;)
The Commentariat -- May 7, 2020
Late Morning/Afternoon Update:
Spencer Hsu of the Washington Post: "The Justice Department moved to drop charges against former national security adviser Michael T. Flynn, who pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI about his Russian contacts during the presidential transition. The unraveling of Flynn's guilty plea marked a stunning reversal by the Justice Department in the case of the former three-star Army general who was convicted in special counsel Robert S. Mueller III's investigation of Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election.... [Flynn] pleaded guilty in December 2017 to making false statements about his Russian contacts during the Trump presidential transition. However..., Flynn's new defense lawyers began moving to void his conviction, alleging he was the victim of a partisan conspiracy by prosecutors, federal investigators and even his initial attorneys." ~~~
~~~ Kyle Cheney & Josh Gerstein of Politico: "The bombshell court filing asking U.S. District Judge Emmet Sullivan to dismiss the case bore the signature of only one prosecutor: U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Timothy Shea, a former Barr aide named to the post in January. Moments before Shea's filing, the top prosecutor in the Flynn case withdrew abruptly and without explanation. Brandon Van Grack, who served as one of special counsel Robert Mueller's top lawyers and remained on the Flynn case even after Mueller's office closed down, signaled his exit from the case in a terse, one-sentence filing with U.S. [Judge] Sullivan." Mrs. McC: Betsy Swan of Politico said that the single signature was unique, that all filings are also signed by a career prosecutor, and the fact that none would put their name to it shows the discord within DOJ. ~~~
~~~ Adam Goldman & Katie Benner of the New York Times: "Prosecutors in Mr. Shea's office were stunned by the decision to drop the case, according to a person who spoke to several lawyers in the office.... Mr. Flynn first pleaded guilty in late 2017 to lying to investigators and cooperated extensively before moving to withdraw his plea and fight the case in court. He had also entered a guilty plea a second time in 2018 at an aborted sentencing hearing.... The White House was prepared for the possibility of Mr. Trump pardoning Mr. Flynn last week, according to two people familiar with the discussions. But some advisers urged him to hold off and let the case play out, either with the Justice Department or with the judge in the case, according to the people familiar with the discussions." ~~~
~~~ Here's Donald Trump, Thursday afternoon, telling multiple lies about the Flynn case: ~~~
Kaitlan Collins & Peter Morris of CNN: "A member of the US Navy who serves as one of ... Donald Trump's personal valets has tested positive for coronavirus, CNN learned Thursday, raising concerns about the President's possible exposure to the virus. The valets are members of an elite military unit dedicated to the White House and often work very close to the President and first family. Trump was upset when he was informed Wednesday that the valet had tested positive, a source told CNN, and the President was subsequently tested again by the White House physician. In a statement, the White House confirmed CNN's reporting that one of the President's staffers had tested positive.... A White House source said the valet, a man who has not been identified, exhibited 'symptoms' Wednesday morning, and said the news that someone close to Trump had tested positive for coronavirus was 'hitting the fan' in the West Wing.... People can be infectious, meaning they can transmit the virus to somebody else, up to two days before they start showing symptoms.... The White House has not enforced strict social distancing guidelines for staffers and few people inside the building wear masks during the day, including valets." ~~~
~~~ Brett Samuels of the Hill: "President Trump will be tested for coronavirus on a daily basis after a military member who serves as the president's valet tested positive. 'So, we test once a week. Now we're going to go testing once a day, Trump said during an Oval Office meeting with the governor of Texas on Thursday.... The president said the daily testing regimen would apply to the vice president and certain high-level White House officials as well." Mrs. McC: That's nice. If my lady's maid gets the virus, can I be tested daily?
Frank Rich: "... more testing is now showing us how far the virus has spread in MAGA-land.... William Frey, a demographer at the Brookings Institution, has calculated that 813 of the 1,103 counties that have achieved 'high-COVID status' (100 or more cases per 100,000 residents) since March 29 went for Trump in 2016. Many of those counties are in battleground states like Michigan, Florida, and Pennsylvania.... No matter how much he discounts models of the pathogen's spread, he seems dimly aware that the actual death count keeps exceeding his repeated lowball predictions.... His new plan to counter this reality ... is to sow confusion among the electorate by attacking the death toll's accuracy.... He will also continue to purge anyone in the government who might say otherwise...[, as he did Rick Bright & Christi Grimm. Now Trump is easing Fauci out.] My guess is that SNL casting Brad Pitt as Fauci was the final straw for Trump."
From today's New York Times live coronavirus updates: "The Trump administration has rejected detailed guidelines from health experts to help schools, restaurants, churches and other establishments safely reopen, saying they are too prescriptive, according to several administration officials. The White House has asked for revisions from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, whose public health experts wrote the guidance, but some officials at the C.D.C. have privately expressed concern that the recommendations will never be posted publicly.... The guidance, which the C.D.C. first submitted to the White House in draft form two weeks ago, was meant to help states, local governments and businesses adopt measures that would help keep the virus from spreading once they reopened." Related AP story linked below.
