and then many times right after the presidential election, voilà, they go away." NOTE: Dejoy's former longtime director of of human resources confirmed the Washington Post's story. Michael Cohen, Trump's former lawyer and "fixer", released his book "Disloyal: The true story of the former personal attorney to president Donald J Trump". Here are some highlights from Cohen talking about the book:
- Cohen said he thinks Trump "should resign now" and "let Mike Pence pardon" him "from any and all potential crimes".
- Cohen recounts a conversation "right after Nelson Mandela had passed away – and I talk about this in the book – he asked me if I had known of any country that's run by a Black that's not a s-hole. And I said, 'Well, how about America?' To which he gave me the proverbial F-you."
- Cohen recounted speaking to Melania regarding Trump's may affairs: "I would lie to her and I would lie to her at the, sort of, at the request of, for the benefit of, you know, Mr Trump, my boss. And I knew what he wanted me to say. I would tell her nothing happened and the whole story is not accurate and I have a document from the individual stating that it didn’t happen. But the one thing I can tell you about our first lady Melania Trump is that she knew I was lying the whole time, but she had enough class not to call me out on it."
- Cohen recounted how Trump would inflate his wealth saying: "Mr Trump wanted to be higher in the Forbes 500 list, and the way to do that – he would just come up with a number. He'd say, 'I'm worth $8bn,' 'I'm worth $10bn,' and our job was then to take the assets and to figure how you're going to back that $10bn number that he wants to be."
Donald Trump held a rally in North Carolina, where hundreds of supporters packed together, most of them not wearing masks, in defiance of state guidelines capping gatherings at 50 people. During the rally, Trump told the crowd that Kamala Harris "could never be the first woman president ... that would be an insult to our country". Trump also mocked Joe Biden for following safety guidelines amid the ongoing pandemic.
September 4, 2020 - The Washington Post has now independently confirmed a story first reported by the Atlantic that Trump disparaged members of the US military who have been captured or killed as "suckers" and "losers". According to an ABC News/Ipsos poll, 55% of Americans believe Trump's response to recent civil unrest has made the unrest worse. According to USA Today, the Pentagon has ordered the Stars and Stripes, a newspaper for American troops that began in the Civil War, to stop publishing by September 30th. Tammy Duckworth, a Democratic Senator, and Purple Heart recipient who lost both of her legs during a combat mission in Iraq, responded to news that Trump regularly disparaged the troops, saying in part: "This is a man who spends every day redefining the concept of narcissism; a man who’s lead a life of privilege, with everything handed to him on a silver platter. Of course, he thinks about war selfishly. He thinks of it as a transactional cost, instead of in human lives and American blood spilled, because that’s how he’s viewed his whole life. He doesn’t understand other people’s bravery and courage because he’s never had any of his own. I take my wheelchair, and my titanium legs over Donald Trump's supposed bone spurs any day." Duckworth is credited for coming up with the Trump nickname: "Cadet Bone Spurs." Marjorie Taylor Greene, the Republican candidate who has expressed support for the baseless conspiracy theory QAnon, and has said that Muslims do not belong in government, posted a photo collage on facebook that includes a picture of herself holding a semi-automatic rifle, along with pictures of three progressive congresswomen known as "The Squad". The accompanying message with the collage: "SQUAD'S WORST NIGHTMARE". Greene included the message: "SAVE AMERICA. STOP SOCIALISM. DEFEAT THE DEMOCRATS!" After becoming aware of the image, Facebook removed it for violating policies against inciting violence. Facebook had previously removed an ad in which Greene brandished a rifle and threatened Antifa protesters, saying the content of that post violated its policies against inciting violence. The Fraternal Order of Police, the nation's largest police union, with over 355,000 members, voted unanimously in favor of endorsing Donald Trump for president, whom they called "America's law and order president." Trump was asked about the Atlantic article regarding him disparaging the military, to which he replied: "it was a fake story." Trump went on to say: "It was a terrible thing that somebody could say the kinds of things –especially to me, because I've done more for the military than almost anybody else." Trump cited the Veterans Choice Program as evidence for his claim, which he has falsely claimed credit for repeatedly, despite that program being enacted in 2014, via efforts by John McCain, and signed into law by then president Barack Obama. Joe Biden, the Democratic candidate for president, responded to the Atlantic story about Trump disparaging the troops, saying in part: "When my son volunteered and joined the United States military — and went to Iraq for a year, won the Bronze Star and other commendations, he was not a sucker ... If these statements are true, the president should humbly apologize to every Gold Star mother and father and every Blue Star family ... Who the heck does he think he is?" Biden also commented on Trump's handling of the pandemic saying on part: "Donald Trump’s malpractice during this pandemic has made being a working American life-or-death work ... The painful truth is we just have a president who just doesn't see it. He doesn't feel it. He doesn't understand. He just doesn't care. .... He thinks if the stock market is up that everything's fine." Biden was asked about Trump mocking his mask wearing at a recent rally, Biden's response: "It's hard to respond to something so idiotic." Michael Forest Reinoehl, a regular attendee of anti-racism protests in Portland, who was suspected of killing Aaron "Jay" Danielson, a supporter of the far-right group Patriot Prayer, was killed by officers from a federally led fugitive taskforce. Bill Barr responded to the news of the killing of Reinoehl saying in part: "The tracking down of Reinoehl — a dangerous fugitive, admitted Antifa member, and suspected murderer — is a significant accomplishment in the ongoing effort to restore law and order to Portland and other cities. I applaud the outstanding cooperation among federal, state, and local law enforcement, particularly the fugitive task force team that located Reinoehl and prevented him from escaping justice. The streets of our cities are safer with this violent agitator removed, and the actions that led to his location are an unmistakable demonstration that the United States will be governed by law, not violent mobs." Trump sent the following tweet: "The United States of America will NOT be cutting funding to @starsandstripes magazine under my watch. It will continue to be a wonderful source of information to our Great Military!" Howard Dean, the former governor of Vermont, responded to the Atlantic story tweeting: "My brother was captured in Laos in September of 1974 and executed by the North Vietnamese on December 14, 1974. Fuck you, Donald Trump." Jennifer Griffin, a national security correspondent for Fox News, announced that she had confirmed the reporting by the Atlantic with two former senior Trump administration officials. One former official told her "When the President spoke about the Vietnam War, he said, 'It was a stupid war. Anyone who went was a sucker.'" The same official told her that Trump once said regarding veterans: "What's in it for them? They don't make any money." The official went on to say: "It was a character flaw of the President. He could not understand why someone would die for their country, not worth it." According to Griffin's sources, Trump is also reported to have said regarding the inclusion of "wounded guys" in a military parade: "that's not a good look, Americans don't like that." Michael Robert Solomon and Benjamin Ryan Teeter, two self-described "Boogaloo Bois", have been charged by the justice department with attempting to provide material support to Hamas, a designated foreign terrorist organization. According to the Justice Department: "Solomon and Teeter also expressed their desire to employ themselves as 'mercenaries' for Hamas as a means to generate cash for the Boogaloo Bois/Boojahideen movement, including funding for recruitment and purchasing land for a training compound. According to the allegations in the criminal complaint and law enforcement affidavit, Solomon and Teeter shared with the CHS, and another individual whom they believed to be a more senior member of Hamas (and who was actually an undercover employee of the FBI), their ideas about destroying government monuments, raiding the headquarters of a white supremacist organization in North Carolina, and targeting politicians and members of the media." Facebook has removed the Patriot Prayer page, and the page for its founder - Joey Gibson - as part of an ongoing effort to remove Violent Social Militias from its platform. According to a new report from the Department of Homeland Security, white supremacists are considered the deadliest terror threat in the United States, and a greater threat than any foreign terror groups. NOTE: The report makes no mention of any threats from Antifa.
September 3, 2020 - Kayleigh McEnany, the White House press secretary was asked about Trump advising North Carolinians to vote twice in November. McEnany's response: "The president is not suggesting anyone do anything unlawful. What he said very clearly there is make sure your vote is tabulated, and if it is not, then vote." Trump sent the following tweet: "Based on the massive number of Unsolicited & Solicited Ballots that will be sent to potential Voters for the upcoming 2020 Election, & in order for you to MAKE SURE YOUR VOTE COUNTS & IS COUNTED, SIGN & MAIL IN your Ballot as EARLY as possible ... If it has not been Counted, VOTE (which is a citizen’s right to do)." The North Carolina board of elections issued a statement that says in part: "It is illegal to vote twice in an election ... Attempting to vote twice in an election or soliciting someone to do so also is a violation of North Carolina law ... The State Board office strongly discourages people from showing up at the polls on Election Day to check whether their absentee ballot was counted. That is not necessary, and it would lead to longer lines and the possibility of spreading COVID-19." Kayleigh McEnany held a White House press briefing, here are some highlights:
- McEnany was asked about Trump's comments in North Carolina about voting by mail and then showing up at the polls. McEnany responded: "The president does not condone unlawful voting."
- McEnany was asked about conflicting statements made by Trump, in which he initially said his November visit to Walter Reed was to begin his physical, but now claims the visit was to finish his physical. McEnany responded: "The president did his physical in two parts. The media is engaging in conspiracy theories about the president's health. I'm not engaging in conspiracy theories."
- McEnany was asked to respond to a story in the Washington Post that one of Trump's top medical advisers was encouraging the administration to embrace herd immunity as a response to the coronavirus pandemic. McEnany's response: "That was never something that was ever considered here at the White House ... made up in the fanciful minds of the media."
Democrats on the House oversight and reform committee have called for an investigation into possible Hatch Act violations during the Republican national convention saying in part: "We are alarmed that President Trump and some senior administration officials are actively undermining compliance with – and respect for – the law." According to ABC News, Russia is echoing rhetoric from Donald Trump that voting by mail will lead to fraud. From the story: "Analysts with the Department of Homeland Security's intelligence branch issued the warning on Thursday to federal and state law enforcement partners after finding with 'high confidence' that 'Russian malign influence actors' have targeted the absentee voting process 'by spreading disinformation' since at least March. 'Russian state media and proxy websites in mid-August 2020 criticized the integrity of expanded and universal vote-by-mail, claiming ineligible voters could receive ballots due to out-of-date voter rolls, leaving a vast amount of ballots unaccounted for and vulnerable to tampering,' the bulletin notes. 'These websites also alleged that vote-by-mail processes would overburden the U.S. Postal Service and local boards of election,' it continues, 'delaying vote tabulation and creating more opportunities for fraud and error.'" According to the Atlantic, Donald Trump has repeatedly denigrated service members. From the story: "Trump remained fixated on McCain, one of the few prominent Republicans to continue criticizing him after he won the nomination. When McCain died, in August 2018, Trump told his senior staff, according to three sources with direct knowledge of this event, 'We’re not going to support that loser's funeral,' and he became furious, according to witnesses, when he saw flags lowered to half-staff. 'What the fuck are we doing that for? Guy was a fucking loser,' the president told aides." Also, according to the story: "Trump referred to the more than 1,800 marines who lost their lives at Belleau Wood as 'suckers' for getting killed". The AP has independently verified the Atlantic's story. Facebook announced that it will restrict political ads in the final week leading up to the presidential election.
September 2, 2020 - Donald Trump sent the following tweet: "We had FAR more people (many millions) watching us at the RNC than did Sleepy Joe and the DNC, and yet an ad just ran saying the opposite. This is what we’re up against. Lies. But we will WIN!" FACT CHECK: According to figures released by Nielsen, 23.8 million people tuned in to watch Trump accept the Republican nomination, while 24.6 million tuned in to watch Joe Biden accept the Democratic nomination. During a speech in Wilmington DE, Joe Biden said of Trump: "If President Trump and his administration had done their jobs early on with this crisis, American schools would be open, and they'd be open safely." The Democratic-led House oversight committee has subpoenaed postmaster general Louis DeJoy for documents related to recent delays in mail delivery. This comes on the heels of DeJoy failing to voluntarily hand over materials requested by the panel. William Barr, the attorney general, echoed Trump's claims of voter fraud associated with mail-in voting, at one point calling it "playing with fire", and also denied systemic racism in policing saying: "I think there are some situations when statistics would suggest they are treated differently, but I don't think that's necessarily racism." When pressed for evidence of voter fraud associated with mail-in voting, Barr said his fraud claims are based on "logic." In an open letter, 81 American winners of Nobel prizes in the fields of chemistry, medicine and physics have endorsed Joe Biden for president, based on his support for science. The letter reads in part: "At no time in our nation’s history has there been a greater need for our leaders to appreciate the value of science in formulating public policy. During his long record of public service, Joe Biden has consistently demonstrated his willingness to listen to experts, his understanding of the value of international collaboration in research, and his respect for the contribution that immigrants make to the intellectual life of our country. As American citizens and as scientists, we wholeheartedly endorse Joe Biden for President." While speaking to a crowd in Wilmington, North Carolina, Trump told the crowd they should vote twice, once by mail and once in person saying: "Let them send it [their mail-in ballot] in and let them go vote, and if their system's as good as they say it is, then obviously they won’t be able to vote. If it isn't tabulated, they’ll be able to vote. So that's the way it is. And that's what they should do." NOTE: Voting twice is illegal. Josh Stein, the attorney general of North Carolina responded to Trump's statement tweeting: "Today, President Trump outrageously encouraged NCians to break the law in order to help him sow chaos in our election. Make sure you vote, but do NOT vote twice! I will do everything in my power to make sure the will of the people is upheld in November."
September 1, 2020 - The number of Americans who have died from coronavirus now exceeds 183,000. Trump announced that he will be visiting Kenosha, Wisconsin today. Tony Evers, the Democratic governor of Wisconsin, wrote in an open letter to Trump: "I am concerned your presence will only hinder our healing. I am concerned your presence will only delay our work to overcome division and move forward together." Donald Trump was interviewed on Fox News by Laura Ingraham, where the following exchange took place:
INGRAHAM: "Who do you think is pulling Biden's strings?. Is it former Obama people?"
TRUMP: "People that you’ve never heard of, people that are in the dark shadows. People that –"
INGRAHAM: "What does that mean? That sounds like a conspiracy theory. Dark shadows. What is that?"
TRUMP: "There are people that are on the streets, there are people that are controlling the streets. We had somebody get on a plane from a certain city this weekend. And in the plane, it was almost completely loaded with thugs, wearing these dark uniforms, black uniforms, with gear and this and that. They're on a plane."
INGRAHAM: "Where is-"
TRUMP: "I'll tell you sometime, but it's under investigation right now. But they came from a certain city, and this person was coming to the Republican National Convention. And there were like seven people on the plane like this person. And then a lot of people were on the plane to do big damage. They were coming."
According to NBC News, Trump's "thugs" on a plane in "black uniforms" is very similar to a viral facebook post from June. According to the story: "The claim about a flight matches a viral Facebook post from June 1 that falsely claimed, 'At least a dozen males got off the plane in Boise from Seattle, dressed head to toe in black.' The post, by an Emmett, Idaho man, warned residents to 'Be ready for attacks downtown and residential areas,' and claimed one passenger had 'a tattoo that said Antifa America on his arm.' That post was shared over 3,000 times on Facebook, and other pages from Idaho quickly added their own spin to it, like the Idaho branch of the far-right militia group 3 Percenters. One post claimed that 'Antifa has sent a plane load of their people' and that the Payette County Sheriff's Office confirmed it. Within days, that version of the rumor picked up enough steam in Idaho Facebook groups that the Payette County Sheriff's Office had to release a statement insisting that the viral rumor was 'false information.'" Anthony Fauci was asked about conspiracy theories making their rounds in right wing circles that many of the deaths attributed to coronavirus weren't actually from coronavirus because the people who died had other underlying conditions or comorbidities. Fauci responded that "The numbers that you've been hearing, the 180,000-plus deaths, are real deaths from Covid-19. Let there not be any confusion about that. It's not 9,000 deaths from Covid-19. It’s 180-plus thousand deaths." Justin Blake, the uncle of Jacob Blake, was asked if the family would meet with Donald Trump during his visit to the city of Kenosha. Blake responded: "President Trump is a racist who stokes racial tensions. He has been stirring racial tensions since he got in the White House. Why, as Jacob’s uncle, would I want to talk to him? Our focus is on Jacob and healing the community ... We don't have any words for the orange man in the White House." Amid speculation regarding Trump's unexpected November 2019 visit to Walter Reed Medical Center, Trump responded on twitter saying: "It never ends! Now they are trying to say that your favorite President, me, went to Walter Reed Medical Center, having suffered a series of mini-strokes. Never happened to THIS candidate - FAKE NEWS. Perhaps they are referring to another candidate from another Party!" According to a White House aid, Trump's tweet is responding to a tweet by Joe Lockhart, a former press secretary for Bill Clinton, which said: "Did @realDonaldTrump have a stroke which he is hiding from the American public?" As noted by critics of Trump, Lockhart's tweet does not refer to a "series of mini-strokes". Trump was asked by reporters about his claim of a plane with "thugs" wearing "black uniforms", to which Trump explained that "A person was on a plane, said that there were about six people like that person, more or less, and what happened is the entire plane filled up with the looters, the anarchists, the rioters, people that obviously were looking for trouble. And the person felt very uncomfortable on the plane." Trump held a roundtable in Kenosha, WI. Here are some highlights:
- Trump praised the "great people" who serve as law enforcement saying: "We're all safe, and we're safe because of law enforcement. And we honor you."
- Trump called on Americans to "condemn the dangerous, anti-police rhetoric" whenever it arises.
- Trump was asked if he believes "systemic racism is a problem in this country." Trump's response: "We should talk about the kind of violence we've seen in Portland and here and other places ... you have anarchists, and you have the looters, and you have the rioters ... that's what you should be focused on."
- Trump argued that some of the recent police violence stems from officers being "under tremendous pressure" and not handling those situations well.
August 31, 2020 - American deaths from coronavirus now exceeds 183,000. A federal appeals court has ruled that the prosecution of Michael Flynn may proceed, at least for now. The court also ruled that Judge Emmet Sullivan was justified in appointing a former judge to scrutinize the justice department's request to dismiss the case. Kayleigh McEnany held a press briefing today. Here are some highlights:
- A reporter asked McEnany if Trump would condemn the actions of Kyle Rittenhouse who was charged with fatally shooting two protesters in Wisconsin. McEnany's response: "The president is not going to weigh in on that."
Some notable reactions to McEnany's response:
"Why? Because the President's plan is to take no steps to reduce the chaos, unrest, and violence. His entire campaign strategy depends fanning the flames of of violence." - Chris Murphy, Democratic Senator
"The law and order president won’t condemn murder." - Adam Parkhomenko, Democratic Strategist
- McEnany was asked about video of Trump supporters shooting paintballs and pepper spray at Black Lives Matter protesters from the beds of their trucks. McEnany responded that Trump had not seen the video. FACT CHECK: Trump re-tweeted the video, which had the caption "Trump people unload paintballs and pepper spray. They shot me too."
Speaking in Pittsburgh, Joe Biden condemned recent violence, saying those who are "looting" and "rioting" should not be compared to peaceful protesters. Biden called those who participate in those activities are engaged in "lawlessness, plain and simple." Responding to efforts by Trump and his allies to paint Biden as a socialist who is rooting for violence, Biden responded: "You know me, you know my heart, you know my story, my family’s story. Ask yourself: do I look like a radical socialist with a soft spot for rioters? Really? The simple truth is that Donald Trump failed to protect America, so now he's trying to scare America". The Trump campaign released video of Joe Biden where Biden says in the video "You won't be safe in Joe Biden's America!" The video was flagged by twitter with the tag "Manipulated media". In the full clip of the video, Biden said this: "Since they have no agenda or vision for a second term, Trump and Pence are running on this: 'You won’t be safe in Joe Biden's America'. And what's their proof? The violence you're seeing in Donald Trump's America." According to a Military Times poll, active duty service members show a slight preference for Joe Biden over Donald Trump. Trump held a news conference today, here are some highlights:
- Trump accused Joe Biden of telling a "monstrous lie" that the Black Lives Matter demonstrations have been peaceful protests. FACT CHECK: The demonstrators have been overwhelmingly peaceful.
- Trump accused Biden of failing to condemn Antifa, and looting during protests. FACT CHECK: Here's an excerpt from a speech Joe Biden gave today: "I want to be very clear about all of this: Rioting is not protesting. Looting is not protesting. Setting fires is not protesting. None of this is protesting. It’s lawlessness, plain and simple. And those who do it should be prosecuted. Violence will not bring change, it will only bring destruction. It’s wrong in every way."
- Trump claimed the Democrats have removed the word God from the Pledge of Allegiance. FACT CHECK: During primetime broadcasts at the DNC, the full Pledge of Allegiance was recited with the word God. During an LGBTQ Caucus meeting and during the Muslim Delegates and Allies Assembly, "under God" was omitted.
- Trump claimed: "They want to let everybody vote. If you're the Boston bomber, they want you to vote."
- Trump weighed in on Kyle Rittenhouse, the 17 year-old who has been charged with murder in the deaths of two protesters in Kenosha saying: "That was an interesting situation ... [Rittenhouse] was trying to get away from them ... They very violently attacked him ... probably would've been killed" had he not been armed.
- Trump excused police brutality saying cops "choke sometimes and that goes on the evening news for weeks. The tens of thousands of great things they do, nobody writes about that."
Joe Biden responded to Trump's failure to condemn Kyle Rittenhouse saying: "Tonight, the President declined to rebuke violence. He wouldn't even repudiate one of his supporters who is charged with murder because of his attacks on others. He is too weak, too scared of the hatred he has stirred to put an end to it. So once again, I urge the President to join me in saying that while peaceful protest is a right — a necessity — violence is wrong, period. No matter who does it, no matter what political affiliation they have. Period. If Donald Trump can't say that, then he is unfit to be President, and his preference for more violence — not less — is clear." According to a database of 900 politically motivated attacks and plots in the United States since 1994, there has been a single attack staged by an anti-fascist that led to fatalities. The fatality in that attack was the perpetrator. Over the same period, American white supremacists and other rightwing extremists have carried out attacks that left at least 329 victims dead.
August 30, 2020 - Following a pro-Trump rally called "Trump cruise", hundreds of trucks full of Trump supporters and pro-Trump flags drove through the streets of Portland, Oregon. Video surfaced of the Trump supporters shooting paintball guns and pepper spray at Black Lives Mater protesters from the beds of the truck caravan, and the protesters throwing objects back at them. During the clashes, Aaron "Jay" Danielson, a supporter of "Patriot Prayer", a far-right group, was shot and killed. The killer is still at large.
August 28, 2020 - American deaths from coronavirus now exceed 180,000. Writing for the Washington Post, Toluse Olorunnipa offered the following analysis of last night's RNC:
"While all political confabs involve some level of spin and revisionism, the RNC this year has stood out for its brazen defiance of facts, ethical guidelines and tradition, according to experts on propaganda and misinformation. While Trump, a former reality television star, has long trafficked in mistruths and innuendo, the broad cast of characters who took up his tactics during prime-time speeches underscores how his brand of politicking has taken root in the GOP ... For more than 10 hours this week, President Trump and his allies used the unfiltered platform of a national political convention to paint a portrait of two Americas that do not exist. In one — a misrepresentation of life under Trump — the coronavirus has been conquered by presidential leadership, the economy is at its pre-pandemic levels, troops are returning home, and the president is an empathetic figure who supports immigration and would never stoke the nation’s racial grievances. In the other — a hypothetical preview of a Joe Biden presidency that mischaracterizes many of his proposals — police are defunded, taxes are increased, infanticide is legal, suburbs are abolished and cities burn as violence spreads nationwide."
Here is a list of some of the more egregious false claims that CNN compiled from Trump's 70 minute speech at the RNC last evening:
- Trump claimed he passed Veterans Choice. NOTE: President Obama did.
- Trump suggested Biden wants to take down the border wall. He hasn’t said that.
- Trump claimed the US economy has gained a record nine million jobs over the past three months. It has. But it had lost 22m in March and April, which Trump omitted from his figures.
- Trump said “Biden has promised to abolish the production of American oil, coal, shale and natural gas”. Biden has no such policy.
- On coronavirus Trump said “The United States has among the lowest case fatality rates of any major country in the world”. It is in the top third.
- Trump claimed he has done more for the African American community than any other president since Abraham Lincoln. CNN’s verdict? “While we give Trump lots of latitude to express opinions, this one is simply ridiculous.”
Writing for the Guardian, Mike German, a former FBI agent who infiltrated white supremacist groups, provided this analysis of the need to go after those groups:
"If the government knew that al-Qaida or Isis had infiltrated American law enforcement agencies, it would undoubtedly initiate a nationwide effort to identify them and neutralize the threat they posed. Yet white supremacists and far-right militants have committed far more attacks and killed more people in the US over the last 10 years than any foreign terrorist movement. The FBI regards them as the most lethal domestic terror threat. The need for national action is even more critical."
Giancarlo Granda, the man at the center of the sex scandal involving Jerry Falwell Jr, has opened up to the press about his involvement with the Falwells. According to Granda, Falwell Jr "enjoyed watching" him having sex with Falwell's wife Becki. News also surfaced that Becki Falwell had a sexual encounter with a former Liberty University student, who was a bandmate of her son. NOTE: Liberty University's honor code reads in part: "Sexual relations outside of a biblically ordained marriage between a natural-born man and a natural-born woman are not permissible at Liberty University" The House foreign affairs committee has announced the opening of contempt proceedings against Mike Pompeo, the secretary of state, for his refusal to cooperate with investigations into his conduct in office, which includes approaches to Ukraine for dirt on Joe Biden. The final event at the RNC took place on the South Lawn of the White House, with a crowd of approximately 1,500 people, where face masks were scarce, and social distancing was non-existent. According to CNN, Trump's RNC address reached 21.6 million viewers. For comparison, Joe Biden's DNC address reached 23.6 million viewers. Walter Schaub, the head of the Office of Government Ethics when Trump took office, offered this comment on Trump's use of the White House to give his convention speech:
"This abomination may be the most visible misuse of official position for private gain in America’s history. It is an abuse of the power entrusted to this man, the breach of a sacred trust. It is the civic equivalent of a mortal sin—maybe a religious one too. And it is a harbinger"
Amid speculation among Democrats that Trump may try to use the military to help him stay in office, General Mark Milley, the chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, released a statement saying in part: "I believe deeply in the principle of an apolitical U.S. military. In the event of a dispute over some aspect of the elections, by law U.S. courts and the U.S. Congress are required to resolve any disputes, not the U.S. military. I foresee no role for the U.S armed forces in this process." Three residents of New York City public housing say they were tricked into appearing in a RNC video. One of the tenants, who was furious about her inclusion in the video stated: "I am not a Trump supporter. I am not a supporter of his racist policies on immigration. I am a first-generation Honduran. It was my people he was sending back."
August 27, 2020 - A group of former John McCain staffers have written an open letter saying in part:
"We trust that as President, Joe Biden will lead an urgent, comprehensive national effort to contain the COVID pandemic. We trust he will call on Americans to remember our common interests and responsibilities, and not worsen the grievances that have polarized our politics. And we trust that he will defend American interests and values from all enemies, foreign and domestic. Given the incumbent president's lack of competent leadership, his efforts to aggravate rather than bridge divisions among Americans, and his failure to uphold American values, we believe the election of former Vice President Biden is clearly in the national interest."
A group of former Mitt Romney staffers have written an open letter saying in part:
"What unites us now is a deep conviction that four more years of a Trump presidency will morally bankrupt this country, irreparably damage our democracy, and permanently transform the Republican Party into a toxic personality cult. We can’t sit by and allow that to happen."
Writing for the Guardian, David Smith offers the following analysis of the Republican convention:
"As Hurricane Laura roared towards the southern US coast, the Republican national convention unleashed Hurricane Liar. There were lies aplenty at the last convention in Cleveland four years ago but, in those innocent days, reporters were still reluctant to call a lie a lie. Donald Trump blew that up on his first day in office when he and his officials claimed his inauguration crowd was bigger than Barack Obama's. Now there is no getting away from the fact that Republicans are commandeering more than two hours a night of primetime television to lie and mislead so brazenly, frequently and shamelessly that there's a chance the American public will simply be worn down into submission and untruth will be normalised. As the New York Times columnist Frank Bruni noted, all conventions tell 'extravagant fibs' but this one is 'less a feat of pretty storytelling than an act of pure derangement'. Wednesday night was another opportunity to deny Trump’s record, deny the severity of the coronavirus pandemic and climate crisis, and deny reality itself. Vice-President Mike Pence portrayed Trump as America's saviour from Covid-19. 'Before the first case of coronavirus spread within the United States, President Trump took the unprecedented step of suspending all travel from China,' he said, a false statement since there were several exceptions to the ban that still allowed tens of thousands to travel."
The South's Defenders monument, a confederate monument in Lake Charles, Louisiana, which was a tribute to the Confederate soldiers who fought to uphold white supremacy, and which was spared removal after local authorities voted 10-4 to keep it, was toppled overnight by Category 4 hurricane Laura. Voters in Detroit have reported receiving a robocall designed to scare them from using mail in voting. The robocall states in part: "Mail in voting sounds great, but did you know that if you vote by mail, your information will be part of a public database that will be used by police departments to track down old warrants? And will be used by credit card companies to collect outstanding debt? The CDC is even pushing to give preference to mail in voting to track people for mandatory vaccines". FACT CHECK: All of the claims in the robocall are false. Democratic vice presidential nominee Kamala Harris offered the following criticism of Donald Trump's response to coronavirus: "Instead of rising to meet the most difficult moment of his presidency, Donald Trump froze ... the tragedy in all of this is it didn't have to be this bad. Look around. It's not like this in the rest of the world ... all we needed was a competent president ... Donald Trump froze. He was scared. And he was petty and vindictive". At the RNC, Mike Pence claimed that people would "not be safe in Joe Biden's America" while presenting visuals from protests that have occurred this past year. Joe Biden responded to Pence's speech saying "These are not images from some imagined 'Joe Biden's America' in the future. These are images from Donald Trump's America today. The violence we're witnessing is happening under Donald Trump. Not me. It's getting worse, and we know why. Donald Trump refuses to even acknowledge there is a racial justice problem in America. To solve this problem, first we have to honestly admit the problem. But he won't do it." According to the Washington Post, Trump's trips to Mar-a-Lago have cost American taxpayers more than $900,000 since Trump took office. Kyle Rittenhouse, the 17 year-old who was arrested in connection with shootings in Wisconsin, has been charged with six criminal counts, including first degree reckless homicide in the death of Joseph Rosenbaum, and first degree intentional homicide for the death of Anthony Huber. According to the criminal complaint, Rittenhouse shot Rosenbaum, who was unarmed, after Rosenbaum threw a plastic bag at him. Many on the right have begun sharing positive memes on facebook in support of Rittenhouse featuring phrases like "Free Kyle" or "I stand with Kyle Rittenhouse". Some are calling his victims "commies" and "pedophiles".
Madison Cawthorn, a 25 year-old Republican candidate for congress, spoke at the Republican National Convention where he stated: "If you don't think young people can change the world, then you just don't know American history." Cawthorn then went on to say that James Madison signed the Declaration of Independence at 25. NOTE: James Madison did not sign the Declaration of Independence. NOTE2: A press release with Cawthorn's remarks replaced that line in his speech with "Thomas Jefferson was 33 when he wrote the Declaration of Independence."
August 26, 2020 - Deaths in the US from coronavirus now exceeds 179,000. Three people were shot overnight during protests in Kenosha, WI. Two of the victims died. The police are looking for the shooter, and are currently focused on a group of people who described themselves as belonging to a militia, who were heavily armed, wearing body armor, and were patrolling the streets of Kenosha. Mandela Barnes, the Lt Governor of Wisconsin, told Democracy Now during an interview: "How many times across this country do you see armed gunmen, protesting, walking into state Capitols, and everybody just thinks it's OK? People treat that like it's some kind of normal activity that people are walking around with assault rifles." Facebook has removed an event, posted by a self-described militia on the platform, which called on "Any patriots willing to take up arms and defend our city tonight from the evil thugs?" Kyle Rittenhouse, a 17 year-old form Antioch, Illinois, has been arrested for the shootings in Kenosha. According to the police charge sheet, Rittenhouse fled the state of Wisconsin to avoid prosecution for the offense. The Milwaukee Bucks are boycotting today's playoff game against the Orlando Magic to protest the police shooting of Jacob Blake. Following the announced boycott by the Bucks, all of the NBA playoff games scheduled for today were postponed indefinitely. The Milwaukee Brewers baseball team announced that they too would be boycotting their game today. Additional NBA teams have joined the strike, as has the WNBA. The Wisconsin Department of Justice released the name of the officer who shot Jacob Blake. His name is Officer Rusten Sheskey.
August 25, 2020 - Mark and Patricia McCloskey, the St Louis couple who pointed guns at peaceful protesters, were invited to speak at the Republican National Convention. Their message: The Democrats are "protecting criminals from honest citizens" and the Democrats want to "abolish the suburbs". Writing for the Washington Post, Jennifer Rubin offered the following analysis of the first night of the RNC: "In contrast to the upbeat videos and testimonies of the Democratic nominee's good character, Republicans have largely relied on a parade of angry individuals standing on a podium. The setting had the feel of a local tea party confab, with many people speaking VERY LOUDLY to people already fully in their club. The white supremacy was barely disguised as 26-year-old Charlie Kirk of Turning Point USA and Students for Trump said Trump is the 'the bodyguard of Western civilization.' Let me translate: Anyone who is not a White American is foreign, alien and 'the other.'" Writing for the New York Times, Jamelle Bouie offered the following analysis of the first night of the RNC: "It’s easy, observing all of this, to say that the Republican Party has fallen fully into a cult of personality around Trump and his family, a shocking number of whom have featured speaking roles at the convention. It’s also easy to say the party has no ideas or plans for the future. But that would be a mistake. For the Republican Party, the situation now isn’t too different from what it was in 2016. Trump lacked a serious agenda then just as he lacks one now. Rather than bring a new program to bear on the party, he has made the equivalent of a trade: total support for his personal and political concerns in exchange for almost total pursuit of conservative ideological interests. The last three and a half years have only shown the wisdom of this pact. Republican indifference to the president’s corruption, criminality and prejudice — which freed him to profit from the office and turn the bureaucracy into an instrument of his will — has been rewarded with deregulation, cuts to the social safety net and the installation in the federal judiciary of a large new cohort of reliably conservative judges." Stephanie Winston Wolkoff, a former friend and adviser of Melania Trump, will be releasing a book called Melania & Me on September 1st. What's noteworthy about the book is that it will include content from conversations that were taped, in which Melania can be heard making derogatory comments about Trump's children, and Trump himself. Miles Taylor, formerly chief of staff at the Department of Homeland Security, is claiming in an anti-Trump ad that Trump offered to pardon government officials "for breaking the law to implement his immigration policy". According to Taylor, Trump told senior leadership not to let anyone else into the United States, despite being told that the way he wanted to do it was illegal. Trump then told the officials "Do it. If you get in trouble, I'll pardon you." Taylor also said that Trump imagined "sickening" medieval plots "to pierce the flesh" of migrants, rip families apart, "maim", and gas them. According to Taylor: "this was a man with no humanity whatsoever." Peter Navarro, a Trump trade adviser, appeared on Andrea Mitchell Reports where he was defending the administration's move to approve convalescent plasma therapy for coronavirus, despite its efficacy being very much in doubt. At some point in the interview, the following exchange took place:
NAVARRO - "Are we going to wait to use something that can save thousands of lives, just so we can have a study that tells us what we already know, which is that plasma works?"
MITCHELL - "Yes, that is scientific practice, sir."
Liberty University announced today that Jerry Falwell Jr has resigned as the president of the evangelical school. Falwell denied yesterday that this was the case, but the school has confirmed that they received and accepted his letter of resignation. This comes following news that Falwell and his wife had a years-long sexual relationship with one of their business partners. Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers has signed an executive order declaring a state of emergency amid protests over the police shooting of Jacob Blake. According to Blake's father, Jacob is paralyzed from the waist down. Jacob Blake's mother, Julia Jackson, has called for healing and for peaceful protests in the wake of her son's shooting. Marjorie Taylor Greene, the Republican Congressional candidate from Georgia who promotes QAnon conspiracy theories - the baseless claim that Donald Trump is waging a secret war against a Satanic cabal of pedophiles that includes Democratic politicians, major Hollywood stars, George Soros and Bill Gates - and has a history of making racist and bigoted statements, has been invited to the White House to hear Trump give a speech accepting the Republican nomination for president. Joaquin Castro, a Democratic congressman from Texas, announced that the House foreign affairs committee will investigate whether a partisan speech by secretary of state Mike Pompeo at the Republican national convention from Jerusalem violates the Hatch Act. Mary Ann Mendoza, who is scheduled to speak at the RNC, shared a thread from a QAnon conspiracy theorist on twitter about a Jewish plot to take over the world. Mendoza's speech to the RNC will be about her son, who was killed in 2014 in a drunk driving accident that involved an undocumented immigrant. After news surfaced about Mendoza's tweet, she was removed as a speaker at the RNC. Abby Johnson, another speaker at the RNC, tweeted that she supports bringing back household voting, in which each household gets one vote, not allowing women their own individual vote. Johnson, who is an anti-abortion activist, is on video saying it would be "smart" for a police officer to racially profile her adopted son, who is biracial, because "statistically, my brown son is more likely to commit a violent offense over my white sons".
August 24, 2020 - Twitter hid one of Trump's tweets for breaking its rules on Covid-19 misinformation. The tweet suggested that you might get coronavirus from using mail drop boxes to vote.
Trump again promoted hydroxychloroquine through a tweet, despite FDA cautions against using the drug to treat Covid-19.
According to Fox News, more than two dozen former Republican members of Congress are launching a group called "Republicans for Biden". According to the report: "These former members of Congress cited Trump's corruption, destruction of democracy, blatant disregard for moral decency, and urgent need to get the country back on course as a reason why they support Biden. These former members of Congress are supporting Joe Biden because they know what's at stake in this election and that Trump's failures as president have superseded partisanship".
A story in The Hill reports on the fringe elements of the Republican party that are increasingly creeping into the mainstream. From the story: "There are few Republicans willing to condemn Laura Loomer, an Islamophobe and conspiracy theorist, and the other Trump extremists – and those who will go on the record tend to be on their way out of the party. 'I've always said we need a big tent party. I just didn’t think it would turn into a carnival tent,' Republican congressman Denver Riggleman, who was defeated by a far-right challenger in his Virginia GOP primary race earlier this year, told the Hill. 'Candidates like this really actually hurt our profile, because it overshadows the great work that’s being done by legitimate members.' But the condemnation is sparse. Republicans in office are well aware of Trump’s vengeance should they speak out against him."
Donald K. Sherman, the deputy director for Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW), wrote the following in an op-ed about Trump's 2020 election transition plan: "Trump had a notoriously chaotic transition to start his first term — and that chaos had consequences. A 2017 congressional report found that the 'Trump Transition Team consistently ignored advice from the Office of Government Ethics (OGE) - resulting in ethical crises that extended beyond the transition period into the Trump presidency.' According to CREW's calculations, Trump's failure to heed OGE's advice to divest from his business has led to more than 3,300 conflicts of interest related to the Trump Organization. Obtaining OGE communications about the 'critical milestones' for presidential transition in 2021 would reveal whether the Trump administration is following OGE's guidance this time around."
The Trump re-election campaign released a list of 50 bullet points outlining Trump's 2nd term agenda called "Fighting for You". Here are some of the key promises:
- Create 10 million new jobs in 10 months
- Cut taxes to boost take-home pay and keep jobs in America
- No federal contracts for companies who outsource to China
- Drain the globalist swamp by taking on international organizations that hurt American citizens
- Fully fund and hire more police and law enforcement officers
- Prosecute drive-by shootings as acts of domestic terrorism
- Bring violent extremist groups like Antifa to justice
- End sanctuary cities to restore our neighborhoods and protect our families
- Launch Space Force, establish permanent manned presence on the moon and send the first manned mission to Mars
- Continue to lead the world in access to the cleanest drinking water and cleanest air
- Stop endless wars and bring our troops home
- Wipe out global terrorists who threaten to harm Americans
Writing in the New York Times, Lisa Lerer offered up the following commentary on the Republican National Convention, which begins this evening. From the piece: "The Republican National Convention this week is hosted by the party, but it’s about one man: Donald J. Trump. Breaking with tradition, the president plans to speak every night during prime time. Speakers will include his wife, all of his adult children and some of his closest confidants. The main speeches will still be held before live audiences, potentially flouting public health guidelines in the District of Columbia, where parts of the event will be held. The stakes couldn’t possibly be higher ... There's also no effort to change the narrative around the scandals surrounding his administration. Just last week, the architect of his last campaign was hauled away in handcuffs. And Mr. Trump is definitely raising ethical questions with his convention programming. Both the president and his wife plan to speak from the White House grounds. The program includes several White House aides, like Kellyanne Conway, as well as secretary of state Mike Pompeo, who is violating a longstanding tradition that the country’s top diplomat avoid partisan politics. Ethics experts have criticized both the decision to stage the speeches at the White House and the involvement of aides like Ms. Conway, arguing that those decisions mix governing with partisan politics."
According to a CBS poll, 57% of Republicans believe that 170,000 American coronavirus deaths is "acceptable". For Democrats, that number is 10%.
According to an AP-NORC poll, 31% of Americans approve of Trump's leadership on the pandemic, which is a significant drop from the 44% approval in March.
Here are some highlights from the Republican National Convention:
- Trump claimed that governors were "totally ill-prepared" to confront the pandemic. NOTE: The Trump administration's decision not to oversee logistics is widely blamed for causing competition amongst the states.
- Trump claimed: "The only way they can take this election away from us is – this is a rigged election. We're going to win this election, we're going to win this election."
- Trump claimed Democrats are "using Covid to defraud the American people, all of the people, of a fair and free election, and they can’t do that."
- Trump told the attendees: "This is the most important election in the history of our country, don’t let them take it away from you".
- Trump claimed his administration protected insurance coverage for "pre-existing conditions". FACT CHECK: The Trump administration is suing to overturn the Affordable Care Act, which would end protection for pre-existing conditions.
According to the AP: "New York's Democratic attorney general asked a court Monday to enforce subpoenas into an investigation into whether President Donald Trump and his businesses inflated assets on financial statements. Attorney General Letitia James filed a petition in state trial court in New York City naming the Trump Organization, an umbrella group for the Republican president's holdings, as a respondent along with other business entities. The filing also named Eric Trump and Seven Springs, a New York estate owned by the Trump family. The attorney general's office is investigating whether the Trump Organization and the president improperly inflated the value of assets to secure loans and obtain economic and tax benefits. Investigators are looking into whether the Trump Organization and its agents improperly inflated the value of the Seven Springs north of the city. In the court filings, the attorney general's office wrote that 'information regarding the valuation of Seven Springs is significant' to the office's investigation. Emails seeking comment were sent to lawyers for the Trump Organization and Eric Trump. The investigation was launched in March 2019 after Trump’s longtime personal lawyer Michael Cohen told Congress that Trump had inflated the value of his assets to obtain more favorable terms for loans and insurance coverage."
According to news outlets, Jerry Falwell Jr, a close Trump ally, has agreed to resign as president and chancellor of Liberty University. Jerry Falwell Jr responded to the reports saying he is not resigning, but will be on indefinite leave.
Michael Cohen, Trump's former attorney and "fixer", is featured in an anti-Trump ad. Here is an excerpt of Cohen's remarks in the ad: "I was president Trump's righthand man, fixer and confidante. I was complicit in helping conceal the real Donald Trump. I was part of creating an illusion. Later this week he's going to stand up and blatantly lie to you. I'm here to tell you he can’t be trusted, and you shouldn't believe a word he utters ... If he says something is huge, it's probably small. If he says something will work, it probably won't. If he says he cares about you and your family, he certainly does not."
Patricia McCloskey, made famous for pointing a handgun at peaceful protesters, told the audience at the Republican National Convention that Democrats want to abolish the suburbs. NOTE: This false claim was first made by Donald Trump regarding Obama administration changes in 2015 to the Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing (AFFH), a decades-old federal requirement aimed to eliminate discrimination and combat segregation in housing.
August 23, 2020 - Jacob Blake, an unarmed black man, was shot seven times in the back by a Kenosha, WI police officer as he tried to enter his vehicle. Three of Blake's sons were sitting in the backseat. The shooting led to civil unrest on the streets of Kenosha.
August 22, 2020 - The Cleveland Police Patrolmen's Association, a group that endorsed Trump in 2016, announced that they will not be endorsing him this year. Trump sent the following tweet: "The Democrats took the word GOD out of the Pledge of Allegiance at the Democrat National Convention. At first I thought they made a mistake, but it wasn’t. It was done on purpose. Remember Evangelical Christians, and ALL, this is where they are coming from-it’s done. Vote Nov 3!" FACT CHECK: On the 2nd, 3rd and 4th nights of the convention, the pledge of allegiance was recited at the Democratic National Convention, and on all three occasions, "under God" was included. During an interview with CNN's Anderson Cooper, Miles Taylor, a former Department of Homeland Security official under Trump, told Cooper that "The president would call us and he would say … 'Why the hell didn't you watch Lou Dobbs last night? You need to listen to Lou. What Lou says is what I want to do.' So if Lou Dobbs peddled a conspiracy theory on late-night television or made an erroneous claim about what should be done either at the border or with some law enforcement operation, the president wanted us to be tuning in every night." NOTE: Lou Dobbs recently described the arrest of Steve Bannon as having been carried out by the "Deep State". Bannon, who was a key propagator of the "Deep State" conspiracy theory, is on record describing saying the "deep state conspiracy theory is for nut cases" because "America isn't Turkey or Egypt". Bannon is also on record saying "You do realise that none of this is true." Lara Trump, the president's daughter-in-law and senior adviser to his reelection campaign, appeared on NBC's Weekend Today where she stated: "Donald Trump from the beginning has been following the science". In an upcoming book by CNN's Brian Stelter called "Hoax: Donald Trump, Fox News and the Dangerous Distortion of Truth", Stelter describes an October 2019 meeting that attorney general Bill Barr had with Rupert Murdoch. According to Stelter, Barr told Murdoch to "muzzle" Andrew Napolitano, a prominent Fox News personality who became a critic of Donald Trump. NOTE: Napolitano wrote the following in a column published October 3rd: "The criminal behavior to which Trump has admitted, is much more grave than anything alleged or unearthed by Special Counsel Robert Mueller, and much of what Mueller revealed was impeachable." Donald Trump sent the following tweet: "The deep state, or whoever, over at the FDA is making it very difficult for drug companies to get people in order to test the vaccines and therapeutics. Obviously, they are hoping to delay the answer until after November 3rd. Must focus on speed, and saving lives!" Peter Marks, the director of the FDA's Center for Biologics Evaluation is on record saying: "I could not stand by and see something that was unsafe or ineffective that was being put through. You have to decide where your red line is, and that's my red line. I would feel obligated [to resign] because in doing so, I would indicate to the American public that there's something wrong." House speaker Nancy Pelosi, responded to Trump's tweet saying: "The FDA has a responsibility to approve drugs judged on their safety and efficacy, not by a declaration from the White House about speed and politicizing the FDA. This was a very dangerous statement from the president ... that went beyond the pale." The University of Washington's Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation estimates that by December 1st, the US death toll from Covid-19 could rise to 310,000. This figure is from a scenario in which federal and state governments ease social distancing protocols and do not require masks to be worn in public. A California judge has ordered Donald Trump to pay porn actor Stormy Daniels for her legal fees in the battle over her non-disclosure agreement with the president. TikTok announced that it is planning to sue the Trump administration over Trump's executive orders banning transactions between the video-sharing app and its Chinese parent company ByteDance saying: "Even though we strongly disagree with the Administration's concerns, for nearly a year we have sought to engage in good faith to provide a constructive solution. What we encountered instead was a lack of due process as the Administration paid no attention to facts and tried to insert itself into negotiations between private businesses. To ensure that the rule of law is not discarded and that our company and users are treated fairly, we have no choice but to challenge the Executive Order through the judicial system."
August 21, 2020 - The New Orleans city council voted to rename Jefferson Davis Parkway to Norman C. Francis Parkway. Francis was the first Black graduate of the law school at Loyola University, and served as president of Xavier University of Louisiana from 1968 to 2015. Defending Democracy Together, a conservative advocacy organization of more than 70 former Republican Party national-security leaders, wrote an open letter endorsing Joe Biden for president. The signatories have served under Reagan, George H.W. Bush, George W. Bush and Donald Trump. In the letter, the signatories list ten specific grievances with Donald Trump, saying he:
1. has gravely damaged America's role as world leader
2. has shown that he is unfit to lead during a national crisis
3. has solicited foreign influence and undermined confidence in our presidential elections
4. has aligned himself with dictators and failed to stand up for American values
5. has disparaged our armed forces, intelligence agencies, and diplomats
6. has undermined the rule of law
7. has dishonored the office of the presidency
8. has divided our nation and preached a dark pessimistic view of America
9. has attacked and vilified immigrants to our country
10. has imperiled America's security by mismanaging his national security team
An article in the Guardian discusses the Trump administration's plans to allow oil and gas exploration in the Arctic national wildlife refuge, which has been protected since the 1950s as the last fully intact ecosystem in the US. Here's an excerpt: "Polling of the broader American public shows widespread opposition to the idea of drilling in Arctic national wildlife refuge (ANWR). Advocates for the country’s last great wilderness hope it will still be spared from being just another place riven by roads, trucks and buildings and that Alaska can move away from being handcuffed to the fortunes of volatile, polluting fossil fuels. The ANWR lease area contains up to 11.8bn barrels of gettable oil, which, when burned, would further worsen a climate crisis globally and in Alaska, one of the fastest-heating places in the world where roads and buildings are buckling due to melting soil frosts, fierce wildfires now routinely tear through forests billowing unbreathable smoke and the animals are being so severely affected that the salmon are shrinking in size." A federal judge has denied Trump's request for a stay of the Manhattan district attorney's subpoena for his financial records, including his tax returns. Trump spoke at the 2020 Council for National Policy Meeting. Here are some highlights:
- Trump claimed Joe Biden did not mention China "in any way, shape or form" during his nomination speech last evening. FACT CHECK: During Biden's speech, he said: "We’ll make the medical supplies and protective equipment our country needs. And we’ll make them here in America. So we will never again be at the mercy of China and other foreign countries in order to protect our own people."
- Trump claimed regarding the upcoming November election: "You'll never have an election count on Nov. 3. In my opinion, you wouldn't be able to know the results of this election maybe weeks, months. Maybe never. I don't think you'll know two weeks later. I don't think you'll know four weeks later."
Phil Scott, the Republican governor of Vermont, announced that he will not be voting for Trump in the November election. Steve Bannon, Trump's former political adviser, called fraud charges against him a "political hit job". Trump was asked about Steve Bannon's arrest, to which he responded: "I know nothing about the project other than I didn’t like when I read about it. I didn’t like it." According to CNN: "Trump ally Kris Kobach said in an interview last year that he had spoken with the President three times about the private border wall project that is currently at the center of a federal fraud investigation, and that Trump was 'enthusiastic' about the project and it carried his blessing. Speaking on an episode of the 'We Build The Wall' show in May 2019, Kobach, both the general counsel and a board member for the project, said he periodically spoke to the President to give him updates on progress of the project. ... 'I've spoken to the President about this project on three occasions now,' Kobach said. 'And he said -- the first time I told him about it -- he said, 'well, you tell the guys at We Build The Wall, that they have my blessing. And he used those exact words.'" Peter Rafael Dzibinski Debbibs, a former Army Green Beret, was arrested for allegedly conspiring with Russian operatives to provide US defense information. During an interview with ABC News, Joe Biden said that if the move was recommended by scientists, he would shut the country down to stop the spread of covid-19. Biden went on to say: "We cannot get the country moving, until we control the virus. That is the fundamental flaw of this administration's thinking to begin with. In order to keep the country running and moving and the economy growing, and people employed, you have to fix the virus, you have to deal with the virus."
August 20, 2020 - Fred Guttenberg, a gun safety advocate whose daughter was killed at the Parkland shooting in Florida in 2018, sent the following tweet: "What yesterday made clear: If you are support @JoeBiden & @KamalaHarris, you are supporting America and our constitution. If you support Trump, you chose the side of a batshit conspiracy theory that there is a worldwide cabal of Satan-worshiping pedophiles who rule the world." Steve Bannon, a former Trump political adviser, was arrested today in connection to an online fundraising scheme called "We Build the Wall, which according to the Department of Justice's Southern District of New York: "defrauded hundreds of thousands of donors". Bannon, who is listed as "advisory board chairman" of the online campaign, was one of four people arrested. The agents making the arrest are US Postal Service agents, and according to law enforcement officials, Bannon was taken into custody while aboard a $35 million, 150-foot yacht off the coast of Westbrook, CT in the Long Island Sound. The yacht is owned by Chinese billionaire Guo Wengui. According to the Guardian, there are other prominent Republicans associated with "We Build the Wall". From the story: "It lists Kris Kobach, the former Kansas secretary of state and a prominent Trump cheerleader, as its attorney general. Bannon was the advisory board chairman. Erik Prince, founder of the private military contractor Blackwater USA, is a member of the organization's advisory board. Former Colorado congressman Tom Tancredo, an icon in conservative anti-immigration circles, is also on the advisory board, as is former Milwaukee county sheriff Dave Clarke and former Major League Baseball pitcher Curt Schilling." Bill Cassidy, a Republican Senator from Louisiana, has tested positive for coronavirus. While addressing supporters in Pennsylvania, Trump stated: "At stake in this election is the survival of our nation. Because we're dealing with crazy people on the other side ... They're coming to get you ... me, we, we're the wall between the American dream and total insanity and the destruction of the greatest country in the history of the world". Trump also claimed that Biden "abandoned Pennsylvania. He abandoned Scranton". NOTE: Biden's family moved away from Scranton when Joe Biden was 10 years-old. While speaking to reporters, Trump said: "The only way they’re going to win is by a rigged election, I really believe that." Steve Bannon's lawyer entered a not guilty plea for the fraud charges Bannon is facing. Trump commented on forest fires burngin in California saying: "I see again the forest fires are starting. They're starting again in California. You've gotta clean your floors, you've gotta clean your forests ... maybe we're gonna have to make them pay for it." Brian K Rice, the president of the California Professional Firefighters, responded to Trump's criticism saying: "The president's message attacking California and threatening to withhold aid to the victims of the cataclysmic fires is ill-informed, ill-timed and demeaning to those who are suffering as well as the men and women on the frontlines." According to NBC News, Stephen Miller, Trump's adviser, had wanted to separate even more migrant children from their parents than the administration eventually did. From the story: "While 'zero tolerance' ultimately separated nearly 3,000 children from their parents, what Miller proposed would have separated an additional 25,000, including those who legally presented themselves at a port of entry seeking asylum, according to Customs and Border Protection data from May and June 2018." NOTE: The child separation policy was described by the Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein, the UN Human Rights Chief, as a "cruel practice", "unconscionable" and "child abuse". Alexei Navalny, a Russian opposition leader, fell ill on a flight from Siberia to Moscow. Toxicological exams in Berlin revealed "unequivocal proof" that Navalny was poisoned with a Novichok nerve agent.
August 19, 2020 - Lara Loomer, a far-right social media provocateur, and self described "proud Islamaphobe," whose hate speech got her banned from social media, won the Republican primary in her district in Florida. Marjorie Taylor Greene tweeted a congratulatory message to Loomer, and asked twitter to re-instate Loomer's account. Loomer, who has appeared on InfoWars, has called the 2018 Marjorie Stoneman Douglas High School shooting in Parkland, Florida a hoax. Ronna McDaniel, the Republican National Committee chairwoman called Loomer to offer her congratulations, and told Loomer she is a "political rock star" and a "change agent for the Republican Party." After hearing that Goodyear tire company prohibited its employees from wearing clothing with politically-related messages, Trump sent the following tweet: "Don't buy GOODYEAR TIRES - They announced a BAN ON MAGA HATS. Get better tires for less! (This is what the Radical Left Democrats do. Two can play the same game, and we have to start playing it now!)." Sherrod Brown, who is a senator from the state of Ohio, where Goodyear is located, responded to Trump's tweet saying: "It is despicable when a President of the United States thinks it is appropriate to, to call for a boycott of a US company where there are thousands and thousands of American workers employed." Kayleigh McEnany held a briefing today. Here are some highlights:
- McEnany was asked if the president's limousine would still use Goodyear tires following Trump's call for a boycott. McEnany's response: "I am not going to comment on security matters."
- McEnany was asked about concerns that the president is purposely trying to slow mail services to hamper voting by mail. McEnany dismissed the concerns as the "latest Democrat manufactured crisis."
- McEnany was again asked about Trump's call to boycott tires. McEnany pointed out that Black Lives Matter and LGBTQ apparel are acceptable, but Blue Lives Matter, All Lives Matter, and Make America Great Again are not. McEnany referred to it as an "equity issue". After a reporter pushed back by noting that Goodyear's definition of political apparel is pretty common across many companies, McEnany stated that "MAGA is pretty much synonymous with Blue Lives Matter these days." NOTE: Critics of Blue Lives Matter argue the slogan is meant to demean the Black Lives Matter movement, and also equates occupational choice with racial identity.
- McEnany was asked about Trump's comment that the only way he could lose the election is if it were "rigged", despite the fact that he is trailing Joe Biden in the polls. The reporter then asked pointedly: "Is the President saying if he doesn't win this election that he will not accept the results unless he wins?" McEnany responded: "The President has always said he'll see what happens and make a determination in the aftermath."
Nancy Pelosi, the House speaker, sent the following tweet: "Earlier today, I spoke with Postmaster General DeJoy regarding his alleged pause in operational changes. During our conversation, he admitted he has no intention of replacing the sorting machines, blue mailboxes and other infrastructure that have been removed." Twitter announced that they do not plan to reverse their decision to ban Laura Loomer from their platform, even though she is the victor of a Republican congressional primary. Charlie Dent, a former Republican congressman, has endorsed Joe Biden for president saying "This isn’t about right or left. For me it's about right and wrong." Dent also criticized Trump's praise of Laura Loomer saying: "I mean, a 9/11 truther for Pete's sake. And the president called this person a rising star. I mean, all this does is empower the whack jobs and the nuts to come out." Trump was asked by a journalist for his perspective on QAnon, which is a baseless rightwing conspiracy theory which believes that Trump is waging a secret battle against a Satanic cabal of powerful figures, including top Democrats and celebrities, who run the world while engaging in pedophilia, human trafficking and harvesting chemicals from the blood of abused children. Trump responded: "I understand they like me very much, which I appreciate. I've heard these are people that love our country". The journalist then explained that QAnon supporters "believe you are saving the world from this satanic cult of pedophiles ... Does this sound like something you are behind?" Trump responded: "I haven’t heard that. But is that supposed to be a bad thing or a good thing? If I can help save the world from problems, I'm willing to do it. I'm willing to put myself out there and we are actually, we're saving the world from a radical leftist philosophy that will destroy this country." Facebook has removed hundreds of groups and pages dedicated to QAnon, which facebook explained was motivated by concern over limiting the spread of groups that had "demonstrated significant risks to public safety" and have been linked to violence. NOTE: A 2019 FBI bulletin identified QAnon as one of the conspiracy theories that could serve as a motivator for "domestic extremists" to carry out violence in the United States. Some notable reactions to Trump's praise of QAnon supporters:
"FBI: The deranged QAnon conspiracy theory poses a potential domestic terrorism threat. Combating Terrorism Center at West Point: it's a public security threat & potential domestic terror threat. Trump: 'these are people that love our country.'" - Jake Tapper, CNN News Correspondent
"This is going to be a huge validation for QAnon believers. I wish the reporter had also mentioned the results of QAnon belief: the child kidnappings, the harassment and death threats, the murders, the terrorism, the estranged families." - Will Sommer, Reporter
"President Trump has trafficked in conspiracy theories since the beginning of his political career (i.e. birtherism) and continues to do so regularly. Now, he's not denouncing QAnon. That is unprecedented, breaking norms, untraditional ... but not surprising." - Yamiche Alcindor, PBS NewsHour White House Correspondent
"don't really think reporters should be asking him shit like this live on camera when the outcome is objectively dangerous and doesn't actually tell us anything, he gives answers like this to every third question he's asked" - Ashley Feinberg, Journalist
August 18, 2020 - Trump responded to Michelle Obama's speech last night tweeting: "Somebody please explain to @MichelleObama that Donald J. Trump would not be here, in the beautiful White House, if it weren't for the job done by your husband, Barack Obama. Biden was merely an afterthought, a good reason for that very late & unenthusiastic endorsement. My Administration and I built the greatest economy in history, of any country, turned it off, saved millions of lives, and now am building an even greater economy than it was before. Jobs are flowing, NASDAQ is already at a record high, the rest to follow. Sit back & watch!" Trump aslo sent the following tweet: "Looking back into history, the response by the ObamaBiden team to the H1N1 Swine Flu was considered a weak and pathetic one. Check out the polling, it’s really bad. The big difference is that they got a free pass from the Corrupt Fake News Media!" FACT CHECK: CDC puts the death toll from H1N1 at 12,469. The current US death toll from coronavirus exceeds 170,000. Trump also sent this tweet: "The ObamaBiden Administration was the most corrupt in history, including the fact that they got caught SPYING ON MY CAMPAIGN, the biggest political scandal in the history of our Country. It's called Treason, and more. Thanks for your very kind words Michelle!" The Trump campaign started a new campaign ad that questions the mental capacity of Joe Biden. The ads pose the question: "What happened to Joe Biden?" Kamala Harris chose Pioneer for her security name. Joe Biden continues to use the name he had as vice president, which is Celtic. Biden's wife Jill uses Capri, and Donald trump uses Mogul. Donald Trump responded with a tweet to news that Miles Taylor had endorsed Joe Biden saying: "Many thousands of people work for our government. With that said, a former DISGRUNTLED EMPLOYEE named Miles Taylor, who I do not know (never heard of him), said he left & is on the open arms Fake News circuit. Said to be a real 'stiff'. They will take anyone against us!" Gretchen Whitmer, the Democratic governor of Michigan, offered the following critique of Trump's handling of the pandemic: "We are at the wealthiest country in the world, and yet, we are having the worst outcomes and the worst economic impact because of the mishandling of this virus. Trump did not create the coronavirus, but he is in charge of our response to it." News surfaced that Mark and Patricia McCloskey were invited to speak at the Republican Convention, as was Nick Sandmann. The McCloskeys became famous for waving guns at peaceful protesters, Sandmann became famous for staring and smiling at Nathan Phillips, a Native American elder, and was criticized for appearing to be disrespectful. The Senate Intelligence Committee released a bipartisan report into Russian interference in the 2016 election, the final volume in the committee's five-part investigation. Here are some takeaways from the report:
- Paul Manafort passed along internal polling data to Konstantin Kilimnik, a Russian intelligence officer. From the report: "Taken as a whole, Manafort's high level access and willingness to share information with individuals closely affiliated with the Russian intelligence services, particularly Kilimnik and associates of Oleg Deripaska, represented a grave counterintelligence threat".
- Trump spoke to Roger Stone about Wikileaks on "multiple occasions," despite Trump saying he did not recall doing so in written answers to Robert Mueller.
- Trump's transition team "repeatedly took actions that had the potential, and sometimes the effect" of interfering with the Obama administration's diplomatic efforts. From the report: "Russia and other countries took advantage of the Transition Team's inexperience, transparent opposition to Obama Administration policies, and Trump's desire to deepen ties with Russia, to pursue unofficial channels through which Russia could conduct diplomacy ... The lack of vetting of foreign interactions by Transition officials left the Transition open to influence and manipulation by foreign intelligence services, government leaders, and co-opted business executives."
Louis DeJoy, the postmaster general, announced that operational changes to the post office will be delayed until after the election. House speaker Nancy Pelosi responded to the Senate's bipartisan report on Russian interference in the 2016 election saying "The Senate's bipartisan report further exposes the alarming lengths to which Donald Trump & his campaign welcomed & relied upon foreign interference in 2016." Pelosi also responded to DeJoy's statement saying: "This pause only halts a limited number of the Postmaster's changes, does not reverse damage already done, and alone is not enough to ensure voters will not be disenfranchised by the President this fall." Former Secretary of State Colin Powell, a Republican, has endorsed Joe Biden for president.
August 17, 2020 - According to a story on CNN: "US intelligence agencies assessed that Iran offered bounties to Taliban fighters for targeting American and coalition troops in Afghanistan, identifying payments linked to at least six attacks carried out by the militant group just last year alone, including a suicide bombing at a US air base in December, CNN has learned." The planet's highest ever reliably recorded surface temperature was recorded in Death Valley. The temperature was 129.9F or 54.4C. Trump called into Fox News today. Here are some highlights:
- Trump was asked aout concerns that he won't leave office if he loses in November. Trump's response: "The first thing I think of is crooked Hillary Clinton." Trump then repeatedly criticized Clinton, and did not answer the question.
- Trump complained that China should not have allowed the "plague" to happen, and they "could have stopped it".
The Trump administration approved oil drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. From a story in the Wall Street Journal: "The refuge, often known by its acronym ANWR, is nearly the size of South Carolina, nestled between the Arctic Ocean to the north and Canada's Yukon to the east. Congress approved protections for it in 1980, and its expansive tundra, mountains and coastal plain are still nearly void of people and roads. Investors question its value, however, as a source of oil, especially in an era of lower crude prices and tepid demand. The industry is glutted with supply world-wide, pushing companies of all sizes to plan deep spending cuts. The reserves in ANWR are uncertain and drilling there appears unpopular with the public. Combined with the sheer expense of entering Arctic wilderness for the first time, it might all chase away several of the major companies that could afford such a capital outlay." Trump spoke to a small crowd at a Minnesota airport. Here are some highlights:
- Trump told the crowd that Democrats "will be taking away your Second Amendment if they win" and that they would confiscate legally owned guns.
- Trump claimed: "We built the greatest economy in the history of the world, and now I have to do it again". FACT CHECK: Trump has made this claim numerous times, but fact-checkers have found the assertion to be false.
- Trump claimed Joe Biden is "the puppet of the leftwing extremists".
- Trump claimed Nancy Pelosi does not love America.
- Trump claimed that places being hailed as a great success in the fight against covid-19 are ow facing a "big surge" in cases. Trump cited New Zealand as an example. FACT CHECK: Auckland recorded 9 new cases of covid-19 yesterday, while the US recorded just under 42,000.
Ron Stroman, who stepped down as second in command at the USPS in June, offered this critique of recent changes at the USPS: "Recent actions like the removal of these machines aren’t necessarily out of line with USPS operations/processes, but what does raise cause for concern is the lack of transparency from USPS in communicating to stakeholders the reasoning behind, or the data to back up, these decisions—not to mention the speed with which the changes have been made in recent weeks". Miles Taylor, who served in the Trump administration as chief of staff to former homeland security secretary Kirsjen Nielsen, has endorsed Joe Biden for president. According to Taylor: "What we saw week in and week out, for me, after two and a half years in that administration, was terrifying ... Given what I have experienced in the administration, I have to support Joe Biden for president and even though I am not a Democrat, even though I disagree on key issues, I’m confident that Joe Biden will protect the country and I’m confident that he won’t make the same mistakes as this President." Taylor also claimed that Trump showed little interest in important matters of national security and sought to "exploit" the department of homeland security for his own personal gain. Taylor also offered this critique of the Trump administration:
"One day in February 2019, when congressional leaders were waiting for an answer from the White House on a pending deal to avoid a second government shutdown, the president demanded a DHS phone briefing to discuss the color of the wall. He was particularly interested in the merits of using spray paint and how the steel structure should be coated. Episodes like this occurred almost weekly. ... Top DHS officials were regularly diverted from dealing with genuine security threats by the chore of responding to these inappropriate and often absurd executive requests, at all hours of the day and night. One morning it might be a demand to shut off congressionally appropriated funds to a foreign ally that had angered him, and that evening it might be a request to sharpen the spikes atop the border wall so they'd be more damaging to human flesh ('How much would that cost us?')."
According to Reuters, more than a dozen Democratic attorneys general are reviewing legal arguments and are expected to sue the Trump administration over post office cuts. Trump announced that he will be giving his GOP convention speech from the White House. The Office of Special Counsel said that Trump could give the speech from the White House, but there may be issues for White House employees involved because of the Hatch Act. The Democratic Convention began today, marking the first-ever virtual presidential convention. A highlight of the night was a speech in which Michelle Obama said of Trump: "Let me be as honest and clear as I possibly can. Donald Trump is the wrong president for our country. He has had more than enough time to prove that he can do the job, but he is clearly in over his head. He cannot meet this moment. He simply cannot be who we need him to be for us. It is what it is."
August 16, 2020 - The number of coronavirus deaths in the US now exceeds 168,000. According to NBC, Donald Trump is seeking to hold a summit with Vladimir Putin, possibly next month, to discuss a treaty on nuclear arms control. According to the story: "Trump is understood to want to hold the summit in order to look presidential and show he can negotiate a high-level deal." The House Oversight committee sent a letter to Louis DeJoy, the Postmaster General, inviting him to testify August 24th, and to produce requested documents by August 21st. From the letter: "Over the past several weeks, there have been startling new revelations about the scope and gravity of operational changes you are implementing at hundreds of postal facilities without consulting adequately with Congress, the Postal Regulatory Commission, or the Board of Governors." During an interview, Jared Kushner said he would have no problem sending his children back to school "because children have a six times higher chance to die from the flu than from the coronavirus, so based on the data I’ve seen I don’t believe that’s a risk." During an appearance on CBS's Face the Nation, Lori Lightfoot, the mayor of Chicago, responded to Kushner's remarks saying "It is not just the students themselves. It is the entire eco-system of the school. You've got teachers, you've got principals, and you've got staff.” Lightfoot pointed out that many staff in schools are over 60, making them "a vulnerable population." According to an ABC News poll, 59% of respondents disapprove of Trump's handling of the pandemic.
August 15, 2020 - Donald Trump sent the following tweet: "The Democrats know the 2020 Election will be a fraudulent mess. Will maybe never know who won!" An article in the Guardian offers this critique of the situation with the USPS: "In July, the Washington Post and other news organizations reported the agency was banning overtime and instructing postal workers to leave the mail behind if it delayed them on their routes. There are also reports of the USPS removing mail sorting machines from facilities, which could lead to a further slowdown. Critics suggest Trump and DeJoy are deliberately slowing the mail to make it more difficult to vote by mail. DeJoy has strongly denied any political interference. But on Thursday, Trump openly admitted he was blocking $25bn in proposed aid to the post office because he wanted to make it harder to vote by mail." Nancy Pelosi, the House speaker, offered the following critique of Trump's handling of the US Post Office: "Before our eyes, President Trump is openly working to destroy the Post Office and sabotage its ability to deliver absentee ballots in time to be counted. In the time of pandemic, the Postal System is Election Central. All patriots, Democrats, Independents or Republicans, should reject the President's assault on the Postal System in this election season." According to a story in the Guardian: "The number of known coronavirus tests administered daily in the United States has fallen for the first time in an alarming trend that threatens to undermine the nation's efforts to contain the pandemic. An estimated 733,000 people have been tested each day this month on average, down from nearly 750,000 in July, according to the independent Covid Tracking Project." Trump held a news briefing. Here are some highlights:
- Trump said there has been a "steep decline" in covid-19 cases across the US over the last week.
- Trump said that Americans should use "common sense" treatments for the virus.
- Trump referred to coronavirus using the racist phrase "China virus".
- Trump claimed China "will own the United States" if Biden becomes president.
- Trump was asked if Louis DeJoy, the postmaster general, is purposely cutting postal services to hurt mail-in voting. Trump's response: DeJoy is "trying to streamline the postal service and make it great again."
- Trump claimed the US is doing "very well" on covid-19. NOTE: The US leads the rest of the world in deaths from covid-19.
August 14, 2020 - The University of Oregon announced that it will cover four murals in one of its libraries which have long been criticized for containing racist depictions. The Washington Post editorial board offered a scathing critique of Trump's attempts to discredit the November election saying: "A decent, democratic president, genuinely concerned with honest elections and his people's fundamental right to vote, would be touting improvements and offering assistance to make sure they continue through November. A desperate, demagogic president, behind in the polls, would sow confusion and conspiracy theories, trying to delegitimize in advance any result other than a victory for him. That is what Mr. Trump is doing." A new ad released by the Joe Biden campaign is calling for a nationwide mask mandate, expanded testing, and increased production of Personal Protection Equipment (PPE). Trump retweeted the following tweet by the right wing Daily Caller's Chuck Ross: "The hand-wringing over a Barr-Durham October Surprise is pretty rich given all the political damage that the debunked collusion conspiracy theory did over the course of 3 years. Imagine if Comey, Mueller, Wray had disclosed the truth about collusion when they learned it." Shirish Date, responded to Ross's tweet by tweeting: "Trump centered his entire campaign around material stolen for him by Russian spies, every single day, from 10 Oct to 8 Nov 2016, even though he knew it had been stolen by Russian spies. Every. Single. Day. Putin helped him win. Trump eagerly accepted the help. What if Comey had held a news conference in October 2016 laying all this out? That Trump had been briefed about the Russian theft of that material but was using it anyway and about all the contacts his campaign had had with Russians? You would have been okay with that?" Trump held a news briefing today. Here are some highlights:
- Trump was asked if he agreed with Marjorie Taylor Greene's embrace of the QAnon conspiracy theory. Trump ignored the question.
According to CNN, the USPS is removing hundreds of high-volume mail-processing machines from facilities across the country. Postal workers are expressing concern that these removals may decrease their capacity to process mail during election season. Barack Obama offered the following critique of changes at the Post Office: "What we've seen in a way that is unique to modern political history is a president who is explicit in trying to discourage people from voting. What we've never seen before is a president say: 'I'm going to try to actively kneecap the postal service to [discourage] voting and I will be explicit about the reason I'm doing it'. That’s sort of unheard of." According to the Washington Post, the USPS has warned 46 states and Washington DC that some mailed ballots may not arrive in time to be counted for the November election. According to a new report from the US Government Accountability Office, acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf, and acting Deputy Secretary Ken Cuccinelli, are ineligible to serve in their current roles and were appointed in violation of the Vacancies Reform Act. After news surfaced that the Post Office was removing mail collection boxes, which resulted in a fierce backlash, the Post Office announced: "We are suspending the removal of collection boxes at this time."
August 13, 2020 - According to a story in the New York Times, the death tool from coronavirus in the US has already surpassed 200,000 despite the official toll being around 34,000 lower. From the story: "As the pandemic has moved south and west from New York City, so have the unusual patterns in deaths from all causes. That suggests that the official death counts may be substantially underestimating the overall effects of the virus." The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), is calling the upcoming US election "the most challenging in recent decades" and says voting problems "could harm the integrity" of the US election. The OSCE has recommended that member states send 100 long-term and 400 short-term observers to monitor the polls. An article in the Washington Post offers the following critique of Marjorie Taylor Greene, the QAnon conspiracy-theory supporter with a history of posting social media videos that have been criticized as racist: "The rise of Greene shines a spotlight on the GOP's internal debate over how to handle fringe groups and candidates who support Trump and whom he often supports in return. Republicans privately acknowledge that there is no future for a party that antagonizes people of color and has members who make statements or take policy positions supported by white supremacists. But they also have done little to stand up to Trump, a president who embraces such rhetoric, and candidates who make those remarks." According to Republican Representative Denver Riggleman: "QAnon is the mental gonorrhea of conspiracy theories". According to CNN, Eric Trump liked the following tweet, which was later deleted: "Raise your hand if you think Harris was a whorendous pick. May have misspelled." According to the Guardian, a former USPS deputy is raising concerns about changes to the Postal Service. From the story: "A former top official has warned that recent changes at the agency, now led by a Trump ally, could 'disenfranchise' voters as they are implemented just months ahead of an election in which a record number of Americans are expected to vote by mail. Amid reports of significant mail delays, Ronald Stroman, who stepped down earlier this year as the second in command at USPS, said he was concerned about the speed and timing of changes that appeared to be implemented after Louis DeJoy, the new postmaster general, took office in June." Alfonso Morales, the former police chief of Milwaukee, has decided to retire after he was demoted to captain in part for using tear gas against protesters. According to Reuters, Trump and his negotiators are resisting Democrat's calls for additional money in a coronavirus relief bill to help US officials prepare for the November election. Trump was interviewed on the Fox Business Network. Here are some highlights:
- Trump was asked about the impasse between him and the Democrats. Trump responded: "The items are the post office and the $3.5 billion for mail-in voting. If we don't make the deal, that means they can't have the money, that means they can't have universal mail-in voting. It just can’t happen. ... Now they need that money in order to make the post office work so it can take all of these millions and millions of ballots ... But if they don't get those two items that means you can't have universal mail-in voting".
- Trump referred to Kamala Harris as "sort of a mad woman" and claimed "She was the angriest of the group [Democrats] and they were all angry"
- Trump claimed Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez "is not even a smart person" and that she "goes out and yaps".
- Trump called Nancy Pelosi "stone-cold crazy".
The Biden campaign responded to Trump's comments that funding the US Postal Service to carry out mail-in voting would lead to fraud, saying: "The President is sabotaging a basic service, cutting a critical lifeline for rural economies and for delivery of medicines, because he wants to deprive Americans of their fundamental right to vote safely". The supreme court ruled against Republican efforts to prevent the easing of mail-in voting restrictions in Rhode Island. Republicans had argued in the case that the pandemic did not make it harder for people to find two witnesses to sign their mail-in ballots. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez responded to comments Trump made earlier today saying: "Let's make a deal, Mr. President: You release your college transcript, I'll release mine, and we'll see who was the better student. Loser has to fund the Post Office." Joe Biden has called for a nationwide mask mandate, saying: "Every single American should be wearing a mask when they're outside for the next three months, at a minimum. Every governor should mandate — every governor should mandate mandatory mask wearing." NOTE: The CDC currently recommends that people wear masks in public to prevent the spread of covid-19. A teaser is now available for Michael Cohen's book titled Disloyal: The True Story of the Former Personal Attorney to President Donald J Trump. From the teaser: "In some ways, I knew him better than even his family did because I bore witness to the real man, in strip clubs, shady business meetings, and in the unguarded moments when he revealed who he really was: a cheat, a liar, a fraud, a bully, a racist, a predator, a con man." Trump held a news briefing today. Here are some highlights:
- Trump stated "At every turn, Biden has been wrong about the virus - ignoring the scientific evidence. ... Sleepy Joe rejects the scientific approach." NOTE: Trump has lied, misled and misrepresented the reality of the coronavirus pandemic in the US, and has contradicted and ignored his own public health experts.
- Trump stated "We will defeat this virus but not by hiding in our basements. Joe Biden needs to stop playing politics with the virus."
- Trump claimed that absentee voting and mail-in voting are different. NOTE: They are the same.
- Trump argued that Democrats want to keep schools - which also serve as polling places - closed so that Americans cannot vote. NOTE: Trump offered no evidence for this claim.
- Trump claimed that foreign nations can easily "grab" and forge mail-in ballots. NOTE: Here's a response to this claim by Rick Hasen, a political scientist at UC Irvine: "Of all the ridiculous schemes that have been floated by the President or AG Barr for how mail-in ballot fraud could affect the election, the possibility of a foreign entity swaying election by mailing fraudulent absentee ballots is the most ludicrous. It defies common sense. ... Imagine if a foreign government got voter registration information, miraculously faked the ballot form, paper, tracking information, etc., and then faked signatures. Voters who requested a mail-in ballot would find out someone else voted their ballots. The foreign government would have to do this at scale to produce thousands of votes in even the closest swing state to try to change the outcome. With everyone watching and many states allowing voters to track their ballots this becomes impossible."
- Trump floated a birther conspiracy about Kamala Harris saying: "I heard it today that she doesn't meet the requirements. I have no idea if that is right. I would have assumed that the Democrats have checked it out." NOTE: Kamala Harris, who was born in Oakland, California, is a US citizen who is eligible to serve as president.
- Donald Trump was asked the following question by Shirish Date: "Do you regret all your lying?" Donald Trump did not respond.
August 12, 2020 - Marjorie Taylor Greene, a businesswoman who has expressed racist views and support for the far-right conspiracy theory QAnon, has won the Republican nomination for Georgia's 14th congressional district. In videos that have surfaced since Greene started to rise to prominence, Greene complains of an "Islamic invasion" into government offices, and pushes the antisemitic conspiracy theory that billionaire philanthropist George Soros, who is Jewish, collaborated with the Nazis. Donald Trump congratulated Greene with the following tweet: "Congratulations to future Republican Star Marjorie Taylor Greene on a big Congressional primary win in Georgia against a very tough and smart opponent. Marjorie is strong on everything and never gives up - a real WINNER!" Donald Trump sent the following tweet: "The 'suburban housewife' will be voting for me. They want safety & are thrilled that I ended the long running program where low income housing would invade their neighborhood. Biden would reinstall it, in a bigger form, with Corey Booker in charge! @foxandfriends @MariaBartiromo" Mike Pompeo, the US secretary of state, defended arms sales to Saudi Arabia in 2019 saying: "We did everything by the book. I am proud of the work that my team did. We got a really good outcome. We prevented the loss of lives." The state department inspector general concluded the state department did not fully evaluate the risk of civilian casualties in Yemen when it pushed through the 2019 precision-guided munition sale. Billy Woods, the Marion county Florida sheriff, issued an edict that his deputies are not to wear face masks. nor are visitors to the sheriff's office allowed to wear face masks. From the sheriff's edict: "We can debate and argue all day of why and why not. The fact is, the amount of professionals that give the reason why we should, I can find the exact same amount of professionals that say why we shouldn’t" and "In light of the current events when it comes to the sentiment and/or hatred toward law enforcement in our country today, this is being done to ensure there is clear communication and for identification purposes of any individual walking into a lobby". Rebekah Jones, who was fired for insubordination and subjected to a vitriolic character assassination by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, after she claimed she was ordered to censor coronavirus information to justify reopening the state, sat down for an interview with the Guardian. Here's an excerpt: "From the beginning there was an organized effort to limit the amount of information the public could have. And that came from all different directions, different motivations, but it ended up in the same result, that people are getting very limited amounts of data and information to make choices. They never actually denied what I was saying. They said I was insubordinate, that I didn't listen to my superiors, and that was true. They asked me to do something wrong and I didn’t do it. If I was insubordinate to say I'm not going to manipulate data to say it's safe to reopen when it's not, then yes, I wear insubordination as a badge of honor." According to the Guardian: "The past decade was the hottest ever recorded globally, with 2019 either the second or third warmest year on record, as the climate crisis accelerated temperatures upwards worldwide, scientists have confirmed. Every decade since 1980 has been warmer than the preceding decade, with the period between 2010 and 2019 the hottest yet since worldwide temperature records began in the 19th century." Police declared a riot in Portland, which was the 77th consecutive night of Black Lives Matter protests there. Trump held a news conference. Here are some highlights:
- Trump claimed regarding the upcoming election: "It will be the greatest rigged election in history. This will be one of the greatest frauds in history."
- Trump introduced Dr Scott Atlas, a healthcare policy expert at the conservative Hoover Institute at Stanford University, and asked him to speak. NOTE: According to the Guardian, Atlas has promoted unscientific views about coronavirus. From the story: "Atlas appears to be more in tune with Trump's thinking on the virus after the president publicly criticized both of his top pandemic officials, Deborah Birx and Anthony Fauci, over concerns they raised about the disastrous spread of Covid-19 in the US and the danger of allowing students to return to school. In June, Atlas said the idea that schools could not reopen after the summer break was 'hysteria' and 'ludicrous'. The new White House adviser has also called for college football to resume – a favored move by conservatives – despite a surge in virus cases in many states. 'The environment of college sports is very sophisticated, it is controlled, there is accountability. The athletes couldn't get a better and safer environment,' Atlas told Fox News earlier this week. 'Young people that age, without a co-morbidity, have virtually a zero risk from this. The risk is less than seasonal influenza. There is such fear in the community, and unfortunately it's been propagated by people doing sloppy thinking and sensationalistic media reporting.'"
- Trump claimed that Kamala Harris is "very bad on fact. She is very weak on facts." NOTE: According to Washington Post fact checkers, Donald Trump has made more than 20,000 false or misleading claims as president.
- Trump was asked what he meant when he said a Biden victory would lead to an "invasion" of the suburbs. Trump's response: Biden and Harris are "going to destroy suburbia" with low-income housing.
August 11, 2020 - More than 900 healthcare workers have died of covid-19. The number of cases worldwide is now 20m. The number of cases in just the US: 5m. Trump sent the following tweet: "More Testing, which is a good thing (we have the most in the world), equals more Cases, which is Fake News Gold. They use Cases to demean the incredible job being done by the great men & women of the U.S. fighting the China Plague!" NOTE: A plague is spread by bacteria. Covid-19 is caused by a virus. During an interview with Fox News Radio, Trump suggested that he won't hold socially distanced rallies during the campaign because of the optics. According to Trump: "You can't have empty seats. You know, if I had five empty seats — for instance, they said: 'Would I do a rally, sir?' The reason I won't do them [is] because: 'You can have one seat and then seven around that seat, sir, have to be empty.' Oh, that'll look great. You know, you have one person and everything’s empty around them. You can't do that." During an interview with conservative pundit Hugh Hewitt, Trump claimed he had "tariffed the hell out of" China, taking "in billions and billions of dollars" for the US in the process. FACT CHECK: American consumers are paying for the tariffs, not China. Trump also claimed: "Look, China will own the United States if this election is lost by Donald Trump. If I don’t win the election, China will own the United States. You're going to have to learn to speak Chinese, you want to know the truth." Trump also claimed he had a conversation "20 years ago" with an unnamed but "highly-respected senator" who told him Joe Biden was the "dumbest in the Senate". The parents of Elijah McClain, who died after being placed in a chokehold by police and injected with ketamine by paramedics, have filed a lawsuit against police and medical officials. In a statement released by their attorney's, the parents stated: "We have filed this civil rights lawsuit to demand justice for Elijah McClain, to hold accountable the Aurora officials, police officers, and paramedics responsible for his murder, and to force the City of Aurora to change it longstanding pattern of brutal and racist policing." Joe Biden sent the following tweet: "I have the great honor to announce that I've picked @KamalaHarris — a fearless fighter for the little guy, and one of the country’s finest public servants — as my running mate." The Trump campaign reacted to the announcement with this announcement: "In her failed attempt at running for president, Kamala Harris gleefully embraced the left's radical manifesto, calling for trillions of dollars in new taxes and backing Bernie Sanders' government takeover of healthcare. She is proof that Joe Biden is an empty shell being filled with the extreme agenda of the radicals on the left. Joe Biden is no moderate, and with Harris as his 'political living will', he is surrendering control of our nation to the radical mob with promises to raise taxes, cut police funding, kill energy jobs, open our borders and appease socialist dictators. At the ballot box, Americans will resoundingly reject the abysmal failures of Biden-Harris in favor of the America first strength of President Donald Trump and Vice-President Mike Pence." Donald Trump held a daily news briefing. Here are some highlights:
- Trump opened the briefing by talking about "leftwing anarchists" and rioting in "Democrat-controlled cities". FACT CHECK: Here are some numbers from a new database by the Center for Strategic and International Studies, which analyzed nearly 900 politically motivated plots and attacks in the US:
0 Victims killed in anti-fascist attacks since 1994
329 Victims killed in right-wing violence since 1994
21 Victims killed in left-wing violence since 2010
95 Victims killed in jihadist attacks since 2010
117 Victims killed in right-wing violence since 2010
- Trump pointed to rising cases in some European countries in an attempt to play down the severity of the pandemic in the US. FACT CHECK: According to the Johns Hopkins coronavirus tracker, the US ranks 10th highest in the world for coronavirus deaths per 100,000 people.
- Trump responded to Joe Biden picking Kamala Harris for his running mate saying Harris was: "nasty to a level that was just a horrible thing" to supreme court justice Brett Kavanaugh.
- Trump stated: "The fact is, we caught Joe Biden, President Obama the whole group ... we caught them spying on our campaign. This was an illegal act. This was the highest level of treason." FACT CHECK: The Department of Justice inspector general found no "documentary or testimonial evidence that political bias or improper motivation" after investigating the origins of the FBI investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election.
August 10, 2020 - Coronavirus deaths in the US now exceed 163,000. According to a study by the American Academy of Pediatrics and the Children's Hospital Association, 97,000 US children tested positive for coronavirus in the last two weeks of July. From the study: "The jump in pediatric cases comes as children are entering close quarters for the first time in months as some schools open their doors to students again. For months, teachers, parents and politicians have argued over whether the risks that the novel coronavirus pose to children outweigh the benefits of in-person learning. Many school districts have chosen to operate entirely remotely until case numbers drop. Some have opted for hybrid learning systems in which children attend school in-person only a few days a week to limit crowding. But even schools with measures limiting crowds have suffered outbreaks already." An Article on Slate provides an in-depth timeline of Trump's statements and response to covid-19. From the article: "The story the president now tells—that he 'built the greatest economy in history,' that China blindsided him by unleashing the virus, and that Trump saved millions of lives by mobilizing America to defeat it—is a lie. Trump collaborated with Xi, concealed the threat, impeded the U.S. government's response, silenced those who sought to warn the public, and pushed states to take risks that escalated the tragedy. He's personally responsible for tens of thousands of deaths. ... 'We pretty much shut it down coming in from China,' said Trump. That was false: Thanks to loopholes in the ban, the coronavirus strain that would engulf Washington state arrived from China about two weeks later. But at the time of the interview, the ban hadn't even taken effect. The important thing, to Trump, was that he had announced the ban. He was less interested in solving the problem than in looking as though he had solved it." Bill Gates, tech guru and philanthropist, offered this analysis of the Trump administration's response to coronavirus: "A variety of early missteps by the US and the political atmosphere meant that we didn’t get our testing going. We are paying a pretty dramatic price, and not just in deaths. We also pay it in terms of the economic toll, which is up in the trillions." Citing the global downturn as justification, the EPA is reversing Obama-era controls on methane. The new rule will end requirements that oil and gas producers have systems and procedures in place to detect methane leaks. Trump held a press briefing. Here are some highlights:
- Trump referenced a situation in Virginia where absentee ballot applications had inaccurate information as proof of voter fraud saying "It's a disaster all over Virginia ... A rigged election ... People should vote like they did in World War One and World War Two ... When you have this mail-in voting, it's something that can be easily attacked by foreign countries and by frankly Democrats and Republicans. It's something to think about seriously ... We don't want to have a rigged election." NOTE: The applications were not ballots, and they were sent by a private organization, not the government. According to an article in the Guardian: "it's false to suggest that measures aren't in place to confirm a voter's identity or prevent fraud with mail ballots. Ballots typically require voters to provide identifying information such as a birth date or Social Security or driver's license number. In most states, voters also sign the back of the envelope, which is then verified with the signature on their registrations. Washington's secretary of state, Kim Wyman, a Republican, recently told NPR: 'Election officials spend a great deal of our time building in security measures. The idea that people could print millions of ballots either within the country or external to the country, just on its face, is not going to pass muster with an election official.'"
- Trump repeatedly referred to coronavirus using the racist label "China virus".
- Trump explained the surge in US cases of coronavirus by saying: "We are so far ahead of testing ... If we have much smaller testing, we'd have fewer [cases]. ... It's a great record to have. No other country is close." NOTE: Increases in cases in the US are outpacing the test increases. The US is also seeing an increase in hospitalizations and deaths.
- Trump said he would like to delay the G7 summit until "after the election" and said he would "certainly" invite Vladimir Putin.
- Trump claimed he would issue an "executive order" to protect people with pre-existing conditions. NOTE: Pre-existing conditions are already covered under Obamacare. When Trump was asked why an executive order was needed for a protection that is already in place, Trump responded that it's "just a double safety net" and he wanted Republicans to be known as protecting people with pre-existing conditions saying "It's a signal to people."
- Trump was asked: "If 160,000 people had died on President Obama’s watch, do you think you would have called for his resignation?" Trump responded: "No I wouldn't have done that. I think it's been amazing what we've been able to do. If we didn't close up our country, we'd have 1.5 to 2m people already dead. We've called it right. Now we don't have to close it ... If I would've listened to a lot of people, we would've kept it open." NOTE: Anthony Fauci, the US government's own public health expert, admitted in April that more lives would have been saved if the US had adopted social distancing measures earlier than it did. Trump has strongly resisted efforts to put federal restrictions in place to help slow the spread of the virus. Trump has pushed states to reopen. Trump has expressed sympathy to rightwing protests against lockdowns. And, according to the New York Times, the US is the only affluent nation to have suffered a sustained and severe outbreak for more than four months.
- Trump claimed "the great pandemic" of 1917, saying it was a "terrible thing" that "probably ended the Second World War, all the soldiers were sick". NOTE: The pandemic occurred in 1918, and World War II ended in 1945.
- Trump accused Barack Obama of treason.
August 9, 2020 - Coronavirus deaths in the US now exceeds 162,000. According to a report by the AP, Europeans are shocked at the failure of the US to get covid-19 pandemic under control. From the story: "With confirmed coronavirus cases in the U.S. hitting 5 million Sunday, by far the highest of any country, the failure of the most powerful nation in the world to contain the scourge has been met with astonishment and alarm in Europe. Perhaps nowhere outside the U.S. is America's bungled virus response viewed with more consternation than in Italy, which was ground zero of Europe's epidemic. Italians were unprepared when the outbreak exploded in February, and the country still has one of the world’s highest official death tolls at over 35,000. But after a strict nationwide, 10-week lockdown, vigilant tracing of new clusters and general acceptance of mask mandates and social distancing, Italy has become a model of virus containment. ... With America's world's-highest death toll of more than 160,000, its politicized resistance to masks and its rising caseload, European nations have barred American tourists and visitors from other countries with growing cases from freely traveling to the bloc. ... 'Had the medical professionals been allowed to operate in the States, you would have belatedly gotten to a point of getting to grips with this back in March,' said Scott Lucas, professor of international studies at the University of Birmingham, England. 'But of course, the medical and public health professionals were not allowed to proceed unchecked,' he said, referring to President Donald Trump's frequent undercutting of his own experts." Peter Navarro, the White House trade adviser, appeared on Meet The Press, where he was asked why Trump has been at a golf course in New Jersey rather than leading negotiations over an economic relief package. Navarro's response: "This is the hardest working president in history. He works 24/7 in Bedminster, Mar-a-lago, the Oval Office or anywhere in between." NOTE: Trump has thus far made 284 visits to golf courses during his presidency.
