| Coronavirus conspiracy theories make Fauci the villain, because someone has to be Posted: 28 Apr 2020 07:00 AM PDT  Dr. Anthony Fauci has emerged as the latest target in the vast web of COVID-19-related conspiracy theories that have been circulating on social media.
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| New York reportedly paid $69 million for ventilators to an engineer with no background in medical supplies at the recommendation of the White House coronavirus task force Posted: 29 Apr 2020 05:52 PM PDT  New York has since terminated its contract with the man and is working to recover its money.
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| Class action suit aims to free all transgender ICE detainees Posted: 29 Apr 2020 12:49 PM PDT  As hundreds of coronavirus cases are reported at U.S. immigration facilities, the suit calls for the release of dozens of trans migrants from what it calls ICE "death traps."
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| Company says drug was effective against COVID-19 in U.S. study Posted: 29 Apr 2020 10:18 AM PDT  A biotech company says its experimental drug has proven effective against the new coronavirus in a major U.S. government study that put it to a strict test.
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| Infectious disease expert warns people are treating coronavirus models 'too seriously' Posted: 28 Apr 2020 08:35 AM PDT  You've probably noticed that graphs and charts are having a moment during the coronavirus pandemic. Governments are using them to make informed decisions about when to re-open economies, and they pop up daily to present people around the world with a look at how the pandemic is trending. But some would argue people are putting a little too much stock in models without accounting for their potential pitfalls.Carl Bergstrom, an expert on both emerging infectious diseases and networked misinformation from the University of Washington, told The Guardian in an interview he doesn't think people have done a good job of "thinking about what the purpose of models are, how the purposes of different models vary, and then what the scope of their value is." That's led people to over-rely on them and "treat them too seriously," and when reality eventually differs from the projections, models tend to get criticized "for not being perfect at everything."Bergstrom's point is that science, especially in fast moving scenarios like the pandemic, is "provisional" and "can be corrected." He believes researchers can improve at communicating that point by "deliberately stressing the possible weaknesses of our interpretations." A really good paper, he said, will lay out all the reasons why it could be wrong. Read more at The Guardian.More stories from theweek.com How Tara Reade's allegations could bring down Joe Biden The perils of Hooverism This visualization shows how droplets from a single cough can infect an entire airplane
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| Why Have Women’s Groups Gone Dead Silent on Biden Sex-Assault Accusation? Posted: 29 Apr 2020 01:44 AM PDT  Women's groups and prominent feminist figures have remained almost universally silent over a former staffer's accusation of sexual misconduct against former Vice President Joe Biden—including those individuals and groups who came to express regret for how the Democratic Party handled similar accusations made against President Bill Clinton in the 1990s.The collective non-response from mostly Democrat-aligned groups comes as potential female running mates struggle themselves in responding to the Biden allegation, which has the potential to upend his campaign against President Donald Trump, who has been accused of sexual misconduct by dozens of women in alleged incidents spanning decades. And it echoes the division among progressives when the MeToo movement revived scrutiny of Clinton's own alleged sexual misconduct.The Daily Beast contacted 10 top national pro-women organizations for this story, including Emily's List, Planned Parenthood Action Fund, NARAL Pro-Choice America, and the National Organization for Women. Most organizations did not respond to a detailed request for comment about the allegation by Tara Reade, a former staff assistant in Biden's Senate office who has accused the former vice president of forcibly penetrating her with his fingers in the early 1990s. Others replied and did not provide a statement. One prominent women's political group cited a scheduling conflict and asked to be kept "in mind for other opportunities!" When pressed if the following day would work better, an associate said it would not, citing another scheduling conflict. The near-total lack of acknowledgement from nearly a dozen leading pro-women organizations comes as new corroboration has emerged with respect to the allegation, which the Biden campaign has categorically denied. Neither the Biden campaign nor Reade responded to requests from The Daily Beast for comment Tuesday. It also is taking place as prominent elected women in the Democratic Party rally to Biden's side. On Tuesday, Hillary Clinton became the latest to offer her endorsement of Biden's candidacy—a symbolic passing of the torch from one presidential candidate to another, but a moment that also served as a reminder of moments in recent party history when accusers were almost uniformly dismissed.In 2017, attorney Patricia Ireland, who served as president of the National Organization for Women for the entirety of the Clinton administration, told The Washington Post that she wished she had "done more to be supportive" of Paula Jones, the former Arkansas state employee who alleges that Bill Clinton sexually harassed her during his time as governor."For Paula Jones, there were nice distinctions that people made: She didn't work for him, he didn't have the power to hire or fire her," Ireland said at the time. "But that ignores the reality that he was a very powerful man."During the same period, feminist icon Gloria Steinem told The Guardian that she regretted some parts of her aggressive defense of Clinton during the Monica Lewinsky scandal, including a New York Times op-ed in which she dismissed accusations of sexual misconduct against the president. "Even if the allegations are true," Steinem wrote in the 1998 op-ed, "the president is not guilty of sexual harassment. He is accused of having made a gross, dumb and reckless pass. President