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Thu, 30 Apr 2020 06:47

The Trump administration is organizing a Manhattan Project-style effort to drastically cut the time needed to develop a coronavirus vaccine, with a goal of making enough doses for most Americans by year's end.

Called ''Operation Warp Speed,'' the program will pull together private pharmaceutical companies, government agencies and the military to try to cut the development time for a vaccine by as much as eight months, according to two people familiar with the matter.

As part of the arrangement, taxpayers will shoulder much of the financial risk that vaccine candidates may fail, instead of drug companies.

Watch: Trump says he wants to see quick FDA approvals on drugs that work and that recent Gilead coronavirus-drug trial results are a ''building block.''

(Source: APTN/Bloomberg)

The project's goal is to have 300 million doses of vaccine available by January, according to one administration official. There is no precedent for such rapid development of a vaccine.

President Donald Trump's top medical advisers, led by the infectious disease expert Anthony Fauci, have repeatedly said that a coronavirus vaccine won't be ready for 12 to 18 months at best. Until then, White House guidelines envision some economically damaging social-distancing practices maintained even as the U.S. begins to resume a more normal social and business life.

Read more: Fauci Calls Early Data From Gilead Virus-Drug Trial 'Good News'

Last month, Trump directed Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar to speed development of a vaccine, and administration officials have been meeting on the effort for three to four weeks, one of the people said. A meeting on the project was scheduled at the White House on Wednesday.

The people familiar with the project and the administration officials asked not to be identified because it hasn't yet been publicly announced.

A spokesman for the Department of Health and Human Services, Michael Caputo, said the president refused to accept the timeline for standard vaccine development and encouraged a breakthrough process.

Speeding UpVaccine development is typically slow and high risk. The project's goal is to cut out the slow part, the people said. Operation Warp Speed will use government resources to quickly test the world's most promising experimental vaccines in animals, then launch coordinated human clinical trials to winnow down the candidates.

The best prospective vaccines would go into wider trials at the same time mass production ramps up.

The project will cost billions of dollars, one of the people said. And it will almost certainly result in significant waste by making inoculations at scale before knowing if they'll be safe and effective -- meaning that vaccines that fail will be useless. But it could mean having doses of vaccine available for the American public by the end of this year, instead of by next summer.

The group is discussing which Americans might be vaccinated first, as the medicines would likely roll off production lines in batches, one of the people said. The project would be funded from money already available to the government and won't require new authority from Congress, one of the people said.

There are at least 70 different coronavirus vaccines in development by drugmakers and research groups, according to the World Health Organization. But drugmakers have not coordinated their efforts to the extent they could through the Warp Speed project, one of the people said.

Read more: The drugs and vaccines that might end the pandemic

Under the effort, the Defense Department would make its animal research resources available for pre-clinical work on vaccines.

The group is also discussing the use of what's known as a master protocol to test the vaccines. Instead of multiple clinical trials run by each drugmaker, competing for patients and resources, the government would organize one large trial to test several vaccines at once and advance the most promising ones.

Watch: Fauci says early results of clinical trial offered ''quite good news'' regarding a potential Covid-19 therapy made by Gilead Sciences Inc.

(Source: APTN/Bloomberg)

Oxford VaccineThe Trump administration isn't alone in trying to fast-track a vaccine. One of the world's most promising vaccine candidates has been developed by a team at Oxford University in London. Last month, scientists at the U.S. National Institutes of Health innoculated six rhesus macaques with the Oxford vaccine and then exposed them to the coronavirus, the New York Times reported.

All six were healthy more than four weeks later, according to the Times. The researchers are currently testing their vaccine in 1,000 patients and plan to expand to stage two and three clinical trials next month involving about 5,000 more people.

The Oxford group told the Times they could have several million doses of their vaccine produced and approved by regulators as early as September.

In the U.S., the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has meanwhile shifted much of its research effort to the coronavirus virus.

One of the people familiar with Operation Warp Speed drew a distinction with the Oxford group, describing the U.S. effort as broader in scope. It's unclear which vaccine candidates would be part of Operation Warp Speed, or whether it would include the Oxford vaccine.

More than 1 million cases of coronavirus have been confirmed in the U.S., and at least 58,000 people have died from the illness it causes in the last two months. Widespread social-distancing measures have helped slow the spread, but at the cost of millions of jobs and losses to the economy that experts fear will take years to recover.

Along with wider diagnostic testing for the virus and an effective therapeutic drug, a vaccine is one of the key tools for reducing long-term risk from the virus. Testing can help contain an outbreak in its early stages, or after it's been curbed enough to manage. A therapy can help those who get sick, reducing the risk of death and the burden on hospitals.

Gilead Sciences Inc. announced Wednesday that in a trial conducted by Fauci's agency, the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, its experimental coronavirus therapy remdesivir helped patients recover faster than under standard care.

Optimistic TimetableVaccines are one of the most effective tools against viral disease, as they can prevent people from becoming sick at all. They're a shortcut to the immunity that most people acquire after they're sickened by a virus and recover. During the illness, the immune system produces antibodies that it can subsequently use to fight off later exposure to the same pathogen.

Vaccines use a live, weakened virus, a dead one, or pieces of the pathogen to trick the body into building defenses without having to get sick.

But even Fauci's prospective 12-to-18-month timetable would be years faster than typical vaccine development. A vaccine for the Ebola virus that went into clinical trials in 2014 received approval from U.S. regulators in December -- a five-year effort considered remarkable for its speed.

