Driving the Day:
https://twitter.com/Covid19WarRoom/status/1246053806338715651
By The Numbers
Friday, April 3, 7:30 AM
Number of US cases reported: 245,573
Number of US deaths: 6,058
Total Number of People Tested in US: 1,288,013 (may not include all labs)
Bloomberg: Next Virus ‘Hot Spots’ Seen as Michigan, Connecticut, Indiana
Five Thirty Eight: Are Democrats And Republicans Reacting Differently To Coronavirus? It Depends What You’re Asking Them.
HuffPost: How The Coronavirus Outbreak Is Affecting People Across The U.S.
New York Times: U.S. and Europe: How Do the Outbreak Patterns Compare?
New York Times: Where America Didn’t Stay Home Even as the Virus Spread
Sacramento Bee: Coronavirus is now the third leading cause of death in the US, doctor says
USA Today: More than 1,000 in US die in a single day from coronavirus, doubling the worst daily death toll of the flu
Vox: Charting the coronavirus pandemic state by state
Washington Post: Coronavirus is harming the mental health of tens of millions of people in U.S., new poll finds
What to Watch For
President Trump holds an in-person meeting with oil and gas executives at the White House at 3:00 PM. The coronavirus task force will briefs the press at 5:00 PM. The rollout of Treasury’s small business lending program starts today in what one lender predicted will be, “One of the craziest days in the history of modern banking.”
Trump’s Failure to Prepare & How He’s Making it Worse
- Chaos In The Stimulus Rollout: The administration’s rollout of the $2 trillion stimulus package has descended into chaos. The program is expected to dole out $30 billion in loans to struggling small businesses starting today and lenders, including giants like JP Morgan, say that they’re not ready and are “desperately awaiting” guidance from the Small Business Administration about how to administer the program. Banks are expecting millions of applications and many are bracing for “a disaster that could dwarf the failed kickoff of the Obamacare enrollment website in 2013.” The rollout of relief payments to every American has also been marked by chaos with the Trump administration telling the House that checks won’t go out until the week of April 13 and some American’s won’t see their relief check until the fall. The Department of Labor quietly released guidance on Wednesday that substantially scales back paid leave requirements imposed by the coronavirus relief bill, creating exemptions that leave more 75 percent of American workers out of the program.
- Chaos In Supply Distribution: Chaos and mismanagement continue in the distribution of supplies and assistance to areas around the country that desperately need it. The New York Times reports that although it arrived in New York Harbor to great acclaim, the USNS Comfort has only treated three patients and the crew of highly trained medical staff remains largely idle as New York’s land hospitals buckle under the strain. FEMA informed the House Oversight and Reform Committee that fewer than 10,000 ventilators remain in the national stockpile and demand will soon outstrip capacity. Politico reported that despite ostentatiously deploying the Defense Production Act “against” General Motors, the White House has done little to prod GM and cannot verify whether any progress is being made on producing ventilators. At the Thursday evening briefing Rear Adm. John Polowczyk revealed that although the US has established an airbridge of flights from abroad to bring in supplies, those supplies are largely not going to FEMA or the states, they are instead going to private sector distributors, prompting bidding wars and a mad scramble among the states to get their hands on desperately needed goods.
- More Evidence That The Administration Ignored Warnings. New reporting shows that two months before the coronavirus began spreading in Wuhan, the Trump administration ended a $200 million program aimed at detecting exactly this type of novel coronavirus. The staff of the early warning program had worked with labs in and around Wuhan to detect deadly viruses. Politico reports on the “rising sense of dread” at the National Security Council that began as early as January 2 as the Trump administration ignored urgent warnings and pleas for aggressive action.
ABC: Navy fires captain of aircraft carrier over leak of letter to leadership
CNBC: White House says small business lending program will be running Friday, even as JPMorgan says it’s not ready
CNN: Source close to coronavirus task force: Despite what White House is saying, tougher measures implemented earlier ‘might have made a difference’
CNN: Top doctor says White House coronavirus task force still missing 50% of testing data
Daily Beast: Army Warned in Early February That Coronavirus Could Kill 150,000 Americans
Detroit Free Press: Trump hasn’t ordered any ventilators from GM, despite saying he was using wartime powers to force production
The Hill: FEMA tells House panel national supply of ventilators running low
HuffPost: As Unemployment Claims Surge, Millions Are Still Waiting For Expanded Benefits
Los Angeles Times: Trump administration ended pandemic early-warning program to detect coronaviruses
Morning Consult: Voters Sour on Trump’s COVID-19 Response as More Blame Him for Its Spread
Mother Jones: Elizabeth Warren: How John Bolton Blew Off Senators Who Asked About Global Pandemics
NBC: Trump administration’s lack of a unified coronavirus strategy will cost lives, say a dozen experts
New Yorker: The Coronavirus Is the World’s Only Superpower
New York Times: The 1,000-Bed Comfort Was Supposed to Aid New York. It Has 3 Patients.