Clinton took 'no' for an answer."Steinem told the Guardian that "I wouldn't write the same thing now because there's probably more known about other women now. I'm not sure… What you write in one decade you don't necessarily write in the next."But neither Ireland nor Steinem responded to a request for comment about Reade's accusations against Biden. Bill Clinton has long denied Jones' claims, settling a lawsuit she filed in 1998 for $850,000 with no apology or admission of wrongdoing.Speaking to Fox News on Tuesday, Reade accused Hillary Clinton of "enabling a sexual predator.""Hillary Clinton has a history of enabling powerful men to cover up their sexual predatory behaviors and their inappropriate sexual misconduct," Reade said in response to Clinton's endorsement. "We don't need that for this country. We don't need that for our new generation coming up that wants institutional rape culture to change."Reade first accused Biden of digitally penetrating her in a podcast interview with journalist Katie Halper in March. Two other people, including Reade's brother and a friend who has remained anonymous, told various outlets that Reade had told them about certain aspects of the alleged assault and her subsequent dismissal from Biden's office over the years.On Monday, Business Insider quoted a former neighbor of Reade's recounting that the ex-staffer had disclosed details of the alleged assault when she lived next door to her in the mid-1990s. "This happened, and I know it did because I remember talking about it," Lynda LaCasse, Reade's former neighbor, told the outlet.On April 24, Reade told The Intercept that her mother called into Larry King's cable-news program to discuss "problems" her daughter experienced with a prominent lawmaker in 1993. In the episode, a caller from San Luis Obispo, California—where property records indicate Reade's mother lived at the time—asked the host "what a staffer might do besides go to the press in Washington.""My daughter has just left there after working for a prominent senator and could not get through with her problems at all," the caller said. "The only thing she could have done was go to the press, and she chose not to do it out of respect for him." Reade said on Twitter that it was her mother's voice. "This is my mom. I miss her so much and her brave support of me."Biden's defenders have argued that Reade's story has changed over time—she previously had said only that she felt Biden had inappropriately touched her and made her feel uncomfortable. But sexual-assault victims' advocates have noted that its common for victims to hold back on details as they recount their traumatic experiences. Various aides to Biden have said they have no recollection of any assault incident happening. And Biden's deputy campaign manager Kate Bedingfield said in a statement this month that "this absolutely did not happen," and that "Vice President Biden has dedicated his public life to changing the culture and the laws around violence against women." Bedingfield added: "He firmly believes that women have a right to be heard—and heard respectfully. Such claims should also be diligently reviewed by an independent press. What is clear about this claim: It is untrue."Over the past several days, the Biden campaign has signaled that it is paying additional attention to issues that disproportionately affect women. On Monday, Sen. Kamala Harris (D-CA), one of the contenders thought to be on Biden's shortlist of potential running mates, was a guest on a virtual town hall with black leaders on coronavirus' impact on women of color. Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), another possible running mate and former Biden rival, was also featured in a virtual forum addressing similar women's focused issues late last week. On Tuesday, in introducing Clinton during a virtual town hall, Biden declared she is "the woman who should be president of the United States right now.""I want to add my voice to the many who have endorsed you," Clinton said during the event to discuss the impact of COVID-19 on women. "This is a moment where we need a leader, a president, like Joe Biden." Biden, she said, has been "preparing for this moment his entire life." The former vice president reciprocated by saying it was a "wonderful personal endorsement." On Monday, in offering her own backing, House Majority Leader Nancy Pelosi called him a "partner for progress in the White House." Four years ago, women's groups threw their weight behind Clinton's historic campaign as the Democratic Party's first female nominee. But they remained largely out of the primary in 2020, when an unprecedented number of women campaigned with that similar goal in mind. Still, some groups haven't been shy about criticizing parts of Biden's past record relating to women.In the early stages of Biden's campaign, Planned Parenthood Action Fund took issue with a position he previously held around support for the Hyde Amendment, a provision that sought to restrict the use of federal money for abortion. In June 2019, the group's executive director specifically called out Biden by name, reminding him that "the Democratic Party platform is crystal-clear" around repealing Hyde. Biden later denounced his support of the amendment. Now, as Biden faces a sexual-assault allegation as the presumptive nominee, his past record and prominent female defenders are facing a new round of scrutiny. In particular, the decision to select a female running mate delighted many party activists and women's rights advocates when Biden announced it in March, but is taking on a new form as the Reade allegation receives additional corroboration. Already, potential nominees are having to answer questions about the allegation. The Daily Beast recently contacted the most prominent figures thought to be considered as possible contenders about Reade's claim, including Harris, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), and former Georgia House Minority Leader Stacey Abrams.Among the seven Democratic women's offices reached, only Abrams commented, telling The Daily Beast that "women have the right to be heard" and adding, in part, that "nothing in the Times review suggests anything other than what I already knew: That Joe Biden is a man of highest integrity who will make all women proud as our next president." Read more at The Daily Beast.Get our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.