And the new coronavirus poses fresh challenges. How many people get immunity after exposure, how robust the pathogen is, and how long it lasts are all still questions. Some research has shown that immunity to other coronaviruses, including those that cause SARS, MERS and forms of the common cold, may be limited or only last for a relatively short time.

It's not clear how much of Operation Warp Speed is new and how much will involve ongoing projects, such as investments made by BARDA, the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority.

BARDA has already handed out hundreds of millions of dollars to drugmakers including Moderna Inc. and Johnson & Johnson. The money is meant to fund both research and large-scale manufacturing at the same time, hopefully to accelerate vaccine production.

But last week, BARDA's director Rick Bright was removed and reassigned to the NIH. He has said he will file a whistle-blower complaint, alleging the White House retaliated against him because he resisted promoting widespread use of malaria drugs Trump has touted for coronavirus.

The drugs, chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine, haven't been proven effective against the virus and some clinical trials have been abandoned because of dangerous side effects. After directing the government to obtain more than 29 million doses of the drug, Trump has recently stopped promoting the medicine as a coronavirus treatment.

He claimed last week that he didn't know Bright and was unaware of his removal.

To contact the reporters on this story:Jennifer Jacobs in Washington at jjacobs68@bloomberg.net;Drew Armstrong in New York at darmstrong17@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story:Drew Armstrong at darmstrong17@bloomberg.net;Alex Wayne at awayne3@bloomberg.net

Justin Blum

(C) 2020 Bloomberg L.P. All rights reserved. Used with permission.

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Thu, 30 Apr 2020 06:36

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My trial got killed here because of that bullshit VA study

and now Fauci is saying that remdesivir is a clear cut winner and game changer

based off of a press release by Gilead (trial results won’t be ready until

May). We are being robbed of HCQ clinical trials for some reason…

https://www.gilead.com/news-and-press/press-room/press-releases/2020/4/gilead-announces-results-from-phase-3-trial-of-investigational-antiviral-remdesivir-in-patients-with-severe-covid-19

I’m putting something together for you guys now. I know I

said I would weeks ago but these guys strung me along long enough to delay the

trial and then abruptly killed it based off of a bullshit retrospective study

in the VA that wasn’t peer reviewed, didn’t show durations of therapy, dosing,

and the sickest of the sick received HCQ compared to the control group. Bias,

everywhere.

I wish you and yours the very best.

I am beyond disappointed in most things.

I’ll grab some clips of a doc or two for you to play and

will breakdown what is happening. My current hypothesis is the virus is an

immune modulator that stimulates a cytokine storm that either throws your lungs

into ARDS and they turn into stiff think grey sacs of fibrin and clots (see the

attached autopsy report of 4 patients in New Orleans) or your blood ends up

clotting from the systemic inflammation and you stroke out or have a heart

attack.

Part of the proof is in the autopsy report that got no play.

Try and read the first few pages and try and answer this:

Why did the patient on a immunosuppressant

(methotrexate) have the most healthy looking lungs? It’s because methotrexate

inhibits cytokine (specifically IFN-gamma).

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Thu, 30 Apr 2020 08:00

Thomas Folks spent years in his U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention lab developing a treatment to block deadly HIV in monkeys. Then San Francisco AIDS researcher Robert Grant, using $50 million in federal grants, proved the treatment worked in people who engaged in risky sex.

Their work '-- almost fully funded by U.S. taxpayers '-- created a new use for an older prescription drug called Truvada: preventing HIV infection. But the U.S. government, which patented the treatment in 2015, is not receiving a penny for that use of the drug from Gilead Sciences, ­Truvada's maker, which earned $3 billion in Truvada sales last year.

Gilead argues that the government's patents for Truvada for PrEP, as the prevention treatment is called, are invalid. And the government has failed to reach a deal for royalties or other concessions from the company '-- benefits that could be used to distribute the drug more widely.

''With the amount of effort and time and taxpayer money that went into it, for CDC and Gilead not to come to an agreement, so the taxpayer could get some of that money, is really unconscionable,'' said Folks, who is retired.

This HIV pill saves lives. So why is it so hard to get in the South?

The extraordinary standoff between the CDC and a drug company over patent rights raises a big question for the Trump administration: How aggressively should the government attempt to enforce its patents against an industry partner?

The Department of Health and Human Services, which includes the CDC and the National Institutes of Health, has patented more than 2,500 inventions created with taxpayer dollars since 1976, according to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

It routinely licenses new pharmaceutical compounds to private companies that take those publicly financed discoveries into the marketplace.

Intellectual-property disputes between private companies are common, and they often wind up in court. But it is rare for the government to bring lawsuits over pharmaceutical patents.

Gilead, which enjoys a U.S. monopoly on Truvada, charges between $1,600 and $2,000 for a month's supply of a pill that can be manufactured for a fraction of that amount. The number of new HIV infections in the United States has barely budged, meanwhile, and is stuck around 40,000 a year, according to CDC estimates.

Activists want the government to take a more aggressive stance against Gilead. Their complaints are part of a broader wave of anger over drug companies reaping hefty financial rewards by capitalizing on taxpayer-funded research.

''The CDC has all these patents and is allowing Gilead to rip off the American people at the expense of public health,'' said James Krellenstein, an HIV/AIDS activist and co-founder of the PrEP4All Collaboration, who has spent months digging into the government patents. Instead of enforcing the patent, Krellenstein said, CDC officials are ''twiddling their thumbs.''

The fight over PrEP presents a novel challenge to the interdependence of drug companies and government developed over years of collaboration.