Keith Collins & Lauren Leatherby of the New York Times: "More than half of U.S. states have begun to reopen their economies or plan to do so soon. But most fail to meet criteria recommended by the Trump administration to resume business and social activities. The White House's guidelines are nonbinding and ultimately leave states' fates to governors. The criteria suggest that states should have a 'downward trajectory' of either documented coronavirus cases or of the percentage of positive tests. Public health experts expressed criticism because 'downward trajectory' was not defined and the metrics do not specify a threshold for case numbers or positive rates. Still, most states that are reopening fail to adhere to even those recommendations: In more than half of states easing restrictions, case counts are trending upward, positive test results are rising, or both, raising concerns among public health experts." You can check out your own state with a series of charts incorporated into the report.
Forgot this one. Michael Crowley of the New York Times: President Trump vetoed a Senate resolution on Wednesday that would have required him to seek congressional authorization before taking military action against Iran, rejecting a rare effort by the chamber to curb his authority and reasserting broad power to use military force. In a statement released by the White House, Mr. Trump portrayed the measure as not only an encroachment on his presidential powers but also a personal political attack. 'This was a very insulting resolution, introduced by Democrats as part of a strategy to win an election on November 3 by dividing the Republican Party,' the president said. 'The few Republicans who voted for it played right into their hands.' The resolution was mostly symbolic and not legally binding. And Congress does not stand much of a chance of reversing the veto because the measure passed well short of the two-thirds supermajority needed for an override." ~~~
~~~ Update. Jordain Carney of the Hill: "The Senate on Thursday failed to override President Trump's veto of a resolution seeking to rein in his ability to take military action against Iran. Senators voted 49-44, falling short of the two-thirds support necessary to nix Trump's veto and send the effort to the House."
Ryan Hutchings & Josh Gerstein of Politico: "The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday tossed the federal government's case in the infamous 'Bridgegate' scandal, clearing the convictions of two allies of former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie. In a unanimous ruling that further chips away at the nation's public corruption case law, the justices concluded that the two defendants -- Bridget Ann Kelly and Bill Baroni -- did not defraud the government of its 'property' by closing off two local access lanes to the George Washington Bridge over three days in September 2013... Justice Elena Kagan said the kinds of decisions Kelly and Baroni made -- and their less-than-candid explanations for them -- could not be prosecuted as fraud under federal law. Kagan sought to make clear that the court was not blessing the conduct of the former officials, only declaring that it was beyond the reach of federal corruption laws. 'As Kelly's own lawyer acknowledged, this case involves an "abuse of power,"' she wrote. 'The evidence the jury heard no doubt shows wrongdoing -- deception, corruption, abuse of power. But the federal fraud statutes at issue do not criminalize all such conduct.' The court's decision, which appears to end one of the strangest political dramas in American history, vacates an earlier ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit in Philadelphia that had upheld most of the counts against Baroni and Kelly." Thanks to Ken W. for the link. Update: the New York Times story is here.
Lauren Hirsch & Lauren Thomas of CNBC: "Neiman Marcus, saddled with debt and hit by the coronavirus pandemic, filed for bankruptcy on Thursday with a deal to hand its business over to its creditors. The luxury department store chain had been struggling with competition from online rivals and dwindling cash before the pandemic. The health crisis exacerbated its problems, forcing it to furlough most of its 14,000 workers and close its 43 Neiman Marcus stores. It is now the second major retailer to file for bankruptcy during the pandemic, following J. Crew's filing earlier this week. It is likely not the last. J.C. Penney has also been exploring filing for bankruptcy." The Washington Post's story is here.
~~~~~~~~~~~
The New York Times' live updates of coronavirus developments Thursday are here. ~~~
~~~ The Washington Post's live updates are here. "The U.S. workforce continues to suffer, even as states slowly reopen and business leaders and lawmakers attempt to reboot the economy. More than 33 million Americans have filed for unemployment benefits since the economy was largely shut down -- including 3.2 million in the past week, the Labor Department announced Thursday morning. Optimism is high among laid-off workers that they can return to their pre-pandemic jobs, according to a Washington Post-Ipsos poll. But economists warn that over 40 percent of job losses could become permanent." ~~~
~~~ Jeff Cox of CNBC: "Unemployment rolls continued to swell in the U.S. last week, though jobless claims hit their lowest level since the economy went into lockdown made to battle the coronavirus pandemic. First-time filings for unemployment insurance hit 3.17 million last week, bringing the total to 33.5 million over the past seven weeks, the Labor Department reported Thursday. The total was slightly higher than the 3.05 million expected by economists surveyed by Dow Jones and below the previous week's 3.846 million, which was revised up by 7,000."
Trump Deep-Sixes CDD Reopening Guidance. Jason Dearen & Mike Stobbe of the AP: "A set of detailed documents created by the nation's top disease investigators meant to give step-by-step advice to local leaders deciding when and how to reopen public places such as mass transit, day care centers and restaurants during the still-raging pandemic has been shelved by the Trump administration. The 17-page report by a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention team, titled 'Guidance for Implementing the Opening Up America Again Framework,' was researched and written to help faith leaders, business owners, educators and state and local officials as they begin to reopen. It was supposed to be published last Friday, but agency scientists were told the guidance 'would never see the light of day,' according to a CDC official.... The White House's own 'Opening Up America Again' guidelines released last month were more vague than the CDC's unpublished report.... Behind the scenes, CDC scientists ... are working to get information to local governments."