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| American cruise workers denied disembarkation: 'Treating us like disease vectors instead of humans' Posted: 29 Apr 2020 05:54 PM PDT  Melinda Mann is one of nine American crew members on Holland America's MS Oosterdam. She says the CDC barred them from disembarking in L.A.
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| UK says some children have died from syndrome linked to COVID-19 Posted: 28 Apr 2020 12:53 AM PDT  Some children in the United Kingdom with no underlying health conditions have died from a rare inflammatory syndrome which researchers believe to be linked to COVID-19, Health Secretary Matt Hancock said on Tuesday. Italian and British medical experts are investigating a possible link between the coronavirus pandemic and clusters of severe inflammatory disease among infants who are arriving in hospital with high fevers and swollen arteries. Doctors in northern Italy, one of the world's hardest-hit areas during the pandemic, have reported extraordinarily large numbers of children under age 9 with severe cases of what appears to be Kawasaki disease, more common in parts of Asia.
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| Dalla Torre, grand master of Knights of Malta, dies at 75 Posted: 29 Apr 2020 11:53 AM PDT  Giacomo Dalla Torre del Tempio di Sanguinetto, an Italian aristocrat who steered the ancient Knights of Malta religious order after an institutional crisis with the Vatican, has died. The order said Dalla Torre died early Wednesday after being diagnosed several months ago with an incurable disease. Dalla Torre was elected prince and grand master of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta in 2018, taking over after a fraught year that saw the previous grand master challenge Pope Francis in an ideological face-off that he eventually lost.
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| 20+ Cocktails To Celebrate Moms Everywhere Posted: 29 Apr 2020 11:30 AM PDT |
| University of Miami professor resigns after reportedly sharing porn bookmark on Zoom Posted: 29 Apr 2020 04:34 PM PDT  Business lecturer John Peng Zhang is no longer employed by the school, which said it "aggressively investigates all complaints of inappropriate behavior."
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| Trump backtracks after saying U.S. would "very soon" hit 5 million tests a day Posted: 29 Apr 2020 12:35 PM PDT  On Tuesday, the president, asked whether he was confident the U.S. could reach 5 million COVID-19 tests a day, said the U.S. would be there "very soon."
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| An unprecedented coalition of Amazon, Walmart, FedEx, Target, Instacart, and Whole Foods workers is planning to strike over pandemic working conditions Posted: 29 Apr 2020 03:03 PM PDT  A coalition of workers from some of the US's largest essential businesses are protesting what they say are insufficient and unsafe conditions.