Trump proposes big changes in how prescription drugs are priced

The government is not locked in a battle for profits, like a private company, said Neel U. Sukhatme, a professor and patent expert at Georgetown Law. Rather, NIH and CDC officials see their role as encouraging the commercialization of government-financed discoveries, not placing curbs on them, Sukhatme said. That tends to take patent infringement lawsuits off the table.

''They may not want to be in the position of suing these companies that arguably are producing valuable stuff,'' he said.

But that stance increasingly is challenged by political anger over high drug prices. Consumer advocates and members of Congress have stepped up demands that the government exercise its rights under existing law to license generic competition or imports during shortages or unwarranted price spikes; several bills would enhance such ''compulsory licensing'' provisions.

The case of Gilead and Truvada for PrEP adds a new twist to these debates, with demands that the government be more aggressive in exercising its own patent to ease the cost effects of a monopoly.

Government officials would not discuss any aspect of steps they have taken to enforce the CDC patent.

'Marketers are having a field day': Drugmakers scare tactics may hold back competition

''When it comes to conversations with companies, those are subjects we're not at liberty to talk about,'' said Michael R. Mowatt, director of the office within the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases that represents the CDC in patent licensing matters.

The CDC itself did not respond to multiple requests for comment.

Gilead said it was contacted by the CDC about licensing Truvada for PrEP in 2016.

''Since that time there have been several phone discussions and the exchange of about half a dozen letters addressing the parties' concerns and positions,'' Gilead said in a written statement in response to questions from The Washington Post. It would not discuss contents of the calls and letters, citing a confidentiality agreement with the CDC.

President Trump set a goal in his State of the Union speech last month of eradicating HIV/AIDS by 2030; to get close to that goal, specialists say, Truvada for PrEP needs to be far more widespread. Trump's budget plan unveiled this month would add $291 million to combat the disease.

Gilead began marketing Truvada in 2004 after the Food and Drug Administration approved it to treat people who were already infected by HIV.

Around the same time, government researchers at the CDC were looking for medicine that would do something to curb or even end the epidemic: block HIV from infecting healthy people, even if they engaged in unprotected sex. Gilead worked with the government, providing Truvada doses free of charge to test in the monkeys at CDC labs in Atlanta.

After Truvada was shown to work as a prophylactic in primates, the CDC applied for its patents. That began a nine-year effort, using two outside law firms retained by the CDC, which made its case to U.S. Patent and Trademark Office examiners.

Investigation of generic price cartel expands to 300 drugs

The National Institutes of Health awarded grants to conduct more studies, this time in clinical trials in humans. Grant's study, led from his lab in San Francisco and published in 2010 in the New England Journal of Medicine, proved that the drug lowered the risk of contracting HIV by more than 92 percent.

In addition to $50 million in government money, $17 million for the study came from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Grant said.

Based on those clinical trials in humans, Gilead won approval to market Truvada for PrEP, the new indication, in 2012.

Gilead often works in cooperation with federal research agencies because it seeks to develop drugs to fight infectious diseases like HIV/AIDS, hepatitis B and hepatitis C, epidemics that have attracted intense government attention. But it also has been criticized for excessive pricing; in 2013 it sparked an uproar when it priced a 12-week course of the hepatitis C medication Sovaldi at $84,000.

HIV/AIDS activists have been upset about the price of Truvada for PrEP for years. Even though it is covered by most private and government insurance, the drug's high cost is factored into state Medicaid programs; when those programs pay for the drug, that leaves less money for education and distribution efforts on the ground, they contend.

Federal officials estimated in 2016 that less than 10 percent of the 1.1 million people who should be on PrEP treatment were receiving the drug. Gilead says that has now improved to about 20 percent. The problem is particularly acute in Southern states, where cultural barriers and lack of education programs are holding back its use.

Krellenstein and other activists began unearthing facts about the CDC's patents last year and then commissioned a report on their validity, which they shared with The Post. The outside review was conducted by Christopher J. Morten, a patent expert and fellow at the Global Health Justice Partnership, a program of Yale Law School and the Yale School of Public Health.

The CDC waged a successful defense of its patent in Europe, adding strength to its case that its patents are legitimate, Morten said.

''I have no reason to believe that these patents are not valid and enforceable, and moreover, they seem to be infringed [by Gilead] by the use of Truvada for PrEP,'' Morten said in an interview. ''These are public assets that were generated with public money that effectively are going to waste here.''

Gilead maintains that the government improperly claimed to have invented the use of Truvada for HIV prevention.

Anonymous 'ghost ship' is among groups flooding drug price debate

The drug was already being used by doctors and patients for that purpose ''off-label,'' meaning in a way not approved by the FDA, before the CDC patent application in 2006, Gilead said.

''Further, the patents do not reflect the contributions of Gilead scientists, who collaborated with the CDC to design the monkey studies that underlie the patents. In addition, Gilead provided Truvada free of charge for the primate study,'' the company said.

Gilead's Truvada patent expires in 2021; it could be at least two more years before Gilead faces lower-cost competition in the United States.

In response to complaints about its pricing, Gilead said it offers discount coupons that reduce the cost to less than $5 for a monthly supply for patients who lack insurance. It says it has spent $138 million since 2012 on community grant programs to raise awareness and educate at-risk people. Gilead has earned $36.2 billion on Truvada since 2004, according to its annual reports.

''Limited awareness and societal and structural barriers, rather than cost, have hindered broader Truvada usage,'' the company said, citing studies.

HIV/AIDS activists and researchers say assertions about the benefits of coupons are misleading.