Justin Baragona of the Daily Beast: "After acknowledging during his Tuesday ABC News interview that deaths will likely rise by quickly reopening the American economy during the coronavirus pandemic..., Donald Trump said on Wednesday that the American people needed to be 'warriors' when asked if the nation needs to accept more casualties. 'We have to be warriors,' the president said during an Oval Office meeting with health-care officials, none of whom were wearing masks. 'We can't keep our country closed down for years.'" ~~~
~~~ Mrs. Bea McCrabbie: This hasn't received much direct media attention, but Trump never directly explains why the country must relax social distances practices now, even though few states have met his own criteria for doing so. His "reason" is "because." "We can't keep our country closed down for years" is not a proper response to "why now?" As far as I can tell, he demands that ordinary Americans be "warriors" and sacrifice their lives so that he can preside over a "winning" economy now. You are supposed to be willing to die to satisfy Trump's need for immediate gratification. Trump himself does not have to do much sacrificing. He is protected by constant testing of himself and those who come in contact with him. Not so for you. His new press secretary Kayleigh McEnany said yesterday that testing ordinary Americans before they return to work was "nonsensical."
Peter Baker of the New York Times: "Confronted with America's worst public health crisis in generations, President Trump declared himself a wartime president. Now he has begun doing what past commanders have done when a war goes badly: Declare victory and go home.... With the virus still spreading and no vaccine available until next year at the earliest, though, the president has decided that for life to resume for many, some may have to die.... The president has made little effort to reconcile his increasing pressure to reopen with the increasing death toll, instead boasting that the government is now in better shape to deal with new cases with more ventilators, masks and other equipment."
Jonathan Swan & Sam Baker of Axios: "President Trump has complained to advisers about the way coronavirus deaths are being calculated, suggesting the real numbers are actually lower -- and a number of his senior aides share this view, according to sources.... A senior administration official said he expects the president to begin publicly questioning the death toll as it closes in on his predictions for the final death count and damages him politically.... There is no evidence the death rate has been exaggerated, and experts believe coronavirus deaths in the U.S. are being undercounted -- not overcounted.... Some members of the president's team believe the government has created a distorting financial incentive for hospitals to identify coronavirus cases, the official also said.... Medicare is giving hospitals a 20% bonus for their treatment of coronavirus patients as a way to help them make up for the money they're losing because they've had to postpone a lot of non-coronavirus care." More on this right-wing conspiracy theory linked below.
"Tremendous Supply." Donald Trump, in a rare acknowledgment of the heroic work of healthcare workers during the pandemic, held a White House event Wednesday to honor first responders on National Nurses Day, an occasion which he used to rebuke the president of the American Association of Nurse Practitioners. Dan Mangan of CNBC: "A nurse found out Wednesday what happens when you contradict ... Donald Trump on how well coronavirus response efforts are going.... Trump clapped back at that nurse, Sophia Thomas, who said that access to sufficient supplies of personal protective equipment 'has been sporadic.'.... Trump upon hearing a less-than-glowing description of the front lines, quickly shot back, 'Sporadic for you, but not sporadic for a lot of other people.'... After Trump's testy response, Thomas said, 'Oh, no, I agree Mr. President.' But Trump continued, folding his arms, 'Because I've heard the opposite. I've heard that they are loaded up with gowns now. And initially we had nothing..., because it wasn't put there by the last administration,' he said, referring to former President Barack Obama. [He went on.]" ~~~
~~~ Watch the others nurses nodding in agreement with Thomas. Welcome to Trump's Fantasyland, Ladies & Gentlemen. At the end of the tape embedded below, Trump tells another nurse who initially seems to agree with him, "You'll end up being a star." An element of star quality apparently is agreeing with Trump's delusions: ~~~
~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: Let's see -- who's more credible? (1) A nurse who's on the front line (she works in New Orleans) and who is in touch with other nurses all over the country, or (2) a man who lies about everything all the time.
Shannon Pettypiece of NBC News: "... Donald Trump on Wednesday defended his decision not to wear a mask during a tour of a mask production facility in Phoenix the day before, saying he had been told it wasn't necessary. 'I didn't need it, and I asked specifically the head of Honeywell, "Should I wear a mask?" and he said, 'Well, you don't need one in this territory.' And as you know, we were far away from people, from the people making the masks,' said Trump, who also didn't wear a mask Wednesday as he spoke with reporters during a photo opportunity with nurses in the Oval Office. Trump said he did have a mask on 'for a period of time.'... 'I can't help it if you didn't see me, I mean, I had a mask on,' Trump told reporters. When Trump was seen by reporters and photographers touring the Honeywell plant his face was uncovered, and he was less than 6 feet apart from the Honeywell officials giving him the tour, who were also without masks."
Nathaniel Weixel of the Hill: "President Trump on Wednesday blasted a former top federal scientist who filed a whistleblower complaint against his administration.... When asked by a reporter in the Oval Office about Rick Bright, the former head of the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), Trump said he'd only just learned about him earlier in the day. 'I never met Dr. Bright. I don't know who he is. I didn't hear good things about him. I did not hear good things about him at all,' Trump said. 'And to me he seems like a disgruntled employee that's trying to help the Democrats win an election.' Bright led the agency that was focused on helping fund potential treatments for infectious diseases, including COVID-19, until his ouster late last month. He filed a formal whistleblower complaint on Tuesday....
