W

August 08, 2020

Week 195

Experts in authoritarianism advise to keep a list of things
subtly changing around you, so you’ll remember.

This week U.S. intelligence revealed Russia is actively interfering in the 2020 presidential election, with a goal of harming presumptive Democratic candidate Joe Biden. Democratic leaders pressed NCSC Director William Evanina to inform the American people, while Republicans, reminiscent of 2016, tried to obfuscate intelligence by publicly claiming it was unclear Russia was helping Trump, and using the whataboutism that other countries, China and Iran, were also interfering.

This week Trump continued to push for schools to reopen, falsely claiming on Fox News that children are “almost immune” — a clip of which was then pulled by Twitter and Facebook over it being false information on Covid-19. Schools that reopened however, had a shaky start with unclear guidance and patchwork approach. Trump also had another disastrous interview with Axios’s Jonathan Swan, revealing a lack of basic knowledge about the pandemic, and raising concerns about his mental acuity and competency.

This week with the virus spreading and Trump regurgitating the same disinformation, tens of millions of unemployed Americans were without an essential $600 weekly payment to help make ends meet. Trump left town for a long weekend at his Bedminster club, and Republican leaders also skipped town.

  1. On Wednesday, Gallup reported 13% of Americans are satisfied with the way things are going in the U.S., down from 20% last month, and the lowest in nine years.
  2. Notably, just 20% of Republicans were satisfied, down from 72% in January and 39% last month. For Independents, 12% were satisfied, and 7% of Democrats were satisfied.
  3. On Wednesday, NYT reported according to CDC data, 200,700 more people have died than usual from March 15 to July 25 nationwide, likely the real U.S. death toll from the coronavirus.
  4. On Saturday, NYT reported suburban voters, who Trump has been working to appeal to with his racist tropes, are souring on him, including Independents who voted for him in 2016.
  5. GOP strategists said Trump is alienating independent and even some conservative voters, especially women and better-educated Americans, through his mishandling of the pandemic and stoking racial divides.
  6. Suburban districts of affluent white voters have been a reliable GOP base in the past. Democrats were able to pick up House seats in the suburbs in 2018, and are now are poised to make further inroads in 2020.
  7. On Saturday, WAPO reported for a second consecutive night since Trump started pulling out federal agents, protestors in Portland had almost no interaction with state police as thousands protested for Black Lives Matter.
  8. On Saturday, Las Vegas Review-Journal reported Trump met with John Yoo, one of the attorneys who wrote a memo justifying the use of enhanced interrogation technique under George W. Bush, at the White House.
  9. The meeting last week comes after Yoo wrote an op-ed in June asserting the Supreme Court ruling that blocked Trump’s plans to end DACA could allow Trump to institute future policies without congressional approval.
  10. On Saturday, Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reported the Republican National Convention vote to renominate Trump — usually a prime-time televised event — will be conducted in private, without the press present.
  11. AP reported another RNC official contradicted that statement on Sunday, saying no final decisions have been made, and that logistics for press coverage were still being evaluated.
  12. On Sunday, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott told the GOP Chair he would not attend the Republican convention, saying it was an “honor being selected to serve as Chair of the Texas Delegation,” but cited the pandemic.
  13. On Sunday, Trump headed to his Trump National Golf Club in Sterling, Virginia, the 285th visit to one of his courses since taking office, and the 377th visit to one of his properties while in office.
  14. On Sunday, the White House seemed to back off from Trump’s suggestion to delay the election, with Chief of Staff Mark Meadows telling “Face the Nation” that “We’re going to hold an election on November 3rd.”
  15. On Sunday, Dr. Deborah Birx told “State of the Union” that “we are in a new phase…What we are seeing today is different from March and April. It is extraordinarily widespread. It’s into the rural as equal urban areas.”
  16. Birx added, “If you’re in multi-generational households, and there’s an outbreak….you need to really consider wearing a mask at home…if you have individuals in your households with comorbidities.”
  17. Asked if schools should remain closed in states with high rates, Birx said, “we are asking people to distance learn at this moment,” and did not rule out the possibility of 300,000 deaths by year-end .
  18. At the same time, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was asked on “This Week” if she had confidence in Birx, she said Trump is “spreading disinformation about the virus, and she’s his appointee…I don’t have confidence, no.”
  19. Asked about Pelosi’s comment, Birx said she respected Pelosi, and blamed the NYT reporting, saying, “This was not a pollyannish view,” adding, “I will stake my 40-year career on those fundamental principles of using data.”
  20. On Sunday, Dr. Brett Giroir, the nation’s testing czar, told “Meet the Press” of hydroxychloroquine, which Trump continues to tout, that studies do “not show any benefit,” and “we don’t recommend that as a treatment.”
  21. On Sunday, Neel Kashkari, President of the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis, told “Face the Nation” the country needs another lockdown for a month or six weeks to control the virus and revive the economy.
  22. Kashkari said, “Otherwise, we’re going to have flare-ups,” and the virus will continue for “the next year or two,” causing more bankruptcies. He added with inflation rates so low, Congress should “support the American people.”
  23. On Sunday, when grilled on “This Week” about a Yale study refuting his premise that $600 weekly unemployment benefits are a “disincentive” to finding work, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said, “I went to Yale.”
  24. On Sunday, the Atlanta Journal Constitution reported Gwinnett County, the largest school district in Georgia, reported 260 employees tested positive for Covid-19 during pre-planning and were put into quarantine.
  25. On Sunday, NYT reported Deutsche Bank opened an internal investigation into Rosemary Vrablic, the longtime personal banker of Kushner and Trump, over a real estate transaction between Vrablic and Kushner.
  26. In 2013, Vrablic and two colleagues purchased a Manhattan apartment for $1.5 million from Bergel 715 Associates. Last week’s disclosure showed Ivanka and Kushner got $1 to $5 million from Bergel 715.
  27. Typically, banks restrict employees from doing personal business with clients to avoid conflicts of interest. The bank was not aware of Bergel 715 Associates’ tie to Kushner until the NYT called for comment.
  28. On Sunday, Trump’s nominee for a top Pentagon post, Anthony Tata, a retired Army general turned Fox News commentator, withdrew from consideration after senators from both parties expressed concerns.
  29. Tata has a history of inflammatory comments. Instead, Trump designated Tata to a temporary senior position in the same Defense Department office that does not require confirmation, an end-around to Congress.