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| Elon Musk, who predicted 'close to zero' new coronavirus cases by the end of April, demands we 'free America' Posted: 29 Apr 2020 09:58 AM PDT  Tesla CEO Elon Musk's coronavirus tweets from last month sure haven't aged well, but he's still got even more to confidently declare about the pandemic.Musk on Twitter this week criticized lockdown measures put in place in the United States to slow the spread of COVID-19, demanding in one, "FREE AMERICA NOW." He applauded Texas for its plan to begin reopening the state's economy, and said the U.S. should "reopen with care and appropriate protection, but don't put everyone under de facto house arrest."Musk also replied to a user who claimed the "scariest thing" about the pandemic isn't the coronavirus but seeing Americans willing to give up freedom, to which the Tesla CEO responded, "true."These tweets, as Gizmodo points out, come after Musk previously downplayed the threat of the coronavirus and in March predicted that by the end of April, there would be "close to zero" new coronavirus cases in the United States. The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in the U.S. continues to rise and just passed one million on Tuesday.> Based on current trends, probably close to zero new cases in US too by end of April> > -- Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 19, 2020"The coronavirus panic is dumb," Musk also wrote in early March regarding a virus that would go on to kill over 58,000 Americans as of this week, more than were killed in the Vietnam War.Experts have repeatedly warned about the dangers of reopening the economy too quickly, and recent polls have found a majority of Americans are fearful of the U.S. reopening too soon. "If you jump the gun, and go into a situation where you have a big spike, you're going to set yourself back," Dr. Anthony Fauci, head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, recently stressed.More stories from theweek.com How Tara Reade's allegations could bring down Joe Biden The perils of Hooverism This visualization shows how droplets from a single cough can infect an entire airplane
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| Myanmar's Military May Be Committing War Crimes While the World Is Distracted by Coronavirus, Says U.N. Rights Expert Posted: 29 Apr 2020 03:29 AM PDT  She says the Myanmar military is using the distraction of COVID-19 to escalate attacks on civilians
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| Don Lemon Grills Stacey Abrams on Joe Biden Sexual Assault Allegation Posted: 28 Apr 2020 09:51 PM PDT  Stacey Abrams has made her ambition to be Joe Biden's running mate abundantly clear over the last couple of weeks. And to that end, she offered the presumptive Democratic nominee her unwavering support when questioned by CNN's Don Lemon about the sexual assault allegation against Biden on Tuesday night. "As someone who wants to be his vice president, I think it's important that we speak about something that's in the news now," Lemon said near the end of his conversation with the former Georgia gubernatorial candidate, before laying out the details of Tara Reade's claim. "CNN has now spoken on the record with her former neighbor who says Reade told her about the allegation within a few years of the alleged incident," Lemon said. "Biden's campaign says untrue, never happened. Is this a credible allegation?" "I believe that women deserve to be heard and I believe that they need to be listened to," Abrams said carefully. "But I also believe that those allegations have to be investigated by credible sources." She cited an in-depth New York Times investigation that found the accusation was "not credible," though new information has emerged in the two weeks since it was published. "I believe Joe Biden," Abrams said. "I believe that he is a person who has demonstrated that his love of family, his love of our community, has been made perfectly clear through his work as a congressional leader and as an American leader. I know Joe Biden and I think he's telling the truth and that this did not happen." With her conclusion, Abrams appeared to be parroting official Biden campaign talking points, which read, in part, "Biden believes that all women have the right to be heard and to have their claims thoroughly reviewed. In this case, a thorough review by the New York Times has led to the truth: this incident did not happen."Stephen Colbert Grills Bernie Sanders: Are You Endorsing Biden or Not?Lemon could have left things there, but instead he confronted Abrams with a tweet she posted in 2018 that condemned Senate Republicans for "rushing" Brett Kavanaugh's Supreme Court confirmation forward despite the "courageous and compelling testimony from Dr. Christine Blasey Ford." "Are you applying a different standard now?" Lemon asked. "Not at all," Abrams replied. "I believed then and I believe now that women deserve to be heard because too often they are not. And Tara Reade deserved to have her story listened to and investigated. What was happening with Christine Blasey Ford was there there was no investigation. There was a rush to move it forward so no investigation was conducted." "So you said you've heard her, you've heard enough, you don't believe her, you believe Joe Biden," Lemon said.After once again returning to the Times investigation, Abrams said, "I believe the Biden I know. And I think he will make women proud, that he will make America proud." Asked if Biden needs to "address this more directly and more publicly," Abrams said, "I believe his campaign has been very clear. And I believe that is the approach that they intend to take and I support the approach. "We don't want women to ever be afraid to come forward," she concluded. "But we also have to recognize that allegations should be investigated and that those investigations need to be borne out." Anderson Cooper Dumbfounded by Trump's 'Sarcasm' Excuse: Does He Think We're 'Morons'Read more at The Daily Beast.Get our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.
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| China's new 'rule of law' in Hong Kong sets stage for new protests Posted: 28 Apr 2020 05:56 PM PDT  China's interpretation of the 'rule of law' governing Hong Kong is likely to further incite protesters following the arrest of activists.
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| Drugs, oil … women? Mexican cartels turn to human trafficking Posted: 29 Apr 2020 10:30 AM PDT |
| Trump urges states to consider reopening schools before end of academic year Posted: 28 Apr 2020 03:32 AM PDT  President Trump suggested Monday in a call with governors that states "seriously consider" reopening schools before summer.
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| 'Naked concerns': Doctors strip down to protest lack of protective equipment Posted: 28 Apr 2020 05:30 AM PDT  In one of the photos a doctor holds up a sign which reads in German, "I learned to sew wounds. Why do I now need to know how to sew masks?"