The New York Times' live updates of coronavirus developments Wednesday are here. "President Trump, contradicting his comments from Tuesday, said the White House coronavirus task force would 'continue on indefinitely,' though perhaps with different members. His announcement, made on Twitter, came one day after Vice President Mike Pence, who has led the group for two months, said it would probably wrap up its work around the end of the May. 'We will have something in a different form,' Mr. Trump later told reporters on Tuesday during a trip to Arizona. But in a series of Wednesday morning tweets, Mr. Trump appeared to contradict that, and emphasized his desire to reopen the economy despite a continued rise in coronavirus cases and public health warnings that more commerce will mean more deaths.... 'We may add or subtract people to it, as appropriate' he said.... Mr. Trump frequently reacts to news coverage of his decisions, and reports on Tuesday that he might wind down the task force drew sharp criticism." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~
~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: I don't know why mean MSNBC host Chris Hayes keeps complaining that Trump has no plan. Could it be because the administration retracts major announcements within 24 hours? Anyhow, I don't think this stuff is up to Trump. I suspect that the entire federal government is being run by a 21-year-old college intern assigned to Jared Kushner's staff. When the intern starts to get the hang of things & makes a sensible decision or two, his term is up, and a new, green intern takes over. ~~~
~~~ Update. Chris Hayes has changed his tune. Last night he conceded that Trump does have a plan. The plan is to protect himself & pence. The only people he doesn't have a plan for is everybody else. Mrs. McC: I'd say there is an emerging, if still vague, plan for the rest of us: (1) lie about infection & death projections (see esp. Jordan Weissmann's report linked below); (2) argue that actual numbers are overcounts (see Swan & Baker's report linked above); (3) suppress expert advice (see Dearen & Stobbe's report linked above); (4) appeal to Americans' patriotism & ask them to sacrifice their lives to help Trump (see Justin Baragona's item linked above). ~~~
~~~ The Washington Post's live updates Wednesday are here. (Also linked yesterday.)
Jonathan Chait: "Last night, ABC's David Muir asked Trump, 'What did you do when you became president to restock those cupboards that you say were bare?' Trump replied...: 'Well, I'll be honest. I have a lot of things going on. We had a lot of people that refused to allow the country to be successful. They wasted a lot of time on Russia, Russia, Russia. That turned out to be a total hoax. Then they did Ukraine, Ukraine, and that was a total hoax, then they impeached the president of the United States for absolutely no reason, and we even had 197-to-nothing vote by the Republicans.'... There remains the problem that Trump was fully vindicated of the Ukraine hoax by a unanimous vote of the Republican party -- which of course no longer includes Mitt Romney -- on February 5, yet he continued to dismiss and deny the coronavirus for weeks thereafter. The answer to this will probably come later, when Democrats investigate his incompetent handling of the pandemic, and Trump reveals that the Coronavirus Hoax prevented him from focusing on the coronavirus." (Also linked yesterday.)
Jordan Weissmann of Slate: "A few days ago, the Washington Post published a long, depressing ticktock of the Trump administration's execrable attempts to control the coronavirus and 'reopen' the country for business, beginning with a shocking but not exactly surprising anecdote about how the president's economic advisers [-- led by Kevin Hassett --] had abetted the president's most destructive impulses.... The administration had apparently decided to justify its response to a plague based on the work of someone [Hassett] known above all for making hilariously overoptimistic predictions.... On Monday, the Post filled in a bit more detail about Hassett's handiwork, reporting that he had produced a 'cubic model' that showed deaths from the coronavirus dropping to near zero by May 15.... Economist John Voorheis probably summed it up best[:] 'According to predictions from my "cubic model" fitted on yesterday's data, today's temperature is approaching absolute zero and we are all dead, mercifully.'... [Bottom line:] the Trump administration appears to have found the dumbest possible math it could use to justify letting thousands of people needlessly die."
Jeff Cox of CNBC: "Private payrolls hemorrhaged more than 20 million jobs in April as companies sliced workers amid a coronavirus-induced shutdown that took most of the U.S. economy offline, according to a report Wednesday from ADP [Research Institute]. In all, the decline totaled 20,236,000 -- easily the worst loss in the survey's history going back to 2002 but not as bad as the 22 million that economists surveyed by Dow Jones had been expecting. The previous record was 834,665 in February 2009 amid the financial crisis and accompanying Great Recession." (Also linked yesterday.)
** Benedict Carey & James Glanz of the New York Times: "New York City's coronavirus outbreak grew so large by early March that the city became the primary source of new infections in the United States, new research reveals, as thousands of infected people traveled from the city and seeded outbreaks around the country. The research indicates that a wave of infections swept from New York City through much of the country before the city began setting social distancing limits to stop the growth. That helped to fuel outbreaks in Louisiana, Texas, Arizona and as far away as the West Coast.... Over all, Dr. [Nathan] Grubaugh [of Yale] estimated, viruses spreading from New York account for 60 to 65 percent of the infections identified across the country." Mrs. McC: Although this report is also preliminary, it argues for developing a vaccine that attacks the New York/European strain of the virus; a report linked yesterday says that some developers are working on vaccines against the older Wujan strain, which may not work against the more contagious New York mutation.