  30. Sen. Jack Reed, the ranking member of the Armed Services Committee, said the move was a subterfuge, and called it “an insult to our troops, professionals at the Pentagon, the Senate and the American people.”
  31. On Sunday, WSJ reported with no federal agents on the streets, Portland’s protests turned largely peaceful with thousands in the same area near the courthouse chanting, “No justice, no peace.”
  32. On Monday, Lord & Taylor, America’s oldest department store founded in 1826, joined the growing list of 40 retailers who have filed for bankruptcy due to the pandemic.
  33. On Monday, Trump threatened a lawsuit after Nevada’s Legislature passed a bill to mail ballots to all voters, tweeting, “In an illegal late night coup, Nevada’s clubhouse Governor made it impossible for Republicans to win.”
  34. Trump added, “Post Office could never handle the Traffic of Mail-In Votes without preparation. Using Covid to steal the state.” Five states already mail out ballots to voters, and two other states and D.C. will this year.
  35. Trump also tweeted the lie, “With the exception of New York & a few other locations, we’ve done MUCH better than most other Countries,” claiming, “the Fake News” is “ working overtime to make the USA (& me)” look bad.
  36. Trump also tweeted the false claim, “Cases up because of BIG Testing! Much of our Country is doing very well,” and added “Open the Schools!” despite widespread problems with outbreaks as school reopened.
  37. Trump again referred to the media as the enemy of the people, something common in authoritarian regimes, tweeting, “FAKE NEWS IS THE ENEMY OF THE PEOPLE!” A couple of hours later, he retweeted this tweet.
  38. Trump also repeated the false claim, “96% Approval Rating in the Republican Party,” adding, “50% in new Rasmussen Poll (higher than Obama at this point in time)” — his approval being higher is not true.
  39. Trump also tweeted about cable television ratings, “Wow! Really bad TV Ratings for Morning Joe (@JoeNBC). @foxandfriends doing great, leading all others by far. @CNN not a factor!!!”
  40. Trump added, “My visits last week to Texas and Frorida [sic] had massive numbers of cheering people gathered along the roads and highways, thousands and thousands.” Photos in Florida showed fewer than 100.
  41. Trump also attacked Birx for her appearance on Sunday, tweeting, “So Crazy Nancy Pelosi said horrible things about Dr. Deborah Birx” for being too positive, adding, “Deborah took the bait & hit us. Pathetic!”
  42. On Monday, Pelosi told CNN that Birx has “enabled” Trump, adding, “I don’t have confidence in anyone who stands there while the president says swallow Lysol and it’s going to cure your virus.”
  43. On Monday, White House Trade Advisor Peter Navarro parroted Trump on CNN, dismissing Giroir’s view on hydroxychloroquine, and saying, “My view of this now is doctors’ opinions are a dime a dozen.”
  44. On Monday, WAPO reported coronavirus cases are surging in Missouri, Montana, and Oklahoma, as other states flatten. Experts are also concerned about East Coast and Midwest cities, and well as college towns.
  45. On Monday, Fauci said K-12 schools and colleges can reopen, saying, “If done properly, it would not be a risk…if they maintain the guidelines that are put together for people coming back, that they should be fine.”
  46. On Monday, MLB’s St. Louis Cardinals postponed their series with the Detroit Tigers after 13 tested positive, including seven players and six staffers. A total of 21 games have been postponed due to Covid-19.
  47. On Monday, Tampa Bay Times reported a journalist who covered Trump’s trip to Florida last Friday tested positive. The journalist stood in close proximity to dozens of other reporters. Gov. Ron DeSantis was also in the room.
  48. On Monday, the police chief in Aurora, Colorado apologized after a viral video showed officers apprehending a Black family, including four children, two of them handcuffed, lying face down in a parking lot.
  49. Brittney Gilliam, the driver, said she had taken her nieces, sister, and daughter out for a girls’ day at the nail salon, and called the officers’ actions a case of police brutality. The officers remained on duty.
  50. On Monday, Trump said a proposed sale of TikTok to a U.S. buyer can go through with a September 15 deadline, but it would have to include a “substantial amount of money” to the U.S. Treasury.
  51. Trump likened the unprecedented ask to a lease between a landlord and a tenant, claiming that TikTok owes the U.S. for its success, and claimed, “Right now they don’t have any rights unless we give it to them.”
  52. On Monday, NYT reported according to a new court filing, Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. revealed Trump and his company are being investigated for possible bank and insurance fraud.
  53. The filing argued Trump’s accountants should have to comply with a grand jury subpoena seeking his personal and corporate tax returns, and implied a far broader inquiry than prosecutors have previously acknowledged.
  54. On Monday, the House Intelligence Committee launched a probe into the Department of Homeland Security’s response to protests in Portland and other cities, and will call at least nine DHS officials in August.
  55. Chair Adam Schiff said in a letter that reporting on “the monitoring of peaceful protesters, creating and disseminating intelligence reports about journalists and protesters” is “deeply troubling,”
  56. On Monday, at his daily briefing, Trump said, “It’s important for all Americans to recognize that a permanent lockdown is not a viable path,” saying it “would ultimately inflict more harm than it would prevent.”
  57. Trump also claimed people are against hydroxychloroquine because he is for it, saying, “If I would’ve said, ‘Do not use hydroxychloroquine, under any circumstances,’ they would’ve come out and said it’s a great thing.”
  58. Asked about Fauci saying “valid” science shows the drug not to be effective, Trump said, “I don’t agree with Fauci on everything,” adding, “It doesn’t mean he’s a bad person … But we disagree on things.”
  59. When asked about his tweet saying Birx had taken the bait, Trump falsely claimed, “Well, I think we’re doing very well. And I think we have done as well as any nation.”
  60. Trump falsely claimed other countries are having similar flare-ups to justify reopening: “Spain, Germany, France, Australia, Japan…you probably heard, in Hong Kong they’ve had some very serious flare-ups.”
  61. Trump also falsely claimed he could use executive authority on mail-in voting, saying, “I have the right to do it…but we’ll see what happens.” Elections are administered by the state with oversight by Congress.
  62. Trump said of a giant explosion in Beirut, Lebanon that left at least 60 people dead and more than 3,000 injured, “I met with some of our great generals…they seem to think it was an attack. It was a bomb.”