New York Times: Stranded Abroad, Americans Ask: Why Weren’t We Warned Sooner?
Politico: Fauci endorses national stay-at-home order: ‘I just don’t understand why we’re not doing that’
Politico: ‘Lack of leadership’: Esper’s pandemic response draws fire as crisis deepens
Politico: Piecemeal testing flusters officials tracking coronavirus pandemic
NBC: Many Americans may have to wait months for coronavirus relief checks
Politico: Inside the National Security Council, a rising sense of dread
Politico: Banks warn of chaotic launch of small business lending program
Politico: Days after ventilator DPA order, White House has done little to push GM
Washington Post: Inside America’s mask crunch: A slow government reaction and an industry wary of liability
Washington Post (Opinion): We’ve officially witnessed the total failure of empathy in presidential leadership
Trump’s Misinformation
- Where Did That Model Come From? Leading disease modelers and experts were “mystified” when they saw the White House’s projection that between 100,000 and 240,000 Americans will die from the coronavirus. White House officials have refused to explain how they generated that figure and have not released any underlying data so it can be verified. It is unclear whether the White House is using data to create a coordinated long-term strategy or is simply seeking numbers that will please the president.
- Trump Oversells Rapid COVID-19 Test: This week President Trump rolled out a new rapid coronavirus test made by Abbott Laboratories with great fanfare in a Rose Garden press conference. Trump said the test was a “whole new ballgame” in the fight against coronavirus. New documents obtained by Kaiser Health News reveal that only 5,500 of the new tests are available for distribution for the entire country leaving states and localities scrambling to get them while some White House officials propose shipping the rapid tests to rural states and parts of the south rather than to outbreaks biggest hotspots.
Axios: The right and left internet loves Anthony Fauci
Bloomberg: Trump’s Disputed Claim of Saudi, Russia Oil Cuts Jolts Markets
CNN: Fact check: Trump falsely claims plane and train passengers are being tested for the coronavirus
Kaiser Health News: Trump Touted Abbott’s Quick COVID-19 Test. HHS Document Shows Only 5,500 Are On Way For Entire U.S.
Los Angeles Times: Fox isn’t enough: Amid coronavirus crisis, Trump leans on a new media friend
Politico: No ‘magic pill’: The fight over unproven drugs for coronavirus
Wall Street Journal: Coronavirus Task Force’s Fauci Receives a Security Detail
Washington Post: Experts and Trump’s advisers doubt White House’s 240,000 coronavirus deaths estimate
Washington Post: Commander of confusion: Trump sows uncertainty and seeks to cast blame in coronavirus crisis
Washington Post: The scramble for the rapid coronavirus tests everybody wants
Trump, GOP Only Looking Out for Themselves
- Jared’s Cashing In: The New York Times reports that presidential son in law Jared Kushner has inserted himself into the middle of the federal government’s coronavirus response, creating more chaos and confusion, with one senior official describing the Kushner team as a “frat party” that descended from a U.F.O. and invaded the federal government. While he takes over the government response, Kushner’s company is set to be a “prime beneficiary” of a provision in the recovery bill that allows owners of apartment buildings to freeze mortgage payments on low and moderate income properties. With more than $800 million in federally backed properties, Kushner Companies could be able to reduce its payments to zero.
- Shortchanging The States: The Trump administration continues to attack Democratic officials and shortchange their states from the national stockpile. The District of Columbia reported receiving only a fraction of the needed supplies it requested from the federal stockpile, while New York has been forced into paying up to 15 times normal prices for desperately needed medical goods. After spending all day sending angry letters to Sen. Chuck Schumer blaming New York’s coronavirus crisis on the impeachment “hoax,” at the Thursday briefing, Trump complained again that the federal government is not an “ordering clerk” and that states are on their own for procuring supplies. At his first appearance at the briefing, Jared Kushner also claimed that governors are bad managers don’t know how many supplies they need and that the federal stockpile is supposed to be “our” stockpile and isn’t intended for distribution to the states.
- Trump Wants Help For His Own Company, But Isn’t Contributing To The Relief Effort: According to reporting by the New York Times, Trump’s personal company is seeking relief from Deutsche Bank for some of its loans and financial obligations. ProPublica reports that while Trump has alternately praised and berated private sector companies for their contributions to the coronavirus response effort, his own company has done nothing to contribute to the relief effort, including in New York where Trump owns several iconic properties and other hotel owners have stepped up to contribute rooms to medical personnel and non-critical patients.