Obtaining Gilead's coupons for Truvada for PrEP is a cumbersome process, they said. If the CDC leveraged its patents to get money for Truvada, it could help cash-strapped state Medicaid programs undertake aggressive education and distribution programs. Virginia Medicaid said it pays $54.04 per pill, or $1,621.20 for a monthly course of treatment.

''What we're seeing is that because city and local governments are spending so much on getting PrEP,'' said HIV/AIDS activist Christian Urrutia, ''they don't have a lot of money left over to do these kinds of programs.''

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Wed, 29 Apr 2020 16:26

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Wed, 29 Apr 2020 16:20

U.S. stocks rebounded Wednesday as upbeat data on coronavirus treatment from Gilead Sciences offset fresh figures that showed U.S. economic growth contracted more than expected in the first quarter.

The Dow Jones industrial average climbed 2.2%, or 532.31 points to close at 24,633.86, a day after the blue-chip average snapped four straight days of gains. The Standard & Poor's 500 rose 2.7% to end at 2,939.51.

Shares of Gilead jumped 5.7%. The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases said a study of the company's remdesivir drug met its primary endpoint, boosting expectations for a potential treatment for the disease.

''It's encouraging that we've seen a successful drug trial for the first time. People are looking for a medicine for COVID-19 and are interpreting the latest developments with Gilead as a positive for the markets and public sentiment in general,'' says Steven Seedhouse, a biotech analyst at Raymond James.

To be sure, the data also shows remdesivir has a modest effect on patients with a specific disease severity, Seedhouse explained.

''It's a good first step for improving treatment and outcomes for patients,'' Seedhouse says. "But we may still need more potent drugs. At the end of the day, remdesivir isn't going to be sufficient in dramatically shifting public sentiment or people's willingness to participate in the economy in a normal way."

Economy:U.S. economy shrank 4.8% in the 1st quarter amid state shutdowns, millions of layoffs

COVID-19:State, city workers could be next wave of layoffs as tax revenue dries up

It comes as data revealed the U.S. economy, largely shut down by the coronavirus pandemic, ended the longest economic expansion on record.

U.S. gross domestic product, the value of all goods and services produced in the U.S., contracted at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.8% in the January-March period as both consumer and business spending fell sharply, the Commerce Department said Wednesday. It marked the first drop in output since early 2014 and the steepest since late 2008, during the depths of the Great Recession.

Economists surveyed by Bloomberg had forecast a 3.8% decline in GDP.

Investors who want to know when the deepest global downturn since the 1930s might end have been encouraged by plans to reopen factories, retailing and travel. Economists warn they are too optimistic and say evidence is mounting that the damage is even worse than forecast.

''The economic data this morning are backward-looking and markets will continue to be forward-looking, trying to anticipate a resumption of economic activity in the short run and a vaccine or cure in the medium turn,'' Chris Zaccarelli, chief investment officer at Independent Advisor Alliance, said in a note. ''Given all of the stimulus in the system, markets can continue to move higher, but we remain cautious as a lot of future good news is already priced in.''

Investors seemed buoyed as more governments plan to ease anti-virus controls and allow businesses to reopen. The French and Spanish governments announced plans Tuesday to allow restaurants and other businesses to reopen gradually. They followed Italy, which announced similar plans Sunday.

The virus has killed more Americans than the Vietnam War from 1955 to 1975, with more than 58,300 deaths as of early Wednesday, according to John Hopkins University data. Worldwide, there are over 3 million confirmed cases and more than 217,100 deaths.

The Federal Reserve on Wednesday held its key interest rate near zero and vowed to continue taking aggressive action to combat the effects of the pandemic that has set off an economic downturn.

''The Federal Reserve is committed to using its full range of tools to support the U.S. economy in this challenging time, thereby promoting its maximum employment and price stability goals,'' the Fed said at the outset of a statement after a two-day meeting.

London's FTSE advanced 2.6% and the DAX in Frankfurt added 2.9%. The CAC 40 in France rose 2.2%. In Asia, the Shanghai Composite Index closed 0.4% higher and Hong Kong's Hang Seng added 0.3%. The Kospi in Seoul advanced 0.7%.

Contributing: The Associated Press

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Tue, 28 Apr 2020 09:30

LOS ANGELES (AP) '-- Oprah Winfrey, Julia Roberts and former President George W. Bush will be among 200 star-studded participants in a 24-hour global livestream event.

The Call to Unite event will kick off Friday evening to offer performances and conversations about overcoming the challenges of the coronavirus pandemic. Event organizers hope participants can help inspire people to ''emerge from this crisis better than when it began.''

Quincy Jones, Jennifer Garner, Common, Maria Shriver, Questlove, Yo-Yo Ma, Eva Longoria, Naomi Campbell and Alanis Morissette are expected to participate in the event.

Each participant will answer calls in their own way, whether through performing a song, sharing a story or offering a prayer.

The event will be livestreamed at unite.us and on Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, Twitch, LinkedIn and SiriusXM Stars.

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Wed, 29 Apr 2020 08:39

Oscars. Photo: Handout/A.M.P.A.S. via Getty Images

April 28 is a great day for Netflix execs and a terrible day for fans of the Oscar-winning ''vroom vroom'' noises in Ford v. Ferrari. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences' board of governors met over Zoom to change Oscar eligibility rules, in response to the coronavirus's effect on movie releases and cinema closures. As Vulture's Nate Jones predicted, movies will no longer be required to do a one-week theatrical run in the Los Angeles area to qualify for the 2021 Oscars. For the first time, direct-to-streaming movies will qualify for the Academy Awards, meaning my spec script for Tall Girl 2: Tall Girl v. Mothra has a fighting chance at some awards buzz. It also means that Harley Quinn stans probably won't see the Birds of Prey award sweep they were hoping for. Now, films that had to cancel their theatrical releases will qualify for the Oscars if they're made available on the voting body's Academy Screening Room streaming service after their wider public VOD releases. And after this is all over, if this is ever all over, films won't have to screen in L.A. to qualify; weeklong runs in New York, San Francisco, Chicago, Miami, and Atlanta will also count.