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| Severe storms, tornadoes and 'massive' hail forecast for 42 million people across southern Plains Posted: 28 Apr 2020 07:31 PM PDT  A major outbreak of severe weather is forecast across the southern Plains later Tuesday. Texas, Oklahoma and Arkansas may see hail and tornadoes.
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| Mitch McConnell wants to prevent a 'blue state bailout' of stimulus money. But Kentucky takes more from the federal government than almost any other state. Posted: 28 Apr 2020 12:36 PM PDT  Kentucky has a bigger balance than 47 other states from the 2015 fiscal year through 2018, according to the Rockefeller Institute of Government.
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| Letters to the Editor: Rich people riding out the pandemic in country homes put locals at risk Posted: 29 Apr 2020 03:00 AM PDT  A resident of Sedona, Ariz., did not appreciate an L.A. Times story on wealthy out-of-towners fleeing to their second homes.
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| Trump campaign slams Senate GOP for memo advising candidates 'don't defend Trump' on COVID-19 response Posted: 28 Apr 2020 03:26 AM PDT  President Trump has not gotten the steep polling bump other Western leaders and proactive U.S. governors have seen as they fight the COVID-19 pandemic, and in fact, more Americans disapprove than approve of Trump's coronavirus response, probably feeding a drop in his overall approval rating and electoral standing. But any Republican candidates who fail to defend Trump's coronavirus handling will pay a price, the Trump campaign told the National Republican Senatorial Committee on Monday, Politico reports.Last week, Politico and The Washington Post reported that a 57-page memo prepared by GOP strategist Brett O'Donnell's consulting firm advised Senate candidates that when asked about the pandemic, "don't defend Trump, other than the China Travel Ban — attack China." When pressed, the candidates should respond: "I wish that everyone acted earlier — that includes our elected officials, the World Health Organization, and the CDC." The NRSC distributed the memo to Republican campaigns.The Trump campaign was furious, and top officials — including campaign manager Brad Parscale, communications director Tim Murtaugh, and political advisers Justin Clark, Bill Stepien, and Chris Carr — expressed their displeasure to the NRSC, Politico reports. "Candidates will listen to the bad advice in this memo at their own peril," Clark said in a statement. "President Trump enjoys unprecedented support among Republican voters," and GOP candidates "who want to win will be running with the president."Underscoring his point, NRSC executive director Kevin McLaughlin insisted Monday "there is no daylight between the NRSC and President Trump" and GOP Senate candidates aren't being advised to not defend Trump's response. O'Donnell issued a similar statement: "I never advise candidates not to defend the president, and the media shouldn't take one line out of context." Democrats would have to pick up four seats to win a majority in the Senate, and that no longer seems implausible.More stories from theweek.com Scientists are perplexed by the low rate of coronavirus hospitalizations among smokers. Nicotine may hold the answer. How Tara Reade's allegations could bring down Joe Biden AMC says it will no longer show Universal Pictures films because of Trolls World Tour move
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| Prominent Democratic women, including Stacey Abrams and Kirsten Gillibrand, are standing by Joe Biden amid sexual assault accusation Posted: 28 Apr 2020 04:33 PM PDT  "He's devoted his life to supporting women, and he has vehemently denied this allegation," Gillibrand, a MeToo champion, said Tuesday.
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| Worker who died was never moved into new role, away from sick inmates Posted: 29 Apr 2020 04:48 PM PDT  Robin Grubbs, a caseworker at the United States Penitentiary in Atlanta, was found dead in her home Tuesday and posthumously tested positive for the virus.
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| Inmate who gave birth on ventilator dies of Covid-19 Posted: 29 Apr 2020 08:13 AM PDT  The 30-year-old appears to be the the first US federal female prisoner to die from coronavirus.
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| Germans urged to stay home as coronavirus infection rate edges back up Posted: 28 Apr 2020 01:18 AM PDT  Germany's coronavirus infection rate has edged up from earlier this month and people should stay at home as much as they can despite a lockdown relaxation last week, the head of the Robert Koch Institute for infectious diseases said on Tuesday. The virus reproduction rate, dubbed 'R', is now at 1.0 in Germany, said Lothar Wieler, president of the Robert Koch Institute. The education ministers of Germany's 16 federal states agreed on Tuesday that schools across the country would slowly reopen classes for all grades until the summer holidays, although pupils would have to work and learn in smaller groups.
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| Turkish president backs cleric who said homosexuality 'brings disease' Posted: 28 Apr 2020 08:06 AM PDT  The cleric claimed thousands of people are exposed to HIV annually due to homosexuality and adultery and called on worshipers to fight "this kind of evil."