August 8, 2020 - During a press conference, Trump was asked why he continues to make the false statement that he passed Veterans Choice, a program allowing veterans to get full medical bills paid outside the VA, which was enacted in 2014, under the Obama administration. Trump responded by abruptly ending the press conference.
August 7, 2020 - Coronavirus deaths in the US now exceed 160,000. Alfonso Morales, the Milwaukee Police Chief, was demoted by an oversight board for his role in the use of tear gas and pepper spray against Black Lives Matter protesters. David Smith, writing for the Guardian, offered this analysis of the NRA in the wake of the lawsuit by New York attorney general, Letitia James: "The NRA has been the most powerful gun lobby in the world since another former president of the group Charlton Heston promised to resist efforts to pry firearms 'from my cold, dead hands'. It has fought to suppress research on the danger of guns in society, keep open loopholes for background checks on gun sales and even for firearms to be present in schools. The NRA also has been an electoral ally of Donald Trump, spending $30m to help him beat Hillary Clinton in 2016. Democrats, gun control activists and others have fought long and hard to curb its influence. But in the end, the NRA's worst enemy was the NRA. Victim of its own success and hubris, it strayed from its core purpose and shot itself in the foot." Ron Ryckman Jr, the Kansas Republican House Speaker, has angered colleagues and Laura Kelly, the Democratic governor, after it became known that Ryckman failed to disclose that he had tested positive for coronavirus and met with lawmakers after his diagnosis. Donald Trump sent the following tweet: "I called the politicization of the China Virus by the Radical Left Democrats a Hoax, not the China Virus itself. Everybody knows this except for the Fake and very Corrupt Media!" Trump also sent this tweet: ""Great Jobs Numbers!" NOTE: The US added 1.8 million jobs in July, but the unemployment rate sits at 10.2%. A federal appeals court has ruled that Article III of the Constitution grants the House judiciary committee the power to enforce its subpoena of Don McGahn. In a letter to Tammy Whitcomb, the United States Postal Service (USPS) inspector general, top Democrats are asking for an investigation into "fundamental changes" changes that have had "an adverse effect on postal service operations that have led to ‘slower and less reliable delivery" and "threaten the well-being of millions of Americans" who rely on the mail for their social security checks and prescriptions. The letter also says the changes "appear to pose a potential threat to mail-in ballots and the 2020 general election." According to the New York Times, Mike Pompeo warned Russia against offering bounties on US soldiers. From the story: "Mr. Pompeo delivered the warning in a call on July 13 with the minister, Sergey V. Lavrov, choosing to do so during a conversation that, officially, was about an unrelated topic — the possibility of a meeting of the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council, the U.S. officials said in the past week." According to the Guardian, William Evanina, the director of the National Counterintelligence and Security Center, warned that Russia, China and Iran are all taking steps to influence US elections in 2020. From the warning: "foreign states will continue to use covert and overt influence measures in their attempts to sway U.S. voters' preferences and perspectives, shift U.S. policies, increase discord in the United States, and undermine the American people's confidence in our democratic process. ... We assess that Russia is using a range of measures to primarily denigrate former Vice President Biden and what it sees as an anti-Russia 'establishment.' This is consistent with Moscow's public criticism of him when he was Vice President for his role in the Obama Administration's policies on Ukraine and its support for the anti-Putin opposition inside Russia. For example, pro-Russia Ukrainian parliamentarian Andriy Derkach is spreading claims about corruption – including through publicizing leaked phone calls – to undermine former Vice President Biden's candidacy and the Democratic Party. Some Kremlin-linked actors are also seeking to boost President Trump's candidacy on social media and Russian television." Jerry Falwell Jr, the head of the conservative evangelical Liberty University, has been forced by the board of trustees to take an "indefinite leave of absence" after he shared a photo of himself on Instagram with his pants unzipped, revealing his underwear. Trump held a news conference inside his Bedminster, New Jersey, golf club. Few of the attendees were wearing masks, as required by current state guidelines. Here are some highlights:
- Trump claimed he is seeking to sign an executive order to require health insurance companies to cover "all pre-existing conditions". NOTE: The Affordable Care Act already protects patients with pre-existing conditions, and the Trump administration is asking the Supreme Court to strike down that law, which would cause 20 million Americans to lose their coverage.
- Regarding the intelligence community's assessment about foreign influence operations towards the US election, Trump said: "The last person Russia wants to see in office is Donald Trump. ... I don’t care what anybody says."
- When asked whether the press conference violated New Jersey guidelines for golf clubs, since most of the attendees were not wearing masks, or maintaining social distance, Trump claimed: "Because it's a political activity they have exceptions." Trump added that the refusal to wear maks is "also a peaceful protest" because the attendess "know the news is fake."
August 6, 2020 - John Malcolm Bareswill, a resident of North Carolina, has pleaded guilty to threatening to burn down a Black church in Virginia after one of the leaders of the church took part in a vigil for George Floyd. The Trump campaign has come under fire for manipulating photos of Joe Biden to show him following the Trump narrative that he is "Alone. Hiding. Diminished." in a basement somewhere. The original photo was of Biden at an event in Iowa last December, with a large group of people. The edited version removed all of the other people. Stephen Collinson, writing for CNN, offered this analysis of Trump's approach to the 2020 election: "For his entire life in business before he entered politics, Trump bent rules, laws, traditions and ethics. His willingness to do so now signals that he is prepared to do anything within his power to win the election. And it suggests that he’s also willing to drag the country through a corrosive period of legal and political brinkmanship if the election is close." Writing for the Guardian, Sam Levine provided this analysis of Republican voter suppression efforts in Florida: "For nearly two decades, activists had been pushing to end Florida's longstanding policy of preventing anyone with a felony conviction from voting. First implemented in the 19th century, the policy was used as a cudgel of white supremacy during the Jim Crow era to disenfranchise African Americans. On election night in 2018, 64.5% of Floridians had voted in favor of a constitutional amendment to end the policy. But more than a year and a half after amendment 4 went into effect, hundreds of thousands of people still remain blocked from voting. The promise of amendment 4 remains largely unfulfilled because Republicans in Florida moved aggressively to gut it. They passed a law that put insurmountable hurdles in front of those with felony convictions and required them to navigate a byzantine bureaucracy to get their voting rights back." Letitia James, the New York attorney general, has filed a lawsuit to dissolve the National Rifle Association (NRA), for "years of self-dealing and illegal conduct." In a statement to the press, James stated "The NRA's influence has been so powerful that the organization went unchecked for decades while top executives funneled millions into their own pockets. The NRA is fraught with fraud and abuse, which is why, today, we seek to dissolve the NRA, because no organization is above the law." James also spoke of NRA CEO Wayne LaPierre saying: "Mr LaPierre exploited the organization for his and his family’s financial benefit and the benefit of a close circle of NRA staff, board members and vendors." Karl Racine, the attorney general of the District of Columbia, filed a lawsuit against the NRA and its partner foundation. In a statement to the press, Racine stated: "Charitable organizations function as public trusts – and District law requires them to use their funds to benefit the public, not to support political campaigns, lobbying, or private interests. With this lawsuit, we aim to recover donated funds that the NRA Foundation wasted. District nonprofits should be on notice that the Office of the Attorney General will file suit if we find evidence of illegal behavior." Trump reacted to the lawsuits calling them a "terrible thing". Mike Dewine, the Republican governor of Ohio, has tested positive for coronavirus. While speaking to a small crowd at an airport in Cleveland, Trump said regarding Joe Biden: "Take away your guns. Destroy your second amendment. No religion. No anything. Hurt the Bible. Hurt God. He's against God. He's against guns. He's against energy, our kind of energy. I don't think he's gonna do too well in Ohio." Trump sent the following in a tweet: "Just like Radical Left New York is trying to destroy the NRA, if Biden becomes President your GREAT SECOND AMENDMENT doesn’t have a chance. Your guns will be taken away, immediately and without notice. No police, no guns!" Andrew Bates, a Biden campaign spokesperson, responded to Trump's claim that Biden is "against God" saying: "Joe Biden's faith is at the core of who he is; he's lived it with dignity his entire life, and it's been a source of strength and comfort in times of extreme hardship. ... Donald Trump is the only president in our history to have tear-gassed peaceful Americans and thrown a priest out of his church just so he could profane it - and a Bible - for his own cynical optics as he sought to tear our nation apart at a moment of crisis and pain." During a stop at a Whirlpool plant in Ohio, Trump announced he is reimposing tarrifs on some Canadian aluminum imports. During his speech at the Whirlpool plant, Trump mocked Joe Biden for an instance in which he mixed up the name of the state he was campaigning in, but then pronounced Thailand as "Thighland". Wayne LaPierre, the CEO of the NRA, responded to the lawsuit filed by the New York attorney general saying: "The NYAG’s actions are an affront to democracy and freedom. This is an unconstitutional, premeditated attack aiming to dismantle and destroy the NRA – the fiercest defender of America’s freedom at the ballot box for decades. We're ready for the fight. Bring it on." Concerns are being raised over delays in the US mail. According to a story in the Guardian: "In a letter to the postmaster general, Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer say that he confirmed to them, despite public denials, that the postal service had instituted operational changes including reducing overtime for employees and reducing the equipment at processing centers. 'We believe these changes, made during the middle of a once-in-a-century pandemic, now threaten the timely delivery of mail – including medicines for seniors, paychecks for workers, and absentee ballots for voters – that is essential to millions of Americans,' the leaders of the House and Senate wrote to postmaster general Louis DeJoy. 'While it is true that the postal service has and continues to face financial challenges, enacting these policies as cost-cutting or efficiency measures as the Covid-19 public health emergency continues is counterproductive and unacceptable.' Voting rights groups have expressed concern that DeJoy – a major Trump donor – is undermining the postal service ahead of the elections, when most voters are expected to cast their ballots by mail amid the coronavirus pandemic. The agency has already lost billions in revenue as the pandemic-induced recession caused a dip in the amount of mail. After recent operational changes were enacted, Americans have been reporting days-long delays in receiving letters and packages. Senator Gary Peters, a Democrat of Michigan, recently announced that the Senate homeland security and governmental affairs committee was investigating the impact of the changes. The House oversight committee has also called on DeJoy to testify next month." Judge Verna Saunders, a member of the New York supreme court, ruled that a defamation case brought by E Jean Carroll, who has accused Trump of sexually attacking her, can move forward. Dr Anthony Fauci, the top infectious disease expert in the US, has had to hire security to protect himself and his family after receiving death threats in response to his efforts to stop the spread of coronavirus. During an interview on CNN, Fauci said the pandemic has brought out "the best of people and the worst of people, and, you know, getting death threats for me and my family and harassing my daughters to the point where I have to get security. ... I wouldn't have imagined in my wildest dreams that people who object to things that are pure public health principles are so set against it and don't like what you and I say, namely in the world of science, that they actually threaten you." Judge Rudolph Contreras, a federal judge, has dismissed a lawsuit filed by House Republicans, which aimed to nix rules put in place by Nancy Pelosi, which allowed lawmakers to vote by proxy during the pandemic.
August 5, 2020 - Donald Trump sent the following tweet: "Nevada has ZERO infrastructure for Mail-In Voting. It will be a corrupt disaster if not ended by the Courts. It will take months, or years, to figure out. Florida has built a great infrastructure, over years, with two great Republican Governors. Florida, send in your Ballots!" Zachary Wolf, a CNN analyst, offered the following critique of Trump's flip-flopping on mail-in voting: "It's time to come to terms with absentee voting and voting by mail. President Donald Trump, in one of the most epic reversals in recent political history, encouraged Floridians to do it on Tuesday, the day after he said it was part of an effort to steal the election from him in Nevada. This is the kind of stuff that confuses people." Trump dialed into Fox and Friends. Here are some highlights:
- Trump railed against Nevada's mail-in voting, saying: "They plan to send these ballots to everyone who ever walked in the state." FACT CHECK: This claim is false.
- Trump claimed that because of mail-in voting, the results of the election may not be known for "years". FACT CHECK: This claim is false.
- Trump claimed with regard to Nevada "blanketing" the state with mail-in ballots, "the Post Office will never be equipped to handle it. ... It will be a disaster."
- After Fox News hosts reminded Trump that seniors have legitimate concerns about in-person voting during a pandemic, Trump said Nov. 3 is an "eternity" away and, "by the time we get there, we'll probably be in very good shape. ... It's going to be very safe."
- Trump claimed Biden wants out of the debates saying: "I hear he wants to get out, but in all fairness to him, he has not said that."
- Trump claimed schools should open because "This thing's going away. It will go away like things go away."
- Trump claimed Black Lives Matter is a "Marxist group" and that it's wrong for them to have gained "respectability."
- Trump claimed that "with the possible exception of Abraham Lincoln, it's true" that "nobody has done better" for the black community than "what I've done."
According to a POLITICO/Morning Consult poll: "86 percent of those polled said the election should be held on schedule even if Covid-19 still poses a threat — with 34 percent saying most Americans should vote in-person under those conditions and 52 percent saying most Americans should vote by mail." Stephen Akard, the acting inspector general at the State Department, who assumed the role after Steve Linick was ousted, is resigning. Diana Shaw, the deputy inspector general, will succeed Akard. A story in the Guardian talks about the confusion Trump created when he called the large explosion in Beirut an "attack". From the story: "Donald Trump’s unsubstantiated claim that the massive explosion in Beirut was a bomb attack has revived fears of the president’s potential to foment international crises. In off-the-cuff remarks at the White House on Tuesday, Trump called the blast a 'terrible attack'. 'I’ve met with some of our great generals and they just seem to feel that this was not some kind of a manufacturing explosion type of event,' the president told reporters. 'It was a bomb of some kind.' Soon after, CNN quoted Pentagon officials as saying there was no evidence of any attack, raising the question of where Trump got his information. Lebanese officials were reported to have sought urgent clarification from US diplomats. The defense secretary, Mark Esper, said on Wednesday: 'Most believe that it was an accident as reported.' But he added that the Pentagon was still gathering information about the explosion. In a statement about Beirut, the state department referred to the 'horrible explosion' but made no mention of an attack." Facebook has removed a post from Donald Trump's facebook page for spreading false information about the coronavirus. The post included video of Trump falsely asserting that children are "almost immune from covid-19". Facebook attached the following message to Trump's post: "This video includes false claims that a group of people is immune from Covid-19 which is a violation of our policies around harmful Covid misinformation." From a story in the Guardian: "Trump's presidential campaign and tenure in office have been defined by his aggressive and frequently inappropriate use of social media platforms to spread racism, xenophobia, threats, and misinformation. For years, the US-based social media platforms that enabled him to broadcast his unrestrained invective and misinformation to the public were hesitant to enforce their own rules against him. But the combined crises of the coronavirus pandemic and widespread civil unrest over the police killing of George Floyd appear to have inspire greater resolve among social media executives, with Twitter and Twitch taking action against Trump for threatening protesters, spreading misinformation about voting and, in Twitch's case, hate speech. Facebook was a holdout, prompting anger among Democrats and civil rights activists who objected to the double standard that allowed Trump to continue to spread misinformation that would likely be taken down if posted by other accounts." A group of 20 state Attorneys General released a letter calling on facebook to prevent the spread of hate, harassment and disinformation. From the letter: "Facebook has a responsibility to protect hundreds of thousands of District residents – and, indeed, millions of Americans – from hate and harassment while interacting on the company's online platforms. Our coalition of state Attorneys General are calling on Facebook to not only meet the commitments it has already laid out for itself, but to step up its guard against the spread of extremism online." Courtney Parella, the deputy national press secretary for the Trump campaign, offered this explanation for Trump's comment that children are "almost immune" from covid-19: "The President was stating a fact that children are less susceptible to the coronavirus. Another day, another display of Silicon Valley's flagrant bias against this President, where the rules are only enforced in one direction. Social media companies are not the arbiters of truth."
August 4, 2020 - A new Axios-Ipsos coronavirus poll shows that only 29% of Americans have a "fair amount" or a "great deal" of trust in the federal government looking out for the best interest of them and their families. This is the lowest level of confidence for a poll that has been running weekly since early March. Donald Trump was interviewed by Jonathan Swan, Axios's national political correspondent. Here are some highlights:
- Trump claimed regarding the pandemic: "This has never happened before. Nineteen seventeen, but it was totally different, it was a flu in that case. If you watch the fake news on television, they don’t even talk about it, but there are 188 other countries right now that are suffering. Some, proportionately, far greater than we are." NOTE: Trump has repeatedly referred to the 1917 flu pandemic, which actually occurred in 1918 and into 1919, and is known as the 1918 flu pandemic.
- Swan asked Trump about the high death toll from coronavirus in the US. Trump, who appeared irritated by the question, responded: "It is what it is."
- The following exchange took place:
TRUMP: "Right here, United States is lowest in numerous categories. We’re lower than the world. Lower than Europe."
SWAN: "In what? Oh, you’re doing death as a proportion of cases. I’m talking about death as a proportion of population. That’s where the US is really bad. Much worse than Germany, South Korea."
TRUMP: "You can't do that."
NOTE: According to figures from Johns Hopkins University, the US has had over 4.7m confirmed covid-19 cases, with 155,471 deaths. The US accounts for more than a quarter of all global confirmed infections.
- The following exchange took place:
TRUMP: "You know, there are those that say you can test too much. You do know that."
SWAN: "Who says that?"
TRUMP: "Oh, just read the manuals. Read the books."
- Trump stated: "You test, some kid has even just a little runny nose, it's a case. And then you report many cases."
NOTE: Runny nose is not generally listed among symptoms of coronavirus.
- Trump stated: "We have done a great job. We've got the governors everything they needed. They didn't do their job – many of them didn't, some of them did."
- Trump was asked about his baseless assertion that due to mail-in voting, the upcoming election will be "the most inaccurate and fraudulent election in history". Trump's response: "So we have a new phenomena [sic], it’s called mail-in voting." Swan then pointed out that mail-in voting has existed since the US civil war. Trump then stated: "So they're going to send tens of millions of ballots to California, all over the place. Who's going to get them? Somebody got a ballot for a dog. Somebody got a ballot for something else. You got millions of ballots going. Nobody even knows where they're going."
- Trump was asked about Ghislaine Maxwell. His response: "Her friend or boyfriend Epstein was either killed or committed suicide in jail. She’s now in jail. Yeah, I wish her well." Trump then asked "Was it suicide or was he killed?"
NOTE: The official account of Epstein's death is that it was suicide. Conspiracy theories suggest that it may have been something else.
- Trump dismissed as "fake news" intelligence reports that Russia offered bounties to Taliban for attacks on US forces in Afghanistan.
- Trump was asked how history would remember John Lewis, the Georgia congressman, civil rights icon, and original Freedom Rider. Trump's response: "I don't know. I really don't know. I never met John Lewis, I don't believe." Trump then complained : "He didn't come to my State of the Union speeches, and that's OK. That's his right. He should've come. I think he made a big mistake."
Lily Adams, a spokeswoman and advisor for the Democratic party's national committee, responded to the Trump/Swan interview saying: "Trump’s disastrous interview would be laughable if the stakes weren’t so high. More than 155,000 Americans have died, over 4.7 million have been infected, and we are in the sharpest economic downturn on record ... coronavirus cases are skyrocketing and the economy is spiraling because of his failed response." Donald Trump held a ceremony where he signed the Great American Outdoors Act, which permanently funds the Land and Water Conservation Fund. After the signing, Trump read from a pre-written speech, and when he encountered the word "Yosemite", pronounced it as "Yo Semites" And then in an attempt to correct himself, said "Yo Semenites". Trump sent the following tweet: "Whether you call it Vote by Mail or Absentee Voting, in Florida the election system is Safe and Secure, Tried and True. Florida's Voting system has been cleaned up (we defeated Democrats attempts at change), so in Florida I encourage all to request a Ballot & Vote by Mail! #MAGA" Kayleigh McEnany held a White House briefing today. Here are some highlights:
- McEnany stated that "The president is not considering a national lockdown. What he is encouraging is mitigation efforts." NOTE: Trump is urging the country to open, and has attacked his own health advisers for describing the scope of the pandemic, and has attacked local leaders for urging caution.
- McEnany stated that the US "leads the world in testing" and has a low fatality rate with respect to cases. NOTE: Fatality rate with respect to cases speaks to the quality of the US health care system, not to the government's response to the pandemic.
Neil Young, singer and songwriter, is suing the Trump campaign for the illegal use of his music at the Tulsa rally. From the lawsuit: "This complaint is not intended to disrespect the rights and opinions of American citizens, who are free to support the candidate of their choosing. However, Plaintiff in good conscience cannot allow his music to be used as a 'theme song' for a divisive, un-American campaign of ignorance and hate." Davis Lacey, whose wife Jackie is the Los Angeles district attorney, has been charged with multiple firearms charges after he pointed a gun at Black Lives Matter protesters and said "I will shoot you." The protesters were protesting outside the Lacey home over Jackie's refusal to prosecute officers who kill civilians. Tate Reeves, the Republican governor of Mississippi, issued a statewide order mandating masks in public. Donald Trump held a news conference today. Here are some highlights:
- Trump commented on a massive explosion in Beirut saying: "It looks like a terrible attack. ... It would seem like it, based on the explosion." NOTE: No evidence has has been released to the public to indicate that the explosion was an attack.
- Trump claimed that the US is "at the bottom" of lists ranking mortality. He also said "the recent rise in cases has not been accompanied by a significant increase in deaths." FACT CHECK: According to the Covid Tracking Project: "Even with the uncertainty of testing in Florida and elsewhere, cases nationwide have trended down for the past week. Deaths, however, continue to climb towards a 7-day average of 1,100." According to Johns Hopkins, the US has the fourth-highest mortality rate of the twenty countries most affected by covid-19.
- Trump claimed that if we took New York and New Jersey out of the calculations, the US mortality rate would be "among the lowest".
According to CNN: "Three US Defense Department officials told CNN that as of Tuesday night there was no indication that the massive explosion that rocked Beirut on Tuesday were an 'attack,' contradicting an earlier claim from President Donald Trump. ... the defense officials, who declined to be identified so they could speak freely, said they didn't know what the President was talking about."
August 3, 2020 - Ruth Bader Ginsburg's health has reignited discussions around Supreme Court appointments during an election year. Senator Tim Kaine weighed in on the issue saying: "We knew basically they [Republicans] were lying in 2016, when they said, 'Oh, we can't do this because it's an election year.' We knew they didn't want to do it because it was President Obama." Kaine added that the Democratic Party would not rule out adding seats to the high court in the future if Republicans attempt to stack it in their favor, adding: "If they show that they're unwilling to respect precedent, rules and history, then they can't feign surprise when others talk about using a statutory option that we have that's fully constitutional in our availability." According to NPR, a number of states that were considered toss ups, have moved into leaning towards the Democrats. From the story: "A record and widening majority of Americans disapprove of the job he's doing when it comes to handling the coronavirus pandemic; he gets poor scores on race relations; he's seen a suburban erosion despite efforts to win over suburban voters with fear; and all that has led to a worsened outlook for Trump against Democrat Joe Biden in the presidential election. As a result, in the past month and a half, the latest NPR analysis of the Electoral College has several states shifting in Biden's favor, and he now has a 297-170 advantage over Trump with exactly three months to go until Election Day." The Trump campaign has begun attacking Joe Biden as a Trojan horse for the progressive left that would usher in a wave of crime and eliminate the suburbs. After Nevada lawmakers approved a measure to allow mail in ballots to be sent to all active voters ahead of the November election, in light of safety concerns due to the coronavirus pandemic, Trump responded with the following tweet: "In an illegal late night coup, Nevada's clubhouse Governor made it impossible for Republicans to win the state. Post Office could never handle the Traffic of Mail-In Votes without preparation. Using Covid to steal the state. See you in Court!" House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was asked about comments she made that were critical of Dr Deborah Birx. Pelosi's response: "I don't have confidence in anyone who stands there while the president says, 'Swallow Lysol and it's going to cure your virus' ... There has to be some responsibility. So, if the president is saying these things, who is advising him that this is okay and enabling that to happen while millions of people have died?" House Democrats have issued four subpoenas for top aides to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, citing resistance to appearing for depositions about the firing of inspector general Steve Linick. According to the New York Times, the Manhattan district attorney's office is investigating Trump and his company for possible fraud. From the story: "The office of the district attorney, Cyrus Vance, made the disclosure in a new federal court filing arguing Mr. Trump should have to comply with its subpoena seeking eight years of his personal and corporate tax returns. Mr. Trump has asked a judge to declare the subpoena invalid. The prosecutors did not directly identify the focus of their inquiry but said that 'undisputed' news reports last year about 'extensive and protracted criminal conduct at the Trump Organization' make it clear that the office had a legal basis for the subpoena." Trump claimed today that hydroxychloroquine is only "politically toxic" because he promoted it. When asked why he disagrees with Fauci on the drug, Trump responded: "I don’t agree with Fauci on everything." When asked why the US has so many deaths, Trump responded that the nation has done an "amazing job". Former senate majority leader Harry Reid weighed in on Trump's attacks on Nevada's effort to expand vote-by-mail, saying: "Donald Trump has no integrity and no scruples. That's why he's lying about our state leaders and threatening a bogus lawsuit simply because Democrats made it easier for people to vote. His desperate tweets are the clearest sign he knows he's going to lose in November. Trump should be more focused on preventing more deaths from this global pandemic and ensuring our economy recovers." According to the Guardian: "The US House Intelligence Committee launched an investigation today into the Department of Homeland Security's intelligence office, including its actions in Portland, Oregon, and its involvement in other anti-racism protests across the country." Trump told reporters today that "It’s important for all Americans to understand that a permanent lockdown is not a viable path towards producing the result that you want."
August 2, 2020 - Dr Deborah Birx, the coordinator of the White House coronavirus task force, appeared on CNN's State of the Union and stated: "What we are seeing today is different from March and April. It is extraordinarily widespread. It's into the rural as equal urban areas." House speaker Nancy Pelosi appeared on ABC's This Week where she was asked about her confidence in Dr Birx. Pelosi's response: "I think the president has been spreading disinformation about the virus and [Birx] is his appointee so, I don’t have confidence there, no" Jason Miller, a Trump campaign adviser, appeared on Fox News Sunday with Chris Wallace, where Miller was asked if he will guarantee the Trump campaign will not accept information about Biden or his family from foreign officials or governments. Miller's response: "silly question ... we’re going to beat Biden fair and square. ... There is no foreign assistance in this campaign." Brett Giroir, Trump's coronavirus testing tsar, appeared on NBC's Meet the Press, where he was asked about a video tweeted by president Trump, which featured Dr Stella Immanuel, who touted the efficacy of hydroxychloroquine. Giroir's response: "I think most physicians and prescribers are evidence-based and they’re not influenced by whatever’s on Twitter or anything else and the evidence just doesn't show that hydroxychloroquine is effective right now. I think we need to move on from that and talk about what is effective." During an appearance on CNN's State of the Union, House majority whip Jim Clyburn stated: "I don't think [Trump] plans to leave the White House. He doesn’t plan to have fair and unfettered elections. I believe that he plans to install himself in some kind of emergency way to continue to hold on to office." According to the Guardian, a number of QAnon believers are running for national office, as Republicans. From the story: "According to one congressional candidate for America’s House of Representatives, Covid-19 and the Black Lives Matter movement are a screen 'for pedophilia and human trafficking'. Another has claimed the US has a 'once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to take this global cabal of Satan-worshiping pedophiles out', while several others running for national office have posted cryptic memes hinting at a powerful global elite that must be abolished. These believers in QAnon, a conspiracy theory labelled a potential domestic terror threat by the FBI, are all running for national office – not as fringe independents, but as Republican candidates. In some cases they have been backed by Republican money, and promoted by Donald Trump himself, and in certain Republican heartland states, the QAnon candidates are even likely to be elected in November. Marjorie Taylor Greene, from Georgia, is among the QAnon supporters with the best chance of winning in November. She has also been the most strident with her beliefs. 'Q is a patriot,' Greene said in 2017, referring to her belief in the conspiracy theory's anonymous online poster who claims to have knowledge of a secret ring of powerful, deep-state sex-traffickers and pedophiles, and is said to be a part of the Trump administration. 'He is someone that very much loves his country and is on the same page as us, and he is very pro-Trump. He appears to have connections at the highest levels.' ... It was a QAnon believer who, heavily armed, entered a DC Pizza parlor in December 2016, prepared to take on a child sex ring supposedly being run by Hillary Clinton out of the restaurant’s basement. In 2019, the alleged New York mob boss Francesco Cali was shot and killed by a man who said he was obsessed with QAnon and believed Cali was part of a deep state conspiracy against Trump. In April this year a woman inspired by QAnon videos traveled to New York armed with more than a dozen knives, in an alleged attempt to kill Joe Biden." Neel Kashkari, president of the Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank, appeared on CBS's Face the Nation, where he said the economy could benefit if the nation were to "lock down really hard" for four to six weeks saying: "If we don’t do that and we just have this raging virus spreading throughout the country with flare-ups and local lockdowns for the next year or two, which is entirely possible, we're going to see many, many more business bankruptcies. That’s going to be a much slower recovery for all of us."
August 1, 2020 - Worldwide, the coronavirus has killed at least 680,000, and infected at least 17.6 million. Lt Col Alexander Vindman, the 21-year US army veteran, whose family fled from the Soviet Union when he was a child, and who testified about Trump's 2019 phone call to Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky in Trump's impeachment trial, published an op-ed in the Washington Post. In the op-ed, Vindman described the Trump administration as "reminiscent of the authoritarian regime my family fled ... At no point in my career or life have I felt our nation's values under greater threat and in more peril than at this moment." Donald Trump golfed today, his 283rd golf outing since becoming president. Trump sent the following tweet in response to comments made by Dr Anthony Fauci in which he blamed a surge in coronavirus cases to the country's failure to sufficiently shut down its economy: "Wrong! We have more cases because we have tested far more than any other country, 60,000,000. If we tested less, there would be less cases. How did Italy, France & Spain do? Now Europe sadly has flare ups. Most of our governors worked hard & smart. We will come back STRONG!" Raul Grijalva, a Democratic congressman from Arizona, reported that he had tested positive for coronavirus. Grijalva issued a statement about his diagnosis that included this: "While I cannot blame anyone directly for this, this week has shown that there are some members of Congress who fail to take this crisis seriously. Numerous Republican members routinely strut around the Capitol without a mask to selfishly make a political statement at the expense of their colleagues, staff, and their families." Grijalva is the 14th member of congress to test positive for coronavirus. 7 have been Democrats and 7 have been Republicans.
July 31, 2020 - Coronavirus deaths in the US now exceed 152,000. According to the Guardian, the absence of federal law enforcement in Portland has eased tensions overnight in that city. From the story: "In the absence of confrontation, and with the state police remaining largely unseen inside the courthouse, tensions quickly eased." According to a new ABC News/Ipsos Poll, 66% of Americans disapprove of Trump's handling of coronavirus, 63% disapprove of Trump's handling of relations with Russia, and 64% disapprove of Trump's response to protests happening across the country. According to a story in Axios "Testing is once again becoming a critical weakness in America's response to the coronavirus pandemic, and experts say we may need to revive tighter standards about who can get a test. Why it matters: Although testing has gotten a lot better over the course of the pandemic, the pandemic has gotten worse, and that means the U.S. needs to prioritize its resources — which might mean that frequent testing solely to help open businesses or schools just isn’t feasible. Where it stands: The US is conducting more than 800,000 tests per day, on average — an enormous leap from the severe testing shortages the country experienced in the spring. But it's still not enough to keep up with demand. Getting the results of a test often takes longer than a week, and sometimes almost two weeks, which makes them a lot less helpful. The longer it takes to identify positive cases, the more time the virus has to spread. 'That dramatic scale up is unprecedented, but demand has also been unprecedented,' said Julie Khani, president of the American Clinical Laboratory Association." Health officials testified today before the House select subcommittee on the coronavirus crisis. The title for today's hearing: The Urgent Need for a National Plan to Contain the Coronavirus. Here are some highlights:
- Hearing chairman James Clyburn opened the hearing by stating: "Our nation is in the midst of a public health catastrophe" and chastised the Trump administration saying the government has "still not developed and implemented a national strategy to protect the American people".
- Clyburn pointed out that when the CDC devised guidelines on the measures needed to carefully reopen schools: "the White House pressured the agency to change their advice" to encourage full reopening for in-person teaching.
- Steve Scalise, the ranking Republican representative on the committee proclaimed in his opening statement: "The Chinese Communist Party lied to the world" about the seriousness of covid-19 at the turn of the year.
- Dr Fauci was asked why US infections are surging in so many states while the European Union has plateaued and is going down. Fauci responded that 95+% of many European countries shut down their societies, while the US only locked down about 50% of its society. Fauci also explained that where federal guidelines were not followed in the late spring mandating or encouraging the universal wearing of face masks in public, social distancing and making sure infections had been declining steadily before reopening businesses, the surge in cases occurred. In other words, the shutdown orders didn't go far enough, and were rescinded too soon.
- Dr Fauci was asked if we have more covid vases because of more testing. Fauci responded: "if you do more testing, you're gonna see more cases. But the increases that we're seeing are real increases in cases as also reflected by increases in hospitalization and increase in deaths."
- Dr Fauci stated that the US must not rush to reopen without following federal health guidelines. Fauci also said that the US can still get control of the pandemic if Americans wear masks in public, practice social distancing, avoid crowds, and wash their hands. And if health authorities do more testing and contact tracing and reopen only after a steady decline in new cases.
Kayleigh McEnany, the White House press secretary, held a press briefing today. Here are some highlights:
- McEnany was asked "Is there any concern that Herman Cain contracted Covid at the president's rally in Tulsa?" McEnany responded: "I will not politicize Herman Cain's passing."
The Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University filed a lawsuit against Donald Trump, demanding he unblock five individuals who remain blocked by Trump on twitter. NOTE: Trump lost a similar lawsuit in 2018 on behalf of twitter users, and agreed to unblock those accounts. While speaking to reporters after landing in Florida, Trump responded to a question about Russian bounties on US soldiers saying: "It was never brought to my attention. I think it's another Russia hoax. They've been giving me the Russia hoax, Shifty-Schiff and all these characters from the day I got here." NOTE: According to the New York Times, Trump was briefed and the White House's National Security Council dismissed the problem at an interagency meeting in late March and the also, the administration had discussed several potential options. According to the Guardian: "An internal Department of Homeland Security document shows the department surveilled electronic messages between protestors in Portland, Oregon during Black Lives Matters protests this year. The leaked document reported on by the Washington Post shows conversations were written up in an “intelligence report” disseminated to federal law enforcement agencies, including the FBI, as well as state and local governments. his runs counter to claims a Senior Department of Homeland Security official made to a Senate committee earlier this month that the department had not collected, exploited or analyzed information from the electronic devices or accounts of the protesters."
July 30, 2020 - Louie Gohmert, the Texas Republican congressman who tested positive for covid-19, told KETK, his local news station: "I can’t help but wonder if by keeping a mask on and keeping it in place if I might have put some of the virus onto the mask and breathed it in. I don’t know. But I got it, we'll see what happens from here. The reports of my demise are very premature." Liu Xiaoming, China's ambassador to London, accuses the US of starting a trade war and stoking a cold war saying: "It is not China that has become assertive. It's the other side of the Pacific Ocean who want to start new cold war on China, so we have to make response to that. We have no interest in any cold war, we have no interest in any war. We have all seen what is happening in the United States, they tried to scapegoat China, they want to blame China for their problems. We all know this is an election year." Trump sent the following tweet: "With Universal Mail-In Voting (not Absentee Voting, which is good), 2020 will be the most INACCURATE & FRAUDULENT Election in history. It will be a great embarrassment to the USA. Delay the Election until people can properly, securely and safely vote???" NOTE: Here is a list of Trump officials who have voted by mail, or requested absentee ballots:
Trump Ross
Pence DeVos
Barr McDaniel
McEnany Kushner
Conway Glassner
Ivanka Stepien
Melania Ayers
Azar Parscale
According to newly released government figures, the US economy shrank by an annualized rate of 32.9% between April and June, its sharpest contraction since the second world war. Herman Cain, former presidential candidate, and co-chair of Black Voices for Trump, has died. Cain tested positive for coronavirus shortly after Trump's Tulsa rally, where he was photographed not wearing a mask.
Mike Pompeo, the secretary of state, testified before the Republican-led Senate Foreign Relations committee. Here are some highlights:
- Pompeo was asked about the decision to pull nearly 12,000 troops out of Germany, specifically about whether the impact on relations had been taken into account. Pompeo responded: "This is personal for me. I fought on the border of East Germany. When I was a young soldier, I was stationed there." FACT CHECK: Pompeo was stationed in West Germany in the late eighties. There was no fighting there at that time.
- Mitt Romney made the following statement: "I have heard from the highest levels of the German government that this is seen by them as an insult to Germany, and I can’t imagine, at a time when we need to be drawing in our friends and allies so that we can collectively confront China, we want to insult them."
- Senator Tom Udall asked Pompeo: "Will you respect the results of the certified election as the State Department typically does throughout the world?" Pompeo's response: "Senator I'm not going to speculate. You had about 15 'ifs' in there. ... I've said repeatedly to this committee I will follow the rule of law, follow the Constitution. I've endeavored to do that in everything I've done and I'll continue to do that every day."
Barack Obama spoke today at the funeral of civil rights icon John Lewis saying in part: "Bull Connor might be gone, but today with our own eyes we witness police officers kneeling on the necks of Black Americans. George Wallace may be gone, but we can witness our federal government sending agents to use tear gas and batons against peaceful demonstrators. We may no longer have to be able to guess the number of jelly beans in a jar to cast a ballot, but even as we sit here there are those in power doing their darnedest to discourage people from voting by closing polling locations and targeting minorities and students with restrictive ID laws and attacking our voting rights with surgical precision. Even undermining the postal service in the run-up to an election that's going to be dependent on mail-in ballots so people don't get sick." Steven Calabresi, a law professor, and co-founder of the Federalist Society, an influential conservative organization, penned an op-ed in the New York Times. The op-ed reads in part: "Until recently, I had taken as political hyperbole the Democrats’ assertion that President Trump is a fascist" but Trump's tweet this morning seeking a postponement of the 2020 election "is fascistic and is itself grounds for the president’s immediate impeachment again by the House of Representatives and his removal from office by the Senate ... President Trump needs to be told by every Republican in Congress that he cannot postpone the federal election. Doing so would be illegal, unconstitutional and without precedent in American history. Anyone who says otherwise should never be elected to Congress again." Trump held a press briefing today. Here are some highlights:
- Trump claimed regarding school re-openings that "young people are almost immune" to coronavirus. FACT CHECK: Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the Director-General of the World Health Organization, said just today: "We have said it before and we will say it again, young people are not invincible. Young people can be infected, young people can die, and young people can transmit the virus to others."
- Trump was asked "How can you assure people that schools will be safely reopened?" Trump's response: "So, can you assure anybody of anything?"
- Trump was asked "A week ago you said you're in the process of developing a coronavirus strategy that's very powerful. Where is it?" Trump's response: "Well, I think you're seeing it. And I think you still see it."
- Trump was asked if he wanted to change the date of the upcoming election. Trump's response: "Do I want to see a date change? No. But I don’t want to see a crooked election. This election will be the most rigged election in history, if that happens."
Richard Painter, a former White House chief ethics lawyer, responded to Trump's claims about election fraud saying: "He’s just trying to intimidate people. He wants to suppress the vote as much as he can and so he wants to discourage mail-in and, of course, he wants to complain about the election being rigged if he loses. He pulled this in 2016, he thought he was going to lose that and he said it was a rigged election. So this is just the same old Trump playbook, but he cannot change the date of the election because it's set by statute. Congress is not going to change the statute." According to the Washington Post, the Department of Homeland Security compiled "intelligence reports" on two journalists who shared leaked internal document's response to protests in Portland.
July 29, 2020 - Coronavirus deaths in the US now exceed 150,000. Louie Gohmert, a Republican congressman from Texas, has tested positive for coronavirus. Gohmert is considered among the most conservative members of congress, and has refused to wear a mask on Capitol Hill. Donald Trump sent the following tweet: "I am happy to inform all of the people living their Suburban Lifestyle Dream that you will no longer be bothered or financially hurt by having low income housing built in your neighborhood. Your housing prices will go up based on the market, and crime will go down. I have rescinded the Obama-Biden AFFH Rule. Enjoy!" Kate Brown, the governor of Oregon, announced that federal law enforcement will start pulling out of Portland tomorrow. The immigration and border agents, which operate under the umbrella of Homeland Security, are largely regarded as an "occupying force" that have exacerbated unrest. Trump sent the following tweet: "If the Federal Government and its brilliant Law Enforcement (Homeland) didn’t go into Portland one week ago, there would be no Portland -- It would be burned and beaten to the ground. If the Mayor and Governor do not stop the Crime and Violence from the Anarchists and Agitators immediately, the Federal Government will go in and do the job that local law enforcement was supposed to do!" Speaking to reporters, Mike Esper, the US Defense Secretary, said the withdrawal of 11,900 troops from Germany has nothing to do with German defense spending. Minutes later, speaking to reporters, Trump said that "Germany's delinquent. They haven't paid their Nato fees. ... They are there to protect Europe, they are there to protect Germany, and Germany is supposed to pay for it". Wesley Hunt, a conservative Republican House candidate, who was planning to meet Trump in Midland, TX, has tested positive for coronavirus. Responding to news Louie Gohmert tested positive for coronavirus, House speaker Nancy Pelosi announced that House members and staff will be required to wear masks while in the Hall of the House. George Daniels, a federal judge in New York, has blocked the Trump administration from implementing its "public charge" rule, which stipulates that immigrants who use public benefits could be denied green cards. Daniels decision states: "Any policy that deters residents from seeking testing and treatment for COVID-19 increases the risk of infection for such residents and the public. Adverse government action that targets immigrants, however, is particularly dangerous during a pandemic".
July 28, 2020 - Coronavirus deaths in the US now exceed 149,000. Donald Trump shared a video on twitter that featured Dr Stella Immanuel, a Houston doctor, and a group of other lab coat-wearing doctors who called themselves "America's Frontline Doctors". In the video, Immanuel accused Dr Anthony Fauci of misleading the country on coronavirus treatments. According to Immanuel: "Dr. Fauci has misled the American public on many issues, but in particular, on dismissing #hydroxychloroquine and calling Remdesivir the new gold standard." Twitter later took down the "America's Frontline Doctors" video, citing their rules on spreading misinformation. According to the Daily Beast: "Immanuel, a pediatrician and a religious minister, has a history of making bizarre claims about medical topics and other issues. She has often claimed that gynecological problems like cysts and endometriosis are in fact caused by people having sex in their dreams with demons and witches. She alleges alien DNA is currently used in medical treatments, and that scientists are cooking up a vaccine to prevent people from being religious. And, despite appearing in Washington, D.C. to lobby Congress on Monday, she has said that the government is run in part not by humans but by 'reptilians' and other aliens." Immanuel has also claimed the Illuminati are planning to destroy the world through abortion, and gay marriage. Dr Anthony Fauci appeared on ABC News where he was interviewed by George Stephanopoulos. Here are some highlights:
- Fauci was asked about Trump's tweets, to which he responded: "I don’t tweet. I don’t even read them, so I don't really want to go there. I just will continue to do my job no matter what comes out because I think it's very important ... I have not been misleading the American public under any circumstances."
- Fauci was asked how he can continue to do his job while the president undermines his credibility. Fauci replied: "You know, George, I don't know how to address that. I'm just going to certainly continue doing my job."
- Stephanopoulos pointed out that the Food and Drug Administration revoked its emergency use authorization for hydroxychloroquine as a coronavirus treatment last month, to which Fauci responded: "I go along with the FDA. The overwhelming prevailing clinical trials that have looked at the efficacy of hydroxychloroquine have indicated that it is not effective in coronavirus disease."
For the fourth time, the Black Lives Matter mural painted outside Trump Tower in midtown Manhattan was vandalized. Mark David Hutt, a 32-year-old resident of Rochester, was arrested and charged with criminal mischief after he dumped white paint over part of the mural, and smeared it around with his hands. Donald Trump Jr, the president's son, shared on twitter some of the same false claims that were shared by his father, and because of that, twitter limited some of his account features for violating its policy on spreading "misleading and potentially harmful" information about coronavirus. Bill Barr appeared before the House Judiciary committee today. Here are some highlights:
- Barr's opening statement included these remarks: "Ever since I made it clear that I was going to do everything I could to get to the bottom of the grave abuses involved in the bogus 'Russiagate' scandal, many of the Democrats on this Committee have attempted to discredit me by conjuring up a narrative that I am simply the President’s factotum who disposes of criminal cases according to his instructions."
- Jerry Nadler, the House judiciary committee chairman told Barr: "Your tenure has been marked by a persistent war against the department's professional core in an apparent attempt to secure favors for the president ... actively seeking out conflict with American citizens ... In your time at the department, you have aided and abetted the worst failings of this president."
- Congressman Jim Jordan stated: "Spying. That one word, that's why they're after you, Mr Attorney General."
- Barr claimed the killing of George Floyd "understandably jarred the whole country and forced us to reflect on longstanding issues in our nation. ... At the same time, I think it would be an oversimplification to treat the problem as rooted in some deep-seated racism generally infecting our police departments. It seems far more likely that the problem stems from a complex mix of factors, which can be addressed with focused attention over time."
- Barr criticized "violent rioters and anarchists [who] have hijacked legitimate protests to wreak senseless havoc and destruction on innocent victims."
- Barr complained "The demonization of police is not only unfair and inconsistent with the principle that all people should be treated as individuals, but gravely injurious to our inner city communities. There is no harder job in America today than being a police officer."
- Barr said "I don’t agree there is systemic racism in police departments generally in this country."
- Barr said he is opposed to eliminating qualified immunity, which protects police officers from being held legally liable in civil court for misconduct.
- Barr claimed: "I agree the president’s friends don’t deserve special breaks, but they also don’t deserve to be treated more harshly than other people." Notable response to Barr's statement:
"Barr said he believes the President's friends 'don't deserve special breaks, but they also don't deserve to be treated more harshly.' If so, he ought to be able to point to other cases besides Flynn where DOJ moved to abandon prosecution of someone who twice pleaded guilty." - Greg Miller, Washington Post Reporter
- The following exchange occurred between Barr and congressman David Cicilline:
CICILLINE: "Is it ever appropriate, sir, for the president to solicit or accept foreign assistance in an election?"
BARR: "It depends what kind of assistance."
CICILLINE: "Is it ever appropriate for the president or presidential candidate to accept or solicit foreign assistance of any kind in his or her election?"
BARR: "No, it’s not appropriate."
Notable response to Barr's response to the foreign interference question:
"I would not have thought I would need to keep saying this: Let me make something 100% clear to the American public and anyone running for public office: It is illegal for any person to solicit, accept, or receive anything of value from a foreign national in connection with a U.S. election. ..." - Ellen Weintraub, a commissioner of the Federal Election Commission, in a re-tweeted statement that was initially issued in June, 2019
- Democratic congresswoman Pramila Jayapal accused Barr of setting a double standard for protesters based on political ideology saying: "When white men with swastikas storm a government building with guns, there is no need for the president to 'activate' you, because they’re getting the president’s personal agenda done. But when black people and people of color protest police brutality, systemic racism and the president’s very own lack of response to those critical issues, then you forcibly remove them with armed federal officers [and] pepper bombs because they are considered terrorists by the president." NOTE: The white men Jayapal is referring to were the anti-shutdown protesters who swarmed the Michigan capitol with guns after Democratic governor Gretchen Whitmer issued a shutdown order due to coronavirus.
The American Federation of Teachers (AFT) has authorized local teachers unions to conduct "safety strikes" as a last resort if local officials do not meet safety criteria to protect teachers from coronavirus. Randi Weingarten, the president of the AFT, told the Guardian: "It's as if Trump and [education secretary Betsy] DeVos want to create chaos and want to jeopardize reopening. ... There's no other reason why they would be this reckless, this callous, this cruel". According to the AP: "Russian intelligence operatives are using a trio of English-language websites to spread disinformation about the coronavirus pandemic, seeking to exploit a crisis that America is struggling to contain ahead of the presidential election in November, U.S. officials said Tuesday." Donald Trump held a coronavirus briefing. Here are some highlights:
- Trump criticized "anarchists" and "agitators" in Portland and blamed the increase in coronavirus cases on protestors. NOTE: Protests in Portland have been mostly peaceful, with some demonstrators throwing rocks, water bottles and fireworks at officers. Police for their part have been documented brutalizing protestors. Also, epidemiologists have not conclusively linked the protests to the spike in coronavirus cases as the virus is less likely to spread outdoors, and most protestors wear masks. The surge in cases across the US occurred as cities reopened businesses and indoor venues, where coronavirus transmits more effectively. Finally, doctors have warned that certain police crowd control tactics, including the use of teargas and pepper spray, could exacerbate the spread of the disease.
- Trump complained that he didn't know why twitter and facebook removed the "America's Frontline Doctors" video he had re-tweeted saying: "I've read a lot about hydroxy ... I think it could have a very positive impact in the early stages and I don’t think you lose anything by doing it." Speaking of Dr Stella Immanuel, who appeared in the video, Trump said: "I think they're very respected doctors. There was a woman who was spectacular in her statements about it and she's had tremendous success with it." NOTE: According to the Guardian: "The video in question featured Dr Stella Immanuel, a physician from Houston, Texas, speaking on the steps of the US Capitol in Washington, surrounded by members of a rightwing doctors' group. Immanuel made baseless claims about coronavirus, including hailing hydroxychloroquine as a 'cure', even though the drug, which has been repeatedly touted by the president, has not been found to be an effective treatment. The Houston doctor has also dismissed mounting evidence that face masks substantially help limit the spread of coronavirus."
- Trump was asked about the persistent absence of Dr Anthony Fauci from these briefings. Trump's response: Fauci has "got a very good approval rating and I like that ... so why don't I have a very high approval rating? ... But nobody likes me ... It can only be my personality, that's all."
Florida has reported another record one-day rise in coronavirus numbers. According to the Guardian: "The state's Republican governor Ron DeSantis, who had been pushing schools to reopen, has backed off in recent days, now saying he wants parents to have 'the choice between in-person and distance learning' for their kids." According to the Guardian, bus drivers have faced verbal and physical abuse by anti-maskers. According to the story "The driver said he was hit in the face and struck with a miniature baseball bat last Wednesday after asking a group of teenagers to put on their face masks. Before he was assaulted, the driver said, one of the young men told him that because he was Asian, he was the one who was likely to have coronavirus. ... Just in the past month, bus drivers have been beaten after asking passengers to wear masks in San Francisco, New York City and in Lubbock, Texas, where a bus driver was hit with a large wooden board and left bloody. A New York City driver reportedly left with a broken bone near his eye in July was one of dozens of Covid-related violent incidents involving bus drivers in New York, according to the City, a local news outlet. In France, a bus driver died after a brutal beating in early July, prompted once again by asking a group of passengers to put on their masks." Federal law enforcement sent to Seattle have pulled out. Jenny Durkan, the mayor of Seattle, sent the following tweet: "@DHSgov notified me that federal forces deployed to Seattle have demobilized & left. The President's actions to target Democratic cities with federal forces is chilling and increased violence in Portland, Seattle & other cities - exactly what the President intended."
July 27, 2020 - Coronavirus deaths in the US no exceeds 147,000 with more than 4.2m cases. According to the AP, more than 40 people were infected with coronavirus after attending a multi-day revival event at a north Alabama Baptist church. Eric Trump was interviewed by Fox News host Jesse Waters. During the interview, Waters claimed regarding the QAnon conspiracy theory: "Q can do some crazy stuff, with the pizza stuff, and the Wayfair stuff, but they've also uncovered a lot of great stuff when it comes to Epstein and it comes to the deep state. I never saw Q as as dangerous as antifa but antifa gets to run wild on the internet. What do you think is going on there?" Waters also said that action against QAnon accounts might be an attempt to "interfere in an election". Eric Trump essentially dodged the question. NOTE: The Daily Beast sums up QAnon as people who believe "Democrats, Trump critics, and many influential figures are Satanic child sex traffickers and cannibals." NOTE 2: Anti-fascists (antifa) linked to zero murders in the US in 25 years. Robert O'Brien, a Trump national security adviser, has tested positive for coronavirus. It is believed he contracted the virus from his college aged daughter. John Lewis, the congressman and civil rights icon, was brought to the Capitol rotunda, where he will lie in state. Trump was asked if he planned to pay his respects to John Lewis. Trump's response: "No, I won't be going. No." The Environmental Protection Agency's Office of Inspector General said today that it will evaluate the agency's rollback of Obama-era vehicle emissions requirements to determine whether EPA officials improperly circumvented the Clean Air Act. Trump spoke to the press in North Carolina. Here are some highlights:
- Trump was asked whether he pressed Putin on reports that Russia offered bounties to Taliban insurgents to kill US troops. Trump's response: "We don’t talk about what we discussed, but we had plenty of discussion, and I think it was very productive."
News surfaced that Herman Cain, the former 2012 Republican presidential candidate, is in the hospital undergoing oxygen treatment. Cain is believed to have contracted covid-19 at Trump's Tulsa rally. Joe Biden and his wife Jill paid their respects to John Lewis at the US capitol building. Trump's lawyers filed new arguments today in a Manhattan federal court in an effort to block a criminal subpoena for his tax records, calling it harassment. Trump sent the following tweet: "So disgusting to watch Twitter's so-called 'Trending', where sooo many trends are about me, and never a good one. They look for anything they can find, make it as bad as possible, and blow it up, trying to make it trend. Really ridiculous, illegal, and, of course, very unfair!" According to an investigation by the Public Accountability Initiative, a nonprofit corporate and government accountability research institute, and its research database project LittleSis, big corporations accused of driving environmental and health inequalities in black and brown communities through toxic and climate-changing pollution are also funding powerful police groups in major US cities. According to the New York Times, when Trump tweeted that the New York Yankees had invited him to throw the first pitch next month, that announcement came as a surprise to White House staff and the New York Yankees, since he had not actually been invited to do so.
July 26, 2020 - Coronavirus deaths in the US now exceeds 146,000. During an interview with the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, Arkansas Republican senator Tom Cotton, who opposes the use of federal funds to teach the 1619 Project, said the following: "The entire premise of the New York Times' factually, historically flawed 1619 Project ... is that America is at root, a systemically racist country to the core and irredeemable. I reject that root and branch. America is a great and noble country founded on the proposition that all mankind is created equal. We have always struggled to live up to that promise, but no country has ever done more to achieve it. We have to study the history of slavery and its role and impact on the development of our country because otherwise we can’t understand our country. As the Founding Fathers said, it was the necessary evil upon which the union was built, but the union was built in a way, as [Abraham] Lincoln said, to put slavery on the course to its ultimate extinction." Nikole Hannah-Jones, who was awarded a Pulitzer Prize for commentary for her introductory essay to the 1619 Project, responded to Cotton tweeting: "If chattel slavery – heritable, generational, permanent, race-based slavery where it was legal to rape, torture, and sell human beings for profit – were a 'necessary evil' as Tom Cotton says, it's hard to imagine what cannot be justified if it is a means to an end ... Imagine thinking a non-divisive curriculum is one that tells black children the buying and selling of their ancestors, the rape, torture, and forced labor of their ancestors for PROFIT, was just a 'necessary evil' for the creation of the 'noblest' country the world has ever seen." According to the Washington Post: "The Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and Institute, which runs the 40th president's library near Los Angeles, has demanded that Donald Trump and the Republican National Committee (RNC) quit raising campaign money by using Ronald Reagan's name and likeness." Michelle Lujan Grisham, New Mexico's Democratic governor, offered this critique of the Trump administration's response to covid-19: "There is no national strategy. I still spend most of my days chasing testing supplies for our state. It is the worst abdication of a national response and responsibility to protect Americans I have ever seen in my government career." A funeral procession carried the body of John Lewis, a US congressman and civil rights activist, across the Edmund Pettus Bridge, the location where Lewis' skull was fractured in 1965 when he was beaten by state troopers. Ted Cruz, a senator from Texas, claimed on CBS's Face the Nation, that Democrats want to shutdown businesses and schools purely to defeat Donald Trump in November. Also appearing on CBS's Face the Nation, House speaker Nancy Pelosi stated "This president, I have a new name for him: Mr. Make Matters Worse. He has made matters worse from the start – delay, denial, it's a hoax, it'll go away magically, it's a miracle, and all the rest – and we're in this situation." Trump sent the following tweet: "Because of my strong focus on the China Virus, including scheduled meetings on Vaccines, our economy and much else, I won’t be able to be in New York to throw out the opening pitch for the @Yankees on August 15th. We will make it later in the season!"
July 24, 2020 - During a virtual fund raiser, Joe Biden warned his supporters that Donald Trump "is going to try to indirectly steal the election by arguing mail-in ballots don't work." John Sandweg, the former acting director of US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency (ICE), offered this critique of Donald Trump sending federal law enforcement agents to Portland, and vowing to send more to other cities around the country: "I think it's an abuse of DHS. I mean really the president's trying to use DHS as his goon squad. That's really what's going on here." According to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram: "Starr County Memorial Hospital - the county's only hospital - is overflowing with Covid-19 patients. The county has been forced to form what is being compared to a so-called 'death panel.' A county health board – which governs Starr Memorial – is set to authorize critical care guidelines Thursday that will help medical workers determine ways to allocate scarce medical resources on patients with the best chance to survive. ... 'Unfortunately, Starr County Memorial Hospital has limited resources and our doctors are going to have to decide who receives treatment, and who is sent home to die by their loved ones,' [Starr County Judge Eloy Vera] said in a Wednesday news release. 'This is what we did not want our community to experience.'" Kayleigh McEnany held a briefing today. Here are some highlights:
- McEnany claimed Democrats and the media "continue to ignore reality" when it comes to Portland, and Democratic leaders rhetoric "undermines our justice system."
- McEnany was asked if Trump had brought up reports of Russian bounties on American troops when he spoke to Vladimir Putin yesterday. McEnany's response: "I won't get into a private discussion with a foreign leader. As you know, that intelligence is unverified still to this day."
- McEnany said "it is our firm belief that our schools are essential places of business, if you will, that our teachers are essential personnel."
- McEnany claimed that Trump has been consistent in his messaging on coronavirus, and added that "he hasn't changed his tone."
- McEnany claimed that: "Under President Trump, violent-crime rates in America finally began to fall." FACT CHECK: According to the Washington Post, the height of violent crime in the US occurred in 1991, and has been decreasing ever since.
According to the AP, Virginia has removed monuments honoring Confederate generals and officials from its state capitol. According to the AP, a San Francisco bus driver was assaulted with a bat after he asked three passengers to comply with the city's health orders, and wear a mask.
July 23, 2020 - Coronavirus deaths in the US now stands at 143,820. Ted Wheeler, the Democratic mayor of Portland, was among those who were teargassed by federal troops overnight on the streets of that city. Tom Ridge, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) secretary under George W Bush, criticized Trump's use of DHS troops in Portland saying: "The department was established to protect America from the ever-present threat of global terrorism. It was not established to be the president’s personal militia. Had I been governor even now, I would welcome the opportunity to work with any federal agency to reduce crime and lawlessness in any of the cities, but ... it would be a cold day in hell before I would consent to an unilateral, uninvited intervention in one of my cities." Trump was interviewed by Marc K Siegel, a New York University professor, and Fox News medical analyst. During the interview, Trump described a "difficult" cognitive test he took recently. Specifically, he described a question where he was asked to repeat five words, and explained that listing the words in order was worth "extra points". Trump then demonstrated this for Siegel saying: "person, woman, man, camera, TV" and then saying: "They said nobody gets it in order, it’s actually not that easy. But for me it was easy. And that’s not an easy question." Trump then said that after several questions, the doctor returned to the list of words, and asked Trump to repeat them: "And you go, 'person, woman, man, camera, TV.' They say, 'That's amazing. How did you do that?' 'I do it because I have like a good memory? Because I'm cognitively there.'’" Trump then suggested that Joe Biden should take the same test. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez took to the floor of the House of Representatives and delivered a searing rebuke of Representative Ted Yoho's attempt at an apology yesterday. Here is a full transcript of AOC's speech:
"Thank you Madam Speaker, and I would also like to thank many of my colleagues for the opportunity to not only speak today but for the many members from both sides of the aisle who have reached out to me in support following an incident earlier this week. About two days ago, I was walking up the steps of the Capitol when Representative Yoho suddenly turned a corner and he was accompanied by Representative Roger Williams, and accosted me on the steps right here in front of our nation’s Capitol. I was minding my own business, walking up the steps and Representative Yoho put his finger in my face, he called me disgusting, he called me crazy, he called me out of my mind, and he called me dangerous. Then he took a few more steps and after I had recognized his comments as rude, he walked away and said I’m rude, you’re calling me rude. I took a few steps ahead and I walked inside and cast my vote. Because my constituents send me here each and every day to fight for them and to make sure that they are able to keep a roof over their head, that they’re able to feed their families and that they’re able to carry their lives with dignity. I walked back out and there were reporters in the front of the Capitol and in front of reporters Representative Yoho called me, and I quote, “a f***ing b****.” These were the words that Representative Yoho levied against a congresswoman. The congresswoman that not only represents New York’s 14th Congressional District, but every congresswoman and every woman in this country. Because all of us have had to deal with this in some form, some way, some shape, at some point in our lives. I want to be clear that Representative Yoho’s comments were not deeply hurtful or piercing to me, because I have worked a working class job. I have waited tables in restaurants. I have ridden the subway. I have walked the streets in New York City, and this kind of language is not new. I have encountered words uttered by Mr. Yoho and men uttering the same words as Mr. Yoho while I was being harassed in restaurants. I have tossed men out of bars that have used language like Mr. Yoho’s and I have encountered this type of harassment riding the subway in New York City. This is not new, and that is the problem. Mr. Yoho was not alone. He was walking shoulder to shoulder with Representative Roger Williams, and that’s when we start to see that this issue is not about one incident. It is cultural. It is a culture of lack of impunity, of accepting of violence and violent language against women, and an entire structure of power that supports that. Because not only have I been spoken to disrespectfully, particularly by members of the Republican Party and elected officials in the Republican Party, not just here, but the President of the United States last year told me to go home to another country, with the implication that I don’t even belong in America. The governor of Florida, Governor DeSantis, before I even was sworn in, called me a whatever that is. Dehumanizing language is not new, and what we are seeing is that incidents like these are happening in a pattern. This is a pattern of an attitude towards women and dehumanization of others. So while I was not deeply hurt or offended by little comments that are made, when I was reflecting on this, I honestly thought that I was just going to pack it up and go home. It’s just another day, right? But then yesterday, Representative Yoho decided to come to the floor of the House of Representatives and make excuses for his behavior, and that I could not let go. I could not allow my nieces, I could not allow the little girls that I go home to, I could not allow victims of verbal abuse and worse to see that, to see that excuse and to see our Congress accept it as legitimate and accept it as an apology and to accept silence as a form of acceptance. I could not allow that to stand which is why I am rising today to raise this point of personal privilege. I do not need Representative Yoho to apologize to me. Clearly he does not want to. Clearly when given the opportunity he will not and I will not stay up late at night waiting for an apology from a man who has no remorse over calling women and using abusive language towards women, but what I do have issue with is using women, our wives and daughters, as shields and excuses for poor behavior. Mr. Yoho mentioned that he has a wife and two daughters. I am two years younger than Mr. Yoho’s youngest daughter. I am someone’s daughter too. My father, thankfully, is not alive to see how Mr. Yoho treated his daughter. My mother got to see Mr. Yoho’s disrespect on the floor of this House towards me on television and I am here because I have to show my parents that I am their daughter and that they did not raise me to accept abuse from men. Now what I am here to say is that this harm that Mr. Yoho levied, it tried to levy against me, was not just an incident directed at me, but when you do that to any woman, what Mr. Yoho did was give permission to other men to do that to his daughters. In using that language in front of the press, he gave permission to use that language against his wife, his daughters, women in his community, and I am here to stand up to say that is not acceptable. I do not care what your views are. It does not matter how much I disagree or how much it incenses me or how much I feel that people are dehumanizing others. I will not do that myself. I will not allow people to change and create hatred in our hearts. And so what I believe is that having a daughter does not make a man decent. Having a wife does not make a decent man. Treating people with dignity and respect makes a decent man, and when a decent man messes up as we all are bound to do, he tries his best and does apologize. Not to save face, not to win a vote, he apologizes genuinely to repair and acknowledge the harm done so that we can all move on. Lastly, what I want to express to Mr. Yoho is gratitude. I want to thank him for showing the world that you can be a powerful man and accost women. You can have daughters and accost women without remorse. You can be married and accost women. You can take photos and project an image to the world of being a family man and accost women without remorse and with a sense of impunity. It happens every day in this country. It happened here on the steps of our nation’s Capitol. It happens when individuals who hold the highest office in this land admit, admit to hurting women and using this language against all of us. Once again, I thank my colleagues for joining us today. I will reserve the hour of my time and I will yield to my colleague, Representative Jayapal of Washington. Thank you."
Joe Biden and Barack Obama sat down for a conversation. Here are some highlights:
- Biden chastised the Trump administration for continuing its legal battle against the Affordable Care Act in the middle of a global pandemic saying of Trump: "I don’t think he has any sense of empathy"
- Obama stated that "You can’t separate out the public health crisis, from the economy. If you want the economy growing again, people have to feel safe."
Alvin K Hellerstein, a US District Judge, has ordered Michael Cohen, Trump's former attorney, released from prison saying his imprisonment was "retaliatory because of his desire to exercise his First Amendment rights." Cohen was taken back into federal custody on July 9, a week after he tweeted that he was nearing completion of his book about president Trump. Cohen had been released early in May due to concerns about coronavirus. Trump spoke with Vladimir today, and afterwards, the White House released a readout. Critics were quick to point out that the readout has no mention of Trump pressing Putin on reports that Russia offered bounties to Taliban insurgents to kill American troops, and there is also no mention of Trump asking Putin about allegations that Kremlin-backed hackers targeted coronavirus vaccine researchers in the US, UK and Canada. Michael Horowitz, the inspector general of the justice department, announced an investigation into the actions taken by federal agents against protesters in Portland. Horowitz released a statement that read in part: "In response to congressional requests, complaints received by the OIG, and a referral from the US attorney in Oregon, the DoJ Office of the Inspector General (OIG) has opened an investigation into use of force allegations involving DoJ law enforcement personnel in Portland, Oregon, in July 2020." The inspector general of the interior department announced an investigation into the forceful dispersal of protesters from Lafayette Square last month. Donald Trump sent the following tweet: "The Suburban Housewives of America must read this article. Biden will destroy your neighborhood and your American Dream. I will preserve it, and make it even better!" Notable response to Trump's tweet:
"I don't think referring to women -- which research show run much of the household decision making and finances -- by the anachronistic term 'housewives' is a good play" - Amber Phillips
The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in the US has reached 4 million. Here is a breakdown of the progression:
0 to 1 million cases: 99 days
1 to 2 million cases: 43 days
2 to 3 million cases: 28 days
3 to 4 million cases: 15 days
According to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University, the US accounts for about 25% of all confirmed cases of coronavirus worldwide, but has only 5% of the world's population. During an interview on Fox News, Trump made the following statement: "To me, every time you test a case it gets reported in the news, we found more cases. If instead of 50 we did 25, we have half the number of cases. So I personally think it's overrated, but I am totally willing to keep doing it." According to the AP, Ben Carson, the secretary of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), has rolled back an Obama-era rule known as Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing, which was designed to eliminate racial disparities in the suburbs. Carson claimed the rule was "unworkable and ultimately a waste of time for localities to comply with" but fair housing advocates call the move an election year stunt designed to appeal to white voters. Trump held a coronavirus briefing. Here are some highlights:
- Trump said today that if public schools don't open, then funding should "follow" students to private and charter schools.
- Trump announced that the Jacksonville, FL, Republican convention is cancelled, saying it's "not the right time." NOTE: Earlier this month, residents of Jacksonville filed a lawsuit against the city, the Republican National Committee and the Trump campaign to stop the convention next month, out of concerns the event would accelerate the spread of coronavirus.
- Trump bragged that the US has conducted more coronavirus tests than any other country. NOTE: Per the Johns Hopkins University coronavirus resource center: "In order for governments to identify new cases and effectively respond to the pandemic through tracing and treatment, testing programs should be scaled to the size of their epidemic, not the size of the population." There are more cases of coronavirus in the US than anywhere else in the world, so it makes sense that the US would be doing more testing.
- Trump announced that he will be throwing the first pitch at Yankee Stadium on August 15.
Bill Stepien, the Trump campaign manager, released the following statement: "Leading by example, President Trump has put the health and safety of the American people first with his decision on the Jacksonville convention."
July 22, 2020 - Coronavirus deaths in the US now stands at 142,073. Ted Yoho, a Republican congressman, delivered a floor speech to apologize for accosting congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on the Capitol steps. Yoho denied calling Cortez "disgusting" or calling her a "fucking bitch". Yoho began his apology with "I rise to apologize for the abrupt manner of the conversation I had with my colleague from New York" and ended it with "I cannot apologize for my passion or for loving my God, my family and my country." Fifteen mayors have signed onto a letter asking the Trump administration to withdraw federal law enforcement officers from Portland, and to abandon plans to send federal agents to other Democratic-controlled cities. The letter reads in part: "These are tactics we expect from authoritarian regimes -- not our democracy ... The murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis sparked a national uprising and reckoning. The majority of the protests have been peaceful and aimed at improving our communities. Where this is not the case, it still does not justify the use of federal forces." Kelly Loeffler, a Republican senator, and co-owner of the WNBA's Atlanta Dream, wrote a letter to Cathy Engelbert, the WNBA commissioner, voicing opposition to a WNBA announcement that players will wear jerseys with the names of women killed by police and from racial violence, and that they will also wear shirts with the slogan Black Lives Matter during warm-ups. Leoffler's letetr reads in part: "The Black Lives Matter political organization advocates things like defunding and abolishing the police, abolishing our military, emptying our prisons, destroying the nuclear family. It promotes violence and antisemitism. To me, this is not what our league stands for." FACT CHECK: Black Lives Matter is a decentralized movement which does not have official policies. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, responded to congressman Ted Yoho's apology by tweeting: "Republican responds to calling a colleague 'disgusting' & a 'f—ing b*tch' w/ 'I cannot apologize for my passion' and blaming others. I will not teach my nieces and young people watching that this an apology, and what they should learn to accept. Yoho is refusing responsibility." Cortez followed that tweet with: "- Does not apologize or name any action he did - Does not accept responsibility - Lies (this was not a 'conversation,' it was verbal assault) - Distracts by making it abt poverty (ironically) - Says everyone else is wrong and the incident never happened. This is not an apology. He didn't even say my name." Donald Trump held a coronavirus briefing. Like yesterday, no health experts were present. Here are some highlights:
- Trump denied asking his ambassador to the UK to push the British government to promote his golf course for the British Open.
- Trump was asked about his push to reopen schools. Trump responded: "a lot of people are saying” that children don't transmit the virus. “They don't bring it home with them. They don’t catch it easily." FACT CHECK: A recent study found that while children under 10 seem to transmit the infection less, they still can pass on coronavirus. And older children and teens can spread the virus.
- Regarding masks, Trump seemed to change course when he said "Get a mask, whether you like the mask or not, they have an impact. They’ll have an effect, and we need everything we can get ... I carry the mask ... I have the mask right here. I carry it and I will use it gladly."
The House has voted to remove Confederate monuments from the Capitol. 72 Republicans joined all of the House Democrats in approving the measure. The Portland city council passed a resolution instructing local police to stop communicating and collaborating with federal law enforcement.
July 21, 2020 - Coronavirus deaths in the US now exceed 140,000. Michael Dorf, a professor of constitutional law at Cornell University, addressed the situation in Portland where masked federal officers have arrested people on the street, far from a federal courthouse, with no probable cause and whisked them away in unmarked cars. According to Dorf: "The idea that there’s a threat to a federal courthouse and the federal authorities are going to swoop in and do whatever they want to do without any cooperation and coordination with state and local authorities is extraordinary outside the context of a civil war. It is a standard move of authoritarians to use the pretext of quelling violence to bring in force, thereby prompting a violent response and then bootstrapping the initial use of force in the first place." Kate Brown, the Democratic governor of Oregon, sent the following tweet: "This is a democracy, not a dictatorship. We cannot have secret police abducting people in unmarked vehicles. I can’t believe I have to say that to the President of the United States." According to the Oregonian, last night's protest in Portland was the 54th continuous night, which began with two groups, called the Wall of Moms and PDXDadPod, marching from the riverfront to the Justice Center. An Axios-Ipsos Coronavirus poll shows that almost a third of Americans believe the real death toll of the pandemic is less than the official number of 135,000 that was reported mid-July. Of those that say the real number is less than the official count, 59% are Republicans. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has filed a lawsuit which claims that Michael Cohen, Trump's former lawyer: "is being held in retaliation for his protected speech, including drafting a book manuscript that is critical of the president – and recently making public his intention to publish that book soon, shortly before the upcoming election about President Trump." Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez responded to a report that she had been accosted by Ted Yoho, a Republican congressman. According to the original report, Cortez had said of spiking gun violence that "crime is a problem of a diseased society, which neglects its marginalized people ... Policing is not a solution to crime." Yoho took offence to the comments and told Cortez she was "disgusting", that she was "out of your freaking mind" and was overheard calling Cortez a "Fucking bitch." Cortez responded to the confrontation tweeting: "I never spoke to Rep. Yoho before he decided to accost me on the steps of the nation’s Capitol yesterday. Believe it or not, I usually get along fine w/ my GOP colleagues. We know how to check our legislative sparring at the committee door. But hey, 'b*tches' get stuff done." Cortez also told the Hill: "That kind of confrontation hasn't ever happened to me — ever. I’ve never had that kind of abrupt, disgusting kind of disrespect levied at me. ... I'm frankly quite taken aback." Kayleigh McEnany held a press briefing today. Here are some highlights:
- McEnany claimed that "By any standard, the violence, chaos and anarchy in Portland are unacceptable."
- McEnany was asked about video that surfaced showing a Navy veteran who was peacefully protesting being beaten by federal agents. McEnany deflected by referring questions to the department of homeland security, and added that the White House "always encourages the appropriate use of force."
- McEnany was asked about Trump's belated tweet endorsing the use of masks to limit the spread of coronavirus. McEnany responded that Trump has "always been consistent" on the use of masks by saying they are recommended but not required. According to McEnany: "The president has led, he's been consistent."
- McEnany told the gathered journalist: "I think in many cases the media has tried to scare the American people."
- McEnany claimed Trump is tested for coronavirus "often" and "sometimes it is more than one time a day."
- McEnany weighed in on the charges against Patricia and Mark McCloskey who brandished guns at protesters, calling the charges "absolutely absurd" and adding that the couple were "defending themselves from violent protesters."
Donald Trump signed an executive order aimed at excluding undocumented persons from being counted in the 2020 census. The ACLU said it intends to file a lawsuit over the order and sent the following tweet: "BREAKING: Trump tried to add a citizenship question to the census and lost in the Supreme Court. His latest attempt to weaponize the census for an attack on immigrant communities WILL be found unconstitutional. We'll see him in court — and win — again." Joe Biden said the following about Donald Trump today: "For all his bluster about his expertise on the economy, he's unable to explain how he'll actually help working families hit the hardest. “He's quit on you. He's quit on this country." According to the Guardian, the ACLU has filed suit against attorney general Bill Barr, and the director fo the federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) over the imprisonment of Michael Cohen, Trump's former personal attorney and fixer. From the story: "In a tweet on 2 July, Cohen said he was 'close to completion of my book, anticipated release date will be late September'. A week later, the former top Trump aide was returned to prison after he had been released due to the coronavirus pandemic." According to the ACLU, Donald Trump "cannot imprison Michael Cohen for writing a book." According to the BOP, Cohen had "refused the conditions of his home confinement and as a result, has been returned to a BOP facility." John Bolton, the former national security adviser to Donald Trump, has weighed in on the deployment of Department of Homeland Security forces on the streets of Portland. According to Bolton: "The protection of federal courthouses now is the responsibility of the US Marshals Service, who are also responsible for physical protection for US judges, as part of the justice department." Donald Trump announced that he will resume coronavirus briefings starting today. Chuck Schumer, the Senate minority leader responded to the news tweeting: "President Trump can't even model good behavior and consistently encourage Americans to wear a mask. Every time he takes the podium, he's a threat to public health. We are living through one the greatest failures of presidential leadership in our country's history." Dr Anthony Fauci, the government's top infectious disease expert, appeared on CNN where host Jake Tapper asked if he had been invited to appear in the briefing. Fauci's response: "I was not invited up to this point. I'm assuming I'm not going to be there." Fauci was also asked about Trump's claim that he is an "alarmist". Fauci responded: "I consider myself more a realist than an alarmist." Donald Trump held his coronavirus briefing, here are some highlights:
- Trump claimed supplies are up after "inheriting very empty cupboards". FACT CHECK: The Trump administration inherited a stockpile of 19,000 ventilators.
- Trump said the government is "asking Americans to use masks, socially distance and employ vigorous hygiene – wash your hands every chance you get".
- Trump was asked where his top public health officials are. Trump responded that Dr Deborah Birx is "right outside".
- While reading from notes, Trump said "It will probably, unfortunately, get worse before it gets better." Minutes later, not reading from notes, Trump said "The virus will disappear. It will disappear."
- Trump was asked about Ghislaine Maxwell, the associate of Jeffrey Epstein, who was arrested and charged with sex trafficking minors, if he thought she might implicate some "powerful men". Trump's response: "I don’t know – I haven’t really been following it too much. I just wish her well, frankly. I have met her numerous times over the years, especially since I lived in Palm Beach, and I guess they lived in Palm Beach. But I wish her well, whatever it is."
Lily Adams, a Democratic National Committee spokesperson reacted to Trump's coronavirus briefing saying: "as soon as he was off script, Trump once again downplayed the virus. ... The White House thinks these briefings will be good for Trump's ratings, but the more people hear from Trump, the more they see what a failure he is. Trump might be able to read semi-coherently from prepared remarks for 15 minutes, but that doesn't mean he's turned over a new leaf on his response." According to a new report from Preventing Epidemics, the US is failing to report vital information on Covid-19 that could help track the spread of the disease and prevent the deaths of tens of thousands of Americans. Appearing on CNN, Nancy Pelosi, the House speaker, referred to coronavirus as the "Trump virus". According to the New York Times, Trump asked Robert Wood Johnson IV, the US ambassador to Britain, if the British government might help push to have the 2018 British Open golf tournament at the Trump Turnberry resort in Scotland. From the story: "The ambassador's deputy, Lewis A. Lukens, advised him not to do it, warning that it would be an unethical use of the presidency for private gain, these people said. But Mr. Johnson apparently felt pressured to try. A few weeks later, he raised the idea of Turnberry playing host to the Open with the secretary of state for Scotland, David Mundell." According to an Axios-Ipsos poll, 31% of respondents believe the number of Americans dying from covid-19 is smaller than public data portrays. Skepticism about the statistics was also heavily correlated with media consumption habits. Among Fox News viewers, 62% said statistics are overblown, while only 7% of CNN or MSMBC watchers thought so.
July 20, 2020 - More than 1,200 members of the US National Academy of Sciences have signed an open letter to Donald Trump to "restore science-based policy in government" and criticized his "denigration of scientific expertise". Daniel Anderl, the son of US District Judge Esther Salas, was killed when a lone gunman posing as a FedEx delivery person opened fire after Anderl opened the door. Mark Anderl, Salas' husband, was injured in the attack. Nancy Pelosi, the House speaker, responded tot Trump's refusal to confirm he'd leave the White House if he lost the election saying: "The fact is, whether he knows it yet or not, he will be leaving". A coronavirus vaccine developed by Oxford University is making news. According to the Guardian: "'The vaccine provoked a T cell response within 14 days of vaccination (white blood cells that can attack cells infected with the SARS-CoV-2 virus), and an antibody response within 28 days (antibodies are able to neutralize the virus so that it cannot infect cells when initially contracted),' the university said in a statement about the findings." Dr Anthony Fauci stated he believes a vaccine will be available by early next year. Trump stated he believes a vaccine could be available even faster. Trump announced that he will resume holding coronavirus briefings tomorrow, which appears to be about improving his polling numbers. Just last week, Kellyanne Conway, one of Trump's senior advisers told the press: "The president had a 51% approval rating ... when he was doing the daily briefings. They don’t need to be two hours long. ... But he can provide information to Americans because nobody does that quite like President Trump." Trump explained the resumption like this: "I was doing them, and we had a lot of people watching, record numbers watching in the history of cable television, and there's never been anything like it." News surfaced that federal troops are being sent to Chicago to guard federal property. Trump was asked about the news, and whether he would send more federal agents to other cities. Trump's response: "We're going to have more federal law enforcement, that I can tell you." Trump also disparaged protesters in Portland calling them "anarchists" and saying "These are people that hate our country, and we're not going to let it go forward." Trump also said "This is worse than Afghanistan, by far. This is worse than anything anyone has ever seen. All run by the same liberal Democrats. And you know what? If Biden got in, that would be true for the country. The whole country would go to hell." Teachers in Florida are suing the state over a mandate to return to in-person classes. Fedrick Ingram, the Florida Education Association President spoke of the lawsuit saying: "The governor needs to accept the reality of the situation here in Florida, where the virus is surging out of control. He needs to accept the evolving science. It now appears that kids 10 and older may pass along the coronavirus as easily as adults. ... Everyone wants schools to reopen, but we don't want to begin in-person teaching, face an explosion of cases and sickness, then be forced to return to distance learning. Florida's Constitution demands that public schools be safe. Teachers and parents want our schools to meet that basic standard." Kanye West held his first campaign event in North Charleston, SC. During the event, West ranted against historical figure Harriet Tubman, saying she "never actually freed the slaves, she just had them work for other white people". Electoral authorities in South Carolina have confirmed that West will not be on the ballot in that state in the November presidential election. House Democrats have written a letter to FBI director Christopher Wray requesting a briefing "regarding foreign efforts to interfere in the 2020 U.S. presidential election. ... We are gravely concerned, in particular, that Congress appears to be the target of a concerted foreign interference campaign, which seeks to launder and amplify disinformation in order to influence congressional activity, public debate, and the presidential election in November." Trump tweeted out a picture of himself wearing a mask, with the following caption: "We are United in our effort to defeat the Invisible China Virus, and many people say that it is Patriotic to wear a face mask when you can’t socially distance. There is nobody more Patriotic than me, your favorite President!" According to the St Louis Post-Dispatch, Mike Parson, the Republican governor of Missouri, has come under fire over statements he made about kids and covid-19. From the story: "These kids have got to get back to school. They're at the lowest risk possible. And if they do get Covid-19, which they will – and they will when they go to school – they're not going to the hospitals. They're not going to have to sit in doctor's offices. They’re going to go home and they're going to get over it. ... We gotta move on ... We can't just let this thing stop us in our tracks." Notable response to Parson's comments:
"DYSTOPIAN: Missouri Gov @mikeparson: 'These kids have got to get back to school—And if they do get #COVID19, which they will—& they will when they go to school—they're not going to the hospitals. They’re going to go home and they're going to get over it.'" - Eric Feigl-Ding, Harvard Epidemiologist
According to the Daily Beast, the man who shot and killed the son of federal judge Esther Salas was Roy Den Hollander. Hollander, who was found dead from an apparently self-inflicted gunshot wound, was a self-described "anti-feminist" and men's rights activist. From the story: "For years, he had filed suits alleging that women get unconstitutional special treatment, pushing to outlaw Ladies' Nights at bars and women's studies programs at universities." Hollander had also filed a lawsuit against reporters of major news outlets regarding their coverage of Donald Trump, which according to the filing: "amounted to a violation of the anti-racketeering statute used to prosecute mobsters." According to NBC News, Hollander had called Judge Salas "a lazy and incompetent Latina judge appointed by Obama" and had fantasized about raping a different female judge who presided over his divorce case. Hollander had also written about the "feminazi infestation of government institutions" and the "feminist infested American judicial system". According to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Mark and Patricia McCloskey, the couple that pointed guns at racial justice protesters who were marching through their gated community "are facing a single felony count unlawful use of a weapon — exhibiting" and a misdemeanor charge of fourth-degree assault. Kimberly Gardner, the prosecutor, is recommending community service rather than jail time if convicted saying "It is illegal to wave weapons in a threatening manner — that is unlawful in the city of St. Louis". Mike Parsons, the Republican governor of Missouri, said that if the couple is convicted, he will likely pardon them. Parsons added "If this is all about going after them because they ... did a lawful act, then, yeah, if that scenario in fact happened, I don't think they're going to spend any time in jail." Josh Hawley, a Republican senator from Missouri, called the charges against the McCloskeys "a disgrace" and called for a civil rights investigation of Gardner, suggesting her investigation of whether the McCloskeys violated any laws an infringement of their Constitutional rights, and "an unacceptable abuse of power and threat to the Second Amendment." Gardner says she has received death threats in the wake of comments about her by Republican lawmakers, and compared the attacks against her to violent threats by the Ku Klux Klan.
July 19, 2020 - According to the Washington Post and the New York Times, during negotiations for a stimulus and relief package to address the economic crisis brought about by Covid-19, the White House is seeking to block funding for testing and tracing efforts related to coronavirus. Marco Rubio and Dan Sullivan, both Republican senators, posted tributes to John Lewis on social media, both of which included a photo of the senators with the late congressman Elijah Cummings. Fox aired the Trump interview with Chris Wallace today. Here are some highlights:
- Trump told Wallace: "We're signing a healthcare plan within two weeks, a full and complete healthcare plan that the supreme court decision on DACA [an immigration decision which went against the administration] gave me the right to do. So we're going to solve – we're going to sign an immigration plan, a healthcare plan, and various other plans. And nobody will have done what I'm doing in the next four weeks."
- Trump claimed the US has one of the lowest mortality rates in the world. Wallace showed Trump a chart that shows the US has the seventh worst mortality rate in the world. Wallace then asked Trump about a daily death toll in the US around a 1,000 per day. Trump's response: "It is what it is."
- Trump claimed coronavirus cases are up due to increased testing. Wallace countered that positivity rates are also increasing.
- Trump was asked about his claim that coronavirus will "disappear" on its own. Trump responded: "I'll be right eventually. It is going to disappear. I'll say it again, it's going to disappear and I'll be right." Wallace then asked Trump if his past statements about coronavirus disappearing discredit him. Trump responded: "I don’t think so, you know why? Because I’ve been right probably more than anybody else."
- Trump denied he has had a falling out with Dr Anthony Fauci, then said Fauci is "a little bit of an alarmist."
- Trump was asked about a nationwide mandate for masks to be worn in public. Trump responded: "No, I want people to have a certain freedom." Trump then acknowledged that he believes masks can help stop the spread of covid-19.
- Regarding schools reopening, Trump said "There is going to be a funding problem because we aren’t going to fund them if they don’t open their schools."
- Trump was asked if the Confederate flag is racist. Trump's response: "When people proudly have their Confederate flags, they’re not talking about racism. They love their flag, it represents the south." Trump then equated Black Lives Matter flags with Confederate flags.
- Trump was shown a poll that shows people trust Joe Biden to handle coronavirus, race relations, and the economy more so than they trust Trump. Trump called the poll results "fake".
- Trump attacked Joe Biden's mental faculties saying: "Biden can’t put two sentences together. They wheel him out. He goes up – he repeats – they ask him questions. He reads a teleprompter and then he goes back into his basement." Wallace asked Trump if he thinks Biden is senile. Trump responded: "I don’t want to say that. I’d say he’s not competent to be president." Trump added: "Let him take the same test that I took. I'll guarantee you that Joe Biden could not answer those questions." Wallace told Trump he had also taken the test saying: "It's not the hardest test. They have a picture and it says 'What's that' and it's an elephant."
- Trump claimed the Democrats want to keep the economy closed down before the election so that it will reflect badly on him.
- Trump was asked about Mary Trump, his niece and author of a scathing book about him. Trump's response: "She was not exactly a family favorite. We didn’t have a lot of respect or like for her. I would've never said that except she writes a book that's so stupid and so vicious and it's a lie."
- Trump stated that Biden is a tool of the "radical left" and that "He will destroy this country, but it won't be him, it will be the radical left – the same ideology that took over Venezuela ... they now have no water or medicine ... the same will happen here."
- Wallace asked Trump "Can you give a direct answer you will accept the election?" Trump responded: "I have to see ... I have to see. No, I'm not going to just say yes."
- Trump was asked how he will remember his years in the White House. Trump's response: "I think I was very unfairly treated. From before I even won I was investigated by a bunch of thieves, crooks. It was an illegal investigation."
- Trump was asked about moves to rename US bases under the National Defense Authorization Act which are supported by senior military leaders. Trump's response: "I don't care what the military says. I'm supposed to make the decision."
Dr Francis Collins, the director of the National Institutes of Health, appeared on NBC's Meet the Press, where he was asked about mask wearing. Collins' response: "Well, it is bizarre that we have turned the mask wearing into something political. Imagine you were an alien coming to the planet Earth, and looking around, looking at the scientific data or going from various place to place and looking to see who’s wearing masks. You would be totally astounded, puzzled, amazed, you’d wonder, 'What is going on here?' How could it be that something as basic as a public health action, that we have very strong evidence can help, seems to attach to people's political party?" Roger Stone, longtime friend and former campaign adviser for Donald Trump, appeared on Morris W O'Kelly's radio show to discuss the commutation of his sentence. During the interview, O'Kelly said to Stone: "There are thousands of people treated unfairly daily, how your number just happened to come up in the lottery, I am guessing it was more than just luck, Roger, right?" Stone, who was being interviewed over the phone, can then be heard speaking to someone else saying "arguing with this Negro." O'Kelly then challenged Stone about his use of the word Negro, to which Stone at first remained silent, then denied he had used the word. O'kelly was asked about the interview by the New York Times, his response: "It's the diet version of the N-word, but as an African-American man, it's something I deal with pretty frequently. If there's a takeaway from the conversation, it is that Roger Stone gave an unvarnished look into what is in the heart of many Americans today." Kanye West, who has stated he is running for president, has qualified to appear on the presidential ballot in Oklahoma. Many think West's run for the presidency is a publicity stunt. Donna Shalala, a Florida congresswoman, offered the following critique of the federal response to coronavirus: "It's terrible. We have community spread, which means the virus is out of control. The lack of leadership in the White House and in our governor's office, they simply have not hit this with a hammer, which is what we needed to do, and starve the virus. They opened too soon. And they misunderstand what you need to do – or they understand it and they're not willing to do it." Jared Polis, Colorado's Democratic governor, offered the following critique of national testing: "So, the national testing scene is a complete disgrace. So, every test we send out to private lab partners nationally, Quest, Labcorp, seven days, eight days, nine days maybe six days if we’re lucky. Almost useless from an epidemiological or even diagnostic perspective." Ted Wheeler, the mayor of Portland, OR, offered this critique of federal troops in his city: "The president has a complete misunderstanding of cause and effect. We have dozens, if not hundreds of federal troops descending upon our city. And ... they are sharply escalating the situation. Their presence is actually leading to more violence and more vandalism. It's not helping the situation at all. They're not wanted here. We haven't asked them here. In fact, we want them to leave. The tactics that the Trump administration are using on the streets of Portland are abhorrent. People are ... being denied probable cause and they're denied due process. They don't even know who's pulling them into the vans. The people aren't identifying themselves. And, as far as I can see, this is completely unconstitutional."
July 18, 2020 - John Lewis, Democratic congressman and civil rights icon, has died. Lewis was 80. According to CNN, Corpus Christi, TX, is experiencing a surge in coronavirus. From the story: "'We currently have 85 babies under the age of one year in Nueces county that have all tested positive for Covid-19,' said Annette Rodriguez, director of public health for Corpus Christi Nueces county. 'These babies have not even had their first birthday yet. Please help us stop the spread of this disease.'" As tributes for John Lewis have rolled in throughout the morning from world leaders, and from all of the former presidents, critics have noted that Donald Trump has just arrived at one of his golf courses, and has yet to acknowledge John Lewis' death. Karen Bass, a California congresswoman, and chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, sent the following tweet: ".@realDonaldTrump while the nation mourns the passing of a national hero, please say nothing. Please don’t comment on the life of Congressman Lewis. Your press secretary released a statement, leave it at that. Please let us mourn in peace." After leaving his golf course, Donald Trump sent the following tweet: "Saddened to hear the news of civil rights hero John Lewis passing. Melania and I send our prayers to he and his family." For the second time in a week, the super-sized Black Lives Matter mural painted outside Trump Tower in Manhattan, has been vandalized. In the 1st instance, a man splashed red paint on the mural, in today's instance, three people splashed blue paint on the mural.