The Academy board of governors also voted to consolidate the Best Sound Editing and Best Sound Mixing categories into one Best Sound award. Also, to qualify for Best Original Score, ''at least 60 percent of a film's music must be original,'' which raises questions about the nature of originality in composing: What about recurring franchise motifs? What of homages? We'll get our answers when the 93rd Academy Awards take place on February 27, 2021.

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Wed, 29 Apr 2020 19:45

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Source: Foreign policy

Wed, 29 Apr 2020 13:23

The former first lady Michelle Obama premieres a new documentary called Becoming on May 6th on the streaming service Netflix. It is based on her memoir of the same name which was published in 2018. Reportedly, the documentary will also cover stories from her book tour when she visited 34 cities.

Source:indiewire.comMichelle explains that while traveling she made many connections which furthered her view that the bonds we make are true and raw. She also recounted that while we as individuals are different from each other, there are many things that transcend age, race or nationality '' and one of those things is the topic of how we can all work together to form a better future for everyone.

Source:adweek.comA multiyear contract was signed between Netflix and the Obamas' production company called Higher Ground Productions, which will surely be a stepping stone in the creation of multiple series or documentaries from the former POTUS and FLOTUS. They have also signed an agreement with Spotify for future podcasts.

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Thu, 30 Apr 2020 07:13

Apr 29, 2020 06:55 PM

Health Minister says ''Brazil is flying blind''In a video-conference with senators, Brazil's newly appointed Health Minister Nelson Teich admitted that the government has no idea of the true extent of the coronavirus outbreak in Brazil. ''We don't know the percentage of people infected, as most people are asymptomatic. We don't know if those people are as contagious as more severe patients,'' he said.

Just one day after greenlighting the use of rapid tests in pharmacies, Mr. Teich said that ''the tests [Brazil is using] do not allow us to know the reality.'' As The Brazilian Report has warned on several occasions, the Health Minister said Brazil is ''literally flying blind.'' In light of the lack of data, Mr. Teich took an approach that could quickly deteriorate his relationship with President Jair Bolsonaro: ''Radicalizing social distancing is necessary. The only thing we know is that distancing lowers the contagion curve.''

Mr. Teich has yet to present his own plan to fight the coronavirus.

Meanwhile, Jair Bolsonaro has once again spoken out against social isolation measures, even suggesting that state governors should be held accountable for the Covid-19 death toll in their constituencies. Bashing governors appears to be the president's new strategy to divert responsibility away from himself, as the head of state now seems to have abandoned his defense of antimalarial drug hydroxychloroquine, which he once hailed as a ''potential cure'' for Covid-19.

Apr 29, 2020 06:51 PM

Will Bolsonaro finally disclose his Covid-19 test results?On Monday, a federal judge ruled that President Jair Bolsonaro had 48 hours to disclose the results of his two Covid-19 tests, which he took on March 12 and 17. This deadline ends today. If he doesn't comply, the president will have to pay a BRL 5,000 fine for each day he refuses to publish his results. However, the president could stall the decision if his newly-appointed Solicitor General, Jos(C) Levi Mello, lodges an appeal. The court ruling refers to a lawsuit filed by newspaper O Estado de S.Paulo, which requested the results based on the Access to Information Act.

The Brazilian Report asked the Solicitor General's Office whether it had appealed, but so far no confirmation has been issued. Mr. Bolsonaro has said he has no problem in showing his test results, but called the issue a ''personal matter.'' At least 23 people who were a part of the president's entourage on a trip to the U.S. subsequently contracted the coronavirus.

Apr 29, 2020 05:33 PM

'š ¸ UPDATE: 78,162 infections, 5,466 deathsThe latest update of the Health Ministry's Covid-19 figures sees the country record another 449 deaths in the space of 24 hours. The coronavirus death toll now stands at 5,466, with over 78,162 infections.

''Over 5,000 coronavirus deaths'' this week, says studyA study from the Imperial College of London has concluded that Brazil has the highest rate of Covid-19 contagion among 48 countries, predicting an increase of reported deaths of over 5,000 this week alone.

The researchers analyzed the reporting of Covid-19 deaths and cases in multiple countries around the world to draw up short-term forecasts on virus reproduction and expected fatalities. According to their estimates, Brazil is among the nine countries where the Covid-19 epidemic is likely to be increasing, along with Canada, India, Ireland, Mexico, Pakistan, Peru, Poland, and Russia.

In their calculations of the estimated transmission levels of the coronavirus, Brazil ranked higher than any other country, with an Rt value of 2.81, meaning that each infected person is expected to pass the virus on to 2.81 other individuals. As a comparison, the Rt value assigned to the U.S. was just 0.98.

Under-reportingThere is a consensus among experts and government officials that Brazil's Covid-19 figures are underestimating the full extent of the country's epidemic. A low rate of testing, delays in diagnoses, and the difficulty of collating nationwide data indicate that the actual number of cases and deaths in the country is much higher than the official figures released by the Health Ministry.