Florida. Carol Miller, et al., of the Miami Herald: "Acting under intense pressure from a coalition of Florida news organizations and open-government advocates, the state Wednesday evening released a list of every Florida fatality documented by a medical examiner resulting from the coronavirus pandemic. The information was so riddled with holes, however, that it sparked as many questions as answers. Missing from the data set were the names of those who have perished from COVID-19..., the probable cause of death (there can be multiple factors) and the circumstances of the person's demise.... The head of the Florida Medical Examiner's Commission, which governs the state's 21 medical examiners, has insisted the information -- including the names -- is subject to disclosure under the state's public records law. The administration of Gov. Ron DeSantis [R], which oversees state health regulators, has warned the examiners to keep the information secret.... The DeSantis administration has clashed with open government and public records advocates for much of his 17-month term, but the conflict has become increasingly acute as news organizations and activists have sought information about the state's handling of the COVID-19 pandemic."
Michigan. Allan Smith of NBC News: "Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer wants to bar weapons from being taken into the state Capitol after anti-lockdown protesters showed up with firearms, she told NBC News in a wide-ranging interview. Whitmer's comments came after gun-toting militia protesters joined a larger group demanding that she reopen parts of the state's economy in a demonstration last week. The protesters spilled inside the Capitol, where armed demonstrators confronted police officers and insisted on being allowed onto the House floor as lawmakers debated an extension of her emergency powers. Under current state law, it is legal to take firearms inside the Capitol, because Michigan is an open-carry state.... The Michigan Capitol Commission sought legal advice this week about whether guns could be banned inside the Capitol. Some Michigan Republicans criticized the gun-toting demonstrators, while others said they were not interested in such a ban. Republicans control both the House and the Senate."
New York. Noah Higgins-Dunn & Kevin Breuninger of CNBC: "Most new Covid-19 hospitalizations in New York state are from people who were staying home and not venturing much outside, a 'shocking' finding, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Wednesday. The preliminary data was from 100 New York hospitals involving about 1,000 patients, Cuomo said at his daily briefing. It shows that 66% of new admissions were from people who had largely been sheltering at home. The next highest source of admissions was from nursing homes, 18%.... [Cuomo] said the information shows that those who are hospitalized are predominantly from the downstate area in or around New York City, are not working or traveling and are not essential employees. He also said a majority of the cases in New York City are minorities, with nearly half being African American or Hispanic.... 'Much of this comes down to what you do to protect yourself. Everything is closed down, government has done everything it could, society has done everything it could. Now it's up to you,' Cuomo said."
Utah. Connor Richards of the (Provo-Orem) Daily Herald: "Nearly half of the employees of a Utah County business tested positive for COVID-19 after the business instructed employees to not follow quarantine guidelines and required staff who had tested positive to report to work, according to a written statement from county executives. The statement, which was ... signed by Utah County Commissioners Tanner Ainge, Bill Lee and Nathan Ivie and the mayors of each city in the county, said that 48% of employees of the unnamed business tested positive for COVID-19. Between this business and another in a different geographic region of the county that 'did not follow COVID-19 best practices,' 68 employees tested positive for coronavirus, Utah County executives said.... Carrie Bennett, chronic disease prevention program manager for the Utah County Health Department, said on Tuesday that the Health Department would not release the names of the businesses or information about the nature of the services they provide due to privacy concerns."
Tina Nguyen of Politico: "An increasing number of conservatives are convinced the medical community and the media are inflating the coronavirus death toll for political purposes, despite nearly all evidence indicating that, if anything, the figure is an undercount. The conspiracy theory started with those who argued the figure was being manipulated, before morphing into a more generalized suspicion about coronavirus modeling among Republicans. Fox News has begun to feature a constant drumbeat of doubt about the reliability of any model, and ... Donald Trump on Sunday called the models 'wrong from day one' and 'out of whack,' but insisted on Tuesday he believed the government's death toll. The uncertainty among some conservatives emanates from a long-standing wariness of health experts and the mainstream news organizations reporting on the fatalities." ~~~
~~~ Ben Collins of NBC News: Healthcare professionals find themselves caring for conspiracy theorists who present in their ERs because they believed social media assertions that the coronavirus was a hoax perpetrated by Bill Gates or Anthony Fauci in a plot to control them, etc., and "sought care too late.... 'Folks delaying seeking care or, taking the most extreme case, somebody drinking bleach as a result of structural factors just underlines the fact that we have not protected the public from disinformation,' [epidemiologist Dr. David] Maru said. The structural factors in this case include Facebook, YouTube and Twitter, which have struggled to contain the spread of misinformation, some of it coming from positions of authority.... Organized harassment campaigns, lies and urban legends targeting doctors are a real-life symptom of what the World Health Organization dubbed the 'infodemic' as the coronavirus started to spread throughout the world earlier this year."