July 17, 2020 - A Washington Post-ABC New poll finds that 38% of Americans approve of Trump's handling of coronavirus. Keisha Lance Bottoms, the Democratic mayor of Atlanta, responded to Georgia governor Brian Kemp's lawsuit over her mask mandate, saying "This filing of a lawsuit is simply bizarre, quite frankly. ... I don't think it happenstance that this lawsuit came the day after Donald Trump visited Atlanta and I pointed out that he was violating city law by not having on a mask at Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport." According to Oregon Public Broadcasting: "Federal law enforcement officers have been using unmarked vehicles to drive around downtown Portland and detain protesters since at least July 14. Personal accounts and multiple videos posted online show the officers driving up to people, detaining individuals with no explanation of why they are being arrested, and driving off. ... Federal officers have charged at least 13 people with crimes related to the protests so far, while others have been arrested and released, including Pettibone. They also left one demonstrator hospitalized with skull fractures after shooting him in the face with so-called 'less lethal' munitions July 11." Mark Esper, the defense secretary, issued a memo that includes a list of acceptable flags to display at bases. Missing from the list is the Confederate flag. Supreme court justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg announced she is receiving chemotherapy treatment for a recurrence of cancer. In her statement, Ginsburg said "I have often said I would remain a member of the Court as long as I can do the job full steam. I remain fully able to do that." The Center for Public Integrity, a DC news nonprofit, obtained a document prepared for the White House Coronavirus Task Force which suggests that more than a dozen states should revert to more stringent protective measures. The Center for Public Integrity released a statement which reads in part: "18 states are in the 'red zone' for Covid-19 cases, meaning they had more than 100 new cases per 100,000 population last week. Eleven states are in the 'red zone' for test positivity, meaning more than 10 percent of diagnostic test results came back positive. It includes county-level data and reflects the insistence of the Trump administration that states and counties should take the lead in responding to the coronavirus. The document has been shared within the federal government but does not appear to be posted publicly. Ashish Jha, director of the Harvard Global Health Institute, said he thought the information and recommendations were mostly good. 'The fact that it's not public makes no sense to me,' Jha said Thursday. 'Why are we hiding this information from the American people? This should be published and updated every day.' ... In May, the World Health Organization recommended that governments make sure test positivity rates were at 5 percent or lower for 14 days before reopening. A Covid-19 tracker from Johns Hopkins University shows that 33 states were above that recommended positivity as of July 16." NOTE: The 18 states that are in the red zone for cases are: Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, Nevada, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Utah. The 11 states that are in the red zone for test positivity are: Alabama, Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Louisiana, Mississippi, Nevada, South Carolina, Texas and Washington. According to the Guardian: "Two more governors – Republican Asa Hutchinson in Arkansas and Democrat Jared Polis in Colorado – issued statewide mandates yesterday, as coronavirus cases surge in dozens of states. However, governors in some of the hardest-hit states are still resisting statewide mask requirements. Georgia, Florida and Arizona – all of which have seen record-high levels of new cases in recent weeks – still do not have statewide mandates." Dr Robert Redfield, the director fo the CDC, wrote an editorial for the Journal of the American Medical Association regarding the wearing of masks. From the editorial: "At this critical juncture when COVID-19 is resurging, broad adoption of cloth face coverings is a civic duty, a small sacrifice reliant on a highly effective low-tech solution that can help turn the tide favorably in national and global efforts against COVID-19." According to Politico, the Trump administration is weighing issuing an executive order that would ban undocumented people from being counted in the census. NOTE: The US constitution mandates that the government count all "persons" every 10 years, regardless of immigration status. According to the Daily Beast, tensions are rising within Fox News over its coverage of protests against racism and police brutality. From the story: "Two people familiar with the situation told The Daily Beast that Fox Corporation CEO Lachlan Murdoch personally approved what Carlson would say in his defensive Monday remarks addressing the exit of his top writer. Despite demands from Fox News executives that he pre-tape the segment and strike a conciliatory tone, Carlson barely sounded apologetic, knowing he had the full backing of the Murdoch heir. A rep for Murdoch did not respond to a request for comment. But The Daily Beast spoke to more than a dozen Fox News insiders, who all suggested that behind the scenes there is a growing despair among employees about the network's role in demonizing and spreading fear about Black Americans in particular. One employee was especially angry, saying, 'They created a cell—they created a white supremacist cell inside the top cable network in America, the one that directly influences the president ... This is rank racism excused by Murdoch.'" Donald Trump sat down with Fox News reporter Chris Wallace. Fox released a short preview of the interview, which included this:
- Trump claimed that "The Biden-Sanders agenda is the most extreme platform of any major party nominee, by far, in American history. ... They now want to abolish our police departments. They want to abolish our prisons, I guess." Wallace responded "No, sir, he does not." NOTE: Biden has repeatedly said that he does not support the movement to defund the police, and has instead called for reforming departments. Politifact gave Trump's claim a rating of "Pants on Fire." Trump then called for one of his aides to bring him a copy of a policy compact that Biden and Bernie Sanders had agreed to. Trump searched, but could not find any indication that Biden wants to defund and abolish the police. Trump later tweeted: "Corrupt Joe Biden wants to defund our police. He may use different words, but when you look at his pact with Crazy Bernie, and other things, that’s what he wants to do. It would destroy America!"
Mike Pompeo, the US secretary of state, listed the human rights priorities of the Trump administration as the protection of "private property" and "religious freedom". Human rights groups were quick to criticize the implication that human rights exist in a hierarchy, and the suggestion that some are more important than others. NOTE: The Trump administration's own human rights record has been under scrutiny for horrific violations, including putting children in cages, and responding to peaceful protests with brutality and attacking the free press. US Customs and Border Protection announced it had fired four employees and suspended 38 without pay due to inappropriate social media activity. This comes in the wake of a 2019 report by the Los Angeles Times which revealed a secret facebook group called "I'm 10-15" which included many posts that mocked lawmakers and shared disrespectful content about migrants, including joking about their deaths. According to new reports regarding the shooting of Breonna Taylor, it has come out that she received no medical attention for at least 20 minutes after she was shot, and was alive for some of that time. Taylor was shot 5 times as she slept. A judge has ruled that the Trump administration cannot block a California cap and trade program in California which aims to improve air quality and allows California companies to trade emission credits with companies in Quebec. According to the Guardian: "The White House will not allow the CDC to testify at next week's hearing of the Committee on Education and Labor about how to safely reopen schools." Bobby Scott, a Virginia representative reacted to the White House blocking the CDC from testifying saying "It is alarming that the Trump Administration is preventing the CDC from appearing before the [committee] at a time when its expertise and guidance is so critical to the health and safety of students, parents, and educators."
July 16, 2020 - Brad Parscale, Trump's campaign manager, has been replaced with Bill Stepien, the current deputy campaign manager. Parscale will be demoted to senior adviser. Larry Hogan, the Republican governor of Maryland, wrote an op-ed for the Washington Post that is critical of Trump's response to covid-19. Here's an excerpt:
"I’d watched as the president downplayed the outbreak’s severity and as the White House failed to issue public warnings, draw up a 50-state strategy, or dispatch medical gear or lifesaving ventilators from the national stockpile to American hospitals. Eventually, it was clear that waiting around for the president to run the nation’s response was hopeless; if we delayed any longer, we’d be condemning more of our citizens to suffering and death. So every governor went their own way, which is how the United States ended up with such a patchwork response. I did the best I could for Maryland. Here’s what we saw and heard from Washington along the way ..."
According to the US Labor Department, nearly 32 million American workers are receiving jobless benefits. According to the UK's National Cyber Security Centre, Russian state-sponsored hackers - a group known as APT29 - are targeting UK, US and Canadian organizations involved in developing a coronavirus vaccine. Kevin McCarthy, the House minority leader, introduced a bill aimed at protecting America's statues. Regarding the bill, McCarthy sent the following tweet: "Just now → I introduced the Protect America’s Statues Act to cut funding from cities and states that refuse to restore order. Leftwing mobs are trying to erase history by destroying statues of George Washington, General Grant, and Christopher Columbus. Enough is enough." The tell-all book written by Mary Trump, Donald Trump's niece, has broken sales records for Simon & Schuster. As of today, the book has sold over 950,000 copies. One of the accusations made in the book, is that Trump paid someone to take his high school exams. Florida has once again set a single-day record for coronavirus deaths. The new record is 156 deaths in 24 hours, which beats the prior record of 132 deaths in 24 hours. Ron DeSantis, the Republican governor of Florida, refuses to issue a statewide mask mandate. Nancy Pelosi, the House speaker, held a press conference where she offered the following remarks regarding Trump's handling of the pandemic: "Observing his behavior, I have concluded that he is like the man who refuses to ask for directions. All of the answers are there. ... Mr President, admit it, you've gone down the wrong path. Ask for directions. Ask for directions from our scientists, who know better. ... I yearn for other Republican presidents. While we may disagree on many points, at least we had a shared commitment to the governance of our country." The political arm of the NRA endorsed Trump for reelection. Following the announcement by the Trump administration that it was shifting the reporting of statistics on hospital capacity from the CDC to the department of health and human services, the CDC's dashboard on hospital capacity has disappeared from the agency's website. Critics have called the move an attempt by the Trump administration to suppress data on coronavirus. USA Today has added a label to the web version of Peter Navarro's op-ed on Dr Anthony Fauci that calls the article "misleading." The US supreme court ruled that Florida can continue to block people with felony convictions from voting until they've repaid all fines and fees they owe. Critics have called this law a "poll tax". The law prevents over 700,000 Floridians from being able to vote. According to a CDC report, Trump's European travel ban was enacted too late to protect New York residents. From the report: "Although travel restrictions are an important mitigation strategy, by the time the European restrictions were implemented, importation and community transmission of Sars-CoV-2 had already occurred in NYC." Kayleigh McEnany, the White House press secretary, held a briefing today. Here are some highlights:
- McEnany was asked about the op-ed by Republican governor Larry Hogan, which is critical of Trump's pandemic response. McEnany called Hogan's comments "really striking" considering the governor's past praise of Trump. McEnany accused Hogan of engaging in "revisionist history".
- McEnany was asked if Trump has recently met with the White House coronavirus task force. McEnany's response: "The president is briefed on coronavirus each and every day."
- McEnany was asked about recent polls that show Trump's approval rating dropping. McEnany's response: "We believe this president has great approval in this country. His historic Covid response speaks for itself."
- McEnany was asked about Trumps push to reopen schools, despite concerns about the spread of coronavirus in the classroom. McEnany's response: "And when he says open, he means open and full, kids being able to attend each and every day at their school ... The science should not stand in the way of this ... The science is on our side here."
Notable reaction to McEnany's "the science should not stand in the way" comment:
"Now the Trump administration wants to further risk the lives of teachers, children, staff, and their families just to soothe the president’s ego. This president would rather accept conspiracy theories and reject science than listen to public health experts. He can't be trusted to make decisions about the lives of America's children and their families." - Lily Adams, DNC spokesperson
Asa Hutchinson, the Republican governor of Arkansas, issued an order requiring people to wear face masks in public. Donald Trump spoke at a White House event to tout his record on regulation rollbacks. Here are some highlights:
- Trump complained about water pressure in energy-efficient showers saying: "Showerheads, you take a shower, the water doesn't come out. You want to wash your hands, the water doesn't come out. So what do you do? You just stand there longer? Or you take a shower longer?"
- Trump attacked Joe Biden saying: "Suburbia will be no longer as we know it" and Democrats would “watch it go to hell ... Not while I am here. ... The suburb destruction will end with us."
Brian Kemp, the Republican governor of Georgia, filed a lawsuit to block Keisha Lance Bottom, the Democratic mayor of Atlanta, from enforcing a citywide mandate requiring people to wear face masks in public.
July 15, 2020 - Ivanka Trump, the president's daughter, sent a tweet that included a picture of herself holding a can of Goya beans with the caption "If it's Goya, it has to be good." Critics were quick to point out that the tweet could violate government ethics rules which prohibit the use of public office to endorse products or advance personal business gains. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez responded to the tweet with "Si es Trump, tiene que ser corrupto" Mary Trump, Donald Trump's niece, appeared on ABC now that a judge has lifted a gag order on promoting her new book. Mary offered the following analysis of Trump: "He is utterly incapable of leading this country and it’s dangerous to allow him to do so. This country is on a precipice and we have a decision to make about who we want to be and where we want to go as a country. It’s hard for me to process just how many awful things are going on simultaneously on a daily basis." According to the Guardian, Florida nurses from three hospitals are protesting what they call "an explosion of unsafe conditions at their hospitals". According to the story: "Their concerns include claims that there is short staffing with nurses having to care for more patients than is safe, inadequate personal protective equipment (PPE) for nurses, improper isolation of patients who are confirmed or suspected of being infected with Covid-19, and a failure to inform nurses who may have been exposed to positive infected patients." Peter Navarro, a White House trade adviser, wrote an op-ed for USA Today where he attacked Dr Anthony Fauci titled "Fauci has been wrong about everything I have interacted with him on." From the op-ed: "When you ask me whether I listen to Dr. Fauci’s advice, my answer is: only with skepticism and caution." According to Johns Hopkins University, the US broke its record for highest number of new coronavirus cases reported in a single day with 67,417 new cases confirmed yesterday. Walmart has announced that it will require all customers wear masks while shopping. A news series of Trump campaign ads warn Americans that they will not be safe in Joe Biden's America. Critics were quick to point out that the footage used in the videos, of violence taking place on the streets, are occurring now, in Trump's America. Kevin Stitt, the Republican governor of Oklahoma, announced that he has tested positive for Covid-19, making him the first governor to contract the coronavirus. Despite being diagnosed as having coronavirus, Stitt claimed he's "not thinking about a mask mandate at all" for Oklahoma as there is "plenty of runway" in terms of hospital beds available and medical resources. Body camera footage of George Floyd's last moments was released to the public. In the video, Floyd said "I can't breathe" more than 20 times. Floyd also called out for his mother and his children before dying. The Floyd family has filed a civil lawsuit against the city of Minneapolis and the police officers charged with his murder. Speaking for the family, Ben Crump, a civil rights attorney stated "This complaint shows what we have said all along, that Mr. Floyd died because the weight of the entire Minneapolis Police Department was on his neck. The City of Minneapolis has a history of policies, procedures and deliberate indifference that violates the rights of arrestees, particularly Black men, and highlights the need for officer training and discipline. This is an unprecedented case, and with this lawsuit we seek to set a precedent that makes it financially prohibitive for police to wrongfully kill marginalized people -- especially Black people -- in the future." Dr Anthony Fauci was interviewed by the Atlantic. Here are some highlights:
- Regarding efforts to discredit him, Fauci said "Well, that is a bit bizarre. I sit here and just shrug my shoulders and say, 'Well, you know, that’s life in the fast lane' ... Ultimately, it hurts the president to do that. When the staff lets out something like that and the entire scientific and press community push back on it, it ultimately hurts the president."
- Regarding Peter Navarro's critical op-ed, Fauci said "I can’t explain Peter Navarro. He’s in a world by himself. So I don’t even want to go there."
- Regarding his past comments on coronavirus which the White House highlighted in a memo: "I stand by everything I said. Contextually, at the time I said it, it was absolutely true ... [The White House document] is totally wrong. It's nonsense. It's completely wrong. The whole thing is wrong. The whole thing is incorrect."
- Fauci was asked to describe the truth about the federal response to the pandemic, to which he replied: "We’ve got to almost reset this and say, 'Okay, let’s stop this nonsense'"
- Fauci was asked: "There's been some reporting that the Trump administration has tried to cut back on your TV interviews. Isn’t it important at this moment for the nation and the world to hear from you?" Fauci's response: "I can’t make a comment on that, but I think you know what the answer to that is."
Trump was asked about Peter Navarro's op-ed, to which he responded: "Well, he made a statement representing himself. He shouldn't be doing that. No, I have a very good relationship with Anthony." According to a story in the LA Times: "[T]here's little doubt that Navarro’s broadside reflected — and appealed to — the president's own frustration with Fauci, who has not been invited to the Oval Office to brief Trump since early June and whose proposed television appearances often have been blocked by the White House. According to one administration official, who was not authorized to speak on the record, Navarro had the president's permission to write the column. 'Not only was he authorized by Trump, he was encouraged,' the official said." Dr Robert Redfield, the CDC director, sent the following tweet: "I believe if everyone, including #Millenials and #GenZ, wear a cloth face covering for the next 4 to 6 weeks, we can get the #COVID19 epidemic under control." Following in the footsteps of his daughter, Donald Trump posted a picture of himself sitting in the Oval Office with several Goya products in front of him on the Resolute Desk. Donald Trump landed in Atlanta, GA, and was met by by a group of greeters on the tarmac, only some of whom were wearing masks. Among those not wearing masks; Donald Trump and Republican governor Brian Kemp. Supreme court justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was discharged from Johns Hopkins Hospital where she was admitted after experiencing a fever and chills and underwent a procedure to clean out a bile duct stent that was placed last year. While she Ginsburg was hospitalized, Trump was asked for his thoughts. Trump's response: "I wish her the best, I hope she's better. ... She's actually giving me some good rulings." Trump announced today that his administration will be making changes to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), to speed the approval of federal projects like highways, mines and gas pipelines. NEPA was signed into law in 1970 by Richard Nixon. According to the Center for Biological Diversity, Trump's rollback to NEPA "drastically curtails environmental reviews for thousands of federal agency projects nationwide, a move that will weaken safeguards for air, water, wildlife and public lands." Larry Hogan, the Republican governor of Maryland, commented on efforts by the Trump administration to discredit Dr Anthony Fauci, the nation's leading infectious disease expert, saying "It's one of the biggest mistakes, I think, that the administration has made throughout this entire coronavirus response, because Dr Fauci is, in my opinion, the most respected guy in the administration, and the voice of truth and reason throughout this pandemic. And there's a number of mistakes that have been made, but I think sidelining him and trying to run this campaign to attack his credibility is one of their biggest mistakes so far."
July 14, 2020 - In Florida, Orange County education leaders voted to recommend reopening schools without the mandatory use of masks or increased social distancing. This action prompted Geoffrey Kaberservice to write the following for the Guardian: "Partisanship is hard-edged here, and not wearing a mask has become a mark of Republican tribal identity. Skepticism of science and experts, along with ingrained contrarianism – some otherwise sane Floridians I know resolutely maintain that the virus is a hoax, or no worse than seasonal flu – surely plays a role in some cases as well. Floridians historically have shown a ferocious individualism and an unwillingness to abide by state government restrictions. In addition, the severe economic damage inflicted by the shutdown surely has made people more willing to engage in magical thinking about how the dangers of the virus have been inflated by the media and the establishment, including the mistaken belief that hot weather prevents virus spread. ... The pandemic laid bare the incompetence of the Trump administration, which took much too long to put widespread testing in place and has yet to implement contact tracing on the scale that's needed. But the pandemic also has shown the weakness of America’s federal structure and its insufficient state capacity relative to other developed countries, where governments have implemented more uniform and effective national responses. Perhaps one of the pandemic’s legacies will be greater citizen insistence on competent government." Joe Biden, the Democratic nominee for president, released his first general election ad. The ad, which addresses coronavirus, includes this statement: "We can stop the spread but it’s up to all of us to do it. We have to step up and do both the simple things and the hard things to keep our families and our neighbors safe. Wear a mask. Wash your hands. Stay home if you can and socially distance when you go out." Writing for the Guardian, Richard Wolffe offers this analysis of Trump's credibility: "Credibility was one of the most potent weapons in America's arsenal of soft power. The kind of potency that allowed Kennedy's secretary of state to convince Charles de Gaulle to support his case against the Soviet Union in the Cuban missile crisis. Based on Kennedy's word, not the photographic evidence. Today America's credibility has been contorted to protect the feelings of one man-child, not the security of a nation. That's why someone like Anthony Fauci is so deeply offensive to the factory of fraud built inside this White House." Adm. Brett Giroir, a senior member of the coronavirus task force, was asked about the accusation Donald Trump retweeted yesterday that the CDC and "most" doctors are lying about the outbreak of coronavirus. Giroir responded that mistakes have been made and that public guidance is updated as more is learned "but none of us lie. We are completely transparent with the American people." Four former members of the CDC penned an op-ed in the Washington Post which is critical of lawmakers who have politicized the agency. Those members are Tom Frieden, Jeffrey Koplan, David Satcher and Richard Besser. From the op-ed: "As America begins the formidable task of getting our kids back to school and all of us back to work safely amid a pandemic that is only getting worse, public health experts face two opponents: covid-19, but also political leaders and others attempting to undermine the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. As the debate last week around reopening schools more safely showed, these repeated efforts to subvert sound public health guidelines introduce chaos and uncertainty while unnecessarily putting lives at risk." Kayleigh McEnany, the White House press secretary, sent the following tweet: "Our police officers are selfless heroes, but Joe Biden calls them 'the ENEMY' Ilhan Omar calls them 'CANCER' AOC says must 'DEFUND' Police secure our streets and keep the peace. The radical left can't have their way!" FACT CHECK: The reference to Joe Biden was taken out of context. Here's Biden's full quote: "Surplus military equipment for law enforcement: they don’t need that. The last thing you need is an up-armored Humvee coming into a neighborhood; it’s like the military invading. They don’t know anybody, they become the enemy; they’re supposed to be protecting these people." Florida set a new record in single-day coronavirus deaths, reporting 132 deaths in the last 24 hours. Ivanka Trump, the president's daughter, launched a new ad campaign called "Find Something New" which is meant to encourage unemployed Americans to change careers. Here are some notable responses to the "Find Something New" campaign:
"Telling people to get out there and 'Find Something New' during a pandemic and depression is some of the most tone-deaf shit I have ever heard. Surprised the logo isn't @IvankaTrump stepping on a peasant as she struts into her castle." - Tommy Vietor, Former National Security Council Spokesperson
"Honestly just realized that #findsomethingnew is the actual White House hashtag for its response to the unemployment crisis and not a dark joke" - Michelle Goldberg, New York Times Columnist
"Ivanka will have to #FindSomethingNew when her dad loses his re-election this November." - Molly Jong-Fast, Daily Beast Editor
Justin Trudeau, the Canadian Prime Minister, sent the following tweet detailing a call with president Trump: "This morning, I spoke on the phone with @POTUS Trump. We focused on the new NAFTA, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the ongoing situation in Hong Kong. We also discussed the Black Lives Matter movement and the need to end systemic racism." The White House released a readout of the call, which makes no mention of the pandemic, Hong Kong, or the Black Lives Matter movement. Morgan Griffith, a Republican congressman from Virginia, and vocal advocate for reopening schools, has tested positive for coronavirus. Last week, Griffith spoke at a press conference where he said: "We also heard it's not a matter of safe versus unsafe. It's about making sure that we mitigate the risks which we can easily do, we can take care of the students, we can take care of the teachers." Ghislaine Maxwell, friend of Jeffrey Epstein and Donald Trump, plead not guilty regarding her alleged involvement in sex trafficking minor girls. Joe Biden made the following remarks today: "It's gotten bad enough that even Donald Trump finally decided to wear a mask in public. I'm glad he made the shift. But Mr. President, it's not enough. ... Mr President, ‘Open everything now’ isn't a strategy for success. It's barely a slogan. Mr President, please listen to your public health experts, instead of denigrating them. Do your job, Mr President. Because if we can't deal with a public health crisis. we can't deal with the economic crisis." The Trump administration has agreed to rescind its policy on foreign student visas which would have prevented students who are earning their degrees entirely online from staying in the country. Dr Robert Redfield, the director of the CDC, made the following statement during a webinar with the Journal of the American Medical Association: "I do think the fall and the winter of 2020 and 2021 are going to be the probably one of the most difficult times that we experienced in American public health." According to the Guardian: "A number of public health experts have warned a 'second wave' of coronavirus infections is likely later this year, but members of the Trump administration have downplayed or outright dismissed such predictions." Trump sat down with CBS News reporter Catherine Herridge. Here are some highlights from the interview:
- Herridge asked Trump why black Americans are "still dying at the hands of law enforcement in this country?" Trump's response: "So are white people. So are white people. What a terrible question to ask. So are white people. More people, by the way. More white people." FACT CHECK: A 2018 study showed black Americans are roughly 3.5 times more likely to be killed by law enforcement. A 2016 study found that black Americans are 2.8 times more likely to be killed, and were more likely to be unarmed than white or Hispanic victims.
- Herridge asked Trump about the debate over displaying the Confederate flag. Trump's response: "All I say is freedom of speech. It’s very simple. My attitude is freedom of speech. Very strong views on the Confederate flag. With me, it’s freedom of speech. Very simple. Like it, don’t like it, it's freedom of speech." NOTE: Critics of the Confederate flag say it is a symbol of white supremacy.
According to an AP-NORC poll, 61% of Americans agree that police are more likely to use deadly force against black people. Trump held a news conference today. Here are some highlights:
- Trump declared that "Hong Kong will now be treated the same as mainland China. No special privileges, no special economic treatment and no export of sensitive technologies." Trump then lashed out at Democrats and Joe Biden, calling Biden weak on China.
- Trump stated "Think of this: If we didn’t do testing — instead of testing over 40 million people, if we did half the testing we’d have half the cases." FACT CHECK: We wouldn't have fewer coronavirus cases if we tested less, we'd just be reporting less cases.
- Trump claimed Joe Biden's son Hunter was "jobless" when he was appointed to the board of Burisma, a Ukrainian energy company. FACT CHECK: When Hunter Biden was appointed to the board at Burisma he was employed at a law firm, and as an adjunct professor at Georgetown University, and he was CEO of his own investment advisory company.
- Trump claimed Biden would "abolish law enforcement as we know it." FACT CHECK: Biden's platform does not include any proposal to abolish law enforcement.
According to the Guardian: "A federal appellate court has agreed to temporarily freeze a lower court order shutting down the Dakota Access Pipeline, allowing the pipeline to stay operational." Steve Watkins, A Republican representative from Kansas, has been charged with three felonies and a misdemeanor over allegations he illegally voted in a 2019 municipal election. US supreme court justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has been admitted to a hospital for treatment for a possible infection.
July 13, 2020 - Coronavirus deaths in the US now exceed 135,000. More than 3.2 million cases have been confirmed across the US. According to the Washington Post, Dr Anthony Fauci was scheduled to make numerous media appearances last week, but those appearances were cancelled by the White House. Donald Trump retweeted a claim by game show host Chuck Woolery, which makes the following claim: "The most outrageous lies are the ones about Covid-19. Everyone is lying. The CDC, Media, Democrats, our Doctors, not all but most, that we are told to trust. I think it's all about the election and keeping the economy from coming back, which is about the election. I'm sick of it." Some notable reactions to Trump's retweet:
"Paranoia kills." - Pete Buttigieg
"That POTUS retweeted this nonsense says to me: 1. He lacks interest in slowing or halting #COVID19 2. The strategy is continue deflecting, first China, then @WHO, now the scientists themselves 3. We’ll need to seek a branch of Govt still willing or able to lead a federal response" - Professor Peter Hotez MD Phd
The Washington Redskins have formally announced that they will be retiring their racist nickname. Kayleigh McEnany, the White House press secretary, was asked about Robert Mueller's op-ed regarding Trump's decision to commute Roger Stone's prison sentence. McEnany's response: "He had to come up with process crimes, which is exactly what was done in the case of Roger Stone." According to the Washington Post, Trump has made more than 20,000 false or misleading claims as president. Seventeen states and the District of Columbia have sued the Trump administration to block new restrictions on foreign student visas that are related to universities moving to online classes in the fall, and ICE issuing new guidance last week saying foreign students earning their degrees entirely online cannot stay in the US. Maura Healey, the Massachusetts attorney general, responded to the ICE rule saying: "The Trump administration didn’t even attempt to explain the basis for this senseless rule, which forces schools to choose between keeping their international students enrolled and protecting the health and safety of their campuses." The Association of American Medical Colleges issued a statement in support of Dr Anthony Fauci saying in part: "The AAMC is extremely concerned and alarmed by efforts to discredit Anthony Fauci, MD, our nation's top infectious disease expert. Dr. Fauci has been an independent and outspoken voice for truth as the nation has struggled to fight the coronavirus pandemic. As we are seeing from the surge in COVID-19 cases in areas that have reopened, science and facts—not wishful thinking or politics—must guide America's response to this pandemic. ... Taking quotes from Dr. Fauci out of context to discredit his scientific knowledge and judgment will do tremendous harm to our nation's efforts to get the virus under control, restore our economy, and return us to a more normal way of life. America should be applauding Dr. Fauci for his service and following his advice, not undermining his credibility at this critical time." Larry Kudlow, the White House economic adviser, appeared on Fox News where he said "I think the president would be willing to consider additional funding for state and local governments if the schools do reopen, so that’s perhaps an incentive." The states of New York and New Jersey announced that any travelers from a list of states with high levels of coronavirus must provide contact info to officials, and must quarantine for two weeks. Andrew Cuomo, the governor of New York sent the following tweet: "President Trump is attacking science. He is denying reality and jeopardizing public health. It is gross negligence." Kayleight McEnany held a White House briefing, here are some highlights:
- McEnany opened the briefing by noting that Trump would soon be holding a roundtable discussion to "hear stories of families positively impacted by law enforcement." McEnany aso stated that Trump "stands with our police officers" and "stands on the side of law and order to ensure peace on our streets."
- McEnany was asked about White House efforts to undercut the credibility of Dr Anthony Fauci by sharing "opposition research" with news outlets. McEnany's response: "There’s no opposition research being dumped to reporters ... The notion of opposition research and 'Fauci versus the president' couldn't be further from the truth. Dr Fauci and the president have a good working relationship."
- McEnany was asked about Trump's commutation of Roger Stone's sentence. McEnany responded that the commutation was a "very important moment for justice in this country" adding that the Russia investigation that led to his conviction was "completely bogus."
- McEnany was asked about Trump's debunked claim that expanded coronavirus testing has caused the increase in the number of cases in the US. McEnany emphasized in her response that more tests reveal more cases. McEnany also pointed out that the rate of coronavirus deaths has not risen as sharply as the rate of new cases in recent weeks. NOTE: Public health experts have warned that the death toll often lags behind new cases. The seven-day average of daily coronavirus deaths now stands at 710, which is up from 471 a week ago.
Here are some highlights from Trump's roundtable in support of police officers:
- Trump was asked about the White House's criticism of Dr Anthony Fauci. Trump responded: "I have a very good relationship with Dr Fauci ... very nice person ... I don’t always agree with him."
- Trump claimed "I'm getting rave reviews for what I did for Roger Stone" despite criticism from both Democrats and Republicans.
- Trump claimed regarding schools reopening: "Schools should be opened. You're losing a lot of lives by keeping things closed."
- Trump addressed coronavirus saying: "I think what China has done to the world with the China plague ... the China virus ... what they did to the world should not be forgotten."
- Trump claimed the US has "one of the lowest mortality rates anywhere. FACT CHECK: According to experts, there are at least 14 countries with a lower death rate than the US.
- Trump claimed "Biden & Obama stopped their testing ... I'm sure you don't want to report it" FACT CHECK: Covid-19 did not exist during the Obama presidency.
- Trump falsely suggested the 1918 pandemic started in 1917.
Steve Jones, a federal judge, has blocked a Georgia law passed in 2019 which sought to ban abortions once there was a detectable heartbeat. According to a new study, 5.4m people have lost their health insurance due to covid-19 job losses.
July 12, 2020 - Robert Mueller, the former special counsel, wrote an op-ed for the Washington Post. From the article: "The work of the special counsel's office – its report, indictments, guilty pleas and convictions – should speak for itself ... But I feel compelled to respond both to broad claims that our investigation was illegitimate and our motives were improper, and to specific claims that Roger Stone was a victim of our office ... Stone was prosecuted and convicted because he committed federal crimes. He remains a convicted felon, and rightly so." Trump responded to criticism regarding the amount of golf he plays tweeting: "Actually, I play VERY fast, get a lot of work done on the golf course, and also get a 'tiny' bit of exercise. Not bad!" Trump also claimed that his predecessor Barack Obama played "more and much longer" than he does. NOTE: News outlets that have tracked the number of times Trump has golfed since becoming president say he has played considerably more than Obama did. Trump spent the day today at one of his golf courses, his 259th visit to one of his golf courses during his 1,270 days in office. Admiral Brett P Giroir, a member of the White House coronavirus task force, appeared on NBC's Meet the Press, where he was asked about news reports that Dr Anthony Fauci had been sidelined by the coronavirus task force. Giroir's response: "There is complete, open, honest discussion within the task force ... Believe me, if there’s a public health opinion that needs to be said, that needs to be it. And I respect Dr Fauci a lot, but Dr Fauci is not 100% right and he also doesn’t necessarily, he admits that, have the whole national interest in mind. He looks at it from a very narrow public health point of view. But let me just say, there is absolutely open discourse. I feel absolutely free saying anything to the vice president within those rooms. ... It’s got to be science driving the policy. And that’s the way it is." Giroir was also asked about the importance of wearing masks, as Trump has only made one public appearance wearing a mask. Giroir's response: "I think the public health people have been very, very clear that mask-wearing is essential. It's very important that we can really decrease the transmission. You may not protect yourself, but you really protect everyone else. And the Surgeon General says it very well. 'Covid stops with me.' If you want it to stop with you, wear a mask." Larry Hogan, the Republican governor of Maryland, also appeared on Meet the Press, where he was asked about Trump's leadership during the covid-19 crisis. Hogan's response: "there's no question that mistakes were made, that we, we should have had a national testing strategy. That we should have been on top of this. that we should have had a much more clear national strategy and been communicating much earlier on in the process." Betsy DeVos, the US education secretary, was interviewed on CNN's State of the Union. Here are some highlights:
- Stating that there will be exceptions, DeVos said "the rule should be that kids go back to school this fall."
- DeVos stated "We know that children get the virus at a far lower rate than any other part of the population and again there is nothing in the data that would suggest that kids being back in school is dangerous to them. And in fact it’s more a matter of their health and wellbeing that they be back in school."
- DeVos said it is up to schools to decide how to reopen safely, adding there is "no one uniform approach that we can take or should take nationwide." NOTE: The CDC has issued guidelines - which Donald Trump has said he disagrees with - for school reopening, including spacing desks six feet apart, children wearing face masks, installation of sneeze guards, and closing communal areas such as dining rooms.
- DeVos was asked if schools should follow the CDC guidelines. DeVos refused to say whether schools should follow the guidelines, instead saying the guidelines are "flexible" and should be "applied as appropriate for the situation".
- DeVos was asked what schools should do if there is an outbreak. DeVos responded that as a "non-medical expert" she could not say, but that "every school" should have plans to continue learning at a distance.
- DeVos was asked about Trump's threat to cut funding to schools that don't reopen physically in full. DeVos responded that there is "no desire to take money away."
Nancy Pelosi, the House Speaker, responded to Betsy DeVos's claims that schools are safe calling the comments "appalling" and a "malfeasance and dereliction of duty." Pelosi also stated: "The president and his administration are messing with the health of our children. We all want our children to go back to school. Teachers do, parents do and children do. But they must go back safely." Larry Hogan, the Republican governor of Maryland, appeared on NBC's Meet The Press where he was asked if Trump's commutation of Roger Stone's sentence made it look like "if you’re close to the president you get a break, if you’re not, you go to jail". Hogan's response: "Well, there’s no question that’s the appearance and it’s a problem. And look, Roger Stone has, is convicted of seven felonies. Look, the president does have the right by law to take the action he took. That doesn’t mean he should have. And we’ve got a guy whose convicted of seven felonies, a couple months before an election, for the president to take this action, it’s certainly gonna hurt politically." During an appearance on Fox News, Donald Trump Jr blamed Trump's poor polling numbers on the media, saying in part: "When you have the media onslaught, where media has just totally abdicated their position to objectively look at both sides, they’re not looking into any of Biden’s past, they’re not looking into any of his history, they’re not looking into his family’s graft. They’re not looking into how insanely soft he’s been on China." Robert Reich, former economic adviser to Barack Obama, wrote an op-ed for the Guardian in which he says: "Donald Trump has not only refused to contain Covid-19 but is actively pushing Americans into harm’s way, demanding the nation 'reopen' while cases and deaths continue to rise. Meanwhile, he's siphoning federal money intended to dampen the economic crisis into the pockets of his cronies and family. And he is deliberately stoking racial tensions to energize his 'base' for the upcoming election. As if this weren't enough, Trump continues to attack the rule of law, on which a democracy depends in order to deal with these and all other challenges." Nancy Pelosi responded to the commutation of Roger Stone calling it "staggering corruption" followed by "But I think it’s important for people to also know that it’s a threat to our natural security ... So ... we will have legislation that says a president cannot commute or pardon or offer clemency to anybody who commits a crime, is convicted of a crime that affects the president’s behavior and his culpability." Tik Tok users once again trolled the Trump campaign after 100's of thousands flooded Apple's App Store to provide negative feedback on the official Trump campaign app and to give the app the lowest possible rating. According to NBC News, the Trump administration is working to "discredit" and "marginalize" Dr Anthony Fauci, America's top infectious disease expert, because of his dire assessment of the nation's coronavirus response. According to the story, White House aides have been providing news outlets with lists of "mistakes" they claim Fauci has made. From the story: "A White House official told NBC News that 'several White House officials are concerned about the number of times Dr. Fauci has been wrong on things.' The official provided NBC News with a lengthy list of past comments by Fauci earlier in the pandemic, including Fauci saying in January that coronavirus was 'not a major threat' and 'not driven by asymptomatic carriers' and Fauci’s comment in March that 'people should not be walking around with masks.' Many of the past statements the White House is criticizing Fauci for are ones that were based on the best available data at the time and were widely echoed by Trump, other members of the task force and senior White House officials. As Surgeon General Jerome Adams told CBS News on Sunday, 'When you learn more, you change those recommendations. Our recommendations have changed.' ... The list circulated by the White House bears striking resemblance to the opposition research that political candidates often circulate to the media about their opponents." Sylvester Turner, the mayor of Houston, TX, is calling for the city to lock down following hospitalizations that have reached record high levels for the 14th straight day saying: "We have to acknowledge the fact that we opened too quickly, too soon. We have to acknowledge the fact that the numbers are continuing to rise. We have to recognize the fact that not everybody is going to put on this mask. Let's just be real, even with the requirement. Knowing all of that and knowing what works, you've got to recalibrate."
July 11, 2020 - More than 130,000 Americans have died from coronavirus. Blake Neff, one of Fox host Tucker Carlson's top writers, has resigned. The resignation comes in the wake of a CNN investigation which found that Neff was posting racist and sexist comments online under the pseudonym "CharlesXII". Some examples of some of Neff's posts:
- In June, Neff posted the comment "Black doods staying inside playing Call of Duty is probably one of the biggest factors keeping crime down."
- Neff harassed a woman online by posting information about her personal life, and encouraged others to post private information about her.
Tucker Carlson didn't respond to the Neff story directly, but seemed to reference it indirectly when he did a segment on "cancel culture", saying "We are in a situation where it's really individuals against the mob. Online, other news organizations – CNN particularly. How can people stand up to the mob and prevail?" Dr Peter Hotez, the dean of tropical medicine at Baylor College of Medicine, warned that if covid-19 is not brought under control the US could see "one of the most unstable times in the history of our country." During an interview with the Financial Times, Dr Anthony Fauci said he had not directly briefed the president in two months. Fauci also said: "You have a random virus jump species from an animal to a human that is spectacularly efficient in spreading from human to human, and has a high degree, relatively speaking, of morbidity and mortality. We are living in the perfect storm right now." Kelly Loeffler, a Republican senator, who also owns the WNBA's Atlanta Dream, objected to a proposal that players on her team would wear Black Lives Matter slogans on their uniforms when the league resumes later this summer. Loeffler responded saying: "I adamantly oppose the Black Lives Matter political movement, which has advocated for the defunding of police, called for the removal of Jesus from churches and the disruption of the nuclear family structure, harbored anti-Semitic views, and promoted violence and destruction across the country. I believe it is totally misaligned with the values and goals of the WNBA and the Atlanta Dream, where we support tolerance and inclusion." NOTE: Black Lives Matter is a decentralized movement, and does not have official policies. The players of the Atlanta Dream released the following statement: "We are the women of the Atlanta Dream. We are women who support a movement. We are strong and we are fearless. We offer a voice to the voiceless. Our team is united in the Movement for Black Lives. It is not extreme to demand change after centuries of inequality. This is not a political statement. This is a statement of humanity." A commission at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill has voted in favor of a recommendation to rename four campus buildings that currently have ties to slaveholders or white supremacists. During a trip to Walter Reed medical center, Donald Trump was seen wearing a mask. It is the first time since the pandemic began that Trump has been seen wearing a mask in public. Trump visited the Trump National Golf Club in northern Virginia, where he played his 275th round of golf since becoming president.
July 10, 2020 - According to the Guardian: "The Department of Homeland Security has deployed officers in tactical gear from around the country, and from more than a half-dozen federal law enforcement agencies and departments, to Portland, Oregon, as part of a surge aimed at what a senior official said were people taking advantage of demonstrations to commit violence and vandalism." An ABC News/Ipsos poll finds that 33% of respondents approve of Trump's handling of coronavirus. In a March poll, the approval was at 55%. During a phone interview with Sean Hannity, Trump boasted about his results on a mental acuity test saying: "[Biden] hasn't taken any cognitive tests because he couldn’t pass. I actually took one very recently, when the radical left was saying 'Is he all there? Is he all there?', and I proved that I was all there, because I aced it. I aced the test. He should take the same exact test, it's a very standard test. I took it at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in front of the doctors, and they were very surprised, they said 'That's an unbelievable thing, rarely does anybody do what you just did', but he should take that same test." One notable response to Trump's boast:
"Even if it were true, 'the doctors were *very* surprised I passed a cognitive test' is not really the slam dunk the president thinks it is." - Kevin M. Kruse, Historian, Author.
Bob Unanue, the President and CEO of Goya Foods, made the following statement about Donald Trump: "We're all truly blessed at the same time to have a leader like president Trump who is a builder, and that’s what my grandfather did. He came to this country to build, to grow, to prosper. And so we have an incredible builder, and we pray for our leadership, our president, and we pray for our country that we will continue to prosper and to grow." After Unanue made the comment, #Goyaway and #BoycottGoya began to trend on twitter. Some notable responses to Unanue's praising of Trump:
".@GoyaFoods has been a staple of so many Latino households for generations. Now their CEO, Bob Unanue, is praising a president who villainizes and maliciously attacks Latinos for political gain. Americans should think twice before buying their products. #Goyaway" - Julian Castro
"Oh look, it's the sound of me Googling 'how to make your own Adobo'" - Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
Unanue was invited on to Fox & Friends to address the calls to boycott where he called the reaction a double-standard and "suppression of speech". Dr Anthony Fauci was asked about Trump's recent claim that 99% of infections from coronavirus are "totally harmless". Fauci responded: "I’m trying to figure out where the president got that number. What I think happened is that someone told him that the general mortality is about 1%. And he interpreted, therefore, that 99% is not a problem, when that's obviously not the case." While speaking to the press outside the White House, Trump suggested that Obama, Biden and James Comey should be facing prison terms, not Roger Stone because "we caught them spying on my campaign. Who would have believed that one?". Trump continued: "I think Roger Stone was very unfairly treated, as were many people." Trump also sad he is "looking at" a pardon for Stone. Trump also accused Biden of copying his campaign platform after Biden unveiled a $700 billion plan to invest in American industry. Trump had planned to unveil a similar "buy American" plan, but it had been held up for months due to internal White House objections. According to Trump's critics, Trump is accusing Biden of plagiarizing a plan that Trump has not yet made public. An article in the Washington Post discusses Trump's "woe is me" attitude in the wake of public unrest and a global pandemic: "The president rants about the deadly coronavirus destroying 'the greatest economy,' one he claims to have personally built. He laments the unfair 'fake news' media, which he vents never gives him any credit. And he bemoans the 'sick, twisted' police officers in Minneapolis, whose killing of an unarmed black man in their custody provoked the nationwide racial justice protests that have confounded the president. Gone, say these advisers and confidants, many speaking on the condition of anonymity to detail private conversations, are the usual pleasantries and greetings. Instead, Trump often launches into a monologue placing himself at the center of the nation's turmoil. The president has cast himself in the starring role of the blameless victim — of a deadly pandemic, of a stalled economy, of deep-seated racial unrest, all of which happened to him rather than the country." Joe Biden responded to Trump's "woe is me" attitude saying in part "He's like a child who can't believe this has happened to him -- all his whining and self pity. This pandemic didn't happen to him. It happened to all of us. And his job isn't to whine about it, his job is to do something about it -- to lead." According to the Boston Globe, a planned Trump rally in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, is creating unease for some of the town's residents. From the story: "Lucy Bloomfield was engaging in a particular kind of panic shopping on Thursday afternoon, preparing not for a natural disaster or an illness but instead for President Trump’s campaign rally here on Saturday. She planned to stay far from it, hunkered down at home with everything she might need to weather the weekend. 'I've been referring to it as 'The Super-Spreader in Chief' is coming,' Bloomfield, 57, said in the parking lot of the Market Basket, as she loaded groceries into her truck. As the president's rally looms, some residents, store owners, and elected officials fretted about the coronavirus pandemic and the divisiveness of the expected crowd, while a growing chorus of health care professionals and others asked Governor Chris Sununu to require masks at the event." Kayleigh McEnany, the White House press secretary, told reporters aboard Air Force One that Trump's rally in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, will be delayed "a week or two" because of a "big storm" headed for the area. Notable responses to the rally cancellation:
"Our forecast for Portsmouth at 8 PM on Saturday is Partly Cloudy and 78 F." - Keith Carson, Meteorologist
"The storm is coming, and his name is @JoeBiden." - TJ Ducklo, National Press Secretary for Joe Biden Campaign
"Interesting. In 2018 Trump rallied in Penn while a hurricane hit Florida, saying he couldn't disappoint his fans. Have also seen him more than once tell a crowd he flew through bad weather just to be with them." - Katie Rogers, White House Reporter
According to the AP, Trump campaign officials have voiced concern about how many people would show up for tomorrow's rally. From the story: "The Portsmouth rally was scheduled after aides spent weeks studying what went wrong in Tulsa three weeks ago. It was billed as a massive, defiant return to the political stage but instead produced a humiliating sea of empty seats and questions about the campaign's ability to attract people to large events in a pandemic. ... It was unclear how many people would attend the New Hampshire rally, campaign officials acknowledged. Conceding that another sparse crowd would raise questions about the future of Trump's rallies, the campaign [had] taken additional steps to make attendees feel safe. ... [W]hile masks were distributed in Tulsa, few rallygoers wore them after weeks of Trump deriding their use. This time, the campaign [had] strongly encouraged their use." Trump sent the following tweet regarding the Portsmouth rally: "With Tropical Storm Fay heading towards the Great State of New Hampshire this weekend, we are forced to reschedule our Portsmouth, New Hampshire Rally at the Portsmouth International Airport at Pease. Stay safe, we will be there soon! #MAGA2020" NOTE: Tropical storm Fay is not expected to make landfall in Portsmouth. Trump sent the following tweet: "Too many Universities and School Systems are about Radical Left Indoctrination, not Education. Therefore, I am telling the Treasury Department to re-examine their Tax-Exempt Status and/or Funding, which will be taken away if this Propaganda or Act Against Public Policy continues. Our children must be Educated, not Indoctrinated!" Chuck Schumer, the Senate minority leader, sent the following tweet: "We all want our schools to re-open. But if we want them to open safely for our students, workers, and families, our schools and child care providers need MORE federal funding to make it happen. President Trump's erratic demands and threats won’t do anything to keep people safe." During a roundtable in support of the people of Venezuela, Trump made the following comments: "Joe Biden is a puppet of Bernie Sanders, AOC, the militant left, the people that want to rip down statues and monuments to George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin. ... Jesus! Okay, Jesus. They want to rip down statues to Jesus." NOTE: Biden has stated that he prefers that Confederate statues and monuments be taken down through legislative action rather than be torn down by protesters, and he has not expressed support for removing statues of American leaders like Washington and Jefferson. During an interview with Telemundo, Trump claimed that in the coming weeks he will be signing "a big immigration bill." NOTE: Bills are authored by Congress, and no such bill has been sent to Trump for his signature. Trump was then asked if this was an executive order, to which he responded, "I'm gonna do a big executive order, I have the power to do it as president, and I'm going to make DACA a part of it." The White House announced that Donald Trump commuted the prison sentence of Roger Stone. In the White House statement, Stone was described as the "victim of the Russia Hoax". NOTE: Stone was convicted of lying to Congress, witness tampering and obstruction. Some notable reactions to the news about Stone:
"The United States was founded on the rule of law. It seems our president has nothing but contempt for it." - Mark Warner
"President Trump has engaged in countless acts that are both self-serving and destructive to our democracy while in office, but commuting the sentence of Roger Stone, a crony who lied and obstructed our investigation to protect Trump himself, is among the most offensive to the rule of law and principles of justice." - Adam Schiff
"President Trump has once again abused his power, releasing this commutation on a Friday night, hoping to yet again avoid scrutiny as he lays waste to the norms and the values that make our country a shining beacon to the rest of the world. He will not be shamed. He will only be stopped when Americans make their voice heard at the ballot box this fall. Enough." - Bill Russo, Spokesperson for Vice President Joe Biden
"Unprecedented, historic corruption: an American president commutes the sentence of a person convicted by a jury of lying to shield that very president." - Mitt Romney
"Roger Stone committed a series of well-documented crimes that are not seriously contested. This is what despots do: wield the law like a weapon to attack political opponents and protect loyal cronies. It's a disgraceful, dark day for American democracy." - Brian Klass, Professor of Global Politics
July 9, 2020 - Keisha Lance Bottoms, the mayor of Atlanta, signed an executive order mandating masks in that city, which defied Brian Kemp, the governor, who feels that masks should be strongly encouraged, but not required. Other cities in Georgia have taken a similar approach. Writing for the Guardian, David Ferguson offered this critique of Kemp's approach to the pandemic: "At no point has science or any interest in the facts driven the governor’s policy decisions. Now, as the Republican party belatedly caves to the necessity of wearing face coverings in public, Kemp has joined the pro-mask chorus – but only because otherwise there might not be a college football season. Because that's what counts in Georgia: not our neighbors, especially black Georgians, getting decimated in the early stages of the outbreak, not the health and welfare of the state's healthcare workers and their families, but the God-given right of all Georgia's people to assemble in outdoor stadiums and watch black bodies break themselves on a field for sport." News surfaced that a wooden sculpture of first lady Melania Trump near her home town of Sevnica, Slovenia, was set on fire during the US independence day weekend. Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the chief of the World Health Organization, offered the following critique of the pandemic: "It is often said that disease knows no borders. It does not care about our political differences, and it disregards the distinctions we draw between health and economy, lives and livelihoods. The #COVID19 pandemic has disrupted them all. It has exploited the inequalities in our health systems and the schisms in our societies. It has exposed existing inequities, widening and deepening the cracks between us. The virus has upended health systems in some of the world’s wealthiest nations, while some countries that have mounted a successful response have been of modest means. But in most of the world the virus is not under control. It is getting worse. 11.8+M cases of Covid-19 have now been reported to WHO. More than 544,000 lives have been lost. The pandemic is still accelerating. The total number of cases has doubled in the last six weeks." According to the Guardian, there have been a large number of car-driven attacks on Black Lives Matter protesters in recent weeks. From the story: "Last month a report from the University of Chicago's Project on Security and Threats concluded that rightwing extremists were behind at least 50 vehicle-ramming incidents since the latest waves of protests began in late May. At least 18 were categorized as deliberate while another two dozen were considered unclear as to motivation, or were still under investigation. 'The message they're trying to send is, 'You need to get out of the street and stop these protests,' Ari Weil, a terrorism researcher and the report's author, told NPR." Trump sent the following tweets today: "PRESIDENTIAL HARASSMENT!" and "PROSECUTORIAL MISCONDUCT!" The tweets are widely believed to be related to some rulings that are expected to be handed down from the Supreme Court today. Trump also sent the following in a tweet: "For the 1/100th time, the reason we show so many Cases, compared to other countries that haven’t done nearly as well as we have, is that our TESTING is much bigger and better. We have tested 40,000,000 people. If we did 20,000,000 instead, Cases would be half, etc. NOT REPORTED!" NOTE: Testing levels have increased in the US, but the number of new cases has outpaced the increase in testing, and the positivity rate of tests was also on the rise in several states. In a 7-2 decision, the Supreme Court ruled that Trump's tax returns and business records may be turned over to a grand jury in New York. Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh, both appointed to the Supreme Court by Trump, ruled with the majority. Writing for the majority, chief justice John Roberts wrote in part: "Two hundred years ago, a great jurist of our Court established that no citizen, not even the President, is categorically above the common duty to produce evidence when called upon in a criminal proceeding. We reaffirm that principle today and hold that the President is neither absolutely immune from state criminal subpoenas seeking his private papers nor entitled to a heightened standard of need." In another ruling regarding House subpoenas for Trump's financial records, the Supreme Court sent the case back down to a lower court to more closely consider separation of powers issues. Trump sent the following tweets regarding these decisions: "Courts in the past have given “broad deference”. BUT NOT ME!" and "The Supreme Court sends case back to Lower Court, arguments to continue. This is all a political prosecution. I won the Mueller Witch Hunt, and others, and now I have to keep fighting in a politically corrupt New York. Not fair to this Presidency or Administration!" Geoffrey Berman, the former US Attorney for the Southern District of New York, testified today before the House judiciary committee. Here are some highlights:
- Berman explained that William Barr urged him to quit before firing him. According to Berman: "The Attorney General said that if I did not resign from my position I would be fired. He added that getting fired from my job would not be good for my resume or future job prospects. I told him that while I did not want to get fired, I would not resign."
- Berman said that Barr told him the push for his resignation was unrelated to job performance. Instead the move was "prompted by Jay Clayton’s desire to move back to New York and the Administration’s desire to keep him on the team." Berman said he "told the Attorney General that I knew and liked Jay Clayton but he was an unqualified choice for U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York because he was never an AUSA and had no criminal experience."
- Berman recounted how after Barr told him he would call him the following day, he instead issued a statement saying Berman had resigned. According to Berman "That statement was false."
Mark Esper, the secretary of defense, and General Mark Milley, the chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, testified before the House Armed Services Committee on the subject of the military's role in civilian law enforcement. Here are some highlights:
- Esper was asked about the fact that Trump had threatened to invoke the Insurrection Act to deploy active duty troops to US cities during large scale protests after the death of George Floyd. Esper responded that "As a former soldier and member of the National Guard, I’m a firm believer that in these situations the [national] guard is best suited to provide domestic support to civil authorities in support of law enforcement. Using active duty forces in a direct law enforcement role should remain a last resort, and only in the most urgent and dire situations."
- Milley stated "I continually assessed and advised that it was not necessary to employ active duty troops in response to the civil unrest occurring in our nation was my view then and remain so now that local, state and federal police backed up by the National Guard under governor control, could and continually can effectively handle the security situation in every case across the country."
- Esper and Milley were asked about the Russian bounties story, which they acknowledged being briefed about earlier this year, Milley in January, Esper in February. According to Milley: "That is a unique discrete piece of information that is not corroborated. You’ve all been briefed on it. I have too, and I and the Secretary and many others are taking it seriously. We’re going to get to the bottom of it. ... And if it is true, we will take action."
- Milley spoke of the Confederacy saying it "was an act of rebellion. It was an act of treason at the time, against the Union, against the Stars and Stripes, against the US Constitution, and those officers turned their back on their own."
Kayleigh McEnany, the White House press secretary, held a press briefing. Here are some highlights:
- McEnany was asked when Trump would release his tax returns, as he promised he would during the 2016 campaign. McEnany responded: "For four years, the president has said the same thing: his taxes are under audit. When they are no longer under audit, he will release them."
- McEnany was asked about Lt Col Alexander Vindman's statement that he was retiring because he was the victim of a retaliation campaign by the White House. McEnany responded: "I’m not going to focus or comment on a former junior employee." NOTE: Vindman served as the top Ukraine expert on the National Security Council.
- McEnany called today's supreme court rulings a "big win" for Trump.
Black Lives Matter was painted on 5th Avenue, directly in front of Trump Tower in New York City. During a meeting with Hispanic leaders, Trump expressed displeasure with today's supreme court rulings saying: "It’s a political witch hunt, the likes of which nobody’s ever seen before. It’s a pure witch hunt, it's a hoax, just like the Mueller investigation was a hoax that I won, and this is another hoax. This is purely political." Trump also expressed his desire for schools to reopen saying "We have to open our schools. Open our schools. Stop this nonsense." According to an internal watchdog report, the White House pressured the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to issue an unscientific statement in support of Trump's false claims that Hurricane Dorian was likely to impact Alabama in September of 2019. According to the IG report, the move "potentially undercut public trust in NOAA’s and the NWS’s science and the apolitical nature of that science."
July 8, 2020 - Coronavirus deaths in the US now stand at 131,594. The number of confirmed cases in the US now exceeds 3 million, representing a quarter of the world's cases. The World Health Organization confirmed that evidence is emerging that the coronavirus is airborne. Some media outlets have received advance copies of Mary Trump's book: "Too Much and Never Enough: How My Family Created the World's Most Dangerous Man". According to the book, Trump allegedly paid someone to take his high school exams, and praised his niece's breasts. According to a Guardian/Opinium Research poll, 91% of Americans agree that racism is a problem in the US. Similarly, 89% think police violence is a problem in the US. Writing for CNN, Stephen Collinson provided the following observation regarding Trump's positioning over school re-openings: "The thorny task of reopening America’s schools, amid fears of a lost generation of school kids unless lessons resume, is a microcosm of the administration’s slapdash approach. While demanding a return to normal - in business, education, leisure and even sports - the White House has rarely provided guidance on how such steps can be taken safely. It has left it to states, cities and individuals to fend their own battles in adopting a hard-core definition of federalism that rejects any traditional notion of presidential duty. Trump’s self-serving implication that his opponents want to keep schools closed to hurt him politically ignores the complicated concerns that administrators, teachers and parents harbor over the prospect of schools staying closed - and the dangers that are inherent in getting classes up and running again." Writing for the Hill, Peter Sullivan offers the following explanation for why the US is doing worse than other countries in fighting COVID-19: "Major European countries for the most part had much stricter and more sustained lockdowns than the US did, allowing the virus to be suppressed to low levels before they tried to reopen. Elsewhere, notably South Korea, an aggressive system of testing, treatment and isolation was able to suppress the virus without resorting to a full lockdown. Other places have had success in part due to mandatory mask requirements throughout the country. All of these elements are missing in the United States. And more broadly, experts say the US simply does not seem to be taking the virus as seriously as other countries." During an interview on MSNBC, Doug Jones, Democratic Senator from Alabama, offered the following comments on the Russia bounties story: "It should be very troubling to all Americans that an adversary like Russia is creating this kind of atmosphere of fear. [The biggest problem] I think for me and most folks in Alabama is, why hasn’t the commander-in-chief stood up and said 'We are going to get to the bottom of this right now, and I’m going to demand some answers from Vladimir Putin and others.' It doesn’t matter if people can agree to disagree within that intelligence community. The one thing that the commander-in-chief ought to be doing is getting answers, and letting the American people know that he will take the appropriate action should he find that it was absolutely true." Harvard and MIT have signaled that they intend to file suit against the Trump Administration over the ruling that overseas students whose courses are delivered exclusively online cannot come into the US. Lawrence S Bacow, the Harvard University president, responded to the ruling saying: "The order came down without notice—its cruelty surpassed only by its recklessness. We believe that the ICE order is bad public policy, and we believe that it is illegal." Donald Trump sent the following tweet: "Death Rate from Coronavirus is down tenfold!" NOTE: Yesterday, Dr Anthony Fauci cautioned against taking comfort in a lower death rate, saying "it's a false narrative". Tucker Carlson, of Fox News, attacked Tammy Duckworth - a combat veteran and Purple Heart recipient who lost both legs while serving in Iraq, accusing her and others like her of hating America, after Duckworth said there should be a "national dialogue" on the removal of monuments. Trump shared video of Tucker questioning Duckworth's patriotism on Twitter, and his campaign released a statement which accused Duckworth of "using her military service to deflect from her support for the left-wing campaign to villainize America’s founding." Duckworth responded to the attacks saying "walk a mile in my legs and then tell me whether or not I love America." Trump sent the following tweet: "In Germany, Denmark, Norway, Sweden and many other countries, SCHOOLS ARE OPEN WITH NO PROBLEMS. The Dems think it would be bad for them politically if U.S. schools open before the November Election, but is important for the children & families. May cut off funding if not open!" NOTE: Administrators, teachers and parents have all expressed concerns over sending students back to school due to increased spread of coronavirus. Many school districts have also voiced concerns over a lack of the additional funding needed to keep students safe. Also, the European countries mentioned in Trump's tweet are not experiencing tens of thousands of new coronavirus cases per day, as is occurring in the US. Trump also sent this tweet: "I disagree with @CDCgov on their very tough & expensive guidelines for opening schools. While they want them open, they are asking schools to do very impractical things. I will be meeting with them!!!" According to CNN, Alexander Vindman, a key impeachment witness, is retiring from the military because of retaliation. From the story: "[Vindman] is retiring from the US Army after more than 21 years of military service because he determined that his future in the armed forces ‘will forever be limited’ due to political retaliation by the President and his allies, his lawyer told CNN Wednesday. Vindman has endured a ‘campaign of bullying, intimidation, and retaliation’ spearheaded by the President following his testimony in the impeachment inquiry last year, according to his attorney, Amb. David Pressman. ... Ultimately, Vindman decided to retire from the military rather than attending the National War College, which was his next planned assignment, after speaking with senior Army officials who made clear that there were forces working against his advancement within the military. Specifically, Vindman was told by senior Army officials that he would no longer be deployable in his area of expertise, which includes Ukraine, the source familiar with the situation told CNN." David Pressman, Vindman's lawyer, offered the following comments: "The President of the United States attempted to force LTC Vindman to choose: Between adhering to the law or pleasing a President. Between honoring his oath or protecting his career. Between protecting his promotion or the promotion of his fellow soldiers. These are choices that no one in the United States should confront, especially one who has dedicated his life to serving it. ... "[Vindman] did what the law compelled him to do; and for that he was bullied by the President and his proxies." Marie Yovanovitch, the former ambassador in Kyiv, responded to news of Vindman saying: "Alex is a decorated combat veteran and has served his country well and honorably. Alex should have received the honor and thanks and recognition of the nation. He deserved better than this. Our country deserved better than this." Vice President Mike Pence held a White House coronavirus task force briefing at the US department of education. Here are some highlights:
- Pence said "It’s time for us to get our kids back to school."
- Betsy DeVos, the education secretary, stated that "It’s not a matter of if schools reopen. It’s simply a matter of how. They must fully open, and they must be fully operational."
- Dr Robert Redfield, the director of the CDC, stated "I want to make it very clear that what is not the intent of CDC’s guidelines is to be used as a rationale to keep schools closed. It’s guidance; it’s not requirements."
- Pence was asked about Trump's tweet criticizing the CDC's "very tough & expensive guidelines for opening schools." Pence responded that "we don't want the guidance from CDC to be a reason that schools don't open" which he explained was the sentiment the president was trying to convey.
- Pence was asked why the president threatened to cut off funding to schools that don't reopen in a tweet today. Pence responded: "What you heard from the president is just a determination to provide the kind of leadership from the federal level that says we’re going to get our kids back to school."
- Pence was asked whether the White House believed schools should adhere to the CDC's recommendations on social distancing between students. Pence responded: "We just don’t want the guidance to be too tough."
According to Reuters, facebook is removing 54 accounts and 50 pages linked to Trump associate Roger Stone. From the story: "The social media platform said Stone and his associates, including a prominent supporter of the right-wing Proud Boys group in Stone’s home state of Florida, had used fake accounts and followers to promote Stone’s books and posts. ... Nathaniel Gleicher, Facebook’s head of cybersecurity policy, said the removals were meant to show that artificially inflating engagement for political impact would be stopped, no matter how well connected the practitioners." According to the AP, Trump's Tulsa rally likely caused a spike in coronavirus cases. From the story: "Donald Trump’s campaign rally in Tulsa in late June that drew thousands of participants and large protests 'likely contributed' to a dramatic surge in new coronavirus cases, Tulsa City-County Health Department Director Dr. Bruce Dart said Wednesday. Tulsa County reported 261 confirmed new cases on Monday, a one-day record high, and another 206 cases on Tuesday. By comparison, during the week before the June 20 Trump rally, there were 76 cases on Monday and 96 on Tuesday. Although the health department’s policy is to not publicly identify individual settings where people may have contracted the virus, Dart said those large gatherings 'more than likely' contributed to the spike. 'In the past few days, we’ve seen almost 500 new cases, and we had several large events just over two weeks ago, so I guess we just connect the dots,' Dart said. Trump's Tulsa rally, his first since the coronavirus pandemic hit the U.S., attracted thousands of people from around the country. About 6,200 people gathered inside the 19,000-seat BOK Center arena — far fewer than was expected." Newly released transcripts of the minutes leading to George Floyd's death reveal that he told officers "I can't breathe" more than 20 times. Derek Chauvin, the officer who knelt on Floyd's neck told Floyd, "It takes a heck of a lot of oxygen to talk." Angela Merkel, the Chancellor of Germany, spoke to the European Union Parliament where she offered the following critique of the pandemic: "We are seeing at the moment that the pandemic can’t be fought with lies and disinformation, and neither can it be with hatred and agitation. Fact-denying populism is being shown its limits."
July 7, 2020 - Deaths in the US from coronavirus has now exceeded 130,000. Dr Anthony Fauci, the leading expert in infectious disease in the US claimed that the country is still "knee-deep in the first wave" of the pandemic. Mike Pompeo, the US secretary of state, stated that the US is looking at banning the social networking video app TikTok. This comes as US lawmakers have raised national security concerns over TikTok's handling of user data. Some critics believe that the motivations are political, as teenage TikTok activism had an impact on attendance at Trump's Tulsa rally. Diaz Love, one of two protesters who was run down by a car in Portland, Oregon, posted to facebook saying "I'm alive and stable ... In a lot of pain. I cannot believe Summer was murdered. If they thought this murder would make us back down, they are very wrong. Very wrong ... My FB is filled with death threats, that and only being able to use one hand has me going slow. I deeply appreciate and feel all the love y'all are sending me." Dawit Kelete, a black man, was arrested for the hit and run that killed Summer Taylor and injured Diaz Love. Michael H Fuchs, a senior fellow at the Center for American Progress, offered this assessment of the Trump administration's reaction to intelligence that Russia is paying a bounty for the deaths of US military personnel: "Despite the fact that this information was known to the Trump administration for at least months, there is no indication that the president has done anything to punish Russia. The White House has not even attempted to convince the public otherwise. To the contrary, Trump has continued his obsequious behavior towards Vladimir Putin. Since the intelligence on bounties was reportedly provided to Trump in February 2020, Trump has spoken with Putin numerous times, praised Putin publicly, invited Russia to rejoin the G7 group of democracies, and announced the withdrawal of thousands of troops from Germany without consulting US allies – a giant gift to the Russian president." Stephen Biegun, the deputy secretary of state, landed in South Korea for discussions on stalled nuclear diplomacy. North Korea released a statement saying North Korea would not take part in the discussions saying "Explicitly speaking once again, we have no intention to sit face to face with US." Axios has published survey results regarding the public's reaction to coronavirus. a couple major takeaways:
- Race and ethnicity are major predictors both of employment status and whether you know someone who’s tested positive for or died from the virus.
- Younger, working-class, Republican-voting men take the pandemic the least seriously.
According to an NBC News/SurveyMonkey weekly tracking poll, 7 out of 10 Americans say they trust their governors more than they trust Trump to decide when to re-open businesses in their area. After heavy criticism, Fox News apologized for cropping Donald Trump out of a photo in which he appeared with his future wife Melania, Jeffrey Epstein, and Ghislaine Maxwell. Here's the apology: "On Sunday, 5 July, a report on Ghislaine Maxwell during Fox News Channel’s America’s News HQ mistakenly eliminated President Donald Trump from a photo alongside then Melania Knauss, Jeffrey Epstein and Maxwell. We regret the error." Researchers are suggesting that there might be a link between a rise in gun violence and a surge in gun-buying during the pandemic. More than 2.1 million more guns than usual have been purchased between March and May of this year. Vauhxx Booker, a civil rights activist from Bloomington, IN, posted video to his facebook page showing 5 white men assaulting him by a lake near Bloomington, an event that Booker called an attempted lynching. Speaking of the incident, John Hamilton, the mayor of Bloomington, said "I don’t know what would have happened in the woods around Lake Monroe if there hadn’t been other individuals there and if there hadn’t been a video taken." Trump sent the following tweet: "'COVID-19 (China Virus) Death Rate PLUNGES From Peak In U.S.' A Tenfold Decrease In Mortality. The Washington Times @WashTimes Valerie Richardson. We have the lowest Mortality Rate in the World. The Fake News should be reporting these most important of facts, but they don’t!" Appearing on CNN, Ashish Jha, professor of global health at the Harvard school of public health and Dean of Brown University school of public health responded to Trump's tweet saying: "I do not know what the president means by that, we do not have the lowest mortality rate." Jha pointed out that the US has the highest confirmed death toll in the world. In the upcoming book "Too Much and Never Enough: How My Family Created The World's Most Dangerous Man" Mary Trump, a doctor of clinical psychology, explained how Trump learned to lie saying "lying was primarily a mode of self-aggrandizement meant to convince other people he was better than he actually was." News surfaced that Jair Bolsonaro, the Brazilian president, who has repeatedly trivialized the pandemic and flouted social distancing, has tested positive for coronavirus. Brazil is the second-worst-hit country in the world with more than 65,000 deaths. News surfaced that the US has officially withdrawn from the World Health Organization. Trump's main criticisms of the organization have been that they are too cozy to China, that they were duped by China over the seriousness of the outbreak, and of "severely mismanaging and covering up" the threat. NOTE: The WHO declared a public health emergency on 30 January - after which Trump continued to hold political rallies, and compare coronavirus to the common flu. Some notable responses to the US withdrawal from WHO:
"This decision is irresponsible, reckless, and utterly incomprehensible. Withdrawing from the @WHO in the midst of the greatest public health crisis of our lifetime is a self-destructive move. More Americans will be hurt by this careless choice." - Eric Swalwell, Representative from California
"OFFICIAL: The Trump WH has formally withdrawn the US from the @WHO. What a dark dark sickening day for America and the world." - Eric Feigl-Ding, Health Scientist
"Congress received notification that POTUS officially withdrew the US from the @WHO in the midst of a pandemic. To call Trump's response to COVID chaotic & incoherent doesn't do it justice. This won't protect American lives or interests - it leaves Americans sick & America alone." - Bob Menendez, US Senator
"Can there be any winners from @realDonaldTrump unilateral threat to w/draw from @WHO? There is a clear loser, the USA, which will lose global influence, with our citizens less safe & secure. There also may be a winner, China, which could help fill the gap in US loss of leadership" - Lawrence Gostin, Director of the WHO's Collaborating Center on National & Global Health Law
"To withdraw the United States from the World Health Organization (WHO) at the height of a global pandemic that has already killed more than 133,000 Americans is self-defeating and dangerous. Not only will this withdrawal hurt global efforts to develop and deploy critical vaccines, but it will also remove our ability to have a say in the operations and future of that organization, yielding much influence to China." - Steny Hoyer, Majority Leader of the US House of Representatives
"Americans are safer when America is engaged in strengthening global health. On my first day as President, I will rejoin the @WHO and restore our leadership on the world stage." - Joe Biden, Former Vice President and Current Democratic Candidate for President
According to the AP, personal protective gear in the US is running low; a national nursing union is concerned that gear has to be reused; a doctors association warns that physician's offices are closed because they cannot get masks and other supplies; and Democratic members of Congress are pushing the Trump administration to devise a national strategy to acquire and distribute gear in anticipation of the crisis worsening in the fall. Deborah Burger, the president of National Nurses United responded to the mask shortage situation saying in part: "We’re five months into this and there are still shortages of gowns, hair covers, shoe covers, masks, N95 masks. They're being doled out, and we're still being told to reuse them." Robert Redfield, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, sated "We need to reopen the schools. We can do this safely. We need to commit to it and we need just to get it done." Gretchen Whitmer, the governor of Michigan, responded to Trump and his administration's call for schools to reopen saying that if Trump wants schools to reopen, he should call for masks to be worn nationwide, which is "a simple, cost effective" solution to mitigate the spread of the virus. During a news conference with Alabama senator Doug Jones, Anthony Fauci, the top public health expert on the coronavirus task force said "It’s a false narrative to take comfort in a lower rate of death. There’s so many other things that are very dangerous and bad about this virus, don’t get yourself into false complacency." Fauci also said that US communities reopened "a bit too soon, sometimes jumping over some of the checkpoints". According to the Guardian: "Five states and the District of Columbia are suing US education secretary Betsy DeVos over a rule she issued that would divert to private schools money that Congress provided to help public schools." Those states are California, Maine, New Mexico, Wisconsin, and Michigan. During an interview with Greta Van Susteren on Fox News, Trump said the following: "Well, I think we are in a good place. I disagree with him. Dr. Fauci said don't wear masks and now he says wear them. And he said numerous things. Don't close off China. Don't ban China. I did it anyway. I didn't listen to my experts and I banned China. We would have been in much worse shape. You wouldn't believe the number of deaths more we would have had if we didn't do the ban. And then we banned Europe also when Italy and the various countries were in such trouble. So, we've done a good job. I think we are going to be in two, three, four weeks, by the time we next speak, I think we're going to be in very good shape."
July 6, 2020 - Deaths in the US from coronavirus now stand at 129,576. The mayors of Houston and Austin warned that hospitals in those cities are in danger of being overwhelmed by coronavirus patients in the coming weeks. One of the protesters hit by a car in Seattle has died. Her name was Summer Taylor. Jo Jorgensen, the Libertarian party's presidential candidate, appeared on a podcast associated with the anti-government "boogaloo" movement, which up to now has been linked to 5 killings. A statue of Frederick Douglass was torn down in Rochester, MN. Carvin Eison, a leader of the project that brought the Douglass statue to the park responded to the news saying: "Is this some type of retaliation because of the national fever over confederate monuments right now? Very disappointing, its beyond disappointing." According to the Guardian: "States that reopened quickly, as the president advised, are now seeing a surge in cases and rising hospitalizations and that is impacting the Republican heartland. States that Trump won in 2016 account for about 75% of the new cases. A few of those are key swing states that Trump will almost certainly need to win again to secure a second term. And as the devastation of the pandemic spreads across the country, other states long considered to be reliably Republican also appear increasingly up for grabs." Trump sent the following tweet about the removal of the Frederick Douglass statue: "Statue of Frederick Douglass Torn Down in Rochester via @BreitbartNews. This shows that these anarchists have no bounds!" Trump sent the following tweet attacking Nascar's only black driver Bubba Wallace: "Has @BubbaWallace apologized to all of those great NASCAR drivers & officials who came to his aid, stood by his side, & were willing to sacrifice everything for him, only to find out that the whole thing was just another HOAX? That & Flag decision has caused lowest ratings EVER!" FACT CHECK: There are 1,684 garage stalls at 29 tracks. 11 of the garage stalls had a garage door pull-down rope tied in a knot. 1 of the stalls had a rope fashioned in a noose, and that was the one assigned to Bubba Wallace. Also, as has been pointed out by many, it wasn't Wallace who discovered and reported the noose, it was a crew member. Bubba Wallace never actually saw the noose, and didn't know about it until informed by Steve Phelps, NASCR's president. Phelps responded to the controversy by posting a picture online showing the noose and saying "As you can see from the photo, the noose was real, as was our concern for Bubba. Based on the evidence we had, we thought our drivers – that one of our drivers had been threatened, a driver who had been extremely courageous in recent words and actions. It’s our responsibility to react and investigate, and that’s exactly what we did." Kayleigh McEnany, the White House press secretary, was asked about Trump's tweet attacking Bubba Wallace. McEnany's response: Trump is making "a broader point that this rush to judgment on the facts before the facts are out is not acceptable. And we saw it with the Covington kids and we saw with Jussie Smollett and now we saw it in this case." Tyler Reddick, a NASCAR driver, responded to Trump's attack on Bubba Wallace tweeting: "We don’t need an apology. We did what was right and we will do just fine without your support." Simon & Schuster announced that it is pushing up the publication date of Mary Trump's book by two weeks. Mary is the niece of Donald Trump. Simon & Schuster also published the back cover of the book, which opens with: "Today, Donald is much as he was at three years old: incapable of growing, learning, or evolving, unable to regulate his emotions, moderate his responses, or take in & synthesize information." The publisher advertises the book as the exploration of "a nightmare of traumas, destructive relationships, and a tragic combination of neglect and abuse" that contributed to the creation of "one of the world's most powerful and dysfunctional families." James Boasberg, a US district judge, has ordered the Dakota Access pipeline to be shut down until a more thorough environmental review can be completed saying in part: "Clear precedent favoring vacatur during such a remand coupled with the seriousness of the Corps’ deficiencies outweighs the negative effects of halting the oil flow for the 13 months that the Corps believes the creation of an EIS will take." Harvard University announced that all of its classes in the next academic year will be held online. Kayleigh McEnany, the White House press secretary, held a press briefing. Here are some highlights:
- McEnany called Trump's July 4 speech "unifying". NOTE: Trump's speech was widely criticized for its divisive rhetoric.
- McEnany was asked why Trump supports flying the Confederate flag. McEnany responded: "The president never said that." When pressed further about Trump's thoughts about flying the Confederate flag, specifically with respect to one of his tweets this morning, McEnany said Trump "was not making a judgment one way or the other."
- McEnany was asked why Trump would not praise Nascar's decision to ban Confederate flags. McEnany responded that "He stands against the demonization of Americans, and he stands firmly on the side of preserving our history." McEnany again claimed that Trump "has not given an opinion one way or another" on flying the Confederate flag.
- McEnany claimed "I think the world is looking at us as a leader in Covid-19." NOTE: Due to high levels of coronavirus, the European Union declined to include the US on a list of approved countries for nonessential travel as the EU starts to open its borders.
- McEnany tried to shame the journalists who were present by stating that there had been an increase in shootings in Democrat-run cities, but not one question about it from the press corpse. McEnany then ended the briefing abruptly after 22 minutes and left the room. Most of the journalists present were left sitting with their hands in the air as they waited to ask questions.
The Manhattan district attorney announced that Amy Cooper, a white woman, will face a misdemeanor charge for falsely reporting an incident in the third degree. Cooper became famous when footage went viral where she could be seen calling the police and falsely accusing Christian Cooper (no relation), a black man, of assaulting, her after he told her to leash her dog in Central Park. In the video, Amy Cooper is telling Christian Cooper "I'm taking a picture and calling the cops. I'm going to tell them there's an African American man threatening my life." After the video footage went viral, Amy Cooper was fired from her job. Donald Trump weighed in on news that the Washington Redskins and the Cleveland Indians are currently working to change their names. Trump tweeted: "They name teams out of STRENGTH, not weakness, but now the Washington Redskins & Cleveland Indians, two fabled sports franchises, look like they are going to be changing their names in order to be politically correct. Indians, like Elizabeth Warren, must be very angry right now!" Critics were quick to point to a tweet Trump posted in October of 2013 after then president Barack Obama suggested the Washington Redskins team should change their name: "President should not be telling the Washington Redskins to change their name-our country has far bigger problems! FOCUS on them not nonsense". Bubba Wallace responded to Trump's attack on him saying in part: "Always deal with the hate being thrown at you with LOVE. ... Even when it’s hate from the POTUS." Trump sent the following tweet: "SCHOOLS MUST OPEN IN THE FALL!!!" Critics were quick to point out that the Trump administration has been hesitant to offer guidelines on reopening schools safely. NASCAR sent the following in a tweet: "#WeStandWithBubba" Jonathan Swan, Axios chief political correspondent, offered these thoughts on Trump's political campaign: "The ugly reality of this election is that in some instances it’s going to look like a race war ... The battlegrounds are President Trump pitting himself against the Black Lives Matter racial justice movement. It's really that simple." Immigrations and Custom Enforcement announced that international students enrolled in schools that are fully online during fall semester will not be allowed to stay in the United States. This is widely believed to be a way for the Trump administration to pressure schools to open up to in-person classes.
July 4, 2020 - Kimberly Guilfoyle, the girlfriend of Donald Trump Jr, has tested positive for coronavirus. Two Black Lives Matter protesters in Seattle were seriously injured when a car drove into a crowd of protesters. The driver was taken into custody following the incident. Florida reported 11,458 new coronavirus cases today, setting a new one day record. Gregory "Joey" Johnson, who in 1989 won a supreme court decision that makes burning the flag a constitutionally protected right, announced that "in defiance of the fascist Trump's call to re-criminalize burning the flag in protest" he will stage a flag burning ceremony in LA today. Johnson also urged people to "defy the fascist in chief, the white supremacist in chief, the misogynist, xenophobic, jingoistic, America first chauvinist imperialist in chief. We all should have nothing but contempt and revulsion for him and his fascist regime – and be determined to mobilize millions of people to drive the regime from power." Joe Biden sent the following tweet today: "This Fourth of July, one of the most patriotic things you can do is wear a mask." The World Health Organization (WHO) announced that it is discontinuing trials of the malaria drug hydroxychloroquine and combination HIV drug lopinavir/ritonavir in hospitalized patients with COVID-19 as they have failed to reduce mortality. Dane Hicks, a county GOP chairman, and publisher of a small weekly newspaper, came under fire for posting a cartoon picture to his facebook page that likened Democratic governor Laura Kelly's executive order mandating people wear masks in most public spaces to the murder of millions of Jews during the Holocaust. Trump sent the following tweet: "Cases, Cases, Cases! If we didn’t test so much and so successfully, we would have very few cases. If you test 40,000,000 people, you are going to have many cases that, without the testing (like other countries), would not show up every night on the Fake Evening News. In a certain way, our tremendous Testing success gives the Fake News Media all they want, CASES. In the meantime, Deaths and the all important Mortality Rate goes down. You don’t hear about that from the Fake News, and you never will. Anybody need any Ventilators???" Trump claimed during a speech: "We have tested over 40 million people. By so doing, we show cases, 99% of which are totally harmless. Results that no other country will show, because no other country has testing that we have — not in terms of the numbers or in terms of the quality." The Washington Post Fact Checker gave Trump's comment four Pinocchios.
July 3, 2020 - Officers Erica Marrero and Kyle Dittrich, members of the Aurora Colorado police department, were fired after a photo surfaced of them reenacting the chokehold that was used during the violent arrest of Elijah McClain. Officer Jason Rosenblatt, who responded "haha" after receiving the picture in a text message, was fired also. Jaron Jones, who participated in the photo, resigned after learning he would be terminated. Mari Newman, the McClain family's lawyer, responded to the photo saying: "The fact that three on-duty, in-uniform police officers thought that it was appropriate to re-enact the murder, jokingly, shows that the department is rotten to the core. For her [McClain's mother], it was just devastating to see that people were mocking the murder of her son." Donald Trump spoke at an Independence celebration at Mount Rushmore in South Dakota, where he warned that the country is under assault from "far-left fascism". Here's an excerpt from Trump's speech: "Our nation is witnessing a merciless campaign to wipe out our history, defame our heroes, erase our values and indoctrinate our children. Angry mobs are trying to tear down statues of our founders, deface our most sacred memorials and unleash a wave of violent crime in our cities." Some notable responses to Trump's speech:
"Trump obviously has no idea what words like fascism and totalitarianism mean. To those who wrote that speech, shame on you. To those that cleared on this speech, shame on you. Perhaps the most un- American speech ever delivered by an American president, on the eve of July 4th." - Michael McFaul, former US ambassador to Russia during the Obama administration
"The setting for President Trump’s early Fourth of July celebration was magnificent, as the Black Hills of South Dakota tend to be. The scene was also full of painful history, willful ignorance and deliberate fearmongering." - Robin Givhan, Washington Post Contributor
July 2, 2020 - Police body cam footage has surfaced from a protest on May 31st in which Fort Lauderdale police can be heard laughing and celebrating after shooting Black Lives Matter protesters with rubber bullets. From a story about the incident in the Guardian: "'Beat it, little fucker,' Detective Zachary Baro can be heard saying in the clip. Later in the clips another officer says 'Did you see me fuck up those motherfuckers?'. Another replies amid laughter 'I got the one fucker.'" An 8-foot tall whipping post was removed from a Delaware county courthouse square. The post had been used to bind and whip people for crimes up until 1952. According to Robert Caldwell, a former sociology professor in the state, more than 60% of those beaten between 1900 and 1945 were black, even though Black people made up less than 20% of Delaware's population. One of the t-shirt designs in the official Donald Trump store has come under scrutiny. The design shows an eagle with wings spread holding a circular object in its talons. When placed side by side with a Nazi image, the only real difference is what is in the circle. On the Trump shirt, the circle contains an American flag. On the Nazi version, the circle contains a swastika. The US economy added 4.m new jobs in June which has brought the unemployment rate down to 11.1% from 13.3%. The city of Richmond, Virginia, has removed the statue of Thomas Jonathan "Stonewall" Jackson from Monument Avenue to the cheers of hundreds of onlookers. Appearing on a BBC news program, Dr Anthony Fauci had the following to say about current coronavirus spikes in the US: "We got hit very badly, worse than any country, with regard to the number of cases, and the number of deaths. The problem we're facing now is that in an attempt to re-open or open and get it back to some form of normality, we're seeing very disturbing spikes in different individual states in the United States ... and that is not good news. We've got to get that under control, or we risk an even greater outbreak in the United States." HHS issued a press release that says in part: "The U.S. Surgeon General and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services today released a public service announcement (PSA) ahead of the Fourth of July weekend imploring Americans to take action and to remember: COVID Stops With Me. The PSA from Surgeon General VADM Jerome M. Adams, M.D., M.P.H., reminds everyone to do their part to stay healthy by following a few simple instructions that will in turn, help prevent the spread of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. In the message, Dr. Adams calls on all Americans to: Follow federal, state and local guidelines; Take extra precautions if you are at higher risk for severe illness; Wash your hands frequently and thoroughly; and Stay six feet away from others when you can, and wear a face covering in public when you cannot social distance." Trump held a press briefing regarding the newly released unemployment numbers. Here are some highlights:
- Trump claimed that "Today's announcement proves that our economy is roaring back. It's coming back extremely strong. These are historic numbers."
- Trump claimed "The stock market is soaring with the best gains in 20 years, it’s the best in 33 years."
- Trump claimed the coronavirus crisis is "being handled" and referred to COVID-19 as "the terrible China virus."
- Trump claimed "We’re going to have a fantastic third quarter. It’ll be a a third quarter the likes of which nobody has ever seen in my opinion."
- Steve Mnuchin responded to a question asking if the administration had any regrets that they pressured states to open as early as they did, which resulted in spikes in coronavirus. Mnuchin's response "No absolutely not. I think we've had a very careful plan, again, working with the states - it is primarily the states' responsibility."
Andy Biggs, Republican congressman form Arizona, has called for the coronavirus task force to be disbanded "so that President Trump’s message is not mitigated or distorted ... [Dr Fauci & Dr Birx continue to contradict" Trump's goal of reopening the economy. Ghislaine Maxwell, British socialite and media heiress, and friend of Donald Trump, was arrested for her "critical role" in helping Jeffrey Epstein "befriend and groom minors for sexual abuse". Maxwell was arrested at a property in New Hampshire that she bought with cash on December 13, for $1.07 million. The ad for the house when it was up for sale read "an amazing retreat for the nature lover who also wants total privacy." News surfaced that Herman Cain, the former 2012 Republican presidential candidate, has tested positive for COVID-19, and has been hospitalized. Cain, who attended Trump's Tulsa rally on June 20th, had posted a picture of himself online the night of the rally that showed him seated with others who were not wearing masks. Cain posted the following comment with the photo: "Here's just a few of the #BlackVoicesForTrump at tonight's rally! Having a fantastic time!" In a joint letter signed by leaders of some of the nation's major business organizations, the White House and the National Governors Association were urged to establish mandatory mask guidelines. From the letter:
"For the sake of public health and our economy, we request that the White House Coronavirus Task Force and the National Governors Association work together to:
1. Establish guidance on the appropriate metrics (e.g. positive tests, hospitalizations) for imposing location-based mandatory mask requirements in all public spaces;
2. Develop model mandatory mask policies that are simple and do not impose the enforcement burden on organizations without such expertise, such as businesses and non-profits; and
3. Make clear that businesses and non-profits will not be held liable for refusing entry or services to an individual who is not complying with face covering requirements.
To be clear, the decision to impose face covering requirements should remain at the state or local level but be informed by clear and consistent guidance based on data. We believe that a national mask standard, implemented locally, offers the surest way to protect public health and promote economic recovery."
Texas Governor Greg Abbott issued an executive order requiring all Texans to wear face masks at public gatherings. According to the Associated Press, coronavirus cases are rising in 40 out of 50 states. From the story: "An alarming 36 states are seeing an increase in the percentage of tests coming back positive for the virus. 'What we’ve seen is a very disturbing week,' Dr. Anthony Fauci, the government’s top infectious-disease expert, said in a livestream with the American Medical Association. The surge has been blamed in part on Americans not covering their faces or following other social distancing rules as states lifted their lockdowns over the past few weeks. Fauci warned that if people don’t start complying, 'we’re going to be in some serious difficulty.'" The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff confirmed an AP report that some of the soldiers mobilized to Washington DC last month in response to protests over the killing of George Floyd were issued bayonets. In a joint statement, Representative Ted Lieu of California, and Representative Raja Krishnamoorthi of Illinois, wrote "While we are grateful for General Milley’s responses to our questions concerning the arming of troops with bayonets for potential deployment against protesters, we were disappointed he was not willing to commit to banning the practice." According to a new study published in the journal Science, by the end of the century, the world's oceans, rivers and lakes will likely be too hot for about 40% of the world's fish. The California National Guard is investigating one of their member's ties to the Proud Boys, an extremist, neo-fascist group. The member in question posted pictures online of himself standing in front of a military vehicle with the neo-fascist group's slogan inscribed on the vehicle. Jackie Speier, a California congresswoman, is pushing for the appointment of a new "Special Inspector General" to investigate the extent of white supremacy in the military. According to Speier: "We’ve known about problems of white supremacy and violent extremist groups in the U.S. military for decades, yet this problem that threatens our national security – not to mention retention and recruitment of troops – seems to be getting worse. The DoD and Pentagon have proven that they do not have the ability to address these issues on their own." In an interview with the Guardian, Speier cited three recent incidents that highlight the need for action:
1. An Army solider charged with plotting with a neo-Nazi group to launch an attack on his own unit.
2. An Air Force sergeant charged with killing two law enforcement officers in California in an attempt to launch a second civil war.
3. Three Nevada men with varying military experience arrested on terrorism-related charges for trying to spark racial violence during protests in Las Vegas.
July 1, 2020 - The US set a new record for new coronavirus cases on a single day - over 50,000. Trump said that within 2 weeks he'll have a statement on minimum wage. Lauren Boebert, who has spoken approvingly of the QAnon conspiracy theory, and who faced legal action after refusing to obey state coronavirus restrictions, has won a surprise victory over Scott R. Tipton in the Colorado Republican primary. During an interview with a QAnon-aligned web show, Boebert stated: "Everything that I’ve heard of Q, I hope that this is real because it only means that America is getting stronger and better, and people are returning to conservative values." Boebert owns a restaurant called Shooter's Grill, where waiters open carry guns. The restaurant is located in the town of Rifle. Julian Bear Runner, the president of the Oglala Sioux tribal council, requested that Donald Trump not hold an independence day event at Mount Rushmore or in his words "stolen" native land, because of the risks of spreading coronavirus. Herman Cain, the former 2012 Republican presidential candidate, sent the following tweet regarding the upcoming Independence Day celebration at Mt. Rushmore: "Masks will not be mandatory for the event, which will be attended by President Trump. PEOPLE ARE FED UP!" News surfaced that the US has purchased the world's stock of remdesivir, a drug used to treat Covid-19. Donald Trump sent the following tweet: "I will Veto the Defense Authorization Bill if the Elizabeth 'Pocahontas' Warren (of all people!) Amendment, which will lead to the renaming (plus other bad things!) of Fort Bragg, Fort Robert E. Lee, and many other Military Bases from which we won Two World Wars, is in the Bill!" Donald Trump sent the following tweet: "My Executive Order to protect Monuments, Statues etc., IS IN FULL FORCE AND EFFECT. In excess of a 10 year prison term. Please do not put yourself in jeopardy. Many people now under arrest!" Donald Trump sent the following tweet: "The Russia Bounty story is just another made up by Fake News tale that is told only to damage me and the Republican Party. The secret source probably does not even exist, just like the story itself. If the discredited @nytimes has a source, reveal it. Just another HOAX!" According to the Washington Post: "The only people dismissing the Russia bounties intel: The Taliban, Russia and Trump". Chad Wolf, the acting secretary of Homeland Security, announced the formation of a "special task force to coordinate Departmental law enforcement assets in protecting ... historic monuments, memorials, statues, and federal facilities." The task force will be called the DHS Protecting American Communities Task Force (PACT). A Pew Research Center poll shows that Trump's approval among white evangelicals is at 72%. Donald Trump sent the following tweet: "'No corroborating evidence to back reports.' Department of Defense. Do people still not understand that this is all a made up Fake News Media Hoax started to slander me & the Republican Party. I was never briefed because any info that they may have had did not rise to that level". Mikie Sherroll, a Democratic congresswoman from New Jersey, and former US Navy helicopter pilot and lieutenant commander, responded to the Russian Bounties story saying "We ask that the president come out and reassure us that he has our backs, that he will get to the bottom of this [the bounty scandal] and that Russia will face repercussions. Whether or not he [Trump] was told verbally about this, he knows now." According to White House national security adviser Robert O'Brien: "The president’s been fully briefed" regarding the Russian bounties story. O'Brien declined to say whether the intelligence had been included in a written presidential briefing earlier this year. British officials confirm that they are aware of the intelligence. The couple that aimed guns at Black Lives Matter protesters in St Louis have been identified as Patricia and Mark McCloskey, who appeared last evening on Tucker Carlson's show on Fox News. According to Mark McCloskey: "When I saw that mob come through the gate with their rage and their anger, I thought that we would be overrun in a second. By the time I was out there with my rifle, the people were 20 or 30 feet from my front wall. I was literally afraid that within seconds they would surmount the wall, come into the house, kill us, burn the house down and everything that I had worked for and struggled for for the last 32 years." Kim Gardner, the St Louis Circuit Attorney, is investigating the St Louis incident saying: "I am alarmed at the events that happened over the weekend, where peaceful protestors were met by guns and a violent assault. We must protect the right to peacefully protest, and any attempt to chill it through intimidation or threat of deadly force will not be tolerated." During an interview with Fox News, Texas Lieutenant governor Dan Patrick told Laura Ingraham, "He doesn’t know what he’s talking about. I don’t need his advice anymore." The "He" is Dr Anthony Fauci, the leading infectious disease expert in the US. Ingraham then accused Fauci of working for Trump's Democratic rival, Joe Biden. The reason Ingraham and Patrick were lashing out at Fauci is because during testimony yesterday, Fauci attributed the spike in coronavirus cases to state's reopening, along with large social gatherings, and not to recent large protests. According to health experts, the reason that large protests have not created spikes in coronavirus, is because most of the protests take place outside, and most of the protesters wear masks. Ed Henry, a news anchor on Fox News, has been fired over sexual misconduct allegations. Henry made headlines in 2016 over an extramarital affair, for which then CEO Roger Ailes publicly admonished him. The Knight Institute, which represents the National Association of Immigration Judges, has filed suit against the Trump administration's use of gag orders to bar immigration judges from speaking or writing to the public and media, which they say "imposes an unconstitutional prior restraint on [their free] speech". According to the lawsuit: "For years, [the Executive Office for Immigration Review] permitted immigration judges to speak in their personal capacities on issues relating to immigration, so long as they provided a disclaimer that they were not speaking on behalf of the agency. In recent years, however, the agency has taken steps that have strictly limited the ability of immigration judges to speak publicly in their personal capacities." Andrew Cuomo, the governor of New York, lashed out at Trump over his administration's response to the pandemic saying: "He was in denial. He has been denying what every health expert in America has been saying ... Come clean with the American people. At least have the courage to admit what everybody else already knows: you were wrong! ... Denying reality does not defeat reality. He has lived in denial, and he has been denying the scientific facts since day one,” he said. “Reality wins and reality won, and now the country is suffering because of the president". Bill de Blasio, the mayor fo New York City, announced the city would "take this moment in history and amplify it by taking the ‘Black Lives Matter’ symbolism and putting it all over this city, including right in front of Trump Tower." Trump responded to the news tweeting: "NYC is cutting Police $'s by ONE BILLION DOLLARS, and yet the @NYCMayor is going to paint a big, expensive, yellow Black Lives Matter sign on Fifth Avenue, denigrating this luxury Avenue. This will further antagonize New York's Finest, who LOVE New York & vividly remember the horrible BLM chant, 'Pigs In A Blanket, Fry 'Em Like Bacon'. Maybe our GREAT Police, who have been neutralized and scorned by a mayor who hates & disrespects them, won't let this symbol of hate be affixed to New York’s greatest street. Spend this money fighting crime instead!" Bill de Blasio, the mayor of New York City, responded to Trump's tweet with "Here’s what you don’t understand: Black people BUILT 5th Ave and so much of this nation. Your 'luxury' came from THEIR labor, for which they have never been justly compensated.