The Imperial College of London study analyzed the deaths reported over the last two weeks and the reported cases in the prior 10-day period in order to provide a measurement on just how badly under-reported Covid-19 numbers are around the world. Brazil showed an estimated reporting of just 10.4 percent, suggesting that the actual number of cases in the country could be closer to 1 million than 100,000.

Apr 29, 2020 04:10 PM

Some Brazilian cities have ignored social isolationWhile many Brazilian cities are beginning to reopen their economies after Covid-19 isolation measures, some municipalities hadn't stopped work in the first place. The southern city of Caxias do Sul was among the first to record a confirmed Covid-19 case on March 12. With only 48 cases and no deaths so far, the municipality decided against closing non-essential local businesses. Yesterday, however, the latest figures showed that the occupancy rate in the city's public intensive care units has reached 97 percent. Oddly enough, none of these intensive care patients are confirmed Covid-19 patients, suggesting there is massive under-reporting at play.

Yesterday, we talked about how the coronavirus is spreading beyond Brazil's major urban centers. This is logical, as 120 million Brazilians live in less than 6 percent of the country's cities. However, as 1,900 municipalities have recorded at least one Covid-19 case, we take a look at how the coronavirus is affecting Brazil's cities, according to their size.

The chart above illustrates a reflection of Brazil's economic dynamics. As an example, tens of millions of people live in Greater S£o Paulo and work in the city, others live in the state capital and commute to the nearby cities of Campinas or Santos. The bigger the population, the more people interact '-- and the higher the contagion rate.

That being said, small towns in Brazil are by no means immune to the disease. Every day, 50 to 80 new municipalities are added to the list of cities with confirmed cases.

Apr 29, 2020 04:06 PM

Lower house expected to resume in-person sittings in coming monthsHouse Speaker Rodrigo Maia stated that Brazil's lower house is expected to resume its regular activities by late May, or early June, which would mean a return to gathering in person for congressional sittings. However, this move will be conditioned to the state of the Covid-19 outbreak in Bras­lia. As of Tuesday evening, the federal capital posted the ninth highest rate of infections per 1 million people (416), and the 13th highest death rate, with 9.6 casualties for every 1 million people.

Mr. Maia stressed the need for a ''rational debate'' about the need for social isolation across the country. He pointed out that the situation cannot be addressed in a universal approach for the whole country, given the dramatic differences between Brazil's regions.

Apr 29, 2020 03:14 PM

Man in port city goes to court over face mask ruleOne week ago, the port city of Santos made the use of protective face masks mandatory in all public places. Those disobeying this rule can incur a fine of up to BRL 3,000 '-- or three times the minimum wage. One local man, however, is taking the municipal government to court for the right to come and go as he pleases, without using a mask. Controversially, he received a favorable injunction from a trial court judge.

In his decision, the judge wrote that the Mayor of Santos cannot pass decrees ''to create, restrict, or remove personal rights.'' Enforcing penalties would only be possible if the city had approved a formal law to make the use of masks mandatory.

Several experts consider the use of face masks as a highly effective way to prevent contamination '-- but the recommendation is by no means unanimous. The World Health Organization says healthy people ''only need to wear a mask while taking care of a person with Covid-19.''

Apr 29, 2020 03:07 PM

Unlike other states, only four Covid-19 hospital beds are occupied in Mato GrossoWhile some Brazilian states in the Amazon, Northeast, and Southeast are witnessing the full-scale collapse of their healthcare systems, the Center-West state of Mato Grosso remains relatively untouched. As of last week, only four of the 507 hospital beds reserved for Covid-19 patients in the state were occupied.

The state government has already recommended city halls lift social isolation measures '-- quarantining only those in high-risk groups, such as senior citizens and people with pre-existing conditions. Until Tuesday, Mato Grosso registered 261 coronavirus infections '-- just 80 per 1 million inhabitants '-- and 11 deaths.

The reopening of the economy will be monitored by the local authorities in order to make sure that companies are compliant with new sanitary regulations.

Apr 29, 2020 02:00 PM

Brazil launches app for online domestic violence reportsThe Human Rights Ministry launched a smartphone app this week to receive reports of domestic violence. Until this week, the only way to report such crimes without going to a precinct was via a telephone hotline. The Brazilian Report showed that Rio de Janeiro state has seen a 50-percent increase in cases of violence against women since the beginning of the pandemic. In S£o Paulo, requests for restraining orders motivated by domestic violence increased 29 percent, and arrests of criminals caught in the act rose 51 percent in March.

Another measure adopted to combat domestic violence consists of a partnership between the Human Rights Ministry and the National Council of Prosecution Services (CNMP). Complaints received by the National Human Rights Ombudsman will be forwarded to the CNMP, including information on the location, severity, and the form of human rights violation in question. Since the start of the pandemic, complaints have exceeded 7,500.

Apr 29, 2020 01:27 PM

Covid-19 crisis to push over half of Brazilian families into defaultA survey carried out by credit reporting agency Boa Vista SCPC shows that 52 percent of Brazilian families will be unable to pay their bills in the coming months, due to the economic hardship created by the Covid-19 crisis. No less than 80 percent of households have slashed their budgets to reduce the financial impact of Brazil's halted economy.

A study published in November 2019 in online scientific journal Lancet Global Health traced a link between economic recession and adult mortality during Brazil's financial crisis of 2014-2016. The researchers found that a 1-percentage-point increase in unemployment was associated with an increase of 0.50 in all-cause mortality rate per 100,000 people, with deaths largely due to cancer and cardiovascular disease.