  63. Shortly after, CNN reported U.S. defense officials contradicted Trump, saying there was no indication yet that the explosion was an attack. Lebanese officials had also not called the explosion an attack.
  64. On Monday, Politico reported Merritt Corrigan, the deputy White House liaison at the U.S. Agency for International Development, was fired after serving a short stint, over virulently anti-LGBTQ comments.
  65. On Monday, Barry Presgraves, the longtime mayor of Luray, Virginia, faced calls for his resignation, after making a Facebook post saying, “Joe Biden has just announced Aunt Jemima as his VP pick.”
  66. On Monday, four top Democrats, including Speaker Pelosi, sent a letter to FBI Director Christopher Wray citing the investigation by Trump ally Sen. Ron Johnson of Biden as using Russian disinformation.
  67. Pelosi spoke to CNN of Johnson using Kremlin information, saying, is it “unwitting with on the senator’s part. I don’t know,” adding, “that’s why we want the intelligence community to tell the American people what they know.”
  68. On Monday, CNN reported another altered video of Pelosi, manipulated to make it appear as if she was drunk or drugged, circulated on Facebook since last Thursday and had more than 2 million views.
  69. Facebook’s fact-checkers labeled it “partly false” on Sunday, but refused to take it down. An expert said the manipulation of the video appeared to be the same as the one that circulated last year and was taken down.
  70. On Wednesday, WAPO reported Facebook has allowed Trump’s reelection campaign to show versions of the false claim that Biden wants to “defund” police forces at least 22.5 million times with no label.
  71. The claim was found to be false or deceptive by five fact-checking organizations that are part of Facebook’s independent network for policing falsehoods, but Facebook exempts politicians from its rules on deception.
  72. On Monday, Pew Research found 71% have heard the widely circulated conspiracy theory that Covid-19 was planned by powerful people, and 25% of Americans believe it is true, with 5% believing it’s definitely true and 20% saying probably true.
  73. On Monday, WAPO reported Trump’s attacks on mail-in voting are discouraging Republicans from voting that way, prompting alarms that one of Trump’s central strategies will harm the entire GOP in November.
  74. Multiple public surveys show Republicans are far less likely than Democrats to trust voting by mail in November. Several states say they are encountering resistance among GOP voters after Trump called it “rigged.”
  75. State and local Republicans say they are falling dramatically behind in getting their base to register to vote absentee. There is also confusion between mail-in and absentee ballots, and which is “good” and “bad.”
  76. Late Monday, Axios released Jonathan Swan’s 35-minute interview of Trump at the White House. Video clips and the interview demonstrated when pressed, Trump did not have a grasp of the pandemic.
  77. Trump claimed, “I think it’s under control.” When Swan pressed Trump on more than 1,000 dying each day, he said, “They are dying, that’s true…It’s under control as much as you can control it. This is a horrible plague.”
  78. Pressed again, Trump said, “First of all, we have done a great job,” and pulled out rudimentary charts claiming the “U.S. is lowest in — numerous categories, we’re lower than the world” and “We’re lower than Europe”
  79. Trump seemed to reference mortality rate. Swan said, “I’m talking about death as a proportion of population. That’s where the U.S. is really bad.” Trump responded, “You can’t do that.”
  80. Trump later added, “They are dying. That’s true…it is what it is. But that doesn’t mean we aren’t doing everything we can. It’s under control as much as you can control it.” “It is what it is” became a Biden campaign ad.
  81. Asked about indoor rallies like Tulsa in a pandemic, Trump said, “First of all, we had 12,000 people, not 6,000, which you reported,” falsely claiming “you couldn’t even get in,” blaming “120 Black Lives Matter people.”
  82. Trump falsely claimed, “There are those that say, you can test too much.” When Swan pressed him, Trump said, “just read the manuals. Read the books.” A shocked Swan asked what manuals or books? Trump did not answer.
  83. Trump also again tried to blame the Obama administration, saying, “When I took over, we didn’t even have a test.” Swan replied, “Why would you have a test? The virus didn’t exist.”
  84. Asked how he would remember John Lewis, Trump said, “I don’t know. I really don’t know. I don’t know John Lewis. He chose not to come to my inauguration. He didn’t come to my State of the Union speech.”
  85. Trump added, “That’s his right,” falsely claiming, “And, again, nobody has done more for Black Americans than I have,” and saying of his inauguration, “He should have come. I think he made a big mistake.”
  86. Pressed on whether he had done more than Lyndon Johnson passing the Civil Rights Act, Trump said, “Ask, ask: how has it worked out?” When asked if he thought the act was a mistake, Trump changed the subject.
  87. Trump lied about mail-in voting, saying, “Millions of ballots going, nobody even knows where they’re going,” claiming “corruption,” but “Absentee voting is OK.” There is no difference between absentee and mail-in voting.
  88. Asked about Navy veteran Christopher David being beaten in Portland, Trump said, “No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. Here you go, the fake news.” This is true, and the DOJ IG opened an investigation into the attack.
  89. Asked about his praising Ghislaine Maxwell, who was arrested on allegations of child-sex trafficking, Trump said, “You don’t know that,” saying, “Good luck. Let them prove that somebody is guilty.”
  90. On Tuesday, an NBC News|SurveyMonkey Weekly Tracking Poll found 58% do not trust what Trump says about the pandemic, 31% do. Of those, 69% of Republicans trust him, 13% of Independents, and 2% of Democrats.
  91. For Fauci, 51% trust him (32% of Republicans, 40% of Independents, 78% of Democrats). For the CDC, 55% trust (38%, 49%, 76%), and for your state governor, 49% trust (41%, 40%, 63%).
  92. On Tuesday, The Hill reported that so far five of the sixty people who attended a Florida Sheriffs Association meeting with Gov. Ron DeSantis last week tested positive for the coronavirus.
  93. On Tuesday, CNN reported a bipartisan group of seven governors from Maryland, Massachusetts, Ohio, Louisiana, Michigan, Virginia, and North Carolina announced they would pursue a coordinated testing strategy.
  94. The states said they are “in discussions” with two manufacturers “to purchase 500,000 tests per state,” and the Rockefeller Foundation “stands ready to assist in facilitating financing mechanisms to support.”
  95. On Tuesday, WAPO reported RNC planners are considering the South Lawn of the White House for Trump’s acceptance speech, although people planning the event say no final decision has been made.