We are honoring them. The fact that you see it as denigrating your street is the definition of racism." Scott Gottlieb, the former commissioner of the US Food and Drug Administration, told CNBC that the US is not testing enough, saying: "The problem is that even though we have a lot of testing — we have well more than 500,000 tests a day and that’s going to continue to grow — we’re going to be short on tests in places where there’s epidemics. States like Texas and Florida, they’re falling behind on testing right now because the testing isn’t evenly distributed across the country." Trump did an interview with Fox Business Network today. Here are some highlights:
- Regarding masks, Trump said "If I were in a tight situation with people, I would absolutely" wear a mask. NOTE: Up to now, Trump has only been photographed wearing a mask once, which was during a factory tour in May at the Ford Rawsonville Components Plant in Ypsilanti, Michigan.
- Regarding coronavirus, Trump said: "I think we’re gonna be very good with the coronavirus. I think that at some point that’s going to sort of just disappear, I hope." NOTE: New infections are at record levels in the US.
Levar Stoney, the mayor of Richmond, Virginia, has called for the removal of all Confederate statues in the city saying: "It is time to put an end to the lost cause, Replace the racist symbols of oppression and inequality." Kayleigh McEnany, the White House press secretary, was asked about Trump's retweeting of the "white power" video, which was deleted about 3 hours after it was tweeted. McEnany's response: "The deletion speaks for itself." This answer is a reversal of her and other press secretaries answer to questions about Trump's tweets, which is usually "The tweet speaks for itself."
June 30, 2020 - According to the Guardian, multiple news outlets have confirmed that Donald Trump was briefed about Russia offering bounties for attacks on US troops in Afghanistan. From the story: "The New York Times quoted two sources as saying details were included in a daily intelligence briefing the president received in late February. CNN said an official with direct knowledge told them it was included in the briefing – a written document – briefing 'sometime in the spring'. Senior White House officials were aware as far back as early 2019 and the intelligence assessment was included in at least one of the president’s written daily briefings, the Associated Press reported, according to multiple officials." David Ignatius, a columnist at the Washington Post, wrote an op-ed regarding the "Russia bounties" story. Here's an excerpt: "A basic truth about Russian President Vladimir Putin, which President Trump evidently doesn’t understand: Putin is in the payback business. He believes the United States destroyed his former country, the Soviet Union. He likes the United States to feel pain, in Afghanistan and everywhere else. Trump has his own, much rosier take on Putin. And I can’t help wondering whether that explains why, assuming his account is true, the American president was never briefed about intelligence reports early this year that Russia was offering bounties to Taliban fighters to kill U.S. and coalition troops in Afghanistan. ... Trump is an obstacle to good policy. Either people don’t tell him the truth, or he doesn’t want to hear it. Whichever way, he’s defaulting on his most basic responsibility as commander in chief." Reddit and Twitch have banned or suspended pro-Donald Trump accounts because they violate hate speech policies. According to NBC News, the EU has come up with a list of safe countries from which travelers will be allowed into their countries. The US is not on the list. From the story: "The EU’s 27 members have been drawing up a list of countries whose virus levels are deemed low enough to allow people from those places to travel into the bloc, which has been mostly sealed off since March. That list of safe countries was officially unveiled by European officials on Tuesday. The US — which has the most coronavirus cases and deaths in the world — was not on it. The 15 countries that did make the list are: Algeria, Australia, Canada, Georgia, Japan, Montenegro, Morocco, New Zealand, Rwanda, Serbia, South Korea, Thailand, Tunisia and Uruguay. China will also be included on the list if it allows entry to E.U. travelers in return." Democratic members of congress were briefed today on the intelligence behind Russian bounties on US troops. Republican members were briefed yesterday. Dr Anthony Fauci, the leading US authority on infectious disease, testified before a Senate committee today. Here are some highlights:
- Fauci stated that "There is no guarantee that we will have a safe and effective vaccine. But we are cautiously optimistic that we will at least know the efficacy by early winter or the first part of next year, and hopefully [will have] doses available by the beginning of next year."
- Rand Paul, Republican Senator from Kentucky, stated "We should not assume that a group of experts knows what’s best for everyone."
- Lamar Alexander, a Republican, stated that Donald Trump should start wearing a mask, at least some of the time saying: "The stakes are too high for the political debate about pro-Trump, anti-Trump masks to continue ... This small, life-saving practice has become part of the political debate that says, if you are for Trump you don’t wear a mask and if you are against Trump you do. That’s why I’ve suggested that the president occasionally wear a mask, even though in most cases it’s not necessary for him to do so. The president has plenty of admirers, they would follow his lead, it would help in this political debate, the stakes are too high for this to continue. It’s also a pretty good way to make a statement."
- Fauci stated "I’m very concerned. We are going in the wrong direction, if you look at the figures for new cases. We need to do something about this and we need to do it quick. We are not in total control right now ... I would not be surprised if we go up to 100,000 a day if this does not turn around ... It's going to be very disturbing ... it could get really bad."
Adam Smith, chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, had this to say following a briefing on Russian bounties: "Based on what we heard today, it was information that a) the president should have known about and b) based on what we were told today, he did - it seems to me like he did know about it." According to the Guardian, US Intelligence uncovered a money trail in the Russian bounties situation. From the story: "Donald Trump has cast doubt on whether such a Russian program existed, and the White House has said US intelligence was inconclusive. Since the Times published its first story in the series on Friday, Trump has made shifting defenses, each of which has been collapsed by additional reporting. First Trump claimed he was never briefed about the Russian bounty program. Then he said intelligence advisors told him that assessments about the program weren’t 'credible', and the press secretary said that internal debate about the intelligence assessment had kept it from reaching the president. Since then various outlets have reported that the assessment had in fact appeared in the president’s daily intelligence briefing, that the national security council convened an interagency meeting about responses to the Russian threat – indicating it was taken seriously – and now we learn there’s a money trail. When it briefed Republicans yesterday about intelligence on the bounty program, the White House neglected to mention the money trail, the Times reports." Kayleigh McEnany, the White House press secretary, held a press briefing. Here are some highlights:
- McEnany was asked why Trump does not recommend wearing a face mask. McEnany responded that Trump believes mask-wearing is an individual choice.
- McEnany was asked if Trump reads his intelligence briefings. McEnany's response: "This president is the most informed person on Planet Earth in terms of the threats that we face."
Regarding the upcoming Mount Rushmore independence day celebration, which will include the presence of Donald Trump, South Dakota governor Kristi Noem said the state won't enforce social distancing or mask wearing. According to Noem: "We told those folks that have concerns that they can stay home." Republican Governor Tate Reeves, signed a bill that officially retires the Mississippi state flag, which includes a confederate emblem. Martin Gugino, the 75 year-old man who suffered a head injury when police officers pushed him to the ground during a George Floyd protest, has been released from the hospital. According to the Guardian "States that reopened businesses early when case numbers were relatively low, such as Texas and Florida, have been forced to reimpose restrictions on bars and restaurants to slow a huge spike in infections. Such seesawing lockdowns could be largely avoided, experts say, if Americans embraced near-universal mask wearing. More than 30,000 deaths could be avoided by October if 95% of Americans wear face masks in public, according to research by the University of Washington. Even homemade masks act as a barrier to potentially infected droplets that are expelled when people cough, talk or breathe. ... A third of Americans say they only sometimes or never wear a mask when in stores or other businesses, with strong partisan and racial divides: white people and Republicans are far less likely to wear masks than Democrats and black, Latino and Asian people. This is in stark difference to countries such as South Korea and Taiwan, which managed to avoid economically harmful lockdowns due, in part, to a willingness to wear masks. ... The parlous situation in the US could have been headed off had there been an early, strong push towards mask wearing, experts say. 'Trump could've worn a mask for four weeks, asked people on the other side of the aisle to do the same and you’d get a dramatic reduction in the infection rate and start to operate very close to normal again,' said Andy Slavitt, the former head of Medicare and Medicaid during Barack Obama's administration. 'He can’t do the little bit of sacrifice to see it through.' Instead, mask wearing has become, in some quarters, another cultural battleground in the US. In Palm Beach county in Florida, which is now fining people $250 for not wearing a mask, a public feedback forum last week featured residents falsely claiming that masks kill people, that they impede 'God's wonderful breathing system' and that they are a politically motivated tool designed to kill off freedoms."
June 29, 2020 - The Washington Post confirmed the New York Times story that Russia had put bounties on US soldiers. According to the Post: "Russian bounties offered to Taliban-linked militants to kill coalition forces in Afghanistan are believed to have resulted in the deaths of several US service members". Facing increased criticism regarding the bounties, Trump sent the following tweet: "Intel just reported to me that they did not find this info credible, and therefore did not report it to me or [vice-president Mike Pence] Possibly another fabricated Russia Hoax, maybe by the Fake News @nytimesbooks, wanting to make Republicans look bad!!!" Donald Trump tweeted footage of a St Louis couple pointing guns at Black Lives Matter protesters. According to the AP: "A white couple pointed guns at protesters in St Louis, Missouri, as a group marched toward the mayor’s home to demand her resignation. A social media video showed the unidentified armed couple standing outside their home on Sunday evening in the Central West End neighborhood shouting at protesters, while people in the march moved the crowd forward, urging participants to ignore them. The group of at least 500 people were heading towards the home of the mayor, Lyda Krewson, chanting, 'Resign Lyda, take the cops with you,' news outlets reported. Calls for her resignation came after a Facebook live briefing on Friday, at which Krewson read the names and addresses of several residents who wrote letters to the mayor suggesting she defund the police department. The video was removed from Facebook and Krewson apologized on Friday, stating she did not 'intend to cause distress'." The Orange County Democratic party passed a resolution "condemning 'racist and bigoted statements" made by John Wayne, and are calling on the Orange County Board of Supervisors to drop Wayne's name, statue and other likenesses from the international airport. The AP has a story about an interview John Wayne did with Playboy in 1971. From the story: "In the interview, Wayne makes bigoted statements against black people, Native Americans and the LGBTQ community. 'I believe in white supremacy until the blacks are educated to a point of responsibility. I don’t believe in giving authority and positions of leadership and judgment to irresponsible people,' he said. Wayne also said that although he didn’t condone slavery: 'I don’t feel guilty about the fact that five or 10 generations ago these people were slaves.' The actor said he felt no remorse in the subjugation of Native Americans. 'I don’t feel we did wrong in taking this great country away from them. (O)ur so-called stealing of this country from them was just a matter of survival,' he said. 'There were great numbers of people who needed new land, and the Indians were selfishly trying to keep it for themselves.' Wayne also called movies such as Easy Rider and Midnight Cowboy perverted, and used a gay slur to refer to the two main characters of the latter film." Rebekah Jones, the former Florida Department of Health data scientist who was fired for refusing to manipulate data, told NPR during an interview that she was asked to manually change numbers so that it would appear the virus' spread was not bad enough to delay reopening, and that while the department was debating which numbers to change or hide, the reopening plan "was being printed and stapled right in front of me". According to Jones: "It was very clear at that point that the science behind the science-driven plan didn’t matter because the plan was already made." Florida's Republican governor, Ron DeSantis, called Jones' claims the "conspiracy bandwagon" and said that Jones was fired for insubordination. The US Supreme Court issued a 5-4 decision that struck down a Louisiana law that required doctors who perform abortions to have admitting privileges at a nearby hospital saying the law severely limited access to abortion and is therefore unconstitutional. John Roberts sided with the court's more liberal justices to strike down the law. Critics of Brett Kavanaugh noted that despite his prior claim that he considered Roe v Wade to be settled law, he voted in this decision to severely restrict abortion access. Youtube announced that it is banning several prominent white supremacist channels, including those run by David Duke and Richard Spencer as those channels violate its ban on hate speech. Kim Gardner, the head prosecutor for the city of St Louis, posted the following tweet regarding a couple who pointed weapons at protestors who were walking pas their mansion: "I am alarmed at the events that occurred over the weekend, where peaceful protestors were met by guns and a violent assault. We must protect the right to peacefully protest, and any attempt to chill it through intimidation or threat of deadly force will not be tolerated." According to CNN, Donald Trump's conversations with foreign leaders have consistently alarmed US officials. From the story: "Hundreds of classified calls with heads of state have gone so poorly that insiders including his former secretaries of state and defense, two national security advisers and his longest-serving chief of staff say Trump poses 'a danger to national security of the United States'. ... The sources said there was little evidence that the President became more skillful or competent in his telephone conversations with most heads of state over time. Rather, he continued to believe that he could either charm, jawbone or bully almost any foreign leader into capitulating to his will, and often pursued goals more attuned to his own agenda than what many of his senior advisers considered the national interest." Here are some additional key points in the CNN story:
- "Trump was 'consistently unprepared' for calls, and overpowered easily by other leaders. He knows very little about history or politics and would 'almost never' read briefing materials prepared for him by the CIA and NSC staff in advance of his calls with heads of state."
- "Ignoring his own advisors, Trump spoke with autocratic leaders frequently. Trump was described as 'inordinately solicitous of Putin’s admiration and seemingly seeking his approval'."
- "Advisors were particularly concerned about the frequency of the calls with Turkish president Recep Erdogan – in which he pressed Trump for policy concessions and other favors. Erdogan was so easily able to reach Trump that insiders began to worry he had access to the US president’s schedule."
- "Trump was particularly disrespectful to female heads of state, including Theresa May and Angela Merkel. His calls with them were called 'near-sadistic'. Merkel was reportedly unbothered by Trump's severe tactics while May reportedly became flustered and upset in response to his bullying."
- "One person familiar with 'almost all' of Trump's conversation with major players including Russia, Turkey, Canada, Australia and western Europe described the calls cumulatively as 'abominations' and said if members of Congress heard them they would 'no longer be able to retain confidence in the President'."
- "Trump used calls with other heads of state to advance his own personal agenda. He frequently trashed his predecessors, particularly Barack Obama and George W. Bush. As one source said: 'There was no sense ... of the United States as an historic force with certain democratic principles and leadership of the free world ... The opposite. It was like the United States had disappeared. It was always 'Just me'."
June 28, 2020 - Donald Trump sent the following tweet: "Thank you to the great people of The Villages. The Radical Left Do Nothing Democrats will Fall in the Fall. Corrupt Joe is shot. See you soon!!!" Attached to the tweet was a video of a Trump supporter yelling "White power!" at a group of anti-Trump demonstrators in Florida. Some notable responses to Trump's "white power" tweet:
"I've not seen that video or that tweet, but obviously neither the President, his administration nor I would do anything to be supportive of white supremacy or anything that would support discrimination of any kind." - Alex Azar, Health Secretary
"President Trump is a big fan of The Villages. He did not hear the one statement made on the video. What he did see was tremendous enthusiasm from his many supporters." - Judd Deere, White House Deputy Press Secretary
The "White power" tweet was deleted about 3 hours after it was posted. Trump spent the day at the Trump National Golf Club in Loudoun County, marking his 272nd day spent at one of his golf clubs, and his 364th day spent at one of his properties since becoming president. Vice president Mike Pence was asked during an interview why he wouldn't say "Black lives matter". Pence's response: "... As a prolife American, I also believe that all lives matters." Tom Frieden, the former director of the CDC, addressed rising coronavirus cases in the US saying he could say with "100% certainty" that there has been a true rise in cases, because of a rise in the proportion of positive tests. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was asked about Donald Trump's lack of a response to news that Russia had offered bounties for Taliban-linked militants to kill US soldiers saying: "I don’t know what the Russians have on the president politically, personally or whatever it is, but he wants to ignore [reports of wrongdoing] ... How else would you explain his refusal, to ignore again and again, the intelligence that puts right at the Russian doorstep the involvement into our elections, for example." Despite having multiple opportunities to promote mask wearing, vice president Mike Pence decided today to say that "wearing a mask is just a good idea." Jay Inslee, the Democratic governor of Washington, was interviewed on CBS' Face the Nation. Here are some highlights:
- Inslee said that "Donald trump is for #maskingup like [former Alabama Gov.] George Wallace was for integration."
- Inslee stated that "We need a president who will care more about living Americans and less about dead Confederates."
- Inslee stated that "If we can get everyone wearing a MAGA hat to wear a mask, we are going to contain this virus. This is the way to open our economy, if we get people to mask up and reopen our economy, that'll be a good day for everyone."
June 27, 2020 - According to Johns Hopkins, US deaths from coronavirus now exceed 125,000, and infection rates are on the rise in more than 30 states. More than 500,000 have died worldwide. Donald Trump, who claimed while campaigning for president that he would be too busy working for the American people that he wouldn't have time to golf, spent the day at the Trump National Golf Club in Virginia. This trip marks the 271st time Trump has been at one of his golf clubs since becoming president, and the 363rd time he has visited one of his properties. The state of Florida has broken its one-day record for new coronavirus infections for a second straight day with nearly 10,000 new cases. Dr Rebekah Jones, who was fired in May for refusing to manipulate data, claims to have evidence that Florida's department of health "have been instructed this week to change the numbers and begin slowly deleting deaths and cases so it looks like Florida is improving next week in the lead-up to July 4, like they've 'made it over the hump'." Princeton University announced that it will be removing Woodrow Wilson's name from its public policy school and one of its residential colleges after concluding that Wilson's "racist thinking and policies" make him "an inappropriate namesake". During the playing of the national anthem, every member of the North Carolina Courage and Portland Thorns - two teams in the National Women's Soccer League - took a knee in solidarity with Black Lives Matter. According to the AP, the owner of a North Carolina racetrack came under fire for offering "Bubba Rope" for sale. From the story: "A North Carolina racetrack has lost some partnerships after its owner advertised 'Bubba Rope' for sale online days after Nascar said a noose had been found in the garage stall of Bubba Wallace, the top series’ only Black driver. A concrete company and a driver series ended their partnerships Friday with the half-mile, dirt track 311 Speedway in Stokes County, the Winston-Salem Journal reported. The racetrack owner's 'Bubba Rope' post on Facebook Marketplace earlier this week sparked a backlash on social media and a condemnation from a spokesman for Gov. Roy Cooper. 'Buy your Bubba Rope today for only $9.99 each, they come with a lifetime warranty and work great,' the post said." According to the Washington Post, the Trump campaign ordered stickers detailing social distancing guidelines be removed from the site of the Tulsa rally. From the story: "The removal contradicted instructions from the management of the BOK Center, the 19,000-seat arena in downtown Tulsa where Trump held his rally on June 20. At the time, coronavirus cases were rising sharply in Tulsa County, and Trump faced intense criticism for convening a large crowd for an indoor political rally, his first such event since the start of the pandemic." The FBI is investigating an incident in which a noose was found inside a black firefighter's locker at a fire station in the Minneapolis suburb of Bloomington.
June 26, 2020 - According to Johns Hopkins, 124,000 Americans have died from coronavirus. Colorado has appointed a special prosecutor to investigate the 2019 police killing of Elijah McClain. Marielena Hincapie, the executive director of the National Immigration Law Center, offered this analysis of what to expect from Trump as the November election draws near: "Every time that [Trump]'s under attack or he feels he's been cornered or may be blamed for something, we can expect that he's going to default to attacking immigrants ... Trump’s rhetoric is almost exclusively about undocumented immigrants – he calls undocumented immigrants everything from murderers and rapists to gang members, etc. But in fact, the policy changes he has put in place, almost all are chipping away at the legal immigration system." According to the Washington Post: "Key members of the Trump administration, including the president and vice president, are holding up data in a way that allows them to publicly argue it’s not all that bad. The full picture suggests the opposite of a rosy one: On the same day that Pence urged senators to focus on 'encouraging signs,' the United States had its highest single day of reported coronavirus cases. Some of their comments risk underplaying the risk the country faces." The Minneapolis City Council is voting today on a proposal to change the city charter to allow for the elimination of the city's police department. The proposal would replace the department with a Department of Community Safety and Violence Prevention, which according to council member Steve Fletcher, would "have responsibility for public safety services prioritizing a holistic, public health-oriented approach." Fletcher also explained that "when someone calls 911, there will always be a response that's appropriate, including the option for a response by employees authorized to use force." In a Fox News op-ed titled " Defunding police is great for criminals – bad for crime victims," New York Rep. Lee Zeldin posits the following scenario: "It’s 3 a.m. and you’re home, with your children sleeping in the other room, when a window shatters downstairs. You reach for the phone to dial 911 – but instead of an operator dispatching your local police, you get a recording saying you can leave a voicemail for a social worker." Fact Check: Cities that are proposing changes to their police forces are not suggesting that social workers would respond to violent 911 situations, but are instead proposing that the respondents be appropriate for the situation. Furthering the mischaracterization of the defund the police movement, Donald Trump Jr sent the following tweet: "Regardless of the spin from @joebiden, Dems & their media allies, make no mistake about it: 'Divert police funding' is code for 'CUT FUNDING FOR THE POLICE.' After a month of violent riots, Democrats want LESS COPS protecting you and your family." According to an ABC News/Ipsos poll, 76% of Americans are worried about being infected with coronavirus. Also, 56% of Americans believe the economy is reopening too quickly. Only 15% think it is opening too slowly. The Trump administration submitted a court filing asking the supreme court to invalidate the affordable care act saying in part: "No further analysis is necessary; once the individual mandate and the guaranteed-issue and community-rating provisions are invalidated, the remainder of the ACA cannot survive." With coronavirus cases rising in Texas, governor Greg Abbott ordered bars to close, and lowered restaurant capacity from 75% to 50%, saying in part: "At this time, it is clear that the rise in cases is largely driven by certain types of activities, including Texans congregating in bars. The actions in this executive order are essential to our mission to swiftly contain this virus and protect public health." Vice president Mike Pence held a coronavirus task force meeting today, the first in nearly two months. Here are some highlights:
- Pence echoed Trump's claim that rising numbers of coronavirus cases are due to increased testing saying "It’s almost inarguable that more testing is generating more cases." FACT CHECK: Health experts say the rising number of cases is more attributable to states reopening and Americans relaxing social distancing practices than it is to increased testing. Additionally, hospitalizations are rising in many states, which is indicative of more cases regardless of testing levels. Finally, the rate of new cases is outpacing increased testing in many states, which is an indicator that the virus is spreading.
- Dr Deborah Birx noted that the rate of positive test results is on the rise in Texas. NOTE: This is another indicator that the virus is spreading, not that more testing is being done and therefore more cases.
- Dr Anthony Fauci noted that "We are facing a serious problem in certain areas".
- Dr Robert Redfield and Dr Deborah Birx both encouraged young Americans to wear masks and to practice social distancing.
- Pence was asked why Trump continues to hold large events without mandating face masks as coronavirus cases rise. Pence's response: "Freedom of speech, the right to peacefully assemble is enshrined in the Constitution of the United States. And we have an election coming up this fall. ... We still want to give people the freedom to participate in the political process."
- Pence was asked what message he wanted to offer regarding wearing masks, as evidence suggests face coverings can limit the spread of the virus. Pence's response: "Well, we think that the first principle is that people ought to listen to their state and local authorities."
The House of Representatives has approved a bill that would make Washington, DC, the 51st state. The vote was 232 in favor, and 180 opposed. Mitch McConnell, the Senate majority leader, has announced that he will not take up the bill. Trump is on record saying he would veto the legislation if it were presented to him. According to the New York Times, Russia offered Afghan militants bounties to kill US troops. From the story: "American intelligence officials have concluded that a Russian military intelligence unit secretly offered bounties to Taliban-linked militants for killing coalition forces in Afghanistan — including targeting American troops — amid the peace talks to end the long-running war there, according to officials briefed on the matter. The United States concluded months ago that the Russian unit, which has been linked to assassination attempts and other covert operations in Europe intended to destabilize the West or take revenge on turncoats, had covertly offered rewards for successful attacks last year. Islamist militants, or armed criminal elements closely associated with them, are believed to have collected some bounty money, the officials said. Twenty Americans were killed in combat in Afghanistan in 2019, but it was not clear which killings were under suspicion." Also from the story: "The intelligence finding was briefed to President Trump, and the White House’s National Security Council discussed the problem at an interagency meeting in late March, the officials said. Officials developed a menu of potential options — starting with making a diplomatic complaint to Moscow and a demand that it stop, along with an escalating series of sanctions and other possible responses, but the White House has yet to authorize any step, the officials said." Here are some notable reactions to the story about bounties to kill US troops:
"The Russian intel service that backed Trump’s 2016 campaign pays the Taliban to kill American soldiers in Afghanistan. In other words, the commander in chief’s foreign backers are killing his soldiers and he hasn’t done a thing about it. What a disgrace." - Evan McMullin, Former CIA Officer
"The real hazard of an administration that systematically ignores and minimizes what Russia is doing is sh*t like this -- years wasted negotiating some deal in Afghanistan without the leading players at the table. It's just kabuki policy." - Molly McKew, Expert in Russian Disinformation Campaigns
Donald Trump tweeted out that he had signed an executive order "protecting American Monuments, Memorials, and Statues - and combatting recent Criminal Violence". Fact Check: It's already illegal to deface or destroy government property. According to Reuters, the EU is in the process of creating a "safe list" of countries whose residents could travel to the EU in July when travel restrictions are lifted. The US, Brazil and Russia will be excluded from the list due to high levels of coronavirus. Attorney general William Barr announced the formation of a task force on "violent anti-government extremists", which he said includes "Antifa". Fact Check: According to an investigation by NPR: "NPR has reviewed court documents of 51 individuals facing federal charges in connection with the unrest. As of Tuesday morning, none is alleged to have links to the antifa movement. Of the cases brought so far, 20 involve allegations related to arson; 16 involve the illegal possession of a firearm, more often than not by a felon; another eight people face charges related to inciting a riot or civil disorder. The single instance in which an extremist group is mentioned in court documents is a case against three Nevada men. Federal prosecutors allege the trio belong to the right-wing Boogaloo movement that wants to bring about a civil war. The men have been charged with plotting violence during Las Vegas protests. In an interview Monday with Fox News, Barr said the lack of cases against alleged antifa activists so far does not mean they haven't been involved in the violence." According to BuzzFeed, a federal judge has ordered US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to release all immigrant children who have been detained inside ICE's family jails for more than 20 days. The judge cited concerns regarding covid-19.
June 25, 2020 - Edward Felsenthal, the the editor-in-chief and CEO of Time magazine, penned an op-ed titled "America's critical moment" which says in part: "As the country nears its 250th anniversary, it is being tested by an overdue reckoning on police brutality, white supremacy and systemic racism in all its forms, by a relentless pandemic on the rise again, by a deep economic and unemployment crisis, by a President who continually deploys racist language and stokes rather than calms division." Madison Cawthorn, a Republican in North Carolina, won a surprise victory in that state's primary. Scrutiny of Cawthorn revealed that he had liked tweets referring to the QAnon conspiracy theory. Carly Fiorina, who made a run for the Republican nomination for president in 2016, has gone on record saying she backs Joe Biden for president saying in part: "As citizens, our vote is more than a check on a box. It’s a statement about where we want to go. I think what we need now actually is real leadership that can unify the country. I am encouraged that Joe Biden is a person of humility and empathy and character. I think we need humility and empathy everywhere in public life right now. And I think character counts." Guy Phillips, an Arizona City Councilman, provoked a barrage of criticism after he spoke to about 150 attendees at an anti-mask rally that he had organized. In his opening comments, Phillips invoked the words of George Floyd saying "I can't breathe! I can't breath!" before removing the mask he was wearing. Doug Ducey, Arizona's governor, reacted to Phillip's use of the words of George Floyd saying "Just flat out wrong. Despicable doesn’t go far enough. The final words of George Floyd should NEVER be invoked like this. Anyone who mocks the murder of a fellow human has no place in public office. Period." Phillips later apologized during an interview with a local news station. According to the Guardian: "Another 1.48 million people filed for unemployment insurance across the US last week as the grim economic toll of the coronavirus pandemic continued as infection rates picked up in many states. Claims for unemployment insurance have now fallen for 12 weeks in a row but remain historically high. About 47 million people have now filed for benefits in the last 14 weeks, with 3 million claims made in the last two weeks." David Afanador, a New York police officer, was arrested on charges of strangulation and attempted strangulation after footage surfaced of him using a banned chokehold on Ricky Bellevue, a black man. Trump sent the following tweet: "The number of ChinaVirus cases goes up, because of GREAT TESTING, while the number of deaths (mortality rate), goes way down. The Fake News doesn’t like telling you that!" Fact Check: Public health experts attribute the rise in new cases to states reopening and Americans relaxing their social distancing practices, not to increased testing. Dr Anthony Fauci, the nation's leading infectious disease expert, predicted this week that the rising number of positive cases will probably lead to a higher death toll in the weeks to come, since coronavirus deaths often lag behind number of new cases. According to NBC News, Trump has requested that Interior Secretary David Bernhardt restore a statue of Brigadier General Albert Pike, who was a general in the Confederacy. According to CNN, multiple Trump campaign staffers are quarantining after attending Trump's Tulsa rally. From the story: "After eight staffers tested positive, several of the campaign’s top officials decided to quarantine for the week instead of going into the office, two sources familiar with the situation told CNN. Staff had only recently returned to the office after months of working from home because of coronavirus restrictions. As a precaution staff who were in Tulsa are working remotely and they will be tested before returning to the office, a campaign official said." House speaker Nancy Pelosi responded to calls for the impeachment of attorney general William Barr saying: "131 days from now, we will have the solution to many problems, one of them being Barr ... He is a disgrace to the department of justice." House minority leader Kevin McCarthy was asked about Trump using racist terms to describe coronavirus. McCarthy's response: "When we have seen a spike in coronavirus, you’re concerned about somebody and the way they name it. That’s appalling to me." Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell told an ABC News reporter that he encourages people to wear masks, saying in part "I think that’s what people ought to do. That’s what we’re doing in the Senate, and that’s what I’m counseling other people to do." Jay Clayton, the securities and exchange commission chairman, whom Trump has named to replace Geoffrey Berman to lead the Manhattan US attorney's office, was asked if he would commit to recusing himself "from investigations involving the president’s businesses or associates." Clayton's response: "What I will commit to do, which is what I commit to in my current job, is to approach the job with independence and to follow all ethical rules." A New York court has dismissed an attempt to block the publication of "Too Much and Never Enough: How My Family Created the World's Most Dangerous Man" which was written by Mary L Trump, a trained clinical psychologist, who happens to be Donald Trump's niece. Joe Biden, the Democratic nominee for president, offered the following comments on Trump's handling of the pandemic: "He's like a child who can’t believe this has happened to him. All his whining and self-pity. Well, this pandemic didn't happen to him; it happened to all of us. And his job isn't to whine about it. His job is to do something about it." Biden also addressed testing, saying of Trump's comments at his Tulsa rally that "testing is a double edged sword": "Testing unequivocally saves lives, and widespread testing is the key to opening up our economy again — so that's one edge of the sword. The other edge: that he thinks finding out that more Americans are sick will make him look bad. And that's what he's worried about. He's worried about looking bad." Defense secretary Mark Esper has authorized the deployment of 4,000 Pentagon personnel to the southern border starting in October. A number of advocacy groups including the Anti-Defamation League, the NAACP, and the Color of Change have launched a campaign called "Stop Hate for Profit". The group asks advertisers to put pressure on tech giants to adopt stricter policies against racist and hateful content on their platforms. Vice president Mike Pence was criticized after video surfaced of him and other members of the Trump administration touring Lordstown Motors in Ohio, while no one in the entourage was wearing a mask. The CDC released an estimate of the total number of coronavirus cases in the US, saying that despite the official number being around 2.45 million, the actual number is probably 10 times higher, due to many cases coming with no symptoms. A Washington Post-Ipsos poll finds that 92% of Black voters support Biden, while 5% support Trump. House Democrats passed the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act.
June 24, 2020 - The city of Charleston in South Carolina removed a statue of former vice president and slavery advocate John C. Calhoun. Charleston councilman Karl L. Brady stated "we place white supremacy and white supremacist thought back where it belongs - on the ash heap of history." According to the Guardian, in a move that continues efforts by the Trump administration to remove or water down federal environmental safeguards, the administration is "crafting an exemption for polluters releasing harmful perfluorinated chemicals (PFAS) into the environment in a way that environmental advocates say circumvents a new law meant to address widespread contamination." According to a New York Times/Siena College poll, Biden leads Trump in nearly every demographic, with only white voters without a college education giving Trump a 19 point margin in his favor. From the poll: "Among a striking cross-section of voters, the distaste for Mr. Trump has deepened as his administration failed to stop a deadly disease that crippled the economy and then as he responded to a wave of racial-justice protests with angry bluster and militaristic threats. The dominant picture that emerges from the poll is of a country ready to reject a president whom a strong majority of voters regard as failing the greatest tests confronting his administration." Democrats are looking to introduce legislation to force the re-naming of bases that bear the names of those who fought for the Confederacy in the US civil war. Josh Hawley, a Republican senator from Missouri, reacted to the news tweeting: "The woke mob cancel culture is out of control, pulling down statutes of Grant, Washington, priests and more. Now Democrats want to unilaterally mandate renaming military bases. Today I’m introducing legislation to stop this madness". According to the Guardian: "The DC circuit court of appeals has overruled district judge Emmet Sullivan and has ordered him to accept the justice department’s motion to dismiss the criminal case against Michael Flynn." A Reuters/Ipsos poll found that 37% of Americans approve of how Trump has handled the pandemic. A New York Times/Siena College poll found that 6 in 10 voters disapprove of Trump's handling of the pandemic. Kate Bedingfield, Joe Biden's deputy campaign manager responded to the polls saying: "A president who can’t be trusted in a crisis is no president at all -- but a president who actively makes crises worse when tens of thousands of lives and millions of jobs are on the line is an unacceptable danger to our nation. And Donald Trump’s admission that he slowed testing down to hide the extent of his failure highlights what is truly at stake in this election. We absolutely cannot afford a president who only cares about himself." Trump celebrated the appeals court ruling in the Michael Flynn case tweeting: "Great! Appeals Court Upholds Justice Departments Request To Drop Criminal Case Against General Michael Flynn!" Senate Republicans are demanding an apology from House speaker Nancy Pelosi for comments she made yesterday about the Senate's police reform bill. Pelosi had stated that Senate Republicans are "trying to get away with murder, actually -- the murder of George Floyd." Pelosi made the comment because the Senate's police reform bill does not ban chokeholds like the one that killed Floyd, but instead incentivizes police departments to ban the practice through by withholding federal funds. Pelosi's response to the demand for an apology: "Absolutely, positively not. The fact is -- I think you in the press have given them far too much credit for a bill that does nothing. You’re saying, you have your bill, they have theirs. Their bill does nothing." Kayleigh McEnany, the White House press secretary, sent the following tweet today: "Today's decision by an appeals court to dismiss the case against Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn is a VICTORY for justice and truth. All Americans are entitled to equal justice under the law and due process. No American should ever be unjustly targeted by their government." Fact Check: Flynn pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI, and then cooperated with special counsel Robert Nueller to receive a more lenient sentence. A Senate procedural vote on the Republican police reform bill failed, mostly on party lines, with 3 Democrats voting with the Republicans. Those Democrats that supported advancing the legislation are Joe Manchin, Doug Jones and Angus King. According to Talking Points Memo, the Trump administration is winding down federal funding and support for more than a dozen coronavirus testing sites, including in states that are seeing a surge in new cases. Some notable reactions to news of reduced funding:
"When the President said 'slow down the testing,' he meant it. We are in the middle of a pandemic that's killed more than 120,000 Americans. Almost 35,000 new cases yesterday. This is absolutely insane." - Mark Warner, Virginia Democrat
"It’s pretty clear to me, and I think it’s clear to all of us, that with the uptick of cases, now is not a time to retreat from our vigilance in testing." - John Cornyn, Republican of Texas
A grand jury has indicted Travis McMichael, Greg McMichael and William R. Bryan on murder charges, for the killing of Ahmaud Arbery, a black man who was shot while jogging in a Georgia neighborhood. The shooting of Arbery inspired protests, which intensified after the police killing of George Floyd. Trump held a press conference where he bizarrely claimed that activists are now trying to take down statues of Jesus Christ saying: "Now they’re looking at Jesus Christ. They’re looking at George Washington. They’re looking at Abraham Lincoln, Thomas Jefferson. Not going to happen, not going to happen. Not as long as I’m here." Gina Raimondo, the governor of Rhode Island, signed an executive order which moves the state forward in changing it's official name from "The State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations" to the shorter "Rhode Island". The longer name is being rejected due to its ties to American slavery. The US set a new record today for new cases of coronavirus: 38,672. The prior record of 36,001 was set on April 25th. The World Health Organization has warned of a potential global oxygen shortage as coronavirus cases are rising globally by 1m per week. Logan Cook, who posted to twitter using the name @CarpeDonktum, has been permanently banned from the platform after posting doctored video CNN video. Cook has been suspended multiple times for violating copyright rules, and posting doctored videos, some of which have been reposted by Donald Trump. Kevin Piner, Jessie Moore, and James Gilmore, three North Carolina police officers, were fired after video surfaced in which they used racial slurs, discussed "slaughtering" black people, and spoke of the need for a second civil war. When confronted with the video, the officers denied being racist.
June 23, 2020 - Overnight, protesters tried to topple a statue of Andrew Jackson in Lafayette Square across the street form the White House, but were thwarted by DC police. Trump sent the following tweet regarding the incident: "Numerous people arrested in D.C. for the disgraceful vandalism, in Lafayette Park, of the magnificent Statue of Andrew Jackson, in addition to the exterior defacing of St. John’s Church across the street. 10 years in prison under the Veteran’s Memorial Preservation Act. Beware!" Trump also sent this tweet: "I have authorized the Federal Government to arrest anyone who vandalizes or destroys any monument, statue or other such Federal property in the U.S. with up to 10 years in prison, per the Veteran’s Memorial Preservation Act, or such other laws that may be pertinent. This action is taken effective immediately, but may also be used retroactively for destruction or vandalism already caused. There will be no exceptions!" Notable reaction to Trump's authorization to arrest statue vandals:
"This is silly. It's already a federal crime to deface or steal federal property, and an executive order can't make it any more of a crime. The government can arrest people for it whenever it can show probable cause that they have broken the law, and he can't change that, either." - Brad Heath, Reuters Reporter
The Atlas Restaurant Group, which owns Ouzo Bay, posted an apology on facebook after an incident in Baltimore where a black boy was denied service because of how he was dressed, while a white boy similarly dressed was being served. A video of the incident went viral online. According to the Guardian: "Yesterday more than half of all US states have reported a rise in new coronavirus cases, with some breaking their daily records. The US has over 2.3 million cases of coronavirus recorded, out of just over 9 million cases worldwide." Trump sent the following tweet regarding the high number of cases in the US: "Cases are going up in the U.S. because we are testing far more than any other country, and ever expanding. With smaller testing we would show fewer cases!" John Bolton's book The Room Where it Happened will be released today. Politico provides an analysis of efforts by the Trump administration to attack the book, saying in part: "The coordinated attack is ultimately an attempt to counteract Bolton’s central thesis as he promotes his book: Trump poses a danger to the country. It’s the other way around, Trump and his aides are insisting: Bolton is the national security threat. An array of current and former White House aides surfaced to make these points on Monday, both publicly and privately. The White House is promoting statements from top intelligence officials testifying that Bolton’s book, which will be published on Tuesday, is endangering American intelligence sources. And the president is trumpeting the words of a judge who refused to stop Bolton’s book from coming out but excoriated the author for imperiling national security with his efforts." Donald Trump will be visiting Phoenix today to speak at a Students for Trump event. Attendees were asked to sign a coronavirus liability waiver. In response to his upcoming visit, Kate Gallego, the Democratic mayor, issued the following statement yesterday: "Everyone attending tomorrow’s event, particularly any elected official, should set an example to residents by wearing a mask. This includes the President." The mayor felt the need to issue the statement as Trump has yet to show any willingness to wear a mask in public. Arwa Mahdawi, a contributor to the Guardian, has published an article titled "Presidential harrassment! Why Trump believes playing the victim will help him win". Here's an excerpt from the article: "Donald Trump will not go gentle into that good night: he will rage, rage, rage-tweet against the dying of his might. Indeed, he is already doing so. After a humiliating turnout at Saturday’s rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma – which capped one of the worst weeks of his presidency – Trump’s re-election chances look shakier by the day. Rattled and belligerent, he seems to be gearing up to contest a defeat in November." Trump was asked as he left the White House today if he was kidding when he said he told his people to slow down testing. Trump's response: "I don't kid". Trump then pointed out that testing is a "double-edged sword". Trump also commented on the group that attempted to tear down the statue of Andrew Jackson saying: "We are looking at long term jail sentences for these vandals and these hoodlums and these anarchists and agitators. Call them whatever you want. Some people don’t like that language, but that’s what they are. They’re bad people. They don’t love our country. And they’re not taking down our monuments. I just want to make that clear." Dr Anthony Fauci, CDC director Robert Redfield, FDA commissioner Stephen Hahn and Brett Giroir, a top official at the department of health and human services, are all testifying today before the House energy and commerce committee. Here are some highlights:
- Fauci said he is "cautiously optimistic" that a vaccine would be ready by late 2020 or early 2021.
- Fauci said that "To my knowledge, none of us have ever been told to slow down on testing. That just is a fact. In fact, we will be doing more testing."
- Fauci said he believes institutional racism was one of many contributing factors for the disparity in coronavirus outcomes, with African Americans dying at three times the rate of White Americans.
- Redfield claimed that coronavirus has "brought this nation to its knees".
- Fauci warned of a "disturbing surge" in coronavirus in some parts of the country.
According to the New York Times, the European Union is looking to reopen its borders, and is reportedly considering denying entry to Americans because of how the US has handled the coronavirus pandemic. Twitter applied the following label to a Trump tweet today: "We’ve placed a public interest notice on this Tweet for violating our policy against abusive behavior, specifically, the presence of a threat of harm against an identifiable group." Here's the twee that twitter labeled: "There will never be an 'Autonomous Zone' in Washington D.C., as long as I'm your President. If they try they will be met with serious force!" Trump's tweet is a reaction to news that the demonstrators who defaced the statue of Andrew Jackson in Lafayette Square also spray-painted the phrase "BHAZ: Black House Autonomous Zone" on a piece of plywood. Donald Trump toured a part of his border wall today, calling it "really foolproof". According to the New York Times, the Trump family is trying to block the publication of a tell-all memoir by Mary Trump, who is Donald Trump's niece. According to the story: "Ms. Trump is the daughter of the president’s late brother, Fred Trump Jr., and her book, ‘Too Much and Never Enough: How My Family Created the World’s Most Dangerous Man,’ is scheduled to be published by Simon & Schuster on July 28." After an investigation, the FBI concluded that a noose found in Bubba Wallace's garage at Talladega Superspeedway had been there since October, long before Wallace was assigned to the space, so "no federal crime was committed". According to the Huardian, the New York City Bar Association wrote to Congressional leaders after the Trump administration sacked Geoffrey Berman. The letter reads in part: "To summarily remove a US attorney in a context in which associates of the president (and possibly the president himself) are reported to be under active investigation by that office suggests political interference and undermines confidence in the integrity of our justice system. For this reason, we believe it essential that Congress examine closely Mr Barr’s motives for taking this precipitous action and whether or not he communicated with the president before, during or after doing so." At the Students for Trump rally, Trump made numerous false claims. Here are some highlights:
- Trump told the un-masked crowd that the state of California had admitted that 1m or more people voted illegally. Fact Check: The settlement Trump referenced concerned inactive voters on registration rolls in a case that had to do with updating old records.
- Trump claimed he "will always protect people with pre-existing conditions." Fact Check: Trump tried to weaken protections for patients with pre-existing conditions provided by Obamacare through repeal and replace proposals that didn't make it through Congress. The White House is currently championing a federal lawsuit to repeal Obamacare.
- Trump claimed his administration passed Veterans Choice. Fact Check: Veterans Choice was passed in 2014, under Barack Obama. Trump signed legislation to continue the program.
- Trump referred to coronavirus using numerous racist phrases, including "kung flu".
- Trump claimed that mail-in ballots will be "stolen from mailboxes" and "forged". Fact Check: Experts have said repeatedly that it would be nearly impossible for a foreign country to pull off that kind of fraud.
- Trump attempted to justify his own use of the mail for voting saying "absentee ballots are fine", despite absentee and mail-in voting being essentially the same thing.
Brett Hankison, a police officer who shot 10 rounds in Breonna Taylor's home, has been fired. Robert Schroeder, the police chief, wrote the following in Hankison's termination letter: "I find your conduct a shock to the conscience. I am alarmed and stunned you used deadly force in this fashion." Jay Inslee, the governor of Washington announced a mandate requiring all residents to wear a face mask when in public.
June 22, 2020 - According to Johns Hopkins University, 120,225 Americans have died from coronavirus. The American Museum of Natural History announced that it will be removing a statue of Theodore Roosevelt from outside its main entrance that shows the 26th president astride a horse attended by an African American and a Native American. The Roosevelt family approves of the removal. Trump sent the following tweet: "RIGGED 2020 ELECTION: MILLIONS OF MAIL-IN BALLOTS WILL BE PRINTED BY FOREIGN COUNTRIES, AND OTHERS. IT WILL BE THE SCANDAL OF OUR TIMES!" Trump offered no evidence for these claims. Nascar reported that a noose was found in the garage stall assigned to Bubba Wallace, the only full time black driver in the circuit's top-flight Cup series, at Talladega Superspeedway in Alabama. Trump sent a tweet to clarify a comment from a couple days ago in which he said he would be willing to sit down with Nicolas Maduro, the Venezuelan dictator. The tweet said: "Unlike the radical left, I will ALWAYS stand against socialism and with the people of Venezuela. My Admin has always stood on the side of FREEDOM and LIBERTY and against the oppressive Maduro regime! I would only meet with Maduro to discuss one thing: a peaceful exit from power!" After Donald Trump acknowledged in an interview with Axios that he held off on imposing sanctions over Beijing's treatment of Uighurs because he did not want to interrupt trade negotiations, House speaker Nancy Pelosi reacted saying: "Congress on a bipartisan basis has long spoken with one voice in defense of those persecuted by Beijing and will continue to do so. President Trump’s admission that he is looking the other way and enabling one of the worst human rights atrocities of our time in order to ink a trade deal is appalling." Trump was asked whether he had ordered coronavirus testing to be slowed, as he had claimed at his Tulsa rally. Trump's response: "We do more testing than any country in the world by far. 25 million tests. Other countries do 1 million. Every time you do a test, as you do more tests, it shows more and more cases. So, we're so far advanced both in terms of the quality and the amount, and we're doing all these tests, and it shows cases other countries aren't doing, where, if we did slow it down, we wouldn't show nearly as many cases..." Trump was then asked, "But did you ask to slow it down?" Trump's response: "Uh, if it did slow down, frankly I think we're way ahead of ourselves if you want to know the truth. We've done too good a job, because every time we go out with 25 million tests, you're going to find more people. So then they say, oh, we have more cases in the United States. The reason we have more cases, because we do more testing than any other country by far." Trump's refusal to directly answer the question appears to put him at odds with his advisers who claim he was just joking. According to the Wall Street Journal, Geoffrey Berman was fired shortly after he refused to sign a letter criticizing New York mayor Bill de Blasio over his social distancing restrictions. From the story: "The day before Attorney General William Barr abruptly announced plans to replace [Berman] as the Manhattan U.S. Attorney, supervisors in Mr. Barr’s Justice Department asked Mr. Berman to sign a letter criticizing [de Blasio] for the city’s enforcement of social-distancing rules to block religious gatherings but not recent street protests, people familiar with the matter said. Mr. Berman refused to sign the letter Thursday, after engaging in a brief back-and-forth drafting process, the people said. Mr. Berman voiced strong objections to the letter, particularly its assertions that Mr. de Blasio imposed a double standard, and described the letter as a political stunt that would strain relations between his office and the city, two of the people said." Mike Pence, the vice president, claims that Trump's slow the testing down comment was just "a passing observation" about testing. Fact Check: According to public health experts, the country's high number of coronavirus cases is much more closely linked with states reopening and Americans relaxing their social distancing practices rather than increased testing. Kayleigh McEnany held a press conference. Here are some highlights:
- When asked about Trump's slow the testing down comment, McEnany claimed that any suggestion Trump has ordered testing to be slowed is "not rooted in fact" and the comment made by Trump was "a comment he made in jest."
- After being asked if it was appropriate for the president to joke about coronavirus when it has killed nearly 120,000 Americans, McEnany said "He was not joking about coronavirus. ... He was joking about the media."
- McEnany was asked about Trump's use of the racist term "kung flu", to which McEnany replied that Trump "is linking it to its place of origin". When asked if Trump considers the phrase to be racist, McEnany responded: "I think the media is trying to play games with the terminology of this virus."
- McEnany was asked about reports that Trump is furious with campaign officials over the attendance at his Tulsa rally. McEnany responded that "There is no grounding in fact to that. He was very pleased with how the rally went."
- McEnany was asked if Trump regrets using the racist phrase "kung flu" to describe coronavirus during his rally. McEnany responded that Trump "never regrets putting the onus back on China" for the pandemic. Another reporter pointed out that earlier this year, White House adviser Kellyanne Conway had described the phrase as offensive and wrong. That reporter then asked if the White House disagreed with Conway's characterization. McEnany refused to answer the question, then called on somebody else.
- McEnany ended the briefing by boasting about the "big number" of viewers who watched the Tulsa rally on Fox News.
The FBI has launched an investigation into a noose being found in the team garage of Nascar's Bubba Wallace. News surfaced that two additional Trump campaign staffers who attended the rally in Tulsa have tested positive for coronavirus. According tot he Guardian: "Ethan Melzer, a 22-year old army private from Louisville, Kentucky, has been charged with conspiring and attempting to murder US nationals, conspiring and attempting to murder military service members, providing and attempting to provide material support to terrorists, and conspiring to murder and maim in a foreign country, the DOJ announced. ... Melzer allegedly attempted to orchestrate a murderous ambush on his own unit by unlawfully revealing its location, strength, and armaments to a neo-Nazi, anarchist, white supremacist group. ... Melzer was a member of the Order of the Nine Angles (O9A), a group whose members have been involved with violence and murders, according to the DOJ." Donald Trump sent a tweet that baselessly asserted that foreign governments will use mail-in ballots to "rig" the November election. Sam Levine, a Guardian contributor responded to the baseless claim writing: "Many election offices have systems in place to closely track mail-in ballots and have other methods of verifying the identity of a voter such as comparing the signature on the ballot to ones on file. 'There are many checks and balances in place to ensure that nobody could just print ‘millions’ of ballots and vote them,' said David Becker, executive director of the Center for Election Innovation and Research, who works with election officials across the country. 'We have decades of experience enforcing these security measures, including during world war II, confirming the integrity of mail voting. That’s why election officials from both parties, including most Republicans, promote mail voting and vote by mail themselves.'"
June 21, 2020 - According to the CDC, 119,165 Americans have died from coronavirus. Donald Trump's rally last night in Tulsa is getting a lot of buzz today, but not necessarily because of what happened so much as what didn't happen. Trump had promised a million or more fans would attend, but the BOK Center was only about two thirds full. An overflow area where Trump was going to address people standing outside wasn't needed, and few protesters showed up as many of Trump's supporters anticipated and seemed to hope for. Here are some notable reactions to Trump's opening rally for the 2020 election:
"Donald Trump declared 'the silent majority is stronger than ever before' at his comeback rally on Saturday, but thousands of empty seats appeared to tell a different story. The US president's much hyped return to the campaign trail turned to humiliation when he failed to fill a 19,000-capacity arena in the Republican stronghold of Oklahoma, raising fresh doubts about his chances of winning re-election ... Trump’s planned speech to an overflow event outside the venue was cancelled due to lack of attendance. Cable news networks showed a 'Trump' lectern standing idle as workers dismantled a stage. Then the rally venue itself was estimated to be only two-thirds full, with numerous empty seats in the upper tier and empty space on the area floor, despite his campaign having claimed that it received more than a million ticket requests. One explanation for the disconnect spread rapidly online as Twitter users suggested many of the requests were fakes filed by bored teens and even fans of Korean pop music playing a prank on the US president ... Trump, who has faced withering attacks for his response to the protests, which included threatening to deploy the US military, claimed: 'I’ve done more for the black community in four years than Joe Biden has done in 47 years.' But he offered no compassion for George Floyd or thousands of protesters who have taken to the streets against police brutality. Instead he railed against the recent removals of Confederate statues." - David Smith
"There have been so many reasons to feel embarrassed about Donald Trump. There was the time he paid off a porn star. There was the time he lied about the size of his inauguration crowd. The time he talked about the big water around Puerto Rico. The time he thought you could kill the coronavirus by injecting yourself with bleach. But nothing truly comes close to the embarrassment of his so-called comeback rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma, on Saturday." - Richard Wolffe
"That rally was an embarrassment. It was absolutely what the nation does not need right now. He did not speak about healing. He did not recognize any of the racial tensions that are happening across our country. Instead, he does what he always does. He continues to try and divide us and really inflames the worst in people. And so I just hope that this is a good sign that the country is moving on from him." - Keisha Lance Bottoms, Mayor of Atlanta
"Radical protestors, fueled by a week of apocalyptic media coverage, interfered with @realDonaldTrump supporters at the rally. They even blocked access to the metal detectors, preventing people from entering. Thanks to the 1,000s who made it anyway!" - Brad Parscale, Trump 2020 Campaign Manager
"Actually you just got ROCKED by teens on TikTok who flooded the Trump campaign w/ fake ticket reservations & tricked you into believing a million people wanted your white supremacist open mic enough to pack an arena during COVID. Shout out to Zoomers. Y’all make me so proud. KPop allies, we see and appreciate your contributions in the fight for justice too" - Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
Guardian contributor Lloyd Green offered this analysis of the Friday night firing of Geoffrey Berman, the US attorney for the Southern District of New York: "Instead of replacing Berman in the near term with a Trump loyalist, the US attorney for New Jersey, and in the long haul with Jay Clayton, the chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission, Audrey Strauss, a career prosecutor, will lead the 'sovereign' district until a Trump nominee clears the Senate. For Trump and his attorney general, replacing Berman with Strauss is like jumping from frying pan to fire. If the dynamic duo had a difficult time taming Berman, a Trump contributor and a former partner of Rudy Giuliani, reining in Strauss will prove even tougher." Jerry Nadler, the Democratic house judiciary committee chairman was asked about calls to impeach William Barr over the firing of Geoffrey Berman. Nadler's response: "They are a waste of time at this point, because we do know that we have a corrupt Republican majority in the Senate which will not consider an impeachment, no matter what the evidence and no matter what the facts." During an interview on CNN, Peter Navarro, Trump's trade adviser, claimed Covid-19 "was a product of the Chinese Communist party and until we get some information about what happened in those labs or what happened in that wet market we know that virus was spawned in China ... the Chinese Communist party is responsible for it and as far as I’m concerned ... guilty until proven innocent." Navarro was also asked about Trump's comment at his Tulsa rally that he requested a slow down in Covid-19 testing, to which Navarro replied: "It was tongue-in-cheek, please ... it was a light moment". Robert Reich, a former secretary of labor, offered this analysis of calls to defund the police: "Social-control societies put substantial resources into police, prisons, surveillance, immigration enforcement and the military. Their purpose is to utilize fear, punishment and violence, to maintain what they consider order. Social-investment societies put more resources into healthcare, education, affordable housing, jobless benefits and children. Their purpose is to free people from the risks and anxieties of daily life and give everyone a fair shot at making it. Donald Trump epitomizes the former. He calls himself the 'law and order' president. He even wants to sic the military on Americans protesting against police brutality. Trump is really the culmination of 40 years of increasing social control in the US and decreasing social investment." The Nashvill Tennessean, the largest paper in the state, published a full-page ad from a far-right client that warned "Islam is going to detonate a nuclear device in Nashville, Tennessee" in the month of July. According to the AP: "Eight Ramsey county corrections officers filed racial discrimination charges with the Minnesota Department of Human Rights on Friday alleging that when [Derek] Chauvin was booked into the jail, all officers of color were ordered to a separate floor, according to the Star Tribune, which obtained a copy of charges. The charges allege that a supervisor told one of the officers that because of their race, they would be a potential 'liability' around Chauvin." According to the Tulsa Fire Department, 6,200 people attended Trump's Tulsa rally at the BOK Center, which has a capacity of 19,000. The Trump campaign claims there were 12,000 in attendance. According to CNN, Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner are "pissed" that Trump's campaign manager, Brad Parscale, had promised huge crowds for the event. Rick Wilson, a former Republican consultant, offered this criticism of Parscale: "Brad broke the first rule of American politics: under promise and over deliver. Brad’s survival now depends on the good offices of his patrons inside the Trump camp, and [Ivanka and Jared Kushner] are already signaling their displeasure to the media." The family of Tom Petty has issued a formal cease and desist letter to the Donald Trump campaign over its use of Petty's song I Won't Back Down at the Tulsa rally saying Trump was "in no way authorized to use this song to further a campaign that leaves too many Americans and common sense left behind ... Tom Petty would never want a song of his used for a campaign of hate." Nascar held the first large scale sporting event in the US to allow fans to attend since the start of the pandemic, and its first since banning the Confederate flag from its properties. During the race a plane circled overhead pulling a large Confederate flag with the words DEFUND NASCAR trailing behind. A group of about two dozen protesters in pickup trucks and wagons paraded outside with Confederate flags flying from their vehicles. One of the protesters put it this way: "Our southern heritage has been pushed to death and we are tired of it. Nascar is going to be a thing of the past. They are taking everything out for what it stands for. It was put together by rednecks, moonshiners and hillbillies." John Bolton sat down for an interview with ABC News, here are some highlights:
- Bolton said "I don’t think he should be president. I don’t think he’s fit for office. I don’t think he has the competence to carry out the job. I don’t think he’s a conservative Republican. I’m not going to vote for him in November. I’m certainly not going to vote for Joe Biden either. I’m going to figure out a conservative Republican to write in."
- Bolton said he hopes history will remember Trump as a "one term president who didn't plunge the country irretrievably into a downward spiral we can't recover from. We can get over one term. Two terms I’m more troubled about."
- Bolton said he "had confidence going in that many of the stories were distorted. That turned out not to be right".
- Bolton said Vladimir Putin feels he can "play [Trump] like a fiddle".
June 20, 2020 - More than 118,000 Americans have died from coronavirus. According to experts at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and University of Pennsylvania, Florida's rise in coronavirus cases has "all the markings of the next large epicenter of coronavirus transmission". During an April 29th news conference, Ron DeSantis, the governor of Florida, had berated the media for a "doom and gloom" approach he said bore little relation to reality as he pressed ahead with a swift reopening of Florida's economy. During an interview with the BBC, Greta Thunberg weighed in on the Black Lives Matter protests saying "It feels like we have passed some kind of social tipping point where people are starting to realize that we cannot keep looking away from these things. We cannot keep sweeping these things under the carpet, these injustices. People are starting to find their voice, to sort of understand that they can actually have an impact." US district judge Royce C Lamberth ruled today that former national security adviser John Bolton can move forward in publishing his tell-all book The Room Where it Happened. Protesters in San Francisco tore down and defaced statues of Father Junipero Serra, Francis Scott Key, and Ulysses S. Grant. According to NBC News, six members of the Trump campaign's advance team in Tulsa have tested positive for coronavirus. A spokesperson for the group Bikers for Trump claimed there were 50 armed bikers patrolling the area around Trump's rally in Tulsa to "protect the rally" from "antifa". US attorney general William Barr announced that Donald Trump had fired Geoffrey Berman, the US attorney for the southern district of New York. IN the announcement, Barr said "Because you have declared that you have no intention of resigning, I have asked the president to remove you as of today, and he has done so." Audrey Strauss, Berman's deputy, will become the acting US attorney. As Trump was departing for his rally in Tulsa, he spoke to the press, here are some highlights:
- Trump was asked about the Berman issue to which he replied "That's all up to the attorney general. Attorney General Barr is working on that. That’s his department, not my department. But we have a very capable attorney general, so that's really up to him. I'm not involved."
- Trump commented on tonight's rally in Tulsa saying "The event in Oklahoma is unbelievable. The crowds are unbelievable. They haven't seen anything like it. We will go there now. We’ll give a hopefully good speech, see a lot of great people, a lot of great friends."
- Trump told reporters: "There was a time when people thought it was worse wearing a mask. I let people make their own decision ... if people want to wear masks I think that’s great. I won’t be. Not as a protest but I don’t feel that I’m in danger."
Eric Trump posted, then deleted, an Instagram post that contained a graphic from the far-right conspiracy group known as QAnon. QAnon is a conspiracy theory that states a powerful group of paedophiles control the world. The Anti Defamation League (ADL) calls QAnon a "dangerous theory that has inspired dangerous acts". Reports from inside the BOK Center in Tulsa say that most of those waiting for the president to speak are not wearing masks. A reporter asked one of the arena workers if she felt safe being around so many people without masks, her response: "No not really, but I’m not allowed to talk about it." News surfaced that Geoffrey Berman, the US attorney for the southern district of New York, has resigned. Letitia James, the New York attorney general responded to the ouster of Geoffrey Berman saying: "I am deeply concerned about the sudden removal of the US Attorney for the Southern District of New York, especially given serious questions about who gave the order and the timing of the firing. I hope the Department of Justice heeds its own advice and puts public service over public spectacle. Ongoing investigations must not be interfered with, period. There is still much work to be done and it must be done independently. Americans deserve leaders who are committed to justice." As Trump's Tulsa rally begins, reporters note that the arena is only about a third full. The campaign released a statement blaming the low turnout on "radical protesters, coupled with relentless onslaught from the media", even claiming that protesters blocked access to metal detectors which prevented people from entering the rally. Reporters on the scene claim they observed nothing of the sort. Here are some highlights from Trump's rally:
- Trump asked the crowd if they have noticed that Joe Biden sometimes gets the names of states wrong which makes him lose credibility. Critics were quick to point out that after the Kansas City Chief's won the Super Bowl, Trump congratulated the "state of Kansas".
- Trump referred to coronavirus as "the China virus" and "kung flu". References are cheered.
- Trump claimed radical left Democrats have looted businesses and injured police officers. Critics were quick to point out that police have died during the protests at the hands of members of the extreme-right boogaloo movement.
- Trump tells the crowd a story of things to come should calls to defund the police come to fruition saying: "It's 1am in the morning and a 'very tough hombre' is trying to break into the house of a young woman whose husband is away, and the reply is 'Sorry, this number is no longer in service'". Fact Check: Very few people are seriously calling for the end of law enforcement altogether.
- Trump spoke about the removal of statues saying "The unhinged left-wing mob is trying to vandalize our history, desecrate our monuments, our beautiful monuments, tear down our statutes, and punish, cancel and persecute anyone who does not conform their demands for absolute and total control. We're not conforming."
- Trump says that ICE gets "rid of the worst scum on earth".
- Trump spoke of testing for coronavirus then added "when you do testing to that extent, you are gonna find more people, you’re gonna find more cases. So I said to my people slow the testing down please. They test and they test. We have tests that people don’t know what’s going on." White House official assures press that Trump was clearly joking, that "he's never advised staff to slow testing."
- Trump claimed "an emboldened left will launch a full scale attack on American life ... will expel anyone who disagrees with them, they call you a racist, they don't like religion ... they want to take away your guns."
- Trump told crowd that Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez will shut down the energy sector and ban airplanes. Also claims "she's got no sense, no credentials ... a little charisma, not much." Cortez responded to the attack tweeting: "Ah yes - in fact, I’m so uncharismatic and untalented that the President of the United States has dedicated time at multiple rallies over two years to talk about me, a first term member of Congress."
- Trump claimed he has done "more for the black community in four years than Joe Biden has done in 47 years."
- Trump claimed he has saved "millions of lives" during the pandemic.
One especially notable tweet regarding the low turnout for Trump's rally:
"The Emperor has no crowd" - Dan Pfeiffer
News surfaced that the Trump campaign had been trolled by social media campaigns including TikTok where large groups of people signed up for tickets to the event with no intention of using them. A member of the Trump campaign denied this was the case saying on CNN "We had legitimate 300,000 signups of Republicans who voted in the last four elections. Those are not [TikTok] kids. It was fear of violent protests. This is obvious with the lack of families and children at the rally. We normally have thousands of families." Trump claimed during n interview with Fox News that "these protests are all paid for". Here are some notable reactions to Trump's claim during the rally that he has asked officials to slow the testing down:
"This should be a massive, MASSIVE scandal talked about non-stop until we get to the bottom of what happened with our testing failures." - Paker Molloy
"Trump admitted at Tulsa rally that he asked officials to 'slow the testing down' for COVID-19, because 'more tests find more cases.' If he cared about public health he'd want to do more testing and find more cases. But he he cares only about his own reelection, so he doesn't." - Robert Reich
"Who among us doesn’t tell jokes about denying testing to people who might be infected with a lethal virus?" - Dan Pfeiffer
June 19, 2020 - The Lost Cause monument, erected in 1908 by the United Daughters of the Confederacy in Decatur, GA, was removed overnight by the city. Trump claimed that more than a million people want to attend his rally tomorrow. Trump tweeted the following threat to protesters of his Tulsa Rally: "Any protesters, anarchists, agitators, looters or lowlifes who are going to Oklahoma please understand, you will not be treated like you have been in New York, Seattle, or Minneapolis. It will be a much different scene!" Family and friends are gathering today to commemorate the life of David Patrick Underwood, who was killed on May 29 while guarding the Ronald V Dellums Federal Building in Oakland while large protests took place in the wake of the killing of George Floyd. Underwood was killed by Air Force Staff Sgt. Steve Carrillo, who has ties to the right-wing extremist anti-government movement known as boogaloo, and had hatched a plan to use the protests as cover to kill law enforcement. Carrillo is also charged with killing Santa Cruz County sheriff's Sgt. Damon Gutzwiller on June 6th. That shooting wounded four other officers. Donald Trump was interviewed by Politico, here are some highlights:
- Trump argued that mail-in voting poses the biggest threat to his reelection, claiming without evidence, that widespread mail-in voting will benefit Democrats and invite fraud.
- Trump was asked if substantial mail-in voting would cause him to question the legitimacy of the election, and would he accept the results of the election no matter what? Trump's answer: "Well, you can never answer the second question, right? Because Hillary kept talking about she’s going to accept, and they never accepted it. You know. She lost too. She lost good." Fact Check: Clinton conceded to Trump by phone in the pre-dawn hours of November 9th.
Donald Trump was asked about comments made by Anthony Fauci, in which he said regarding NFL football: "unless players are essentially in a bubble — insulated from the community and they are tested nearly every day — it would be very hard to see how football is able to be played this fall. If there is a second wave, which is certainly a possibility and which would be complicated by the predictable flu season, football may not happen this year." Trump's response: "Tony Fauci has nothing to do with NFL Football. They are planning a very safe and controlled opening. However, if they don’t stand for our National Anthem and our Great American Flag, I won’t be watching!!!" The Louisville police department announced that they are firing officer Brett Hankison for his role in the death of Breonna Taylor saying that Hankison "displayed an extreme indifference to the value of human life" when he shot Taylor. Kayleigh McEnany, the White House press secretary, held a press briefing. Here are some highlights:
- McEnany was asked about Trump's tweet that appeared to threaten protesters at his Tulsa rally. McEnany responded saying Trump did not mean "any protesters", he was actually referring to violent actors and looters. Fact Check: Trump's tweet said "Any protesters".
- McEnany was asked if she planned to wear a mask at tomorrow's rally. McEnany answered she did not plan to wear a mask.
- McEnany insisted that despite what Trump said about Juneteenth in a recent interview: "He did not just learn about Juneteenth this week."
- McEnany requested that the media cover Trump's rally - and the crowd size - fairly.
- NBC White House correspondent Peter Alexander, asked McEnany the following question: "Why does the president keep hiring people who are dumb as a rock, overrated, way over their heads, whacko and incompetent?" McEnany responded: "The president makes hiring decision based on the fact that he likes to have countervailing viewpoints ... he likes the model of having a Team of Rivals, like with what we saw in President Lincoln's administration. I think the Team of Rivals with President Lincoln worked quite well." Alexander then pressed as to why those rivals are people the president believes to be "dumb as a rock, overrated, way over their heads, whacko and incompetent? How does that help?" to which McEnany responded "Sometimes those rivals prove those labels to be true."
According to Reuters, the US Navy will not reinstate Captain Brett Crozier, who was removed from his command after he pleaded for more help to stop the spread of coronavirus aboard the aircraft carrier Theodore Roosevelt. From the story: "Crozier was hailed by his crew as a hero for risking his job by writing a letter that leaked calling on the Navy for greater safeguards for his crew. A previous Navy investigation had recommended reinstating him. But a more in-depth probe, the results of which will be disclosed at least in part on Friday, are expected to detail concerns about his response to the virus, the sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told Reuters. It was unclear whether that would include his failure to address those concerns through proper channels." According to NBC, senior members of the coronavirus task force - Dr Anthony Fauci and Dr Deborah Birx - advised the White House not to hold a large-scale indoor rally like the upcoming one in Tulsa, which according to Trump, nearly a million people had requested tickets to attend. According to the New York Times, the Department of Homeland Security sent helicopters, airplanes and drones to 15 cities where demonstrators were protesting police brutality, and logged at least 270 hours of surveillance. According to an opinion piece by Ashish Jha, the director of the Harvard Global Health Institute: "As the Covid-19 virus continues to spread unevenly across the world, politicians and opinion pages in the US are already blaming new cases of coronavirus on mass demonstrations against police violence and racism. The protests are a visible example of public crowds, and the ideal scapegoat for problems that are far more complex. Some leaders have treated them with overt hostility. But have protests really played a critical role in spreading new cases of coronavirus? The best science suggests probably not a lot ... The evidence is becoming clear that wearing a mask can substantially lower the risk of spread and severity of illness. We are seeing more and more masks worn by protesters. A second feature of gatherings that affects the spread of the virus is whether they happen outdoors or indoors. Here, too, research suggests that outdoor activities are much safer than indoor ones." Protesters toppled and set on fire the only Confederate statue in the District of Columbia. The statue was of Albert Pike, a general who was an influential figure in the early Ku Klux Klan. Trump responded to the toppling of the statue tweeting: "The DC police are not doing their job as they watched a statue be ripped down and burn. These people should be immediately arrested. A disgrace to our country." According to the Guardian: "In a surprise move late on Friday night, the US attorney general, William Barr, announced the resignation of Geoffrey Berman, the US attorney for the southern district of New York, the home of investigations and prosecutions of allies of Donald Trump including Rudy Giuliani and Michael Cohen. Berman was among those taken by surprise. In a statement that set up a remarkable standoff between the administration and the leader of a district which regularly tries major mob and terror cases, the attorney said he had no intention of quitting. 'I have not resigned, and have no intention of resigning,' Berman said, adding he learned of his supposed departure from a Department of Justice press release. 'I will step down when a presidentially appointed nominee is confirmed by the Senate,' he said. 'Until then, our investigations will move forward without delay or interruption. I cherish every day that I work with the men and women of this office to pursue justice without fear or favor – and intend to ensure that this office’s important cases continue unimpeded.' ... The announcement came after Barr visited New York and met police officials. It also came days after the former national security adviser John Bolton claimed in his tell-all book that Trump promised the Turkish president he would interfere in the Halkbank case, which was being prosecuted in the SDNY ... Steve Vladeck, a professor of law at the University of Texas, said on Twitter it was 'clear' that 'Barr lied [and] something really stinks'"
June 18, 2020 - During an interview with Fox News, Donald Trump made the following statements regarding the killing of Rayshard Brooks: "you can’t resist a police officer, and if you have a disagreement, you have to take it up after the fact. It was out of control – the whole situation was out of control. It’s up to justice right now. It’s going to be up to justice. I hope he gets a fair shake because police have not been treated fairly in our country. But again, you can’t resist a police officer like that." Appearing on ABC News, John Bolton said of Trump: "I don’t think he’s fit for office. I don't think he has the competence to carry out the job. There really isn’t any guiding principle that I was able to discern other than 'What’s good for Donald Trump's re-election' ... I think he was so focused on the re-election that longer term considerations fell by the wayside. So, if he thought he could get a photo opportunity with Kim Jong Un at the demilitarized zone in Korea, there was considerable emphasis on the photo opportunity and the press reaction to it and little or no focus on what such meetings did for the bargaining positions of the United States." Trump sent the following tweet: "Biden got failing grades and polls on his clueless handling of the Swine Flu H1N1. It was a total disaster, they had no idea what they were doing. Among the worst ever!" Background Info: Between April 2009 and April 2010, the CDC estimates that there were 60.8 million cases of swine flu, with nearly 12,500 deaths. Trump also sent the following tweet: "Bolton’s book, which is getting terrible reviews, is a compilation of lies and made up stories, all intended to make me look bad. Many of the ridiculous statements he attributes to me were never made, pure fiction. Just trying to get even for firing him like the sick puppy he is!" Critics were quick to point out that Trump's position that Bolton's book is "a compilation of lies and made up stories" is in direct conflict with the administration's position that the book's publication should be blocked because the book contains classified information. In a 5-4 decision, the Supreme Court ruled to block Trump from canceling Daca, the Obama-era program that offered undocumented immigrants brought to the country as children the chance to legally reside in the US. In the decision, Chief Justice John Roberts wrote: "We address only whether the agency complied with the procedural requirement that it provide a reasoned explanation for its action. Here the agency failed to consider the conspicuous issues of whether to retain forbearance and what if anything to do about the hardship to Daca recipients. That dual failure raises doubts about whether the agency appreciated the scope of its discretion or exercised that discretion in a reasonable manner. The appropriate recourse is therefore to remand to DHS so that it may consider the problem anew." House speaker Nancy Pelosi has written to the Clerk of the House ordering the removal of four speaker's portraits, because they served in the Confederacy. Those speakers are Robert Hunter of Virginia, Howell Cobb of Georgia, James Orr of South Carolina and Charles Crisp of Georgia. Trump sent the following tweet in response to recent Supreme Court decisions that did not go his way: "These horrible & politically charged decisions coming out of the Supreme Court are shotgun blasts into the face of people that are proud to call themselves Republicans or Conservatives. We need more Justices or we will lose our 2nd. Amendment & everything else. Vote Trump 2020!" Trump granted an interview with the Wall Street Journal. Here are some highlights:
- Trump weighed in on the renaming of military bases named after Confederate generals arguing the bases were named after Confederate leaders to bring the country together after the Civil War, and that removing those names would further divide the country. Fact Check: The bases were named for Confederate generals between 1917 and the 1940's. The Civil War ended in 1865.
- Trump claimed credit for bringing attention to Juneteenth, saying "I did something good: I made Juneteenth very famous. It’s actually an important event, an important time. But nobody had ever heard of it." According to the Wall Street Journal, "Mr. Trump paused the interview to ask an aide if she had heard of Juneteenth, and she pointed out that the White House had issued a statement last year commemorating the day. Mr. Trump's White House has put out statements on Juneteenth during each of his first three years. 'Oh really? We put out a statement? The Trump White House put out a statement?' Mr. Trump said. 'Ok, ok. Good.'" Fact Check: Juneteenth has been celebrated since the year after the Civil War concluded in 1865. Texas was the first state to make it an official holiday in 1979, and it is currently commemorated or observed by 47 states and the District of Columbia.
- Trump was asked about his controversial tweet during the George Floyd protests where he said "When the looting starts, the shooting starts." Trump said he had no regrets about the tweet, and then argued the tweet could be read as a statement of fact rather than a threat. He was then asked how he intended it to be read, and Trump replied "a combination of both."
Trump sent the following tweet: "The recent Supreme Court decisions, not only on DACA, Sanctuary Cities, Census, and others, tell you only one thing, we need NEW JUSTICES of the Supreme Court. If the Radical Left Democrats assume power, your Second Amendment, Right to Life, Secure Borders, and Religious Liberty, among many other things, are OVER and GONE!" Trump held a roundtable event at the White House on reopening the economy. One of the attendees was Oklahoma governor Kevin Stitt, who Told Trump "Oklahoma’s ready for your event. It’s gonna be safe." In a new AP/NORC poll, 64% of Americans say Trump has made the country more divided. 12% say he has made the country more united. Facebook has taken down Trump campaign ads that attacked "Dangerous MOBS of far-left groups, and featured a red upside-down triangle, which was a symbol used by Nazis to classify political prisoners. Facebook explained that company "policy prohibits using banned hate group's symbol to identify political prisoners without the context that condemns or discusses the symbol." The Trump campaign claimed the symbol is associated with antifa, but experts said there is no evidence to support that claim. Mary Elizabeth Taylor, the assistant secretary of state for legislative affairs, resigned from her position saying in part: "The President’s comments and actions surrounding racial injustice and Black Americans cut sharply against my core values and convictions. I must follow the dictates of my conscience and resign."
June 17, 2020 - The Howitzers Monument, erected in 1892 to commemorate a Richmond, Virginia Confederate artillery unit, was toppled by demonstrators. Rebecca Nightingale, a Tulsa judge, has denied a request to block the Trump campaign from holding a rally later this week. The request to intervene came from some of Tulsa's local residents and business owners saying the event poses an "imminent and deadly risk to the community". The Democratic led House and the Republican led Senate have both put together bills on police reform. Here are some major differences:
Democrats
- Bans Chokeholds
- Ends absolute qualified immunity
- No new funding for policing
- Bans no-knock warrants
Republicans
- Disincentivizes chokehold use
- No change to qualified immunity
- Adds new funding
- Does not ban no-knock warrants
Kayleigh McEnanay, the White House press secretary, held a press briefing today. Here are some highlights:
- McEnany claimed that Democrats have offered "zero, nothing" on police reform, even though Democratic leadership released a police reform bill.
- McEnany accused the press of having a double standard in its criticism of Trump's planned Tulsa rally. The press secretary held up a front page of the New York Post which included a picture of a large protest with the words "this is fine..." alongside a picture of an outdoor political rally with the words "this is dangerous". Critics were quick to point out that the protests were outdoors, while the rally will be indoors. Public health experts have said indoor events are more susceptible to the spread of coronavirus. Besides, none of the protest gatherings were organized by a political candidate for president.
- McEnany defended the administration's civil lawsuit against John Bolton over his upcoming book saying the book is "full of classified information". The publisher of Bolton's book, Simon &Schuster, claimed the lawsuit "is nothing more than the latest in a long-running series of efforts by the Administration to quash publication of a book it deems unflattering to the president."
Dr Bruce Dart, the executive director of the Tulsa health department, recommended Trump's Tulsa rally "be postponed until it's safer". According to the New York Times, Bolton argues in his upcoming book that Trump should have been impeached for more than just the Ukraine controversy. From the story: "Mr. Bolton describes several episodes where the president expressed willingness to halt criminal investigations 'to, in effect, give personal favors to dictators he liked,' citing cases involving major firms in China and Turkey. 'The pattern looked like obstruction of justice as a way of life, which we couldn’t accept,' Mr. Bolton writes, adding that he reported his concerns to Attorney General William P. Barr." The book also includes numerous unflattering anecdotes about Trump and recounts episodes of senior aides mocking the president. From the story: "It is a withering portrait of a president ignorant of even basic facts about the world, susceptible to transparent flattery by authoritarian leaders manipulating him and prone to false statements, foul-mouthed eruptions and snap decisions that aides try to manage or reverse. Mr. Trump did not seem to know, for example, that Britain is a nuclear power and asked if Finland is part of Russia, Mr. Bolton writes. He came closer to withdrawing the United States from NATO than previously known. Even top advisers who position themselves as unswervingly loyal mock him behind his back. During Mr. Trump’s 2018 meeting with North Korea’s leader, according to the book, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo slipped Mr. Bolton a note disparaging the president, saying, 'He is so full of shit.'" Bolton's book also accuses House Democrats of committing "impeachment malpractice" by focusing solely on the Ukraine controversy. From the story: "The book confirms House testimony that Mr. Bolton was wary all along of the president’s actions with regard to Ukraine and that Mr. Trump explicitly linked the security aid to investigations involving [Joe] Biden and Hillary Clinton. ... Mr. Bolton, however, had nothing but scorn for the House Democrats who impeached Mr. Trump, saying they committed 'impeachment malpractice' by limiting their inquiry to the Ukraine matter and moving too quickly for their own political reasons. Instead, he said they should have also looked at how Mr. Trump was willing to intervene in investigations into companies like Turkey’s Halkbank to curry favor with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey or China's ZTE to favor President Xi Jinping. Mr. Bolton also recounts a discussion at the Group of 20 summit meeting in Osaka, Japan, last summer at which the president overtly linked policy to his own political fortunes as he asked Mr. Xi to buy a lot of American agricultural products to help him win farm states in this year's election. Mr. Trump, he writes, was 'pleading with Xi to ensure he'd win. He stressed the importance of farmers, and increased Chinese purchases of soybeans and wheat in the electoral outcome.'" The Washington Post also has a large write up regarding Bolton's book. One part focused on Trump's attempt to get Chinese President Xi Jinping to help him win reelection. From the story: "During a one-on-one meeting at the June 2019 Group of 20 summit in Japan, Xi complained to Trump about China critics in the United States. But Bolton writes in a book scheduled to be released next week that 'Trump immediately assumed Xi meant the Democrats. Trump said approvingly that there was great hostility among the Democrats. 'He then, stunningly, turned the conversation to the coming U.S. presidential election, alluding to China's economic capability to affect the ongoing campaigns, pleading with Xi to ensure he'd win,' Bolton writes. 'He stressed the importance of farmers, and increased Chinese purchases of soybeans and wheat in the electoral outcome. I would print Trump's exact words but the government’s prepublication review process has decided otherwise.'" In another excerpt from John Bolton's book, the Wall Street Journal claims Trump encouraged the Chinese president to continue building concentration camps for the country's Uighur citizens. From the story: "At the opening dinner of the Osaka G-20 meeting in June 2019, with only interpreters present, Xi [Jinping] had explained to Trump why he was basically building concentration camps in Xinjiang. According to our interpreter, Trump said that Xi should go ahead with building the camps, which Trump thought was exactly the right thing to do. The National Security Council's top Asia staffer, Matthew Pottinger, told me that Trump said something very similar during his November 2017 trip to China." The Wall Street Journal's exerpt also includes the suggestion by Xi Jinping to Trump that the US holds too many elections. From the story: "In Buenos Aires on Dec. 1, at dinner, Xi began by telling Trump how wonderful he was, laying it on thick. Xi read steadily through note cards, doubtless all of it hashed out arduously in advance. Trump ad-libbed, with no one on the U.S. side knowing what he would say from one minute to the next. One highlight came when Xi said he wanted to work with Trump for six more years, and Trump replied that people were saying that the two-term constitutional limit on presidents should be repealed for him. Xi said the U.S. had too many elections, because he didn’t want to switch away from Trump, who nodded approvingly." Here are some select responses to the revelations about Trump and China:
"Today, we learned from John Bolton, the President’s former national security advisor, that President Trump sold out the American people to protect his political future. He reportedly directly asked Xi Jinping, China’s leader, to help him get re-elected. He was willing to trade away our most cherished democratic values for the empty promise of a flimsy trade deal that bailed him out of his disastrous tariff war that did so much damage to our farmers, manufacturers, and consumers. If these accounts are true, it’s not only morally repugnant, it’s a violation of Donald Trump’s sacred duty to the American people to protect America’s interests and defend our values." - Joe Biden, 2020 Democratic Candidate for President
"It was clear then and could not be any clearer now: the vote to convict and remove Donald Trump from office was absolutely the right vote. The revelations in Bolton’s book make Senate Republicans' craven actions on impeachment look even worse—and history will judge them for it." Chuck Schumer, Senate Minority Leader
"It shouldn’t take a book deal for members of this administration to come clean about impeachable offenses they witnessed from Trump. There's a reason he thinks he’s above the law. Those around him—from his cabinet to Republicans in Congress—have failed to hold him accountable." - Elizabeth Warren, US Senator
"Wacko John Bolton’s 'exceedingly tedious'(New York Times) book is made up of lies & fake stories. Said all good about me, in print, until the day I fired him. A disgruntled boring fool who only wanted to go to war. Never had a clue, was ostracized & happily dumped. What a dope!" - Donald J Trump
Fulton county district attorney Paul Howard held a press conference regarding the shooting of Rayshard Brooks. Here are some highlights:
- Howard said he will be issuing arrest warrants for felony murder in connection with the police killing. Atlanta police officer Garrett Rolfe is facing 11 charges including three counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, criminal damage to property, violation of oath and aggravated assault. The other officer, Devin Brosnan, is facing three charges, including aggravated assault and violation of oath.
- Howard said the officers continued to injure Brooks after he was shot. One officer kicked Brooks and the other stood on his shoulders as he lay on the ground struggling for his life.
- Howard stated "We have concluded at the time Mr Brooks was shot that he did not pose an immediate threat of death or serious physical injury to the officer or officers."
- Howard pointed out that officer Garrett Rolfe knew the taser Brooks took from him had already been fired twice and was therefore of no use when Rolfe shot Brooks twice in the back as he was running away.
Today is the 5th anniversary of the Charleston massacre that occurred when white supremacist Dylann Roof murdered nine black people at Emanuel AME church. The mayor of Charleston, John Tecklenburg, used the anniversary to announce the removal of a statue of John C Calhoun, a former vice-president and advocate for slavery. Tecklenburg announced that removing the statue is "not to erase our long and often tragic history but to begin to write a new and more equitable future." GT Bynum, the Republican mayor of Tulsa, announced that he will not be attending Trump's upcoming rally in that city saying "I’m not positive that everything is safe." According to the CDC, black coronavirus patients are much more likely to be hospitalized than white patients.
June 16, 2020 - A study published in the New York Times identified 96 cities in the US where teargas has been used against protesters since May 26. According to the report: "If used appropriately, it drives people to flee the gas, which irritates their eyes, skin and lungs without causing serious, long-term injuries in most. But in cases where law enforcement misuses the agent, it can cause debilitating injuries." Balin Brake, a 21-year-old student, who lost an eye after being hit by a tear gas canister, is quoted in the study saying "I’m angry that I was protesting police brutality and fell victim to police brutality." According to the AP, the Justice Department will begin executing federal death-row inmates beginning in mid-July, for the first time since 2003. According to the Guardian "Research into the use of body cameras by police officers has shown no statistical difference in behaviors or reduction in force when the cameras are on. Body cameras also haven’t stopped egregious killings, have rarely led to discipline or termination, and have almost never yielded charges or convictions." Three NYPD police officers were hospitalized after drinking milkshakes at a Shake Shack. The NYC Police Benevolent Association weighed in saying the officers may have been poisoned with bleach. After an investigation by the NYPD, it was determined that a cleaning solution hadn't been fully cleared from the milkshake machine, which is how it got in the officer's drinks. Donald Trump Jr sent the following tweet regarding the Shake Shack situation: "Where are the Democrats who are denouncing NYPD officers getting poisoned on the job? Their silence on the issue is deafening!" Jr later deleted the knee jerk reaction tweet. Donald Trump addressed the media to announce a police reform executive order being put together by Republican Senator Tim Scott. The order incentivizes departments to review their policies on use of force and chokeholds, but does not require them to do so. Here are some highlights:
- Trump made the following statement: "We are going to pursue, what we said we will be pursuing it, and we will be pursuing it strongly, Tim, right? Okay."
- Trump falsely claimed that Barack Obama and Joe Biden "never even tried" to address police reform. Fact Check: The Obama administration launched a number of initiatives around the issue.
- Trump claimed the executive order would incentivize police departments to ban chokeholds, except when the officer's life is at risk.
- While praising scientists, Trump said: "They've come up with the AIDS vaccine. They've come up with, or the AIDS, and as you know, there's various things, and now various companies are involved, but the therapeutic for AIDS. AIDS was a death sentence, and now people live a life with a pill. It's an incredible thing." Fact Check: There is no vaccine for AIDS.
A new report from the Equal Justice Initiative (EJI) called Reconstruction in America, shows that during the period of Reconstruction, from 1865 to 1876, more than 2,000 black Americans were subjected to racial terror lynchings by Confederate veterans and former slave owners in an effort to keep black people enslaved in all but name. This report is a prequel to research in 2015 that identified more than 4,400 additional lynching victims from 1877 to 1950. Kristina Roth, the senior program officer for Amnesty International's criminal justice programs, reacted to Trump's police reform executive order saying in part: "President Trump’s Executive Order amounts to a band-aid for a bullet wound, and the public will not be easily fooled by half measures when this moment is calling for transformational change of policing. The United States needs much stronger national standards to provide parameters on the use of force and restrict the use of deadly force, to ensure accountability when these boundaries are breached by law enforcement officers." Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer responded to Trump's executive order saying: "While the president has finally acknowledged the need for policing reform, one modest executive order will not make up for his years of inflammatory rhetoric and policies designed to roll back the progress made in previous years. Unfortunately, this executive order will not deliver the comprehensive meaningful change and accountability in our nation’s police departments that Americans are demanding." According to the Guardian: "Martin Gugino, the 75-year-old man who was shoved to the ground by two police officers during a George Floyd protest in Buffalo, New York, has a fractured skull and cannot currently walk." According to the Guardian: "Steven Carrillo, 32, an active-duty US air force sergeant, has now been charged with murder in the shooting deaths of two law enforcement officers: Damon Gutzwiller, a sergeant with the Santa Cruz county sheriff’s department, and David Patrick Underwood, a federal protective security officer who worked at a federal building in downtown Oakland. Law enforcement officials identified multiple pieces of evidence that linked Carrillo to a developing anti-government extremist movement associated with the term “Boogaloo,” an ironic word for 'a violent uprising or impending civil war in the United States.'" The murders took place during a George Floyd protest in Oakland. Levar Stone, the mayor of Richmond, Virginia, asked police chief William Smith to step down following an incident in which a police vehicle drove through a crowd of protesters, and instances in which peaceful protesters were teargassed. The Trump administration has asked a federal judge to block the publication of tell-all book "The Room Where it Happened" by former security adviser John Bolton. According to the suit, the manuscript is "rife with classified information". Trump told reporters that Bolton would have a "very strong criminal problem" if he publishes the memoir. Ellen Knight, the person who reviewed the book for classified info, determined that she was "of the judgment that the manuscript draft did not contain classified information". The Los Angeles city council introduced a measure that would send crisis response teams, rather than police officers, to handle nonviolent situations. According to the Guardian: "New coronavirus infections hit record highs in six US states on Tuesday, marking a rising tide of cases for a second consecutive week as most states moved forward with reopening their economies, Reuters reports. Arizona, Florida, Oklahoma, Oregon and Texas all reported record increases in new cases on Tuesday after recording all-time highs last week. Nevada also reported its highest single-day tally of new cases on Tuesday, up from a previous high on May 23. Hospitalizations are also rising or at record highs. Health officials in many states attribute the spike to businesses reopening and Memorial Day weekend gatherings in late May. Many states are also bracing for a possible increase in cases stemming from tens of thousands of people protesting to end racial injustice and police brutality for the past three weeks."