Apr 29, 2020 01:02 PM

Government creates Covid-19 ''scoreboard''Ignoring all the negative data concerning the Covid-19 pandemic, the Jair Bolsonaro government has decided to maintain its head in the sand and focus on exclusively positive news. On Wednesday morning, the Citizenship Ministry released its Covid-19 ''scoreboard,'' stating that, out of the nearly 72,000 Brazilians infected by the virus, 32,544 have been cured and another 34,325 are ''in recovery'' '-- which includes all Brazilians currently receiving treatment for the disease.

Data on recovered patients, however, is highly inconsistent '-- as data editor Marcelo Soares explained.

On Tuesday, Brazil's official death toll surpassed China's, reaching a total of 5,017 deaths. And while a lack of testing in the country makes accurate measurements impossible, the continuous rise in Brazil's Covid-19 death curve is a cause for concern to many '-- except President Jair Bolsonaro. Questioned about the numbers on Tuesday evening, he replied: ''So what? I'm sorry. What do you want me to do?''

Today, the president refused to be held accountable for the health crisis, even though he has been one of the most prominent Covid-19 deniers among major world leaders. ''[The press] won't put something on my lap that doesn't belong to me. Reporters should ask [S£o Paulo Governor Jo£o] Doria why his state has registered more deaths than anywhere else.''

Home to 22 percent of the Brazilian population, S£o Paulo has been the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak in the country.

Apr 29, 2020 12:49 PM

S£o Paulo's ICUs at 75-percent capacity, city turns to private hospitals for helpThe number of Covid-19 deaths recorded in the city of S£o Paulo jumped from 422 to 1,337 in the space of 18 days. In the same period, the number of confirmed infections also tripled, reaching 24,041. This vertiginous growth has made the city start looking for vacancies on the private health system in order to expand its intensive care capacity. On Monday, reporter Andr(C) Cabette Fbio talked about initiatives to merge the public and private networks. According to the city's Health Secretary, Edson Aparecido, the municipal public system is already operating at 75 percent of its ICU capacity. Meanwhile, in S£o Paulo's private hospitals, there are an estimated 1,500 vacant ICU beds.

However, private sector representatives say that the government has been slow to seek them out and make up for the ICU deficit. The city of S£o Paulo has already set up two field hospitals: one at the Pacaembu football stadium, another at the Anhembi convention center, and a third is being built in Ibirapuera Park.

Apr 29, 2020 11:54 AM

Deaths by ''undetermined causes'' explode, while Rio plans reopeningThe number of deaths by ''undetermined causes'' in the state of Rio de Janeiro has skyrocketed 6,100 percent in 2020, compared to last year. Nationwide, the increase is a more modest 43 percent.

Governor Wilson Witzel admitted that the state's public health system is at breaking point, with more than 300 patients waiting for intensive care beds in public hospitals. Despite this, Mr. Witzel is still planning to loosen social isolation measures and reopen the state's economy. He said that this resumption of commercial activity could be deployed in waves.

In the state capital, Mayor Marcelo Crivella said he will extend social isolation measures for another month, but stressed that this could change depending on the progress of the outbreak. The city of Rio de Janeiro adopted its first restriction measures on March 24, by way of a decree that is set to expire tomorrow.

Apr 28, 2020 07:06 PM

How the coronavirus is heading to Brazil's countrysideCaving to the demands of retailers, local administrations in several cities are on the cusp of reopening commercial activities. The list of countryside municipalities includes Salvador (Bahia), Vit"ria (Esp­rito Santo), Campinas (S£o Paulo), Aparecida de Goinia (Gois), Betim and Po§os de Caldas (Minas Gerais). In the city of S£o Paulo, Mayor Bruno Covas is against the move, even if that jeopardizes his re-election bid in October '-- or later, if the election is postponed.

At first, 100 percent of Covid-19 cases in Brazil were concentrated in one single state capital, S£o Paulo. However, one-third of all registered cases are now outside of capitals, as well as 40 percent of deaths. That information, however, comes with a caveat: a large portion of these cases and deaths come in municipalities on the outskirts of major urban centers.

Blumenau, a case studyBelow is a chart of Covid-19 cases in Blumenau, highlighting its two attempts to reopen the local economy. Blumenau is the countryside city in South Brazil where last week we saw a crowd of families, senior citizens, and children, all wearing face masks, scuttling into a shopping mall to the sound of a saxophone cover of ''Have You Ever Seen The Rain?''

Of course, we can't be certain that the number of infections has spiked because of the reopening of commerce. Underreporting is massive, and any increase in testing pushes the curve up. Perhaps reopening commerce allowed more people to seek tests.

But the lack of any scientific conclusion is precisely why it seems too soon to reopen the country.

Apr 28, 2020 06:39 PM

500,000 health workers ready to join Covid-19 effortAccording to Brazil's Health Ministry, around 500,000 healthcare professionals have put their names forward to work in the Covid-19 effort. The total includes 103,000 students majoring in medicine, nursing, pharmacy, and physical therapy.

The first batch of selected professionals will be work in Manaus, the capital city of the northern state of Amazonas, where the healthcare system has already collapsed. In the city's hospitals, ambulances are left queuing outside to wait for severe patients to die in order to free up space for new admittances. Another three Amazonas municipalities will also receive extra professionals: Itacoatiara, Tabatinga, and Manacapuru.