  96. The decision to stage such a high profile re-election speech at the White House would be another broken norm: traditionally presidents have drawn clear lines between official business of the president and campaign events.
  97. On Tuesday, Sen. Lindsey Graham convened a Judiciary Committee hearing on Portland. Graham told the Atlantic, “It’s a winning message for him [Trump] that he’s not going to tolerate this disruption of society.”
  98. Graham asked acting deputy DHS Secretary Ken Cuccinelli if we had done nothing what would have happened, he responded, “That courthouse wouldn’t be there.” Notably federal agents left and the courthouse stands.
  99. Cuccinelli said federal agents remaining in Portland will stop wearing camouflage uniforms, after criticism the uniforms looked militarized, including a former general who called it an instrument of “protest suppression.”
  100. On making agents identifiable Cuccinelli claimed the uniforms say which agency they work for, but do not include the officers’ last name, claiming, without evidence, they have been doxxed in the past.
  101. On Tuesday, after a briefing by DHS’s cybersecurity agency, Sen. Richard Blumenthal tweeted he was “Shocked & appalled,” saying, “I just left a 90 minute classified briefing on foreign malign threats to our elections.”
  102. Blumenthal added, “From spying to sabotage, Americans need to see & hear these reports,” adding, “Protect our democracy from destruction by declassifying key intel,” and Congress “sworn to secrecy — unacceptably.”
  103. On Tuesday, the Trump regime ordered late Monday that the Census Bureau needs to finalize its once-a-decade count four weeks early, leaving roughly 4-in-10 or 60 million households still to be counted in six weeks.
  104. Completing the count faces grave logistical challenges given the pandemic, and was yet another political crisis for the Census Bureau which has traditionally been a nonpartisan enterprise.
  105. Four former directors of the Census Bureau issued a statement on Tuesday, warning the earlier deadline would “result in seriously incomplete enumerations in many areas across our country.”
  106. Federal law requires the Census Bureau to send population totals to the president by December 31. In May, the House approved a new deadline to May 2021, but the Senate did not pass the measure at Trump’s behest.
  107. On Wednesday, a federal judge heard a challenge by states and civil rights groups against the Trump July 21 memo to exclude undocumented immigrants from being counted in congressional apportionment.
  108. On Tuesday, at the daily briefing, Trump lied, “We’re seeing indications that our strong mitigation efforts are working. Very well, actually.” More than 1,300 died on Tuesday, with more than 155,000 deaths overall.
  109. Pressed about deaths, Trump said, “New York had a very tough time, as you know. New York, New Jersey — that area. And when you take them out — just as an example, take a look at Florida, relative to New York.”
  110. Trump noted a WSJ op-ed praising him on Portland, claiming, “The courthouse was going to be burned down or knocked down. It was in tremendous danger.” A week after federal officers left, the courthouse is fine.
  111. Asked about his trying to take a cut from the sale of TikTok and it being “unprecedented,” Trump said, “Did you say, “That’s impressive”?” The reporter said, “unprecedented.” Trump said its “almost the same thing.”
  112. Asked about his Florida tweet, Trump said, “Florida has got a great Republican governor,” as opposed to “in Nevada, where you have a governor — he said, “Let’s just send out millions of ballots.””
  113. Trump also pointed to a New York primary where vote counting was not completed, saying, “the Times wrote a big story about it yesterday. Front page story. It’s a disaster,” adding the election should be over.
  114. Shortly after, Trump tweeted the Trump evergreen video of Trump 2024 lawn signs going for years beyond, mocking that he would have indefinite power.
  115. On Sunday, the U.S. Navy said it was investigating the National Navy SEAL Museum, after a video surfaced of a fundraiser that showed dogs attacking a man wearing a Colin Kaepernick jersey during a protest.
  116. On Tuesday, the commander of the Navy SEALs said the unit will cut ties with the nonprofit museum, saying, “Each and every one of us serves to protect our fellow Americans — ALL Americans.”
  117. On Wednesday, a Politico/Morning Consult poll found 14% of voters said they trust Trump enough to take a vaccine he recommended, 46% would on advice of their family, and 43% on the advice of the CDC or Fauci.
  118. On Wednesday, CNN reported the Trump campaign, the RNC, and the Nevada Republican Party sued battleground state Nevada over its plan to send absentee ballots to all active voters.
  119. The lawsuit cited “a vital interest in protecting the ability of Republican voters to cast” their votes. Nevada State Democratic Party Chair William McCurdy called the lawsuit a “sham.”
  120. On Wednesday, Trump tweeted, “Nevada has ZERO infrastructure for Mail-In Voting,” adding without evidence, “It will be a corrupt disaster” and “take months, or years, to figure out.” Trump lost Nevada in 2016 by 3%.
  121. Trump added, “Florida has built a great infrastructure, over years, with two great Republican Governors. Florida, send in your Ballots!” Concern was growing among GOP strategist about Republican not voting.
  122. On Wednesday, Trump told “Fox & Friends,” on the pandemic that “We’ve done it right,” and falsely claimed, “Now (our economic bounceback) looks like a very strong ‘V,’ based on the all of the numbers we’re getting.”
  123. Trump falsely claimed children are “almost immune,” to make his case “My view is the schools should open. This thing’s going away,” adding, “It will go away like things go away, and my view is that schools should be open.”
  124. Trump said, “We’re set to rock and roll, but the big problem we have is Democrats don’t want to open their schools,” falsely claiming, “because they think it’s going to hurt the election for the Republicans.”
  125. Asked if he is sabotaging the Post Office, Trump falsely claimed, “the Postal Service for 40 years has had big problems, and they’re not equipped” to handle the mail-in ballots. The Post Office said they have “ample capacity.”
  126. Trump falsely claimed if states like Nevada are allowed to use mail-in ballots, “It could be for months and months” to get the election results, adding, “It could be for years.”
  127. Trump also called Black Lives Matter a “Marxist group,” and complained, “All of sudden, this is taking on this air of great respectability,” adding, “if I am wrong, then I am going to lose an election and that’s OK with me.”
  128. Asked about his second-term agenda and top priorities, Trump was unable to give a clear answer, instead deflecting, “I want to take where we left,” adding, “We were better than we were ever.”
  129. On Wednesday, Trump’s chief of staff Meadows said, “It’s not a post office problem. It’s a secretary of state problem in each state,” contradicting what Trump said in his “Fox & Friends” interview.