June 15, 2020 - According to the medical examiner that evaluated the death of Rayshard Brooks, the cause of death was homicide caused by gunshot wounds to the back. Paul Whelan, a US citizen and former marine, was sentenced to 16 years in a Russian prison for espionage. In an op-ed in the Guardian, David Sirota points out the hypocrisy of Republicans who loudly criticize the "de-fund the police" movement saying "Apparently, we’re expected to be horrified by proposals to reduce funding for the militarized police forces that are violently attacking peaceful protesters – but we’re supposed to obediently accept the defunding of the police forces responsible for protecting the population from the wealthy and powerful." In the article, Sirota cites Republican cuts to agencies like the US Chemical Safety Board, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, etc. Video surfaced of a family group being maced by police at a Seattle protest, which including a 7 year old child. The child can be seen screaming while milk is poured into his eyes to stop the burning. The father of the 7 yer old was quoted saying "No officer, who’s paid to protect, chose to stand up, break the ranks, go help this child. I just don’t understand how any of them can sleep." A statue of Confederate Admiral Raphael Semmes has been removed from its pedestal in Mobile, Alabama, and was tuned over to the History Museum of Mobile. According to Mobile Mayor Sandy Stimpson, the statue will be displayed at the museum in a way which places it into "the appropriate historic context." Army General Robert Abrams has banned the display of Confederate flags on all bases in Korea, saying in part "While I acknowledge some might view it as a symbol of regional pride, many others in our force see it as a painful reminder of hate, bigotry, treason, and devaluation of humanity. Regardless of perspective, one thing is clear: it has the power to inflame feelings of racial division. We cannot have that division among us." According to the Guardian: "The Supreme Court has declined to take up 10 cases related to gun rights, which will leave in place lower-court decisions on issues such as owning assault weapons and openly carrying firearms. Justices Clarence Thomas and Brett Kavanaugh wrote a dissenting opinion on the court’s decision not to hear the appeals." According to the Guardian: "The Supreme Court has ruled that existing federal law protects gay and transgender employees from job discrimination, marking a victory for LGBT rights advocates. The justices said Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which forbids job discrimination on the basis of sex and other factors, also covers sexual orientation and gender identity. The decision comes three days after the Trump administration finalized a rule reversing protections for transgender patients under the Affordable Care Act ... The Supreme Court’s ruling marks a defeat for the Trump administration, who had argued against expanding the scope of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The court’s 6-3 decision was interestingly written by Justice Neil Gorsuch, who was nominated by Trump. Chief justice John Roberts and the court’s four liberals joined the decision." According to the Guardian: "The Supreme Court also rejected the Trump administration’s challenge to California’s 'sanctuary law,' marking a defeat for a president who has made immigration a central focus of his term. The administration had asked the court to review the law, which limits cooperation between local law enforcement and federal immigration authorities. The justices decided not to hear the case, although conservative justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito disagreed with the decision. Trump has repeatedly criticized California’s law and others like it, accusing state leaders of attempting to circumvent the federal government on immigration." According to Bloomberg, a Black Lives Matter banner was removed from the US embassy in Seoul. From the story: "Pompeo and Trump were both displeased about the banner, the people said. A large, multicolored ‘pride’ banner recognizing lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer people was also removed on Monday. They were replaced with a banner commemorating the 70th anniversary of the end of the Korean War." Joe Biden, the former vice president and Democratic nominee for president weighed in on the Supreme Court's decision on LGBTQ+ workers' rights saying "Before today, in more than half of states, LGBTQ+ people could get married one day and be fired from their job the next day under state law, simply because of who they are or who they love. This landmark 6-3 ruling affirms that LGBTQ+ Americans are entitled to equal rights under the law." The FDA has withdrawn its emergency use authorization for chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine as potential treatments for coronavirus. According to Denise M Hinton, the FDA's chief scientist, "the drug’s potential benefits for such use do not outweigh its known and potential risks ... unlikely to produce an antiviral effect." Trump sent the following in a tweet: "Our testing is so much bigger and more advanced than any other country (we have done a great job on this!) that it shows more cases. Without testing, or weak testing, we would be showing almost no cases. Testing is a double edged sword - Makes us look bad, but good to have!!!" Donald Trump held a roundtable on protecting America's seniors. Here are some highlights:
- Trump claimed regarding coronavirus: "If we stop testing right now, we’d have very few cases, if any." Fact Check: According to Dr. Irwin Redlener, director of the Columbia University National Center for Disease Preparedness: More testing will inevitably capture more positive tests, "but to deny the fact that we're having an ongoing pandemic with continued spread is contrary to all evidence that we have and everything that we know about the behavior of the virus."
NYPD Commissioner Dermot Shea announced that the NYPD will be disbanding plainclothes anti-crime units, which will affect about 600 NYPD officers. Affected officers will transition to other tasks instead, like detective work and neighborhood policing. Trump responded to news of the upcoming book by John Bolton called "The Room Where it Happened" by declaring that everything he says in conversation is "classified". The United Nations voted to hold an "urgent debate" on racism and police brutality in the wake of the police killing of George Floyd. According to the Guardian "An investigation by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) concluded Donald Trump violated its scientific integrity policy when he used a marker to alter the route of Hurricane Dorian on a map last September. The incident, which became known as 'Sharpiegate' intensified when the Trump administration ordered National Weather Service scientists not to contradict the president’s misinformation. The NOAA report concluded the scientific integrity policy was violated, but nobody in the administration faced consequences said Andrew Rosenberg of the Union of Concerned Scientists, who co-filed a scientific integrity complaint with other former NOAA leaders. This shows a 'disappointing lack of accountability ... If there are no consequences for corrupting the ability of the experts to speak out then there is little reason to think it won’t happen again." The Seattle City Council has voted to ban chokeholds. The family of Rayshard Brooks have called for murder charges to be filed against the officer that killed Brooks.
June 14, 2020 - Donald Trump's slow walk down a ramp after his commencement address at West Point received a lot of attention, as people speculated the president may not be well, physically. Trump responded to the speculation tweeting: "The ramp that I descended after my West Point Commencement speech was very long & steep, had no handrail and, most importantly, was very slippery. The last thing I was going to do is 'fall' for the Fake News to have fun with. Final ten feet I ran down to level ground. Momentum!" Critics of Trump were quick to point to one of Trump's 2014 tweets which said: "The way President Obama runs down the stairs of Air Force 1, hopping & bobbing all the way, is so inelegant and unpresidential. Do not fall!" Vladimir Putin, the Russian president, weighed in on recent civil unrest in the United States saying: "I try very carefully to comment or better, not comment, on what is happening in the United States or other countries ... What happened there is a manifestation of some deep-rooted internal crises. In fact, we have been observing this for a long time now, from the moment the incumbent president came to power, when he obviously won in an absolutely democratic way, and the losing side came up with all sorts of tales in order to question his legitimacy." After intense criticism, the Trump campaign has moved the date of the Tulsa rally from June 19th (Juneteenth) to June 20th. US Coccer has repealed a rule requiring all players to stand during the national anthem. Trump responded to the news tweeting: "I won't be watching much anymore!" According to the Guardian: "Britain’s biggest police force has condemned the 'mindless hooliganism' and 'utterly shocking' violence towards officers during clashes led by far-right protesters in central London on Saturday. The Metropolitan police said 23 officers were injured after being kicked, punched or hit by missiles as they faced hundreds of angry demonstrators who claimed they were protecting statues from anti-racism campaigners." Jerome Adams, the US surgeon general, sent the following tweet: "Some feel face coverings infringe on their freedom of choice- but if more wear them, we’ll have MORE freedom to go out. Face coverings = less asymptomatic viral spread = more places open, and sooner! Exercise and promote your freedom by choosing to wear a face covering!" Protesters in New Orleans tore down a statue of John McDonogh, a slave owner, and tossed it into the Mississippi river. During an appearance on CNN, White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow said that unemployment benefits stemming from coronavirus stimulus package will probably stop in late July saying in part: "The $600 plus-up that’s above the state unemployment benefits they will continue to receive is in effect a disincentive. I mean, we’re paying people not to work. It’s better than their salaries would get." Nearly a dozen Minneapolis police officers have quit or are resigning saying they don't feel appreciated. Ilhan Omar, the Democratic representative from Minneapolis called the Minneapolis police department "rotten to the root". Garrett Rolfe, the 7 year veteran of the Atlanta police department, who shot and killed Rayshard Brooks, was terminated. Charges against Rolfe are being considered. Recording artist Beyonce wrote a letter to Kentucky attorney general Daniel Cameron demanding justice for Breonna Taylor, who was shot and killed by plainclothes police officers on March 13th while she slept. Bruce Dart, the Tulsa city-county health department director, has raised concerns about Trump's upcoming rally saying in part: "I wish we could postpone this to a time when the virus isn’t as large a concern as it is today. I think it’s an honor for Tulsa to have a sitting president want to come and visit our community, but not during a pandemic. I’m concerned about our ability to protect anyone who attends a large, indoor event, and I’m also concerned about our ability to ensure the president stays safe as well." Donald Trump's star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame has been defaced. According to Johns Hopkins, here are the 10 countries with the most coronavirus cases:
1. United States - 2,090,358
2. Brazil - 850,514
3. Russia - 528,267
4. India - 320,922
5. UK - 297,342
6. Spain - 243,928
7. Italy - 236,989
8. Peru - 225,132
9. France - 194,153
10. Germany - 187,518
June 13, 2020 - Trump addressed graduating cadets at West Point today, at one point thanking the military for helping fight Covid-19, a virus "that came from a foreign land called China". The Houston Police Department relieved officer Robert Clasen, a 25 year veteran, for a "social media post with racial overtones". Here's that post: "The black community doesn't need police reform, social programs, or more money. The black community needs a big giant mirror and it needs to stand in front of that mirror and say individually, I am the problem. Not the cops, not the system, not racism, not white people, not Donald trump, I am the problem and I am the solution." Another Houston officer, Chad Ellis, was relieved of his duties, after writing, then deleting a racist post on social media. Joe Gamaldi, the president of the Houston Police Officers' Union responded to the post on twitter saying "I am aware of a post circulating that is reported to come from one of our officers. It is vile, it is disgusting, I know it is under investigation but I am confident the @houstonpolice department will act swiftly. This is not who we are as Houston Police Officers." Ellis' post said in part "The Minneapolis Police Officer was only doing what Kaepernick told him to do, kneel". Video from 2015 has surfaced in which Lindsey Graham, a South Carolina Senator says the following about Donald Trump: "He’s a race baiting, xenophobic religious bigot. You know how you make America great again? Tell Donald Trump to go to hell." In the video, Graham says the following about Joe Biden: "if you can’t admire Joe Biden as a person, you’ve got a problem. You need to do some self-evaluation, ‘cause, what’s not to like?" Andrew Cuomo, the governor of New York, is demanding that local governments redesign their police forces by April 1st of next year, or they will not receive funding. The US Embassy in Seoul tweeted the following message in support of BLM along with a picture of a banner hanging from the compound: "The U.S. Embassy stands in solidarity with fellow Americans grieving and peacefully protesting to demand positive change. Our #BlackLivesMatter banner shows our support for the fight against racial injustice and police brutality as we strive to be a more inclusive & just society." Athletes at the University of Texas are demanding the school song be changed along with the names of buildings on campus that were named after figures associated with the confederacy. Film Director Ava DuVernay joined a chorus of people calling for the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Montgomery, Alabama to be renamed the "John Lewis Bridge for Freedom". A statue of Jefferson Davis was removed from the Kentucky Capitol rotunda today after a successful effort led by Kentucky governor Andy Beshar. Police in South Carolina released body camera footage of officers fatally shooting 28-year-old Ariane Lamont McCree, whom officers say they shot in self defense because he had pulled a gun. McCree's hands were handcuffed behind his back at the moment he was shot. The incident happened 6 months ago. According to the Seattle Times: "Fox News has removed digitally altered photos from its website after the Seattle Times noted misleading images used in the network’s coverage about the city’s Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone (CHAZ), which has become a protest center against police brutality and racial injustice". The photos were mashups of different photos taken at different times and from different places to give a false impression of what the CHAZ area actually looks like, and to make it look more frightening and destructive. Erika Shields, the police chief of Atlanta, has resigned following the shooting of Rayshard Brooks. Keisha Lance Bottoms, the mayor of Atlanta, discussed the shooting saying "I do not believe that this was a justified use of deadly force and have called for the immediate termination of the officer." The Wendy's restaurant where Rayshard was killed was burned to the ground.
June 12, 2020 - Sherry Gamble Smith, the president of Tulsa's Black Wall Street Chamber of Commerce, responded to Trump's announcement that his kick off rally will take place in Tulsa on June 19th saying "To choose the date, to come to Tulsa, is totally disrespectful and a slap in the face to even happen." A statue of Nelson Mandela in London has been boarded up amid fears that far-right extremists are planning to confront Black Lives Matter protesters and pull down the statue of the apartheid icon. According to Nick Lowles, Chief executive of Hope not Hate (HnH) "Many on the far-right who tried to pretend they didn’t care about race, only culture and identity, let the mask slip and openly started talking about whiteness and race again and threatened to pull down the statue of Nelson Mandela in Parliament Square." Boris Johnson, the British prime minister, stated that removing statues is "to lie about our history". Demonstrators in Seattle have taken over several city blocks to protest police brutality. According to the Guardian: "Hundreds of protesters have taken over several blocks of Seattle and transformed it into the Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone, or ‘Chaz’, helping to amplify nationwide protests while offering a real-world example of what a community can look like without police. For three days, protesters have filled several blocks and at least part of a park in the artsy Capitol Hill neighborhood of Seattle, after police abandoned their east precinct, following dangerous clashes between protesters and law enforcement. ... The space has both a protest and street fair vibe, with a small garden, medic station, smoking area, and a ‘No Cop Co-op’, where people can get supplies and food at no cost. There’s also a trio of shrine-like areas filled with candles, flowers and images of George Floyd and many others who have been killed by police." John Bolton, Trump's former national security adviser, has a book coming out on June 23rd called "The Room Where It Happened". From the press release: "The House committed impeachment malpractice by keeping their prosecution focused narrowly on Ukraine when Trump’s Ukraine-like transgressions existed across the full range of his foreign policy — and Bolton documents exactly what those were, and attempts by him and others in the Administration to raise alarms about them." According to Bolton "I am hard-pressed to identify any significant Trump decision during my tenure that wasn’t driven by reelection calculations." Some notable reactions to Bolton's press release:
"It’s quite something for John Bolton to criticize how Democrats handled impeachment proceedings while he sat on his hands the whole time, allegedly with evidence of broader wrongdoing" - Chris Megerian
"How dare they not impeach him for things he refused to tell them about!" - Meredith Blake
Hillary Clinton tweeted her reaction to news about Trump's upcoming Tulsa rally saying: "If your rallies come with a liability waiver, you shouldn’t be holding them." Trump did an interview with Harris Faulker of Fox News, here are some highlights from that interview:
Faulker: What do you think the protesters - not the looters and the rioters, we're intelligent enough to know the difference in our country right? - What do you think they want? What do you think they need right now from you?
Trump: So I think you had protesters for different reasons. And then you had protesting also because they just didn't know. I've watched. I've watched it very closely. Why are you here, and they really weren't able to say. But they were there for a reason perhaps. But, a lot of them really were there because they're following the crowd. A lot of them were there because what we witnessed was a terrible thing. What we saw was a terrible thing. And we've seen it over the years, we have it, you know this was one horrible example but you've seen other terrible examples, you know that, better than anybody would know it. And I know it, I've seen it too. I've seen it before I was president. During the presidency I've seen it.
- Faulker asked Trump how he felt about police chokeholds. In addition to acknowledging that chokeholds are often used inappropriately by police, Trump said "I think the concept of chokeholds sounds so innocent and so perfect".
- Trump claimed "I think I’ve done more for the black community than any other president, and let’s take a pass on Abraham Lincoln because he did good, although it’s always questionable, you know, in other words, the end result." Faulker responded "Well, we are free Mr President, so he did pretty well". Fact Check: According to Michael K Fauntroy, a professor of political science at Howard University: "This may well be the president’s most audacious claim ever. Not only has he not done more than anybody else, he’s done close to the least." According to Alvin Bernard Tillery Jr, a professor of political science and African-American studies at Northwestern University: "He has one or two nice policy accomplishments where his signature is on the legislation. That’s a record that’s going to place him in the bottom third of modern presidents."
According to the Guardian: "New coronavirus cases in Florida have set a daily record for the second day in a row. State figures released Friday morning show 1,902 more cases of Covid-19, up another 204 on Thursday’s previous record tally. Florida, one of the first US states to reopen, is among those to have seen cases rising again significantly in recent days. According to the Florida Department of Health, new cases have topped 1,000 every day since 2 June, compared to only three of the previous 19 days from 13 May until the end of the month ... Ron DeSantis, the Republican governor, has touted what he calls a 'safe, smart' recovery plan, which saw 64 of Florida’s 67 counties moving to Phase Two - including partial reopening of bars, theaters, gyms and vacation rentals - on 5 June." According to a new poll from the Pew Research Center, 67% of Americans support the Black Lives Matter movement. The Minneapolis city council has unanimously passed a resolution to replace the city's police department with a community-led public safety system in response to the killing of George Floyd. The CDC has issued new guidance that "strongly encourages" attendees of large gatherings to wear cloth face coverings. According to the Guardian: "The Trump administration has finalized a rule rolling back Obama-era protections for transgender Americans under the Affordable Care Act’s non-discrimination policy ... This would allow healthcare providers and insurance companies that receive federal funding to refuse to provide or cover transition-related care for transgender Americans. The announcement came on the fourth anniversary of the Pulse nightclub shooting, when a shooter killed 49 people at a gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida." The Human Rights Campaign (HRC) responded to the rollback of discrimination protections for LGBTQ people stating it will file a lawsuit against the Trump Administration. Pop star Taylor Swift is calling for Tennessee to remove statues commemorating "racist historical figures" saying "villains don't deserve statues". According to the Guardian "A 63-year-old white man in North Carolina was arrested today after allegedly threatening to set fire to an African-American church in Virginia, according to federal officials. John Malcolm Bareswill made a phone call to an African American church on June 7, saying 'you [racial slur] need to shut up,' the Justice Department said in a press release." According to the AP "A federal judge has ordered Seattle police to temporarily stop using tear gas, pepper spray and flash-bang devices to break up largely peaceful protests". Trump sent the following tweet regarding the "Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone" or CHAZ in Seattle: "Seattle Mayor says, about the anarchists takeover of her city, 'it is a Summer of Love'. These Liberal Dems don’t have a clue. The terrorists burn and pillage our cities, and they think it is just wonderful, even the death. Must end this Seattle takeover now!" Jenny Durkan, the mayor of Seattle responded to Trump's tweet saying "Seattle is fine. Don’t be so afraid of democracy." Rayshard Brooks, a 27-year-old unarmed black man, was shot in the back and killed as he fled from police in the parking lot of a Wendy's. Brooks encounter with police began because he was asleep in his car in the drive thru.
June 11, 2020 - There are now more than 2 million documented cases of coronavirus in the US, over 112,000 Americans have died. For perspective, it took 14 weeks to go from one case to one million, and only six weeks to go from one million to two million. A report in the Guardian discusses how the US has failed to get a handle on the virus. From the report: "Deficiencies in the stockpile of testing kits, swabs, ventilators and protective equipment for medical staff marked the opening stanza of the pandemic in the US. It was a muddled and sometimes astonishing response embodied by Donald Trump, who predicted the virus would vanish in the April sunshine, squabbled with state governors and pondered the merits of injecting bleach or taking hydroxychloroquine, an unproven anti-malarial drug." Time magazine published an essay called "America's Long Overdue Awakening to Systemic Racism" by Justing Worland. From the essay: "The origins of America’s unjust racial order lie in the most brutal institution of enslavement that human beings have ever concocted. More than 12 million Africans of all ages, shackled in the bottom of ships, were sold into a lifetime of forced labor defined by nonstop violence and strategic dehumanization, all cataloged methodically in sales receipts and ledgers. Around that 'peculiar institution,' the thinkers of the time crafted an equally inhumane ideology to justify their brutality, using religious rhetoric in tandem with pseudoscience to rationalize treating humans as chattel. After the Civil War, the arrangements of legal slavery were replaced with those of organized, if not strictly legal, terror. Lynchings, disenfranchisement and indentured servitude all reinforced racial hierarchy from the period of Reconstruction through Jim Crow segregation and on until the movement for civil rights in the middle of the 20th century." Trump sent the following tweet: "Our great National Guard Troops who took care of the area around the White House could hardly believe how easy it was. 'A walk in the park', one said. The protesters, agitators, anarchists (ANTIFA), and others, were handled VERY easily by the Guard, D.C. Police, & S.S. GREAT JOB!" Trump's use of S.S. to refer to the US Secret Service was quickly mocked on social media. Here are some select examples:
"From http://History.com: Schutzstaffel (SS), German for 'protective echelon,' initially served as Adolf Hitler’s personal bodyguards and later became one of the most powerful and feared organizations in Nazi Germany." - Cheryl Bolen, Reporter for Bloomberg
"Normally around the White House it’s referred to as ‘Service’ or more formally USSS, so I assume 'SS' is deliberate." - Andrew Beatty, AFP Editor
According to a story in the New York Times: "D.C. Guard members, typically deployed to help after hurricanes, floods and other natural disasters, say they feel demoralized and exhausted. More than 60 percent are people of color, and one soldier said he and some fellow troops were so ashamed in taking part against the protests that they have kept it from family members." The Senate armed services committee has adopted an amendment for the Pentagon to rename military sites named after Confederate generals within three years. General Mark Milley, the chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, the nation's top military officer, has apologized for participating in Trump's photo op at St John's Church last week saying "I should not have been there. My presence in that moment and in that environment created a perception of the military involved in domestic politics ... As a commissioned uniformed officer, it was a mistake that I have learned from." Trump sent the following tweet: "THOSE THAT DENY THEIR HISTORY ARE DOOMED TO REPEAT IT!" The Trump administration announced that it is launching and economic and legal offensive against the International Criminal Court in response to the court's decision to open an investigation into war crimes carried out by all sides, including the US in Afghanistan. The announcement was made by secretary of state Mike Pompeo, national security adviser Robert O’Brien, defense secretary Mark Esper and attorney general William Barr, who left the presentation without taking any questions. Background of the ICC according to the Guardian: "The ICC was set up in 2002, as an attempt to extend the effort to impose international humanitarian law for war crimes and crimes against humanity begun by the war crimes tribunals on the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda. Over 120 countries, including Washington’s closest allies in Europe, are party to the Rome Statute, the founding document of the ICC. Bill Clinton signed for the US in 2000, but said the statute would not be sent to the Senate for ratification until the US had assessed the court’s operations. George W Bush informed the UN in 2002 that the US would not join the court." Joe Biden, the 2020 Democratic nominee for president, released a plan on how to safely reopen the US economy. According to the Guardian, the plan "calls for guaranteeing coronavirus testing and personal protective equipment for anyone called back to work, as well as paid leave for anyone who gets sick. Biden also proposed creating a national contact tracing workforce and establishing best practices for schools and childcare facilities to reopen." Biden also criticized Trump's response to the pandemic saying "Trump has abdicated any effective federal leadership, leaving state, tribal, and local officials to do their best without help from Washington. With cases of COVID-19 still rising rapidly in parts of the country, Trump has effectively ceased to mobilize any national public health response." Trump sent the following tweet: "Seriously failed presidential candidate, Senator Elizabeth ‘Pocahontas’ Warren, just introduced an Amendment on the renaming of many of our legendary Military Bases from which we trained to WIN two World Wars. Hopefully our great Republican Senators won’t fall for this!" Video surfaced of at least 13 Chicago police officers lounging about in Democratic congressman Bobby Rush's office, while looting takes place just outside. One of the officers is seen sleeping on a couch, others are seen making popcorn and coffee. Rush reacted to the video saying "They even had the unmitigated gall to go and make coffee for themselves and to pop popcorn, my popcorn, in my microwave while looters were tearing apart businesses within their sight and within their reach ... They were in a mode of relaxation, and they did not care about what was happening to businesspeople, to this city. They didn’t care. They absolutely didn’t care." A lawyer for Martin Gugino announced that Gugino is starting physical therapy and that "his brain is injured and he is well aware of that now ... He feels encouraged and uplifted by the outpouring of support which he has received from so many people all over the globe. It helps. He is looking forward to healing and determining what his ‘new normal’ might look like." News surfaced that in Los Angeles, police are now investigating 57 cases of alleged misconduct by officers during the George Floyd protests. Trump held a roundtable on police today in Dallas, Texas. Noticeably absent from the roundtable were the county's top law enforcement officers - local police chief, sherrif and district attorney - all of which are black, and none of which were invited. Here are some highlights:
- Trump stated: "And you always have a bad apple no matter where you go. You have bad apples. And there are not too many of them, and I can tell you, there are not too many in the police department."
- Trump stated: "I heard they want to close up all police forces ... What happens late at night when you make that call to 9-1-1 and there's nobody there? What do you do, whether you're white, black, or anybody else, what do you do?"
- Bill Barr stated: "We’ve never had a president who’s more committed to reforming law enforcement." Fact Check according to the Guardian: "The Trump administration abandoned Obama-era police reform efforts, which had included civil rights investigations into local police agencies with documented records of abuse and problems. 'Police departments are not investigated under this administration,' Christy Lopez, who led the justice department group investigating police departments under Obama, recently told the Washington Post. The roll-back of Obama’s efforts began under attorney general Jeff Sessions."
- Bill Barr stated: "The real oppression and danger to our communities comes more from violent crime and lawlessness than it does from the police." Fact Check according to the Guardian: "Violent crime has steadily decreased in the US, but police continue to kill nearly 1,000 people every year. Police in the US kill more people in days than many countries do in years."
- A physician repeatedly praised Trump's support of hydroxychloroquine, which was followed by loud applause from the audience. Fact Check from the Guardian: "Hydroxychloroquine does not work against Covid-19 and should not be given to any more hospital patients around the world, say the leaders of the biggest and best-designed trial of the drug, which experts will hope finally settle the question. 'If you are admitted to hospital, don’t take hydroxychloroquine,' said Martin Landray, deputy chief investigator of the Recovery trial and professor of medicine and epidemiology at Oxford University. 'It doesn’t work.' Many countries have permitted emergency use of the drug for Covid-19 patients in hospitals, following claims from a few doctors, including Didier Raoult in France, that it was a cure, and the ensuing clamour from the public. Landray said the hype should now stop. 'It is being touted as a game-changer, a wonderful drug, a breakthrough. This is an incredibly important result, because worldwide we can stop using a drug that is useless.'"
The Trump campaign now has a signup page for its Tulsa Rally which includes the following discalimer: "By attending the Rally, you & any guests voluntarily assume all risks related to exposure to COVID-19 & agree not to hold Donald J. Trump for President, Inc.; BOK Center; ASM Global; or any of their affiliates, directors, officers, employees, agents, contractors, or volunteers liable for any illness or injury." The Louisville, Kentucky Metro Council passed a policy that bans police from using "no-knock warrants", the practice that led to the killing of 26-year-old Breonna Taylor. The policy is called Breonna's Law. London Breed, the mayor of San Francisco announced that police will no longer respond to calls for "non-criminal activity", which will now be handled by professionals who are trained and unarmed. The Trump campaign announced that the Republican convention will take place in Jacksonville, Florida. The convention was moved from North Carolina because the governor put in place a requirement that there be a plan for social distancing and masks.
June 10, 2020 - Keisha N Blain and Tom Zoellner penned an op-ed in the guardian titled "'Riots', 'mobs', 'chaos': the establishment always frames change as dangerous." From the op-ed: "These words are often used to delegitimize and dismiss Black movements – to make them appear too far removed from civil society to be taken seriously. While many politicians and pundits have attempted to dismiss the current uprisings as 'riots' – intimating that they are mere free-for-alls that lack purpose – that could not be further from the truth. Many of the uprisings that white Americans and Europeans have historically termed 'riots' were, in fact, concentrated efforts to overturn systems of oppression in the United States and across the globe." Kayleigh McEnany, the White House press secretary, appeared on Fox News, Here are some highlights:
- McEnany was asked about Trump's plans for police reform in the wake of the killing of George Floyd. Without offering specifics, McEnany would only say that "there has been tremendous work done on this and a lot of progress."
- McEnany was asked about Trump's tweet which claimed Martin Gugino - the 75 year-old man who was pushed over and left bleeding on the ground by two police officers - was a member of Antifa. McEnany responded that Trump was just "raising questions based on a report he saw. They're questions that need to be asked. This individual had some questionable tweets, some profanity-laden tweets about police. No one condones any sort of violence." The "report" McEnany was referring to was aired on the far-right One America News Network (OANN).
Joe Biden wrote an op-ed in USA Today regarding the need to address the country's systemic racism problem: From the op-ed: "If state and local governments fail to make necessary changes, the Department of Justice must have subpoena power for pattern or practice investigations into systemic misconduct by police departments and force these departments to reform. While I do not believe federal dollars should go to police departments that are violating people’s rights or turning to violence as the first resort, I do not support defunding police. The better answer is to give police departments the resources they need to implement meaningful reforms, and to condition other federal dollars on completing those reforms." Medaria Arradondo, the Minneapolis police chief, said he is immediately withdrawing from contract negotiations with the city's police union. This comes in the wake of calls for Bob Kroll, the leader of the Minneapolis police union, to resign. In a letter to the justice department inspector general Michael Horowitz, more than 1,200 former employees of the justice department are calling for an investigation into attorney general William Barr's role in the forcible removal of peaceful protesters from near the White House, and for deploying federal law enforcement officers to Washington DC, in response to the protests.From the letter: "If the Attorney General or any other DOJ employee has directly participated in actions that have deprived Americans of their constitutional rights or that physically injured Americans lawfully exercising their rights, that would be misconduct of the utmost seriousness, the details of which must be shared with the American people." John Gleeson, a former US district judge, who was appointed by US district judge Emmet Sullivan to review the justice department's motion to dismiss criminal charges against Michael Flynn, argued in a new court filing that the justice department's motion to dismiss be denied because there is "clear evidence of a gross abuse of prosecutorial power." Gleeson also accused the justice department of engaging in "highly irregular conduct to benefit a political ally of the President." According to the Associated Press, Steve Linick, the former inspector general of the state department, told Congress that two senior officials - Brian Bulatao, the State Department's top management officer and Marik String, a legal adviser - tried to bully him and dissuade his office from conducting a review of a multibillion-dollar arms sale to Saudi Arabia. Linick also claimed that at the time of his firing, he was looking into allegations that Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and his wife may have misused government staff to run personal errands among several other matters. Linick was fired by Trump on May 15, and according to Linick, there was no warning, and no cause was cited. According to CNN, the Trump campaign is demanding the network retract a recent poll that shows Trump 14 points down against Joe Biden. CNN rejected the request saying "We stand by our poll". Larry Kudlow, a senior White House economic adviser, told reporters outside the White House that he doesn't believe there is systemic racism, or that African Americans' heightened levels of unemployment in comparison to white Americans to be a sign of institutional racism. Regarding recent police killings of black Americans, Kudlow blamed some "bad apples" within police departments. Trump tweeted about an Army spokesperson's comment that defense secretary Mark Esper and Army secretary Ryan McCarthy "are open to a bi-partisan discussion on the topic" of renaming bases that were named after Confederate military leaders. Trump's tweet: "The United States of America trained and deployed our HEROES on these Hallowed Grounds, and won two World Wars. Therefore, my Administration will not even consider the renaming of these Magnificent and Fabled Military Installations ... Our history as the Greatest Nation in the World will not be tampered with. Respect our Military!" Kayleigh McEnany held a press conference today, here are some highlights:
- McEnany was asked if Trump regretted sending a tweet about Martin Gugino, the 75-year-old protester who was violently shoved to the ground and left bleeding by two police officers. McEnany responded: "The president does not regret standing up for law enforcement ... He has a right to ask those questions." McEnany went on to argue that the country has become "reflexively anti-police officer" and also chastized reporters for making a judgment about the incident based on a "brief snippet of a video." Fact Check: Martin Gugino remains hospitalized, and the two officers have been charged with assault.
- McEnany claimed that diminished qualified immunity for police officers was a "nonstarter" for Trump in terms of police reforms. Democrats have proposed ending qualified immunity which is also supported by criminal justice advocates since the legal doctrine makes it difficult to hold police officers accountable for their actions.
- McEnany claimed that any proposal to rename American forts showed "complete disrespect" to soldiers who trained there to suggest the names are "somehow inherently racist."
Trump announced that his next campaign rally will be held in Tulsa, Oklahoma on June 19th. Critics of the president have called it irresponsible to begin holding rallies when coronavirus infections are on the rise in many states. Trump's allies have been arguing that the George Floyd protests, which have attracted thousands, could shield the rallies from potential criticism. Critics of the date and location pointed out that June 19th is known as Juneteenth, which celebrates the end of slavery in America, and Tulsa, Oklahoma is where the 1921 race massacre occurred, which resulted in the destruction of black businesses and residences at the hands of angry white mobs. The event is known as the single worst incident of racial violence in American history. Side Note: Ronald Reagan launched his 1980 campaign with a speech lauding "states rights" within walking distance of the dam that 3 civil rights workers were surreptitiously buried in after the notorious "Mississippi burning" murders. Here are some notable responses to Trump's rally announcement:
"How racist is Donald Trump: He’s so racist that he plans on having one of his first campaign rallies on June 19th in Tulsa, OK. If you don’t know — Do some research on #Juneteenth and the racial violence that took place in Oklahoma known as the Tulsa Race Massacre, 1921." - Kamau M. Marshall, Joe Biden's Director of Strategic Communications
"This is not an accident. Trump is holding his first rally of the campaign on Juneteenth (when enslaved blacks were emancipated) in Tulsa almost a 100 years after the massacre of its black citizens. Forget dog whistle, this is an air raid siren" - Atima Omara, Progressive Political Strategist
"Trump coming out in favor of keeping confederate names on military bases and scheduling his first rally in Tulsa on Juneteenth is not just racist, it's flagrantly, deliberately, purposefully racist and cruel. You think they need votes in Oklahoma? Come on." - Tommy Vietor, former National Security Council Spokesperson under Barack Obama
"Trump’s decision to hold a rally in Tulsa, the location of the single worst incident of racial violence in American history, on Juneteenth, a holiday celebrating the freeing of slaves, is abhorrent and a wink at his racist supporters. He doesn’t even need votes in Oklahoma." - Anthony Scaramucci, former Communications Director under Donald J Trump
NASCAR announced that it will be banning confederate flags at races saying "The presence of the confederate flag at Nascar events runs contrary to our commitment to providing a welcoming and inclusive environment for all fans, our competitors and our industry." Nancy Pelosi, the speaker of the House, sent a letter to leaders of the Joint Committee on the Library requesting the removal of Confederate monuments saying in part "The statues in the Capitol should embody our highest ideals as Americans, expressing who we are and who we aspire to be as a nation. Monuments to men who advocated cruelty and barbarism to achieve such a plainly racist end are a grotesque affront to these ideals." A statue of Christopher Columbus was pulled down by Protesters in St Paul, Minnesota. According to the Guardian "Governor Jay Inslee of Washington has ordered a new investigation into the death of Manuel Ellis, an African American man who died more than three months ago in police custody, following questions over the independence of the investigation." In video footage released today, Ellis can be heard saying "I can't breathe sir. I can't breathe" followed by an officer saying "Shut the fuck up." Through a legal challenge, The Courier Journal was able to obtain the police report regarding the death of Breonna Taylor at the hands of police. The report states there was no forced entry, despite the use of a battering ram by police. The report lists Taylor's injuries as none, despite the fact that she was shot by police at least eight times as she slept. Richard Green, the paper's editor told a reporter for the Courier Journal "I read this report and have to ask the mayor, the police chief and the city’s lawyers: Are you kidding? This is what you consider being transparent to taxpayers and the public?" Katrina Pierson, a Trump 2020 campaign senior, responded to criticism about the date for Trump's Tulsa Rally saying in part: ""As the party of Lincoln, Republicans are proud of the history of Juneteenth, which is the anniversary of the last reading of the Emancipation Proclamation." Protesters in Richmond, Virginia tore down a statue of Confederate President Jefferson Davis. Trump sent the following tweets: "Radical Left Governor @JayInslee and the Mayor of Seattle are being taunted and played at a level that our great Country has never seen before. Take back your city NOW. If you don’t do it, I will. This is not a game. These ugly Anarchists must be stooped IMMEDIATELY. MOVE FAST!" and "Domestic Terrorists have taken over Seattle, run by Radical Left Democrats, of course. LAW & ORDER!" Donald Trump made the following statement in the White House Rose Garden: "By the way, when you do more testing, you have more cases. We have more cases than anybody because we do more testing than anybody. It's pretty simple. Remember this: When you have more tests, you have more cases. I say to my people: Every time we test, you find cases because we do more testing. So if we have more cases — if we wanted to do testing in China or in India or other places, I promise you, there'd be more cases".
June 9, 2020 - John Dowd, a former attorney for Donald Trump, described those who are protesting police brutality as "terrorists". In an op-ed in the Guardian, Lawrence Douglas responded to Dowd saying in part "Trump's presidency has largely inured us to overheated rhetoric. We’ve grown accustomed to Trump and his allies vilifying journalists as 'enemies of the people' or characterizing officials trying to hold him to account as treasonous criminals. All the same, Dowd’s brandishing of the term 'terrorist' represents a frightening rhetorical escalation at a perilous time in the life of our nation ... In labeling protesters as terrorists, Dowd engages in something far more ominous and shocking than mere rhetorical overkill. He is effectively erasing the difference between Americans peaceably exercising their constitutional rights and Isis insurgents laying down roadside explosives."
A statue of King Leopold II in Antwerp, Belgium, was taken down today. Leopold II was a vicious ruler. Millions perished under his rule between 1885 and 1908.
Donald J Trump, the president of the United States, sent the following in a tweet: "Buffalo protester shoved by Police could be an ANTIFA provocateur. 75 year old Martin Gugino was pushed away after appearing to scan police communications in order to black out the equipment. @OANN I watched, he fell harder than was pushed. Was aiming scanner. Could be a set up?" Fact Check: 75 year-old Martin Gugino is a member of PUSH Buffalo, which advocates for affordable housing, and the human rights organization Western New York Peace Center. There is no evidence that Gugino is a member of "antifa", or that the incident was a "set up", or that Gugino fell "harder than he was pushed", or that he was attempting to "scan police communications". Here are some select responses to Trump's tweet about Gugino:
"This was a 75 year-old-man shoved to the ground, left bleeding from head wound. Trafficking in conspiracy theories like these are beneath your office, Mr President." - Jeff Flake, former Republican Senator
".@realDonaldTrump has never really cared much for helpless people bleeding out from their skulls on the ground." Accompanying the tweet was an accounting of a time when Trump watched a man hit his head on the ground, but wasn't concerned about the man's injury, but was instead concerned about the red stain on the marble floor. - George Conway
"My Dad used to say there’s no greater sin than the abuse of power. Whether it’s an officer bloodying a peaceful protester or a President defending him with a conspiracy theory he saw on TV." - Joe Biden
"How reckless, how irresponsible, how mean, how crude. I mean, if there was ever a reprehensible, dumb comment — and from the president of the United States." - Andrew Cuomo, Governor of New York
"Black Lives Matter" - Martin Gugino
Trump's conspiracy theory about Gugino is believed to have come from a segment on the far-right news outlet known as OANN (One America News Network). That segment was done by Kristian Rouz, who has previously written for the Kremlin owned outlet Sputnik, which is frequently described as a propoganda outfit. The US intelligence community concluded that Sputnik played a role in Russia's election interference efforts during the 2016 presidential race. Last month Rouz did a report that peddled the conspiracy theory that the pandemic is "a globalist conspiracy to establish sweeping population control" and is backed by George Soros.
Trump sent the following tweet regarding James Mattis, who had criticized Trump last week: "Mattis was our Country’s most overrated General. He talked a lot, but never 'brought home the bacon.' He was terrible! Someday I will tell the real story on him and others - both good and bad!"
A judge in Virginia granted a 10-day injunction that blocks the removal of a statue of Confederate General Robert E. Lee, which Virginia governor Ralph Northam had announced plans to remove.
According to the Wall Street Journal, Trump came very close to firing defense secretary Mark Esper, after Esper voiced opposition to Trump's idea of sending active-duty troops to states with George Floyd protests. From the story: "The president consulted several advisers to ask their opinion of the disagreement, intent that day on removing Mr. Esper, his fourth defense secretary since taking office in January 2017, according to [several] officials. After talks with the advisers, who cautioned against the move, Mr. Trump set aside the plans to immediately fire Mr. Esper."
Greg Glassman, the CEO of CrossFit, is stepping down following a Zoom call with staff in which he stated: "We’re not mourning for George Floyd – I don’t think me or any of my staff are ... Can you tell me why I should mourn for him? ... Other than that it’s the white thing to do – other than that, give me another reason."
A statue of Christopher Columbus was pulled down by protesters in Richmond's Byrd Park, Virginia. The statue was then set on fire, then dumped in a nearby lake. Another statue of Christopher Columbus was beheaded on Boston's Atlantic Avenue in Massachusetts.
George Floyd was buried today.
June 8, 2020 - A new CNN poll puts Trump 14 points down against Joe Biden, and at 38% approval, Trump is at his lowest since January 2019. Kevin McCarthy, the Republican House minority leader tweeted: "To the police officers across the country who put on the uniform every day and uphold their oath—THANK YOU. Democrats want to defund you, but Republicans will never turn our backs on you." This tweet followed the introduction of the Justice in Policing Act, put forward by House Democrats, which focuses on reforming policing, by banning chokeholds and incentivizing racial bias training, not defunding police departments. Andrew Bates, a spokesperson for Joe Biden, released a statement declaring that Biden does not believe that police should be defunded. Harry Rogers, a leader of the Virginia KKK, was arrested for driving a vehicle into a group of anti-police brutality protesters. Rogers was charged with attempted malicious wounding, felony vandalism, and assault and battery. No one was seriously injured in the attack. According to a committee of economists at the National Bureau of Economic Research, the US entered a recession in February. Kayleigh McEnany, the White House press secretary, held a news conference, here are some highlights:
- McEnany declared that Trump "is appalled by the defund the police movement".
- When asked whether Trump believes there is systemic racism in law enforcement, McEnany responded that Trump thinks there are "instances of racism" among police but they are overall "good, hard-working people."
- McEnany was asked if the administration had any regrets for the decision to forcibly remove peaceful protesters using tear gas last week. Her reply: "There’s no regrets on the part of this White House". When pressed again whether Trump was sorry, McEnany responded: "The president is sorry about the fact that Antifa wreaked havoc on our streets." Fact Check: There is no evidence that Antifa has been involved in any havoc on the streets.
- McEnany lashed out at Republican senator Mitt Romney, for his participation in anti-police brutality protests recently, saying that Romney only got 2% support from the black community in 2012 presidential campaign. Fact Check: Romney actually got 6% of the black vote in 2016.
According to the Guardian, "The World Bank declared that humanity is facing an unprecedented health and economic crisis that has spread with astonishing speed and will result in the largest shock the global economy has witnessed in more than seven decades." According to Politico, the Trump campaign is planning to start holding campaign rallies again "in the next two weeks". Trump's has not held a rally since March. According to Politico: "The Secretary of the army is open to a bipartisan discussion on the topic" of renaming Army bases that were named after confederate Generals. The New York Times editorial board recently called for renaming military bases "for American heroes – not racist traitors."
June 7, 2020 - According to Johns Hopkins University data, deaths in the US from covid-19 has reached 109,864 with 1,922,054 confirmed infections. During an interview on CNN. former secretary of state and retired general, Colin Powell stated: "look at what Trump has done to divide us. He is being offensive to our allies ... so yes I agree with [Mattis and other generals who have criticized Trump] ... We have a Constitution. We have to follow that Constitution. And the president's drifted away from it ... The Republican party and the president thought they were immune and could say anything. He lies, he lies about things and he gets away with things because people [in the Republican party] will not hold him accountable ... Biden is now the candidate and I will be voting for him ... I think Trump has been not an effective president. He lies all the time. He began lying the day of the inauguration when we got into an argument about the size of the crowd that was there. People are writing books about his favorite thing of lying. And I don’t think that’s in our interest." An NBC/Wall Street Journal poll shows that 80% of voters believe the US is out of control. Protesters in Bristol, UK, pulled down a statue of Edward Colston, a 17th-century slave trader, then dumped it into the river Avon. Donald Trump sent the following in a tweet: "Not only will Sleepy Joe Biden DEFUND THE POLICE, but he will DEFUND OUR MILITARY! He has no choice, the Dems are controlled by the Radical Left." Fact Check: According to Reuters, Biden has "called for a $300m investment in policing, contingent on officers mirroring the diversity of their communities." Acting homeland security secretary Chad Wolf was asked by Martha Raddatz of ABC's This Week if there is systemic racism within the US police, in light of the fact that African Americans are killed by police at twice the rate of white Americans. Wolf's answer: "I do not think that we have a systemic racism problem with law enforcement officers across this country. Do I acknowledge that there are some law enforcement officers that abuse their jobs? Yes. And again, we need to hold those accountable. And I would say that there are individuals in every profession across this country that probably abuse their authority and their power." Attorney general Bill Barr was asked about reports that Trump wanted 10,000 active troops to be ordered on to the streets of America to police the George Floyd protests. Barr denied the accusation saying "The president never asked or suggested that we needed to deploy regular troops at that point." Barr also said that protesters who were forcefully removed from Lafayette Square "were not peaceful protesters" adding "And that’s one of the big lies that the- the media is- seems to be perpetuating at this point ... Police have to move protesters, sometimes peaceful demonstrators, for a short distance in order to accomplish public safety, and that’s what was done here." According to CBS's Margaret Brennan, who conducted the interview with Barr, three of her colleagues were present in Lafayette Square, and they said the protest was peaceful. Admiral James Stavridid, the former supreme allied commander at Nato, responded to Trump's "dominate" comment saying: "This is not a battlespace to be dominated. These are zones of protest to be protected." Alicia Garza, the co-founder of Black Lives Matter, explained what calls to defund the police mean saying: "When we talk about defunding the police, what we’re saying is invest in the resources that our communities need. So much of policing right now is generated and directed towards quality of life issues ... But what we do need is increased funding for housing, we need increased funding for education, we need increased funding for the quality of life of communities who are over-policed and over-surveilled ... Black Lives Matter is not just a radical idea ... everyone can agree that we don’t have the things that we need to live well, and that we are using policing and law enforcement in a way that far exceeds its utility." James Bennet, an editorial page editor at the New York Times, has resigned amid outrage over the printing of an op-ed by Arkansas Republican Tom Cotton which called for using federal troops to quell protests against police brutality. Bennet had not read the op-ed before approving its publication. In a vote of 9 to 3, the Minneapolis city council voted to defund the city's police department. Trump sent out the following tweet: "I built the greatest economy in the World, the best the U.S. has ever had. I am doing it again!"
June 6, 2020 - False rumors have begun to surface on social media sites that antifa activists are traveling en masse into rural areas, which has led to rightwing vigilantes to begin carrying out armed patrols of many cities and towns. This comes in the wake of tweets by Donald Trump who said that antifa would be declared a terrorist group. Note: The FBI has said there is "no evidence" of antifa involvement in violence linked to the George Floyd protests. According to NBC News: "A Twitter account claiming to belong to a national “antifa” organization and pushing violent rhetoric related to ongoing protests has been linked to the white nationalist group Identity Evropa, according to a Twitter spokesperson. The spokesperson said the account violated the company's platform manipulation and spam policy, specifically the creation of fake accounts. Twitter suspended the account after a tweet that incited violence." Melissa Jacobs, a writer for the Guardian, had this reaction to the NFL statement put out yesterday: "Goodell hardly deserves a parade for his change of tone. After all, his NFL is the one that tossed aside its moral compass and turned its back on Kaepernick four years ago and every day since. Goodell’s statement would have been far more powerful had he mentioned Kaepernick by name. Either way, the NFL’s banishment of Kaepernick is a permanent stain on the NFL. Nothing can change that now. Goodell’s statement was not proactive but reactive to a litany of players who drew a line in the sand. But it was quick and decisive and achieved the unthinkable: The NFL gave Donald Trump the middle finger. It finally detached itself from Trump and his crazy, dangerous strategy of exploiting the flag and national anthem to suppress and demonize peaceful protest." Secretary of state Mike Pompeo lashed out at Chinese propaganda today saying: "In China, when doctors and journalists warn of the dangers of a new disease the [Chinese Communist Party] silences and disappears them ... in the United States, we value life and transparent systems." Critics were quick to point out that Pompeo's boss does not exactly value transparent systems and the press holding the government to account. Aaron Torgalski and Robert McCabe, the officers who shoved a 75 year old man to the ground, then lied about it, were arraigned in a Buffalo court where they both plead not guilty to the charge of assault. The two officers were cheered by their fellow officers as they left the court house. According to the Guardian: "Texas’ Republican governor Gregg Abbott has condemned four of his party’s state chairs for spreading baseless conspiracy theories that George Floyd’s killing was fabricated in order to hurt Donald Trump’s presidency." According to the Texas Tribune, 7 additional GOP county chairs had been identified as posting conspiracy theories regarding George Floyd, some of which peddled the oft-used anti-Semitic trope that those protesting Floyd's death were being paid by Jewish billionaire George Soros. From the story: "'This is a disgusting level of ignorance that’s hard to hear from anyone, much less an elected official,' State Rep. Donna Howard, D-Austin, said in an email to the Tribune. 'This is a disgusting level of ignorance that’s hard to hear from anyone, much less an elected official ... I’m glad to see Republican state leaders finally start to push back against this nonsense and look forward to a day when we can actually debate fact-based policy instead of constantly refuting conspiracies.' Charles Blain, the president of Urban Reform, a conservative public policy nonprofit based in Houston, used Twitter to call for reflection within the party: 'I’ll say more on this later but the fact that in one day 4 Texas GOP chairs have come under condemnation for racist remarks — including MY county — should make it CLEAR AS DAY that we have a problem in this party and y’all need to talk to more black people.'" One of the facebook posts was posted by Sid Miller, the Texas Agriculture Commissioner, which included an image of Soros with the text: "start the race war". Another was posted by Lynne Teinert, the GOP chairperson for Shackelford County, included an image of Soros with the text: ""The pandemic isn't working. Start the racial wars." The top editor of the Philadelphia Inquirer resigned following an uproar over a headline considered extremely tone-deaf. The headline: "Buildings Matter, Too." Protesters in Richmond, Virginia pulled down a statue of Confederate general William Carter Wickham.
June 5, 2020 - There are now more than 1.8m cases of coronavirus in the US, and there have been more than 108,000 deaths. Video surfaced of riot police in New York pushing a 75 year-old man to the ground, who hit his head and was bleeding from his ear as the police marched past. Two police officers have been suspended over the incident. The New York Times has issued a statement saying the "Send in the Troops" op-ed by Senator Tom Cotton did not meet its editorial standards. Bob Kroll, the leader of the Minneapolis police union, issued a statement to members of the union that described George Floyd as a "violent criminal", because he had done prison time, despite the fact that the arrest that led to his death was for a non-violent minor crime. Kroll also called those who are protesting Floyd's death terrorists, and said that dismissing Chauvin and the three other officers was depriving them of their rights. An article in Bloomberg poses the question "Whatever happened to the coronavirus task-force?" From the article: "The task force is now reduced to weekly closed-door meetings with Vice President Mike Pence. Anthony Fauci, the top infectious disease expert in the government, hasn’t spoken publicly at the White House since 29 April. In his last task force news conference, a week earlier, he cautioned that the country must 'proceed in a very careful, measured way' to reopen." According to the Texas Tribune: "Republican leaders in five Texas counties shared racist Facebook posts, some of which also floated conspiracy theories, leading Gov. Greg Abbott to call for two of them to resign. Abbott and other top Texas Republicans called for the resignation of the GOP chairs in Bexar and Nueces counties after they shared on social media a conspiracy theory that Floyd's death was a 'staged event,' apparently to gin up opposition to President Donald Trump. There is no evidence to support that claim; Floyd, a black Minnesota man, died last week after a white police officer kneeled on his neck for nearly nine minutes ... Meanwhile, the GOP chairman-elect in Harris County, Keith Nielsen, posted an image on Facebook earlier this week that showed a Martin Luther King Jr. quote — 'Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere' — on a background with a banana. The juxtaposition of the quote and the banana can be read as an allusion to equating black people with monkeys, a well-worn racist trope. Nielsen appears to have deleted the post and apparently addressed it on his Facebook page Thursday evening. On Friday he updated his comments to say he would not resign." Trump tweeted a copy of a letter written by one of his former attorneys, John Dowd, to Jim Mattis, following Mattis' criticism of Trump. In the letter, Dowd said "The phony protesters in Lafayette park were not peaceful and are not real. They are terrorists using idle hate-filled students to burn and destroy." Muriel Bowser, the mayor of Washington DC, sent a letter to Trump requesting the removal of federal law enforcement and military presence from the city. Trump held a press conference today regarding positive jobs numbers. The unemployment rate is currently at 13.3%, a slight drop from 14.7% earlier this month, and which is at heights not seen since the worst days of the 1980s. Here are some highlights:
- Trump claimed that before the pandemic, the US had the "greatest economy in the history of the world", a claim that is not supported by the facts.
- Trump claimed the country is "largely through" the coronavirus pandemic, despite warnings from health experts that the country could see a second wave of infections later this year.
- Trump encouraged governors to allow him to send National Guard troops to quell George Floyd protests saying he'd send troops "so fast it’ll make their heads spin."
- Trump called the new jobs numbers "a tremendous tribute to equality" despite the fact that unemployment actually increased for black people. Here are the unemployment numbers by race:
White:
April 14.2%
May 12.4%
Black:
April 16.7%
May 16.8%
- Trump made this statement regarding George Floyd: "Hopefully, George is looking down right now and saying, 'This is a great thing happening for our country'. A great day for him, a great day for everybody. This is great day for everybody."
- Trump ended the press conference without taking any questions. Yamiche Alcindor of PBS NewsHour asked Trump to comment on how the unemployment actually rose among African Americans and Asian Americans. Trump responded by dismissively waving his hand and telling Alcindor "You are something."
Here are some notable responses to Trumps press conference:
"When you call a press conference, it means you'll be taking press questions. If you just deliver remarks, it's a press statement." - Mark Knoller
"Less than 24 hours after George Floyd’s memorial service, Trump called this a 'great day' for Floyd and others 'in terms of equality.' Despicable." - Liberal orgabization CAP Action
"Just stop" - Mark Warner, Democratic Senator
"'This is a great day for him.' Let that sink in." - Claire McCaskill, former Democratic Senator
"Today is a great day for George Floyd? Trump is truly the dumbest man alive." - Adam Parkhomenko, Democratic strategist
"In a single statement, Trump manages to denigrate the memory of George Floyd and his experience, while also showing an utter lack of sympathy for the plight of millions of Americans still struggling through and economic crisis. A truly stunning level of tone-deafness." - Robert Maguire, Research Director for Watchdog Group CREW
"George Floyd’s last words, ‘I can’t breathe, I can’t breathe,’ have echoed all across this nation and quite frankly around the world. For the president to try to put any other words in the mouth of George Floyd, I frankly think is despicable." Joe Biden, former Vice President and Democratic nominee for president in 2020.
Near the White House, a two block stretch of road has the phrase "Black Lives Matter" painted on it. The giant mural was approved by DC mayor Muriel Bowser. The mayor also announced that 16th Street NW in front of the White House has been renamed "Black Lives Matter Plaza." Black Lives Matter DC responded to news of the giant mural saying: "This is a performative distraction from real policy changes. Bowser has consistently been on the wrong side of BLMDC history. This is to appease white liberals while ignoring our demands. Black Lives Matter means defund the police." According to an NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist poll, 67% of Americans say Trump has mostly increased racial tensions. The breakdown of that statistic by political affiliation:
Democrats - 92%
Independents -73%
Republicans - 29%
Verik Maplecroft, a global risk analysis company, has downgraded the United States in civil unrest index from "medium risk" to "high risk". According to the firm: "marginalization of racial and religious minorities" is the single biggest driver of the unrest “because of the profound impact on the living standards of entire communities.” The conditions mean that direct acts of violence to express discontent “appeal to a broad range of community members." This is the second time the US dropped into the "high risk" category. The first time was when Trump took office in 2017. According to the report: "The ongoing protests reveal the high degree of political polarization, particularly around social issues like race and gender discrimination, and structural socio-economic inequalities that have become evident once more under the Trump administration." According to a new analysis by the International Crisis Group - an international security thinktank based in Brussels, whose mission over the past quarter-century has been "working to prevent wars and shape policies that will build a more peaceful world" - a failure to confront the "deep pain and injustice borne by the African American community” in response to the police killing of George Floyd will result in further “division and instability” in the United States. From the report: "George Floyd’s killing sparked a firestorm of protest and violence in part because it met such an abundance of dry tinder ... [The United States] never adequately came to terms with the horrific legacy of two and a half centuries of chattel slavery. Nor has it healed or conquered the institutionalised violence and racism toward African Americans that followed their emancipation in the 1860s." According to the AP, Minneapolis officials have agreed to ban the use of police chokeholds and require officers to intervene anytime they see unauthorized use of force. The White House Correspondents' Association released a scathing statement regarding Trump's press conference today. From the statement: "The chairs were initially positioned in a way that was consistent with social distancing guidelines but were moved closer together by White House staff shortly before the event started ... When we asked for an explanation, the White House press office told us the decision to move the chairs close together was made because 'It looks better' ... The health of the press corps should not be put in jeopardy because the White House wants reporters to be a prop for a 'news conference' where the president refused to answer any questions." Victoria Woods, the mayor of Tacoma, Washington, is calling for the police officers involved in the death of Manuel Ellis to be fired, and prosecuted to the full extent of the law. Ellis, a 33 year-old African American, died in police custody on March 3rd. Cell phone footage shows Ellis being beaten while lying on the ground, and Ellis can be heard pleading with officers, saying "I can't breathe." Trump responded to a letter from Muriel Bowser, the mayor of DC, who had requested that Trump remove all additional law enforcement officials brought into the city in response to the George Floyd protests. Trump responded by calling the mayor "incompetent". Bowser responded back to Trump saying "You know the thing about the pot and the kettle?" News surfaced that all 57 officers on the Buffalo police department's emergency response team resigned in response to the suspensions of two colleagues. The colleagues were filmed shoving Martin Gugino, 75 to the ground, and then walking away as Gugino lay motionless with blood coming out of his ear. Aaron Torgalski and Robert McCabe, the officers who pushed Gugino, initially claimed Gugini had tripped. Trump signed a proclamation today that allows commercial fishing to resume at the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument, the Atlantic Ocean's only fully protected marine sanctuary. This is a reversal of an Obama era policy to protect endangered whales and other marine life. The NFL released a statement which reads in part: "We, the NFL, condemn racism and the systematic oppression of Black People. We, the NFL, admit we were wrong for not listening to NFL players earlier and encourage all to speak out and peacefully protest. We, the NFL, believe Black Lives Matter." Drew Brees, the New Orleans Saints quarterback, apologized for comments that were widely interpreted to mean that NFL players kneeling during the national anthem is unpatriotic. Trump responded to Brees' apology on twitter saying: "I am a big fan of Drew Brees. I think he’s truly one of the greatest quarterbacks, but he should not have taken back his original stance on honoring our magnificent American Flag. OLD GLORY is to be revered, cherished, and flown high... We should be standing up straight and tall, ideally with a salute, or a hand on heart. There are other things you can protest, but not our Great American Flag - NO KNEELING!" According to the Guardian: "A group of 66 United Nations human rights monitors issued a devastating critique of what they call modern-day 'racial terror' lynchings in the US in the form of state-sponsored police violence against black Americans." From the critique: "African Americans continue to experience racial terror in state-sponsored and privately organized violence … In the US, this legacy of racial terror remains evident in modern-day policing." In an interview with the AP, attorney general William Barr denied giving the order to disperse peaceful protesters in front of the White House with chemical agents to pave the way for Trump to pose for a photo in front of a church saying "I'm not involved in giving tactical commands like that. I was frustrated and I was also worried that as the crowd grew, it was going to be harder and harder to do. So my attitude was get it done, but I didn’t say, 'Go do it'". Barr also claimed the removal of the protesters was unconnected with the presidential photo-shoot. During a news conference, Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot declared that police officers who taped over their badges or turned off body-worn cameras in violation of very clear directives of the Chicago Department would be stripped of their police powers. Lightfoot also had this message for officers who have used excessive force in response to ongoing protests: "Shame on you, shame on you." R Brooke Jackson, a federal judge, issued a ruling that blocks Denver police from using chemical agents against peaceful protesters. In the ruling, Jackson called the actions of some law enforcement officers in Denver and across the nation "disgusting". Jackson also wrote: "The Denver Police Department has failed in its duty to police its own ... If a store’s windows must be broken to prevent a protester’s facial bones from being broken or eye being permanently damaged, that is more than a fair trade. If a building must be graffiti-ed to prevent the suppression of free speech, that is a fair trade."
June 4, 2020 - A trend has emerged on social media in which a white person is pictured kneeling on the neck of another person who is holding their hands behind their back, with the caption: George Floyd Challenge. Trump sent tweets defending Roger Stone, who was convicted in 2019 of lying to Congress, tampering with a witness, and obstructing the House investigation. The tweets describe Stone as "a victim of a corrupt and illegal Witch Hunt, one which will go down as the greatest political crime in history." LeBron James, a member of the LA Lakers, responded to comments made yesterday by Drew Brees, saying in part: "You literally still don’t understand why Kap was kneeling on one knee?? Has absolute nothing to do with the disrespect of [America] and our soldiers( men and women) who keep our land free. My father-in-law was one of those." Drew Brees issued an apology on twitter for his previous "insensitive" comments. Republican Senator Lindsey Graham offered the following criticism of James Mattis during an interview with Fox News: "I think you’re missing something here, my friend. You’re missing the fact that the liberal media has taken every event in the last three and a half years and laid it at the president’s feet. I’m not saying he’s blameless, but I am saying that you’re buying into a narrative that I think is, quite frankly, unfair." Critics were quick to point to comments made by Graham in 2016 in which he said the nomination of Trump "would be an utter, complete and total disaster. If you’re a xenophobic, race-baiting, religious bigot, you’re going to have a hard time being president of the United States, and you’re going to do irreparable damage to the party." Ryan McCarthy, the secretary of the army, sent the following tweet: "Every Soldier and Department of the Army Civilian swears an oath to support and defend the Constitution. That includes the right of the people peaceably to assemble and to petition the government for a redress of grievances." According to a Georgia investigator, after shooting Ahmaud Arbery three times, Travis McMichael called him a "fucking n-----". 42 million Americans have filed for unemployment benefits since the coronavirus pandemic hit the US. Republican Senator, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, said she is struggling with the question of whether to support Trump in 2020 saying in part: "Perhaps we’re getting to the point where we can be more honest with the concerns that we might hold internally, and have the courage of our own convictions to speak up." Murkowski also commented on James Mattis recent criticism of Trump saying his words were "true, honest, necessary and overdue." John Kelley, formerly secretary of homeland security and White House chief of staff, responded to Trump's criticism of James Mattis saying in part: "The president did not fire him. He did not ask for his resignation. The president has clearly forgotten how it actually happened or is confused. The president tweeted a very positive tweet about Jim until he started to see on Fox News their interpretation of his letter. Then he got nasty. Jim Mattis is a honorable man." Attorney General William Barr held a press conference regarding protests around the nation in which he stated: "We have evidence that Antifa and other similar extremist groups, as well as actors of a variety of different political persuasions, have been involved in instigating and participating in the violent activity." Barr was asked by a reporter why he mentioned Antifa as opposed to "boogaloo" or other far-right extremist elements, to which Barr responded that there was a "witches brew a lot of different extremist organizations trying to exploit the protests." Reverend Al Sharpton delivered a eulogy at a memorial service for George Floyd where he said in part: "The reason we could never be who we wanted and dreamed of being is you kept your knee on our neck. We were smarter than the underfunded schools you put us in but you had your knee on our neck. We could run corporations and not hustle in the street but you had your knee on our neck. We had creative skills. We could do whatever anyone else could do. But we couldn’t get your knee off our neck. What happened to Floyd happens every day in this country in education and health services and in every area of American life. It’s time for us to stand up in George’s name and say, 'Get your knee off our necks.'" John Allen, a retired Marine Corps general now chairman of the Brookings Institution warned that the US could be facing "the beginning of the end of the American experiment". Republican Senator Chuck Grassley announced that he will block the confirmation of Donald Trump's nominees until the White House provides Congress with "adequate explanations" for the firing of two inspector generals in recent months. The roll of inspector general was created in the aftermath of Watergate. Here is a list of the four IGs that Trump has ousted in recent months:
- Michael Atkinson, intelligence community inspector general
- Steve Linick, state department inspector general
- Glenn Fine, acting Pentagon inspector general
- Christi Grimm, acting Health and Human Services inspector general
Ralph Northam, the governor of Virginia, announced that a prominent statue of Gen Robert E Lee will be removed as soon as possible. In the announcement, Northam said in part: "You see, in Virginia, we no longer preach a false version of history. One that pretends the civil war was about 'state rights' and not the evils of slavery. No one believes that any longer." The American Civil Liberties Union has filed suit against Donald Trump, William Barr, and other federal officials over the assault on peaceful protesters near the White House so that Trump could walk to St John's church, which is known as the Church of the Presidents, to hold up a bible for a photo op meant to reassure evangelical supporters. According to the ACLU, Trump and the others are accused of "violating their constitutional rights and engaging in an unlawful conspiracy to violate those rights". April Goggans of Black Lives Matter DC, the lead plaintiff in the case, was quoted in an ACLU press release as saying "What happened to our members Monday evening, here in the nation’s capital, was an affront to all our rights ... The death of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor at the hands of police officers has reignited the rage, pain, and deep sadness our community has suffered for generations. We won’t be silenced by tear gas and rubber bullets. Now is our time to be heard." Scott Michaelman, legal director for the ACLU of the District of Columbia stated: "The president’s shameless, unconstitutional, unprovoked, and frankly criminal attack on protesters because he disagreed with their views shakes the foundation of our nation’s constitutional order. And when the nation’s top law enforcement officer becomes complicit in the tactics of an autocrat, it chills protected speech for all of us." The AP addressed the issue of tear gas being used against peaceful protesters near the White House saying in part: "'They didn’t use tear gas,' Trump said on Wednesday on Fox News Radio. The US Park Police denied using tear gas, yet acknowledged deploying a pepper compound, which the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other scientific organizations list as one form of tear gas ... Law enforcement officials shy away from describing crowd-dispersing chemical tools as tear gas; it evokes police gassing citizens or the horrors of war. But giving those tools a more antiseptic name does not change the reality on the ground. Federal institutions such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the US Army Medical Research Institute of Chemical Defense have listed tear gas as the common term for riot-control agents. Whether the common or formal term is used, the effects on people are the same. [In Lafayette Square on Monday] authorities, who came from more than a half-dozen agencies besides the Park Police, set loose several wafting compounds, causing people to cough and gag as they scattered, their eyes red and streaming in some cases. They displayed the results of exposure to tear gas tears, for example. 'Tear gas is anything that makes you cry,' said Dr Lynn Goldman, dean of the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health, speaking of chemicals used in crowd dispersal. 'Pepper spray is a tear gas. But there are all kinds of other ones, too.'" According to a medical examiner's report, Manuel Ellis, a 33 year-old who died in police custody in March in Washington state, died as a result of respiratory arrest due to hypoxia and physical restraint. The death has been ruled a homicide. Ellis' last words were "I can't breathe". Sean Monterrosa, a resident of Vallejo, California, was shot by police while he was on his knees with his hands up. Police say an officer mistakenly believed Monterrosa had a gun, but later determined he had a hammer in his pocket. According to Reuters, an audit of thousands of old case files by Ukrainian prosecutors found no evidence of wrongdoing on the part of Hunter Biden. Ruslan Ryaboshapka, the former prosecutor general, said he "specifically asked prosecutors to check especially carefully those facts about Biden’s alleged involvement. They answered that there was nothing of the kind." The following statement was issued by House Republicans to commemorate the 31st anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre: "Today, we remember the scores of innocent demonstrators killed by the Chinese Gov’t 31 years ago at Tiananmen Square for speaking out against the totalitarian regime. We must hold the CCP accountable for suppressing freedom & for their malign activity that continues today." IN light of many Republican lawmakers advocating for the use of harsh policing and military deployment to quell ongoing demonstrations against police brutality, here are some select responses to the House Republican statement:
"Siri show me a comical lack of self-awareness" - Twitter user goldengateblond
"'When the students poured into Tiananmen Square, the Chinese government almost blew it. Then they were vicious, they were horrible, but they put it down with strength. That shows you the power of strength.'" - Mehdi Hasan posted this Donald Trump quote from a 1990 Playboy magazine interview.
"Yes, House Republicans, I remember Tiananmen--because I was there being shot at. I also remember that Donald Trump was one of the few who defended the massacre. And because I remember that slaughter, I call on you to oppose US troops in our own streets" - Nicholas Kristof
According to the Huffington Post: "Law enforcement agents have seized hundreds of cloth masks that read 'Stop killing Black people' and 'Defund police' that a Black Lives Matter-affiliated organization sent to cities around the country to protect demonstrators against the spread of Covid-19, a disease that has had a disparate impact on Black communities. The Movement for Black Lives (M4BL) spent tens of thousands of dollars on the masks they had planned to send all over the country." Twitter user ryanjreilly responded to the news tweeting: "[I]t appears they want to ensure that people who protest are susceptible to the same deadly pandemic that they have failed miserably at stopping." An ABC News/Ipsos poll shows that six in ten Americans disapprove of Trump's handling of the virus. Stephen T. Parshall, Andrew T. Lynam and William L. Loomis, were arrested on terrorism-related charges while driving to a George Floyd protest in downtown Las Vegas. The Nevada men, who have ties to the anti-government "boogaloo" movement, were in possession of Molotov cocktails and fireworks which they inteneded to strap to hairspray cans. According to the complaint, the three men had attended a May 29 Black Lives Matter protest, and were "very upset that the protests were not turning violent".
June 3, 2020 - Pope Francis weighed in on the killing of George Floyd and the world wide civil unrest it caused saying in part: "My friends, we cannot tolerate or turn a blind eye to racism and exclusion in any form and yet claim to defend the sacredness of every human life." During a phone interview, Trump made this claim regarding reports he had retreated to the White House bunker during protests: "It was a false report. I wasn’t down — I went down during the day and I was there for a tiny, little short period of time, and it was much more for an inspection ... I’ve gone down two or three times, all for inspection." Mark Esper, the defense secretary, was asked by NBC News about Trump's threat to invoke the Insurrection Act of 1807 to send military troops to states where George Floyd protests have intensified. Esper's response: "I say this not only as Secretary of Defense, but also as a former soldier, and a former member of the National Guard, the option to use active-duty forces in a law enforcement role should only be used as a matter of last resort, and only in the most urgent and dire of situations. We are not in one of those situations now. I do not support invoking the Insurrection Act." Esper also said that he "was not aware that a photo op was happening" when he accompanied Trump to St John's Church on Monday night, saying instead that he believed he was accompanying Trump to "see some damage and talk to the troops". Esper added: "I do everything I can to try stay apolitical and try and stay out of situations that may appear political and sometimes I’m successful with doing that, and sometimes I’m not as successful, but my aim is to keep the department out of politics, to stay apolitical." The city of Philadelphia removed a statue of former mayor Frank Rizzo, a man who opposed the desegregation of Philadelphia's schools, and oversaw a police force that often resorted to brutality against residents. Jim Kenney, the Democratic mayor, had the statue removed saying: "The continued display of the statue has understandably enraged and hurt many Philadelphians, including those protesting the heinous murders of George Floyd and too many others. I have seen and heard their anguish. This statue now no longer stands in front of a building that serves all Philadelphians. The statue is a deplorable monument to racism, bigotry, and police brutality for members of the Black community, the LGBTQ community, and many others. The treatment of these communities under Mr. Rizzo’s leadership was among the worst periods in Philadelphia’s history." According to MSNBC, officers who are enforcing a perimeter near the White House have removed all insignias and name plates that would identify them. Keith Ellison, the state's attorney general of Minnesota, has elevated the charge against Derek Chauvin, the man who knelt on George Floyd's neck for almost 9 minutes, to 2nd degree murder. The other three officers involved in Floyd's death - Tou Thao, J. Alexander Kueng and Thomas Lane - will be charged with aiding and abetting second-degree murder. Kayleigh McEnany held a White House briefing, here are some highlights:
- McEnany defended the forcible removal of peaceful protesters near the White House, and also claimed that no tear gas was used against the protesters. NOTE: The US Park Police confirmed that officers deployed pepper balls against the protesters, which the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention consider to be tear gas.
- McEnany praised Trump's visit to St John's Church, which she compared to Winston Churchill visiting bomb damage during World War II.
- When pressed further on why peaceful protesters were forcibly removed, McEnany said that attorney general William Barr "made the order" to expand the perimeter near the White House. When asked why this was done 30 minutes before the Washington curfew went into effect, McEnany dodged the question.
New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees raised eyebrows when he told an interviewer with Yahoo Finance regarding Colin Kaepernick: "I will never agree with anybody disrespecting the flag of the United States of America or our country." Michael Thomas, one of his teammates responded to Brees statement saying "He don't know no better." James Mattis, the former defense secretary under Donald Trump, released a statement regarding Trump's handling of the mass protests saying in part: "Instructions given by the military departments to our troops before the Normandy invasion reminded soldiers that The Nazi slogan for destroying us was 'Divide and Conquer.' Our American answer is 'In Union there is Strength.' We must summon that unity to surmount this crisis – confident that we are better than our politics. Donald Trump is the first president in my lifetime who does not try to unite the American people — does not even pretend to try. Instead, he tries to divide us. We are witnessing the consequences of three years of this deliberate effort. We are witnessing the consequences of three years without mature leadership ... When I joined the military, some 50 years ago, I swore an oath to support and defend the Constitution. Never did I dream that troops taking that same oath would be ordered under any circumstance to violate the Constitutional rights of their fellow citizens—much less to provide a bizarre photo op for the elected commander-in-chief, with military leadership standing alongside ... We must reject any thinking of our cities as a 'battlespace' that our uniformed military is called upon to 'dominate.' It erodes the moral ground that ensures a trusted bond between men and women in uniform and the society they are sworn to protect." Three men with ties to the boogaloo movement, a right-wing extremist movement, were arrested on terrorism related charges as they prepared to spark violence during protests in Las Vegas. According to the AP: "They were arrested Saturday on the way to a protest in downtown Las Vegas after filling gas cans at a parking lot and making Molotov cocktails in glass bottles, according to a copy of the criminal complaint obtained by The Associated Press. The complaint filed in U.S. District Court in Las Vegas on Wednesday said they self-identified as part of the 'boogaloo' movement, which U.S. prosecutors said in the document is 'a term used by extremists to signify coming civil war and/or fall of civilization.' Stephen T. Parshall, 35, Andrew T. Lynam Jr., 23, and William L. Loomis, 40, were being held on $1 million bond each in the Clark County jail Wednesday, according to court records. Each currently faces two federal charges — conspiracy to damage and destroy by fire and explosive, and possession of unregistered firearms — along with multiple terrorism-related state charges." The New York Times published an op-ed by Republican senator Tom Cotton titled "Send in the Troops". Sewell Chan, a former New York Times Op-Ed editor, and the current Los Angeles Times editorial page editor responded to the op-ed saying: "As a former @nytimes Op-Ed editor I am reluctant to weigh in on my alma mater. But the decision to publish @SenTomCotton calling for troop deployments to quell unrest falls short of sound journalistic practice." Trump responded to criticism from James Mattis tweeting: "Probably the only thing Barack Obama & I have in common is that we both had the honor of firing Jim Mattis, the world’s most overrated General. I asked for his letter of resignation, & felt great about it. His nickname was 'Chaos', which I didn’t like, & changed to 'Mad Dog' His primary strength was not military, but rather personal public relations. I gave him a new life, things to do, and battles to win, but he seldom 'brought home the bacon'. I didn’t like his 'leadership' style or much else about him, and many others agree. Glad he is gone!" NOTE: Trump did not fire James Mattis. Mattis resigned over Trump's attempt to withdraw US troops from Syria. Benny Plata, a member of a Texas city council, resigned after he caused an uproar over a social media post in which he messaged a George Floyd protester and said "Why don’t you leave America if it’s so bad". According to NBC, two police officers who assaulted two Australian journalists have been placed on administrative duty. Tea Katai, the wife of MLS winger Aleksandar Katai, who plays for LA Galaxy, has come under fire for posting messages to social media that appear to be a call to "kill" protesters, whom she also referred to as "disgusting cattle". The family of Lee Rigby, who was killed in a terrorist attack in Woolwich, southeast London, in May 2013, has issued a statement asking right-wing social media users to stop using the name of the late soldier in posts aimed at denigrating the Black Lives Matter movement. From the statement: "As a foundation and a family we are aware of a number of posts using images of Lee and his murder in a divisive way to fuel arguments against the Black Lives Matter protests. Lee proudly served his country to protect the rights and freedoms of all members of this great melting pot of a nation. Seeing his image used to cause hate of any kind especially for those exercising their freedoms in protest against this issue hurts. We find these post extremely heartbreaking and distressing, and in complete opposition to what Lee stood for. We ask you all to please stop using his image and memory in such posts as he was a lover of all humanity."
June 2, 2020 - During an interview on ABC's Good Morning America, Mariann Budde, the Bishop of Washington, was asked if Trump would be welcome at St Johns after what happened yesterday. Budde's response: "He is welcome to pray. Presidents are welcome as citizens of our country, to pray, to kneel before God in humility. He is not entitled to use the symbolism to promote an entirely different message. The outrage we are hearing from so many of ... the nation’s young people and people of color, we need to align ourselves with the God of unconditional love and justice." Anderson Cooper, a CNN host, noted that protests against police brutality and the killings of African American men and women are specifically asking for law and order, and that "the president seems to think dominating black people, dominating peaceful protesters, is law and order. It’s not." Following Trump's photo op stunt in which peaceful protesters were gassed so that he could stand in front of a church holding a bible, the prospect of just how religious Trump is began to surface on social media, and in many cases accompanied by this conversation that took place in 2016 between Donald Trump, Mark Halperin and John Heilemann, for Bloomberg Politics:
Halperin: I’m wondering what one or two of your most favorite Bible verses are and why.
Trump: I wouldn’t want to get into it, because to me that’s very personal. You know, when I talk about the Bible it’s very personal so I don’t want to get into verses.
Halperin: There’s no verses that you think about or want to cite?
Trump: The Bible means a lot to me but I don’t want to get into specifics.
Halperin: Even to cite a verse?
Trump: No, I don’t want to do that.
Heilemann: Are you an Old Testament guy or a New Testament guy?
Trump: Probably equal. I think it’s just incredible, the whole Bible is incredible. I always joke, I say very much so, I hold up The Art of the Deal, I say my second-favourite book of all time. But I just think the Bible is something very special.
Trump sent the following in a tweet today: "D.C. had no problems last night. Many arrests. Great job done by all. Overwhelming force. Domination. Likewise, Minneapolis was great (thank you President Trump!)." Another notable response to Trump's photo op after gassing peaceful protesters:
"There is no right to riot. But there is a fundamental — a Constitutional — right to protest, and I’m against clearing out a peaceful protest for a photo op that treats the Word of God as a political prop." - Ben Sasse, Republican Senator
Trump traveled from the White House to Saint John Paul II National Shrine today, a site that is run by the Knights of Columbus, where he used the location as a photo backdrop. Wilton Gregory, the Archbishop responded to this photo op saying: "I find it baffling and reprehensible that any Catholic facility would allow itself to be so egregiously misused and manipulated in a fashion that violates our religious principles, which call us to defend the rights of all people even those with whom we might disagree." Senate Democrats have drawn up a resolution that criticizes Trump, and affirms the constitutional right to peaceably assemble. Here's the resolution in full:
Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives concurring), That it is the Sense of Congress that the constitutional rights of Americans to peaceably assemble, exercise freedom of speech, and petition the government for redress of grievances must be respected; that violence and looting are unlawful, unacceptable and contrary to the purpose of peaceful protests; and that Congress condemns the President of the United States for ordering Federal officers to use gas and rubber bullets against the Americans who were peaceably protesting in Lafayette Square in Washington, DC on the night of June 1, 2020, thereby violating the constitutional rights of those peaceful protesters.
Democrats will try to pass the resolution by unanimous consent, but the measure is expected to be blocked by Republicans. According to the Washington Post, attorney general William Barr made the order to extend the perimeter around the White House, which led to the gassing of peaceful protesters. Timothy J Aveni, a facebook software engineer, has resigned from facebook regarding Mark Zuckerberg's decision to allow Trump to use the platform to threaten violence against protesters. According to Aveni: "Mark always told us that he would draw the line at speech that calls for violence. He showed us on Friday that this was a lie." Aveni went to say that "Facebook, complicit in the propagation of weaponized hatred, is on the wrong side of history. Facebook is providing a platform that enables politicians to radicalize individuals and glorify violence, and we are watching the United States succumb to the same kind of social media-fueled division that has gotten people killed in the Philippines, Myanmar, and Sri Lanka. I’m scared for my country and I’m done trying to justify this." Mitch McConnell, the Senate majority leader, was asked if he could comment on the forcible removal of peaceful protesters from in front of the White House. McConnell's response: "I’m not going to critique other people’s performances." Roy Cooper, the Republican governor of North Carolina, sent a letter to RNC officials regarding the Republican National Convention saying "The people of North Carolina do not know what the status of COVID-19 will be in August, so planning for a scaled-down convention with fewer people, social distancing and face coverings is a necessity." This is expected to enrage Trump who, despite warnings from health officials, wants a full-scale convention, and has threatened to move the convention elsewhere if he can't get that. Gregory T Monahan, the acting Chief of the US Park Police, denied that tear gas on protesters near the White House yesterday. In a statement, Monahan said: "As many of the protesters became more combative, continued to throw projectiles, and attempted to grab officers’ weapons, officers then employed the use of smoke canisters and pepper balls. No tear gas was used by USPP officers or other assisting law enforcement partners to close the area at Lafayette Park. Subsequently, the fence was installed." This statement directly conflicts with the accounts of numerous journalists who were present at the time, who say the demonstrations appeared to be very peaceful leading up to the actions by the police. Vera Jourova, the European Union's executive branch's vice president, released a statement regarding Twitter's decision to hide one of Trump's tweets with a warning over its glorification of violence. The statement reads in part: "I support Twitter in their efforts to develop and implement a transparent, clear and consistent moderation policy. This is not about censorship. This is about flagging verifiably false or misleading information that may cause public harm, linking to reliable information, or flagging content violating their policies. The role of public authorities is not to interfere with content policies of private companies but to ensure that fundamental rights are protected online as well as offline – rights such as freedom of expression and information, non-discrimination, right to security. These rights protect all citizens, not only those in power. As politicians, we have to be held to account, and answer to criticism with facts, not with threats and attacks." Trump sent the following tweet: "NYC, CALL UP THE NATIONAL GUARD. The lowlifes and losers are ripping you apart. Act fast! Don’t make the same horrible and deadly mistake you made with the Nursing Homes!!!" Trump also sent this tweet: "Sleepy Joe has been in politics for 40 years, and did nothing. Now he pretends to have the answers. He doesn’t even know the questions. Weakness will never beat anarchists, looters or thugs, and Joe has been politically weak all of his life. LAW & ORDER!" The US Press Freedom Tracker reported the latest tally of press freedom violations that have occurred since the beginning of the demonstrations against police brutality:
*211 total press freedom violations*
• 33+ arrests
• 143 assaults (118 by police, 25 by others)
• 35 equipment/newsroom damage
Assault category breakdown:
• 49 physical attacks (31 by cops)
• 35 tear gassings
• 21 pepper sprayings
• 50 rubber bullet/projectiles
News surfaced that Minneapolis public schools are terminating their contract with the city's police department following the death of George Floyd. Nelson Inz, one of the school board members, told the press: "We cannot continue to be in partnership with an organization that has the culture of violence and racism that the Minneapolis police department has historically demonstrated. We have to stand in solidarity with our black students." James Miller, a former undersecretary of defense, resigned from the Defense Science Board because of the use of force against peaceful protesters for a presidential photo op. Miller's resignation letter to Secretary of Defense Mark Esper reads in part: "When I joined the Board in early 2014, after leaving government service as Under Secretary of Defense for Policy, I again swore an oath of office, one familiar to you, that includes the commitment to 'support and defend the Constitution of the United States . . . and to bear true faith and allegiance to the same.' You recited that same oath on July 23, 2019, when you were sworn in as Secretary of Defense. On Monday, June 1, 2020, I believe that you violated that oath. Law-abiding protesters just outside the White House were dispersed using tear gas and rubber bullets — not for the sake of safety, but to clear a path for a presidential photo op. You then accompanied President Trump in walking from the White House to St. John’s Episcopal Church for that photo. President Trump’s actions Monday night violated his oath to 'take care that the laws be faithfully executed,' as well as the First Amendment 'right of the people peaceably to assemble.' You may not have been able to stop President Trump from directing this appalling use of force, but you could have chosen to oppose it. Instead, you visibly supported it." Mike Mullen, a former chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, published an op-ed in the Atlantic, condemning the use of force against peaceful protesters for a photo op saying in part: "It sickened me yesterday to see security personnel—including members of the National Guard—forcibly and violently clear a path through Lafayette Square to accommodate the president’s visit outside St. John’s Church. I have to date been reticent to speak out on issues surrounding President Trump’s leadership, but we are at an inflection point, and the events of the past few weeks have made it impossible to remain silent. Whatever Trump’s goal in conducting his visit, he laid bare his disdain for the rights of peaceful protest in this country, gave succor to the leaders of other countries who take comfort in our domestic strife, and risked further politicizing the men and women of our armed forces. There was little good in the stunt. While no one should ever condone the violence, vandalism, and looting that has exploded across our city streets, neither should anyone lose sight of the larger and deeper concerns about institutional racism that have ignited this rage." According to the Nation: "The FBI’s Washington Field Office 'has no intelligence indicating Antifa involvement/presence' in the violence that occurred on May 31 during the D.C.-area protests over the murder of George Floyd, according to an internal FBI situation report obtained exclusively by The Nation. That same day, President Donald Trump announced on Twitter that he would designate 'Antifa' a terrorist organization, even though the government has no existing authority to declare a domestic group a terrorist organization, and Antifa is not an organized group. Following the president’s tweet, Attorney General William Barr said in a statement, 'The violence instigated and carried out by Antifa and other similar groups in connection with the rioting is domestic terrorism and will be treated accordingly.' The FBI report, however, states that 'based on CHS [Confidential Human Source] canvassing, open source/social media partner engagement, and liaison, FBI WFO has no intelligence indicating Antifa involvement/presence.' ... The report did warn that individuals from a far-right social media group had 'called for far-right provocateurs to attack federal agents, use automatic weapons against protesters.'" Steve King, the Republican congressman from Iowa, with a history of racist rhetoric, was defeated in the state primary by state senator Randy Feenstra. The District of Columbia National Guard is investigating the use of a helicopter that flew over protesters yesterday saying in a statement: "DCNG is conducting an investigation into the June 1 low-flying maneuvers by its helicopters to ensure all involved complied with applicable procedures and safety regulations." Derrick Johnson, the president of the NAACP, wrote an op-ed in the Guardian, which reads in part: "The expendability of Black lives is not a flaw in the system; it is the system. We are meant to die or, at the very least, we are not meant to be protected, to be respected, to be valued, to be considered fully human. That is how racism works, and it has operated efficiently throughout American history. It is no accident that we disproportionately work in the lowest paying jobs, and live in communities where the water is unsafe to drink and the air unfit to breathe, where polluters ply their trades, where schools are starved of resources, where green space or even a grocery store can be hard to find. All of this has led us to a new statistic on dying: we are 3.5 times more likely to die of Covid-19 than white people. Although Black people are only 13% of the population, we constitute about twice that percentage of US coronavirus cases. This is not because the coronavirus seeks us by color; it is because we suffer from an underlying condition."
June 1, 2020 - According to the New York Times, Trump was taken to the secure White House bunker on May 29th, as protests raged outside the White House. As the news became known, the hashtag "#bunkerboy" began trending on twitter. Some notable responses to news of Trump's retreat to the bunker:
"President of the United States cowering in fear of delivering a national address while instead issuing deranged tweets from his underground bunker somehow persuades himself that the world is laughing at someone else." - Greg Sargent, Author of Plum Line Blog for the Washington Post
"Trump hiding out in a bunker Friday, and shutting off the lights at the White House Sunday – both over a few hundred protesters – will be forever remembered as defining moments of his presidency when he was revealed as a coward, not the strongman he advertised." - Amy Siskind, Activist and Author
"Trump is not leader. He KNOWS it in his bones. He is a coward. Turning off the lights, pretending no one is home while hiding in a bunker. There is no better metaphor for his, and his entire administration’s failures. The election is in seven months. VOTE. HIM. OUT." - Colin Hanks, son of actor Tom Hanks
LaTosha Brown, a civil rights activist and co-founder of Black Voters Matter, offered this critique of Trump during this moment in American history: "If it would take the destruction of the country for him to protect his position, he is willing to do that. He has shown that he is willing to kill every single thing in this country, including its people, if it protects him. He’s willing to kill democracy. He is willing to kill any sense of real respect or trust in his government. He is willing to kill America’s international and global relationships. He is a destroyer." Nathan Robinson, a columnist for the Guardian, offered this critique of how the police are handling the George Floyd protests: "Around the US over the last few days, following the murder of George Floyd, there have been widespread protests against police brutality. But in city after city, law enforcement agencies seem determined to prove the protesters right, by responding with a hefty dose of police brutality. There is no shortage of examples of police using excessive force against protesters. In New York, officers who had intentionally covered their badge numbers 'pulled down the mask of a peaceful protester, who had his hands up, and pepper-sprayed him in the face'. In Salt Lake City, an older man with a cane was shoved to the ground. In Austin, police shot a pregnant woman in the stomach with a 'non-lethal' round. There were scenes reminiscent of the infamously brutal suppression of demonstrators at the 1968 Chicago Democratic convention. As Reason concluded, officers around the country acted with 'total disregard for protesters’ safety or rights' ... Of course, it’s the protesters who are called violent, even when the overwhelming majority do nothing but march and chant – though they do refuse to back down, and challenging authority can be a capital crime in a police state. There have certainly been plenty of instances of vandalism and theft accompanying demonstrations, but it’s important to make a clear distinction between acts of property destruction and actual violence. Setting a police car on fire is very costly to taxpayers, but harm to human bodies should be far more disturbing." Kayleigh McEnany, the White House press secretary, was asked during a Fox News interview if Trump was going to deliver a national address about the George Floyd protests, McEnany's response: "A national Oval Office address is not going to stop antifa. What’s going to stop antifa is action." Note: There is no evidence that the protests are being driven by anti-facists a.k.a antifa. During a video conference with the nation's governors, Trump told the governors that many of them are "weak" and that they need to take more severe action against the demonstrators and "dominate" them. According to Trump: "You have to dominate. If you don’t dominate, you’re wasting your time. They’re going to run over you. You’re going to look like a bunch of jerks." Trump also encouraged the governors to enact laws against flag burning. Trump announced that the June G7 summit would be canceled and that he planned to host an expanded meeting in September. He also expressed interest in inviting Vladimir Putin of Russia, which was ousted from the group over its annexation of Crimea. Philonise Floyd, George Floyd's brother, called on demonstrators across the country to remain peaceful saying "My family is a peaceful family." Ed Markey, a Democratic Senator from Massachusetts, sent the following tweet: "Donald trump is scum for fueling racist hate and violence in our country." Kayleigh McEnany, the White House press secretary, held a press briefing, here are some highlights:
- McEnany reacted to criticism of Trump's "dominate" comment by saying that his words had been taken "out of context". McEnany further explained that "What the president has said is he wants to dominate the streets with National Guard, with a police presence."
- McEnany reacted to criticism that Trump has been relatively quiet about the George Floyd protests saying "I was on the phone with the president at least half a dozen times yesterday, and every time he was telling me about a different action he had taken ... Make no mistake, this president has not been silent. At this moment he is acting to protect this country from the lawlessness we saw just out here in Lafayette Park last night."
- McEnany claimed Trump has a "long history of condemning white supremacy and racism." McEnany did not cite any examples.
- McEnany ended her briefing by playing some video clips of instances where protesters and law enforcement officers embraced saying "Those images have not been played all that often" despite the fact that these videos were taken directly from new broadcasts. What McEnany didn't show were any of the viral videos of police brutally beating protesers, or in one viral video, driving a police cruiser into a crowd, injuring dozens.
Boris Johnson, the British Prime Minister, and Justin Trudeau, the Canadian Prime Minister, both expressed opposition to allowing Vladimir Putin, the Russian President, to rejoin the G7. The pathologist who performed an autopsy on George Floyd "found the manner of Mr Floyd’s death was homicide caused by asphyxia due to neck and back compression that led to a lack of blood flow to the brain ... and impeded his ability to breathe." During an interview with CNN, Art Acevedo, the Houston Police Chief, delivered this message to Donald Trump: "Let me just say this to the President of the United States, on behalf of the police chiefs of this country: please, if you don’t have something constructive to say, keep your mouth shut." According to CNN, an active duty military battalion is deploying from Fort Bragg North Carolina to Washington DC. According to defense officials, the troops mission is security, not law enforcement. Anthony Fauci, the government's top public health expert and covid-19 task force member, was asked whether he still regularly speaks to Trump about the pandemic and vaccine work, Fauci's response: "No ... As you probably noticed, that the task force meetings have not occurred as often lately. And certainly my meetings with the president have been dramatically decreased." Fauci also stated that his last interaction with Trump was May 18 during a teleconference with the nation's governors. Trump held a news conference in the Rose Garden, here are some highlights:
- Trump placed the blame for the protests on "professional anarchists" and "antifa".
- Trump stated "I have strongly recommended to every governor to deploy the National Guard in sufficient numbers that we dominate the streets. Mayors and governors must establish an overwhelming law enforcement presence until the violence has been quelled. If a city or state refuses to take the actions that are necessary to defend the life and property of their residents, then I will deploy the United States military and quickly solve the problem for them."
While Trump was speaking in the Rose Garden, police began using teargas, flash-bangs and rubber bullets to disperse crowds of peaceful protesters near the White House. A 7 pm curfew had been put into place, but this move by police began to occur prior to 7 pm. After the crowd was cleared, Trump, escorted by police in riot gear, walked from the White House to St John's Episcopal church, where he stood out front and posed for photos while holding up a bible. Trump also declared: "I am your president of law and order. I am mobilising all available federal resources, civilian and military, to stop the rioting and looting, to end the destruction and arson and to protect the rights of law-abiding Americans, including your second amendment rights." Mariann Budde, the Episcopal bishop of DC, responded to Trump's photo op saying she is "outraged" and that neither she nor the rector was asked or told "that they would be clearing with tear gas so they could use one of our churches as a prop ... holding a bible, one that declares that God is love and when everything he has said and done is to inflame violence. I am beyond. We need moral leadership and he’s done everything to divide us and has just used one of the most sacred symbols of the Judeo-Christian tradition. We so disassociate ourselves from the messages of this president. We hold the teachings of our sacred texts to be so so grounding to our lives and everything we do and it is about love of neighbor and sacrificial love and justice." Later, Budde appeared on PBS. Here are some highlights from that interview:
Judy Woodruff: The White House view on this, Bishop Budde, has been that what happened at the church the night before, the fire being set there, was unacceptable, and the president wanted to make a statement about that.