- Trump’s Latest Scheme To Prevent People From Enrolling In Health Insurance: At the Thursday evening briefing, Trump and Pence discussed the latest plan to block Americans from enrolling in Affordable Care Act plans during a national health and employment emergency. Instead of reopening enrollment in the marketplaces, Trump and Pence proposed making direct payments to hospitals to pay for coronavirus treatment for uninsured patients, a scheme that could cost American taxpayers more and leave millions vulnerable to any illness or injury other than coronavirus if they are unable to obtain health insurance.
New York Times: Trump Administration Scales Back Paid Leave in Coronavirus Relief Law
Baltimore Sun: Maryland received small fraction of coronavirus gear it requested from U.S. government, including body bags
Bloomberg: Trump Attacks 3M While U.S. Pushes Mask, Ventilator Makers
Bloomberg: Pence Says Hospitals to Be Paid for Uninsured Covid-19 Patients
Daily Beast: Trump Blames New York Coronavirus Crisis on Impeachment ‘Hoax’
Daily Beast: Tucker Carlson: Sen. Kelly Loeffler Should Resign if She Knew About Stock Trades
HuffPost: Republicans Are Bragging About An Unemployment Boost They Voted Against
KJZZ: Ducey’s Request For Affordable Care Act Enrollment Extension Denied
Medium: States are Being Forced Into a Bidding War for Ventilators
New York Times: The N.R.A. Sees a Threat, and an Opportunity, in Covid-19
New York Times: Trump’s Company Seeks Financial Help as Coronavirus Takes Toll
New York Times: Kushner Puts Himself in Middle of White House’s Chaotic Coronavirus Response
New York Times (Opinion): Jared Kushner Is Going to Get Us All Killed
Politico: Kushner company stands to benefit from freeze on federal mortgage payments
Politico: Oil execs to Trump: Whose side are you on?
Politico: White House eyeing stimulus funds to cover uninsured
ProPublica: Trump Congratulates Businesses for Helping Fight Coronavirus. But His Own Company Has Been Absent.
ProPublica: In Desperation, New York State Pays Up to 15 Times the Normal Prices for Medical Equipment
Washington Post (Opinion): Has Trump corrupted the coronavirus supply chain? Schiff wants to know.
Washington Post: Federal government gave D.C. a fraction of what it sought to fight coronavirus
Other News
Affordability And Access
Axios: Coronavirus leads to 3.5 million people losing employer coverage
NPR: The Coronavirus Doesn’t Discriminate, But U.S. Health Care Showing Familiar Biases
New York Times: Now That Coronavirus Tests Are Free, Some Insurers Are Waiving Costs for Treatment
Campaigns and Elections
Bloomberg: Virus Lockdowns Are Reshaping Election Fight for Senate Control
New York Times: Democrats Postpone Convention Until August Because of Coronavirus
New York Times: ‘I’m Scared’: Wisconsin Election Puts Poll Workers at Risk of Virus
New York Times: They’re Running for Office Without Health Insurance During a Pandemic
Politico: Wisconsin Democrats apoplectic over gov’s handling of Tuesday primary
Politico: The bruising legal battle underway that could decide the election
Politico: ‘It’s a sh– sandwich’: Republicans rage as Florida becomes a nightmare for Trump
Talking Points Memo: In Echo Of Trump, GA House Speaker Despairs That Coronavirus Vote-By-Mail Measures Would Help Dems
Business
Vox: Why Jeff Bezos’s $100 million donation to food banks won’t satisfy his critics
Washington Post: U.S. Doubles Small-Business Loans’ Rate to 1% After Lenders Balk
Democratic Response
New York Magazine: Republicans: ‘Nobody Expected’ the Coronavirus Pandemic. So Joe Biden Is Nobody?
Diplomacy
New York Times: ‘Missing In Action’: United Nations Struggles in Coronavirus Fight
Economic Impact
Axios: The rich pull up the drawbridges
Bloomberg: Home Lenders Brace for Up to 15 Million U.S. Mortgage Defaults
Politico: Unemployment claims top 6.6 million amid coronavirus layoffs
Washington Post: One Tampa Bay restaurant group is doing what it must to save the family business. It may not be enough.
Axios: Lawmakers worry about coronavirus stimulus rollout
Education
Los Angeles Times: UC to ease admission requirements: No SAT, no letter grades due to coronavirus
New York Times: DeVos Weighs Waiving Special Education. Parents Are Worried.