Will Weissert & Jonathan Lemire of the AP: "The decision to wear a mask in public is becoming a political statement -- a moment to pick sides in a brewing culture war over containing the coronavirus.... The mask is increasingly a visual shorthand for a debate pitting those willing to follow health officials' guidance and cover their faces against those who feel it violates their freedom or buys into a threat they think is overblown. That resistance is fueled by some of the same people who object to other virus restrictions. The push back has been stoked by ... Donald Trump -- he didn't wear a mask during a Tuesday appearance at a facility making them -- and some other Republicans, who have flouted rules and questioned the value of masks. It's a development that has worried experts as Americans are increasingly returning to public spaces....
"Moreover, Trump, who is known to be especially cognizant of his appearance on television, has also told confidants that he fears he would look ridiculous in a mask and the image would appear in negative ads, according to one of the officials. 'It's a vanity thing, I guess, with him,' House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said of Trump on MSNBC. 'You'd think, as the president of the United States, you would have the confidence to honor the guidance he's giving the country.' That's left those around him unsure of how to proceed."
Devlin Barrett of the Washington Post: "President Trump said Wednesday he will continue trying to toss out all of the Affordable Care Act, even as some in his administration, including Attorney General William P. Barr, have privately argued parts of the law should be preserved amid a pandemic. 'We want to terminate health care under Obamacare,' Trump told reporters Wednesday, the last day for his administration to change its position in a Supreme Court case challenging the law. 'Obamacare, we run it really well. ... But running it great, it's still lousy health care.'"
Matthew Choi & Daniel Lippman of Politico: "A major donor to ... Donald Trump will become the next head of the U.S. Postal Service, an institution that has frequently come under criticism from the president amid one of its worst financial crises. Louis DeJoy, a North Carolina businessman, will take over as postmaster general on June 15, according to a news release. He will replace Megan Brennan, whose intention to retire was reported by The Washington Post in October. Brennan had been subject to months of complaints from Trump that the Postal Service was losing too much money, The Post reported at the time.... Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-Va.) -- chairman of the House Government Operations Subcommittee, which has jurisdiction over the Postal Service -- expressed dismay at the appointment on Wednesday evening. 'President Trump rewards a partisan donor by installing him at the United States Postal Service,' he said in a statement. 'The Postal Service is in crisis and needs real leadership and someone with knowledge of the issues. This crony doesn't cut it.'" ~~~
Photo via Triad Business Journal.~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: I was curious to know if Louis DeJoy looked like a fatcat. Yes, yes, he does. And he's proud of it.
~~~ According to Jory Heckman of the Federal News Network, the postmaster general is appointed by the USPS Board of Governors. "The board now has six total members: four appointed by ... Donald Trump and confirmed by the Senate, [current Postmaster General Megan] Brennan and Deputy Postmaster General Ronald Stroman." The Googles say there is no fixed term for a postmaster general. ~~~
~~~ Josh Dawsey, et al., of the Washington Post: "The Postal Service's board of governors confirmed late Wednesday that Louis DeJoy, a North Carolina businessman who is currently in charge of fundraising for the Republican National Convention in Charlotte, will serve as the new postmaster general. The action will install a stalwart Trump ally to lead the Postal Service, which he has railed against for years, and probably move him closer than ever before to forcing the service to renegotiate its terms with companies and its own union workforce. Trump's Treasury Department and the Postal Service are in the midst of a negotiation over a $10 billion line of credit approved as part of coronavirus legislation in March.... Three Republicans and one Democrat sit on the board of governors after the vice chairman, David Williams, a Democrat, resigned last week. The departure came after Williams told confidants he was upset that the Treasury Department was meddling in what has long been an apolitical agency...." Mrs. McC: So there's disagreement about how many board members there are, four or six, and how many Trump appointed, three or four.
Daniel Lippman & Kyle Cheney of Politico: "The Department of Justice has released a less redacted copy of a memo laying out the scope of former special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation to Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) and Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) after the current and former Judiciary Committee chairmen requested it. The memo ... was sent on Aug. 2, 2017, to Mueller by Rod Rosenstein, the deputy attorney general at the time.... Donald Trump's allies on Capitol Hill have long sought the memo, which until now has remained classified, arguing it will show that Mueller exceeded his authority." The article describes the topics outlined in Rosenstein's memo.
Robert Faturechi & Derek Willis of ProPublica: "On the same day [Sen. Richard] Burr [R-NC] sold ... off a significant portion of his stock holdings ... ahead of the market crash spurred by coronavirus fears], his brother-in-law also dumped tens of thousands of dollars worth of shares. The market fell by more than 30% in the subsequent month. Burr's brother-in-law, Gerald Fauth, who has a post on the National Mediation Board, sold between $97,000 and $280,000 worth of shares in six companies -- including several that have been hit particularly hard in the market swoon and economic downturn.... As chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee and a member of the health committee, Burr had access to the government's most highly classified information about threats to America's security and public health concerns. Before his sell-off, Burr had assured the public that the federal government was well-prepared to handle the virus. That month however, according to a recording obtained by NPR, Burr had given a VIP group at an exclusive social club a much more dire preview of the economic impact of the the coronavirus, warning it could curtail business travel, cause schools to be closed and result in the military mobilizing to compensate for overwhelmed hospitals. The timing of Burr's stock sales [in February] drew widespread outrage, allegations of insider trading, calls for his resignation and an FBI investigation." ~~~
~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: What's the problem? Burr's giving his brother-in-law insider info while lying to the general public about the same info is completely consistent with Republicans' definition of family values.