Bishop Budde: Well, he made no statement, Judy. And he didn't come to pray. He didn't come to offer his condolences to the grieving families that are struggling with the weight of loss in this country. He didn't offer hope or consolation to the nation in search of it. And he said nothing to the officials there about the fire. It was a — there was no conversation whatsoever. It was just simply a symbolic gesture on his part. And I have to say that even — we are upset about the fire as well, but that is not our primary focus. Our primary focus is the reason behind — the fundamental reasons behind the protests in our country right now.
Judy Woodruff: I see today that the president's counselor, Kellyanne Conway, is saying for people to question what the president did, to call it a photo-op or a photo opportunity is to question his faith. Is that what you're doing? Are you questioning the president's faith?
Bishop Budde: No, I'm challenging his actions. And I am saying to him and to all who will listen that the Gospel of Jesus and the teachings of the Scripture are antithetical to the messages that he is communicating and the way he is responding to people in this moment, and that there is no spiritual mantle of authority for the actions that he had just moments before said that he would take.
Here are some notable reactions to Trump's photo op which was made possible by teargassing peaceful protesters:
"Tear gas fired at young people protesting for a better world to clear the way for a monster to wave a bible in front of a church, with his little band of morally bankrupt enablers at his side. What a shameful moment for this country." - Jon Lovett, Former Presidential Speechwriter
"We are living in a police state." - Bobby Rush, Illinois Congressman and Civil Rights Era Leader
In Washington DC, Blackhawk helicopters performed low flying "show of force" maneuvers over protesters. One such instance snapped a tree that nearly hit demonstrators. Richard Wolffe, a Guardian columnist, declared that "we've reached the 'mad emperor' stage and it's terrifying to behold". Wolffe went on to say: "In the week since George Floyd was killed by Minneapolis police officers, Trump has watched and tweeted helplessly as the nation he pretends to lead has reached its breaking point. After decades of supposedly legal police beatings and murders, the protests have swept America’s cities more quickly than even coronavirus. This is no coincidence of timing. In other crises, in other eras, there have been presidents who understood their most basic duty: to calm the violence and protect the people. In this crisis, however, we have a president who built his entire political career as a gold-painted tower to incite violence ... Trump can no more end today’s violence than he can manage a pandemic that has killed more than 100,000 Americans, or create the jobs that will rescue more than 40 million unemployed. Faced with a three-fold crisis of racial, health and economic disasters, we have a three-year-old in the Oval Office." Michel Moore, the chief of police of Los Angeles, declared regarding the protesters "His death is on their hands, as much as it is on those officers. And that is a strong statement". Following and outcry, Moore released a statement apologizing for his remarks saying: "My Apology for Remark Regarding the Death of George Floyd During a Press Conference Earlier Today: I misspoke when making a statement about those engaging in violent acts following the murder of George Floyd. While I did immediately correct myself, I recognize that my initial words were terribly offensive. Looting is wrong, but it is not the equivalent of murder and I did not mean to equate the two. I deeply regret and humbly apologize for my characterization." News surfaced that large protests in support of George Floyd have broken out throughout the world. Lt Bob Kroll, the president of the Minneapolis police union, wrote a letter to the members of the union that called George Floyd a "violent criminal", and described those protesting his death as terrorists, and criticized the city's political leadership for not authorizing greater use of force to stop the "rioting". In 2007, Kroll called then congressman and now Minnesota attorney general, Keith Ellison - who is Muslim and black - a terrorist because he pushed for police reform. Janee Harteau, the former Minneapolis police chief, responded to Kroll's letter with the following tweet: "A disgrace to the badge! This is the battle that myself and others have been fighting against. Bob Kroll turn in your badge!"
May 30, 2020 - Trump sent the following tweets about protesters outside the White House yesterday: "Great job last night at the White House by the U.S. @SecretService. They were not only totally professional, but very cool. I was inside, watched every move, and couldn’t have felt more safe. They let the “protesters” scream & rant as much as they wanted, but whenever someone got too frisky or out of line, they would quickly come down on them, hard - didn’t know what hit them. The front line was replaced with fresh agents, like magic. Big crowd, professionally organized, but nobody came close to breaching the fence. If they had they would have been greeted with the most vicious dogs, and most ominous weapons, I have ever seen. That’s when people would have been really badly hurt, at least. Many Secret Service agents just waiting for action. 'We put the young ones on the front line, sir, they love it' ..." Reaction to Trump's tweet was swift:
"To make a reference to vicious dogs is no subtle reminder to African Americans of segregationists who let dogs out on women, children and innocent people in the south. There are no vicious dogs & ominous weapons. There is just a scared man. Afraid/alone." - Muriel Bowser, Mayor of Washington DC
Trump spoke to Philonise Floyd, George Floyd's brother. Floyd described the conversation saying "He didn’t give me an opportunity to even speak." Trump lashed out at the protests saying "The memory of George Floyd is being dishonored by rioters, looters and anarchists. The violence and vandalism is being led by Antifa and other radical leftwing groups who are terrorizing the innocent, destroying jobs, hurting businesses and burning down victims." Trump offered no evidence for his claims.
May 29, 2020 - Dan Scavino Jr. Trump's social media director, sent the following tweet in response to twitter's action against Trump's "looting starts, shooting starts" tweet from yesterday: "Twitter is targeting the President of the United States 24/7, while turning their heads to protest organizers who are planning, plotting, and communicating their next moves daily on this very platform. Twitter is full of shit - more and more people are beginning to get it." The official White House twitter account re-tweeted Trump's "looting starts, shooting starts" tweet. Twitter applied the same label to the retweet as they had applied to Trump's original tweet. Some notable reactions to Trump's threatening tweet:
"I will not lift the President’s tweet. I will not give him that amplification. But he is calling for violence against American citizens during a moment of pain for so many. I’m furious, and you should be too." - Joe Biden, Former Vice President and 2020 Democratic Nominee for President
"After stoking the fires of white supremacy and racism your entire presidency, you have the nerve to feign moral superiority before threatening violence? ‘When the looting starts the shooting starts’??? We will vote you out in November." - Taylor Swift, Entertainer
"At a time when the nation needs unifying more than ever: President Trump is pouring gasoline on the flames by quoting a racist police chief. Shame on him." - Chuck Schumer, Senate minority leader
Former president Barack Obama released a statement regarding the death of George Floyd saying in part "This shouldn't be 'normal' in 2020 America. It can't be 'normal.' If we want our children to grow up in a nation that lives up to its highest ideal, we can and must do better." Ben Crump and Lee Merritt, two leading civil rights attorneys have called on the US Congress and the United Nations to become involved in the killings of black Americans. According to Crump and Merritt: Breonna Taylor, an EMT, was recently killed for "sleeping while black in the sanctity of her own apartment"; Ahmaud Arbery was recently killed for "jogging while black"; and George Floyd was killed "trying to breathe while black". News surfaced that Derek Chauvin, the Minneapolis police officer who knelt on George Floyds neck for nearly 9 minutes, was arrested and charged with third-degree murder and manslaughter. Trump held a press conference today, where he announced that the US will be "terminating" its relationship with the World Health Organization, while falsely claiming that "China has total control" over the global body, and by also claiming the WHO had failed to make the "major substantive improvements" the US had demanded they do on May 19th. That demand gave the WHO 30 days to comply, but only 10 days has elapsed since then, leading critics to suggest that the original demands for reforms was simply a smokescreen for a politically motivated break from the WHO. Trump then left the presser without taking any questions, despite racial unrest breaking out across the country. Congressman Bobby L Rush responded to Trump's hasty departure from the presser saying "It’s because he doesn’t have any answers. He has objectively failed as a leader. The American people deserve so much better." Here are some notable responses to Trump's press conference and announcement:
"There aren’t words for how much this decision will hurt the US, our global partners, and our ability to to impact the #COVID19 pandemic that is a threat to our national and global peace and security." - Beth Cameron, Biologist and Former Senior Official in the National Security Council
"Unbelievably bad decision that will hurt USA
1 It distracts, weakens @WHO during a pandemic when many countries depend on them
2 Harms American credibility for the long term
3 Weakens global solidarity to fight virus
4 Gives opening to others to show global leadership" - Ashish K. Jha, Physician, Researcher
"President Trump’s Rose Garden event just now was pathetic. It perfectly encapsulates his inability to lead when our nation needs it most. The only question is whether President Trump is afraid to lead or just doesn’t know how. America is reeling from 100,000 deaths and rising. 40 million have filed for unemployment. Our communities are hurting from senseless murders and years of racism and injustice. But President Trump is only interested in scapegoating and divisiveness when he should be leading." - Chuck Schumer, Senate Minority Leader
Leslie Redmond, the president of the NAACP Minneapolis, addressed a large crowd at a Black Lives Matter rally in Minneapolis, where she said in part: "I cannot tell you how many governors and how many mayors we have sat down with and warned them that Minneapolis was going to burn. We stopped it from burning so many times ... Trump, you have not sent resources to Minnesota [to assist in tackling the coronavirus crisis] but you were quick to send in troops. This is not just a black people’s issue, this is a human right issue." Brad Parscale, Trump's campaign manager, accused the media and Democrats of "twisting" Trump's words regarding his "looting starts shooting starts" tweet saying in part: "The facts show that the President expressed horror over the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis and ordered the Department of Justice to get involved. When riots erupted in that city and elsewhere, he warned on Twitter that looting could quickly turn into violence." Critics were quick to point out that Trump's comment directly quoted Walter Headly, the former racist Miami police chief, who ordered patrols of black neighborhoods with dogs and shotguns, and who had said that his officers "know what to do" when unrest broke out in black neighborhoods during the 1968 Republican National Convention. Headley specifically told his officers "when the looting starts, the shooting starts", which was understood to be a directive, not a warning. Trump was asked at a White House event how he could know the phrase "when the looting starts, the shooting starts" but not know its racially charged history. Trump responded with: "Well I’ve heard that phrase for a long time. I don’t know where it came from or where it originated ... I’ve heard it for a long time as most people have ... and frankly it means when there’s looting people get shot and they die. And if you look at what happened last night and the night before, you’ll see that it’s very common and that’s the way that was meant ... It’s very accurate in the sense that when you do have looting like last night people often get shot and that’s not good and we don’t want that to happen." Kellie Chauvin, the wife of police officer Derek Chauvin, announced that she is devastated by the death of George Floyd, and is divorcing her husband. According to the AP, the Pentagon is ordering the Army to put several active-duty military police units on the ready to deploy to Minneapolis amid the ongoing large scale protests.
May 28, 2020 - According to the Guardian, more than 40 million Americans have lost their jobs in the past 10 weeks. According to the Washington Post, the White House is not planning to release economic projections this summer. According to the story: "The White House is supposed to unveil a federal budget proposal every February and then typically provides a ‘mid-session review’ in July or August with updated projections on economic trends such as unemployment, inflation and economic growth. Budget experts said they were not aware of any previous White House opting against providing forecasts in this ‘mid-session review’ document in any other year since at least the 1970s. ... The document would be slated for publication just a few months before the November elections." Trump sent the following tweet: "All over the World the CoronaVirus, a very bad ‘gift’ from China, marches on. Not good!" Kayleigh McEnany held a press briefing today, here are some highlights:
- McEnany criticized twitter for fact checking two of Trump's tweets about vote by mail saying the social media platform is "very hastily eager to censor President Trump and his employees." Note: Twitter did not remove the tweet, they only attached a label that linked to additional context which debunks the president's false claims.
- McEnany was asked why Trump and his advisers do not think he should be fact-checked, when he has often shared false or misleading information over twitter. McEnany insisted that it is the "media" that should be fact-checked. Note: The Washington Post has documented more than 18,000 false or misleading claims made by Donald Trump since taking office.
Trump signed an executive order that he claims will modify Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, which grants liability protections to social media companies. Note: Experts say that Section 230 can only be amended by Congress, which could make Trump's executive order vulnerable to legal challenges. Trump has called the effort by Twitter to fact-check his tweets "political activism." Trump's critics have pointed out that Trump's executive order is simply a distraction from the fact that over 100,000 US citizens have died from coronavirus. The US Chamber of Commerce issued a statement in response to Trump's executive order saying "We believe that free speech and the right to engage in commerce are foundational to the American free enterprise system. Regardless of the circumstances that led up to this, this is not how public policy is made in the United States. An executive order cannot be properly used to change federal law." Trump followed up the signing of his executive order by once again complaining about mass vote by mail saying it would turn US elections into a "total joke" because "there's such fraud and abuse". Note: Voter fraud is extremely rare. Trump repeated a false claim he's made before saying that "Anybody in California that's breathing gets a ballot." When it was pointed out by a reporter that only registered voters would be mailed ballots, Trump responded: "Oh really? So when he sends out 28 million ballots and they’re in all the mailboxes and kids go and they raid the mailboxes and they hand them to people that are signing the ballots ... you don’t think that happens?" Note: There is no evidence that Trump's scenario has ever, or will ever, happen. Large protests over the death of George Floyd have continued in Minneapolis, and are breaking out across the country. The crowds can be heard chanting "No justice! No peace!" The 3rd precinct police station in Minneapolis was breached by protesters and set on fire. Minnesota Governor Tim Walz signed an executive order to call on the Minnesota national guard to help restore order. The Trump administration is finalizing rules that will allow hunters in Alaska's national preserves to shoot bears and wolves, and their cubs and pups, while they are in their dens. These rules will reverse regulations written by the Obama administration. Jesse Prentice-Dunn, policy director for the Center for Western Priorities, responded to the rule change calling it "amazingly cruel" and "the latest in a string of efforts to reduce protections for America’s wildlife at the behest of oil companies and trophy hunters." Michelle Bachelet, the UN high commissioner for human rights, condemned the killing of George Floyd saying in part: "This is the latest in a long line of killings of unarmed African Americans by US police officers and members of the public. I am dismayed to have to add George Floyd’s name to that of Breonna Taylor, Eric Garner, Michael Brown and many other unarmed African Americans who have died over the years at the hands of the police -- as well as people such as Ahmaud Arbery and Trayvon Martin who were killed by armed members of the public." Donald Trump reacted to the protests in Minneapolis by tweeting: "I can’t stand back & watch this happen to a great American City, Minneapolis. A total lack of leadership. Either the very weak Radical Left Mayor, Jacob Frey, get his act together and bring the City under control, or I will send in the National Guard & get the job done right. These THUGS are dishonoring the memory of George Floyd, and I won’t let that happen. Just spoke to Governor Tim Walz and told him that the Military is with him all the way. Any difficulty and we will assume control but, when the looting starts, the shooting starts. Thank you!" Twitter put a warning message on this tweet by Trump saying it violates their policies "regarding the glorification of violence based on the historical context of the last line". The historical context twitter is referring to is that the phrase "when the looting starts, the shooting starts" is an unattributed quote of Walter Headley, Miami's police chief in 1967. It was a threat to citizens who were upset that police had terrorized a black teenager by holding him over a bridge. Jacob Frey, the mayor of Minneapolis, responded to Trump's tweet saying "Well, let me say this, weakness is refusing to take responsibility for your own actions. Weakness is Pointing your finger at someone else during a time of crisis. Donald Trump knows nothing about the strength of Minneapolis. We are strong as hell. Is this a difficult time period, yes, but you had better be damn sure we’re going to get through this." Hal Marx, the mayor of Petal, Mississippi, tweeted: "If you can say you can’t breathe, you’re breathing. Most likely that man died of overdose or heart attack. Video doesn’t show his resistance that got him in that position. Police being crucified." The town's board of alderman called for Marx to resign, Marx refused. His twitter account has since been deleted.
May 27, 2020 - Deaths in the US from coronavirus now exceeds 100,000. Tom Perez, the DNC Chair, responded to the milestone by saying "100,000 Americans have lost their lives. 100,000. It didn’t have to be this way. Instead of addressing this crisis, Trump spent his weekend golfing. And just last week, he said the fact that the U.S. has the highest number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in the world is a ‘badge of honor.’ But there is no honor in today’s numbers. They are a badge of shame that Trump will wear for the rest of his dwindling days in the Oval Office." Trump sent the following tweet: "Psycho Joe Scarborough is rattled, not only by his bad ratings but all of the things and facts that are coming out on the internet about opening a Cold Case. He knows what is happening!" Mitt Romney tweeted the following response to Trump's tweet: "I know Joe Scarborough. Joe is a friend of mine. I don't know T.J. Klausutis. Joe can weather vile, baseless accusations but T.J.? His heart is breaking. Enough already." Dr. Anthony Fauci was interviewed on CNN, here are some highlights:
- Fauci talked about why he wears a mask in public saying: "I want to protect myself and protect others, and also I want to make it be a symbol for people to see that that’s the kind of thing you should be doing ... You wear a mask; they wear a mask; you protect each other".
- Fauci addressed hydroxychloroquine as a treatment for covid-19 saying "I’m not so sure that it should be banned, but clearly the scientific data is really quite evident now about the lack of efficacy for it."
Bridget Floyd, the sister of George Floyd, has called for the police involved in her brother's death to be charged with murder. According to the Tampa Bay Times, Kayleigh McEnany, the White House press secretary, who regularly criticizes efforts to expand vote by mail, regularly votes by mail. From the story: "In fact, the Tampa native has voted by mail in every Florida election she has participated in since 2010, according to a Tampa Bay Times review of her voting history. Most recently, she voted by mail in the state’s March 2020 presidential primary, just as Trump did after he made Florida his new permanent home. Last week, McEnany, 32, said vote-by-mail was OK for Trump because ‘the president is, after all, the president, which means he’s here in Washington. He’s unable to cast his vote down in Florida, his state of residence.’ Meanwhile, McEnany, a graduate of South Tampa’s Academy of the Holy Names and a Davis Islands homeowner, has voted by mail 11 times over the last 10 years." Donald Trump, upset that some fo his tweets have warning labels attached to them because of their dishonesty, is threatening to "strongly regulate" or close down social media platforms that do not meet his standards for ideological balance. Trump tweeted that "Republicans feel that Social Media Platforms totally silence conservatives voices. We will strongly regulate, or close them down, before we can ever allow this to happen." According to the health ministry in France, that country has banned the use of hydroxychloroquine to cure covid-19.
May 26, 2020 - Trump re-tweeted an image of Joe Biden wearing a mask, that also included the following text: "This might help explain why Trump doesn’t like to wear a mask in public." Jonah Goldberg, editor of The Dispatch, wrote the following to explain Kayleigh McEnany, Trump's fourth press secretary, who is very combative during press briefings: "What Donald Trump wants in a press secretary is a Twitter troll who goes on attack. Doesn’t actually care about doing the job they have, and instead wants to impress really an audience of one and make another part of official Washington another one of these essentially cable news and Twitter gladiatorial arenas." Trump tweeted the following today: "Joe Biden’s handling of the H1N1 Swine Flu was a complete and total disaster. Even polls on the matter were terrible!" According to factcheck.org: "According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), there were about 60.8 million cases of infection with the novel type of influenza virus in the US between April 2009 and April 2010, with a total of approximately 274,304 hospitalizations and 12,469 deaths. While that death toll may sound high, it’s over an entire year and, in fact, ended up being far lower than was initially expected."During an interview with CNN's State of the Union, Kevin Hassett, a Trump economics adviser, told the host: "Our capital stock hasn’t been destroyed, our human capital stock is ready to get back to work, and so there are lots of reasons to believe that we can get going way faster than we have in previous crises." As he has done many times, Trump tweeted his disdain for mail-in voting saying: "There is NO WAY (ZERO!) that Mail-In Ballots will be anything less than substantially fraudulent. Mail boxes will be robbed, ballots will be forged & even illegally printed out & fraudulently signed. The Governor of California is sending Ballots to millions of people, anyone living in the state, no matter who they are or how they got there, will get one. That will be followed up with professionals telling all of these people, many of whom have never even thought of voting before, how, and for whom, to vote. This will be a Rigged Election. No way!" Trump tweeted the following about the thoroughly debunked conspiracy theory regarding the death of Lori Klausutis saying: "The opening of a Cold Case against Psycho Joe Scarborough was not a Donald Trump original thought, this has been going on for years, long before I joined the chorus. In 2016 when Joe & his wacky future ex-wife, Mika, would endlessly interview me, I would always be thinking ... about whether or not Joe could have done such a horrible thing? Maybe or maybe not, but I find Joe to be a total Nut Job, and I knew him well, far better than most. So many unanswered & obvious questions, but I won’t bring them up now! Law enforcement eventually will?" Timothy Klausutis, the widower of Lori Klausutis, wrote a letter to Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey asking him to remove Trump's tweets about his wife's death. Here is the full letter:
Mr. Dorsey:Nearly 19 years ago, my wife, who had an undiagnosed heart condition, fell and hit her head on her desk at work. She was found dead the next morning. Her name is Lori Kaye Klausutis and she was 28 years old when she died. Her passing is the single most painful thing that I have ever had to deal with in my 52 years and continues to haunt her parents and sister.I have mourned my wife every day since her passing. I have tried to honor her memory and our marriage. As her husband, I feel that one of my marital obligations is to protect her memory as I would have protected her in life. There has been a constant barrage of falsehoods, half-truths, innuendo and conspiracy theories since the day she died. I realize that may sound like an exaggeration, unfortunately it is the verifiable truth. Because of this, I have struggled to move forward with my life.The frequency, intensity, ugliness, and promulgation of these horrifying lies ever increases on the internet. These conspiracy theorists, including most recently the President of the United States, continue to spread their bile and misinformation on your platform disparaging the memory of my wife and our marriage. President Trump on Tuesday tweeted to his nearly 80 million followers alluding to the repeatedly debunked falsehood that my wife was murdered by her boss, former U.S. Rep. Joe Scarborough. The son of the president followed and more directly attacked my wife by tweeting to his followers as the means of spreading this vicious lie.I’m sure you are aware of this situation because media around the world have covered it, but just in case, here it is:"When will they open a Cold Case on the Psycho Joe Scarborough matter in Florida. Did he get away with murder? Some people think so. Why did he leave Congress so quietly and quickly? Isn’t it obvious? What’s happening now? A total nut job!" - Donald J Trump"'Concast' should open up a long overdue Florida Cold Case against Psycho Joe Scarborough. I know him and Crazy Mika well, used them beautifully in the last Election, dumped them nicely, and will state on the record that he is 'nuts'. Besides, bad ratings! #OPENJOECOLDCASE" - Donald J Trump"What show is Joe going to go on to discuss Lori Klausutis?" - Donald J Trump JrMy request is simple: Please delete these tweets.I’m a research engineer and not a lawyer, but I’ve reviewed all of Twitter’s rules and terms of service. The President’s tweet that suggests that Lori was murdered — without evidence (and contrary to the official autopsy) — is a violation of Twitter’s community rules and terms of service. An ordinary user like me would be banished from the platform for such a tweet but I am only asking that these tweets be removed.I am now angry as well as frustrated and grieved. I understand that Twitter’s policies about content are designed to maintain the appearance that your hands are clean — you provide the platform and the rest is up to users. However, in certain past cases, Twitter has removed content and accounts that are inconsistent with your terms of service.I’m asking you to intervene in this instance because the President of the United States has taken something that does not belong to him — the memory of my dead wife — and perverted it for perceived political gain. I would also ask that you consider Lori’s niece and two nephews who will eventually come across this filth in the future. They have never met their Aunt and it pains me to think they would ever have to “learn” about her this way.My wife deserves better.Thank you for your consideration. I look forward to hearing from you soon.Sincerely,Timothy J. Klausutis, Ph.D.
Twitter responded to the request by saying Trump's tweets did not violate its terms of service, and therefore, it would not be removing them. Mick Mulvaney, Trump's former acting chief of staff, told a CNBC host that the country has "overreacted" in its response to coronavirus considering tens of thousands die from the flu every year. NOTE: The death rate from coronavirus is ten times higher than that of flu. Glenn Fine, the defense department's deputy inspector general, tendered his resignation. According to CNN: "One Pentagon official told CNN that [Fine] was not told to resign and did so on his own accord. Still, Trump replaced Fine as the Pentagon’s acting inspector general last month rather than allowing him to remain in the job until a nominee for the permanent role was confirmed, a move that was viewed as an effort to thwart his leadership of the coronavirus accountability review. Fine’s resignation takes effect June 1st, according to DOD IG spokesperson Dwrena Allen." White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany held a press briefing today. Here are some highlights:
- A reporter asked McEnany about Trump retweeting criticism of Joe Biden wearing a mask saying "why would he do that?" McEnany responded that "It's a bit peculiar that he doesn't wear a mask in his basement, but he wears one outdoors." The reporter then pointed out that Biden was following the CDC's lead saying "Isn't that the guidance though?" to which McEnany responded "It's recommended but not required."
- McEnany was asked about Trump's tweets that push a baseless conspiracy theory about Lori Klausutis. McEnany responded by attacking Joe Scarborough, and also said this: "I do know that our hearts are with Lori's family at this time."
- McEnany praised Trump's response to the pandemic by citing studies that predicted that as many as 2 million could die without any government action to limit the spread of the coronavirus. According to McEnany: "The president made the very hard choice of shutting down the economy, so we avoided that extraordinary number. We are far below 2.2 million dead Americans because of the actions of President Trump."
According to the Wall Street Journal, the justice department is closing insider-trading investigations against 3 senators, but the investigation of Republican Richard Burr remains active. According to the story: "Prosecutors on Tuesday are alerting defense attorneys for Republicans Kelly Loeffler of Georgia and James Inhofe of Oklahoma as well as Democrat Dianne Feinstein of California, that they are closing investigations into their trading, the people said." Trump held a press briefing, here are some highlights:
- Trump was asked about his retweeting of a thread that criticized Joe Biden for wearing a mask. Trump's response: "I wasn’t criticizing him at all. Why would I ever do a thing like that?"
- Trump tried to get a reporter to remove his mask to ask a question, and when the reporter chose not to remove it, Trump said: "Okay, good, you want to be politically correct."
- Trump was asked about his tweets that peddle a conspiracy theory about Lori Klausutis. Trump responded that the case is "a very suspicious situation." When pressed about the fact that Klausutis' widower had asked twitter to remove his tweets on the matter, Trump replied: "I’m sure that ultimately they [the Klausutis family] want to get to the bottom of it."
- Trump claimed to have the authority to overrule governors that refuse to reopen places of worship saying "I can absolutely do it if I want to ... And we have many different ways where I can override them." Fact Check: According to Steve Vladeck, a University of Texas law professor: "The president has no formal legal authority to categorically override local or state shelter-in-place orders or to reopen schools and small businesses. No statute delegates to him such power; no constitutional provision invests him with such authority."
- Trump lied about vote by mail in California saying: "People that aren’t citizens, illegals -- anybody that walks in California is going to get a ballot." Fact Check: In California, ballots are being mailed only to registered voters. Note: Twitter added fact checks to some of Trump's tweets about this subject just today.
Joe Biden responded to Trump's attitude toward wearing masks by calling Trump a "fool" for discouraging citizens from wearing masks. Biden added that "Presidents are supposed to lead, not engage in folly and be falsely masculine." The Trump 2020 campaign responded to twitter's action of adding fact checks to Trump's false tweets saying: "We always knew that Silicon Valley would pull out all the stops to obstruct and interfere with President Trump getting his message through to voters. There are many reasons the Trump campaign pulled all our advertising from Twitter months ago, and their clear political bias is one of them." Note: Twitter banned political ads in October 2019, which forced the Trump campaign to pull all its advertising from twitter months ago. Large protests broke out in Minneapolis in response to the asphyxiation death of George Floyd, who died in the custody of four Minneapolis police officers. Police in riot gear fired teargas and rubber bullets into the crowd. The four police officers involved have been fired.
May 25, 2020 - During a Memorial Day weekend demonstration, gun rights supporters hung an effigy of Kentucky governor Andy Beshear from a tree outside the state capitol building. Attached to the effigy was a handwritten note saying "Sic Semper Tyrannis" which is Latin for "Thus always to tyrants" the same words John Wilkes Booth shouted when he assassinated Abraham Lincoln. George Floyd, a black man living in Minneapolis, MN, died after Derek Chauvin, a white police officer, knelt on his neck for nearly 9 minutes during an arrest for using a forged check, and as a gathering crowd pleaded with the Chauvin to get his knee off of Floyd's neck. George Floyd's last words were: "I can't breathe."
May 24, 2020 - Deaths in the US from coronavirus now stands at 96,657. Globally, more than 342,000 have died. Trump, who is spending this weekend golfing, and who chastized Barack Obama for playing "too much" golf during his presidency, has now golfed more than 200 times more than Obama did in his entire first term. Dr Deborah Birx, the White House public health adviser, appeared on Fox News Sunday where she assured the hosts that "Trump does wear a mask when he is unable to social distance from others." Birx also stated that "There’s clear scientific evidence to show that a mask does prevent droplets from reaching others. Out of respect for each other, as Americans that care for each other, we need to be wearing masks in public when we cannot socially distance." Mike DeWine, Ohio's Republican governor, spoke out about the politicization of wearing masks in public saying: "This is not about politics, this is not about whether you’re liberal or conservative, left or right, Republican, Democrat. We wear the mask, and it’s been very clear what the studies have shown, you wear the mask not to protect yourself so much as to protect others. And this is one time when we truly are all in this together. What we do directly impacts others." Trump tweeted today that "Cases, numbers and deaths are going down all over the Country!" Fact: While cases and deaths from coronavirus are declining across the US as a whole, individual states have reported increasing numbers.
May 23, 2020 - The death toll in the US from coronavirus has now surpassed 96,000. News has surfaced of various incidents arising out of the wearing of masks. In Flint, Michigan, a Family Dollar employee was killed after telling a customer that her child had to wear a mask to enter. There have also been incidents of people intentionally coughing on people after being told to wear a mask. Those opposed to wearing masks are mostly of the conservative persuasion. Doug Bergum, the Republican governor of North Dakota, was moved to tears while pleading with the citizens of his state to wear a mask. From Burgum's statement: "If someone is wearing a mask, they’re not doing it to represent what political party they’re in or what candidate they support. They might be doing it because they’ve got a five-year-old who’s been going through cancer treatments." Trump went golfing today, which caused this tweet of his from October 23, 2014 to go viral: "President Obama has a major meeting on the N.Y.C. Ebola outbreak, with people flying in from all over the country, but decided to play golf!" News surfaced that a hair stylist in Missouri may have exposed 91 customers to coronavirus after that state allowed salons to reopen on May 4. Mike Pence made the following statement today: "China let the world down and the World Health Organization was their willing partner in withholding from the United States and the wider world vital information about the coronavirus that would have made it possible to stand up a national response sooner ... Make no mistake about it that China will be held accountable for what the world has gone through because of their lack of transparency." Virginie Battu-Henriksson, the European commission's spokeswoman, responded to Pence's remarks saying "This is the time for solidarity. It is not the time for finger-pointing or undermining multilateral cooperation." According to the Washington Post, Trump's European travel ban may have actually made the situation in the US worse. From the story: "The images [of airport chaos] showed how a policy intended to block the pathogen’s entry into the United States instead delivered one final viral infusion. As those exposed travelers fanned out into U.S. cities and suburbs, they became part of an influx from Europe that went unchecked for weeks and helped to seal the country’s coronavirus fate. Epidemiologists contend the U.S. outbreak was driven overwhelmingly by viral strains from Europe rather than China. More than 1.8 million travelers entered the United States from Europe in February alone as that continent became the center of the pandemic. Infections reached critical mass in New York and other cities well before the White House took action, according to studies mapping the virus’s spread. The crush of travelers triggered by Trump’s announcement only added to that viral load." Also in the story, more information about the China travel ban: "When Trump moved to block travel from China in January, there were few indications of disruption at affected airports. But while the president has depicted that decision as one he made before anyone else recognized it was necessary, in reality major airlines were forcing his hand. Delta and American had announced on Jan. 31 they were suspending routes to China before Trump announced the restrictions. United informed the White House it had already decided to do the same but was willing to hold off on announcing it publicly if Trump was prepared to act swiftly in issuing an order, officials said. Eager to claim credit for acting to contain the virus, Trump’s announcement came within hours." Kayleigh McEnany, Trump's press secretary, held up one of Trump's checks for the press while announcing that Trump was donating part of his salary to HHS. What she didn't realize, was that she was also sharing Trump's private bank account and routing numbers.
May 22, 2020 - Another study has been published that indicates that hydroxychloroquine is not an effective coronavirus treatment. In this study, which was published in the medical journal Lancet, 96,000 coronavirus patients who were treated with hydroxychloroquine saw a significantly higher death rate. Donald Trump held a press briefing where he stated that "Churches and mosques are places that provide essential services ... I call upon governors to open houses of worship right now ... these are places that hold our society together. People are demanding to go to church, to synagogue, to the mosque ... If they do not do it I will override the governors." Trump then left the briefing without taking questions. According to the CDC, 35 people contracted covid-19 after attending church services in Arkansas where the pastor and his wife were both positive for the virus. 3 of the attendees died. According to a Yahoo News/YouGov poll, 44% of Republicans believe Microsoft founder Bill Gates "is plotting to use a mass Covid-19 vaccination campaign as a pretext to implant microchips in billions of people and monitor their movements." For those who say their primary source for news is Fox News, the number believing the conspiracy theory is 50%. According to the Guardian, some stores across the US are denying entry to customers who wear masks. A convenience store in Kentucky has a sign posted at its entrance that says "NO Face Masks allowed in store. Lower your mask or go somewhere else. Stop listening to [Kentucky governor Andy] Beshear, he’s a dumbass." From the story: "Anti-lockdown protesters have argued that it is anti-American for the government to curtail people’s freedoms in order to reduce deaths as a result of Covid-19. Meanwhile, store owners tell customers what they can and cannot wear before entering, and customers cough in the faces of workers in the name of freedom."
May 21, 2020 - Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer sent a letter to Trump asking him to lower flags to half staff on the day the coronavirus death toll surpasses 100,000. No response yet from Trump. Jo Rae Perkins, the Republican nominee who will be facing Jeff Merkley in a Senate race in Oregon in November, is a true believer in the QAnon conspiracy theory. Perkins stated in a now deleted video: "I stand with President Trump. I stand with Q and the team. Thank you Anons, and thank you patriots. And together, we can save our republic." When asked about her support for the conspiracy theory, Perkins replied "To be very clear, I do not believe everything from Q/Anon and would never describe myself as a follower, but I also do not believe in infringing upon any outlet’s right to discuss news or topics." The US has issued notification that it intends to leave the Open Skies Treaty, which allowed Russia, former Soviet bloc countries and the west to make reconnaissance flights over each other's territory, to promote transparency and trust and thus reduce the risk of war by miscalculation or accident. On a party-line vote, the Senate foreign relations committee advanced the nomination of Michael Pack to lead the US Agency for Global Media. Democrats pushed for the vote to be delayed, as Pack is currently under investigation following allegation he illegally funneled money from his nonprofit group to his for-profit film company. In a straight party-line vote, the Senate confirmed John Ratcliffe to be the director of national intelligence. Speaking to the press, Trump reiterated his opposition to mail-in ballots saying "We don’t want them to do mail-in ballots because it’s going to lead to total election fraud." NOTE: When pressed about voter fraud, the only example Trump is able to cite is one in which there was no voter fraud. In January of 2019, Los Angeles County agreed with Judicial Watch to remove inactive registrations from the voter rolls. Trump has cited this instance as a case in which a million people voted illegally, when in fact, none of them voted, which is why their registrations were considered inactive. Speaking to reporters, this was how Trump described his latest test for coronavirus: "I tested very positively in another sense so— this morning. Yeah. I tested positively toward negative, right. So. I tested perfectly this morning. Meaning I tested negative." Trump toured a Ford manufacturing plant in Ypsilanti, Michigan. Despite a policy in the plant that everyone wear a mask, Trump was seen in photographs as the only one not wearing one. Michigan's attorney general Dana Nessel had written an open letter to Trump ahead of his tour asking him to "respect the great efforts of the men and women at Ford — and across this State — by wearing a facial covering." Trump was asked why he wasn't wearing a mask, his response: "I had one on before. I didn’t want to give the press the pleasure of seeing it." Trump also said he took the mask off because it was "not necessary" for most of the tour because he is regularly tested for coronavirus. While speaking at the Ford plant, Trump made a claim he has made before, which is that he was named Michigan Man of the Year before taking office. According to CNN, the claim is false. From CNN: "Trump started telling versions of the Man of the Year story two days before Election Day in 2016, when he was making a successful effort to win a state no Republican presidential candidate had carried since 1988. Journalists tried and failed to figure out what he was talking about. (For one, the state does not have an official Man of the Year award. For two, Trump had never lived in Michigan.) ... Then a former Republican congressman from Michigan, Dave Trott, contacted CNN and other news outlets to solve the mystery. Trott offered a convincing explanation: Trump was talking about his speech at an event Trott had organized, a Lincoln Day dinner for Republicans in Oakland County, Michigan, in 2013. There, Trott said, Trump gave a ‘rambling’ address resembling the one he says he did -- and Trott gave him a framed copy of Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address and other gifts. But Trott did not give him any Man of the Year award, and nor did anyone else." Trump raised eyebrows during his visit to the Ford plant when he referenced Ford's "Good bloodlines. If you believe in that stuff, you've got good blood." NOTE: Henry Ford was a notorious anti-Semite who used his wealth and influence to spread lies about Jewish people. Here are some notable reactions to Trump's "bloodlines" comment:
"Ford was so racist von Schirach, leader of the Hitler Youth, shouted him and his pamphlet series out as a major radicalizing influence during his testimony at Nuremberg" - Zoe Samudzi
"Hitler had a giant portrait of Ford in his office and plagiarized parts of Mein Kampf from Ford’s horrific The International Jew. Hitler called Ford a major inspiration." - Glenn Fleishman
Dana Nessel, the attorney general of Michigan, responded to Trump's refusal to be seen wearing a mask at the Ford Plant by calling Trump a "petulant child" for his refusal to set an example for others and to comply with Michigan law.
May 20, 2020 - The death toll in the US from coronavirus has now surpassed 91,000. Michigan and Nevada have both moved to expand vote by mail amid concerns that coronavirus could spread at in-person polling places. Trump reacted to the news with the following tweet: "Breaking: Michigan sends absentee ballots to 7.7 million people ahead of Primaries and the General Election. This was done illegally and without authorization by a rogue Secretary of State. I will ask to hold up funding to Michigan if they want to go down this Voter Fraud path! State of Nevada 'thinks' that they can send out illegal vote by mail ballots, creating a great Voter Fraud scenario for the State and the U.S. They can't! If they do, 'I think' I can hold up funds to the State. Sorry, but you must not cheat in elections." Some notable reactions to Trump's threat:
"Hi! I also have a name, it's Jocelyn Benson. And we sent applications, not ballots. Just like my GOP colleagues in Iowa, Georgia, Nebraska and West Virginia." Benson also stated that "no Michigander has to choose between their health and their right to vote. We know from the elections that took place this month that during the pandemic Michiganders want to safely vote." - Jocelyn Benson, Michigan's secretary of state
"Federal funds can be withheld only if (1) the funds relate to the specific state policy and (2) the funding source is new (can’t interrupt an already-existing funding stream)." - Elie Honig, a former federal prosecutor
"In a single tweet, the President: 1) Lies (that’s not what MI is doing); 2) Asserts without support that someone else is breaking the law; 3) Threatens action that would itself be unconstitutional; & 4) All in service of an unsubstantiated conspiracy theory about voter fraud." - Steve Vladeck, University of Texas law professor
"States run their own elections. Congress voted the funds to support voting in Covid relief bills. Trump, who has already publicly conceded Republicans can’t win if too many people vote, seems to think his power is limitless & includes controlling elections." - Joyce Alene, University of Alabama law professor
"Nah, President Incompetent. Michigan promotes democracy without jeopardizing people's health. You would rather oppress people and suppress the vote (per usual). Oh, and endangering people's lives seems to be your approach to a pandemic. We won't be following that method." - Rashida Tlaib, Michigan congresswoman
"Nevada is widely recognized as being a national leader in election administration, and we will continue to support the safest, most accessible election possible under these unprecedented circumstances. For the President to threaten federal funding in the midst of a pandemic over a state exercising its authority to run elections in a safe and legal manner is inappropriate and outrageous." Steve Sisolak, Nevada's governor
Critics have noted that several Republican-led states have pushed to expand vote by mail (West Virginia, Georgia and Nebraska), yet Trump has not threatened to withhold funding for any of them. Despite the continued rise in coronavirus cases in the US, Trump tweeted that he is considering changing the June G7 summit from virtual to in person at Camp David. Secretary of state Mike Pompeo was asked about the firing of Steve Linick, the state department inspector general. Pompeo insisted that he had recommended the firing "some time ago" and that he did not want to talk about "personnel matters" and that it was "patently false" that it was retaliation for ongoing investigations. Pompeo added "I've seen the various stories that someone was walking my dog to sell arms to my dry cleaner. I mean, it's all just crazy." Pompeo also said the firing couldn't possibly be retaliation since he "had no sense of what investigations were taking place inside the inspector general’s office. ... I didn’t have access to that information, so I couldn’t possibly have retaliated. It would have been impossible." Michael Ryan, the head of emergencies at the World Health Organization (WHO), warned that an end to US funding for the UN health agency would have a "major implication for delivering essential health services to the most vulnerable people in the world." White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany was asked why Trump claimed something illegal was taking place in Michigan regarding their move to expand vote by mail. McEnany's response: "Illegality and legality of it, that’s a question for the campaign." The Supreme Court issued a stay on members of the House judiciary committee, which temporarily blocks them from accessing grand jury material gathered during special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation. Noel Francisco, the solicitor general, had argued that allowing Democrats to access the grand jury material would cause "irreparable harm" to the federal government. Dr Rebekah Jones, the scientist in charge of Florida's covid-19 database - which was held up by the White House in April as a model of transparency and integrity - was fired. According to Jones, she was fired because she refused to "manually change data to drum up support for the plan to reopen".
May 19, 2020 - The death toll in the US from coronavirus has now surpassed 90,000. Nancy Pelosi, the House speaker, responded to news Trump is taking hydroxychloroquine saying "I would rather he not be taking something that has not been approved by the scientists, especially in his age group, and in his, shall we say, weight group: 'Morbidly obese,' they say". According to NBC News, the traditional portrait unveiling ceremony, in which presidents welcome their predecessor back to the White House for the unveiling of a painting, will not be happening this year. From the story: "You’ve got a president who’s talking about putting the previous one in legal jeopardy, to put it nicely. We have not seen a situation like that in history. It takes antipathy of a new president for a predecessor to a new level." As Dr Deborah Birx entered the White House today, a reporter asked "Do you have concerns about the President using hydroxychlorqine?" Birx's response: "Isn’t it great that it’s not going to rain for the next three days?" Voting along party lines, the Senate intelligence committee has approved the nomination of John Ratcliffe as the next director of national intelligence. While testifying before the Senate banking committee, Steve Mnuchin, the Treasury secretary, began his comments by thanking essential workers. Senator Sherrod Brown, the top Democrat on the committee, then asked Mnuchin "How many workers should give their lives to increase the GDP or the Dow Jones by 1,000 points?" Mnuchin responded saying "No workers should give their lives to do that, Mr Senator, and I think your characterization is unfair." While meeting with a group of farmers from Virginia, Trump told the group "We're going after Virginia, with your crazy governor, we're going after Virginia. They want to take your Second Amendment away. You'll have nobody guarding your potatoes." Trump was asked about Nancy Pelosi's comment that he is "morbidly obese" to which Trump responded "I don't respond to her. I think she's a waste of time." But then, when asked about his former national security adviser, Michael Flynn, Trump said this: "Pelosi is a sick woman. She’s got a lot of problems, a lot of mental problems." Trump was asked about a study that indicated the anti-malaria drug hydroxychloroquine was not an effective coronavirus treatment, to which Trump responded that it was a "Trump enemy statement" adding "That was a false study done, where they gave it very sick people. Extremely sick people. People that were ready to die. It was given by obviously not friends of the administration ... What has been determined is it doesn’t harm you." FACT: The FDA has said hydroxychloroquine should only be used as a coronavirus treatment in hospital settings due to reports of serious heart rhythm problems in virus patients who had received the drug. A reporter mentioned this fact to Trump who then responded: "That’s not what I was told." Trump signed an Executive Order today that gives Cabinet members authority to cut regulations in an attempt to hasten economic recovery. Brett Hartl, the government affairs director at the Center for Biological Diversity responded to Trump's latest Executive Order saying "Trump’s latest order makes about as much sense as drinking bleach. He’s using the pandemic to slash life-saving protections for our air, water, and wildlife when these safeguards have never been more important. It’s astounding that Trump is so out of touch with the majority of people who understand that there can’t be economic recovery on a dying planet." Donald Trump caused outrage today when he reacted to the news that the US had reached 1.52m confirmed cases of coronavirus by calling it good news because it's a mark of how much testing the US is doing, saying "If we were testing a million people instead of 14 million people, it would have far few cases, right? So, when we have a lot of cases I don't look at that as a bad thing. I look at that, in a certain respect, as being a good thing because it means our testing is much better ... I view it as a badge of honor. Really it's a badge of honor." Here are a few select responses to Trump's badge of honor statement:
"This is like calling a trail of corpses a badge of honor for the police department that let the serial murderer run free for months before shutting him down. Trump is a ghoul and an idiot." - Laurence Tribe, legal scholar at Harvard Law School
"Folks, I have no head left to shake." - Michael Steele, former chairman of the Republican National Committee
"'A badge of HONOR.' That’s right #TweetyTrump, you have the MOST dead citizens in your country! More than any other! Maybe you should have a parade to celebrate how goodly you’re doing." - Debra Messing, Actor
May 18, 2020 - The death toll in the US from coronavirus is now at 89,559. News surfaced that the woman who designed Florida's covid-19 online dashboard was removed after she refused to "manually change data to drum up support for the plan to reopen." Donald Trump sent a letter to the WHO stating that "If the WHO does not commit to major substantive improvements within the next 30 days, I will make my temporary freeze of United States funding to the WHO permanent and reconsider our membership." Critics pointed out that the letter lacks specifics on what those improvements would look like. Rick Bright, the vaccine expert turned whistleblower who was fired for pushing back against Trump's push for the use of a non-approved drugs to fight coronavirus, appeared on 60 minutes, which prompted this reaction from Donald Trump: "this whole Whistleblower racket needs to be looked at very closely, it is causing great injustice & harm." Alaska legislators were told by email that they would be asked to undergo screening for coronavirus as they entered the building. Those who are screened will be given a green sticker to show that they completed the screening, while those who refuse will not be given a sticker. Ben Carpenter a Republican, responded to the email saying "If my sticker falls off, do I get a new one or do I get public shaming too? Are the stickers available as a yellow Star of David?" Grier Hopkins, a Democrat responded to Carpenter saying: "This is disgusting. Keep your Holocaust jokes to yourself." Carpenter was asked about his earlier comment by Anchorage Daily News, his response: "Can you or I – can we even say it is totally out of the realm of possibility that Covid-19 patients will be rounded up and taken somewhere? People want to say Hitler was a white supremacist. No. He was fearful of the Jewish nation, and that drove him into some unfathomable atrocities." After a national backlash, Carpenter apologized for his insensitive comments. Andrew Bates, a Biden spokesman, responded to incendiary attacks being leveled by the Trump campaign saying: "No repulsive, manipulative tactic will change the subject from how almost 90,000 Americans have paid for Donald Trump’s coronavirus negligence with their lives and how the booming economy he inherited from the Obama-Biden Administration is now suffering from depression-level job losses." Donald Trump retweeted a claim that Obama was "the most corrupt president in US history." David Smith, a Guardian reporter responded to Trump's fixation on Obama, saying: "There’s some racism there but, most of all, it’s driven by the fact that Obama has the thing that Trump has always craved but never achieved, and that’s respect." According to NBC News, Steve Linick, the former IG of the state department, was investigating the decision by secretary of state Mike Pompeo to approve billions of dollars in Saudi arms sales. Attorney General Bill Barr stated that he doesn't expect the investigation being conducted by John Durham to lead to a criminal investigation of Barack Obama or Joe Biden. Durham is investigating the Russia investigation. Barr also said he wouldn't use the "criminal justice system for partisan political ends" which raised many eyebrows. Mike Pompeo, the secretary if state, was asked about the firing of Steve Linick. Pompeo's response: The IG "wasn't performing a function in a way that we had tried to get him to" and was "trying to undermine what it was that we were trying to do." Pompeo offered no evidence to support his claim. According to Politico: "A congressional aide said State Department officials were recently briefed about [Steve] Linick’s conclusions in his investigation of the Saudi arms sales, and that Pompeo refused to sit for an interview with the inspector general’s office. State Department officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment." Trump spent this past weekend at Camp David, and according to CNN: "Trump headed into the weekend appearing convinced his predecessor committed a crime worthy of investigation -- despite being unable to name the crime or provide any evidence for it. By Sunday, he emerged prepared to wage wholesale political war with the last person who held his office. ... As he huddled in the mountainside retreat’s rustic cabins with a roster of Republican lawmakers -- many of whom forged national profiles defending Trump during his impeachment proceedings -- Trump discussed ways to advance the baseless conspiracy about the former president, the person said." Trump regularly tweets about the conspiracy theory with the hashtag #Obamagate, which former CIA analyst Ned Price calls "a hashtag in search of a scandal." Chuck Grassley, the Republican chair of the Senate finance committee, sent a letter to Trump demanding an explanation for the removal of state department IG Steve Linick by June 1. From the letter: "As mentioned in previous letters, Congress’s intent is clear that an expression of lost confidence, without further explanation, is not sufficient to fulfill the requirements of the IG Reform Act ... IGs are intended to be equal opportunity investigators and are designed to combat waste, fraud, abuse, and misconduct without regard to political affiliation. They are the ultimate swamp drainers." According to the Washington Post, secretary of state Mike Pompeo denied knowing he was under investigation when the IG was fired saying: "It is not possible that this decision, or my recommendation rather, to the president rather, was based on any effort to retaliate for any investigation that was going on, or is currently going on. Because I simply don’t know. I’m not briefed on it. I usually see these investigations in final draft form 24 hours, 48 hours before the IG is prepared to release them. So it’s simply not possible for this to be an act of retaliation. End of story." During an interview with Fox News, Karl Rove, the former senior adviser to George W Bush, responded to news that Obama had indirectly criticized Trump during a commencement ceremony saying: "It is so unseemly for a former president to take the virtual commencement ceremony for a series of historically black colleges and universities and turn it into a political drive-by shooting." A few select responses to Rove's comment:
"Karl Rove engineered a push poll during the 2000 SC primary that asked voters if they would be less likely to vote for McCain if they knew he had an illegitimate black child. He knew this attack would work because the McCain’s 9-year-old daughter Bridget was from Bangladesh" - Yashar Ali
"Trump spent years perpetuating a racist conspiracy theory about Obama's place of birth. But apparently it's 'unseemly' when Obama highlights the reality of the current situation: the Trump admin. bungled its response to this pandemic. Thousands are dead. Millions are unemployed." - John Haltiwanger
Trump was asked what it was that Steve Linick had done to get him fired, to which Trump responded: "I don't know. I don't anything about him. I don't know. I don’t know anything about him, other than the State Department and Mike in particular ... weren’t happy with the job he’s doing or something ... I have the absolute right as president to terminate." Trump told reporters today that he is currently taking hydroxychloriquine and has been for weeks. NOTE: The US FDA has cautioned against taking hydroxychloriquine or chloroquine for covid-19 outside of a hospital setting or a clinical trial due to risk of heart rhythm problems. The drug is used to help patients manage the chronic autoimmune disease lupus, and some of those patients have complained that the drug is now harder to come by. Trump was asked about a study conducted by the VA and some academic institutions, including the University of Virginia School of Medicine, which analyzed the cases of 368 male coronavirus patients, some of which were given hydroxychloroquine and others were not. The results of the study showed that those treated with hydroxychloroquine had a higher risk of death than those who were not. Trump responded that those behind the research "aren't big Trump fans" and the research was "very unscientific". Trump was again asked about the firing of Steve Linick, who was investigating the circumstances surrounding Mike Pompeo's sale of US weapons to Saudi Arabia despite a congressional ban, and who was looking into reports that Pompeo and his wife were making state department employees walk their dog, pick up dry cleaning and make dinner reservations. Trump's response: "Here’s a man that is supposed to be negotiating war and peace with major, major countries with weaponry like the world has never seen before. And the Democrats and the fake news media, they are interested in a man who is walking their dog. I would rather have [Pompeo] on the phone with some world leader than have him wash dishes because maybe his wife isn’t there or his kids aren’t." According to the New York Times: "The Republican National Committee has allocated $20m so far to oppose Democratic lawsuits across the country seeking to expand voting. Republicans are also seeking to recruit up to 50,000 people in 15 key states to serve as poll watchers and challenge the registration of voters they believe are ineligible. The 2020 election will be the first time in nearly three decades that national Republicans will be involved in such a program. After the RNC was sued over intimidating minority voters in New Jersey in the early 1980s, they agreed to a federal court order not to engage in 'ballot security' efforts. The order expired in 2018." Lindsey Graham, Republican Senator, announced that the Senate judiciary committee would debate and vote on whether to subpoena documents and testimony from Obama era officials related to the FBI's investigation into Russian election interference. According to the Guardian "The move is the latest in efforts by Trump and his allies to double down on the theory that Barack Obama and his administration concocted a hoax allegation that Trump colluded with Russia to win the 2016 election. Trump has been referring to the conspiracy theory as 'Obamagate'."
May 17, 2020 - During an interview with ABC News, Peter Navarro, a top economic adviser to Donald Trump, offered the following statements in response to Obama's criticism of Trump's pandemic response: "I’m glad Mr Obama has a new job as Joe Biden’s press secretary" his administration "was a kumbaya of incompetence" he allowed "millions of manufacturing jobs" to move to China. Fact Check: The main transfer of manufacturing jobs from the United States to China occurred in the early 2000s, prior to the Obama presidency. Navarro also repeated the following Trump claim, without offering any evidence: "The Chinese behind the shield of the World Health Organization – for two months – hid the virus from the world and then sent hundreds of thousands of Chinese on aircraft to Milan, New York and around the world to seed that. They could have kept it in Wuhan. Instead it became a pandemic." Despite an uptick in racist attacks against Asian Americans in the United States, Navarro also referred to the coronavirus as "China virus". Trump was asked about Obama's criticism, his response was: "Look, he was an incompetent president, that’s all I can say. Grossly incompetent." During an appearance on Fox News, Eric Trump had the following to say about his father not being able to hold rallies because of the pandemic: "They will milk it every single day between now and November 3rd and, guess what, after November 3rd, coronavirus will magically all of a sudden go away and disappear and everybody will be able to reopen. They’re trying to deprive him of his greatest asset, which is the fact that the American people love him, that fact that he is relatable, the fact that he can get out there and draw massive crowds." Joe Biden responded to Eric Trump's statement saying: "We’re in the middle of the biggest public health emergency in a century, with almost 90,000 Americans dead, 1.5 million infected, and 36 million workers newly jobless, so for Eric Trump to claim that the coronavirus is a political hoax that will ‘magically’ disappear is absolutely stunning and unbelievably reckless. The simple fact is that President Trump ignored the threat of the coronavirus for months and has mishandled the response at every step since — destroying the strong economy he inherited from the Obama-Biden administrations and leading to countless unnecessary deaths. Trump’s campaign knows he can’t run on that dismal record so they’re desperate to do whatever they can to throw up a smokescreen to try to conceal his historic mismanagement of this crisis."
May 16, 2020 - Donald Trump jr posted a meme to Instagram that suggested Joe Biden is a pedophile. When asked about it, Don jr insisted it was "only a joke." The US House foreign relations committee announced an investigation into the firing of Steve Linick, the inspector general at the state department. During an online "virtual" commencement ceremony for Historically Black College and Universities, Barack Obama told the graduates: "Let’s be honest, a disease like this just spotlights the underlying inequalities and extra burdens that black communities have historically had to deal with in this country. We see it in the disproportionate impact of Covid-19 on our communities ... More than anything, this pandemic has fully, finally torn back the curtain on the idea that so many of the folks in charge know what they’re doing. A lot of them aren’t even pretending to be in charge." These comments were widely interpreted as a rebuke of the Trump administration. According to the White House, Steve Linick, the state department's inspector general, was fired based on a recommendation by the secretary of state, Mike Pompeo. Mitt Romney responded to the firing saying "The firings of multiple Inspectors General is unprecedented; doing so without good cause chills the independence essential to their purpose. It is a threat to accountable democracy and a fissure in the constitutional balance of power."
May 15, 2020 - Speaking to Bret Baier of Fox News, Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell, admitted he was wrong after stating earlier in the week that the Obama administration did not leave a plan for the Trump Administration on how to handle a pandemic. According to McConnell: "I was wrong — they did leave behind a plan. So I clearly made a mistake in that regard. As to whether or not the plan was followed and who’s the critic and all the rest, I don’t have any observation about that because I don’t know enough about the details of that, Bret, to comment on it in any detail." An editorial in the prominent medical journal, the Lancet, called for Americans to vote Donald Trump out of office in November because of his response to coronavirus. From the editorial: "The Administration is obsessed with magic bullets—vaccines, new medicines, or a hope that the virus will simply disappear. But only a steadfast reliance on basic public health principles, like test, trace, and isolate, will see the emergency brought to an end, and this requires an effective national public health agency. The CDC needs a director who can provide leadership without the threat of being silenced and who has the technical capacity to lead today’s complicated effort. The Trump administration’s further erosion of the CDC will harm global cooperation in science and public health, as it is trying to do by defunding WHO. A strong CDC is needed to respond to public health threats, both domestic and international, and to help prevent the next inevitable pandemic. Americans must put a president in the White House come January, 2021, who will understand that public health should not be guided by partisan politics." Trump held a coronavirus task force meeting today, here are some highlights:
- Trump described the work to create a vaccine Operation Warp Speed, and compared it to the Manhattan Project.
- A reporter asked Trump about his position on the accuracy of the death toll related to coronavirus. Trump responded that he "assumes" the numbers are accurate.
White house press secretary Kayleigh McEnany held a press briefing, here's a noteworthy exchange:
- McEnany was asked why Donald Trump accused Barack Obama of committing a crime, and what the crime is. McEnany answered that it was the reporter's responsibility to "answer the question" of what Obama did that was against the law.
Steve Linick, the state department's inspector general, who was reportedly investigating secretary of state Mike Pompeo, was fired today. Some select responses to the firing of Linick:
"This firing is the outrageous act of a president trying to protect one of his most loyal supporters, the secretary of state, from accountability. I have learned that the Office of the Inspector General had opened an investigation into Secretary Pompeo. Mr Linick’s firing amid such a probe strongly suggests that this is an unlawful act of retaliation." - Eliot Engel, the Democratic chair of the House foreign affairs committee
"The assault on the IG is late-stage corruption, and Trump’s kicking down one of the last bulwarks that stand between us and the burgeoning corruption-driven authoritarianism. Cover it like you’re a foreign correspondent in a collapsing republic. Because you are." - Walter Shaub, former head of the US Office of Government Ethics
"Let’s be clear: all of these moves are punishment for doing the jobs the law authorizes and requires IGs [inspectors general] to do. This will not end until Congress takes these retaliatory firings seriously. The appointment of a crony of the VP further politicizes jobs that by statute are supposed to be non-partisan. Another important norm defiled." - Michael Bromwich, former Justice Department Inspector General
May 14, 2020 - The death toll in the US from coronavirus is now at 85,000. The global death toll exceeds 300,000. Rick Bright, a top vaccine expert, who was fired for resisting the push to use hydroxychloroquine as a treatment for covid-19, will testify today before the House energy and commerce committee. In anticipation of the testimony, Trump sent out the following tweet: "I don’t know the so-called Whistleblower Rick Bright, never met him or even heard of him, but to me he is a disgruntled employee, not liked or respected by people I spoke to and who, with his attitude, should no longer be working for our government!" The number of unemployed in the US is now at 36 million. A federal judge has denied a request for a new trial by Roger Stone. Stone alleged a jury forewoman lied on a questionnaire during the selection process. Here are some highlights from Rick Bright's testimony before congress:
- According to Bright: "The window is closing to address this pandemic because we still do not have a standardized coordinated plan to take our nation through this response."
- Bright claimed the US was not fully prepared for the outbreak, and said that a vital opportunity to educate the public on social distancing and wearing a mask was missed in January and February "that could’ve slowed the outbreak and saved lives."
- Bright warned that "Without clear planning and implementation of the steps that I and other experts have outlined, 2020 will be darkest winter in modern history."
- Bright told the panel that the death toll would probably be much lower had the Trump administration acted far more quickly to address the crisis.
- Bright said his efforts to obtain early viral samples from China were met with "frustration and dismissal" from leaders in the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
- Bright said his efforts pushing for greater stockpile of masks, swabs and other medical equipment was met with "indifference". Bright said he was "told that my urgings were causing a commotion and I was removed from those meetings".
- Bright said that after he received an email from the co-owner of Prestige Ameritech, a manufacturer of N95 respiratory masks that said "We are in deep shit, the world is, and we need to act," he "pushed that forward to the highest levels I could at HHS and got no response. From that moment I knew we’d have a crisis with our healthcare workers because we were not taking action. That was our last window of opportunity to turn on that production to save the lives of those healthcare workers and we didn’t act."
Donald Trump sent the following tweet: "If I were a Senator or Congressman, the first person I would call to testify about the biggest political crime and scandal in the history of the USA, by FAR, is former President Obama. He knew EVERYTHING. Do it @LindseyGrahamSC, just do it. No more Mr. Nice Guy. No more talk!" Republican Senator Richard Burr has stepped down from his post as chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee pending the outcome of an investigation into insider trading. A second armed protest took place outside of Michigan's capital today. This one was organized by Michigan United for Liberty. Donald Trump toured a medical equipment distribution facility in Allentown Pennsylvania. Trump and his chief of staff, Mark Meadows, were the only two people of the entourage who were not wearing masks. The CDC released guidelines for businesses and other establishments looking to reopen. These new guidelines are not the same guidelines that were shelved at the end of April.
May 13, 2020 - Sixteen former Watergate prosecutors filed a brief asking federal judge Emmett Sulivan to not dismiss prosecution of Michael Flynn despite pressure from Trump's justice department. In their brief the prosecutors explained that they offer "unique perspective on the need for independent scrutiny and oversight to ensure that crucial decisions about prosecutions of high-ranking government officials are made in public interest, are viewed as legitimate and are not subsequently reversed by political intervention." Richard Grenell, Trump's acting director of national intelligence, sent Republican senators a list of former Obama officials who are believed to have been involved with efforts to "unmask" ousted national security advisor Michael Flynn.
NOTE: Unmasking is the process national security officials use to reveal the identities of American citizens involved in conversations with foreign agents that have been subjected to government surveillance. Unmasking is a routine practice in national security, which is done thousands of times a year. The NSA performed this practice 10,000 times last year, and nearly 17,000 times in 2018.
Here are some select responses to Grenell's list of Obama officials:
"Americans have a right to know the depth of Biden’s involvement in the setup of Gen. Flynn to further the Russia collusion hoax." - Brad Parscale, Trump's campaign manager
"And there it is. @realDonaldTrump has been right from the start. Wil the media FINALLY hold the Obama Administration accountable? They owe President Trump an apology" - Steve Scalise, Republican Senator
"So these senators want you to believe Flynn was unfairly unmasked because American officials used legal processes to find out which American citizens were conspiring against our democracy. Well, let's remember what Flynn was up to with those hostile spies" - Eric Garland
"The unconfirmed, acting DNI using his position to criminalize routine intelligence work to help re-elect the president and obscure Russian intervention in our democracy would normally be the scandal here..." - Ben Rhodes
"These documents simply indicate the breadth and depth of concern across the American government – including among career officials – over intelligence reports of Michael Flynn’s attempts to undermine ongoing American national security policy through discussions with Russian officials or other foreign representatives. Importantly, none of these individuals could have known Flynn’s identity beforehand. These documents have absolutely nothing to do with any FBI investigation and they confirm that all normal procedures were followed – any suggestion otherwise is a flat out lie. What’s more, it’s telling that these documents were selectively leaked by Republicans abusing their congressional powers to act as arms of the Trump campaign after having them provided by a partisan official installed for this very purpose. The only people with questions to answer are Grenell, Sen Grassley, and Sen Johnson for their gross politicization of the intelligence process." - Andrew Bates, a Biden campaign spokesperson
"Sideshow to distract from the shitshow" - David Plouffe, former Obama campaign manager
"Rather talk about unmasking than masks" - Matthew Miller, ex-justice department spokesperson
Trump was asked about Dr Anthony Fauci's message of caution against opening schools too soon. Trump said of Fauci's answer "I was surprised by his answer. To me it’s not an acceptable answer, especially when it comes to schools ... I think they should open the schools, absolutely. I think they should. It’s had very little impact on young people. And I think that if you’re an instructor, if you’re a teacher, a professor over a certain age like let’s say 65 or maybe even if you want to be conservative, 60, perhaps you want to stay out for a little while longer. But I think you should absolutely open the schools. Our country has got to get back and it’s got to get back as soon as possible, and I don’t consider our country coming back if the schools are closed." Investigators from the FBI executed a search warrant at the home of Republican Senator Richard Burr, seizing his phone. The investigators are looking into whether Burr used inside information from private briefings on Capitol Hill to dump stocks right before the market plummeted. According to the Guardian, Burr and his wife sold between $628,000 and $1.7m in more than 30 separate transactions in late January and mid-February.
May 12, 2020 - The death toll in the US from coronavirus is now at 80,679. In an interview with the New York Times, Dr Anthony Fauci, who will be testifying before the Senate today, had this to say: "The major message that I wish to convey to the Senate ... committee, is the danger of trying to open the country prematurely. If we skip over the checkpoints in the guidelines to ‘Open America Again’, then we risk the danger of multiple outbreaks throughout the country. This will not only result in needless suffering and death, but would actually set us back on our quest to return to normal." Following a segment on "Morning Joe" that was critical of Trump's coronavirus response, Trump lashed out at one of the show's hosts, Joe Scarborough, accusing him of murder in this tweet: "When will they open a Cold Case on the Psycho Joe Scarborough matter in Florida. Did he get away with murder? Some people think so. Why did he leave Congress so quietly and quickly? Isn’t it obvious? What’s happening now? A total nut job!" According to Politico: "Trump was apparently referring to the 2001 death of Lori Klausutis, who worked as a staffer in Scarborough’s Fort Walton Beach, Fla., office when he served as a Republican House lawmaker from the state’s 1st Congressional District. Klausutis’ autopsy revealed she had an undiagnosed heart condition, and a coroner concluded she died after passing out and hitting her head in a fall, according to The Associated Press. She was not struck by another person, the coroner said, and Scarborough was in Washington at the time of her death." Scarborough responded to Trump's provocation calling it "extraordinarily cruel." The Washington Post fact checker awarded Trump's claim its top rating of four pinnochios saying: "We wish we had more to give." During an online fundraiser, Mitch McConnell was asked about President Obama's comments which were critical of the Trump administration's response to coronavirus, to which McConnell responded: "I think President Obama should have kept his mouth shut. You know, we know he doesn’t like much this administration is doing. That’s understandable. But I think it’s a little bit classless frankly to critique an administration that comes after you. You had your shot. You were there for eight years. I think the tradition that the Bushes set up of not critiquing the president who comes after you is a good tradition." Anthony Fauci, the nation's leading infectious disease expert, testified before the senate today. Here are highlights from that testimony:
- Patty Murray, Democratic Senator from Washington state: "Families across the country are counting on us for the truth ... It’s clear they will not get it from President Trump. Lives are at stake. The president is not telling the truth ... Since the committee last heard from these witnesses on March 13 we have seen over 80,000 deaths nationally ... still Trump continues to ignore the facts and the experts who say we are nowhere near where we need to be to safely reopen"
- Bernie Sanders, Democratic Senator from Vermont stated: "It is sad to say we have a president who from day one downplayed the dangers of the pandemic ... told us the crisis would be over in a few months and we didn’t need to worry, he fired members of the government who wanted to move aggressively and he cut funding to the World Health Organization (WHO)." Sanders then asked Fauci if the death toll is accurate, to which Fauci replied "The number is almost certainly higher".
- Bernie Sanders asked Brett Giroir, assistant secretary of health, if when a successful vaccine is developed to immunize against covid-19, will it be available to all Americans "regardless of income" or any health situations. Giror responded by saying "They should, I do not represent.." Sanders cut him off and said "You represent an administration that makes that decision." Giroir then said yes, all Americans would have access to the vaccine regardless of ability to pay, or any health factors.
- Tim Kaine, Democratic Senator from Virginia, pointed out that the Trump administration's own experts say the US needs to be conducting 1.3 million tests a day, but "Yesterday there were 300,000 tests."
- Robert Redfield, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, stated that because the US moved slowly, we "lost the containment edge" and had to shift to "mitigation". Redfield also stated that CDC guidelines about how to safely open the economy, which was shelved by the Trump administration, would be released "soon".
- Mitt Romney, Republican Senator from Utah, said to Brett Giroir, an admiral: "I understand that politicians are going to frame data in a way that’s most positive politically, but of course I don’t expect that from admirals. But yesterday you celebrated that we had done more tests, and more tests per capita, even, than South Korea, and you ignored the fact that they accomplished theirs at the beginning of the outbreak, while we treaded water during February and March. And as a result, by March 6, the US had completed just 2,000 tests, whereas South Korea had conducted more than 140,000 tests, so partially as a result of that they have 256 deaths and we have 80,000. I find our testing record is nothing to celebrate whatsoever." Romney concluded by saying: "The fact is their [South Korea’s] test numbers are going down, down, down, down now because they don’t have the kind of outbreak we have, ours are going up, up, up as they have to. That’s an important lesson for us as we think about the future."
- Anthony Fauci cautioned against opening schools too soon saying "I think we better be careful if we are not cavalier in thinking that children are completely immune to the deleterious effects."
- Rand Paul, Republican Senator from Kentucky, wondered aloud why schools can't reopen if children are seeing a low virus-related death rate. Paul then said to Anthony Fauci: "As much as I respect you, Dr. Fauci, I don’t think you’re the end-all. I don’t think you’re the one person that gets to make the decision."
During an interview with CNN, Donald McNeil, the New York Times science and health reporter, made the following statement: The CDC "is a great agency but it’s incompetently led, and I think Dr Redfield should resign."
May 11, 2020 - The death toll in the US from coronavirus is now at 79,523. Robert Redfield, the CDC director, defended the decision not to release guidance for reopening the economy, saying he had not formally approved the guidance. Redfield's statement is directly contradicted by his own internal emails which were leaked to the AP. Nearly 2,000 former Justice Department employees signed on to an open letter which calls for Attorney General William Barr to resign. The letter accuses Barr of having "once again assaulted the rule of law" by moving to drop the case against Michael Flynn. According to the letter: "If any of us, or anyone reading this statement who is not a friend of the President, were to lie to federal investigators in the course of a properly predicated counterintelligence investigation, and admit we did so under oath, we would be prosecuted for it ... We continue to believe that it would be best for the integrity of the Justice Department and for our democracy for Attorney General Barr to step aside ... Our democracy depends on a Department of Justice that acts as an independent arbiter of equal justice, not as an arm of the president’s political apparatus." During an interview with Trump 2020 senior adviser Lara Trump, Mitch McConnell claimed the Obama administration "did not leave to this administration, any kind of game plan for something like this [pandemic]." Ben Rhodes, Obama's former deputy national security advisor, responded to McConnell's comment saying "The maddening thing is Obama left them a WH office for pandemics, a literal playbook, a cabinet-level exercise, and a global infrastructure to deal with 'something like this'". Trump held a briefing in the Rose Garden, in front of a huge banner that read: America leads the world in testing". Here are some highlights:
- Trump declared "We have met the moment and we have prevailed." Trump later clarified that he was referring to testing, something the US has lagged behind on a per capita basis, but is now becoming one of the world's leaders.
- Trump was asked why White House staff is able to be tested daily, but that ability is still not there for the American people. Trump's response: "You know what, if we didn’t get the test ... you’d be up complaining why aren’t you getting tests for the White House? We can't win." Trump then told the female reporter: "I understand you very well – better than you understand yourself."
- Trump was asked about his accusations on twitter that Obama is guilty of the "biggest political crime in American History by far". After being asked to name the crime, Trump replied: "Obamagate. it’s been going on for a long time it’s been going on before I even got elected." The reporter then asked again, "but what is the crime you're accusing him of?" to which Trump responded: "You know what the crime is."
- Trump was asked why he is so fixated on comparing the US' testing capability to other countries as opposed to focusing on the lag that still exists here, to which Trump replied "Maybe that’s a question you should ask China. Don’t ask me, ask China that question, okay?" The reporter, who is Asian-American, then asked Trump, "Sir, why are you saying that to me, specifically? Why are you asking me this?" to which Trump responded: "I’m saying it to anybody who would ask a nasty question like that." Weijia Jiang, the reporter then responded: "That's not a nasty question."
Private Facebook groups have been found to contain calls to assassinate Gretchen Whitmer, the governor of Michigan, over stay at home orders in that state. Here are some example comments:
- "Either President Trump sends in the troops or there is going to be a midnight lynching in Lansing soon."
- "We need a good old fashioned lynch mob to storm the Capitol."
- "Drag that tyrant governor out to the front lawn. Fit her for a noose."
May 10, 2020 - The death toll in the US from coronavirus is now at 78,789. Trump sent the following tweet: "We are getting great marks for the handling of the CoronaVirus pandemic, especially the very early BAN of people from China, the infectious source, entering the USA. Compare that to the Obama/Sleepy Joe disaster known as H1N1 Swine Flu. Poor marks, bad polls - didn’t have a clue!" In a leaked conversation Barack Obama has called Trump's response to coronavirus "an absolute chaotic disaster" and said the "rule of law is at risk" in the US after the justice department said it would be dropping its case against former national security adviser Michael Flynn. Michael Osterholm, the director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota, predicted that "we're going to see 60 to 70% of Americans" infected with Covid-19. Osterholm added "we can’t stay locked down for 18 months, but at the same time when you have cases increasing, deaths increasing, healthcare workers without adequate protective equipment, and we’re suddenly going back to what was once our normal lives, that’s not a safe place to be. We can’t do that and not expect to see a major increase in cases." Trump sent the following tweet today: "OBAMAGATE!"
May 8, 2020 - The death toll in the US from coronavirus is now over 75,000. Trump sent the following tweet: "Yesterday was a BIG day for Justice in the USA. Congratulations to General Flynn, and many others. I do believe there is MUCH more to come! Dirty Cops and Crooked Politicians do not go well together!" The unemployment rate at the end of April was 14.7%, up from 4.4% at the end of March. Trump called into Fox & Friends today. Here are some highlights from that phone call:
- Trump railed against a slew of Democrats, the Trump-Russia investigators, Jeff Sessions, and insufficiently loyal Republicans. Trump then pivoted to coronavirus, saying "Our country is going back to work, we are opening up. It’s a much smarter enemy, much smarter, those folks, they are not in the same league."
- Trump spoke about former president Richard Nixon, saying: "I learned a lot from Richard Nixon: don’t fire people. I study history. And the firing of everybody - I should’ve in one way but I’m glad I didn’t, because look at the way it turned out, they’re all a bunch of crooks, and they got caught. But I learned a lot by watching Richard Nixon. Of course there was one difference, one big difference: number one, he may have been guilty, and number two, he had tapes all over the place. I wasn’t guilty, I did nothing wrong and there are no tapes. But I wish there were tapes in my case. But learned a lot from Richard Nixon, and you don't do that. The one person I did a very good thing in firing was the dirty cop, Comey, and when I fired him the whole thing blew up. They were ratting on each other, they were going crazy. It was like throwing a rock at a hornet's nest."
News surfaced that one of Pence's staffers tested positive for coronavirus. During a press briefing the White House, press secretary Kaleigh McEnany made the following comment: "The FBI exists to investigate crimes but in the case of Michael Flynn it seems they might have existed to manufacture one." A physical version of the Trump Death Clock has gone live in Times Square. The clock is a large digital billboard that displays the number of deaths due to coronavirus that epidemiologists claim are a product of government inaction, or roughly 60% of the total. Trump predicted a new death estimate from coronavirus saying that "We may be talking about 95,000 people ultimately, we may be talking about something more than that." Trump responded to news that a Pence aide tested positive for coronavirus with this statement: "Katie tested very good for a long period of time, and then all of the sudden she tested positive ... this is why the whole concept of tests aren't necessarily great ... today, I guess, for some reason, she tested positive." Katie, is Katie Miller, Pence's press secretary, and wife to White House adviser Stephen Miller. According to a story in the New York Times "Sheryl Gay Stolberg reports that the lawyers, Debra S. Katz and Lisa J. Banks, said in a statement that they were notified late Thursday afternoon that the Office of Special Counsel, which protects whistle-blowers, had 'made a threshold determination' that the Department of Health and Human Services 'violated the Whistleblower Protection Act by removing Dr. Bright from his position because he made protected disclosures in the best interest of the American public.' The finding comes just days after the lawyers filed a whistle-blower complaint saying that Dr. Bright’s removal last month as head of the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority was intended as payback. They said Dr. Bright, who was reassigned to a narrower job at the National Institutes for Health, had tried to expose 'cronyism' and corruption at the Department of Health and Human Services while pressing for a more robust virus response and opposing the stockpiling of anti-malaria drugs championed by President Trump." While talking to Republican lawmakers, Trump claimed the coronavirus "will go away without a vaccine ... [viruses] die too, like everything else". Bill Barr, the attorney general, was interviewed by CBS News and was asked "How will history look back on your decision to drop charges against Flynn?" Barr's response: "Well, history is written by the winners. So it largely depends on who's writing the history." House Judiciary Committee Democrats have called on the Justice department's inspector general to investigate Bill Barr regarding his decision to drop the prosecution of Michael Flynn. From their statement: "By itself, the decision to dismiss charges against Mr. Flynn would smack of corruption and unacceptable political influence in an ongoing criminal matter: President Trump tweeted in defense of his former advisor, and one week later Mr. Flynn is poised to walk free. But this is hardly the first time that Attorney General Barr has appeared to reach into an ongoing criminal case to do the President’s political bidding." According to the AP, a decision to shelve reopening guidance came from the highest levels in the White House. According to the story: "A trove of emails show the nation’s top public health experts at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention spending weeks working on guidance to help the country deal with a public health emergency, only to see their work quashed by political appointees with little explanation. This new CDC guidance, a mix of advice already released along with newer information, had been approved and promoted by the highest levels of its leadership, including [Robert] Redfield. Despite this, the administration shelved it on April 30. According to the documents, CDC continued inquiring for days about the guidance that officials had hoped to post by Friday, May 1, the day Trump had targeted for reopening some businesses, according to a source who was granted anonymity because they were not permitted to speak to the press ... On April 24, Redfield again emailed the guidance documents to Birx and Grogan, according to a copy viewed by The AP. Redfield asked Birx and Grogan for their review so that the CDC could post the guidance publicly. Attached to Redfield’s email were the guidance documents and the corresponding decision trees including one for meat packing plants. 'We plan to post these to CDC’s website once approved. Peace, God bless r3,' the director wrote. (Redfield’s initials are R.R.R.) Redfield’s comments contradict the White House assertion Thursday that it had not yet approved the guidelines because the CDC’s own leadership had not yet given them the green light."
May 7, 2020 - According to the AP, a report that was requested from the CDC by White House Task Force member Dr Deborah Birx, and which included detailed recommendations for how to reopen the US safely, has been shelved by political leaders in the Trump administration because it is considered too cautious. From the story: "The 17-page report by a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention team, titled ‘Guidance for Implementing the Opening Up America Again Framework,’ was researched and written to help faith leaders, business owners, educators and state and local officials as they begin to reopen. It was supposed to be published last Friday, but agency scientists were told the guidance ‘would never see the light of day,’ according to a CDC official. ... The rejected reopening guidance was described by one of the federal officials as a touchstone document that was to be used as a blueprint for other groups inside the CDC who are creating the same type of instructional materials for other facilities. The guidance contained detailed advice for making site-specific decisions related to reopening schools, restaurants, summer camps, churches, day care centers and other institutions. It had been widely shared within the CDC and included detailed 'decision trees,' flow charts to be used by local officials to think through different scenarios." According to CNN, one of Trump's personal valets has tested positive for coronavirus. According to the Daily Beast, one study being used by the coronavirus task force shows that two more weeks of social distancing could prevent hundreds of thousands of infections. From the story: "The study, which was put together by PolicyLab at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, is in the hands of top coronavirus task force officials and people working with the team, sources confirmed to The Daily Beast. It projects that if officials move too quickly and too aggressively to reopen in mid May, individual counties could witness hundreds, if not a thousand-plus, more coronavirus cases reported each day by August 1. Just two weeks more social distancing, the study projects, could reduce infections substantially—with potentially hundreds of thousands of fewer cases if the projections are conservatively expanded out to all 3,000-plus counties across the country." House minority leader Kevin McCarthy announced the formation of a Republican task force to investigate China regarding coronavirus saying "We have learned more about Covid and one thing has become very clear: China’s cover-up directly led to this crisis. The Communist Party of China hid the seriousness of this disease, led a propaganda campaign blaming the US, used their supplies to exert influence and continue to refuse international experts to investigate what happened". Andrew Cuomo, the governor of New York called out the "absurd argument" of weighing an increased death toll from coronavirus against reopening the US economy. According to Cuomo: "People are talking about, we should reopen the economy it’s more important than public health ... and that’s the underlying argument and discussion that you hear going on right now ... to say we either have to have a strong economy or protect public health, no, that’s a false choice. It’s not one or the other, it’s both. We have to reopen, get the economy running and we have to protect public health. This is not a situation where you can go to the American people and say ‘how many lives are you willing to lose to reopen the economy?’ ... you start to hear what, to me, are these absurd arguments ‘if we reopen people will die but people were going to die anyway’ ... that is not a justification in my mind." Trump reportedly told aides that wearing a mask would "send the wrong message". According to the Washington Post, the Trump administration has asked the Supreme Court to temporarily block an appeals court ruling requiring the justice department hand over to Congress certain grand jury material from special counsel Robert Mueller's Russia investigation. From the story: "The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit in March cleared the way for Congress to access secret evidence from Mueller’s investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election in one of a set of separation-of-powers lawsuits between House Democrats and the Trump administration. Solicitor General Noel Francisco told the Supreme Court on Thursday that if it does not put the order on hold, ‘the government will have to disclose those materials on May 11, 2020, which would irrevocably lift their secrecy and possibly frustrate the government’s ability to seek further review.’" Following the release of cell-phone video, Gregory McMichael and his son Travis, were arrested for the killing of Ahmaud Arbery. Arbery, who is African American, was killed by the younger McMichael while jogging in Brunswick, Georgia. The killing, which occurred on 23 February, is being called by many a modern day lynching. A few notable concerns about current efforts to loosen lock-downs against coronavirus:
"Were risking a backslide that will be intolerable" - Ian Lipkin of Columbia University's Center for Infection and Immunity
"If we relax these measures without having the proper public health safeguards in place, we can expect many more cases and, unfortunately, more deaths" - Josh Michaud, associaye director of global health policy with the Kaiser Family Foundation in Washington
"It’s clear to me that we are in a critical moment of this fight. We risk complacency and accepting the preventable deaths of 2,000 Americans each day" - Caitlin Rivers, epidemiologist at Johns Hopkins
News surfaced that the justice department is dropping criminal charges against Michael Flynn, Trump's former national security adviser, who admitted lying to the FBI in 2017 about his interactions with the Russian ambassador to the US. Some notable reactions to the DOJ move in the Flynn case:
"This is outrageous! Flynn PLEADED GUILTY to lying to investigators. The evidence against him is overwhelming. Now, a politicized DOJ is dropping the case. The decision to overrule the special counsel is without precedent and warrants an immediate explanation." - Jerry Nadler, House judiciary committee chair
"Flynn case dropped! Justice for the General. Now it’s time to hold someone accountable." - Jim Jordan, Republican
"He was targeted by the Obama administration, and he was targeted in order to try to take down a president, and what they've done is a disgrace, and I hope a big price is gonna be paid, a big price should be paid. There's never been anything like this in the history of our country. What they did, what the Obama administration did, is unprecedented. Its never happened. Never happened. A thing like this has never happened before, in the history of our country, and I hope a lot of people are going to pay a big price because they’re dishonest, crooked people. They’re scum, and I say it a lot. They're scum. They’re human scum." - Donald Trump
Trump was asked about his personal valet testing positive for coronavirus. Trump's response: "It just shows you the fallacy – what I’ve been saying, testing is not a perfect art. No matter what you do, testing is not a perfect art.
May 6, 2020 - Trump announced via twitter that the coronavirus task force will "continue on indefinitely with its focus on SAFETY & OPENING UP OUR COUNTRY AGAIN". According to the ADP Research Institute, US companies lost more than 20 million jobs in April. During an interview with MSNBC, Nancy Pelosi insisted that Trump should follow the scientific guidance of experts to determine when the country should start to reopen, rather than "cheering people on, going with guns and swastikas to the Michigan legislature and saying these are really good people." Trump acknowledged today that his administration will continue with legal efforts to invalidate Obamacare, despite concerns that the pending case could further destabilize the healthcare system amid a global pandemic. According to Axios: "A senior administration official said he expects the president to begin publicly questioning the death toll as it closes in on his predictions for the final death count and damages him politically." Dr Deborah Birx and Dr Anthony Fauci were asked about Fox News Host Tucker Carlson's suggestion last month that pneumonia deaths were being miscounted as coronavirus deaths, and other Fox commentators who had suggested that some coronavirus patients had actually died of their preexisting conditions. Birx responded with "Those individuals will have an underlying condition, but that underlying condition did not cause their acute death when it’s related to a covid infection. In fact, it’s the opposite." Fauci responded with "You will always have conspiracy theories when you have a very challenging public health crisis. They are nothing but distractions. Let somebody write a book about it later on. But not now." The Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of Pennsylvania governor Tom Wolf's shutdown order in Friends of Danny Devito et al. v. Wolf, Gov. of PA et al. Trump was asked about Dr Rick Bright, the vaccine expert who was demoted for refusing to promote hydroxychloroquine as a potential coronavirus treatment. Trump responded: "I never met him, I know nothing about him, but he’s a disgruntled guy. And I don’t think disgruntled people should be working for a certain administration." News surfaced that Gerald Fauth, an appointee on the National Mediation Board, and brother-in-law to Republican Senator Richard Burr, dumped between $97,000 and $280,000 in stock right before the stock market fell due to the coronavirus crisis. Kayleigh McEnany, the White House press secretary, held her second briefing. Here are some highlights:
- McEnany denied reports that Trump believes the coronavirus death toll has been exaggerated.
- McEnany defended Trump's decision to block Fauci from testifying before the House saying he made the move to prevent officials from taking questions from a "bunch of Trump haters" and that "We don't have time in the middle of a pandemic for publicity stunts."
- McEnany was asked about her comment in February that "We will not see diseases like the coronavirus come here. And isn’t it refreshing when contrasting it with the awful presidency of President Obama?" McEnany responded by citing some headlines from news outlets that she said downplayed the pandemic. McEnany then left the briefing room without taking any more questions.
May 5, 2020 - The US now has 1,200,000 confirmed cases of covid-19. Confirmed deaths from covid-19 stand at 68,934. Rick Wilson, a former Republican strategist, offered the following criticism of the Trump Administration: "They’ve decided in a very utilitarian kind of way that the political damage from a collapsed economy is greater than the political damage from losing as many as 90,000 more Americans just in June. We’re witnessing the full-scale application of a kind of grisly realpolitik that is a clear willingness to trade lives for the Dow Jones." John Ratcliffe, Republican congressman, is testifying before the Senate intelligence committee after being nominated to become the next director of national intelligence. Highlights from Ratclicffe's testimony:
- Mark Warner, top Democrat on the committee stated: "I don’t see what has changed since last summer when the president decided not to proceed with your nomination over concerns about your inexperience, partisanship and past statements that seemed to embellish your record."
- Ratcliffe stated regarding Russian interference in the 2016 election: "They may have been successful in [sowing discord], but they have not been successful in changing votes or the outcome of any election." Note: It is not known whether the disinformation campaign made the difference in Trump's victory.
Trump was asked why he won't let Fauci testify before the House. Trump's response: "Because the House is a set up. The House is a bunch of Trump haters ... they, frankly, want our situation to be unsuccessful, which means death." Trump told reporters before boarding Air Force One that "We did everything right, but now it’s time to go back to work." According to the Washington Post, a volunteer for Jared Kushner's coronavirus response effort filed a complaint with the House oversight committee. According to the story: "The document alleges that the team responsible for PPE had little success in helping the government secure such equipment, in part because none of the team’s members had significant experience in health care, procurement or supply-chain operations. In addition, none of the volunteers had existing relationships with manufacturers or a clear understanding of customs requirements or Food and Drug Administration rules, according to the complaint and two senior administration officials." As new cases of coronavirus continue to rise, the New York Times is reporting that the White House is looking to wind down the coronavirus task force in the coming weeks. During an interview with CBS News, Anthony Fauci was asked about news that the task force is winding down to which he replied "That's not true. I’ve been in every task force meeting, and that’s not what they are doing." Mike Pence was asked about the news the task force is winding down. Pence responded: "We're having conversations about that ... I think we’re starting to look at the Memorial Day window, early June window as a time when we could begin to transition back to having our agencies begin to manage -- begin to manage our national response in a more traditional manner." The contradicting answers from Pence and Fauci have raised concerns that the government's top infectious disease expert may not be entirely in the loop on what the administration is doing, and intensifies existing concerns that the Trump administration is sidelining health experts while it increasingly focuses on reopening the US economy. According to the AP, Dr Rick Bright, the former director of Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority, who was demoted for refusing to promote hydroxychloroquine, has officially filed a whistleblower complaint. From the story: "Bright also said the Trump administration rejected his warnings on COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus. Bright said he ‘acted with urgency’ to address the growing spread of COVID-19 after the World Health Organization issued a warning in January. He said he ‘encountered resistance from HHS leadership, including Health and Human Services Secretary (Alex) Azar, who appeared intent on downplaying this catastrophic event.’ Bright alleges in the complaint that political appointees at the Department of Health and Human Services had tried to promote hydroxychloroquine ‘as a panacea.’ The officials also ‘demanded that New York and New Jersey be ‘flooded’ with these drugs, which were imported from factories in Pakistan and India that had not been inspected by the FDA,’ the complaint says. But Bright opposed broad use of the drug, arguing the scientific evidence wasn’t there to back up its use in coronavirus patients. He felt an urgent need to tell the public that there wasn’t enough scientific evidence to support using the drugs for COVID-19 patients, the complaint states." After Trump landed in Arizona, he told the press that it is time to reopen businesses, followed with: "Will some people be affected? Yes. Will some people be affected badly? Yes. But we have to get our country open and we have to get it open soon ... I’m viewing our great citizens of this country to a certain extent and to a large extent as warriors." An opinion piece in the Guardian by Francine Prose asks if Americans will ever be able to forgive Trump for his heartless lack of compassion. From the piece: "One’s heart goes out to the reporters who have sifted through the Donald Trump’s press briefings on the current pandemic – hour after hour of bombast, self-promotion, vitriol, lies and recklessly unscientific speculation – for any evidence of sympathy for those who are in pain. It’s hardly a shock to learn that our president’s expressions of care and compassion have occupied a total of less than five minutes, out of all that time. After all, a man who mocked a disabled journalist and boasted about grabbing women wasn’t elected for the depths of his kindness and the purity of his moral conscience. And it seems unrealistically optimistic to have hoped that the extremity of this crisis should have inspired, in our leader, a deep and essential change of heart." Trump sat down with David Muir of ABC News, here are some highlights from that interview:
- Regarding the decision to reopen Trump said "Will some people be affected? Yes. Will some people be affected badly? Yes. But we have to get our country open and we have to get it open soon."
- Trump claimed "Don't forget, the cupboard was bare, the other administration, the last administration left us nothing. We didn't have ventilators, we didn't have medical equipment, we didn't have testing, the tests were broken, you saw that. We had broken tests. They left us nothing. And we've taken it, and we've built an incredible stockpile. A stockpile like we've never had before." Fact Check: The novel coronavirus did not exist during the Obama administration, and therefore, there were no tests for the Trump administration to inherit from the Obama administration.
- David Muir asked Trump "What did you do when you became president to re-stock those cupboards that you say were bare?" Trump's response: "Well, I'll be honest, I have a lot of things going on. We had a lot of people that refused to allow the country to be successful. They wasted a lot of time on Russia Russia Russia. That turned out to be a total hoax. Then they did Ukraine Ukraine and that was a total hoax. Then they impeached the president of the United States for absolutely no reason."