  130. On Wednesday, CNN reported Trump was still not grasping the severity of the pandemic at a task force meeting that took place in the Oval Office on Tuesday. A source said, “He starts talking about something else.”
  131. The source said during the meeting, members of the task force continued to have trouble convincing Trump to take the pandemic more seriously, with some stressing the dire nature of the situation but to no avail.
  132. Trump’s mood was noticeably less jovial at the meeting. Vice President Mike Pence seemed to grasp what was happening, and was “conflicted” in his interactions with experts, wanting to appear in lockstep with Trump.
  133. Shortly after, Trump tweeted that CNN “has no sources on the Task Force. Their “sources” are made up, pure fiction!” adding Jim Acosta, who did the reporting, “is a Fake reporter!”
  134. On Wednesday, NBC News reported there is one American death every 80 seconds, as the pace of death accelerated. In July, one American died every 102 seconds.
  135. On Wednesday, AP reported Jason Copenhaver, 47, a Florida man, was arrested after confronting a boy wearing a mask in a restaurant, and spitting in the boy’s face when he refused to take it off.
  136. On Wednesday, University of Connecticut canceled its fall football season, becoming the first member of the Football Bowl Subdivision to do so due to the coronavirus, citing “an unacceptable level of risk” to student-athletes.
  137. On Wednesday, officials said Joe Biden would not travel to Milwaukee for the Democratic National Convention Committee to accept his party’s nomination due to the coronavirus, and will stay in Delaware instead.
  138. On Wednesday, CBS News reported two suburban Atlanta schools districts that started classes Monday with a mask optional policy faced questions as photos circulated of students packed shoulder-to-shoulder in hallways.
  139. At one elementary in Cherokee County, a second grader tested positive, forcing the child’s teacher and classmates to be sent home to quarantine for two weeks.
  140. On Wednesday, Atlanta Journal Constitution reported Cherokee County reported 19 more cases impacting the middle school and two additional elementary schools.
  141. On Wednesday, ABC News reported fourth graders at Thales Academy in North Carolina, a school touted by Pence for reopening, went into a 14-day quarantine after a student tested positive.
  142. On Thursday, BuzzFeed reported two students who posted now-viral photos of the packed hallways at North Paulding High School over their concern of catching the coronavirus were suspended.
  143. On Friday, Hannah Watters, 15, said her suspension had been lifted and wiped from her record, adding her mom had always told her “she won’t get mad at us if we get in trouble as long as it’s ‘good trouble.’”
  144. On Wednesday, The Hill reported Birx warned state and local officials of an uptick in coronavirus positivity rates in nine cities, including Baltimore, Kansas City, Portland, Omaha, Chicago, Boston, Atlanta, Detroit, and DC.
  145. On Wednesday, Fauci said in an online forum streamed on Facebook, he has been “Getting death threats for me and my family and harassing my daughters to the point where I have to get security is just…it’s amazing.”
  146. He added, “I wouldn’t have imagined in my wildest dreams”…that people could be “so set against it and don’t like what you and I say, namely in the world of science, that they actually threaten you.”
  147. On Wednesday, former deputy AG Sally Yates testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee. She said neither Obama or Biden tried to influence the FBI’s investigation of incoming NSA Michael Flynn.
  148. Yates cited a January 24, 2017 Oval Office meeting with top national security officials, and said the two “did not attempt to any way to direct or influence any investigation,” contrary to Trump’s repeated assertions.
  149. Yates said rather interviewing Flynn as James Comey did, the proper course would have been to inform the White House about Flynn’s false public statements and that he was therefore a counterintelligence threat.
  150. Yates said there was no monitoring Flynn’s communications, and called it highly irregular for the DOJ to drop their case, noting she was a DOJ prosecutor for 30 years, and adding, “I’ve certainly never seen a pleading like this.”
  151. During the hearing, Trump tweeted, “Sally Yates has zero credibility. She was a part of the greatest political crime of the Century,” saying the GOP should ask her if she “leaked the General Flynn conversation.”
  152. No senators asked about the leak. Sen. John Kennedy asserted Yates did not like Trump, she said, “I don’t respect the manner in which he has carried out the presidency,” adding, “I don’t despise anyone.”
  153. Sen. Ted Cruz asked Yates if the FBI was surveilling any other candidates for president, she said, “No… there was no information that the Russians were working to aid another candidate other than Donald Trump.”
  154. On Wednesday, NYT reported a State Department report found Russia continues to use a network of proxy websites to spread pro-Kremlin disinformation and propaganda in the U.S. and the West.
  155. The report was one of the most detailed explanations from the Trump regime on how Russia disseminates disinformation; however, the report largely avoided discussing Russia’s effort in the 2020 presidential election.
  156. On Wednesday, House Democrats launched a probe into the $765 million federal loan awarded to Eastman Kodak to produce drug ingredients, which netted the company’s CEO $50 million from stock options.
  157. On Wednesday, acting Inspector General Stephen Akard, who served in the role for less than three months after the abrupt firing of Steve Linick, resigned. He will be replaced by Diane Shaw, who served as the deputy IG.
  158. On Wednesday, CNN reported that Republicans with ties to Trump are helping Kanye West, a Black rapper, get on the general election ballots in several states in hopes of siphoning votes off from Biden.
  159. On Wednesday, in an op-ed at Christian publication Western Journal, Michael Flynn made a call to arms in a “Letter to America,” saying, “we are witnessing a vicious assault by enemies of all that is good.”
  160. Flynn said, “The biblical nature of good versus evil cannot be discounted as we examine what is happening on the streets of America,” citing “Marxism in the form of antifa and the Black Lives Matter” versus law enforcement.
  161. With QAnon appeal, Flynn wrote, “our president is having to act in ways unprecedented in decades, maybe centuries,” saying “dark forces” will not go away with prayer alone, saying “action is required.”
  162. On Wednesday, Atlantic reported Trump’s aggressive actions in Portland have damaged the reputations of federal agencies, including DHS. Allies likened Trump’s law and order campaign to Richard Nixon’s 1972 success.
  163. Notably, only about one-third of key roles in DHS have been filled — fewer than any other cabinet agency. The rest are installed as “acting” by Trump, bypassing Congress.
  164. On Wednesday, both Twitter and Facebook removed a post shared by Trump of him telling Fox News that schools should reopen, falsely claiming that children are “almost immune from this disease.”