Conrad Swanson of the Denver Post: "Colorado Republican Party Chair Ken Buck, a U.S. representative from Windsor, pressured a local party official to submit incorrect election results to set the primary ballot for a state Senate seat, according to an audio recording of a conference call obtained by The Denver Post. 'You've got a sitting congressman, a sitting state party chair, who is trying to bully a volunteer -- I'm a volunteer; I don't get paid for this -- into committing a crime,' Eli Bremer, the GOP chairman for state Senate District 10, told The Post on Wednesday, confirming the authenticity of the recording. 'To say it's damning is an understatement.'" Bremer refused to sign a false affidavit which allowed Buck's preferred candidate to make the November ballot, in violation of party rules. Mrs. McC: A lawyer & former prosecutor, this is not the first time Buck has run afoul of the law & the Constitution. In fairness to Buck, he's an all-around jerk, too. ~~~
~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: The lesson from this story and the Richard Burr stocks stunt: if you're going to meet with a Republican, wear a wire.
Victoria Albert of CBS News: "Ruth Bader Ginsburg was released from a Baltimore hospital on Wednesday, the Supreme Court said in a statement. Her release comes jus a day after the court said she was treated for acute cholecystitis, which was described as a 'benign gallbladder condition.' 'Justice Ginsburg has been discharged from the hospital. She is doing well and glad to be home,' the statement said. 'The Justice will return to The John's Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland, for follow-up outpatient visits over the next few weeks to eventually remove the gallstone non-surgically.'"
Beyond the Beltway
Rebecca Klar of the Hill: "Former NFL quarterback Brett Favre will repay Mississippi $1.1 million he was paid for speeches that he never showed up for, the state auditor announced Wednesday. Mississippi State Auditor Shad White said Favre repaid the state $500,000 and has committed to repaying the remainder in installments over the next few months. The money will be held in a clearing account for a period and then will be sent in full to the Mississippi Department of Human Services to be used for the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families Program, known as TANF, White said.... White's announcement comes a few days after his office released a report that found $94 million [of federal taxpayer-funded TANF monies] in total could not be accounted for or had been spent on questionable purposes, including $1.1 million sent to a nonprofit connected to Favre for a speaking arrangement the athlete reportedly never attended.... Favre said in a Facebook post Wednesday night ... he was unaware the money being dispersed was paid for out of funds not intended for that purpose." Mrs. McC: I know nothing about Favre, but I'm going to take him at his word.
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Marie points out that if you’re going to meet with a Republican crook-jerk-traitor-asshole-ignoramus, wear a wire. Also a mask. Party of ☠️, remember?
Now that the pandemic is over, as far as Fatty is concerned, look for red state liars, oops, I mean governors, to start hiding coronavirus death totals to make it look like those totals are dropping to match the Trump fantasy statistics.
Like in Florida. Where state officials are ordering medical examiners to lie about coronavirus data. Yup. Lie. State medical examiners, however, keep their own numbers which are at least 10% higher than the official Party of ☠️ totals.
When called on it, they trot out a number of what they must think are veeerrrry clever weasel schemes to trumpify the data (so as not to upset the Great One). My favorite is not putting down cause of death. So, you’re still dead, but state officials won’t say why anymore. “Mr. Joe Blow, 34, dead. A thing happened. Can’t say more.”
The rationale for this latest round of lies (they’ve been working other data fudging scams almost since the get-go, apparently, ‘cause, you know: Republicans and truth are never good together) is “Priiivacy”. (guffaw, guffaw) Yeah. They don’t don’t want to upset surviving family members. Like they don’t know why Joe is dead, and finding out he croaked from the Trump Virus would upset them.
It’s not bad enough that these fucking people are trying to force medical examiners to lie for Trump, but they do it under such a transparently stupid rationale.
But then R’s think we’re all stupid.
Just like their leader. Your tax dollars at work. For Trump.
https://www.tampabay.com/news/health/2020/04/29/florida-medical-examiners-were-releasing-coronavirus-death-data-the-state-made-them-stop/
Chris Hayes expressed the disgust that I have felt ever since I heard about the fast covid19 test they have at the White House:
https://youtu.be/bTeuzC0d0hA
Nurse Sophia Thomas obviously didn't realize that she was appearing in an audition for "Who wants to be a bootlicker?"
In another shot of the oval office interview, the thumbs of the guy in the white lab coat can be seen twiddling.
Old Mother Hubbard who went to her cupboard to fetch her poor dog a bone only to find it bare did not blame anyone. The Old Lord of Misrule, his face always on fire, railed against Obama–-blaming him for all those bare cupboards. He and his feast of fools continue to try to hoodwink the public into believing that, gosh, it wasn't their fault that there were scant supplies to deal with this crisis.