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| JetBlue wants to suspend service at 16 major airports; Delta wants to halt service to 9 cities Posted: 29 Apr 2020 03:07 PM PDT  On Tuesday, JetBlue asked the Department of Transportation to let it suspend service at 16 major airports. Delta sought its OK for nine smaller ones.
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| Over 60,000 lives claimed by COVID-19 in U.S. — a tally some models predicted for late summer Posted: 29 Apr 2020 12:00 PM PDT  New York sees a dip in deaths, and Louisiana governor meets Trump, as each state in the union thinks about how to move forward amid coronavirus.
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| Libya's Khalifa Haftar accused of coup d'etat as he puts eastern Libya under direct military rule Posted: 28 Apr 2020 06:23 AM PDT  Libya's renegade field marshal Khalifa Haftar was accused of carrying out a coup after he declared the agreement that created a post-Gaddafi government a "thing of the past" and said he was placing eastern parts of the country under direct military rule. In a televised address broadcast late on Monday night, Gen Haftar said his self-styled Libyan National Army was proud "proud to be mandated with the historic task" of leading Libya and would soon set about setting up state institutions to do so. "We announce our acceptance of the people's will and mandate and the end of the Skhirat Agreement," he said, referring to a 2015 United Nations-mediated deal that produced the unity government. He did not make clear what the announcement means for the nominally civilian parallel government that already operates the country's east. Gen Haftar's LNA controls most of eastern and southern Libya and critics say he is already a de facto military dictator of those areas. But his legitimacy has until now been underpinned by the House of Representatives, a parliament elected in 2014.
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| Pence Lied, Americans Are Dying, and Trump Is Sneering Posted: 28 Apr 2020 07:03 AM PDT  OK. So now it turns out that when Mike Pence started talking about four million tests, he didn't mean they'd be administered. He just meant they'd be procured. Monday night, ABC's Jonathan Karl asked him: You said in early March there'd be four million tests by the next week. Now here it is six, seven weeks later, and you're saying we're just now getting them. "John, I appreciate the question, but it represents a misunderstanding on your part, and frankly a lot of people in the public's part," Pence said.Let's stop right there for a minute. Reproducing the words in cold type is one thing. But you really need to watch this moment. Specifically, you need to focus on Donald Trump's face as Pence delivers that little lecture, at :48 seconds in:Trump is looking out toward the reporters, presumably at Karl, and smirking. Good dog, Mikey; just what you're up here to do. And you, Karl, you fake news bloodsucker, boy, did you get yours. It's just two or three seconds, but those two or three seconds say everything. Millions infected, thousands dying; the topic at hand is his most colossal failure in this whole nightmare, a failure that has caused far more misery than this nation needed to have suffered. And he sees it as an occasion to smirk at a journalist.Pence continued: "...about the difference between having a test versus the ability to actually process the test." Eventually, Karl was able to follow up: "So when you said four million tests seven weeks ago, you were just talking about the tests being sent out, not actually being completed? I'm a little confused." "John, I think, precisely correct."Are you a schoolteacher or a college professor? I have an idea for you. Next semester, or whenever we have regular school again, prepare a test for your students, but don't give it to them. Then, when the semester ends, and you don't have enough results on which to hand out grades, and the principal or the dean asks you, "So, you prepared the tests, but didn't administer them, is that right? I'm a little confused." You should say: "Precisely correct!"America Is About to Blow Past the 60,000 Coronavirus Deaths Trump Said Would Be a WinIt's just staggering that they can stand up there and keep spinning this. The Washington Post reports Tuesday morning that Trump was warned not once or twice or three times but repeatedly over January and February in the Presidential Daily Brief that this was deadly serious. He's not the first Republican president to have a problem with a PDB. You'll recall that George W. Bush blew off the PDB of August 6, 2001 that warned about a coming terrorist attack on U.S. soil conducted by Osama bin Laden. Bush ignored one briefing. Trump ignored several. Because of course he "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," as the Post put it. We've known that Trump spent those first crucial weeks wishing the virus away. We didn't know that he did it in the face of repeated warnings. From the intelligence community. But of course, they're just deep-staters, so why should he have listened?We are deep into Wonderland, and with the election coming, we're just going to get deeper and deeper. A meme is developing now on the right that this isn't so bad. Tucker Carlson said it Monday night: "The virus just isn't nearly as deadly as we thought it was, all of us, including on this show. Everybody thought it was, but it turned out not to be." I'm seeing it pop up on Twitter and Facebook. See, they say; a few weeks ago, they were saying two million deaths. Now, we're looking at a fraction of