  165. A spokesperson for Facebook said, “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.”
  166. Twitter also temporarily suspended the Trump election campaign account from tweeting until it removed a post with a video clip, saying it is in violation of the Twitter Rules on Covid-19 misinformation.
  167. On Thursday, BuzzFeed reported Facebook fired a senior engineer who collected internal data showing the company was giving preferential treatment to prominent conservatives accounts to remove fact-checks.
  168. With tensions high and morale low, employees also asked CEO Mark Zuckerberg how Breitbart can remain a Facebook News partner after sharing a video with coronavirus disinformation. He demurred.
  169. On Wednesday, WAPO reported Democratic leaders told Trump negotiators funding the Post Office and removing rules put in place by Postmaster General Louis DeJoy would be essential in the relief bill.
  170. On Wednesday, WAPO reported Sen. Gary Peters, ranking Democrat on the Senate’s Homeland Security Committee, which oversees the Postal Service, launched an inquiry into DeJoy’s recent operational pivot.
  171. Tens of thousands of primary ballots have been disqualified, many for being late. St. Louis League of Women Voters said a ballot took 24 days to get to the election board. Some Michigan voters never got their ballots.
  172. On Wednesday, NYT reported the Manhattan DA’s office issued a subpoena last year to Deutsche Bank, Trump’s primary lender since the late 1990s, seeking financial records provided to the bank of his and his company.
  173. The subpoena is another sign the inquiry is more wide-ranging than was previously known, and marks the instance of a criminal inquiry involving Trump and his dealing with Deutsche, which has lent him over $2 billion.
  174. Deutsche Bank has complied over months last year, and supplied Vance with financial statements and other materials that Trump provided to the bank as he applied for loans. The inquiry is still in the early stages.
  175. Shortly after, New York Attorney General Letitia James said she will deliver a “major national announcement” on Thursday at 11:30 a.m.
  176. On Wednesday, Michelle Obama said she is experiencing low-grade depression, citing the quarantine, racial strife, and watching the Trump regime, saying “the hypocrisy of it, day in and day out, is dispiriting.”
  177. On Thursday, the Labor Department reported 1.2 million Americans filed for unemployment, the 20th consecutive week of job losses of 1 million or more. There were 16.1 million continuing claims for unemployment.
  178. On Thursday, in an interview with Geraldo Rivera, Trump lied, saying a vaccine with be ready “Sooner than the end of the year.” When asked if it may be ready by November 3, Trump said, “possible before, but right around that time.”
  179. Trump also offered an upbeat assessment of the economy, saying it will recover once we have a vaccine, and adding, “We’re going to have vaccines very soon, we’re gonna have therapeutics very soon.”
  180. Fauci gave a more cautious view in an interview with Reuters on Wednesday, saying there might be indication that at least one vaccine works and is safe by the end of the year.
  181. Trump also told Rivera on Joe Biden, who is a devout Catholic, “He’s against the Bible. Essentially against religion. But against the Bible.”
  182. On Thursday, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom warned, “Covid-19 has also exposed how misinformation poses one of the greatest security threats of our time. Misinformation can spread faster than the virus itself.”
  183. On Thursday, NBC News reported Facebook removed hundreds of accounts from a foreign troll farm that were posing as African-Americans in support of Trump and QAnon supporters.
  184. Facebook also removed hundreds of fake accounts linked to conservative media outlet The Epoch Times, that were pushing pro-Trump conspiracy theories about the coronavirus and protests.
  185. The foreign pro-Trump troll farm was based in Romania, and was working to manipulate discourse and inflate the reach of content under names like “We Love Our President” and “BlackPeopleVoteForTrump.”
  186. On Thursday, CNN reported that Trump agreed to fully pay the cost of an extension of National Guard troops deployed to help Texas and Florida with Covid-19, while other states will need to pay one-quarter of the cost.
  187. Asked about favoritism, the White House claimed the states got special treatment because their governors made direct appeals to Trump. The National Governors Association said governors nationwide asked for help.
  188. On Thursday, a Pew Research poll found 63% say Trump is doing a poor or only fair job handling the coronavirus, 37% say he is doing good or excellent. Also 62% say the U.S. response is less effective than other developed countries.
  189. On Thursday, AP reported 66 National Football League players opted out of the 2020 season due to Covid-19. Players with a medical opt out will receive $350,000, and those voluntarily opt out receive $150,000.
  190. On Thursday, Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine announced that he tested positive for coronavirus, after taking a test as part of the “standard protocol” to meet Trump on the tarmac when he landed in Cleveland for an event.
  191. Later Thursday, DeWine’s office announced the Governor and staffers were tested in the afternoon with a test that looks for “the genetic material specific for the virus that causes COVID-19,” and he tested negative.
  192. DeWine also told reporters that one 56 year-old man who attended an Ohio church service on June 14 led to the infection’s spread to at least 91 other people across five counties by July 4, saying, “It spread like wildfire.”
  193. On Thursday, new data by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, one of the models used by the White House, forecast nearly 300,000 Americans would die of Covid-19 by December 1.
  194. The model also forecast that consistent mask-wearing beginning right away could save about 70,000 lives. So far, over 158,000 have died.
  195. On Thursday, NY AG James announced a lawsuit against the National Rifle Association seeking its dissolution, and sued four current or former NRA leaders, seeking tens of millions of dollars in restitution.
  196. James said an 18-month investigation found the lobbying group is “fraught with fraud and abuse,” and found financial misconduct had contributed to a loss of more than $64 million over a three-year period.
  197. James said the nonprofit chartered in New York 148 years ago used funds for vacations, private jets, and expensive meals, and executives “instituted a culture of self-dealing, mismanagement and negligent oversight.”
  198. James’s office cited the dissolution of the Trump Foundation as a precedent. The NRA’s political action arm planned to spend tens of millions of dollars to mobilize its members to defeat Joe Biden in the election.
  199. Asked about the lawsuit by reporters before leaving for Cleveland, Trump said, “That’s a very terrible thing that just happened,” adding, “the NRA should move to Texas and lead a very good and beautiful life.”
  200. Asked by reporters for evidence supporting his claim that children are immune, Trump said, “All you have to do is read the newspapers or read the medical reports.”
  201. Asked about Kanye West running a spoiler campaign to draw Black votes away from Biden, Trump said, “I like Kanye very much,” adding, “No, I have nothing to do with him getting on the ballot. We’ll have to see what happens.”