May 4, 2020 - The US now has 1,157,875 confirmed cases of covid-19. Confirmed deaths from covid-19 stand at 67,677. Donald Trump sent the following tweet: "'Concast' should open up a long overdue Florida Cold Case against Psycho Joe Scarborough. I know him and Crazy Mika well, used them beautifully in the last Election, dumped them nicely, and will state on the record that he is 'nuts'. Besides, bad ratings! #OPENJOECOLDCASE". Donald Trump retweeted a tweet posted by David J Harris Jr, an African American conservative, with a headline of "Evidence has surfaced that indicates Barack Obama was the one running the Russian hoax." The accompanying story opens with: "In the new releases it appears to be saying that Operation Hurricane was being run from the Oval Office. This would be huge if true." Don Lemon, of CNN, responded to Trump's retweet on his show saying: "In a time when we need leadership, when we need compassion, this is the crap that you're peddling? Conspiracy theories? ... What is it about President Obama that really gets under your skin? Is it because he’s smarter than you? Better-educated? Made it on his own, didn’t need daddy's help? Wife is more accomplished? Better looking? I don’t know, what is it, what is it about him? That he's a black man that's accomplished being president? That he punked you on the whole birth certificate thing? What is it about him? Just wondering." According to the New York Times: "[The Trump administration] is privately projecting a steady rise in the number of cases and deaths from coronavirus over the next several weeks, reaching about 3,000 daily deaths on June 1, according to an internal document obtained by The New York Times, nearly double from the current level of about 1,750. The projections, based on modeling by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and pulled together in chart form by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, forecast about 200,000 new cases each day by the end of the month, up from about 25,000 cases now. The numbers underscore a sobering reality: While the United States has been hunkered down for the past seven weeks, not much has changed. And the reopening to the economy will make matters worse." The Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington (IHME) has revised their modeling, and now predicts at least 134,000 deaths from covid-19 by early August. Calvin Munerlyn, a security guard at a Flint, Michigan Family Dollar store was fatally shot after telling a woman that she could not enter the store without wearing a mask. Three individuals have been arrested for the shooting. One notable response to the murder of Calvin Munerlyn:
"Top officials are refusing to wear masks. Gun extremists and white supremacists are fomenting outrage over stay-at-home orders. There are 400M+ guns in the hands of civilians. And Calvin Munerlyn was a Black man. This is a tragic, but logical, outcome of COVID-19 in America." - Shannon Watts
May 2, 2020 - The US now has 1,103,615 confirmed cases of covid-19. Confirmed deaths from covid-19 stand at 65,063. Note: The transgressions timeline has switched from using covidtracking.com for covid-19 numbers to instead use figures from Johns Hopkins University in Maryland. One sign at an anti-lockdown protest in Chicago inspired condemnation from the Auschwitz memorial. The sign contained the phrase "Arbeit macht frei, JB". JB refers to JB Pritzker, the governor of Illinois, who is Jewish, and the German phrase translates to "work sets you free", which was the Nazi slogan displayed above the entrance of the Auschwitz concentration camp, where 1.1 million men, women and children were murdered. The Aushwitz memorial tweeted: "Arbeit macht frei’ was a false, cynical illusion the SS gave to prisoners of Auschwitz. Those words became one of the icons of human hatred. It’s painful to see this symbol instrumentalised and used again to spread hate. It’s a symptom of moral and intellectual degeneration." John Roberts, a Fox News reporter sent the following tweet: "A Senior Intelligence Source tells me there is agreement among most of the 17 Intelligence agencies that COVID-19 originated in the Wuhan lab. The source stressed that the release is believed to be a MISTAKE, and was not intentional." According to CNN, Michael Caputo, a spokesman for the Department of Health and Human Services, and staunch ally of Donald Trump, sent multiple sexist and derogatory tweets over the last few years, and has since deleted them. According to the story, Caputo called multiple women "dogface" and told another to "go f**k yourself".
May 1, 2020 - The US now has 1,097,064 confirmed cases of covid-19. Confirmed deaths from covid-19 stand at 59,059. Georgia is lifting its statewide shelter-in-place order today. According to Politico, testing capacity is so low, even the Capitol's attending physician doesn't have enough tests for all the US senators. From the story: "The Capitol’s attending physician said Thursday that coronavirus tests will be available for staffers and senators who are ill, but not enough to proactively test all 100 senators as the chamber comes back in session, according to two people familiar with the matter." Trump sent the following tweet regarding the armed protesters in Michigan: "The Governor of Michigan should give a little, and put out the fire. These are very good people, but they are angry. They want their lives back again, safely! See them, talk to them, make a deal." Governor Whitmer responded to Trump's statements saying in part: "We’re not in a political crisis where we should just negotiate and find some common ground here. We’re in a public health crisis. We’re in the midst of a global pandemic that has already killed almost 4,000 people in our state." Whitmer also said that she will continue to listen to public health experts, "not to pollsters and not to people with political agendas." Joe Biden, the Democratic nominee for president, released a statement denying sexual misconduct allegations by Tara Reade. Senior White House adviser Kellyanne Conway criticized Biden't statement by accusing Biden of applying a different standard to himself than he has for other politicians. a Few select responses to Biden's statement, and Kelly Anne Conway's criticism:
"A spokesperson for the first president in modern history to refuse to release his tax returns and who demanded that numerous women sign non-disclosure agreements making a case for Joe Biden to be more transparent is pretty rich" - Aaron Rupar
"Today, Vice President Joe Biden sat down and directly addressed the allegation against him with the seriousness it deserves, something that the current president has never done" - Tina Tchen, President and CEO of TIME's UP Now
According to the Guardian: "Scientists working for the US military have designed a new Covid-19 test that could potentially identify carriers before they become infectious and spread the disease ... 'The concept fills a diagnostic gap worldwide,' the head of Darpa’s biological technologies office, Dr Brad Ringeisen, told the Guardian, since it should also fill in testing gaps at later stages of the infection. If given FDA approval, he said, it had the potential to be 'absolutely a gamechanger'". According to ABC News, Michael Cohen, Trump's former lawyer/fixer and convicted felon, received a letter from a lawyers representing the Trump Organization demanding that he halt writing a "tell-all book" about his time working fro Trump. According to the story: "Charles Harder, the attorney representing the company, writes that Cohen signed a non-disclosure agreement when he joined the Trump Organization and thus it would prohibit him from disclosing certain information about the president, his family and the company." In response to Trump's claim that he has seen evidence that the coronavirus was created in a Chinese government lab, Michael J Ryan, the WHO executive director stated: "We have listened again and again to numerous scientists who looked at the sequences and looked at this virus and we are assured that this virus is natural in origin" Kaleigh McEnany, the new White House press secretary, held a press briefing, making this the first formal press briefing by a press secretary in more than a year. Some highlights from the press briefing:
- McEnany told the gathered reporters: "I will never lie to you. You have my word on that."
- McEnany said the sexual misconduct allegations against Brett Kavanaugh were a "grave miscarriage of justice" and were "salacious, awful and verifiably false."
- After being asked about the dozens of women that have accused Trump of sexual misconduct, McEnany accused the media of unnecessarily resurrecting a years-old issue saying "The president has swiftly denied all of these allegations that were raised four years ago" and that questions about the allegations were "asked and answered in the form of the vote of the American people."
- McEnany said the FBI's handling of Michael Flynn "should scare every American". Note: Flynn plead guilty to lying to investigators about his contact with the former Russian ambassador to the US.
- McEnany presented a misleading and in some cases false account of WHO's record as the pandemic unfolded. Here's a fact check from the Guardian's world affairs editor Julian Borger:
McEnany: "On December 31 you had Taiwanese officials warning about human-to-human transmission and WHO did not make that public."
Borger: "The 31 Dec email did not warn about human-to-human transmission but noted Wuhan reports about a pneumonia cluster and asked for further info"
McEnany: "On January 9, the WHO repeated China's claim that the virus does not transmit readily between people."
Borger: "In an initial statement reporting a novel coronavirus, the WHO reported the Chinese initial assessment on transmission but added more information was needed. On Jan 10, the WHO circulated technical guidance to national health authorities, US included, urging precautions against possible H2H transmission."
McEnany: "On January 14, WHO again repeated China's talking points about human to human transmission."
Borger: "On 14 Jan, WHO's (American) technical lead, @mvankerkhove briefed that while there was evidence of limited H2H, there was a "possibility of super-spreading events. On Jan 14, to balance Van Kherkove's warnings, WHO put out a tweet noting preliminary Chinese studies found no clear evidence of H2H. It was factually correct, but was considered a mistake by some WHO officials, giving prominence to a dubious finding."
McEnany: "On 22 and 23 Jan, they said - this is incredible - the pandemic didn't represent a public health emergency of international concern."
Borger: "On 22/23 Jan, the Emergency Committee (of 15 experts from around the world), was split on whether to advise calling a PHEIC. At the time there were 4 cases outside China and no fatalities. A PHEIC decision was put off pending new info. The Emergency Cttee called for a PHEIC on 30/1. In hindsight, the PHEIC should have been declared on 22/1, but the evidence was hazy, and the experts were divided."
McEnany: "On Feb 29, you had the WHO...- when the coronavirus was spreading around the world - they chose political correctness first by opposing life saving travel restrictions."
Borger: "On Feb 29, the WHO recommended against travel restrictions, saying 'evidence shows that restricting the movement of people and goods during public health emergencies is ineffective in most situations and may divert resources from other interventions.' The advice largely reflected the sense of the current International Health Regulations, which the US took a lead role in framing in 2005. The seriousness of the US outbreak suggests the Trump travel restrictions were not decisive, certainly in absence of other measures."
McEnany also accused the WHO of praising "China's leadership on the 22nd and 23rd" of January, but failed to mention that Trump himself did the same thing on January 24th.
According to the Guardian: "A coalition of states is suing the Trump administration’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) over its so-called 'dirty water rule,' which eliminates legal protections for hundreds of thousands of streams, creeks and wetlands across the country." Gavin Newsom, the governor of California was asked for his response to protesters in his state who are calling him a tyrant and a fascist. Newsom's response: "All I ask for is: Take care of yourself. Wear a face covering. Do justice to physical distancing. You don’t want to contract this disease." The House appropriations committee confirmed to the Washington Post that a request had been made to have Anthony Fauci appear on May 6th, but the White House is blocking his testimony. The White House confirmed this in a statement which read in part: "While the Trump administration continues its whole-of-government response to Covid-19, including safely opening up America again and expediting vaccine development, it is counter-productive to have the very individuals involved in those efforts appearing at congressional hearings. We are committed to working with Congress to offer testimony at the appropriate time." Donald Trump sent the following tweet regarding mail-in-ballots: "Don't allow RIGGED ELECTIONS!" Note: According to the Guardian "There is no evidence of widespread voting fraud. The non-partisan Brennan Center for Justice found in 2017 that the risk of voting fraud is between 0.00004% and 0.0009%. Moreover, Trump’s own voting integrity commission found no evidence to support claims of widespread fraud." The White House ousted Christi Grimm, the IG of the Department of Health and Human Services, who had recently authored a report regarding shortages of health equipment. Grimm is the fourth government watchdog to be ousted by the Trump administration in recent weeks.
April 30, 2020 - The US now has 1,063,842 confirmed cases of covid-19. Confirmed deaths from covid-19 stand at 57,320. Donald Trump sent the following tweet: "What happened to General Michael Flynn, a war hero, should never be allowed to happen to a citizen of the United States again!" Donald Trump Jr sent the following tweet: "Not only should general Flynn’s charges be dropped immediately but the treasonous actors who set him up should be in jail!!!" Trump claimed during a White House interview that he was looking into consequences for Beijing over the coronavirus. He also claimed "China will do anything they can to have me lose this race." Anthony Fauci confirmed that he is part of a secretive team rushing to develop a vaccine for coronavirus called Operation Warp Speed. Roger Stone, confidant of Donald Trump and convicted felon, filed notice that he is appealing his conviction. Trump sent the following tweet: "Does anybody really believe that Roger Stone, a man whose house was raided early in the morning by 29 gun toting FBI Agents (with Fake News @CNN closely in toe), was treated fairly. How about the jury forewoman with her unannounced hatred & bias. Same scammers as General Flynn!" The office of the director of national intelligence released a statement saying "The Intelligence Community also concurs with the wide scientific consensus that the COVID-19 virus was not manmade or genetically modified ... The IC will continue to rigorously examine emerging information and intelligence to determine whether the outbreak began through contact with infected animals or if it was the result of an accident at a laboratory in Wuhan." Trump was asked about his administration's response to the pandemic to which he responded: "I think our whole group has been spectacular." Trump was also asked this question by CNN's Jim Acosta: "You say you had "broken tests" from Obama -- the coronavirus is a new virus, so how could the tests be broken?" Trump's response: "We have broken tests. We had tests that were obsolete. We had tests that didn't take care of people." Democratic congressman Ted Lieu responded to Trump's "broken tests" claim saying on twitter: "Dear @realDonaldTrump: It was YOUR Administration that created the #COVID__19 test. First version failed. That’s why tests were 'broken.' Because your Administration screwed up. Stop making up stuff. You are the President. Act like it. Accept responsibility for your mistakes." Protests erupted at the Michigan capitol today, with many of the protesters not wearing masks, carrying assault rifles, and sporting Donald Trump paraphernalia. Some of the protesters attempted to enter the floor of the legislative chamber, but were held back by a line of state police. Many of the armed protesters chanted "Let us in!" along with anti-government slogans, including comparing the state's Democratic governor, Gretchen Whitmer, to Hitler. Spotted in the crowd were swastikas, Confederate flags, nooses and assault weapons. Michigan Republican legislators pushed to end the stay-at-home declaration. Whitmer ended the original declaration, then issued another order extending the stay-at-home date to May 28. Mike Pence made the following statements about former national security adviser, and convicted felon, Gen. Michael Flynn: "I think Gen. Michael Flynn is a patriotic American who served with great distinction in the armed forces. I’m deeply troubled by the revelations of what appears to have been investigative abuse by officials in the Justice Department and we are going to continue to look into that very carefully." Note: Flynn plead guilty to lying to the FBI about his contacts with the Russian ambassador to the US. During a proclamation declaring May as Older Americans Month, Trump took credit for Veterans Choice legislation that was signed into law by Obama in 2014. Trump was asked about the statement from the office of the DNI regarding the origins of the coronavirus, Trump responded that he's confident the virus originated from the Wuhan Institute of Virology. When asked what evidence he had seen, Trump responded: "I can’t tell you that. I’m not allowed to tell you that."
April 29, 2020 - The US now has 1,034,474 confirmed cases of covid-19. Confirmed deaths from covid-19 stand at 55,182. According to a PBS NewsHour/NPR/Marist poll, only 14% of Americans think it's a good idea for students to return to schools without further coronavirus testing. 8% felt the same way about large groups of people attending sporting events. The longest economic expansion in US history officially came to a close when the commerce department announced that the economy shrank 4.8% in the 1st quarter of this year. According to NBC News, Trump has instructed US intelligence agencies to investigate whether China or the World Health Organization concealed early information about coronavirus. From the story: "As part of the tasking, intelligence agencies were asked to determine what the WHO knew about two research labs studying coronaviruses in the Chinese city of Wuhan, where the virus was first observed. NBC News has previously reported that the spy agencies have been investigating the possibility that the virus escaped accidentally from one of the labs, although many experts believe that is unlikely." During an interview with Fox News, Jared Kushner, Trump's son-in-law, and senior adviser, said of the federal government's response to coronavirus: "We’re on the other side of the medical aspect of this. The federal government rose to the challenge, and this is a great success story, and I think that’s really what needs to be told." A federal appeals court has ruled that a 2013 Kansas law that required residents to prove their citizenship when registering to vote is illegal and unconstitutional. Before the law was initially blocked by a lower court in 2016, 30,000 were prevented from registering to vote. The law was championed by Kris Kobach, the former Kansas secretary of state, and chair of Donald Trump's voter fraud commission. Dale Ho, the director of the ACLU's voting rights project reacted to the ruling saying "This law disenfranchised tens of thousands of Kansans, denying them the most fundamental right in our democracy ... We are gratified the court struck it down, and now call upon Kansas Secretary of State Scott Schwab to turn the page on Kris Kobach’s sorry legacy of voter suppression, drop any further appeals, and work with us collaboratively in the interests of all Kansas voters." Anthony Fauci told reporters that the drug remdesivir provided a "clear-cut positive effect in diminishing time to recover" from covid-19. Vice president Mike Pence claimed that "We expect by next month very quickly to be at a capacity to do more than 2 million tests a week." A new study found that demand for the anti-malaria drug hydroxychloroquine surged by more than 1,000% after Trump endorsed it as a potential treatment for covid-19. Highlights from Trump's meeting with industry executives:
- Trump claimed that municipalities that prevent their law enforcement from cooperating with immigration authorities shouldn't get federal coronavirus aid saying "I don’t see protecting cities and states if they’re going to be sanctuaries."
- Trump said "If you don’t have a vaccine, if the virus is gone, you’re like where we were before ... It’s gonna go, it’s gonna leave. It’s gonna be eradicated."
- Trump stated "Hopefully in the not too distant future we’ll have some massive rallies and people will be sitting next to each other. I can’t imagine a rally where you have every fourth seat full, every six seats are empty for everyone you have full. That wouldn’t look too good."
April 28, 2020 - The US now has 1,007,288 confirmed cases of covid-19. Confirmed deaths from covid-19 stand at 52,482. Donald Trump sent the following tweet: "We are doing far more, and better, Testing than any other country in the world, and yet the media does nothing but complain. No matter how good a job is done, the same as with the Ventilators, they will never say we are doing a great job, they will only viciously gripe!" Fact Check: The US has not done more tests per capita. Testing is improving in the US, but health experts say it needs to get much better before the economy can properly reopen. A model often cited by the White House from the University of Washington, now projects that as many as 74,000 Americans will die of coronavirus by August 4th. This is up from the 67,000 predicted a week ago, in part due to signs of increasing activity among Americans. Vice President Mike Pence toured the Mayo Clinic facilities in Minnesota. Footage of his visit shows that he was the only one without a face covering, thus ignoring mask guidelines in the facility. The Mayo Clinic released a statement that "Mayo Clinic had informed @VP of the masking policy prior to his arrival today." Democratic senator Brian Schatz tweeted the following in response to Mayogate: "When you don't wear a mask, especially inside the Mayo Clinic, you are not being brave. You are showing that you think the rules don't apply to you. And you are setting a dangerous example by ignoring experts." Trump met with small business owners today where he once again falsely claimed that his daughter Ivanka Trump has created 15 million American jobs. For perspective, there were are about 152 million Americans employed in January, so 15 million would represent about 10% of all US jobs. Trump also claimed that he was optimistic about a coronavirus vaccine, then added "But I think what happens is, it’s going to go away. This is going to go away. And whether it comes back in a modified form in the fall, we’ll be able to handle it. We’ll be able to put out spurts. And we’re very prepared to handle it." Anthony Fauci was asked on CNN when everyone who needs a test can get a test, to which he replied "hopefully we should see that as we get to the end of May and beginning of June." A new Pew Research Center survey found that 70% of Americans are at least "somewhat" in favor of allowing voters to vote by mail. Highlights from today's coronavirus press briefing:
- Trump was asked about warnings he received regarding the virus in his Presidential Daily Briefing (PDB) in January and February, to which he responded that he "would have to check" the dates of the warnings. According to a story in the Washington Post: "U.S. intelligence agencies issued warnings about the novel coronavirus in more than a dozen classified briefings prepared for President Trump in January and February, months during which he continued to play down the threat, according to current and former U.S. officials. The repeated warnings were conveyed in issues of the President’s Daily Brief, a sensitive report that is produced before dawn each day and designed to call the president’s attention to the most significant global developments and security threats. For weeks, the PDB — as the report is known — traced the virus’s spread around the globe, made clear that China was suppressing information about the contagion’s transmissibility and lethal toll, and raised the prospect of dire political and economic consequences. But the alarms appear to have failed to register with the president, who routinely skips reading the PDB and has at times shown little patience for even the oral summary he takes two or three times per week, according to the officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss classified material."
- Trump was asked about a Harvard study recommending that the US be able to conduct 5m tests per day. Trump responded: "We are going to be there very soon. If you look at the numbers, it could be that we are getting very close." For perspective, the US has so far conducted 5.6 million tests since the beginning of the pandemic.
April 27, 2020 - The US now has 982,177 confirmed cases of covid-19. Confirmed deaths from covid-19 stand at 50,354. Georgia is set to reopen restaurants and cinemas today. Yanis Ben Amor, the executive director of the Center for Sustainable Development in the Earth Institute responded saying "I don’t think the US is ready, there are 50 states all at different points in their epidemic. We aren’t diagnosing enough people and if we don’t have a testing system in place it will flare up again badly. We just don’t have that testing system and as a human being I’m deeply concerned about the consequences for people who think their governor is saying it’s safe now." Donald Trump retweeted this tweet written by John 'Muder Hornet' Cardillo: "Three failed coup attempts: 1 - Russia Collusion hoax during campaign 2 - Mueller's sham 3 - Illegitimate impeachment Do you really think these lunatics wouldn't inflate the mortality rates by underreporting the infection rates in an attempt to steal the election?" During a call with governors, Trump made the following comment: "Some of you might start thinking about school openings, because a lot of people are wanting to have school openings. It’s not a big subject, young children have done very well in this disaster that we’ve all gone through. So a lot of people are thinking about the school openings. And I think it’s something ... they can seriously consider and maybe get going on it." Lynette "Diamond" Hardaway and Rochelle "Silk" Richardson, two prominent African American supporters of Trump, have been removed from their slot at Fox News due to their "bonkers coronavirus claims". Here are some of the claims that have been made by "Diamond and Silk" on Fox News:
- The number of US coronavirus deaths has been inflated to make Trump look bad
- The disease was “man-made” and “engineered”
- That people should expose themselves to the virus by breaking lockdown
- That Bill Gates wants to develop vaccines in order to practice population control
- That 5G technology might be being used to infect people and fill up hospitals
Highlights from today's coronavirus task force briefing:
- Trump was asked if he takes any responsibility for reports of people ingesting disinfectant after he made his remarks. Trump responded: ""No, I don't."
- Trump made the following claims: "It could have been stopped and it could have been stopped faster but someone a long time ago decided not to do it that way ... We’re doing very serious investigations ... We are not happy with China ... We believe it could have been stopped at the source. It could have been stopped quickly and it wouldn’t have spread all over the world."
April 26, 2020 - The US now has 961,030 confirmed cases of covid-19. Confirmed deaths from covid-19 stand at 49,164. Dr Deborah Birx, Donald Trump's Coronavirus Response Coordinator, appeared on CNN where she was asked about Trump's disinfectant comments. Birx responded: "It bothers me that this is still in the news cycle. I worry that we don’t get the information to the American people that they need when we continue to bring up something that was from Thursday night." According to Politico, a new Republican party attack memo advises GOP candidates to aggressively target China in their public remarks on the pandemic. From the story: "The memo includes advice on everything from how to tie Democratic candidates to the Chinese government to how to deal with accusations of racism. It stresses three main lines of assault: That China caused the virus 'by covering it up,' that Democrats are 'soft on China,' and that Republicans will 'push for sanctions on China for its role in spreading this pandemic' ... The document urges candidates to stay relentlessly on message against the country when responding to any questions about the virus. When asked whether the spread of the coronavirus is Trump’s fault, candidates are advised to respond by pivoting to China." According to the AP, a Louisiana pastor held services today in defiance of house arrest oders. From the story: "A livestream from Life Tabernacle Church on Sunday showed Tony Spell walking among more than 100 congregants, often repeating the phrase, 'I’ve just got to get to Jesus. ... Come on America, let’s get back to Jesus.' Nearly all parishioners were not wearing face masks, and social distancing was not being practiced." Larry Hogan, Maryland's Republican governor, told CBS's Face the Nation audience that his state's covid-19 hotline received "hundreds of calls" following Trump's disinfectant comments. According to Hogan "[It’s] hard to imagine that people thought that [Trump’s comment] was serious". Kevin Hassett, the White House economic adviser, declared that unemployment levels could approach those seen during the Great Depression. Donald Trump sent the following unintentionally funny tweet: "When will all of the 'reporters' who have received Noble [sic] Prizes for their work on Russia, Russia, Russia, only to have been proven totally wrong (and, in fact, it was the other side who committed the crimes), be turning back their cherished 'Nobles' so that they can be given ....to the REAL REPORTERS & JOURNALISTS who got it right. I can give the Committee a very comprehensive list. When will the Noble Committee DEMAND the Prizes back, especially since they were gotten under fraud." After it was pointed out on twitter that there is no prize called the Noble, but there is a Nobel prize, and that the prize for good writing is a Pulitzer, Trump deleted his "Noble" tweets. During an appearance on NBC, Deborah Birx stated that "social distancing will be with us through the summer."
April 25, 2020 - The US now has 933,896 confirmed cases of covid-19. Confirmed deaths from covid-19 stand at 48,069. Global deaths now exceed 200,000. According to a story in the Guardian "The vast illegal wildlife trade and humanity’s excessive intrusion into nature is to blame for the coronavirus pandemic, according to a leading US scientist who says 'this is not nature's revenge, we did it to ourselves'. Scientists are discovering two to four new viruses are created every year as a result of human infringement on the natural world, and any one of those could turn into a pandemic, according to Thomas Lovejoy, who coined the term 'biological diversity' in 1980 and is often referred to as the godfather of biodiversity. 'This pandemic is the consequence of our persistent and excessive intrusion in nature and the vast illegal wildlife trade, and in particular, the wildlife markets, the wet markets, of south Asia and bush meat markets of Africa… It’s pretty obvious, it was just a matter of time before something like this was going to happen,' said Lovejoy, a senior fellow at the United Nations Foundation and professor of environment science at George Mason University." New York City's Poison Control Center has reported a doubling of calls regarding exposure to disinfectants since Trump's disinfectant comments two days ago. Dale Zorn, a Republican state senator from Michigan, apologized for wearing a facemask on the floor of the Michigan Senate that depicted the Confederate flag. When confronted about it yesterday, Zorn claimed "it was not a Confederate flag".
April 24, 2020 - The US now has 897,971 confirmed cases of covid-19. Confirmed deaths from covid-19 stand at 46,251. News surfaced that a few days before Trump peddled the idea that disinfectant could be used to treat covid-19, Mark Grenon, a man who identifies himself as the "archbishop" of a Florida-based outfit called Genesis II, which claims to be a church, wrote a letter to Trump about industrial bleach as a "miracle cure" for coronavirus. In Glenon's letter, he described how chlorine dioxide bleach, which he calls MMS or "miracle mineral solution", is "a wonderful detox that can kill 99% of the pathogens in the body". He also said that it "can rid the body of covid-19". Glenon has also been known to claim the solution can cure 99% of all illnesses, including cancer, malaria, HIV/Aids, as well as autism. Since the start of the pandemic, Genesis II has been marketing MMS as a cure for covid-19, and advises users, including children, to mix three to six drops of bleach in water and drink it. Ironically, just last week, the FDA obtained a federal court order barring Genesis II from selling MMS as "an unproven and potentially harmful treatment for covid-19", and ordered Kerri Rivera, a disciple of Genesis II, to remove false cure claims about MMS from her website. In addition, last August, the FDA issued an urgent warning urging Americans not to buy or drink MMS, which it described as a "dangerous bleach which has caused serious and potentially life-threatening side effects." Alan Keyes, a former ambassador and adviser to Ronald Reagan, has featured Genesis II bleach products as a miracle cure on his online conservative TV show, Let's Talk America. Bob Sisson, another conservative host, has also promoted MMS on his show, and in one show, held up two bottles of MMS and said: "Gonna meet Trump, it’s only a matter of time. President Trump’s gonna invite us up there, when he finds out about this stuff." Trump now claims he was only being "sarcastic" when he made his disinfectant remarks saying "I was asking a question just sarcastically, to reporters like you, just to see what would happen." Anderson Cooper of CNN responded to Trump's sarcasm claim saying "We have the president of the United States just lying, just there. He was lying about that, we witnessed him saying it yesterday to his own task force. We have the tape, we’re going to play it to you." According to Politico, Donald Trump "is tens of millions of dollars in debt to China." From the story: "In 2012, his real estate partner refinanced one of Trump’s most prized New York buildings for almost $1 billion. The debt includes $211 million from the state-owned Bank of China — its first loan of this kind in the U.S. — which matures in the middle of what could be Trump’s second term, financial records show." The Navy has confirmed that at least 18 members of the USS Kidd have tested positive for covid-19. According to the AP, the US Food and Drug Administration released an alert warning doctors against prescribing hydroxychloroquine. From the story: "The warning comes as doctors at a New York hospital published a report that heart rhythm abnormalities developed in most of 84 coronavirus patients treated with hydroxychloroquine and the antibiotic azithromycin, a combo Trump has promoted. Both drugs are known to sometimes alter the heartbeat in dangerous ways, and their safety or ability to help people with COVID-19 is unknown." Highlights from today's coronavirus task force briefing:
- Trump claimed that "Over the last three years we built the strongest economy and the most successful country the world has ever seen greatest economy, the world has ever seen. We will rebuild that economy, our economy in the not too distant future."
- Trump left abruptly without taking questions, leading many to believe he did not want to again address disinfectantgate.
April 23, 2020 - The US now has 863,726 confirmed cases of covid-19. Confirmed deaths from covid-19 stand at 44,409. According to a story in Reuters, Alex Azar, the US health and human services secretary, appointed Brian Harrison to oversee the department's daily response to coronavirus as the pandemic struck. From the story: "[A]t the dawn of the coronavirus crisis, Azar appointed his most trusted aide and chief of staff, Harrison, as HHS’s main coordinator for the government’s response to the virus. Harrison, 37, was an unusual choice, with no formal education in public health, management, or medicine and with only limited experience in the fields. In 2006, he joined HHS in a one-year stint as a ‘Confidential Assistant’ to Azar, who was then deputy secretary. He also had posts working for Vice President Dick Cheney, the Department of Defense and a Washington public relations company. Before joining the Trump Administration in January 2018, Harrison’s official HHS biography says, he ‘ran a small business in Texas.’ The biography does not disclose the name or nature of that business, but his personal financial disclosure forms show that from 2012 until 2018 he ran a company called Dallas Labradoodles." Gretchen Whitmer, Michigan's governor, addressed that state's stay-at-home protests, saying "The worst irony that could come about from these demonstrations is that they force us to stay in this posture longer than we’re already planning to. That’s the last thing any of us wants." According to a Fox News poll, 63% of Michigan voters approve of Whitmer's job performance, while 47% approve of Trump's performance. News surfaced that Trump's reversal regarding Georgia governor Kemp's reopening plan came about because the scientists on the coronavirus task force let Trump know that he would be asked about Kemp's plan, and that they would not be able to defend it publicly, which would pose a problem for the administration. According to CNN, a new spokesperson for the department of health and human services sent a series of racist tweets about Chinese people, which have now been deleted. According to the story "Michael Caputo, a longtime New York Republican political operative who worked on Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign, was appointed last week as Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs at HHS, a prominent communications role at the department which serves a central role in the federal government’s response to the coronavirus pandemic ... In a series of tweets on March 12, Caputo responded to a baseless conspiracy theory that the United States brought the coronavirus to Wuhan, China, by tweeting that 'millions of Chinese suck the blood out of rabid bats as an appetizer and eat the ass out of anteaters.' He followed up at another user, 'Don’t you have a bat to eat?'" An AP/NORC poll found that only 23% of Americans have a high level of trust in information about coronavirus that comes from Trump. Another 21% have a moderate amount of trust in Trump's information. Dr Rick Bright, the vaccine expert who claims to have been ousted because he challenged Trump's claims regarding hydroxychloroquine, is filing a whistleblower complaint against the government. The House voted today to create a select committee to review the distribution of coronavirus relief funds. Every Democrat voted yes, every Republican voted no. During an interview with Fox News, Mike Pence made this statement: "If you look at the trends today, I think by Memorial Day Weekend we will largely have this coronavirus epidemic behind us." Note: Memorial Day is May 25. The Clorox Company posted the following disclaimer on Clorox.com: "Bleach and other disinfectants are not suitable for consumption or injection under any circumstances. People should always read the label for proper usage instructions. Disinfecting surfaces with bleach and other disinfecting products is one of the ways to help stop the spread of COVID-19, according to the Centers for Disease Control. Our products are safe when used as directed. It’s critical that everyone understands the facts in order to keep themselves safe and healthy." Highlights from today's coronavirus task force briefing:
- Trump muses that "you won't even believe" how the virus reacts to sunlight, then says "Supposing you brought the light inside the body - either through the skin or some other way" and then said this while looking directly at Dr Deborah Birx: "And then I see the disinfectant, where it knocks it out in a minute. One minute! and is there a way we can do something like that by injection inside, or almost a cleaning. It gets in the lungs and it does a tremendous number, so it would be interesting to check that." Dr Birx looked very uncomfortable while Trump was stating this, and did not make eye contact with him, but instead stared straight ahead. Here are some select responses to Trump's disinfectant comment:
"Injecting disinfectant into your body will kill you. While it feels completely unnecessary to even say this, people drank fish tank cleaner containing chloroquine because of what they heard from rumors about the substance. We must fight deadly misinformation no matter how stupid." - Eugene Gu, MD
"As a physician, I can’t recommend injecting disinfectant into the lungs or using UV radiation inside the body to treat COVID-19. Don’t take medical advice from Trump." - Kashif Mahmood
"The President of the United States is calling for UV light therapy for COVID (External or endoluminal?!?!). Also injecting or ingesting disinfectants.....I just can’t believe that after almost 900k cases and 50k deaths in 60 days...this is our elected leader :(" - Robert Lookstein MD, MHCDL
"We must be clear that under no circumstance should our disinfectant products be administered into the human body (through injection, ingestion or any other route)." - Reckitt Benckiser, British based maker of Dettol and Lysol
"Trump’s briefings are actively endangering the public’s health. Boycott the propaganda. Listen to the experts. And please don’t drink disinfectant." - Robert Reich, Professor of Public Policy at the University of California at Berkeley
"It is incomprehensible to me that a moron like this holds the highest office in the land and that there exist people stupid enough to think this is OK. I can’t believe that in 2020 I have to caution anyone listening to the president that injecting disinfectant could kill you." - Walter Schaub, former director of the Office of Government Ethics
"Never apply the product to yourself or others. Do not ingest disinfectant products." - Environmental Protection Agency
"Please don’t poison yourself because Donald Trump thinks it could be a good idea." - Hillary Clinton, former first lady and US secretary of state
April 22, 2020 - The US now has 831,925 confirmed cases of covid-19. Confirmed deaths from covid-19 stand at 42,595. Health officials in California are reporting that two people died from coronavirus weeks before the first official reported death of the disease in the US. One died on February 6, and the other died on February 17. Treasury secretary Steven Mnuchin predicted that "most if not all" of the US economy will reopen later in the summer. Andrew Cuomo, the governor of New York, responded to a common argument from stay-at-home protesters, which is "the cure cannot be worse than the illness" saying "How can the cure be worse than the illness if the illness is potential death?" The World Health Organization held a press conference, where they addressed the claim by Trump that the WHO was privy to information about covid-19 that it hid from the US. Michael Ryan, the head of the WHO health emergencies programme said that there were 31 US nationals on his team. He also pointed out that the WHO technical lead on covid-19, who was present for the press conference, is an American epidemiologist. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the director of Who stated that "Since our CDC colleagues also know that we give information immediately to anyone, they also can pass information to their institution. No problem. There is no secret in the WHO, because keeping things confidential or secret is dangerous." Kayleigh McEnany, the White House press secretary, claimed CDC director Robert Redfield's statement yesterday that a second wave may be worse than the first, was actually referring to the seasonal flu only, and that he would be putting out a statement clarifying the claim. An AP/NORC poll found that the majority of Americans (61%) believe steps taken to slow the spread of coronavirus are about right. 26% believe the measures do not go far enough. 12% believe the restrictions go too far. Carolyn Goodman, the independent mayor of Las Vegas, made the following statements during an interview with CNN's Anderson Cooper: "I’d love everything open because I think we’ve had viruses for years that have been here." Rick Bright, the former director of the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), said he was ousted from his position after he questioned the effectiveness of hydroxychloroquine. Bright issued a statement through his lawyer which said in part "Specifically, and contrary to misguided directives, I limited the broad use of chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine, promoted by the administration as a panacea, but which clearly lack scientific merit ... While I am prepared to look at all options and to think ‘outside the box’ for effective treatments, I rightly resisted efforts to provide an unproven drug on demand to the American public ... I insisted that these drugs be provided only to hospitalised patients with confirmed Covid-19 while under the supervision of a physician. These drugs have potentially serious risks associated with them, including increased mortality observed in some recent studies in patients with Covid-19 ... I am speaking out because to combat this deadly virus, science — not politics or cronyism — has to lead the way." Art Reingold, the head of the epidemiology and biostatistics division at UC Berkeley's school of public health offered this view on reopening: "As we look to reopen, we should have in place a system where we can much more easily, quickly test more people. Then we can determine who is infected, isolate those individuals, and the people they were in contact with." Highlights from today's coronavirus task force briefing:
- Trump claimed Robert Redfield was "totally misquoted" by the Washington Post regarding a second wave of the coronavirus potentially being worse than the current wave, adding "As I say, it’s fake news."
- Robert Redfield, the CDC director, addressed his interview with the Washington Post, confirming that "I'm accurately quoted in the Washington Post" but said the headline was misleading, because it said a "second wave is likely to be even more devastating" when it should have used the word "difficult" instead of "devastating".
- Trump predicted that "if it comes back, though, it won’t be coming back in the form that it was. It will be coming back in smaller doses that we can contain."
- Anthony Fauci said that whether or not the outbreak in the fall will be "big or small is going to depend on our response ... Nobody can predict what’s going to happen with an outbreak."
- Trump said he disagreed "very strongly" with Georgia governor and Republican Brian Kemp's decision to reopen that state saying they have not met the requirements to enter "Phase 1" of White House plan to reopen the country. This came as a reversal from yesterday when Trump expressed confidence in Kemp's leadership.
- Trump said that "On July 4, we will be doing what we had at the Mall. As you know, we’re gonna be doing it. Last year was a tremendous success and I would imagine we’ll do it, hopefully, I can use the term ‘forever.’ That was a great success, as you remember."
- Trump said he had just signed an executive order restricting immigration.
- Trump claimed that before the pandemic, the US had the "best employment numbers ever, including for African Americans." Fact Check: Prior to the pandemic, unemployment was rising for African Americans, going from a low of 3.5% in December 2019, to 5.9% just before the pandemic began. In addition, many of the new jobs created under Trump were low wage.
- Trump was asked about Rick Bright, the vaccine expert who said he was ousted for questioning the effectiveness of hydroxychloroquine, to which Trump responded: "Maybe he was, maybe he wasn’t. I’ve never heard of him."
- Trump claimed that "Not everybody believes as strongly on testing".
April 21, 2020 - The US now has 803,283 confirmed cases of covid-19. Confirmed deaths from covid-19 stand at 40,554. The following exchange took place on twitter this morning:
Donald Trump: "Watched the first 5 minutes of poorly rated Morning Psycho on MSDNC* just to see if he is as ‘nuts’ as people are saying. He’s worse. Such hatred and contempt! I used to do his show all the time before the 2016 election, then cut him off. Wasn’t worth the effort, his mind is shot!"
Joe Scarborough: "Donald, thanks for being our most loyal viewer*. Now please get to work. Over 40,000 Americans have died from the pandemic. America has the most gifted scientists, doctors, and technology leaders. Please use them and take charge of testing so we can get America working again! #USA."
Donald Trump: "It is amazing that I became President of the United States with such a totally corrupt and dishonest Lamestream Media going after me all day, and all night. Either I’m really good, far better than the Fake News wants to admit, or they don’t have nearly the power as once thought!"
Mica Brzezinski: "Since u are watching, can you imagine a president who would allow a pandemic to sweep in on his watch, fail to prepare, tens of thousands die, refuse to do national testing and drive the economy into the ground .. Oh wait..."
Donald Trump: "I’ve had great ‘ratings’ my whole life, there’s nothing unusual about that for me. The White House News Conference ratings are ‘through the roof’(Monday Night Football, Bachelor Finale , @nytimes) but I don’t care about that. I care about going around the Fake News to the PEOPLE!"
Van Johnson, the Democratic mayor of Savannah, Georgia, criticized Republican governor Brian Kemp's decision to re-open the state this week, calling that decision "reckless, premature and dangerous" and "not based in any type of science or best practices". A Washington Post/University of Maryland poll found that 54% of Americans have a negative opinion on Trump's handling of the coronavirus crisis, and 72% say the nation's governors have manged their states well. Nurses protested outside the White House today regarding shortages of PPE. Robert Redfield, the director of the CDC, made the following statement during an interview with the Washington Post: "There’s a possibility that the assault of the virus on our nation next winter will actually be even more difficult than the one we just went through. And when I’ve said this to others, they kind of put their head back, they don’t understand what I mean. We’re going to have the flu epidemic and the coronavirus epidemic at the same time." Highlights from today's coronavirus task force meeting:
- Trump says that immigration will be suspended for 60 days.
- Trump was asked about a study that linked hydroxychloroquine to higher death rates for Veterans Affairs patients. TRump said he would "take a look" at the evidence.
April 20, 2020 - The US now has 777,275 confirmed cases of covid-19. Confirmed deaths from covid-19 stand at 37,999. According to a story in the Washington Post, US experts were working at the WHO when covid-19 emerged, which undercuts Trump's claim that the organization failed to adequately warn countries about the threat out of alleged deference to China. From the story: "More than a dozen U.S. researchers, physicians and public health experts, many of them from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, were working full time at the Geneva headquarters of the World Health Organization as the novel coronavirus emerged late last year and transmitted real-time information about its discovery and spread in China to the Trump administration, according to U.S. and international officials. A number of CDC staff members are regularly detailed to work at the WHO in Geneva as part of a rotation that has operated for years. Senior Trump-appointed health officials also consulted regularly at the highest levels with the WHO as the crisis unfolded, the officials said." During an appearance on ABC News, Dr Anthony Fauci warned that moving too quickly to end stay-at-home orders could cause a surge in covid-19 cases saying "If you jump the gun and go into a situation where you have a big spike, you’re gonna set yourself back. So as painful as it is to go by the careful guidelines of gradually phasing into a re-opening, it’s going to backfire. That’s the problem ... Unless we get the virus under control, the real recovery economically is not going to happen." Scott Gottlieb, the former FDA commissioner, warned that optimal levels of testing would probably not be in place until September saying "I think a good rule of thumb would be (to test) about 1% of the population on a weekly basis – so the ability to test about 3 million people ... Hopefully, we’ll be there by September." According to a poll done for the Detroit Regional Chamber, 57% of Michigan residents approve of Democratic governor Whitmer's handling of the coronavirus crisis in that state. 44% support Trump's handling of the crisis. Hundreds of anti-lockdown protesters marched on Pennsylvania's capitol in Harrisburg. Many protesters were not wearing masks, or practicing social distancing. During a press conference, WHO director Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus stated that "For WHO, we are open we don’t hide anything... We want all countries to get the same message immediately because that helps countries to prepare well and to prepare quickly... Not only the US but all countries get information immediately." Maryland governor Larry Hogan confirmed that his state obtained 500,000 coronavirus tests from LabGenomics in South Korea. Oil prices have gone negative for the first time in history, due to a lack of demand amid the coronavirus crisis. Brian Kemp, the Republican governor of Georgia, announced that gyms, barbers, and hair stylists could reopen this week, and that theaters and restaurants will reopen next week. Highlights from today coronavirus task force meeting:
- Trump claimed there is no shortage or issue with personal protective equipment. Fact Check: According to the Guardian "for weeks healthcare workers have been speaking out and even demonstrating outside hospitals at the life-threatening shortages of PPE. Medical staff are reusing and recycling masks and gowns. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has already published crisis guidelines, which include workers potentially wearing homemade masks. Doctors, nurses and other front-line health workers in the coronavirus crisis have taken to begging for equipment online, using the Twitter hashtag #GetMePPE."
- The following stunning exchange took place between Trump and PBS News Yamiche Alcindor:
Alcindor: "A man said his entire family got sick because they listened to you and didn’t stay home. Are you concerned that downplaying the virus got people sick?"
Trump: "A lot of people love Trump, right. A lot of people love me, you see them all the time, right. I guess I’m here for a reason. To the best of my knowledge, I won, and I think we’re gonna win again. I think we’re gonna win in a landslide."
- Trump announced that he will temporarily ban immigration to stem the spread of covid-19.
April 19, 2020 - Today is the 25th anniversary of the second deadliest act of terrorism on US soil. On this day in 1995, a right-wing extremist used a truck bomb to blow up the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, killing 168, and injuring hundreds more. There are now 751,958 confirmed cases of coronavirus in the US. 36,300 Americans have died. According to an NBC/WSJ poll, 58% of Americans are worried the US will move too quickly to ease stay-at-home restrictions, causing further spread and more deaths, while 32% were worried the US will take too long to loosen the restrictions and hurt the economy. Nancy Pelosi was asked about Trump's almost daily attacks on her and other members of the Democratic leadership, to which she responded: "Frankly, I don’t pay that much attention to the president’s tweets against me. As I’ve said, he’s a poor leader. He’s always trying to avoid responsibility and assign blame." Pelosi was also asked about protests against stay-at-home measures to which she responded: "I wouldn’t exaggerate the protests across the country. There are some in some places, largely where there’s a Democratic governor. But I think of it largely as a distraction and the president’s embrace of it as a distraction from the fact that he has not appropriately done testing, treatment, contact tracing, and quarantine." Washington governor Jay Inslee offered the following criticism of Trump's support for protests against stay-at-home measures n ABC's This Week saying: "To have an American president encourage people to violate the law, I can’t remember any time during my time in America where we have seen such a thing. And it is dangerous because it can inspire people to ignore things that actually can save their lives ... It is doubly frustrating to us governors because this is such a schizophrenia, the president is basically asking people, ‘Please ignore Dr Fauci and Dr Birx [White House task force medical advisers], please ignore my own guidelines that I set forth,’ because those guidelines made very clear… that you cannot open up Michigan today, or Virginia, under those guidelines. You need to see a decline in the infections and fatalities. And that simply has not happened yet." During an interview on NBC, Vice President Mike Pence claimed the US has "sufficient capacity" for testing for any state to go to phase one level of reopening. According to the New York Times "Researchers at Harvard University have suggested the US cannot safely reopen unless it conducts more than three times the number of coronavirus tests it is currently administering over the course of the next month." Democratic governor Ralph Northam of Virginia responded to Pence's claim that the states have plenty of tests as "just delusional" saying "We have been fighting for testing. We don’t even have enough swabs, believe it or not. For the national level to say that we have what we need, and really to have no guidance to the state levels, is just irresponsible, because we’re not there yet." Republican governor Larry Hogan of Maryland responded to Pence's remarks saying "The administration I think is trying to ramp up testing, they are doing some things with respect to private labs. But to try to push this off, to say the governors have plenty of testing and they should just get to work on testing, somehow we aren’t doing our jobs, is just absolutely false."
April 18, 2020 - There are now 724,529 confirmed cases of coronavirus in the US. 34,641 Americans have died. An anti-stay-home protest took place at the capital building in Austin Texas, which was organized by the conspiracy theory website InfoWars. The crowd chanted "Fire Fauci!" and Owen Shroyer, the InfoWars personality who organized the protest told the crowd: "What are they going to do if we have events like this all over the country, with thousands of people showing up, and the virus doesn’t spread like they told us? If I want to go out to the gym or the club, or a restaurant, I’m not going to wear a mask." New Jersey governor Phil Murphy sent the following in tweets: "If you think this is 'just the flu' – you are 100% wrong. In just six weeks, we’ve lost 4,070 New Jerseyans to #COVID19. That’s more than @CDCgov statistics show we’ve lost over the past three entire flu seasons COMBINED. #COVID19 is more virulent than the flu. One person with COVID-19 can infect many, many more without showing any symptoms. Once someone is exposed, it can take a long time – as much as 14 days – to develop illness. The hospitalization rate for #COVID19 is far greater than what it is for the flu. The general hospitalization rate for the flu is about one-tenth of 1% of cases. For #COVID19, it’s roughly 10%. You are 100 TIMES MORE LIKELY to end up in the hospital. We have vaccines that can protect against the flu. We have proven anti-flu therapies. We’re at least a year away from a vaccine for #COVID19, and there are currently no proven therapies." Some highlights from today's coronavirus task force meeting:
- Trump stated "The United States has produced dramatically better health outcomes than any other country with the possible exception of Germany." Fact Check: According to research by the US's Johns Hopkins Univrsity, as of April 13, the death rate in the US was 4% of cases and 6.73 deaths per 100,000, which is higher than Germany, South Korea, Japan, Australia and many other countries.
- Trump claims regarding tests that he "inherited broken junk." Fact Check: There were no tests to inherit for a novel coronavirus.
April 17, 2020 - There are now 696,537 confirmed cases of coronavirus in the US. 32,854 Americans have died. During a meeting with the states' governors, Trump seemed to walk back his "total" authority claim made last week regarding re-opening the states saying "Governors will be empowered to tailor an approach that meets the diverse circumstances of their own states". China revised the coronavirus death toll in its Wuhan region from 2,579 to 3,869, while denying there had been any cover-up of the extent of the outbreak. Public health experts believe the number is probably closer to 42,000 based on heightened activity at funeral homes in the Wuhan region. According to a study by researchers at Stanford University, vote by mail systems modestly increase voter turnout, but do not favor one party over another. This study contradicts a belief among Republicans that vote by mail favors Democrats. Hundreds of demonstrators have gathered outside the Minnesota governor's mansion to protest statewide stay-at-home order. Few demonstrators are wearing masks, and most are disregarding social distancing guidelines. One day after releasing federal guidelines on reopening the economy and acknowledging that governors would make the ultimate decision on how and when to reopen their respective states, Trump sent the following incendiary tweets: "LIBERATE MINNESOTA!", "LIBERATE MICHIGAN!" and "LIBERATE VIRGINIA, and save your great 2nd Amendment. It is under siege!" A few select responses to these tweets:
"Reminder as Trump tweets about ‘liberating' Democratic-run states: A Pew poll out yesterday found that about twice as many Americans say their greater concern is that state governments will lift restrictions on public activity too quickly (66%-32%)." - Kyle Griffin
"'liberate the country from the will of the majority' is a pretty good summary of where the republican party is these days" - b-boy bouiebasse
"Nearly 30,000 people in the U.S. have died from COVID-19, including over 200 Virginians, and the president is tweeting aggressive appeals to gun rights activists" - Grace Segers
"Trump's reckless rhetoric could encourage--let's be honest, it will encourage, and it's intended to encourage--his followers to ignore lawful state orders. It will lead to lawless acts that endanger the well-being of other Americans. Republicans, conservatives--you ok with that?" - Bill Kristol
"LIBERATE AMERICA from Trump’s failure to come up with a plan for testing." - Jon Favreau
Trump sent the following tweet today: "The States have to step up their TESTING!". Andrew Cuomo, the governor of New York, responded to Trump's statement that governors will be empowered to open up their states saying "I didn’t need the president of the United States to tell me I’m governor". Cuomo also said of Trump "He’s doing nothing. All he’s doing is walking in front of the parade ... The federal government cannot wash its hand of this. We cannot do it without federal help ... If we don’t have federal help on testing, that’s a real problem." Joe Biden, the Democratic nominee for president, and former Vice President under Barack Obama, sent this tweet: "The uncomfortable truth is that Donald Trump left America exposed and vulnerable to this pandemic. He ignored the warnings of health experts and intelligence agencies and put his trust in China's leaders instead. Now, we're all paying the price." During an interview with Vice News, Senator Kamala Harris accused Trump of making the crisis in the United States worse than it needed to be through "His failure to take this seriously, from the time of calling it a hoax, to getting rid of the Obama administration’s focus through the White House on pandemics, to him trivializing the issue including the importance of social distancing.” Some Democratic Senators reacted angrily to a call between them and Vice President Mike Pence:
"I have never been so mad about a phone call in my life" - Senator Angus King
"New plan sounds like the old plan, which is to declare victory and engage in magical thinking to try to survive another 24-hour news cycle. But they have not actually assessed how many tests they need every day." - Senator Brian Schultz
According to the Miami Herald, state attorneys and lawmakers in Florida attempted to block covid-19 information from being released to the public. This was occurring at the same time that Republican Governor Ron DeSantis was touting Florida as one of the most transparent states in coronavirus reporting. Minnesota governor Tim Walz called the White House regarding Trump's tweet to liberate Minnesota, but he wasn't able to reach the president, and his call was not returned. Washington governor Jay Inslee made the following statements in a series of tweets: "The president’s statements this morning encourage illegal and dangerous acts. He is putting millions of people in danger of contracting COVID-19. His unhinged rantings and calls for people to 'liberate' states could also lead to violence. We’ve seen it before. The president is fomenting domestic rebellion and spreading lies - even while his own administration says the virus is real, it is deadly and we have a long way to go before restrictions can be lifted ... Yesterday, the president told the nation science would guide his plan for easing restrictions. The White House released a sensible plan to resume economic activity. 24 hrs later he is off the rails, ignoring his own plan and spewing dangerous, anti-democratic rhetoric." Trump sent the following tweet: "Biden/Obama were a disaster in handling the H1N1 Swine Flu. Polling at the time showed disastrous approval numbers. 17,000 people died unnecessarily and through incompetence! Also, don’t forget their 5 Billion Dollar Obamacare website that should have cost close to nothing!" Samantha Power, the former US ambassador to the United Nations under Obama responded to Trump tweeting: "Facts on #H1N1: Within 2 wks of the id of the outbreak, @FDA approved CDC-created test kits. By September 2009 FDA had approved 4 influenza vaccines. During the crisis @CDCgov released 11 million treatment courses of Tamiflu & Relenza. #Obama led & USG agencies saved lives." According to a story on NBC News "Anti-government sentiment has percolated among far-right extremists in recent weeks over the stay-at-home orders governors have issued to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. Trump’s tweets, however, pushed many online extremist communities to speculate whether the president was advocating for armed conflict, an event they’ve termed 'the boogaloo,' for which many far-right activists have been gearing up and advocating since last year. There were sharp increases on Twitter in terms associated with conspiracies such as QAnon and the 'boogaloo' term immediately following the president’s tweets, according to the Network Contagion Research Institute, an independent nonprofit group of scientists and engineers that tracks and reports on misinformation and hate speech across social media. Posts about the 'boogaloo' on Twitter skyrocketed in the hours after the president’s tweets, with more than 1,000 tweets featuring the term, some of which received hundreds of retweets." South Dakota governor Kristi Noem announced that South Dakota will begin a clinical trial of hydroxychloroquine to fight coronavirus. Highlights from today's coronavirus task force briefing:
- Trump announced $19bn in "direct payments to farmers as well as mass purchases". This is in addition to $28bn in bailout money to offset impacts of tariffs on imports.
- Trump was asked about his "LIBERATE" tweets to which he responded that some states are going too far with social distancing measures saying "I think some things are too tough." Fact check: The states mentioned in Trump's tweets are following federal guidelines that encourage Americans to stay home.
- Trump was asked about the protesters around the country who are flouting social distancing measures, to which Trump responded: "They seem to be very responsible people to me."
April 16, 2020 - More than 22 million Americans have lost their jobs since 14 March when nationwide stay at home orders went into effect. Trump responded to criticism from Nancy Pelosi regarding his handling of coronavirus saying on twitter: "Crazy 'Nancy Pelosi, you are a weak person. You are a poor leader. You are the reason America hates career politicians, like yourself.' @seanhannity She is totally incompetent & controlled by the Radical Left, a weak and pathetic puppet. Come back to Washington and do your job!" Pelosi responded to Trump's tweet saying "Every knock from him is a boost. It’s difficult to imagine more projection in one tweet." Defense secretary Mark Esper made the following statement regarding the origins of the novel coronavirus: "A majority of the views right now is that it was natural, that it was organic." Roger Stone, longtime confidant and former aide to Trump, has been denied a new trial. Stone has been ordered to appear within 14 days to serve out his sentence of 40 months in prison. Some highlights from today's coronavirus task force briefing:
- Trump introduced new guidelines for reopening the economy called Opening Up America Again. News surfaced that Trump asked every Republican Senator except for Mitt Romney to be on his bipartisan congressional task force on re-opening the country.
- Trump claimed "We’ve done the most advanced and robust testing of anywhere in the world." Fact Check: Some of the initial tests sent out to states were seriously flawed. Part of the problem came from the CDC shunning the World Health Organization (WHO) template for tests, and insisted on developing a more complicated version that correctly identified Covid-19, but also flagged other viruses - resulting in false positives.
- Trump complained "People should have told us about this." Fact Check: Trump was warned at the end of January by one of his top White House advisers. The US intelligence community, public health experts and officials in Trump's own administration warned for years that the country was at risk form a pandemic, including specific warnings about a coronavirus outbreak. An October 2019 draft report by the Department of Health and Human Services expressed how underfunded, under-prepared and uncoordinated the federal government would be for a life-or-death battle with a virus for which no treatment existed.
April 15, 2020 - There are now more than 600,000 confirmed cases of coronavirus in the US. 26,059 Americans have died. 2 million cases have been confirmed worldwide, and globally, 128,071 deaths have been recorded. Some notable responses to Trump's decision to cut off US funding from the World Health Organization:
"Halting funding for the World Health Organization during a world health crisis is as dangerous as it sounds. Their work is slowing the spread of COVID-19 and if that work is stopped no other organization can replace them. The world needs @WHO now more than ever." - Bill Gates
"Now is the time for unity and for the international community to work together in solidarity to stop this virus and its shattering consequences." - Antonio Guterres, UN Secretary-General
"At a time like this when we need to be sharing information and we need to have advice we can rely on, the WHO has provided that." - Jacinda Ardern, New Zealand Prime Minister
"Cutting the WHO’s funding during the COVID-19 pandemic is not in U.S. interests given the organization’s critical role assisting other countries — particularly in the developing world — in their response." - US Chamber of Commerce
"This decision is dangerous, illegal and will be swiftly challenged" - Nancy Pelosi, House Speaker
"I am distressed by the decision to withhold critically needed US funding for the World Health Organization, especially during an international pandemic. WHO is the only international organization capable of leading the effort to control this virus." - Jimmy Carter, former US President
In an open letter to her colleague's, Nancy Pelosi wrote: "The truth is that Donald Trump dismantled the infrastructure handed to him which was meant to plan for and overcome a pandemic, resulting in unnecessary deaths and economic disaster." Via facebook, the Michigan Conservative Coalition organized a protest outside the Michigan State Capitol called "Operation gridlock". The group wanted to protest Michigan governor Gretchen Whitmer's strict stay at home orders, which were put in place to slow the spread of covid-19. Most of the protesters stayed in their cars, but about 150 protesters gathered around the capital building, where they could be heard chanting "lock her up!" Among those in attendance were far right groups like the Michigan Proud Boys. Whitmer, who is a Democrat, has been attacked by Trump relentlessly on twitter. Whitmer responded to the protesters saying "The sad irony here, the protest is they don't like being in this stay at home order, and they may have just caused a need to lengthen it." According to CNN: "In the first phone call convened between President Donald Trump and some members of his newly formed business council, industry leaders reiterated to the President what public health experts and governors have been telling him for weeks: that there would need to be guarantees of ramped-up coronavirus testing before people return to work, according to one person briefed on the discussions." A study published by ProPublica found that the death count for coronavirus may be much higher than initially thought. According to the study: "As of Tuesday afternoon, the United States had logged more than 592,000 cases of COVID-19 and more than 24,000 deaths, the most in the world, according to the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University. But the official COVID-19 death count may, at least for now, be missing fatalities that are occurring outside of hospitals, data and interviews show. Cities are increasingly showing signs of Americans succumbing to the coronavirus in their own beds."
April 14, 2020 - There are now 592,431 confirmed cases of covid-19 in the US. 25,000 Americans have died. Representative Trey Hollingsworth, a Republican from Indiana, made the following statement in an interview with radio station WIBC: "it is always the American government's position to say, in the choice between the loss of our way of life as Americans and the loss of life, of American lives, we have to always choose the latter." Hollingsworth went on to say "The social scientists are telling us about the economic disaster that is going on. Our (Gross Domestic Product) is supposed to be down 20% alone this quarter. It is policymakers' decision to put on our big boy and big girl pants and say it is the lesser of these two evils. It is not zero evil, but it is the lesser of these two evils and we intend to move forward that direction. That is our responsibility and to abdicate that is to insult the Americans that voted us into office." Howell Raines, former executive editor of the New York Times, was interviewed on MSNBC, and offered this critique of the Trump presidency: "I think this is one of the astonishing acts of disinformation we’ve seen from a White House since the Vietnam era and the five o’clock follies* of the Lyndon Johnson administration. What we are seeing here, I think, is a kind of imploding presidency. And with an implosion, you have to have a black hole at the center. And I think what we have here is a black hole that consists of two elements: President Trump’s extremely fragile ego, and his distrust of government experts." Raines added that Dr Fauci and other White House experts "remind me of nervous parents trying to cope with a three-year-old on a sugar high." Andrew Cuomo was asked about Trump's claim that he alone has the authority to open the states. Cuomo responded: "If he ordered me to reopen in a way that would endanger the public health of the people of my state, I wouldn't do it ... I don't know what the president is talking about, frankly. We have a constitution ... We don’t have a king ... the president doesn't have total authority ... It has to be phased. It has to be balanced. It's a public health strategy and an economic reactivation strategy. The key to me is testing. People have to know that they are safe and the testing actually works to make people feel safe, and we don't have that capacity now ... We have to develop that widespread testing capacity." Three pastors in California are suing state officials who have placed restrictions on people gathering at church services due to coronavirus. The lawsuit alleges they have been denied their "fundamental rights" of freedom of religion, speech and assembly due to the restrictions. Dr Anthony Fauci, the country's top infectious disease specialist, told the AP that May 1st might be "a bit overly optimistic" to start reopening. Fauce also said of testing: "We have to have something in place that is efficient and that we can rely on, and we’re not there yet." According to the Washington Post, Donald Trump has been making on average, 15 false or misleading claims a day, or 18,000 false or misleading claims since taking office. A Liberty University student has filed a lawsuit against the school alleging they put students at severe physical risk and refused to refund thousands of dollars in fees. Highlights from today's coronavirus task force briefing:
- Trump announced that funding will be cut off to the World Health Organization while the US conducts a "review". According to Trump the WHO has "problems the likes of which no one can believe." Trump also bashed the WHO for praising China's "transparency", which is something Trump himself did on January 24th. Here's a the response to Trump's announcement from the DNC: "In the middle of a global pandemic, Trump wants to stop funding the preeminent organization in charge of combating global pandemics. Trump is willing to put global health further at risk to try to deflect blame from his own failures."
- Trump claimed that "China has paid tens of billions of dollars" to the US in tariffs. Fact Check: This is not how tariffs work. Tariffs are taxes on goods coming into the US, which gets passed along to consumers in the form of higher prices. Here's what economists from Princeton, Columbia and the Federal Reserve of New York concluded from their analysis of how Trump's tariffs on Chinese goods have played out: "Although in principle the effect of higher tariffs on domestic prices could be offset by foreign exporters lowering the pre-tariff prices that they charge for these goods, we find little evidence of such an improvement in the terms of trade up to now, which implies that the full incidence of the tariff has fallen on domestic consumers so far. Our results imply that the tariff revenue the U.S. is now collecting is insufficient to compensate the losses being born by the consumers of imports."
- Trump denied - falsely - that he had previously called China transparent, then stated "If I'm so good to China, how come I was the only person, the only leader of a country, that closed our borders tightly against China?" Fact check #1: According to the Washington Post, 38 countries imposed major China restrictions before or at the same time that Trump did. Fact check #2: According to the New York Times, the US did not completely shut down travel from China; there were exemptions for citizens/green card holders/some of their family members, and thus 40,000 flew to the US from China after the restrictions were put into place.
April 13, 2020 - There are now 557,000 confirmed cases of covid-19 in the US. 22,107 Americans have died. Following yesterday's bombshell statement from Anthony Fauci which confirmed part of a bombshell report from the New York Times - that Trump rebuffed public health advisers who pushed for social distancing measures in February - Trump has angrily tweeted about the controversy including this retweet "Fauci is now saying that had Trump listened to the medical experts earlier he could've saved more lives. Fauci was telling people on February 29th that there was nothing to worry about and it posed no threat to the US public at large. Time to #FireFauci". Here's one of Trump's tweets: "The @nytimes story is a Fake, just like the 'paper' itself. I was criticized for moving too fast when I issued the China Ban, long before most others wanted to do so. @SecAzar told me nothing until later, and Peter Navarro memo was same as Ban (see his statements). Fake News!" A sailor from the USS Theodore Roosevelt has died from coronavirus, becoming the first active duty service member to die of the virus. Trump sent the following tweet: "For the purpose of creating conflict and confusion, some in the Fake News Media are saying that it is the Governors decision to open up the states, not that of the President of the United States & the Federal Government. Let it be fully understood that this is incorrect. It is the decision of the President, and for many good reasons. With that being said, the Administration and I are working closely with the Governors, and this will continue. A decision by me, in conjunction with the Governors and input from others, will be made shortly!" This statement contradicts a statement Trump made on April 4th in which he said he prefers the governors of the states run things. The statement also defies Trump's constitutional authority according to some constitutional scholars. Justin Amash, who left the ?Republican party over his opposition to Trump sent the following reply to Trump's tweet: "President Trump is flat-out wrong. The president has no authority to 'close down' or 'open up' the states. He's the one creating conflict and confusion. Put down the authoritarianism and read the Constitution." NPR looked into the pledges Trump made during his March 13 declaration of a national emergency, and filed this report: "NPR’s Investigations Team dug into each of the claims made from the podium that day. And rather than a sweeping national campaign of screening, drive-through sample collection and lab testing, it found a smattering of small pilot projects and aborted efforts. In some cases, no action was taken at all. Target did not formally partner with the federal government, for example. And a lauded Google project turned out not to be led by Google at all, and then once launched was limited to a smattering of counties in California. The remarks in the Rose Garden highlighted the Trump administration's strategic approach: a preference for public-private partnerships. But as the White House defined what those private companies were going to do, in many cases it promised more than they could pull off." According to a Pew Research Center survey, 29% of Americans believe coronavirus was most likely created in a lab, while 43% say it most likely came about naturally. Another conspiracy theory making the rounds is that there is a link between coronavirus and 5G technology, which has led to vandalism of cell towers in Britain. According to an AP story: "Scientists in Brazil have stopped part of a study of a malaria drug touted as a possible coronavirus treatment after heart rhythm problems developed in one-quarter of people given the higher of two doses being tested." The malaria drug referenced by the story is one that has been touted by Trump, which is chloroquine. Highlights from today's coronavirus task force briefing:
- Trump pointed to his travel restrictions as evidence that he'd acted early to stop the spread of coronavirus. Fact Check: Bill Hanage, an epidemiologist at Harvard's TH Chan School of Public Health, responded this way to Trump's travel restrictions: "Unfortunately, travel bans sound good ... But we're way past the point where simply restricting travel is a reasonable response." A recent article in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences found that travel restrictions and airport screenings in several countries "likely slowed the rate of exportation from mainland China to other countries, but are insufficient to contain the global spread of Covid-19."
- Trump played a video that showed clips of state leaders offering praise for him. Not included in the video were clips of Trump playing down the severity of the virus.
- Trump was asked if he was planning to fire Fauci, Trump responded: "I’m not firing him. No I like him. I think he’s terrific. Not everybody is happy with Anthony. Not everybody is happy with everybody."
- Trump said he will decide by the end of the week whether the US will continue to fund the World Health Organization.
- Regarding antibody tests for covid-19, Trump said "It's a test that's been going along for many many years, except now we have very modern, very incredible versions of it." Fact Check: Antibody tests for covid-19 are new, because covid-19 is new, and the many versions being created around the world are still being vetted for accuracy.
- Trump claimed that making sure sick Americans have hospital beds and ventilators is "not even really our responsibility."
- Trump stated "When somebody is the president of the United States, the authority is total." Fact Check: No, it isn't.
- Trump indicated that he'd like to reopen the shuttered US economy on May 1st. Trump's health advisers have said that reopening too quickly could cause a resurgence of covid-19 cases. Trump says the decision to open is his alone, that he'll listen to his advisers, and also rely a lot on "instinct".
- Trump once again highlighted his decision to ban some flights from China in late January. Fact Check: Nearly 400,000 people traveled to the US from China before the restrictions were in place, and 40,000 have arrived since the restrictions were put into place. After Trump made this argument and played the video, the following exchange took place between Trump and CBS News correspondent Paula Reid:
REID: "The argument is that you bought yourself some time. You didn't use it to prepare hospitals. You didn’t use it to ramp up testing. Right now, nearly 20m people are unemployed. Tens of thousands of Americans are dead."
TRUMP: "You're so disgraceful the way you say that."
REID: "How is this newsreel or this rant supposed to make people feel confident in an unprecedented crisis?"
TRUMP: "You know you're a fake, your whole network the way you cover it is fake ... That’s why you have a lower approval rating than probably you've ever had before times three."
Following the news briefing, Adam Schiff, the chair of the House intelligence committee, sent the following tweet: "Why do reputable news organizations carry these daily Trump press conferences live? They are filled with misinformation and propaganda. From the president himself, no less. The country would be far better served and informed if they used highlights later. Enough is enough." David Smith, Washington bureau chief for the Guardian, described today's coronavirus task force briefing this way: "A toddler threw a self-pitying tantrum on live television on Monday night. Unfortunately he was 73 years old, wearing a long red tie and running the world’s most powerful country."
April 12, 2020 - There are now 530,000 confirmed cases of covid-19 in the US. 21,300 Americans have died. During an appearance on CNN's State of the Union, Dr Anthony Fauci was asked by CNN's Jake Tapper why the administration did not act when he and other officials advised them to act, Fauci responded: "You know ... as I have said many times, we look at it from a pure health standpoint. We make a recommendation. Often, the recommendation is taken. Sometimes, it’s not ... It is what it is. We are where we are right now." Jake Tapper also asked Fauci if "lives could have been saved if social distancing, physical distancing, stay-at-home measures had started [in the] third week of February, instead of mid-March" to which Fauci responded: "It’s very difficult to go back and say that. I mean, obviously, you could logically say, that if you had a process that was ongoing, and you started mitigation earlier, you could have saved lives. Obviously, no one is going to deny that. But what goes into those kinds of decisions is complicated. But you’re right. I mean, obviously, if we had, right from the very beginning, shut everything down, it may have been a little bit different. But there was a lot of push-back about shutting things down back then." The White House issued physical distancing guidelines on 16, March. According to the New York Times, Fauci was pushing for severe measures in February. Maggie Haberman, one of the New York Times reporters who broke the bombshell story about the Trump administration's failure to act adequately, and squandered precious time as the pandemic crisis unfolded, and as numerous government figures were sounding the alarm about coronavirus, responded to Fauci's comments saying "This is confirmation of our story, which focused on various moments the president had to take the threat more seriously and didn't, in no small part due to the culture of government he's created." WHO special envoy Dr David Nabarro appeared on NBC's Meet the Press, and was asked about Trump's threat to withdraw US funding for the international healthcare body. Nabarro responded: "The World Health Organization actually works on behalf of all the governments in the world. And it operates within mandates that are given to it. And, and we have to rely on information that's received from different governments. And that then permits us to work out what's going on ... but we know that there will be many things that are found to have perhaps not been done as well as they could have been done. And we’re anticipating there'll be lots of examinations afterwards." Nabarro also said regarding the novel coronavirus "We think it is going to be a virus that stalks the human race for quite a long time to come until we can all have a vaccine that will protect us and that there will be small outbreaks that will emerge sporadically and they will break through our defenses." Ariel Dorfman, who warned in 2017 of the dangers of Donald Trump's attack on science, says now his dire predictions then didn't go far enough saying "Today’s chaotic and bumbling response to this emergency is no accident, but deeply rooted and systemic, the direct result of a pattern of callow benightedness that verges on the criminal and that goes back to the very start of Trump’s regime, embedded in the very recalcitrant anti-intellectual DNA of this president and his followers." Peter Navarro appeared on CBS 60 Minutes where he defended the administration's pandemic response, and during the interview, issued this challenge: "I challenge you, show me the 60 Minutes episode a year ago, two years ago, or during the Obama administration, during the Bush administration that said, 'Hey, global pandemic's coming, you gotta do x, y and z and by the way we gotta shut down the economy to fight it. Show me that episode. Then you'll have some credence in terms of attacking the Trump administration for not being prepared." So, 60 minutes played clips from a 2009 feature on the fight against H1N1 (swine flu), which was described as "a pandemic, meaning it's a global epidemic, the first flu pandemic in 41 years" and a 2005 segment on the fight against H5N1 (avian flu) which the show said had "the potential to cause an influenza pandemic similar to the one that killed 50m people in 1918".
April 11, 2020 - Donald Trump sent the following tweet: "So now the Fake News @nytimes is tracing the CoronaVirus origins back to Europe, NOT China. This is a first! I wonder what the Failing New York Times got for this one? Are there any NAMED sources? They were recently thrown out of China like dogs, and obviously want back in. Sad!" Dean Baquet, the executive editor of the Times responded to Trump's tweet saying the story was "based on many on-the-record interviews, documents. There is a tremendous email chain among scientists inside and outside the government where they talk about the growing crisis. So, I would suggest that people read it, rather than take the president’s tweet at its word. It is a very well-documented, powerful chapter in understanding why the government was so slow in dealing with this pandemic." A 36 year-old Arkansas man was arrested in Texarkana, Texas, after police were tipped off that he had threatened to ambush and kill a police officer on a facebook live video. The man's facebook page includes references to the "boogaloo" movement, which is code for a second civil war.
April 10, 2020 - According to the Washington Post, Trump wants to re-open businesses by May 1st, despite health experts warning that reopening prematurely could dramatically reverse some of the progress the country has already made fighting the virus. Some top Republicans are urging Trump to let the experts play a larger role in his coronavirus task force meetings. Nikki Haley, the former Trump ambassador to the United Nations, said Trump should let "his experts speak ... I don't think he needs to feel like he needs to answer everything." South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham is on record urging Trump to cut down to once a week. Trump responded to the critiques on twitter saying: "Because the T.V. Ratings for the White House News Conference’s are the highest, the Opposition Party (Lamestream Media), the Radical Left, Do Nothing Democrats &, of course, the few remaining RINO’S, are doing everything in their power to disparage & end them. The People’s Voice!" From an AP story: "President Donald Trump is warning without evidence that expanding mail-in voting will increase voter fraud. But several GOP state officials are forging ahead to do just that, undermining one of Trumps arguments about how elections should be conducted amid the coronavirus outbreak. While Trump has complained that voting by mail was ripe for fraud, Republican state officials in Iowa, Ohio and West Virginia have all taken steps to ease access to mail-in ballots, following health officials warnings that voting in person can risk transmission of the deadly virus. The Republican governor of Nebraska urged voters to apply for absentee ballots. Florida’s GOP chairman says the party will continue to run a robust vote-by-mail program." CNN looked into the comments Peter Navarro was making publicly around the same time he was warning the Trump administration of possible catastrophe surrounding the coronavirus. Turns out he was publicly saying there's nothing to worry about. From the story: "In Navarro’s second memo, dated 23 February, he urged for immediate funding to 'minimize economic and social disruption'. 'Any member of the Task Force who wants to be cautious about appropriating funds for a crisis that could inflict trillions of dollars in economic damage and take millions of lives has come to the wrong administration,' Navarro wrote. But at a press gaggle on 24 February, Navarro assured that coronavirus was 'nothing to worry about for the American people' under Trump’s leadership. 'Since the day that President Trump pulled down the flights from China to the US, he has been actively leading the situation in terms of this crisis with the task force. Nothing to worry about for the American people. This country’s done a beautiful job under [the] president’s leadership [sic] in terms of managing this situation. He’s working on a daily basis with the task force and we’re taking steps to anticipate ... where the puck’s gonna be. We’re skating there in defense of the American people and the American economy. So you can be sure that you're in great hands with the Trump administration.'" Here are highlights from today's coronavirus task force meeting:
- Dr Fauci warned that it is too early to relax restrictions on Americans saying "the one thing you don’t want to do is you don’t want to get out there prematurely and then wind up back in the same situation ... Now is not the time to back off."
- Trump claimed "We’re saving hundreds of lives compared to what it could have been" and claimed that the final death toll will be substantially under 100,000.
- Trump again touted hydroxychloroquine as a cure for coronavirus. Fact Check: In the week beginning 30 March, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) provided hydroxychloroquine with an "emergency use authorization" to use on coronavirus patients in some circumstances.
- Trump claimed that the rate of infection is slowing down across the country "without exception" and that the death rate in the US is lower than anywhere else in the world. Fact Check: The current US death rate is 54 per million, which far exceeds Germany's 31 per million, Portugal's 43 per million, and Canada's 14 per million.
- Trump was asked if he would heed the warnings of health officials as to whether the country could reopen by early May, to which Trump responded: "I will certainly listen. I will certainly listen. There are two sides. Remember, I understand both sides of an argument very well."
- Trump bragged that "we've done more testing than anywhere in the world." Fact Check: The US has done more tests overall, but has not done more than any nation on a per capita basis. According to Jennifer Horney, founding director of the University of Delaware's epidemiology program: "I think the important clarification is that we should be considering the number of cases per 1 million population and considering a rate of people tested and not the absolute numbers ... the absolute number of tests is not very meaningful."
- Trump claimed the US has enough beds, ventilators, and personal protective equipment (PPE) including masks. Fact Check: Healthcare workers in many parts of the country are reporting shortages of PPE. Here is a quote taken directly from the CDC website: "PPE shortages are currently posing a tremendous challenge to the US healthcare system because of the Covid-19 pandemic. Healthcare facilities are having difficulty accessing the needed PPE and are having to identify alternate ways to provide patient care."
April 9, 2020 - According to CNN: "Pence’s office has declined to allow the nation’s top health officials to appear on CNN in recent days and discuss the coronavirus pandemic killing thousands of Americans, in an attempt to pressure the network into carrying the White House’s lengthy daily briefings in full. Pence’s office, which is responsible for booking the officials on networks during the pandemic, said it will only allow experts such as Dr. Deborah Birx or Dr. Anthony Fauci to appear on CNN if the network televises the portion of the White House briefings that includes the vice president and other coronavirus task force members." From a Wall Street Journal editorial: "The briefings began as a good idea to educate the public about the dangers of the virus, how Americans should change their behavior, and what the government is doing to combat it. But sometime in the last three weeks Mr. Trump seems to have concluded that the briefings could be a showcase for him. Perhaps they substitute in his mind for the campaign rallies he can no longer hold because of the risks. Perhaps he resented the media adulation that New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has been receiving for his daily show. Whatever the reason, the briefings are now all about the President." Trump responded to the editorial by stating that the ratings for the task force briefings are "through the roof". According to two separate research projects, one from the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, and the other from the NYU Grossman School of Medicine, the novel coronavirus may have been circulating in New York City earlier than thought and the earliest cases likely originated with travelers coming from Europe and other parts of the United States, not Asia. Some highlights from today's coronavirus task force briefing:
- Trump announced that "Hopefully we’re going to be opening up —opening very very, very, very soon, I hope."
- Trump again touted the efficacy of hydroxychloroquine, which has seen a surge in demand which threatens shortages for those who need the drug, some of which are complaining the drug is now harder to come by.
- Trump once again states that the US has done more testing than other countries, which is true for number of actual tests, but the US does not lead in per capita tests. That title goes to South Korea.
- Trump was asked how the country could reopen without an effective national system for coronavirus testing. Trump responded that "there are certain sections of the country that are in phenominal shape already". Trump did not specify what those areas are. Trump also stated regarding a national system for testing: "Do you need it? No. Is it a nice thing to do? Yes ... We’re talking about 325 million people and that’s not going to happen, as you can imagine. And it would never happen with anyone else either."
April 8, 2020 - There are now 400,000 confirmed cases of coronavirus in the US. Nearly 13,000 Americans have died. According to ABC News the US military's National Center for Medical Intelligence (NCMI) compiled a November intelligence report in which "analysts concluded it [coronavirus] could be a cataclysmic event". The intelligence report was then briefed "multiple times" to the Defense Intelligence Agency, the Pentagon's Joint Staff, and the White House. A detailed outline of the threat appeared in the President's Daily Brief in early January. Trump sent the following tweet: "Republicans should fight very hard when it comes to state wide mail-in voting. Democrats are clamoring for it. Tremendous potential for voter fraud, and for whatever reason, doesn’t work out well for Republicans." According to Reuters "The University of Washington’s Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation model is one of several that the White House task force has cited. It now projects U.S. deaths at more than 60,000 by Aug. 4, down from the nearly 82,000 fatalities it had forecast on Tuesday. The White House coronavirus task force has previously projected 100,000 to 240,000 Americans could die." The White House announced that Alyssa Farah will become the White House's new director of strategic communications. Farah previously worked as press secretary of the defense department. Trump sent the following tweet: "Once we OPEN UP OUR GREAT COUNTRY, and it will be sooner rather than later, the horror of the Invisible Enemy, except for those that sadly lost a family member or friend, must be quickly forgotten. Our Economy will BOOM, perhaps like never before!!!" Fox News host Laura Ingraham sent the following tweet: "At some point, the president is going to have to look at Drs. Fauci and Birx and say, we're opening on May 1. Give me your best guidance on protocols, but we cannot deny our people their basic freedoms any longer." News surfaced that Linda Tripp, the civil servant who secretly recorded Monica Lewinsky discussing her sexual relationship with then-president Bill Clinton, died today. Tripp was 70. When Monica Lewinsky learned that Tripp was ill, she sent the following tweet: "no matter the past, upon hearing that linda tripp is very seriously ill, i hope for her recovery. i can’t imagine how difficult this is for her family." WHO director-general Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus responded to Trump's repeated attacks on the World Health Organization saying "When there are cracks at the national level and global level, that’s when the virus succeeds. Please quarantine politicizing Covid. That’s the way if we want to win." Trump sent the following tweet: "Absentee Ballots are a great way to vote for the many senior citizens, military, and others who can’t get to the polls on Election Day. These ballots are very different from 100% Mail-In Voting, which is “RIPE for FRAUD,” and shouldn’t be allowed!" Here are some highlights from today's coronavirus task force briefing:
- Trump said the national stockpile is now equipped with 30m hydroxychloroquine pills.
- Trump criticized WHO saying they were initially "minimizing the threat" and got everything "wrong". Fact Check: WHO tweeted o January 14 that a preliminary investigation by Chinese officials found no evidence of human-to-human transmission. But, WHO declared coronavirus a "public health emergency" on January 30th. Trump continued to downplay the crisis through February and March. WHO declared coronavirus a pandemic on March 11.
- Trump claimed "we're testing more than anybody" despite the fact that the US still lags behind other countries on a per capita basis.
- Trump again claimed he hadn't seen the memos Peter Navarro issued in January and February warning of coronavirus's potential disastrous impact. "Peter sends a lot of memos" said Trump.
- Trump told the reporters "People were shocked I acted so quickly ... And everybody thought I was wrong because I did act so quickly as you know with respect to closing the borders." Fact Check: The Trump administration didn't move to allow laboratories and hospitals to conduct their on covid-19 tests until 6 weeks after the first case of coronavirus was confirmed in the US.
- Trump was asked if there was evidence of widespread voting fraud. Trump's response: "I'll provide you with some ... We're going to find out about the proof ... You're going to see what's going on."
April 7, 2020 - There are now more than 368,000 confirmed cases of coronavirus in the US. 10,982 Americans have died. Michigan governor Gretchen Whitmer was asked about plans to re-open the economy. Whitmer's response: "It is too early to start implementing anything. We know yesterday we had 110 Michiganders lose their battle with covid-19. When the White House says stop the spread for 30 days, I'd love to see them follow up with a national policy that does that." News surfaced that Stephanie Grisham, the White House press secretary, who has been in the role for 9 months, and has never held a press briefing, will be relinquishing her dual roles as press secretary and communications director to become the first lady's chief of staff and spokesperson. According to the New York Times, Kayleigh McEnany, who currently serves as a spokesperson for Trump's reelection campaign, will become the new White House press secretary. Here's a quote from an interview McEnany did on Fox Business on February 25th: "This president will always put America first. He will always protect American citizens. We will not see diseases like the coronavirus come here, we will not see terrorism come here, & isn’t that refreshing when contrasting it with the awful presidency of President Obama?" Here are some notable responses to McEnany being selected for White House press secretary:
"I have debated her a couple times on TV. I am struggling for a diplomatic way to put this but … when the producer told me she was a graduate of Harvard Law I thought I was being pranked." - Norm Eisen, fellow of the Brookings Institute
"I saw that movie! [legally blond] Except Reese Witherspoon was actually smart." - Jared Huffman, California Democratic congressman
"All I have to say is that law schools don't have to report LSATs of transfer students which means they can take big risks... sometimes that just don't pan out." - Asha Rangappa, CNN analyst
"Just like I thought I was being pranked when I was told that Jared Kushner had graduated from Harvard. Or when I was told that Donald Trump graduated from Wharton. I’m beginning to question the accreditation of each of these entities." - Norman Ornstein, fellow of the American Enterprise Institute
"We’ve had three White House press secretaries, we've had – I guess depends on how you count – three or four communications directors in the Trump White House, but in reality we've really only had one. Donald Trump has always been the press secretary, the spokesperson, the communications director for Donald Trump. That was true in 1994 when I first encountered him and it’s absolutely true in 2020." - Jon Karl, ABC News Chief White House correspondent
Various groups are urging Iowa governor Kim Reynolds to implement a stay-at-home order, including the Iowa Board of Medicine and the Iowa Medical Society. But Reynolds has thus far refused. There are currently 8 states that have not instituted a statewide order. Iowa is one of them. Many health care groups are also calling for Donald Trump to instigate a nationwide shelter-in-place, but Trump too is resisting. According to Politico, Trump removed a Pentagon official who was supposed to oversee implementation of the $2 trillion coronavirus bill from his post. From the story: "A panel of inspectors general had named Glenn Fine — the acting Pentagon watchdog — to lead the group charged with monitoring the coronavirus relief effort. But Trump on Monday removed Fine from his post, instead naming the EPA inspector general to serve as the temporary Pentagon watchdog in addition to his other responsibilities." House speaker Nancy Pelosi has called for the removal of acting Navy secretary Thomas Modly in the wake of his comments about Captain Brett Crozier. From Pelosi's statement: "Acting Secretary Modly’s actions and words demonstrate his failure to prioritize the force protection of our troops ... He showed a serious lack of the sound judgment and strong leadership needed during this time. Acting Secretary Modly must be removed from his position or resign ... Our oath of office is to protect and defend the Constitution, and therefore our first responsibility is to protect and defend the American people ... To that end, our priority is force protection of our men and women in uniform who sacrifice to keep Americans safe. That is exactly what Captain Crozier was doing when he called for help for the men and women in his charge." News surfaced that acting Navy secretary Thomas Modly has apologized for his comments about Captain Brett Crozier, and he has offered to resign. According to the Wall street Journal, James McPherson, the acting undersecretary of the army, will succeed Thomas Modly as acting Navy secretary. During a meeting on small business relief, Trump told the attendees that his daughter Ivanka Trump "created over 15 million jobs.' Fact Check: There are between 150-160 million jobs in the entire United States, so for this claim to be true, Ivanka would be responsible for creating around 10% of all the jobs in the US. Also, this number represents about twice the number of jobs created in the US since Trump became president. Here are some highlights from today's coronavirus task force briefing:
- Trump claimed, without offering any evidence, that reporting from other countries about coronavirus numbers is false or misleading, saying "When you look at some of these large countries, I know for a fact they have more cases than we do but they don’t report them."
- DR Fauci talked about the disproportionate impact of coronavirus on Black communities because of diabetes, hypertension, obesity and asthma, but didn't address why people of color are at greater risk for those things, which includes lack of access to health care, preventative care, and the "weathering" effect of racism.
- Trump claimed the US will stop sending money to the World Health Organization saying "They called it wrong. They called it wrong ... They missed the call. They could’ve called it months earlier." Fact Check: Trump himself continued to downplay the crisis even after WHO called it a pandemic.
- Trump claimed he had "no role" in Navy secretary Thomas Modly's resignation, and added that Captain Crozier shouldn't have written a letter because "he's not Ernest Hemingway".
- When asked about his statement that the US will stop funding WHO, Trump responded "No I didn’t say it. I said I’d look at it." Trump added that "they did give us some pretty bad play-calling" and that "they're taking a lot of heat" and that "social media" suggested to him that the organization is biased toward China.
- Trump took credit for "closing down the borders" to China, and then later Europe. Fact Check: Restrictions were placed on travel from China, but it was not totally closed down. Travel restrictions from Europe included only 26 countries that are part of Schengen area. Ireland and UK were added later, but there were still other European countries that were excluded.
- Trump talked about mail-in ballots saying "Mail ballots are a very dangerous thing for this country ... You get thousands and thousands of people sitting in somebody’s living room, signing somebody’s ballot ... forgeries in many cases - it’s a horrible thing." No evidence was offered for these claims, plus, Trump himself voted by mail in March. Trump also claimed that millions voted illegally in 2016 which cost him the popular vote. Fact Check: 5 states have moved to an entirely vote-by-mail system, and no evidence has surfaced of widespread fraud in any of them. More states are considering expanding vote-by-mail systems to protect voters and poll workers during the current pandemic. Republican officials widely oppose these moves. As an aside, the most significant episode of mail-in ballot fraud that occurred in recent years involved a Republican congressional candidate in North Carolina. That election was overturned.
- Trump again touted hydroxychloroquine saying "I really think it’s a great thing to try, just based on what I know ... Again, I’m not a doctor. Get a physician’s approval."
- Trump was asked about death counts from coronavirus, which doctors believe are undercounted due to a lack of widespread testing. Trump's response: "I think they’re pretty accurate on the death counts." According to Jennifer Nuzzo, a senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins University Center for Health Security, which studies global health threats and is closely tracking the pandemic "We definitely think there are deaths that we have not accounted for."
- Trump claimed "continues to perform more tests than anywhere else in the world, and that’s why we have more cases". Fact Check: On a per capita basis, the US has administered 582 tests per 100,000 compared to 709 per 100,000 in South Korea and 600 per 100,000 in Italy.
- Trump claimed he never saw White House adviser Peter Navarro's memos, which warned in late January that coronavirus could put millions of American's health at risk, and could cost trillions.
April 6, 2020 - There are now more than 337,000 confirmed cases of coronavirus in the US, 10,000 Americans have died. Globally, 70,000 have died. According to a story in the Washington Post, the Trump administration missed key opportunities to prepare for the coronavirus crisis. From the story: "The failure has echoes of the period leading up to 9/11: Warnings were sounded, including at the highest levels of government, but the president was deaf to them until the enemy had already struck. The Trump administration received its first formal notification of the outbreak of the coronavirus in China on Jan. 3. Within days, U.S. spy agencies were signaling the seriousness of the threat to Trump by including a warning about the coronavirus — the first of many — in the President’s Daily Brief. And yet, it took 70 days from that initial notification for Trump to treat the coronavirus not as a distant threat or harmless flu strain well under control, but as a lethal force that had outflanked America’s defenses and was poised to kill tens of thousands of citizens. That more-than-two-month stretch now stands as critical time that was squandered." While addressing the crew of the USS Theodore Roosevelt, Navy secretary Thomas Modly made th following statement regarding former commanding officer Brett Crozier: "If he didn’t think, in my opinion, that this information wasn’t going to get out to the public, in this day and information age that we live in, then he was either A, too naïve or too stupid to be a commanding officer of a ship like this. The alternative is that he did this on purpose." Senator Tim Kaine responded to Modly's comments saying: "Based on the transcript I’ve read, Secretary Modly’s comments were completely inappropriate and beneath the office of the Secretary of the Navy." Navy secretary Thomas Modly defended his attack on Captain Brett Crozier saying "I stand by every word." The Office of Inspector General of the Department of Health and Human Services released a report today regarding Hospitals that are responding to the pandemic. According to the report, hospitals are facing severe shortages in hospital equipment needed to combat the virus.During an appearance on CNN, White House trade adviser Peter Navarro was asked about news that he had engaged in a heated disagreement with Dr Anthony Fauci about the use of an anti-malarial drug as a coronavirus treatment. According to the story, Navarro showed up at a meeting with a stack of papers that he declared were proof that hydroxychloroquine could work to treat coronavirus, to which Fauci disagreed because it was not data. CNN's John Berman asked Navarro what qualified him to question Fauci on the issue, to which Navarro responded: "Doctors disagree about things all the time. My qualifications in terms of looking at the science is that I'm a social scientist. I have a Ph.D. and I understand how to read statistical studies, whether it's in medicine, the law, economics or whatever." Here are some highlights from today's coronavirus task force briefing:
- Trump claimed, as he often has, that the US has tested more people than any country in the world. On a per capita basis, the US has administered 582 tests per 100,000 compared to 709 tests per 100,000 in South Korea and 600 per 100,000 in Italy.
- Whenever a reporter attempted to ask Trump a question about the OIG report released today, Trump would interrupt, or in some cases personally attack the reporter who was asking the question. To one reporter Trump said: "You should say congratulations, great job, instead of being so horrid ... I wish we had a fair media in this country and we don't." The question Trump thought was horrid is this one: "Testing is still a big issue in this country. When can hospitals expect to receive a quick turn-around of test results?" Trump also called Christi Grimm, the IG for the department of health and human services, biased, and therefore politically motivated against him since she was appointed by Barack Obama.
- Trump claimed that nobody thought a pandemic like this would happen. Note: the US intelligence community, public health experts and even officials in Trump's own administration have warned for years that the country was at great risk from a pandemic. According to the New York Times, an October draft report by the Department of Health and Human Services "drove home just how underfunded, underprepared and uncoordinated the federal government would be for a life-or-death battle with a virus for which no treatment existed."
- Trump falsely claimed regarding H1N1 pandemic: "The other administration, they didn’t even know — it was like they didn’t even know it was here." Note: the Obama administration declared a public health emergency within two weeks of the first confirmed US case of H1N1.
April 5, 2020 - There are now 312,085 cases of covid-19 in the US, 8,499 Americans have died. Defense secretary Mark Esper was asked about the firing of Capt Brett Crozier, the commanding officer of the USS Theodore Roosevelt. According to Esper, 155 sailors have tested positive for coronavirus aboard the Roosevelt. Esper claimed that the decision to fire Crozier was made by Navy leadership, because the navy secretary had lost confidence in him. These statements conflict with reporting in the Washington Post that navy secretary Thomas Modly "told one colleague Wednesday, the day before he announced the move: 'Breaking news: Trump wants him fired.'" Joe Biden, the Democratic nominee for president called the dismissal of Crozier "close to criminal". Washington governor Jay Inslee gave the following critique of Trump's performance in addressing the coronavirus outbreak: "This is ludicrous that we do not have a national effort in this. To say we are a backup ... Can you imagine if Franklin Roosevelt said 'I'll be right behind you Connecticut, good luck building those battleships'?" During an appearance on CBS's Face the Nation, Dr Anthony Fauci stated that states without stay-at-home orders are "putting themselves at risk." News surfaced that Capt Brett Crozier, the former commanding officer of the USS Theodore Roosevelt, has tested positive for coronavirus. Nadia, a four-year-old female Malayan tiger at the Bronx Zoo, has tested positive for covid-19. During an appearance on CNN's State of the Union, governor of Illinois JB Pritzker made the following statement regarding the federal govt's response to coronavirus: "If they had started in February building ventilators, getting ready for this pandemic, we would not have the problems we are having today and, frankly, very many fewer people would die." Here some highlights from today's coronavirus task force briefing:
- Trump once again promoted the use of hydroxychloroquine saying the US has ordered 29m pills, and wondered aloud what Americans "have to lose" by taking it. Then muses "what do I know? I'm not a doctor."