True colors can be seen clearly when something like a pandemic hits or when something like a war invades: It is then we see the real heroes; it is also when we see the scam artists, the money grubbers, the ripe time to reap some big benefits from tragedies. Republicans' eyes are zeroed in for the prize, not only for themselves personally like Burr and others, but to keep a Republican president in office no matter that he's as crazy as a March hare. And––they know how to fight down and dirty–-Democrats have never been very good at that kind of fighting, I fear. They are going to go after Biden in every way possible and we better be ready for it.* Those ex republicans who formed "The Lincoln Project" have another video that will be out soon that they say is even more damaging than the first. Good––the old fight fire with fire kind of thing.
*I wouldn't be a wit surprised if Tara Reade wasn't promised some goodies if she told her tale of sexual finger probing (an incident exactly like the one in her papa's book). Scruples––a word not in their elephant dictionary.
Ha! Here's James Carville (man who looks like he has been living in a bug infested hut in some woody area yonder) that warns Trump about those campaign aides of his who he calls "grifters"–-"they are lying to you."
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/james-carville-trump-campaign_n_5eb3a0c2c5b646b73d278f1b
P.S. Hattie: Re: our musical entries yesterday: As you discovered Spanky and Our Gang was a1960's-70's pop-type band –– a talented group of guys with the lead singer, Elaine "Spanky" Mc Farlane whose voice soared to glorious heights. I loved this group for their innovative arrangements, their magical harmony and their liberal lyrics on some of their pieces, like the one about caring for our fellow man––those that, as I said, make the country run but get little notice and little pay.
And Ak's Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page–-also old favorites. Thank you both for some harmony among the ruins.
CNN featured a story this morning about a Colorado woman who was sick with Covid-19 but went to work at her crummy job anyway because she needed the money. Now she's in the hospital fighting for her life. I have a feeling she won't be paying her hospital bill.
That story got me to wondering whether a whole lot of sick and dead people helps or hurts the economy.
Obviously, most of the money spent on their care is not "productive," but it is money that goes into the economy. The healthcare industry is supposed to be about a sixth of the U.S. economy.
As to who pays, since the people most likely to get sick & die are also more apt to be elderly, the federal government will absorb a big part of the costs. So will health insurance companies and insureds (in higher premiums), as will other hospital patients because hospitals will raise rates to make up for all the indigent Covid-19 patients who didn't pay their bills.
Does anybody know if Trump's plan to sacrifice us will be good for the economy?
This may be an appropriate song for these seemingly endless weeks and months and years. "Who Knows Where the Time Goes" by Fairport Convention.
(apologies if already posted)
“Betsy DeVos’s Campaign To Roll Back Sexual Assault Survivor Rights Is Complete” | HuffPost
This heartless harpy inspires fantasies of (personally) strangling her. Goes to show that there are women who don’t “get” - or don’t wish to - what it means to be raped. Can only imagine what she and Killer Bro chat about around the family table.
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/betsy-devos-rolls-back-sexual-assault-survivor-rights-title-ix_n_5eb31baac5b6e74a713919c5
https://www.politico.com/news/2020/05/07/supreme-court-bridgegate-decision-242344
Glad the Supremes can get together on something and I'm not saying this decision is wrong, but I am again wondering, as I have been since the slimy Virginia governor got off scott free, what the hell corruption looks like in 2020 Amerika.
PD -
I’d entirely forgotten about *that* Spanky until the music and pics opened up. And - tearfully - transported me back in time, detonating an explosion of rusted memories.
That crappy odor on the breeze is from Kim Jong Don finding out one of his personal valets tested positive for the C-19 virus.
I reckon they'll have to increase the frequency of tests for those favored few in the inner sanctum.
Naive Nancy said, " It’s a vanity thing, I guess, with him.... You’d think, as the president of the United States, you would have the confidence to honor the guidance he’s giving the country."
No problem, Nancy.
He's too subtle for you.
The Pretender is getting rid of the guidance...
While "Live and Let Die" was appropriate for Kim Jon Dons promo at the mask factory the Barry McGuire original "Eve of Destruction" is the perfect cover for any Trump appearance.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YYOKMUTTDdA
Looks like that Flynn pardon won't be necessary.
The Injustice Dept. is taking care of it for the Pretender.
"Nobody could have known a disease like this was coming."
https://youtu.be/w50tZonOgoU?t=950
A real President, urging congress to stock the cupboards and prepare for a health crisis before it is too late.
That little dickweed Louis DeJoy is going to be the face you should remember when sending a postcard to grandma costs $7 next year and the president* is still Donny "dotard" Drumpf cuz all the mail-in ballots voting for Biden got lost in the mail.
Lordy, a lot of real bad news today, and it just keeps coming..
Though I'm sad for the valet, must admit that bit of news did please me.
Off to mow a lawn, something simple and relatively sane.
“Woman who accused Fauci of sex assault now says Trump supporters paid her to lie” | Raw Story
“The woman says right-wing provocateur Jacob Wohl and his frequent accomplice Jack Burkman persuaded her to cast Fauci as the assailant using details from an actual sexual assault she survived just after high school, and they paid her to do it, reported Reason.”
https://www.rawstory.com/2020/05/woman-who-accused-fauci-of-sex-assault-now-says-trump-supporters-paid-her-to-lie