  202. Trump shockingly said of Biden, “He’s following the radical left agenda. Take away your guns, destroy your Second Amendment. No religion, no anything. Hurt the Bible, hurt God,” adding, “He’s against God.”
  203. Trump later tweeted, “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,” and “Your guns will be taken away, immediately.”
  204. On Thursday, Trump visited a Whirlpool plant, for an event that was billed as a chance to promote economic recovery, but quickly devolved into a campaign rally. Like Texas, Ohio is no longer safe for Trump in 2020.
  205. Before Trump arrived, the White House played the song “Live and Let Die” at the Whirlpool plant, as nearly 160,000 Americans had died, including 1,400 in the past day.
  206. Trump told the small crowd, who wore masks and sat apart, “I will stand up to the foreign trade cheaters and violators that hate our country,” and said he would reimpose 10% tariffs on aluminum imported from Canada.
  207. Trump added, “Now is the time to come together as Americans and to unite against the plague inflicted upon us by China,” and oddly claimed, “We had two of the best months ever in the history of our country.”
  208. Trump was also mocked for pronouncing Thailand as “Thigh-land” — then correcting himself — while explaining how his trade war with China had forced factories to move production.
  209. Trump falsely claimed, “We’re respected again as a country. You know, we’re respected again. You may not feel it. Although I think you do. You may not see it. You don’t read it about it from the fake news.”
  210. Trump veered off, saying, “I signed a regulation that give the dishwashers much more water,” adding, “and the same thing with sinks, toilets, and showers. You go into a new home, you turn on the faucet; no water comes out.”
  211. On Thursday, acting DHS Secretary Chad Wolf testified before the Senate Committee on Homeland Security, saying past secretaries Tom Ridge and Michael Chertoff, who criticized the Portland response, were “dead wrong.”
  212. Sen. Kamala Harris said, “There are mothers, including pregnant women, who attend these protests” telling him to consult with medical professionals on the impact “of chemical irritants on pregnant women.” He had not.
  213. Later Thursday, in an interview with Forbes, Kanye West admitted his run was designed to siphon off votes from Biden. His wife, Kim Kardashian-West, and others have expressed concern about his mental health.
  214. On Thursday, Twitter announced it would label accounts “belonging to state-affiliated media entities, their editors-in-chief, or their senior staff,” such as China’s Xinhua and People’s Daily, and Russia’s RT and Sputnik.
  215. On Thursday, a New York state Supreme Court judge ruled E. Jean Carroll can continue to seek Trump’s DNA in a defamation lawsuit, citing the Supreme Court ruling that Vance can subpoena for Trump’s financial records.
  216. On Thursday, AJC reported the Democratic Party and voters filed a federal lawsuit against Georgia over long voting lines in the primary, asking for more polling places, better-trained workers, and emergency paper ballots.
  217. On Thursday, in a letter, Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said Postmaster General DeJoy acknowledged in their Wednesday meeting with Meadows and Mnuchin that his new policies have caused mail backlogs.
  218. DeJoy had downplayed rules with lawmakers and the press. Mail industry experts described his rules as a “sea change,” re-envisioning an institution older than the nation itself as a for-profit arm of the government.
  219. Pelosi and Schumer wrote DeJoy’s changes “made during the middle of a once-in-a-century pandemic” threaten timely delivery of mail, “including medicines for seniors, paychecks for workers, and absentee ballots.
  220. On Thursday, Brian Hook, the State Department’s special envoy for Iran, and one of the few national security officials remaining in the Trump regime amid non-stop turmoil, resigned.
  221. On Thursday, photos showed Attorney General William Barr pulling over in Virginia to join a small pro-police protest, with demonstrators holding signs like “Back the Blue” and “They give their lives for you.”
  222. Later Thursday, Trump signed an executive order banning TikTok and WeChat, which is also Chinese-owned, from operating in the U.S. in 45 days if not sold to a U.S. buyer.
  223. Later Thursday, Trump landed in New Jersey for a long weekend at his Bedminster golf course. Reporters shouted questions at Trump about the stalled talks on the relief bill, but he refused to take questions.
  224. On Friday, Trump tried to rewrite history, tweeting, “I called the politicization of the China Virus by the Radical Left Democrats a Hoax, not the China Virus itself.” This statement is false.
  225. On Friday, the Labor Department reported nonfarm payrolls rose by 1.8 million, with the unemployment rate falling to 10.2% from its previous 11.1%. Real unemployment fell from 18.0% to 16.5%.
  226. Shortly after, Trump tweeted, “Great Jobs Numbers!” Notably, only once since the Great Depression has the unemployment rate gone above 10.0%.
  227. On Friday, the White House called a “lid” at 9:42 a.m., meaning Trump would not be leaving Bedminster or be seen by the press pool for the rest of the day.
  228. On Friday, CNBC reported tens of millions are no longer receiving the $600-a-week federal unemployment payment, putting six million at risk of not being able to pay their bills as the first week without a payment passed.
  229. People say they cannot survive on weekly state payments alone, and jobs are not available in some areas. Some said they were choosing between making their car payment, buying food, or paying rent, saying, “It’s hell.”
  230. On Friday, the U.S. Court of Appeals for D.C. ruled 7-2 that the House can subpoena former White House counsel Don McGahn to testify. McGahn is likely to continue to challenge the subpoena.
  231. On Friday, Princeton University joined Smith College, U Mass-Amherst, and Mount Holyoke in reversing plans to bring students back to campus, and instead going fully online.
  232. On Friday, Sports Illustrated reported MLB Oakland Athletics bench coach Ryan Christenson apologized after raising his arm during a postgame celebration in an apparent Nazi salute.
  233. On Friday, CNN reported Oprah Winfrey’s O Magazine is putting up 26 billboards around Louisville, Kentucky, calling for the police officers involved in Breonna Taylor’s killing to be arrested and charged.
  234. On Friday, Palm Beach Post reported as Gov. DeSantis pushed to reopen schools, school boards were told they needed Health Department approval to keep schools closed. Health directors were told not to give it.
  235. On Friday, CNN reported U.S. intelligence officials have informed Congress and presidential campaigns that Russia is pushing disinformation to target Biden in the 2020 election.
  236. Director of the National Counterintelligence William Evanina, the top election security official, said in a statement Russia is working to hurt Biden, while China and Iran are attempting to damage Trump.