- Trump claimed the US is close to a vaccine saying "We are very far down the line on vaccines". Fauci stepped up to the microphone and said that a vaccine is at least a year away.
- Trump was asked why he is promoting hydroxychloroquine, an unproven treatment for coronavirus, to which Trump responded "what do they have to lose? We don't have time to take a couple years to test it out."
- Trump was asked if he would follow CDC guidelines and wear a mask in public, to which Trump responded: "I would wear a mask if I thought it was important"
- An AP reporter tried to ask the health professionals at the briefing about the efficacy of hydroxychloroquine to which Trump responded: "You should be thanking them, not always asking wise guy questions."
April 4, 2020 - According to researchers at Johns Hopkins University, there are now 278,000 confirmed cases of covid-19 in the US. More than 7,000 Americans have died. John Karl, an ABC News Chief White House correspondent, had the following to say when interviewed about a book he wrote called "Front Row at the Trump Show: "We’re at a point where nearly half the country doesn’t believe what this president and White House says and we have nearly half the rest of the country that's been told not to believe what they see in a newspaper or see in television news or any other form of mainstream news. That’s a deeply troubling, deeply dangerous place to be where there isn't a shared agreement and sense of some basic facts, especially now where reliable information, and believing you have reliable information, can literally be a matter of life and death." Sean Hannity, a Fox News host, replied to criticism of him and his network in a letter signed by seventy four journalism professors, saying he was ahead of most media in taking covid-19 seriously. Hannity was asked about his claim that Democrats and media overplayed coronavirus to "bludgeon Trump with this new hoax" to which he responded "I never called it a 'hoax,' I said it was a hoax for them to be using it as a bludgeon on Trump." According to Reuters, Donald Trump pressed federal officials to make anti-malarial drugs like chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine available to treat covid-19. From the story: "'The president is short-circuiting the process with his gut feelings,' Jeffrey Flier, a former dean of Harvard Medical School, told Reuters. 'We are in an emergency and we need to rely on our government to ensure that all these potential therapies are tested in the most effective and objective way.'" Highlights from today's coronavirus task force briefing:
- Trump stated that his administration wants "as few lives lost as possible" and then ranted against the media saying "It’s therefore critical that certain media outlets stop spreading false rumors and creating fear and even panic with the public ... It’s just incredible. I could name them but it’s the same ones. Always the same ones. I guess they looking for ratings. I don’t know what they’re looking for. So bad for our country. The people understand it. Look at the levels and approval ratings, they’re the lowest they’ve ever been for media. So bad for our country, so bad for the world. Put it together for a little while. Get this over with and then go back to your fake news."
- Trump expressed that he wants the country re-opened saying "We want to finish this war. We have to get back to work. We have to open our country again. We have to open our country again. We don’t want to be doing this for months and months and months. We have to open our country again. This country wasn’t meant for this. Few were, few were. But we have to open our country again."
- Trump claimed his administration was invoking the Defense Production Act "very powerfully ... We need the masks ... You could call it retaliations because that’s what it is, it’s a retaliation. If people don’t give us what we need for our people, we’re going to be very tough."
- Trump spoke about Michael Atkinson, the inspector general of the US intelligence community, whom he had fired recently, saying Atkinson was a "total disgrace" and that Atkinson should have looked at the transcript of his "perfect call" with the Ukrainian president before taking any action.
- Trump was asked about a tweet by Joe Biden where Biden said Trump was not responsible for the virus, but "he is responsible for failing to prepare our nation to respond to it" Trump's response: "He didn’t write that. That was done by a Democrat operative. He doesn’t write. He’s probably not even watching right now. And if he is, he doesn’t understand what he’s watching."
- Trump made the following statements regarding hydroxychloroquine, a drug which has yet to be approved by the Food and Drug Administration for covid-19, and is needed by people who have lupus: Says he may start to take it because it may be a "game changer" and said "If it were me, in fact, I might do it anyway ... I may take it. OK? I may take it. And I’ll have to ask my doctors about that but I may take it ... I just hope that hydroxychloroquine wins, coupled with perhaps the Z-Pak as we call it, depending totally on your doctors and the doctors there. There is a possibility – a possibility – and I say it: what do you have to lose? I’ll say it again: what do you have to lose? Take it. I really think they should take it. But it’s their choice and it’s their doctor’s choice, or the doctors in the hospital. But hydroxychloroquine. Try it, if you like."
- Trump cut off Fauci while he is talking about the efficacy of social distancing and stated "mitigation does work but again, we’re not going to destroy our country. At a certain point you'll lose more people this way through all of the problems caused. We have a big decision to make at a certain point. OK?"
- Trump was confronted by a reporter about the disparity of him promoting an unproven drug while public health experts are warning that there is only "anecdotal evidence" that the drug could be helpful, to which Trump responded: "I'm a smart guy ... I've been right a lot."
- Trump was asked about the firing of Capt Brett Crozier, the former commanding officer of the USS Theodore Roosevelt, to which Trump responded: "He shouldn’t be talking that way in a letter ... I thought it was terrible what he did."
- Trump was asked why he has not mandated a federal lockdown in response to coronavirus: "We have a thing called the Constitution, which I cherish, number one. Number two, those governors ... they're doing a great job. They're being very, very successful in what they're doing. And as you know, I want the governors to be running things."
April 3, 2020 - The CDC has recommended that the public wear non-medical grade masks while outside. According to the US jobs report, which was released this morning, the unemployment rate, which was at a 50-year low of 3.5% last month, is now at 4.4%. Adam Schiff, the House intelligence committee chairman, drafted a bill to form a 9/11 style commission to investigate the US response to coronavirus. According to Schiff, the commission will be comprised of 10 members from both parties and wouldn't be formed until February of 2021. Schiff also stated "This is not an exercise in casting blame or scoring political points, but something that the American people should rightly expect from their government as an exercise in accountability." Trump dismissed the idea saying "This is not the time for politics. You see what happens. It’s witch-hunt after witch-hunt after witch-hunt and, in the end, the people doing the witch-hunt have been losing, and they’ve been losing by a lot. It’s not any time for witch-hunts." News surfaced that African Americans seem to be dying in larger numbers from coronavirus than other groups. News surfaced that the description of the Strategic National Stockpile on the HHS website has been modified. This comes 24 hours after Jared Kushner, Trump's son-in-law, made this statement: "And the notion of the federal stockpile was it’s supposed to be our stockpile. It’s not supposed to be states’ stockpiles that they then use." Here's the old description that was in place when Kushner made his statement:
"When state, local, tribal, and territorial responders request federal assistance to support their response efforts, the stockpile ensures that the right medicines and supplies get to those who need them most during an emergency"Here's the new description as of this morning:
"The Strategic National Stockpile’s role is to supplement state and local supplies during public health emergencies. Many states have products stockpiled, as well."Donald J Trump fired Michael Atkinson, the inspector general for the intelligence community, who alerted congress to an anonymous whistleblower complaint that led to Trump's impeachment. Trump chose Atkinson for inspector general in late 2017 and was confirmed in May of 2018. Some select responses to the firing:
"Leave it to Trump to use a global pandemic as cover for his retaliation against those who helped bring to light his wrongdoing. Disgusting." - Neera Tenden, President of the Center for American Progress, a think tank in Washington DC
"President Trump fires people for telling the truth. Michael Atkinson is a man of integrity who has served our nation for almost two decades. Being fired for having the courage to speak truth to power makes him a patriot." - Chuck Schumer, the Democratic Senate Minority Leader
"Yet another blatant attempt by the president to gut the independence of the intelligence community and retaliate against those who dare to expose presidential wrongdoing. At a time when our country is dealing with a national emergency and needs people in the intelligence community to speak truth to power, the president’s dead of night decision puts our country and national security at even greater risk." - Adam Schiff, Chairman of the House Intelligence Committee
Here are some highlights from today's coronavirus task force briefing:
- Trump touted hydroxychloroquine, the unproven drug that Dr Fauci warned was only supported by anecdotal evidence as a drug that could be helpful to fight covid-19. Regarding the drug, Trump stated "I don’t know it’s looking like good results."
- Regarding the CDC recommendation to wear a mask in public, Trump said "I won’t be doing it, personally ... I don’t know, somehow, I don’t see it for myself."
- Trump was asked why it is that there aren't enough masks. His response: "Speak to the people from the previous administration. The shelves were empty."
- Trump was asked to explain Kushner's comment that the national stockpile is "our stockpile" and not for states, to which Trump responded: "You know what 'our' means? The United States of America. Our, our, and then we take that 'our' and we distribute it to the states." The reporter then asked "so why did he say it's not supposed to be the states' stockpiles?" to which Trump responded: "Because we need it for the government, we need it for the federal government. To keep for our country because the federal government needs it, too, not just the states. But out of that we choose oftentimes, as an example, we have almost 10,000 ventilators and we are ready to rock ... we are going to bring them to various areas of the country that need them. But when he says 'our' he is talking about 'our country' he is talking about the federal government. You should be ashamed of yourself ... don’t make it sound bad ... you just asked your question in a very nasty way."
- Trump was asked about mail-in voting to which he responded: "A lot of people cheat ... all sorts of bad things can happen". Note: there is no evidence of widespread cheating when people vote by mail, and there is evidence that vote by mail removes barriers for many people.
April 2, 2020 - According to Johns Hopkins, global coronavirus deaths have surpassed 50,000. The number of confirmed cases worldwide is around 980,000. In the US, there are more than 236,000 confirmed cases, and more than 5,000 Americans have died. Donald Trump responded to comments made yesterday by Chuck Schumer tweeting: "Somebody please explain to Cryin’ Chuck Schumer that we do have a military man in charge of distributing goods, a very talented Admiral, in fact. New York has gotten far more than any other State, including hospitals & a hospital ship, but no matter what, always complaining. It wouldn’t matter if you got ten times what was needed, it would never be good enough. Unlike other states, New York unfortunately got off to a late start. You should have pushed harder. Stop complaining & find out where all of these supplies are going. Cuomo working hard!" Trump also sent the following in a tweet: "Massive amounts of medical supplies, even hospitals and medical centers, are being delivered directly to states and hospitals by the Federal Government. Some have insatiable appetites & are never satisfied (politics?). Remember, we are a backup for them. The complainers should have been stocked up and ready long before this crisis hit. Other states are thrilled with the job we have done. Sending many Ventilators today, with thousands being built. 51 large cargo planes coming in with medical supplies. Prefer sending directly to hospitals." A record 6.65 million Americans filed for unemployment last week. Brian Kemp, the Republican governor of Georgia, announced a statewide "stay at home" order" yesterday, and while doing so, made the following statement: "Individuals could have been infecting people before they ever felt bad, but we didn’t know that until the last 24 hours." This was a stunning admission, as health experts have warned for weeks that those without symptoms can still spread the virus. Asked about comments made by Trump that making it easier to vote would be bad for Republicans, David Ralston, the Georgia House Speaker responded "The president said it best. This will be extremely devastating to Republicans and conservatives in Georgia." House speaker Nancy Pelosi announced the formation of the select committee on the coronavirus crisis, with House majority whip Jim Clyburn as the chair. The committee will be made up of members from both parties and will ensure the aid money allocated in the $2 trillion stimulus bill is spent wisely. Trump issued order to use Defense Production Act to make ventilators. According to the LA Times, the Trump administration ended a $200m early-warning program for infectious disease a few months before the coronavirus outbreak. From the story: "The project, launched by the U.S. Agency for International Development in 2009, identified 1,200 different viruses that had the potential to erupt into pandemics, including more than 160 novel coronaviruses. The initiative, called PREDICT, also trained and supported staff in 60 foreign laboratories — including the Wuhan lab that identified 2019-nCoV, the new coronavirus that causes COVID-19. Field work ceased when the funding ran out in September, and organizations that worked on the PREDICT program laid off dozens of scientists and analysts, said Peter Daszak, president of EcoHealth Alliance, a key player in the program." During an appearance on CNN's Anderson Cooper, Dr Anthony Fauci expressed concern that some governors have not issued statewide stay at home orders saying "if you look at what’s going on in this country, I just don’t understand why we’re not doing that." News surfaced that Captain Brett Crozier, the commander of the USS Theodore Roosevelt, who had written a letter to his superiors requesting assistance in the midst of a covid-19 outbreak aboard his chip, was dismissed by Navy secretary Thomas Modly for showing "poor judgment", not using his chain of command and creating a "panic". Video of Crozier's departure from the ship showed hundreds of sailors gathered together chanting his name. Here are some highlights from today's coronavirus task force briefing:
- Trump claimed "I will always protect your Social Security, your Medicare and your Medicaid". Note: in 2017 Trump and the Republicans supported an 834bn cut to Medicaid program.The proposal failed. In January of this year, Trump said cuts to Medicare and Social Security were something Republicans were "going to look at" by "the end of the year".
- Trump claimed the United States is testing more people than any country in the world, including on a per capita basis. Note: The US has performed 385 tests per 100,000, while South Korea is at 709 per 100,000 and Italy is at 600 per 100,000.
- Mike Pence claimed America has the "greatest healthcare system in the world". Note: According to a 2014 report from the Urban Institute, when the US is ranked alongside its peers, it ranks dead last in metrics like access, efficiency, equity, healthy lives and health expenses.
- Trump blamed the states for a shortage of medical supplies saying the federal government is "a backup."
- Trump claimed "I cut off China very early ... I cut off Europe very early." Note: The travel restrictions did not "cut off" travel from Europe or China, as several exemptions allowed for tens of thousands to continue traveling from those destinations, plus,the restrictions were put into place too late according to epidemiologists, who say the virus was already spreading in the US when the restrictions were enacted.
- Trump repeatedly referenced the pandemic in "1917", except that the only pandemic around that time was the Spanish Influenza outbreak, which lasted from 1918 to 1919.
- Jared Kushner, the Trump's son-in-law, made the following statement: "And the notion of the federal stockpile was it’s supposed to be our stockpile. It’s not supposed to be states’ stockpiles that they then use." Note: On the department of health and human services' website, the national stockpile is defined like this: "When state, local, tribal, and territorial responders request federal assistance to support their response efforts, the stockpile ensures that the right medicines and supplies get to those who need them most during an emergency."
April 1, 2020 - Congressman Adam Schiff has called for the creation of a commission to review the government's response to coronavirus. Chuck Schumer, the Senate minority leader, complained on CNN that the country is facing "a dramatic shortage of all the needed supplies” and that “we have no one really in charge." Schumer called on the Trump administration to select "one person, a military person, a general who knows how to deal with logistics and order mastering, who knows command and control” to coordinate the federal government’s use of the Defense Production Act to speed up the production of medical equipment. According to Bloomberg News: "China has concealed the extent of the coronavirus outbreak in its country, under-reporting both total cases and deaths it’s suffered from the disease, the U.S. intelligence community concluded in a classified report to the White House, according to three U.S. officials." Dr Robert Redfield, the director of the CDC warned that up to a quarter of those infected with coronavirus may not show symptoms. Mike Pence was interviewed by CNN's Wolf Blitzer. Here are some notable comments by Pence during the interview:
- "We could’ve been better off if China had been more forthcoming."
- "I don’t believe the president has ever belittled the threat of the coronavirus."
- Pence argued that respecting social distancing guidelines would save lives and "hasten the day when we can put this behind us" by early June if guidelines are observed.
Republican governor Ron DeSantis, who has been heavily criticized for not issuing a statewide stay at home order, has finally done so today. Donald Trump sent the following tweet: "Upon information and belief, Iran or its proxies are planning a sneak attack on U.S. troops and/or assets in Iraq. If this happens, Iran will pay a very heavy price, indeed!" An AP/NORC poll found that 44% of Americans support Trump's handling of the pandemic, which mirrors his overall approval rating. During an interview with CNN, Nancy Pelosi responded to comments made by Mitch McConnell in which McConnell suggested that impeachment distracted the government from responding earlier to the coronavirus. Pelosi responded saying "I think that's an admission that perhaps the president and the majority leader cannot handle the job ... We have a life and death situation in our country and they should not try to hide behind an excuse for why they did not take action, but it does admit that they did not take action." The Dow closed down 973 points, or 4.4% due to concerns over coronavirus. Seventy four journalism professors signed an open letter criticizing Fox News for spreading "misinformation" about the coronavirus outbreak. According to the letter: "viewers of Fox News, including the president of the United States, have been regularly subjected to misinformation relayed by the network – false statements downplaying the prevalence of Covid-19 and its harms ... misleading recommendations of activities that people should undertake to protect themselves and others, including casual recommendations of untested drugs; false assessments of the value of measures urged upon the public by their elected political leadership and public health authorities." Here are some highlights from today's coronavirus task force meeting:
- Trump claimed as he has many times "Nobody could’ve known a thing like this would happen." According to the Washington Post: "Donald Trump may not have been expecting this, but a lot of other people in the government were – they just couldn’t get him to do anything about it. The system was blinking red."
- Trump deflected blame for the country's slow start in testing saying he "inherited a very broken system".
- Trump claimed that "After a month or so, I think once this passes, we’re not going to have to be hopefully worried too much about the virus."
March 31, 2020 - There are 164,000 confirmed cases of covid-19 in the US. 3,161 Americans have died. Regarding coronavirus, Trump stated "It's not the flu. It's vicious." Andrew Cuomo, the governor of New York complained that states are bidding against each other to obtain ventilators. According to Cuomo "You have 50 states competing to buy the same item. It’s like being on Ebay. How inefficient!" During an interview with conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt, Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell claimed that the coronavirus "came up while we were tied down on the impeachment trial. And I think it diverted the attention of the government, because everything every day was all about impeachment." Note: the impeachment trial ended February 5th, and over the next several weeks, Trump downplayed the threat of coronavirus. Chuck Schumer, the Senate minority leader responded to McConnell's comment saying in a tweet: "Senator Mitch McConnell: You may have been distracted by impeachment from acting to fight coronavirus, but not everyone was. I called for President Trump to declare a public health emergency to fight coronavirus on January 26!" Captain Brett Crozier, the commanding officer of the USS Theodore Roosevelt, sent an urgent message to Navy leaders asking that the ship be allowed to dock and let the 5,000 sailors on board quarantine after at least 70 cases of coronavirus were confirmed among the crew. From Cozier's letter: "We are not at war. Sailors do not need to die ... If we do not act now, we are failing to properly take care of our most trusted asset—our sailors." According to Bloomberg News: hospitals are threatening to fire staff who publicly share concerns about working conditions amid the pandemic. Mark Meadows, a Republican representative, resigned today to become Trump's new chief of staff. Here are some highlights from today's coronavirus task force briefing:
- Trump claimed that Europe "took a much different route than we did, a much different route ... they’re having tremendous problems."
- The task force projects that there will be 100,000 to 240,000 deaths in the US from coronavirus, even with mitigation measures. Without mitigation, the numbers would be closer to 2.2m.
- Trump claimed "We are doing more than anybody else in the world, by far” on testing “and they’re very accurate tests." Fact check: Some of the initial coronavirus tests that were sent out were seriously flawed, and some didn't work. Part of the problem came from the CDC insisting it would manufacture the test itself. On February 29th, 6 weeks after the first case was confirmed, the US started to allow laboratories and hospitals to conduct their own tests. Also, on a per capita basis, the US has conducted 287 tests per 100,000 people, whereas South Korea has conducted 709 per 100,000 and Italy 600 per 100,000.
- Trump claimed that had the country done nothing "You would have had people dying all over the place ... You would have seen people dying in airplanes, you would have seen people dying in hotel lobbies ... How many people have even seen anybody die? You would have seen death all over ... 100,000 is, is — according to modeling, a very low number."
- With no sense of irony, Trump made the following comment: "For whatever reason, New York got off to a very late start. And you see what happens when you get off to a late start." Dani Lever, the communications director for New York governor Andrew Cuomo responded to this comment saying "This is not the time to debate but the states were not slow to respond – the federal government was absent." Note: New York has confirmed more than 83,000 cases of coronavirus, and 1,941 New Yorkers have died.
- Trump touted hydroxychloroquine as a coronavirus cure, asserting that it won't hurt anyone because it is already used to treat other conditions, like malaria, lupus, and arthritis. Note, the drug can have serious side effects even when used as directed. Also, according to the Guardian "public health experts including his own top infectious diseases adviser, Dr Fauci, have previously warned that there was only 'anecdotal evidence' that the drugs could be helpful ... The French health ministry has warned against the use of hydroxychloroquine for Covid-19 ... Trump’s pushing of the treatment has reportedly caused stockpiling of hydroxychloroquine."
- Trump claimed "we stopped all of Europe" even though his travel restrictions didn't apply to all of Europe.
- Trump claimed he "stopped" travel from Italy, but in reality his administration issued travel advisories for parts of Italy. There was never a ban on travel from Italy.
- Trump claimed that "Nobody knew how contagious this was. I don’t think any doctor knew it at the time. People have not seen anything like this." Note: as the disease spread through China, public health experts were warning for weeks that coronavirus could grow into a pandemic. Also, according to the Guardian "The US intelligence community, in its January 2019 Worldwide Threat Assessment, wrote: 'We assess that the United States and the world will remain vulnerable to the next flu pandemic or large-scale outbreak of a contagious disease that could lead to massive rates of death and disability, severely affect the world economy, strain international resources, and increase calls on the United States for support.'" The intelligence community's 2018 threat assessment warned that a "novel strain of a virulent microbe that is easily transmissible between humans continues to be a major threat." Also in 2018, a warning came from the now-defunct White House National Security Council team then responsible for pandemics. Dr Luciano Borio, the council's director of medical and biodefense preparedness wrote at the time "The threat of pandemic flu is the number one health security concern. Are we ready to respond? I fear the answer is no." Borio's team was disbanded by John Bolton shortly after Borio made the comments.
March 30, 2020 - The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in the US has reached 143,000. More than 2,500 have died. Trump was interviewed on Fox and Friends, here are some highlights from that interview:
- Trump reacted to Nancy Pelosi's claim that Trump is responsible for US deaths related to covid-19 saying she is "a sick puppy" and that her statement is a "disgrace to her family, her country".
- Trump finishes a question about truck drivers and face masks by saying "I know a lot about trucks."
- Trump claims he expects to have good idea regarding the effectiveness of hydrochloriquine, an anti-malaria drug, "within three days".
During an interview with NBC News, Dr Deborah Birx, the White House coronavirus response coordinator, claimed that "If we do things together well, almost perfectly, we could get in the range of 100,000 to 200,000 fatalities". News surfaced that the Justice Department is investigating some lawmakers' stock trades in the weeks leading up to the steep decline in US markets. One of the things that Democrats tried to included in the stimulus bill, which was ultimately rejected, was money to help states make it easier for people to vote, whether by increasing voting days, early voting, online voting or mail in voting. Trump made the following comment about those provisions: "The things they had in there were crazy. They had things, levels of voting that if you’d ever agreed to it, you’d never have a Republican elected in this country again ... They had things in there about election days and what you do and all sorts of clawbacks. They had things that were just totally crazy and had nothing to do with workers that lost their jobs and companies that we have to save." According to the Guardian: "At least one student who returned to Liberty University last week has tested positive for the coronavirus, according to the conservative, Christian school's lead physician ... Lead physician Thomas W Eppes Jr confirmed in the report that nearly a dozen Liberty students showed symptoms of Covid-19 since returning to campus." The decision to call students back to the campus has angered area residents, including Marybeth Davis Baggett, an English professor at Liberty University, who said Jerry Falwell Jr's decision put the "health and lives" of the Lynchberg community at risk. Falwell responded to Baggett on twitter, calling her "the 'Baggett' lady". Rodney Howard-Browne, a pastor at The River at Tampa Bay Church in Tampa, Florida, has been asked to turn himslef in after violated a safer-at-home order, and held two services with hundreds of parishoners. According to the Guardian "the pastor has an arsenal of weaponry and a vast security force." News surfaced that Trump's advocacy for the drug hydroxychloroquine is causing people to stockpile the drug, resulting in shortages for people who need it. CBS News obtained audio of a meeting between Trump and governors in which one of the governors raised concerns regarding testing to which Trump responded "I haven't heard anything about testing being a problem." Federal judges are allowing abortion providers in Texas and Ohio the ability to continue operating despite orders to cease operations during the pandemic. According to Judge Lee Yeakel: "Patients will suffer serious and irreparable harm ... Only the Supreme Court has the power to decide whether a ban on abortions during a national crisis is constitutional". Here are some highlights from the coronavirus task force briefing:
- Trump declared that the US has processed a million tests. This is more than any other country in total, but on a per capita basis (287 per 100,000), it is much less than South Korea (709 per 100,000) or Italy (600 per 100,000).
- Trump asked reporters, "Do you know how many people there are in Seoul? 38 million." There are in fact only 9.7m people in Seoul.
March 29, 2020 - The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in the US has reached 125,000. More than 2,000 people have died. During an interview on CNN's State of the Union, Nancy Pelosi made the following comments:
- "The president’s denial at the beginning was deadly. His delay in getting equipment to where it’s needed is deadly ... As the president fiddles, people are dying."
- "What did he know? When did he know it?"
- "We still don’t have adequate testing, and we still don’t have protective equipment for our health workers who are risking their own lives to save lives."
- "Don’t fiddle while people die, Mr President."
Dr Anthony Fauci, the leading US government infectious disease expert, made the following prediction on CNN's State of the Union: "I mean, looking at what we’re seeing now, I would say between 100,000 and 200,000 cases. But I don’t want to be held to that, because it’s – excuse me – deaths." Donald Trump sent the following tweet: "Because the 'Ratings' of my News Conferences etc. are so high, 'Bachelor finale, Monday Night Football type numbers' according to the @nytimes, the Lamestream Media is going CRAZY. 'Trump is reaching too many people, we must stop him.' said one lunatic. See you at 5:00 P.M.!" Here are some highlights from today's coronavirus task force press briefing:
- Trump says 1,100 people in NY are being administered hydrochloroquine and "we will see what happens".
- Trump claimed that "we’ve been doing more testing than any other country in the world. Because we’ve been doing more testing, so we have bigger numbers to look at." Fact check, on a per capita basis, South Korea has tested more than five times as many of its population compared to the US.
- To illustrate his claim that he inherited a "broken" system of medical testing, Trump told a story he's told often during his presidency, about a general who approached him in his first week of his presidency. The story has evolved through Trump's presidency, initially the general told him they were low on ammunition, and in this telling, the general told him "we have no ammunition", and Trump then says "that was the military and we've now rebuilt our military ... you wouldn't believe how much ammunition [we have now]." This story has been investigated, and according to the Washington Post, which gave the story three Pinoccios, there was concern among the military leadership that stockpiles of certain munitions were running low, which US officials took steps to address. The Post found in their investigation that these events occurred prior to Trump taking office.
- Trump was asked about a statement he made yesterday on Sean Hannity's Fox News show where he said that some governors don't need the equipment they're requesting, Trump responded to the question saying "Why don’t you people ask ... why don't you act a little more positive? It's always trying to getcha', getcha’, getcha’. That’s why you used to work for the Times and now you work for somebody else. Look, let me tell you something: Be nice. Don’t be threatening. Be nice ... Just so you know: you, me, everybody, we’re all on the same team."
- Trump was asked about the decision by some network affiliates to cease airing the daily coronavirus task force meetings due to the inability to fact-check his statements in real time. Trump responded by bragging about the ratings of the briefings, comparing them to "Monday Night Football and the Batchelor finale" and noted that Fauci and Birx have become "big stars".
- Trump pointed out that according to modeling, up to 2.2m Americans could die had no steps been taken to mitigate the pandemic, thus implying that the 100,000 to 200,000 predicted by Anthony Fauci would represent a successful response by his administration. In Trump's own words: "And so, if we could hold that down, as we’re saying, to 100,000 – it’s a horrible number, maybe even less, but to 100,000, so we have between 100 [thousand] and 200,000 – we altogether have done a very good job."
- Trump said that federal social distancing guidelines are being extended to April 30.
March 28, 2020 - The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in the US has surpassed 100,000, with 1,541 confirmed to have died from the virus. With no sense of irony, Donald Trump sent the following tweet: "I love Michigan, one of the reasons we are doing such a GREAT job for them during this horrible Pandemic. Yet your Governor, Gretchen 'Half' Whitmer is way in over her head, she doesn’t have a clue. Likes blaming everyone for her own ineptitude! #MAGA" In other tweets today, Trump re-tweeted tweets that were tweeted in support of Trish Regan. Once of those tweets, from the far-right site Gateway Pundit, said "FOX Business Network Fires [Regan] for Telling the Truth About How Liberal Media Was Using Coronavirus to Take Down Trump." Rudy Giuliani, former New York mayor, and Trump personal attorney, sent a tweet claiming "hydroxychloroquine has been shown to have a %100 effective rate treating Covid-19 Yet Democrat Gretchen Whitmer is threatening doctors who prescribe it." The tweet was removed by twitter which claimed it violated twitter rules. Trump floated the idea of an "enforceable quarantine" of parts of New York and New Jersey due to coronavirus. Andrew Cuomo, the governor of New York called the idea of the quarantine "preposterous" and a recipe for "chaos and mayhem".
March 27, 2020 - Boris Johnson, the prime minister of the UK, has tested positive for coronavirus. Trish Regan, a Fox Business Network host, has been fired following comments she made in which she claimed "many in the liberal media" were using the coronavirus pandemic "in an attempt to demonize and destroy" Trump. She also claimed "this is impeachment all over again" and suggested Trump's critics were using the pandemic to spark panic and destabilize the economy to harm Trump's chances of being re-elected. A boy from Los Angeles is believed to be the first teenager in the United States to die from covid-19, was denied treatment at an urgent care clinic because he didn't have health insurance. Donald Trump sent the following tweet: "General Motors MUST immediately open their stupidly abandoned Lordstown plant in Ohio, or some other plant, and START MAKING VENTILATORS, NOW!!!!!! FORD, GET GOING ON VENTILATORS, FAST!!!!!!" Following the tweet, the White House confirmed that it is invoking the Defense Production Act to require General Motors to start making ventilators. Trump claimed in an a press interview that in the next 100 days, the US will produce 100,000 ventilators. Donald Trump signed into law a $2.2tn stimulus package called the CARES Act (Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act). The NRA filed suit against California, after officials there designated gun and ammunition sellers as "non-essential" during the pandemic, which forced them to close. In a tweet, the NRA said "California officials are exploiting the Coronavirus to close gun stores. Today, the @NRA filed suit." A national poll released by Survey 160 and Gradient Metrics found that viewers of conservative Fox News were much less likely to take the pandemic seriously. Trump posted the following tweet: "Just finished a very good conversation with President Xi of China. Discussed in great detail the CoronaVirus that is ravaging large parts of our Planet. China has been through much & has developed a strong understanding of the Virus. We are working closely together. Much respect!" Some highlights from today's coronavirus briefing:
- Trump told the press that the US is now testing 100,000 people per day for coronavirus. According to the Covid Tracking Project, about 65,000 coronavirus tests a day are currently being done on Americans.
- Trump claimed the US has the smartest people in the world. According to research done by Vouchercloud, which quantifies intelligence using number of Nobel Prizes, average IQ and education attainment etc., the US ranks fourth behind Japan, Switzerland and China.
- Trump was asked by a reporter "will everyone who needs a ventilator get one?" to which Trump replied "Don’t be a cutie pie. Everyone who needs one? ... Nobody’s ever done what we’ve done ... It was a broken country in so many ways. We had a bad testing system. We had a bad stockpiling system." Trump went on to accuse the reporter of "being a wise guy."
- Trump says of coronavirus "You can call it a germ, a flu, a virus, you can call it many things. I’m not sure people know what it is." Fact check: people do know what it is (coronavirus disease or covid-19, is an infectious disease caused by a newly discovered coronavirus called Sars-CoV-2).
- Trump once again claimed he has always taken the pandemic seriously saying "I was the first one to say to China, when they had the problem, not to come in and that was a long time ago." Fact check, as recently as yesterday, Trump claimed the pandemic was completely unpredictable, and by the time Trump announced travel restrictions from China on 31 January, most major airlines had already suspended flights from there.
- Trump said he told Vice President Mike Pence not to call the governors of Washington and Michigan saying "I want them to be appreciative ... if they don't treat you right, I don't call."
March 26, 2020 - The US now has 82,404 confirmed cases of covid-19, more than any other nation. Asked about Trump's proposal that Easter be the target for re-opening the economy, Dr Anthony Fauci said that "You’ve gotta be realistic and you’ve gotta understand that you don’t make the timeline. The virus makes the timeline." According to the Guardian, nurses at Mount Sinai West Hospital have complained that they have been forced to use garbage bags to protect themselves due to a shortage of protective equipment. Planned Parenthood has filed suit against Texas in response that staet's attorney general Ken Paxton ordered a ban on nearly all abortions in the state as part of an effort to conserve medical supplies during the pandemic. According to Nancy Northup, head of the Center for Reproductive Rights, a legal nonprofit, "It’s unconscionable that the Texas Attorney General is exploiting this pandemic to end abortion in the state. Abortion care is time-sensitive and essential health care that has a profound impact on a person’s health and life, which is why it is protected as a constitutional right." According to the Washington Post, after Washington Governor Jay Inslee pushed for Trump to do more to assist the states hardest hit by the pandemic during a conference call with all of the governors, Trump only offered to "backup" the states. Inslee then responded, "we don't need a backup, we need Tom Brady." World Health Organization director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has this message for the world: "You cannot fight a fire blindfolded, and we cannot stop this pandemic if we don’t know who is infected. We have a simple message for all countries: Test, test, test." Approximately 103,200 tests have been conducted in the US thus far. Here are some highlights to today's coronavirus briefing:
- Trump was asked why he no longer uses the term "Chinese virus" to which Trump responded "I think it was time ... I don’t have to say it if they feel so strongly about it". Trump also pointed out that he has the right to use the term.
- Trump stated that "Nobody would have ever thought a thing like this could have happened." Fact check: The US intelligence community, pubic health experts and officials in Trump's own administration have warned for years that the country was at risk of a pandemic, including specific warnings about a coronavirus outbreak. Health experts warned early in the current outbreak that it could turn into a global health crisis. According to Marc Lipsitch, director of Harvard's Center for Communicable Disease Dynamics "This was foreseeable and foreseen, weeks and months ago, and only now is the White House coming out of denial and heading straight into saying it could not have been foreseen." On a side note, Lipsitch has predicted that between 20% and 60% of adults worldwide will ultimately get infected before a vaccine becomes available.
March 25, 2020 - Working overnight, the congress agreed to an economic stimulus package worth $2tn. While giving a briefing on the virtual G7 foreign ministers meeting, Mike Pompeo, the US secretary of state, referred to the coronavirus as "Wuhan virus". The group has not been able to agree on a joint statement regarding coronavirus because of Pompeo's insistence on calling it "Wuhan virus" which is considered objectionable by other members of the group. According to the Washington Post: "Other nations in the group of world powers rejected the term because they viewed it as needlessly divisive at a time when international cooperation is required to slow the global pandemic and deal with the scarcity of medical supplies, officials said. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has brushed off criticism of his use of the term, saying it’s important to point out that the virus came from the Chinese city of Wuhan and that China’s government had a special responsibility to warn the world about its dangers. When asked about a report that his insistence on including the term caused a rift at the Group of Seven meeting, Pompeo did not deny the charge but said that any disagreements among the group were tactical and not sweeping in nature." It's important to note here that the CDC and WHO have both warned against describing the virus in geographical terms, especially amid rising reports of discrimination against Asian Americans. Joe Biden, the former vice president and 2020 presidential candidate, held a virtual town hall meeting where he criticized Trump for downplaying the seriousness of the outbreak saying "As a result, this virus will hit all of us harder than it otherwise might have hit us, and it’s going to take us longer to recover". KUOW Public Radio, and affiliate of NPR, announced that it will no longer air Trump's daily briefings of the coronavirus pandemic, saying "KUOW is monitoring White House briefings for the latest news on the coronavirus — and we will continue to share all news relevant to Washington State with our listeners. However, we will not be airing the briefings live due to a pattern of false or misleading information provided that cannot be fact checked in real time." According to White House reporter who was interviewed by Vanity Fair, the coronavirus briefings "are a clown show, just a daily advertisement for Trump. He’s smart to do them, dominating earned media and blocking out the sun for [Joe] Biden." The Centers for Medicaid Services is reporting that 140 nursing homes are experiencing coronavirus outbreaks. Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the Director-General of WHO, warned against lifting social distancing measures too soon saying "The last thing any country needs is to open schools and businesses, only to be forced to close them again because of a resurgence." Gavin Newsom, the governor of California, announced that 1 million have applied for unemployment in the state since March 13th. Donald Trump sent the following tweet: "The LameStream Media is the dominant force in trying to get me to keep our Country closed as long as possible in the hope that it will be detrimental to my election success. The real people want to get back to work ASAP. We will be stronger than ever before!" Here are some highlights from today's coronavirus task force briefing:
- Trump was asked about his tweet in which he claimed the media was inflating the crisis, Trump responded: "I think there are certain people who would like [the country] to do financially poorly" to prevent his reelection. Trump added: "I think it’s very clear that there are people in your profession who write fake news."
- Dr Anthony Fauci stated "I know we’ll be successful in putting this down now. But we really need to be prepared for another cycle."
March 24, 2020 - The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in the US has surpassed 46,000, with 100 people dying in the last 24 hours. Nearly one in three Americans are currently living under stay-at-home orders. The World Health Organization warns that the "large acceleration" of US coronavirus infections means the US has the potential of becoming the new epicenter of the global crisis. Japan announced that the 2020 Summer Olympics will be delayed by around one year due to the coronavirus pandemic. According to the Guardian "A Phoenix-area man has died and his wife was in critical condition after the couple took chloroquine phosphate, an additive used to clean fish tanks that is also found in an anti-malaria medication touted by Donald Trump as a treatment for Covid-19 ... 'Trump kept saying it was basically pretty much a cure,' the woman told NBC. She said her advice would be: 'Don’t take anything. Don't believe anything. Don’t believe anything that the president says and his people ... call your doctor.'" According to the Richmond times-Dispatch: "As the coronavirus threatens to spread across the Lynchburg region, Liberty University officials are preparing to welcome back up to 5,000 students from spring break this week. Defying a national trend of campus closures, President Jerry Falwell Jr. has invited students to return to residence halls and has directed faculty members to continue to report to campus even as most classes move online. In an interview Sunday night, Falwell said somewhere between several hundred to more than 5,000 students are expected to live in campus dorms, where they will continue coursework online rather than in classrooms. Meanwhile, hundreds of professors and instructors without a valid health exemption will come to campus to hold office hours. 'I think we have a responsibility to our students — who paid to be here, who want to be here, who love it here — to give them the ability to be with their friends, to continue their studies, enjoy the room and board they’ve already paid for and to not interrupt their college life,' Falwell said." Mike Pence was asked during an interview how long before the entire country has access to coronavirus tests, to which Pence responded: "Literally testing is expanding all across the country by the tens of thousands every day. By last Monday we had tested roughly 50,000 people across the country". Kevin Cramer, a Republican Senator from North Dakota, sent a tweet in which he referred to Nancy Pelosi as "retarded". Cramer, who deleted the tweet within about 10 minutes, apologized, claiming he would never use that word to describe a person, but instead had typed ridiculous, and the phone, autocorrect must have changed it to retarded. Timothy Wilson, 36, of Raymore, Missouri, was killled in a firefight with FBI agents who were serving a probable cause arrest warrant. Wilson, who has ties to a movement known as boogaloo, was planning to bomb a hospital in Kansas City on the day a covid-19 stay-at-home order was scheduled to take effect. Wilson's goal according to an informant was to "kick start a revolution" and referred to his plans as "operation boogaloo". Trump held a town hall meeting, and a coronavirus task force meeting, here are some highlights:
- Trump was asked when he first decided to take coronavirus seriously. Trump responded that was when he first saw it moving across China. Trump went on to say "I made a decision to close off China. That was weeks early and honestly I took a lot of heat. Sleepy Joe Biden said it was xenophobic -I don’t know what that means." Fact check, there is no record of Biden specifically criticizing the decision, although Biden did say on the same day the decision was made that Trump has a "record of hysteria and zenophobia -- hysterical xenophobia -- and fear-mongering."
- Trump downplayed the need for stay-at-home orders saying "Well you have to make the decision. I brought some numbers here. We lose thousands and thousands of people per year to the flu. We don’t turn the country off. We lose thousands of people a year to the flu. We never turn the country off. We lose thousands of people per year to automobile accidents."
- Trump stated "We did not screw up. I don’t think CDC screwed up either. I don’t think – in all fairness to CDC. Nobody ever expected a thing like this. Nobody expected that millions and millions of people would have to be tested."
- Trump responded to New York Governor Cuomo's request for more ventilators saying Cuomo "should've ordered ventilators. He had a chance in 2016 to buy 16,000 at a very low price and he didn’t do that."
- Trump declared that "I would love to have it open by Easter. I would love to have it open by Easter. I would love to have the country opened up and just raring to go by Easter." When pressed about that date, Trump responded "I think it’s possible. Why isn’t it? We’ve never controlled the country before and we’ve had some flus and some viruses. I think it’s absolutely possible ... We have to get our country back to work. Our country wants to go back to work ... If we delay this thing out you’re going to lose more people than with the situation as we know it. So I think it’s very important for the country to go back ... Otherwise it’s going to be very hard to start it up again ... Easter is a very special day for me. And I say, wouldn’t it be great to have all the churches full?"
- Trump claimed "This experience shows how important borders are".
- Anthony Fauci emphasized the need to test more widely, to gather more data that can inform public health officials as they develop policies.
- Larry Kudlow claimed the impact of coronavirus will last "weeks," not much longer. "It's only going to be weeks ... weeks and months, not years."
- Mike Pence said he sees no need to invoke the Defense Production Act to compel companies to produce vital supplies since "we see industries stepping up".
- When asked about the fixation with Easter for easing distancing measures, Trump said "I just thought it was a beautiful time" but insisted he would "be guided very much by Dr Fauci" and Dr Deborah Birx.
March 23, 2020 - There are now 41,000 confirmed cases of covid-19 in the US. The CDC reported that coronavirus survived in the Princess Cruise ship cabins for up to 17 days after passengers left. Dr Jerome Adams, the US surgeon general, warned that "This week it's going to get bad." Adams also said that testing has "significantly increased" but added that "We aren’t testing the people who are at highest risk right now ... We need to make sure we’re prioritizing testing for our health care workers." Dr Anthony Fauci, the head of the US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases was interviewed by Science magazine and was asked how it felt to "stand there as the representative of truth and facts [when] things are being said that aren’t true and aren’t factual", to which Fauci responded: "I can’t jump in front of the microphone and push him down. OK, he said it. Let’s try and get it corrected for the next time." Fauci added that he and the rest of the task force, "the next time they sit down with him and talk about what he’s going to say, they will say, 'By the way, Mr President, be careful about this and don’t say that.'" Fauci also stated that Trump "could lead to some misunderstanding about what the facts are about a given subject." Andrew Cuomo, the governor of New York, urged Trump to invoke the Defense Production Act to nationalize the production of medical equipment, and also complained about having to compete with other states for medical equipment to meet current needs saying "This is not the way to do it. This is ad hoc. I'm competing with other states, I'm bidding up other states on the prices. Why are we competing?" Cuomo went on to explain that masks that previously cost $0.85 now cost $7. Cuomo implored Trump to "order the production of masks and gowns and ventilators" from private industry, "give them a deadline, don't get into this mad bidding war ... the president can do this." The Dow is down 35% from its high in February, and according to finance experts, is having its worst month since 1931, the first year of the Great Depression. Mark Esper, the Defense secretary, confirmed that the US military is preparing to deploy field hospitals to New York City and Seattle. Esper also acknowledged that the pandemic could have an adverse impact on US military readiness. Trump has been hinting at lifting social restrictions over fears for the nation's economy, but is getting push back from health experts. According to the Washington Post: "Fauci, a member of the president’s coronavirus task force, and other leading public health experts have told administration officials and Republican lawmakers that prematurely scaling back social distancing measures would hamper efforts to contain the virus and devastate U.S. hospitals, according to the people with knowledge of the conversations who, like others, spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe the private deliberations. More than 30,000 people in the United States have tested positive for coronavirus, a number expected to dramatically increase in the coming days and potentially overwhelm America’s health care infrastructure." Ken Paxton, the Texas attorney general, clarified the staet's ban on unnecessary surgeries during the pandemic to include abortions, unless they are needed to preserve the health or life of the mother. Trump sent the following tweet: "It is very important that we totally protect our Asian American community in the United States, and all around the world. They are amazing people, and the spreading of the Virus is NOT their fault in any way, shape, or form. They are working closely with us to get rid of it. WE WILL PREVAIL TOGETHER!" This tweet comes as Asian Americans are increasingly being harassed, attacked, spat upon, and blamed for the spread of the virus. Lt Governor Dan Patrick, a Texas Republican, appeared on Fox News with Tucker Carlson, and during the interview, made the following statement: "You know, Tucker, no one reached out to me and said, 'As a senior citizen, are you willing to take a chance on your survival in exchange for keeping the America that all America loves for your children and grandchildren?' And if that’s the exchange, I’m all in. And that doesn’t make me noble or brave or anything like that. I just think there are lots of grandparents out there in this country like me." There are currently 14 states with active stay-at-home orders. Here are some highlights from Trump's daily Coronavirus Task Force briefing:
- Trump opened the briefing saying "the hardship will end. It will end soon ... our country was not built to be shut down. This is not a country that was built for this. It was not built to be shut down ... we're not going to let the cure be worse than the problem."
- Dr Deborah Birx, the response coordinator for Trump's coronavirus task force said that "less than 1% of all mortality" is people younger than 50.
- Trump claimed "we're going to be opening up our country". A reporter asked if that meant "weeks or months" to which Trump responded "I'm not looking at months, I can tell you right now."
- Trump suggested that a damaged American economy could be the cause of more deaths than is caused by coronavirus saying "People get tremendous anxiety and depression and you have suicide over things like this, when you have a terrible economy, you have death, definitely would be in far greater numbers than we’re talking about with regard to the virus."
- Dr Fauci was not present at today's briefing, so a reporter asked Trump if Fauci agreed with him about the need to restart the economy, Trump's response "He doesn’t not agree. He understands there’s a tremendous cost to our country."
March 22, 2020 - Coronavirus cases in the US are now past 33,000, with 417 deaths. A group of Democratic lawmakers have expressed concern that they have to compete with other states to acquire medical resources, and questioned why Donald Trump hasn't yet made military resources available despite triggering the Defense Production Act. Trump responded by tweeting they "shouldn’t be blaming the Federal Government for their own shortcomings. We are there to back you up should you fail, and always will be!" Republican Senator Rand Paul, of Kentucky, announced that he has tested positive for covid-19, making him the first member of the Seante to test positive for the coronavirus. Ohio and Louisiana have joined other states in issuing stay at home orders to combat coronavirus. Here are some highlights from today's Coronavirus Task Force press briefing:
- Trump once again went against the advice of experts, calling covid-19 "the Chinese virus".
- Trump suggests that any problems with the federal govt response is not his fault but rather because of the "broken" system he inherited.
- Trump was told that a number of senators are in isolation after coming into contact with Rand Paul, one of them being Mitt Romney. When Mitt Romney's name was mentioned, Trump perked up and said "Mitt Romney?" And then with a small hint of a smile said "Gee, that's too bad." The reporter then asked if he was being sarcastic, to which Trump responded "no".
- Trump criticized China saying he wished China "had told us three months sooner" and adds that "we could have saved a lot of lives."
- Trump complained that no one said "thank you" after he gave away his salary as US president.
- Trump was asked if he sold stock in the run up to the outbreak. Trump described it as a "nasty" question. Then said "it cost me billions of dollars to be president".
According to a story by Reuters: "Several months before the coronavirus pandemic began, the Trump administration eliminated a key American public health position in Beijing intended to help detect disease outbreaks in China, Reuters has learned ... The American disease expert, a medical epidemiologist embedded in China’s disease control agency, left her post in July, according to four sources with knowledge of the issue. The first cases of the new coronavirus may have emerged as early as November, and as cases exploded, the Trump administration in February chastised China for censoring information about the outbreak and keeping U.S. experts from entering the country to help. 'It was heartbreaking to watch,' said Bao-Ping Zhu, a Chinese American who served in that role, which was funded by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, between 2007 and 2011. 'If someone had been there, public health officials and governments across the world could have moved much faster.' Zhu and the other sources said the American expert, Dr. Linda Quick, was a trainer of Chinese field epidemiologists who were deployed to the epicenter of outbreaks to help track, investigate and contain diseases. As an American CDC employee, they said, Quick was in an ideal position to be the eyes and ears on the ground for the United States and other countries on the coronavirus outbreak, and might have alerted them to the growing threat weeks earlier."
March 21, 2020 - According to the Washington Post, Trump ignored early warnings from US intelligence agencies about the threat posed by the coronavirus outbreak while downplaying it publicly and privately. According to the story: "the reports and warnings painted an early picture of a virus that showed the characteristics of a globe-encircling pandemic that could require governments to take swift actions to contain it. But despite that constant flow of reporting, Trump continued publicly and privately to play down the threat the virus posed to Americans." Trump was asked about the story during the daily White House coronavirus task force briefing and responded: "I saw the story. I think it’s a disgrace but it’s the Washington Post and I guess we have to live with it. It’s a very inaccurate -" as a journalist tried to interject, Trump raised his hand and snapped: "Quiet, quiet." Trump then touted his decision to restrict travel from China saying "I didn’t act late. I acted early. I acted far before anybody thought I should be. I took tremendous criticism from the various papers." Hillary Clintomn responded to the story saying "The Trump administration was told in January that coronavirus was likely to become a pandemic. They refused to act for fear of spooking the markets, losing weeks of time to prepare that we won’t get back."
March 20, 2020 - Bill de Blasio, the mayor of New York, criticized the Trump administration's response to the coronavirus pandemic saying "A lot of people are going to die who don’t have to die. If the president doesn’t act within days to maximize production, to get surgical masks, if he doesn’t mobilize the US military, people will die." Dr Anthony Fauci was asked today how long Americans will need to stay at home and avoid other people, to which he responded "I cannot see that all of a sudden, next week or two weeks from now, it’s going to be over. I don’t think there’s a chance of that. I think it’s going to be several weeks." Andrew Cuomo, the Governor of New York, announced that all non-essential workers in the state must stay at home until the pandemic is under control. Mike Pompeo, the secretary of state, announced the US will be closing the US-Mexican border to non-essential travel. Trump was asked during a news briefing what he had to say to Americans who are scared about the spread of coronavirus, to which Trump responded: "I say that you’re a terrible reporter. The American people are looking for answers, and they’re looking for hope. That’s really bad reporting." Trump was asked again by another reporter what message he had for Americans who are currently scared. Trump's response: "There is a very low incidence of death". Fact Check: Health experts put the rate of death from coronavirus at about 1%, which is ten times more deadly than the flu. Sean Spicer, Trump's former press secretary, sat in the press briefing representing his new employer, conservative website Newsmax. Spicer asked Trump about reports of senators selling stock last month after being briefed on coronavirus. Trump's response: "I’m not aware of it. I find them all to be very honorable people, and they said they did nothing wrong." Trump introduced secretary of state Mike Pompeo, and in doing so, referred to the State Department as the "Deep State Department." The derisive name prompted Dr Anthony Fauci to chuckle, and to place his hand over his face. Fauci was asked about the comments that were made yesterday by Senator Ron Johnson in an attempt to downplay the threat of coronavirus, to which Fauci responded by saying it was a "false equivalency to compare traffic accidents" to coronavirus, and also emphasized that a drastic response is necessary when a new and dangerously contagious virus is uncovered. Trump claimed chloroquine, an anti-malaria drug has been approved by the FDA for treating coronavirus, and added "I sure as hell think we ought to give it a try" because it could be "one of the biggest game changers in the history of medicine". The FDA later released a statement denying the drug had been approved for treating coronavirus. Fauci was asked about Trump's promotion of the drug, to which he stated that the evidence of the drug's benefits against coronavirus are "anecdotal," and it should not be viewed as some kind of miracle cure. Senator Kelly Loeffler, a Republican, is under scrutiny for millions of dollars in stock sales she made in February after receiving private Congressional briefings on the coronavirus outbreak in January. Joe Biden, the former vice president, offered the following criticism of Donald Trump: "In times of crisis the American people deserve a president who tells them the truth and takes responsibility. Unfortunately, President Trump has not been that president." Following the lead of New York and California, Illinois governor J.B. Pritzker has ordered all 13 million residents of Illinois to shelter in place until at least April 7. The Dow closed 900 points down, marking the worst week since the financial crisis. An ABC News/Ipsos poll this week found that 87% of Democrats are concerned about coronavirus, compared to 66% of Republicans. Last week only 56% of Republicans reported being concerned about the virus. Doctors and nurses are increasingly voicing frustration at the lack of testing ability, and a lack of personal protective equipment (PPE).
March 19, 2020 - A bipartisan group of More than 80 national security professionals penned an open letter accusing Trump of being an "existential Danger" to the United States, and endorsed Joe Biden for president. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has called upon Trump to "immediately use the powers of the Defense Production Act to speed up production of medical supplies saying in part: "Right now, shortages of critical medical and personal protective equipment are harming our ability to fight the coronavirus epidemic, endangering frontline workers and making it harder to care for those who fall ill ... The President must immediately use the powers of the Defense Production Act to mass produce and coordinate distribution of these critical supplies, before the need worsens and the shortages become even more dire. There is not a day to lose." Jobless claims for week ending March 14 were 281,000. That was an increase over the prior week's 211,000. In a recording obtained by NPR, Senator Richard Burr, the Republican chairman of the Senate intelligence committee warned of the aggressive spread of coronavirus on February 27, saying in part "There’s one thing that I can tell you about this: It is much more aggressive in its transmission than anything that we have seen in recent history. ... more akin to the 1918 pandemic." During a press briefing, Trump mentioned the malaria drug chloroquine, which according to early research, may work as a coronavirus treatment. Trump was asked why his administration was not better prepared to fight coronavirus, considering it was first reported in China a month ago. Trump responded: "We were very prepared. The only thing we weren’t prepared for was the media. The media has not treated it fairly ... I was the first one to do the ban. Now other countries are doing what I did, but the media doesn’t want to write about that." Trump also accused the press of being "very dishonest" and of "siding with China" in their criticism of him using the term "Chinese flu". A photographer managed to get a picture of the notes Trump was reading from during his news briefing, which went viral, as it showed the word Corona with a line through it, and the word Chinese written above it. Professor Neil Ferguson, who heads modeling at Imperial College London's MRC centre for global infectious disease analysis, and who spurred the United States and United Kingdom into action after his modeling predicted that without aggressive social distancing and containment measures, as many as 2.2 million Americans could die from coronavirus, has announced that he has tested positive for covid-19. According to ProPublica, Richard Burr, the head of the Senate intelligence committee, and North Carolina Republican, sold somewhere between $582,029 and $1.56 million in stock holdings after reassuring the public that the government had a handle on the coronavirus outbreak. The stock market began to drop about a week after Burr's sell-off, and has lost about 30% since. In response to the story about Burr, Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez sent the following tweet: "As Intel chairman, @SenatorBurr got private briefings about Coronavirus weeks ago. Burr knew how bad it would be. He told the truth to his wealthy donors, while assuring the public that we were fine. THEN he sold off $1.6 million in stock before the fall. He needs to resign." Gavin Newsom, the Governor of California, ordered all of the state's 40 million residents to stay indoors except for essential activities.
March 18, 2020 - Confirmed cases of coronavirus in the US has reached 6,500. Trump sent the following in a tweet: "For the people that are now out of work because of the important and necessary containment policies, for instance the shutting down of hotels, bars and restaurants, money will soon be coming to you. The onslaught of the Chinese Virus is not your fault! Will be stronger than ever!" Trump also sent this jaw dropping tweet: "I always treated the Chinese Virus very seriously, and have done a very good job from the beginning, including my very early decision to close the 'borders' from China - against the wishes of almost all. Many lives were saved. The Fake News new narrative is disgraceful & false!" The Trump administration announced that the border with Canada will be closed to "non-essential traffic" due to the coronavirus pandemic. Speaking at a press conference, Deborah Birx, the White House coronavirus response coordinator, warned that social distancing needs to be practiced across the US. During a White House press conference, Trump once again referred to the coronavirus as the "China virus". When asked why he insisted on using the term even as there have been reports of bias against Chinese and Asian people due to coronavirus, just as experts have warned there would be, Trump responded that he used the term "Because it comes from China" and "it's not racist at all". Trump was also asked about Treasury secretary Steven Mnuchin's assessment that unemployment could skyrocket to 20% due to the pandemic, to which Trump responded "I don't agree with that ... That's an absolute worst case scenario." Trump was also asked about the fact that the well-connected seem to have ways of getting tested for coronavirus while others do not, to which Trump replied: "Perhaps that’s the story of life." For the 4th time in 2 weeks trading was halted at the New York Stock Exchange due to steep losses over fears regarding the coronavirus crisis. The cumulative drops have now wiped out all of the gains since Trump's inauguration. Ford, GM and Fiat Chrysler have agreed to temporarily close their US plants to protect its workers against coronavirus. The US Census Bureau has suspended field operations for 2020 census, and is encouraging people to respond online or by telephone. During a press briefing, Trump said he sees himself "in a sense as a wartime president" and said he would invoke the Defense Protection Act (DPA) to help provide "health and medical resources needed to respond to the spread of COVID-19, including personal protective equipment and ventilators." However, Trump later sent the following tweet: "I only signed the Defense Production Act to combat the Chinese Virus should we need to invoke it in a worst case scenario in the future. Hopefully there will be no need, but we are all in this TOGETHER!" Representative Mario Diaz-Balart, a Republican from Florida, was the first member of congress to test positive for covid-19. Senator Ron Johnson, a Republican from Wisconsin raised eyebrows for comments he made in an attempt to downplay covid-19. Behold, some of Ron Johnson's comments:
"Right now, all people are hearing about are the deaths. I’m sure the deaths are horrific, but the flip side of this is the vast majority of people who get coronavirus do survive" - Ron Johnson, Republican Senator from Wisconsin
"I’m not denying what a nasty disease COVID-19 can be, and how it’s obviously devastating to somewhere between 1 and 3.4 percent of the population. But that means 97 to 99 percent will get through this and develop immunities and will be able to move beyond this. But we don’t shut down our economy because tens of thousands of people die on the highways. It’s a risk we accept so we can move about. We don’t shut down our economies because tens of thousands of people die from the common flu" - Ron Johnson, Republican Senator from Wisconsin
March 17, 2020 - Confirmed cases of coronavirus in the US has reached 4,000. The US supreme court has postponed oral arguments for the first time in more than a century. The last time was in 1918, due to the Spanish flu epidemic. Trump held a conference call with governors, where he reportedly told them: "Respirators, ventilators, all of the equipment – try getting it yourselves. We will be backing you, but try getting it yourselves. Point of sales, much better, much more direct if you can get it yourself." After the call, Trump sent the following tweet: "Just had a very good tele-conference with Nation’s Governors. Went very well. Cuomo of New York has to 'do more'." Andrew Cuomo, the governor of New York responded by tweeting: "I have to do more? No YOU have to do something! You’re supposed to be the President. Happy to do your job, too. Just give me control of the Army Corps of Engineers and I’ll take it from there." Trump sent the following tweet: "Cuomo wants 'all states to be treated the same.' But all states aren’t the same. Some are being hit hard by the Chinese Virus, some are being hit practically not at all. New York is a very big 'hotspot', West Virginia has, thus far, zero cases. Andrew, keep politics out of it." Trump also sent the following tweets: "Failing Michigan Governor must work harder and be much more proactive. We are pushing her to get the job done. I stand with Michigan!" and "Federal Government is working very well with the Governors and State officials. Good things will happen! #KILLTHEVIRUS" The Trump administration unveiled social distancing guidelines, urging Americans to avoid gatherings of more than 10 people, should avoid going to bars, restaurants, food courts or gyms, and should avoid discretionary travel. Older people, who are more at risk, have been asked to stay at home. Adam Gaffney, the president of the advocacy organization Physicians for a National Health Program, wrote the following regarding Trump's handling of the coronavirus pandemic: "Trump’s response goes beyond incompetence – it’s a political abomination. However uncoordinated his administration’s moves have been, Trump has made it clear he sees this pandemic chiefly as a threat to the market and wealthy peoples’ personal interests (and relatedly, his own political future) – not to the people whose lives it will threaten or claim." Geng Shuang, China's foreign ministry spokesman, reacted to Trump's labeling of the coronavirus as "the Chinese virus" saying "Some US politicians have tried to stigmatise China ... which China strongly condemns. We urge the US to stop this despicable practice. We are very angry and strongly oppose it." An editorial by the state news agancy Xinhua Today stated "Using racist and xenophobic names to cast blame for the outbreak on other countries can only reveal politicians’ irresponsibility and incompetence." During a press conference, Andrew Cuomo, the governor of New York, made the following statement: "this [state] government cannot meet this crisis without the resources and capacity of the federal government. I spoke to the president this morning, and he is ready, willing and able to help. We need your help with hospital capacity." Steven Mnuchin, the US Treasury Secretary, declared the current situation "worse than 9/11 for the airline industry". Trump, who has repeatedly downplayed the seriousness of the coronavirus, made the following jaw dropping statement: "This is a pandemic. I felt it was a pandemic long before it was called a pandemic. I have always viewed it as very serious." Trump was asked about his continued use of the term "Chinese virus" to which he replied "China was putting out information that our military gave it to them. We have to call it where it came from, it came from China." Duncan Hunter, former California Republican congressman, was sentenced to 11 months in prison after pleading guilty to stealing his campaign funds and spending the money on vacations, school tuition, and shopping sprees. During a coronavirus briefing, Trump accused the Obama administration of making "terrible" and "horrific" mistakes in handling a swine flu outbreak in 2009 saying "seventeen thousand people died" despite the actual number being 12,469. Trump also said "They shouldn’t be criticising because we’ve done a fantastic job. The only thing we haven’t done well is to get good press. We’ve done a fantastic job but it hasn’t been appreciated. Even the closing down of the borders, which had never been done, and not only did we close them but we closed them early. The press doesn’t like writing about it. So we’ve done a poor job on press relationships and I guess I don’t know who to blame for that. I don’t know, maybe I can blame ourselves for that. I will blame ourselves."
March 16, 2020 - Ron Paul, former Republican congressman from Texas, and father of US senator Rand Paul, wrote an article titled: The Coronavirus Hoax. In the article, Paul accused Democrats of using coronavirus to "grab more power and authority in the name of fighting a virus that thus far has killed less than 100 Americans". Notable news regarding the novel coronavirus (Covid-19):
- The CDC is recommending that people practice "social distancing" and that gatherings of 50 people or more in the US be canceled or postponed over the next 8 weeks.
- California, Ohio, Illinois, Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey, Connecticut and Washington have closed all but essential businesses.
- There are 3,774 confirmed cases in the US, with 69 deaths.
- The US Federal Reserve announced it would cut its benchmark interest rate to near zero, and said it would buy US $700bn in Treasury and mortgage-backed securities.
- The White House announced that the annual Easter Egg Roll was cancelled.
- When asked to rate his administration's response to the coronavirus on a scale of 1 to 10, Trump responded "I'd rate it a 10. I think we've done a great job."
- The White House released "The President's Coronavirus Guidelines for America: 30 Days to Slow the Spread. Here are some highlights from that document:
- Listen to and follow the directions of your state and local authorities.
- Avoid discretionary travel, shopping trips and social visits.
- Avoid social gatherings in groups of more than 10 people.
- Governor Jim Justice of West Virginia, a Republican, downplayed the seriousness of coronavirus when he told residents of his state "If you want to go to Bob Evans and eat, go to Bob Evans and eat."
News surfaced that the servers at the US Health and Human Service Dept was the target of a cyber-attack yesterday, which is believed to have been intended to slow the agency's systems down. US trading was halted seconds after the opening bell as the market plunged 7%. According to the Washington Post: "President Trump gambled very early and very often on the idea that the coronavirus wouldn’t turn out to be nearly as severe as some health officials have warned it could get. The thrust of Trump’s statements about the virus has been almost relentlessly optimistic, which is a marked contrast to those of some health officials who prefer that people be overly prepared rather than underestimate the threat. Trump has frequently suggested that the United States is winning the battle against the virus, and he has regularly promoted the idea that it could suddenly disappear." The Dow closed down nearly 3,000 points, the worst one-day drop in history. Senator Ron Johnson, a Republican from Wisconsin, said he will continue to investigate Joe Biden and his son Hunter, and their ties to Burisma, a Ukrainian gas company. Donald Trump sent the following tweet: "The United States will be powerfully supporting those industries, like Airlines and others, that are particularly affected by the Chinese Virus. We will be stronger than ever before!"
March 15, 2020 - During a press briefing, Donald Trump acknowledged to reporters that the coronavirus is "very contagious" adding that "It’s incredible. But it’s something that we have tremendous control over". Trump also said "Relax, we're doing great." Anthony Fauci, Trump's lead infectious disease expert, warned that "The worst is ahead of us" and described the growing crisis as reaching a "very, very critical point now". Trump also urged Americans against hoarding supplies. Governor Kevin Stitt of Oklahoma, a Republican, downplayed the seriousness of coronavirus when he tweeted a picture of himself and his two sons at a restaurant, saying "Eating with my kids and all my fellow Oklahomans at the @CollectiveOKC. It's packed tonight! #supportlocal #OklaProud" Stitt later deleted the tweet.
March 14, 2020 - Elaine Karmack, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution think tank in Washington, made the following comment regarding Trump's handling of the coronavirus pandemic: "He’s an idiot. He’s handled it horribly. When things are rough, you want somebody who can exude confidence and competence and Trump does not do that. We’ve been incredibly lucky. For the last three years, there was nothing big going on that had a real bearing on the lives of the ordinary American. This does." Moe Vela, a former senior adviser to Joe Biden, responded to Trump's response to coronavirus saying "He is unable to express compassion and empathy; I don’t believe he possesses those two values. This was his chance to show that he could lead, to show that he was as tough as he said he was for three years. And then what does he do? He falls on his face. We’re walking around in ghost towns. Kids aren’t going to school. Not enough people are getting tested. We have no clue what the reality of this pandemic is because information is being withheld and reaction from this administration was slow at best. It’s disgusting. It’s disconcerting. It’s scary as hell." According to the Guardian: "The coronavirus outbreak plays to the weaknesses of Trump, a germaphobe and gut instinct politician who prefers to slug it out with human foes on Twitter. He has spent years undermining experts, institutions, scientists, media outlets, global alliances and trust in government, all of which are now needed more than ever. His first misstep came two years ago when he disbanded the global health security team on the National Security Council (NSC) that was responsible for preparing for a pandemic. The NSC’s global health security chief, Rear Admiral Tim Ziemer, was fired the day after an Ebola outbreak was declared in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Last year intelligence agencies warned that the US remained vulnerable to the next flu pandemic but Trump, it seems, hoped that his long streak of political luck would hold. Distracted by impeachment in January, the president showed little urgency when the coronavirus exploded in China, apparently unwilling to sour his relationship with authoritarian leader Xi Jinping, whom he praised for having the outbreak 'totally under control' even as it raced across that country and beyond. The White House did impose a limited travel ban on China but that alone was not enough. Former US Food and Drug Administration commissioner David Kessler told the Politico website: 'They needed and still need to be searching for where the cases are, instead of trusting that limited travel bans were keeping out a virus that was probably already on the march.' Perhaps Trump’s greatest blunder was turning down the offer of a German-made diagnostic test approved by the World Health Organization and taken up by many countries. The US government’s own painfully slow progress led to a nationwide shortage of test kits at the most critical moment. It was reported that just 11,000 tests have been conducted in America so far, whereas South Korea is carrying out 10,000 tests per day. Ashish Jha, director of the Harvard Global Health Institute, told the Bloomberg news agency: 'This is an unmitigated disaster that the administration has brought upon the population, and I don’t say this lightly. We have had a much worse response than Iran, than Italy, than China and South Korea.'" Robert Shrum, a political science professor at the University of Southern California, and Democratic strategist, responded to Trump's handling of the coronavirus pandemic saying: "Before it happened, he dismantled a lot of the preparedness that had been put in place under Obama and Ron Klain [Ebola czar] and Joe Biden, I suppose because they were things Obama had done so he wanted to get rid of them, like the Paris climate accords. And since then he has over and over again contradicted his own health people and at one point tried to muzzle them. He called the coronavirus 'a Democratic hoax' and then they ran out to explain, 'No, no, the hoax was that they were blaming Trump for not handling it well'. Well, I think almost universally people would say Trump has not handled this well."
March 13, 2020 - Trump began today by tweeting criticism of the CDC and the Obama Administration: "For decades the @CDCgov looked at, and studied, its testing system, but did nothing about it. It would always be inadequate and slow for a large scale pandemic, but a pandemic would never happen, they hoped. President Obama made changes that only complicated things further. Their response to H1N1 Swine Flu was a full scale disaster, with thousands dying, and nothing meaningful done to fix the testing problem, until now. The changes have been made and testing will soon happen on a very large scale basis. All Red Tape has been cut, ready to go!" YouGov and Yahoo! News released poll results that showed that 53% of the polled US adults did not have faith in Trump's ability to tell the truth about the threat of the new coronavirus. According to an LA Times story regarding coronavirus: "One reason federal health officials have not acted appears to be President Trump’s reluctance to declare a national emergency. That’s a key step that would clear the way for states to get Medicaid waivers to more nimbly tackle coronavirus, but it would conflict with Trump’s repeated efforts to downplay the seriousness of the epidemic. Another element may be ideological: The administration official who oversees Medicaid, Seema Verma, has been a champion of efforts by conservative states to trim the number of people enrolled." Donald Trump sent out the following tweet: "To this point, and because we have had a very strong border policy, we have had 40 deaths related to CoronaVirus. If we had weak or open borders, that number would be many times higher!" Donald Trump held a press conference to declare a national emergency to address the Coronavirus pandemic. Trump's declaration included the phrase "National Emergency, two very big words." Trump also declared that "half a million additional tests will be available early next week ... Which will bring probably 1.4 million tests next week and five million in a month." Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer responded to the declaration saying in part: "I’m pleased the president heeded our calls to invoke the Stafford Act to extend vital financial assistance to help keep communities safe from the coronavirus outbreak. I urge New York and other states to immediately request these newly available funds and for the Trump administration to approve these requests without delay." After Trump made the emergency declaration, he was asked by a reporter: "Do you take responsibility for the lag in coronavirus testing?" Trump's response: "No, I don't take responsibility at all." Here are a few notable reactions to Trump's comment on twitter:
"Every democrat running for office this fall should write Trump a thank you note for that clip of the president saying he doesn’t take responsibility for a failure of the government he leads, what a great closer for an ad." - Erin Ryan
"Trump in 2016: 'I alone can fix it.' Trump just now: 'I don't take responsibility at all'" - Dan Pfeiffer
"'I don't take responsibility at all' is perhaps the most honest thing Trump has ever said." - Matthew Yglesias
"Harry S. Truman, January 19, 1953: 'The President has to decide. He can't pass the buck to anybody. No one else can do the deciding for him. That's his job.' Donald J. Trump, March 13, 2020: 'I don't take responsibility at all.'" - Matthew Champion
Yamiche Alcindor, a reporter from PBS, asked Trump the following question: "What responsibility do you take for disbanding the White House pandemic office?" Trump's response: "it's a nasty question ... we saved thousands of lives because of the quick closing. And when you say me, I didn't do it... I don't know anything about it...I don't know anything about it." According to the Guardian "Yamiche Alcindor’s 'nasty' question to Trump was about the axing of the Global Health Security team in the National Security Council, which was set up in the wake of the Ebola outbreak to make sure that the government response to a pandemic would be coordinated. Former officials describe it as the lynchpin of the response mechanism. In May 2018, John Bolton, national security adviser at the time, got rid of the whole office, as he did not see pandemics as a priority national security threat. Trump’s claim that he knew nothing about it, and still knows nothing about it (on a day he declares a national emergency over a pandemic) is extraordinary."
March 12, 2020 - There are 1,312 known cases of coronavirus in the US, with 38 deaths. Through today, the CDC has completed only 4,000 tests, not the 1m promised by Alex Azar. The Dow is down 20% below its record high, set last month. Republican Senator Tom Cotton released a statement which stated in part "I have every confidence America will once again marshal the resolve, toughness, and genius of our people to overcome the serious threat to our health and well-being posed by the Wuhan coronavirus. We will emerge stronger from this challenge, we will hold accountable those who inflicted it on the world, and we will prosper in the new day." It should be noted that the World Health Organization has designated the illness caused by the coronavirus as Covid-19, and that group strongly discourages the use of geographical locations in the naming of illnesses because of the stigma it would attach to the peoples occupying those geographical regions. Trading was halted on the New York Stock Exchange after the S&P 500 index dropped 7%. Trump yells out to reporters, "markets are gonna be just fine." News surfaced that Trump didn't warn European leaders before imposing travel restrictions from Europe, which has created anger among European leadership. According to the AP: "House lawmakers expressed alarm Thursday after a private briefing with Dr. Anthony Fauci, the National Institute of Health’s infectious disease chief, and other public health officials, Lawmakers were particularly frustrated that U.S. officials have tested relatively few patients suspected to be infected. 'We’re basically, in my opinion, flying blind,' said Representative Susie Lee, Democrat of Nevada. Others described the meeting as heated, testy with many lawmakers leaving flooded with graver concerns about the administration’s response. 'We should be exuding confidence nationally,' said Representative Anna Eshoo, Democrat of California. 'The confusion is damaging.'" Speaking to a congressional committee, Dr Anthony Fauci admitted that the US is "failing" on coronavirus testing saying "The system is not really geared to what we need right now, what you are asking for. That is a failing. Let’s admit it." According to AHIP, health insurance providers agreed to cover the cost of diagnostic tests to see if people have Covid-19, but they did not agree to test treatments, contrary to Trump's claim during his address to the nation. In a private briefing today, some congressional leaders were shocked to find out that so far, only 11,000 tests for coronavirus have been conducted in the US. By contrast, South Korea, tests roughly that same number every day. When asked about testing, Trump responded: "Frankly, the testing has been going very smooth ... we have heavily tested ... million tests out now ... if you go to the right agency, if you go to the right area, you get the test".
March 11, 2020 - The World Health Organization declared Covid-19 a global pandemic and expressed concern saying "We are deeply concerned both by the alarming levels of spread and severity and by the alarming levels of inaction" and added "We have called every day for countries to take urgent and aggressive action. We have rung the alarm bell loud and clear". While testifying on Capitol Hill, Dr Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, claimed that Covid-19 is "10 times more lethal than the seasonal flu" and also claimed that "things will get worse than they are right now". Donald Trump addressed the nation. Here are some highlights from that address:
- Trump opened the address by saying he will speak about his administration's "unprecedented response" to the Coronavirus pandemic.
- Trump announced that the US "will be suspending all travel from Europe to the United States for the next 30 days" and that the UK is exempt. Trump stated that his "prohibitions will not only apply to the tremendous amount of trade and cargo, but various other things as we get approval. Anything coming from Europe to the United States is what we are discussing." Following Trump's address to the nation, Trump tweeted a clarification that it is "very important for all countries & businesses to know that trade will in no way be affected by the 30-day restriction on travel from Europe. The restriction stops people not goods." European governments were blindsided by the announcement of the travel ban.
- Downplayed warnings of a potential recession saying "This is not a financial crisis, this is just a temporary moment of time that we will overcome as a nation and as a world."
- Declares that "We are all in this together. We must put politics aside, stop the partisanship, and unify together as one nation and one family."
- States that "No nation is more prepared or more resilient than the United States. We have the best economy, the most advanced healthcare, and the most talented doctors, scientists, and researchers anywhere in the world."
- States "We are at a critical time in the fight against the virus. We made a life-saving move with early action on China. Now we must take the same action with Europe. We will not delay. I will never hesitate to take any necessary steps to protect the lives, health, and safety of the American people. I will always put the well being of America first."
- Claimed the insurance industry agreed to waive co-payments for treatment of Covid-19.
Daniel Drezner, a professor of international politics at Tufts University, responded to Trump's address saying "It seems to me that Stephen Miller was looking for a boogeyman and he found one in Europe." Drezner added that limiting travel from Europe would "be a drop in the bucket compared with the number of cases already in the US." In a joint statement, Chuck Schumer and Nancy Pelosi, the Democratic leaders of the Senate and House stated in part: "We have a public health crisis in this country and the best way to help keep the American people safe and ensure their economic security is for the president to focus on fighting the spread of the coronavirus itself. Alarmingly, the president did not say how the administration will address the lack of coronavirus testing kits throughout the United States."
March 10, 2020 - The World Health Organization has reported that there are nearly 4,000 confirmed deaths worldwide from coronavirus. Donald Trump re-tweeted the following Charlie Kirk tweet: "This is your daily reminder that it took Barack Obama until October of 2009 to declare Swine Flu a National Health Emergency. It began in April of ‘09 but Obama waited until 20,000 people in the US had been hospitalized & 1,000+ had died. Where was the media hysteria then?" According to Politifact, which rated this claim as false: "In October 2009, after more than 1,000 people in the United States had died of swine flu, also known as H1N1, Obama declared a national emergency. But six months earlier, his administration declared H1N1 a public health emergency. At that point, no deaths in the United States had occurred." News surfaced that the following Republicans are now in self-quarantine after having been in contact with a person infected with coronavirus at CPAC last week: incoming White House chief of staff Mark Meadows, Ted Cruz, Paul Gosar, Doug Collins and Matt Gaetz, who mocked the media attention over the spread of Covid-19 by posting a picture of himself working while wearing a gas mask. Fox Business host Trish Regan lashed out at criticism against Trump's handling of the Covid-19 outbreak saying: "A chorus of hate being leveled at the president is nearing a crescendo as Democrats blame him and only him for a virus that originated halfway around the world. This is yet another attempt to impeach the president and sadly it seems they care very little for any of the destruction they are leaving in their wake. Losses in the stock market, all of this, unfortunately just part of the political casualties for them." Conservative commentator Tomi Lahren, made the following statement: "The sky is falling because we have a few dozen cases of coronavirus on a cruise ship? I am far more concerned with stepping on a used heroin needle than I am getting the coronavirus, but maybe that's just me." According to the Washington Post: "The US Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit upheld a lower court order that gives Congress access to certain secret material from Robert S. Mueller III’s investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election." Vice president Mike Pence says there will be 4 million more coronavirus tests made available by end of the week. Trump told the press after meeting with Republican senators: "And we’re prepared, and we’re doing a great job with it. And it will go away. Just stay calm. It will go away." Trump also stated "When people need a test, they can get a test. When the professionals need a test, when they need tests for people, they can get the test. It’s gone really well."
March 9, 2020 - According to the World Health Organization, there are now 106,000 confirmed cases of coronovirus worldwide, which has killed 3,500 people. News surfaced that Matt Gaetz, a representative from Florida, and vocal Trump supporter, has decided to self-quarantine after determining that he was in contact with a person at CPAC who has tested positive for coronavirus. News also surfaced that Gaetz was seen getting off of Air Force One this morning. Donald Trump sent the following tweet: "The Fake News Media and their partner, the Democrat Party, is doing everything within its semi-considerable power (it used to be greater!) to inflame the CoronaVirus situation, far beyond what the facts would warrant. Surgeon General, 'The risk is low to the average American.'" More than 500 cases of coronavirus have been diagnosed in 35 states and District of Columbia. Trump claimed at a news conference "This blindsided the world, and I think we've handled it very, very well, they've done a great job." Alex Azar, the US health secretary, claimed during the news conference that 1m tests for coronavirus had been shipped and that 4m tests per week would be made available at the end of the week. From a story on CNN: "For a self-described germophobe, Trump has continued to shake hands and interact with people like normal. While a bottle of hand sanitizer has been a staple in his life for decades now, people said they did not notice the President taking any extra precautions, despite being in the age bracket that health officials say should be most concerned about coronavirus." The stock market has been dropping precipitously over concerns regarding the coronavirus, and new concerns over the global impact of lower oil prices caused by Saudi-Russian tensions. In response to these events, Trump sent the following tweets: "Good for the consumer, gasoline prices coming down!" and "Saudi Arabia and Russia are arguing over the price and flow of oil. That, and the Fake News, is the reason for the market drop!" Trump also tried to minimize the coronavirus threat tweeting: "So last year 37,000 Americans died from the common Flu. It averages between 27,000 and 70,000 per year. Nothing is shut down, life & the economy go on. At this moment there are 546 confirmed cases of CoronaVirus, with 22 deaths. Think about that!" Ironically, this tweet was sent 6 minutes after Alex Azar, the health and human services secretary told a Fox News interviewer "This is a very serious health problem, nobody is trying to minimize that. It is a very serious public health threat to the people of the United States and that's why president Trump from day one has been aggressive with a whole of government approach, and will continue to do so." Fox News contributor, Lou Dobbs made the following statement: "The national left-wing media, playing up fears of the coronavirus". The New York Stock Exchange halted trade today as the markets dropped. The Dow dropped more than 2,000 points today over intensifying fears regarding coronavirus. This is now the worst day for the Dow since 2008, at the start of the Great Recession. Kevin McCarthy, the Republican House minority leader, is being criticized for referring to Covid-19 as "Chinese coronavirus". Geng Shuang, a spkokesman for the foreign ministry of China, responded to McCarthy and other Republicans who are choosing to use a geographical marker while referring to the virus saying "Despite the fact that the WHO [World Health Organization] has officially named this novel type of coronavirus, certain American politician[s], disrespecting science and the WHO decision, jumped at the first chance to stigmatize China and Wuhan with it. We condemn this despicable practice". The World Health Organization sent a memo to governments and media organizations at the end of February, urging them to avoid phrases like "Wuhan virus", "Chinese virus" or "Asian virus" saying "Governments, citizens, media, key influencers and communities have an important role to play in preventing and stopping stigma surrounding people from China and Asia in general". Notable reactions to the racist labeling:
"One reason @POTUS & his enablers failed to contain #COVID2019 is due to the myopic focus on China. The virus was also carried into the US from other countries & US travelers. Calling it Chinese coronavirus is scientifically wrong & as stupid as calling it the Italian coronavirus." - Ted Lieu, Democratic Congressman
"I’m embarrassed to be his [Kevin McCarthy] colleague. I’m so disgusted. We await his apology to the nation, the Chinese-American and #AAPI (Asian and Pacific Islander) community and to his own constituents." - Grace Meng, Democratic Congresswoman
March 8, 2020 - Fox News contributor, Pete Hegseth, stated "This is one of those cases where the more I learn about coronavirus, the less concerned I am. There's a lot of hyperbole". According to immigration experts, Trump's immigration policies may put people at risk for coronavirus. According to Max Hadler, the director of health policy at the New York Immigration Coalition: "If you continue to discourage people from seeking services under normal circumstances, you cannot expect them necessarily to seek those services just because you as the racist, anti-immigrant president have decided that now it’s a good idea. That’s not gonna work."
March 7, 2020 - Fox News host, Jeanine Pirro, made the followng statement: "It's a virus. Like the flu. All the talk about coronavirus being so much more deadly, doesn't reflect reality." Trump was asked if he was concenred about the arrival of coronavirus in Washington DC area, his response: "No, I’m not concerned at all. No, we’ve done a great job with it."
March 6, 2020 - Trump was asked about Elizabeth Warren dropping out of the race to become the Democratic nominee, to which he responded, with no sense of irony "She is a mean person. They like a person like me that’s not mean." Trump announced that Mick Mulvaney, the chief of staff, will be replaced by Congressman Mark Meadows. Mulvaney will become the US special envoy for Northern Ireland. Mike Pompeo, the secretary of state, raised eyebrows by referring to Covid-19 as "Wuhan coronavirus". Fox News medical correspondent, Dr Marc Siegel, made the following statement: "This virus should be compared to the flu, 'cause at worst, at worst, worst-case scenario, it could be the flu." Donald Trump signed the Coronavirus Preparedness and Response Supplemental Appropriations Act, and during a Q&A with reporters, made the following statements: "But it’s an unforeseen problem. What a problem. Came out of nowhere, but we’re taking care of it" and "this came unexpectedly a number of months ago. I heard about it in China. It came out of China, and I heard about it. And made a good move: We closed it down; we stopped it." Alex Azar, the Secretary of Health and Human Services made the following statement regarding coronavirus tests: "The production and shipping of tests that we’ve talked about all week is completely on schedule. All of the CDC tests — the tests that are available to test up to 75,000 people — CDC has shipped to America’s public health labs. Those are out. Then, IDT, the private contractor working with CDC to ship to the private sector and hospitals, has already shipped enough tests for 700,000 tests. And the remaining lots are arriving at CDC this morning for quality control and should get out, as we forecast, this weekend. And then next week, we’ll keep ramping up production. So as many as 4 million tests next week are going to be driving forward. So everything is on schedule for the tests." Kellyanne Conway, senior counselor to Donald Trump, was asked why testing wasn't ramped up earlier to get ahead of the novel coronavirus while it was contained, Conway's response "It is being contained and - do you not think it's being contained in this country?" The reporter responded, "I'm not a doctor, I'm a lawyer." Conway continued: "You said it's not being contained, are you a doctor or a lawyer when you say it's not being contained? That's false. You just said something that's not true." Larry Kudlow, a Trump economic advisor, was on CNBC where he urged long term investors to buy into the market right now, saying "I would still argue to you that this is contained, it can't be airtight, but we are, you look at the numbers here, and I know there are things in front of us, more testing is going to uncover more cases, but in a relative sense, relative to our population, relative to ordinary flus, I don't want to downgrade this thing ... but I think it is relatively contained." Trump visited the CDC today, where he held a press conference. Here are some highlights from the visit and press conference:
- Trump toured the CDC while wearing his re-election hat which has the inscription "Keep America Great".
- Trump asked a Fox News reporter if a town hall he had on the network yesterday got good ratings.
- Trump was asked if he has considered cancelling his MAGA rallies because of the risk to 1000s of attendees. Trump's response: "Doesn't bother me at all and it doesn't bother them at all."
- With regard to tests for coronavirus, while Alex Azar, the HHS Secretary was trying to explain that more tests are coming, Trump cut him off and said "anyone who wants a test can get a test ... the tests are all perfect like the letter was perfect. The transcription was perfect. Right? This was not as perfect as that but pretty good."
- Trump attacked Jay Inslee, the Democratic governor of Washington state, who is currently managing the nation's biggest coronavirus outbreak, saying "I told Mike not to be complimentary of that Gov because that Gov is a snake...Let me just tell you we have a lot of problems with the Gov and the Gov of WA, that's where you have many of your problems, OK? So Mike may be happy with him but I'm not OK?"
- Trump made the following statement: "You know, my uncle was a great person. He was at MIT. He taught at MIT for, I think, like a record number of years. He was a great super genius. Dr. John Trump. I like this stuff. I really get it. People are surprised that I understand it. Every one of these doctors said, 'How do you know so much about this?' Maybe I have a natural ability. Maybe I should have done that instead of running for president."
- Regarding the Grand Princess cruise liner which contains 21 passengers that have tested positive for the coronavirus, Trump said he would prefer they remain quarantined on the ship so that the US numbers don't go up. According to Trump "I like the numbers being where they are. I don’t need to have the numbers double because of one ship that wasn’t our fault."
Some select responses to Trump's CDC press conference:
"The CDC presser was among the most frightening Trump appearances I’ve ever seen, on the level of Charlottesville — a horrifying and surprising (even for him!) callousness in the face of death and suffering, an inability to see anything through a lens other than his own ratings" - Farhad Manjoo
"Ok, the CDC appearance was the most disturbing one yet from Trump. He literally said experts were telling him to take sick Americans off a cruise ship but he doesn't want to do it because it WILL MAKE THE NUMBERS GO UP and it 'wasn't our fault.' Holy Jesus." - Chris Hayes
"Tough to decide what the worst part of Trumps CDC visit was
- Saying he wanted to keep sick people on a ship to fudge the numbers
- lashing out at the gov of the worst hit state
- being preoccupied w/ the ratings he got on Fox
- or saying anyone can get tested when they can't" - Sam Stein
March 5, 2020 - Mike Pence, the Vice President, announced that there are not enough coronavirus tests available to meet demand. The international criminal court (ICC) in the Netherlands, has authorized an investigation into alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in Afghanistan. Included in the scope of the war crimes investigation are CIA black sites operated in Poland, Lithuania, and Romania, where some detainees have been taken. Trump sent the following tweet in response to accusations that he said it was ok for people to go to work with coronavirus: "I NEVER said people that are feeling sick should go to work. This is just more Fake News and disinformation put out by the Democrats, in particular MSDNC. Comcast covers the CoronaVirus situation horribly, only looking to do harm to the incredible & successful effort being made!" Speaking at a town hall meeting in Scranton, Pennsylvania, Trump made the following statement regarding the upside of the coronavirus outbreak: "I have to say, people are now staying in the United States, spending their money in the US— and I like that" As part of a lawsuit by BuzzFeed News, the Department of Justice has been ordered to turn over an unredacted copy of the Mueller report by March 30, so a judge can assess what can be further released publicly. In the ruling William Barr, the attorney general, is accused of misrepresenting the findings of the report before handing it over to Congress. Reggie Walton, the federal judge writing the opinion, wrote in part: "The inconsistencies between Attorney General Barr’s statements made at a time when the public did not have access to the redacted version of the Mueller Report to assess the veracity of his statements, and portions of the redacted version of the Mueller Report that conflict with those statements cause the Court to seriously question whether Attorney General Barr made a calculated attempt to influence public discourse about the Mueller Report in favor of President Trump despite certain findings in the redacted version of the Mueller Report to the contrary ... These circumstances generally, and Attorney General Barr’s lack of candor specifically, call into question Attorney General Barr’s credibility." Trump sent the following tweet: "Gallup just gave us the highest rating ever for the way we are handling the CoronaVirus situation. The April 2009-10 Swine Flu, where nearly 13,000 people died in the U.S., was poorly handled. Ask MSDNC & lightweight Washington failure @RonaldKlain, who the President was then?"
March 4, 2020 -While speaking with airline CEO's, Trump stated "[W]e have a very small number of people in this country [infected]. We have a big country. The biggest impact we had was when we took the 40-plus people [from a cruise ship] ... We brought them back. We immediately quarantined them. But you add that to the numbers. But if you don’t add that to the numbers, we’re talking about very small numbers in the United States." during the same White House meeting, Trump told reporters that "The Obama administration made a decision on testing that turned out to be very detrimental to what we’re doing, and we undid that decision a few days ago so that the testing can take place in a much more accurate and rapid fashion. That was a decision we disagreed with. I don’t think we would have made it, but for some reason, it was made." According to the Guardian "experts on lab testing have said they are unaware of an Obama administration rule that would have hindered the use of tests developed at university or private labs in an emergency. The responsibility for the coronavirus test kit shortage appears to lie with the CDC’s choice to develop and distribute its own kit rather than use the one recommended by the World Health Organization, according to ProPublica. But the CDC’s tests didn’t work, falsely flagging harmless samples that contained viruses other than Covid-19. Moreover, Trump ordered the dissolution of the National Security Council’s global health security unit and reassigned its head. The former national security adviser John Bolton also pressured the team’s counterpart at the Department of Homeland Security to resign. Trump attacked Democrats for warning of the seriousness of the crisis while spreading disinformation and downplaying the outbreak, his critics have said." During an interview with Fox News host Sean Hannity, Trump said that the World Health Organization's figure of a 3.4% death rate from coronavirus is "really a false number" and that his "hunch" is that the level is "way under 1%." Trump provided no evidence to back up his hunch. Trump also said to Hannity "Because a lot of people will have this and it’s very mild. ... So if, you know, we have thousands or hundreds of thousands of people that get better, just by you know, sitting around and even going to work, some of them go to work, but they get better." Wendy Wagner, a University of Texas expert in how policy-makers use science, offered the following critique of Trump's rhetoric, which mixes inaccuracies with wild speculation and nationalism saying "The scientific ‘truth’ about the virus may not match what the administration wants to hear, so the scientific ‘truth’ is at risk of being compromised before it is made public." According to the Guardian: "This situation is exacerbated by a downsizing of scientific expertise within the US government. The EPA’s staff numbers, for example, are a third smaller than they were when Trump took power. In the first two years of the Trump administration, more than 1,600 federal scientists left various government agencies, according to Office of Personnel Management employment data. The administration has attempted even deeper cuts: Trump’s 2021 budget proposal, submitted just days after international alarm was raised over the coronavirus, included a 16% reduction in funding for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)."
March 2, 2020 - Trump held a White House meeting with pharmaceutical executives and public health officials. Here are some highlights from that meeting:
- Trump said to the attendees: "So you have a medicine that’s already involved with the coronaviruses, and now you have to see if it’s specifically for this. You can know that tomorrow, can’t you?" This statement drew the following rebuke from Judith Enck, a former regional administrator for the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA): Trump "doesn’t seem to understand what a clinical trial is".
- Trump wondered aloud why the flu vaccine can't be used for the coronavirus.
- Trump announced that a vaccine could be ready in as little as "two months" insisting that it was "very close". Anthony Fauci, the head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases corrected Trump, saying that it could be up to 18 months before a vaccine is available to the public. Trump responded: ""I mean, I like the sound of a couple months better, if I must be honest."
Despite what he had learned in the White House meeting earlier in the day, Trump held a political rally in Charlotte, North Carolina, where he told the crowd that a vaccine will be available "relatively soon". Trump also told the crowd that "fringe globalists that would rather keep our borders open than keep our infection – think of it – keep all of the infection, let it come in."
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