that. You lib fake news Trump haters tried to blow this up into a huge catastrophe.There's an obvious response to this, but you have to stop and think for seven seconds and connect a couple dots. Those projections were real at the time—many of them were being cited by the White House that's mocking them now. They were based on us not doing anything. Now the projections are lower. But they're lower precisely because we're staying indoors. And how much lower would the projections—and actual numbers—have been if we'd had a president who could read a short briefing paper and who did the things that obviously needed to be done in January and February? He should have spent January ensuring that manufacturers were making millions of tests—and that the federal government was distributing them adequately around the country. How different would this crisis be if 20 million tests had been out there ready to deploy by early February?Also in January, he needed to be making sure that we had ventilators and PPE. Actually, that should have been in place on a standing basis. And then, in February, he should have made Congress appropriate the money to hire an army of contact tracers. This is yet another epic disaster that is going to result in needless death. NPR reported Tuesday morning that experts think we need 180,000 contact tracers working in this country. Right now, we have 7,500. Some states are trying, but what's really needed is for Congress to spend the money.But hey—it's not as bad as we thought. And when the lapdog veep smacks down a fake newser, that's a big W. We could have had 40 million test kits out there right now, and something like 180,000 contact tracers. Instead we have four million (finally) and 7,500. But the guy from CNN got put in his place, and that's what really matters. Read more at The Daily Beast.Get our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.
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| Quest Diagnostics is rolling out the first coronavirus antibody test you can order online. Here's how you can get one. Posted: 28 Apr 2020 07:57 AM PDT  The coronavirus antibody test costs $119 and requires a blood draw at one of Quest's 2,200 locations. It can be ordered without a prescription.
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| The New York Times clarifies it didn't clear Biden of sexual assault allegation despite what campaign suggests Posted: 29 Apr 2020 12:15 PM PDT  Talking points from former Vice President Joe Biden's campaign suggest The New York Times found that Tara Reade's sexual assault allegation against him is false, but the Times would like to clarify it did not reach this conclusion.BuzzFeed News on Tuesday reported that Biden's campaign had sent out talking points regarding Reade's allegation that Biden assaulted her in 1993 when she worked for him as an aide. The talking points assert "a thorough review by the New York Times has led to the truth: this incident did not happen."Asked about the allegation against Biden on Tuesday, former Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams echoed these talking points, telling CNN, "The New York Times did a deep investigation, and they found that the accusation was not credible."But a spokesperson for the Times on Wednesday said this characterization of their reporting is not accurate."BuzzFeed reported on the existence of talking points being circulated by the Biden campaign that inaccurately suggest a New York Times investigation found that Tara Reade's allegation 'did not happen,'" the Times spokesperson said. "Our investigation made no conclusion either way."Rather, the Times said no former staff members of Biden's corroborated Reade's allegation during their reporting and that "the Times found no pattern of sexual misconduct by Mr. Biden," but it did not determine Reade's allegation didn't happen. The Times spokesperson noted Wednesday that it "spoke to a friend who said Reade told her the details of the allegation at the time" and "another friend and Reade's brother say she told them of a traumatic sexual incident involving Biden."Earlier this week, a former neighbor of Reade's told Insider she told her about the alleged assault in the 1990s. The Biden campaign has denied the allegation, but Biden hasn't commented on it personally.More stories from theweek.com How Tara Reade's allegations could bring down Joe Biden The perils of Hooverism This visualization shows how droplets from a single cough can infect an entire airplane
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| US Navy ship sails through Chinese-claimed waters in South China Sea Posted: 29 Apr 2020 09:07 AM PDT  A US Navy guided-missile destroyer sailed through waters near the Paracel islands in the South China Sea challenging China's claim to the area, the Navy said Wednesday. The USS Barry undertook the so-called "freedom of navigation operation" on Tuesday, a week after Beijing upped its claims to the region by designating an official administrative district for the islands. "Unlawful and sweeping maritime claims in the South China Sea pose an unprecedented threat to the freedom of the seas, including the freedoms of navigation and overflight and the right of innocent passage of all ships," it said.
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| Germany's Merkel wants green recovery from coronavirus crisis Posted: 28 Apr 2020 07:04 AM PDT |
| U.S. forces surprise Holocaust survivor, play Israeli national anthem via Zoom Posted: 29 Apr 2020 04:23 AM PDT  "The most important thing in life is life itself," Holocaust survivor Abba Naor told NBC News.