Washington Post: Mass school closures in the wake of the coronavirus are driving a new wave of student surveillance
Federal Activity
CNN: Experts tell White House coronavirus can spread through talking or even just breathing
HuffPost: FDA Relaxes Blood Donation Restrictions On Gay And Bisexual Men During Shortage
Reason: The FDA Is Making It Much, Much Harder for Distilleries To Produce Hand Sanitizer
Governors and Local Officials
Politico (Opinion): Coronavirus vs. Governors: Ranking the Best and Worst State Leaders
Hospitals and Health Care Workers
Kaiser Health News: Pandemic-Stricken Cities Have Empty Hospitals, But Reopening Them Is Difficult
Politico: New York hospitals rationing ventilators, retrofitting equipment amid crush of coronavirus
New York Times: Patient Has Virus and Serious Cancer. Should Doctors Withhold Ventilator?
Wall Street Journal: Trump Invokes Korean War-Era Law to Get Ventilators Built Amid Short Supply
Immigration And Travel
Axios: Immigrants on the front lines in the coronavirus fight
International
CBS: “Shoot them dead”: Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte orders police and military to kill citizens who defy coronavirus lockdown
Miami Herald: Bodies on the sidewalk: Ecuador city becomes grim coronavirus warning for region
In the States
Associated Press: ‘Surreal’: NY funeral homes struggle as virus deaths surge
Boston Globe: Boston Hospitals Getting ‘Game Changer’ Machine That Sterilizes 80,000 Protective Masks A Day
Charleston Post and Courier: Rural Clarendon County is suddenly a SC coronavirus hotspot. Nobody knows why.
Medium: The Fascinating Antibody Experiment Happening in One Colorado County
Minneapolis Star Tribune: University of Minnesota, Mayo Clinic ready COVID-19 antibody tests in Minnesota
Nashville Tennessean: Gov. Bill Lee orders Tennesseans to stay at home as state continues to fight spread of coronavirus
Tampa Bay Times: Ron DeSantis quietly signed second executive order targeting local coronavirus restrictions
Washington Post (Analysis): Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, who resisted strict coronavirus measures, says he just learned it transmits asymptomatically
Washington Post: In A City Defined By Power, A Virus Has Seized Control
Washington Post: As coronavirus cases surge in Florida, fears mount that action came too late
The Atlantic: The Coronavirus’s Unique Threat to the South
Bloomberg: The South, Sickest Part of a Sick America, Falls Prey to Virus
Media
AdWeek: Dozens Fired at CQ Roll, Publication Known for Reporting Inside Washington
National Security
New York Times: C.I.A. Hunts for Authentic Virus Totals in China, Dismissing Government Tallies
Reuters: Hackers linked to Iran target WHO staff emails during coronavirus – sources
Personal Narratives
CNN: A healthy 39-year-old DJ died of coronavirus. What his young widow and daughter want you to know
Public Safety
McClatchy: Floridians with loved ones in prison fear lightning spread of coronavirus behind bars
New York Times: Second-Highest Ever: March Gun Sales Spiked as Virus Fears Grew
NPR: Train Engineer Says He Crashed In Attempt To Attack Navy Hospital Ship In L.A.
Stat: White House expected to recommend all Americans wear cloth masks to prevent coronavirus spread
Science
The Atlantic: Everyone Thinks They’re Right About Masks
Reuters: Potential COVID-19 vaccine shows promise in mouse study
Wall Street Journal: Coronavirus Seems to Be Infecting and Killing More Men Than Women
Social Impact
The Atlantic: Trapped at Home With People You Met on Craigslist
New York Post: Petition to name Dr. Anthony Fauci ‘Sexiest Man Alive’ gains momentum
Workers
Vice: Leaked Amazon Memo Details Plan to Smear Fired Warehouse Organizer: ‘He’s Not Smart or Articulate’
Trump Tweets
We hit 3M hard today after seeing what they were doing with their Masks. “P Act” all the way. Big surprise to many in government as to what they were doing – will have a big price to pay! [@realDonaldTrump, 4/2/20]
Just spoke to my friend MBS (Crown Prince) of Saudi Arabia, who spoke with President Putin of Russia, & I expect & hope that they will be cutting back approximately 10 Million Barrels, and maybe substantially more which, if it happens, will be GREAT for the oil & gas industry! ….Could be as high as 15 Million Barrels. Good (GREAT) news for everyone! [@realDonaldTrump, 4/2/20]
“The States have to get the money to the people who need it.” @MariaBartiromo And FAST! [@realDonaldTrump, 4/2/20]
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! [@realDonaldTrump, 4/2/20]
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. [@realDonaldTrump, 4/2/20]