  237. Similar to 2016, while Democratic lawmakers said the Russian effort is intended to damage Biden and help Trump, Republicans claimed it was not clear foreign actors preferred one candidate over the other.
  238. Republican lawmakers also sought to play down the import of Russian interference, casting it as part of a wider swath of foreign interference intelligence is tracking from other countries, including China and Iran.
  239. On Friday, Politico reported that Pelosi and House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer admonished Evanina at a classified election security briefing Friday, accusing him of keeping the public in the dark about what Russia is doing.
  240. When pressed by Democrats, Evanina did ultimately acknowledge Russia is again trying to help Trump’s reelection and hurt Biden, but Democrats also demanded he tell the public, and be specific.
  241. The two said Evanina’s public statement on China, Russia, and Iran was so vague as to be “almost meaningless.” The sharp exchange was part of a fraying relationship between Trump intelligence officials and Democrats.
  242. After the meeting, Pelosi told reporters, “the American people should be better informed,” and “there’s some very specific ways” Russia is interfering. Schumer added, “for some reason they are withholding it.”
  243. On Friday, WAPO reported DeJoy unveiled a sweeping reorganization of the USPS, displacing the two top executives overseeing day-to-day operations, and centralizing more power in the hands of DeJoy.
  244. Also in the reorganization 23 postal executives were reassigned or displaced. DeJoy wrote the new structure would create “clear lines of authority and accountability,” and also imposed a hiring freeze.
  245. On Friday, Trump threatened to circumvent Congress after coronavirus relief talks between Pelosi, Schumer, Meadows, and Mnuchin stalled. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell left D.C. on Thursday.
  246. Pelosi told reporters after three-hours of negotiations, Meadows slammed the table and walked out, to which Pelosi replied that the Trump regime was slamming the table on our children.
  247. Trump tweeted, “Pelosi and Schumer only interested in Bailout Money for poorly run Democrat cities and states. Nothing to do with China Virus! Want one trillion dollars. No interest. We are going a different way!”
  248. Later Friday, after golfing in the morning, at 6:18 p.m., the White House lifted the lid, saying Trump would address reporters at a 7 p.m. news conference.
  249. Later Friday, WAPO reported dozens of Trump’s Bedminster club members streamed into the ballroom for the briefing. Some carried wine glasses, and few had masks, flouting the state’s coronavirus guidelines.
  250. The club members were not tested. A few had their temperature checked. They stood closely together. New Jersey guidelines say no more than 25 people at indoor gatherings, and require masks and social distancing.
  251. The briefing came as the U.S. neared 5 million cases and the average daily death toll topped 1,000. WAPO described Trump’s retreat to his club allowed him to create an alternative reality where he was not beset by crises.
  252. Trump walked into the room to the sound of applause and “Hail to the Chief” playing. What was meant to be a news conference again devolved into a 40-minute campaign rally type event.
  253. Trump said the job numbers showed a resurging economy, that his wall was being built, and he would bypass Congress on the relief bill. He said the pandemic “is disappearing. It’s going to disappear.”
  254. Trump briefly addressed the pandemic, repeating his lie, “We’re constantly showing cases, cases, cases, cases are up. Well, the reason cases are up [is] because we’re doing, one of the reasons, we’re doing a lot of testing.”
  255. Asked about intelligence reports on Russian interference, Trump said, “the last person Russia wants to see in office is Donald Trump.” Pressed further on intelligence, he said, “I don’t care what anybody says.”
  256. Trump falsely claimed, “The biggest risk that we have is mail-in ballots…It is a much easier thing for a foreign power — whether it’s Russia, China, Iran, North Korea, many others, people, countries you wouldn’t expect.”
  257. Asked about flouting New Jersey guidelines, Trump claimed he was allowed to have 100 people for political events or protests, saying, “You have an exclusion in the law. It says peaceful protest or political activity, right?”
  258. Trump added, “And you can call it political activity, but I’d call it peaceful protest because they heard you were coming up and they know the news is fake.” The members booed the reporter who asked, and applauded Trump.
  259. Trump promised an executive order soon requiring health insurers to cover preexisting conditions — something that is already part of Obamacare, which his DOJ is currently seeking to terminate in the Supreme Court.
  260. CNN reported on a hot mic before the event, Trump told his club members, “You’ll get to meet the fake news tonight. You’ll get to see what I have to go through…you’ll get to see some of the people that we deal with every day.”
  261. On Friday, NYT reported more than 250,000 motorcycle enthusiasts are expected to head to Sturgis, South Dakota for an annual 10-day event, set to be the country’s largest event since the pandemic started.
  262. GOP Gov. Kristi Noem encouraged people to attend on Fox News, and did not require masks or social distancing, citing the state had hosted other successful events including Trump’s July Fourth celebration.
  263. Many residents strongly objected to the rally, with 60% of the 7,000 residents surveyed said it should be postponed. One rally attendee’s t-shirt read “Screw Covid I went to Sturgis,” and others said it is their choice.
  264. On Friday, Liberty University announced Jerry Falwell Jr., one of Trump’s leading evangelical supporters, was put on indefinite leave after posting a photo of himself with his pants unzipped and his arm around a woman.
  265. Later Friday, NBC News reported Secretary of State Mike Pompeo denied congressional subpoenas seeking testimony from four key witnesses in the investigation of his role in the firing of State Department IG Steven Linick.
  266. On Saturday, Trump golfed for the 286th time during his 1,090 days in office at his Bedminster club. He later announced he would hold a news conference at 3:30 p.m.
  267. On Saturday, Georgia reported a record daily 4,445 new daily cases and a record 71 deaths. The surge comes as the state reopened schools this week, with no mandate for face masks or social distancing at school.
  268. As the week came to a close, there were 19,434,220 worldwide cases and 722,566 dead from the coronavirus. The U.S. had 4,960,626 cases (25.5%), 161,730 deaths (22.4%), and a mortality rate of 3.3%.

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Copyright Amy Siskind, August 8, 2020

A coalition of teachers, students, and families protest during a rally called National Day of Resistance Against Unsafe School Reopening Opening, Monday, Aug. 3, 2020, in New York. Organizers said New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, New York Mayor Bill DeBlasio, New York City Schools Chancellor Richard Carranza, and the Department of Education must stop the in-person reopening of schools until it is safe for all.