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| A Kentucky woman with coronavirus was arrested after violating quarantine orders 3 times and going to a Kroger grocery store, police say Posted: 29 Apr 2020 11:52 AM PDT  The woman made contact with five people at the Kroger, which was packed with roughly 200 customers and staff on a busy Monday morning.
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| Pelosi Rejects McConnell’s Proposed Coronavirus-Liability Protections for Businesses Posted: 29 Apr 2020 02:43 PM PDT  House speaker Nancy Pelosi on Wednesday rejected a Republican proposal to provide businesses with protection from lawsuits should they choose to reopen during the coronavirus pandemic."Especially now, we have every reason to protect our workers and our patients in all of this. So we would not be inclined to be supporting any immunity from liability," Pelosi told reporters at a press briefing.Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell indicated this week that he would "insist" the next coronavirus-relief package include liability protections for companies and health-care workers as they reopen amid the pandemic. Such protections are a "red line," McConnell has said, and must be included before he would consider Democratic demands that additional relief be provided to state and local governments."The next pandemic coming will be the lawsuit pandemic in the wake of this one. So we need to prevent that now when we have the opportunity to do it," the Kentucky Republican told Politico on Monday.Democrats do not have "any interest in having any less protection for our workers," Pelosi responded.Senators will return to Congress on Monday to begin hashing out the next relief package.
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| Court: Kansas can't require voters to show citizenship proof Posted: 29 Apr 2020 08:28 AM PDT  A federal appeals court panel ruled Wednesday that Kansas can't require voters to show proof of citizenship when they register, dealing a blow to efforts by Republicans in several states who have pursued restrictive voting laws as a way of combating voter fraud. The 10th Circuit Court of Appeals panel in Salt Lake City upheld a federal judge's injunction nearly two years ago that prohibited Kansas from enforcing the requirement, which took effect in 2013. The appeals court, in a ruling that consolidated two appeals, found the statute former Gov. Sam Brownback signed into law violates the U.S. Constitution's Equal Protection Clause and the National Voter Registration Act, commonly known as the "motor-voter law."
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| Teachers union: 'Scream bloody murder' if schools reopen against medical advice Posted: 28 Apr 2020 09:44 AM PDT  Schools in most states have been ordered to stay closed the rest of the year or strongly urged to do so.
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| President Trump blasts House Democrats for not returning to Congress amid COVID-19 crisis Posted: 29 Apr 2020 02:39 PM PDT  House Democrats say a congressional physician warned it could be dangerous to return to work; reaction on 'The Five.'
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| More and more countries across Europe have started lifting their lockdowns. Here's how they're working out. Posted: 29 Apr 2020 09:17 AM PDT  Some countries across Europe have slightly eased coronavirus restrictions, with many planning more steps in early May towards reopening.
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| Stocks Are Recovering While the Economy Collapses. That Makes More Sense Than You'd Think. Posted: 29 Apr 2020 07:38 AM PDT  While the economy is contracting, the market is soaring. If you look closely at what's up and down, it actually makes sense—for now.
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| Big powers urged to freeze sanctions on Syria, Iran, Venezuela during virus Posted: 28 Apr 2020 10:00 AM PDT  Major powers must suspend economic sanctions against countries including Syria, Iran and Venezuela during the coronarivus pandemic which threatens to worsen hunger and suffering for the poor, an international refugee charity said on Tuesday. Jan Egeland, a former U.N. aid chief who now heads the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC), said that despite sanctions exemptions for medical and food supplies, aid groups still face hurdles to help vulnerable people during the health crisis. After battering China, Western Europe and the United States, infections and deaths from COVID-19 are now rising in Africa, Eastern Europe, Latin America and some Asian countries, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Monday.
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| 'Survival': Tenants, landlords brace for largest rent strike in decades Posted: 29 Apr 2020 06:05 PM PDT  "If banks are getting bailed out and corporations are getting bailed out, why aren't poor people getting bailed out?" one activist asked.
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| Robber attacks 77-year-old woman with metal pipe to steal her pizza Posted: 29 Apr 2020 02:21 PM PDT  A man hit a 77-year-old woman on the head with a metal pipe, before stealing one of her pizzas.In a video, released by the Tucson police Department, a woman carrying two pizzas attempted to leave Peter Piper Pizza, in Arizona.
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| Pelosi names seven Democratic lawmakers to committee tasked with overseeing coronavirus stimulus money Posted: 29 Apr 2020 01:14 PM PDT  The panel will oversee the trillions of dollars disbursed by the federal government to address the impacts of the coronavirus pandemic.
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