Apr 28, 2020 06:19 PM

Brazil has more confirmed Covid-19 deaths than ChinaAccording to the latest coronavirus update by Brazil's Health Ministry, the country has 5,017 confirmed Covid-19 deaths. That's more than the official death toll in China '-- where the outbreak originated (4,633, according to World-O-Meters). However, if Brazil's data is compromised by the lack of testing, the numbers in China can also be taken with skepticism, as authoritarian regimes tend to be opaque on issues that may trigger social unrest.

Nevertheless, Brazil recorded its highest number of new deaths in a single day with 474 casualties. Meanwhile, the total number of confirmed Covid-19 cases amounts to 71,886.

Earlier today, U.S. President Donald Trump talked about screening South American tourists '-- particularly those from Brazil. ''Brazil has pretty much of an outbreak, as you know. They also went another way than other countries in South America. If you look at the chart, you see what happened unfortunately to Brazil,'' said Mr. Trump. His words are rich, however, given that Jair Bolsonaro's ''another way'' has largely been a copy of Donald Trump's own approach. Moreover, no country in the world has registered more Covid-19 cases or deaths than the U.S.

Apr 28, 2020 05:53 PM

Brazilian court requests online registration for 2020 electionsBrazil's Superior Electoral Court launched a campaign for online voter registration. With electoral notary offices suspending activities during the pandemic, the court has launched a new website allowing for several bureaucratic procedures to be carried out online. Voters have until May 6 to resolve pending issues or change their electoral constituency. However, the Covid-19 outbreak has upended the October 2020 municipal elections.

This will be no small effort, as voting in Brazil is mandatory. In 2019, 2.4 million voter registrations were canceled as punishment for no-shows at polling stations for three straight elections. Without an active voting status, people cannot obtain passports or become civil servants.

Apr 28, 2020 05:49 PM

Latin America Covid-19 News RoundupðŸ‡...🇷 Argentina. The Argentinian Football Association (AFA) canceled the 2019/2020 season due to the Covid-19 pandemic. (Goal)

🇨🇴 Colombia. After announcing a Covid-19-led ceasefire, Colombia's last active guerrilla group, the ELN, will take up arms once again. The United Nations condemned the move. (Vanguardia, in Spanish)

🇧🇴 Bolivia. The Bolivian government tried to loosen quarantine rules, allowing scheduled entrance in supermarkets. It failed, creating even more public gatherings. (El Deber, in Spanish)

🇵🇾 Paraguay. President Mario Abdo Ben­tez said he will ''lock everything up again'' if people stop respecting his so-called ''smart quarantine.'' (ABC, in Spanish)

🇵🇪 Peru. At least nine people died during a Peruvian prison riot, caused by inmates demanding better sanitary measures against the coronavirus (Reuters, in Spanish)

Apr 28, 2020 04:36 PM

Extra 150,000 to file for unemployment due in pandemicBrazil's federal government estimates that roughly 150,000 people have filed for unemployment benefits as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. In what was the first disclosure of official job data since social isolation measures began and non-essential businesses were closed, the government estimated that the number of requests for unemployment benefits between March and mid-April will add up to over 1 million '-- roughly 150,000 more than the same period last year.

The figures are still estimates, however, as the government believes hundreds of thousands of workers laid-off during the period have yet to apply for their benefits. As things stand, the current figure of formal requests received is still lower than last year's numbers.

If the government's figures are correct, the immediate impact of the pandemic on the Brazilian social security system pales in comparison to the dramatic scenario in the U.S., where over 26 million people have filed for unemployment benefits since mid-March.

Apr 28, 2020 02:59 PM

Trump wants to screen South American tourists for Covid-19U.S. President Donald Trump said his administration is in talks with airlines over ways to screen South American travelers for Covid-19. ''We're talking to the governor, we're talking with others also that have a lot of business coming in from South America, Latin America, and we'll make a determination,'' Mr. Trump said, during an Oval Office meeting with Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. ''We're also setting up a system where we do some testing and we're working with the airlines on that. Testing on the plane.''

According to The Hill's Brett Samuels, Mr. DeSantis showed concern over the development of the Covid-19 outbreak in South America '-- as his state attracts many tourists from the region. The growing curve of cases and deaths related to the coronavirus in Brazil has alarmed international media outlets, the country's Covid-19 situation hit the headlines of media outlets such as Bloomberg and The New York Times, which labeled the country as a potential new epicenter of the outbreak.

Brazil-Florida relationsAn estimated 300,000 Brazilians live in Florida '-- the largest Brazilian community in any U.S. state. Moreover, no North American city attracts more tourists from Brazil than Miami and Orlando. The state also attracts a large chunk of Brazilian investment in the U.S. '-- with the country ranking as the top foreign nation buying South Florida homes in 2018, according to a report from the Miami Association of Realtors.

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Thu, 30 Apr 2020 06:38

Doctors in the U.K. are warning that the coronavirus could be linked to Kawasaki disease, a rare but serious illness in children. Dr. Dyan Hes, a pediatrician in New York City, told CBS News she was "not surprised" to hear about the possible link.

Normally, "it's not fatal, it's very treatable," Dr. Hes told CBSN anchors Vladimir Duthiers and Anne-Marie Green. "You can get it [Kawasaki disease] after flu. You can get it after multiple viral infections."

British doctors rang alarm bells over Kawasaki disease after a number of children diagnosed with COVID-19 died despite having no underlying health issues, according to U.K. Health Secretary Matt Hancock.

The exact cause is unknown, but Kawasaki disease is associated with fever, skin rashes, swelling of glands and in severe cases it can inflame blood vessels within the heart. The U.K.'s National Health Service says it normally affects about 8 in every 100,000 children each year, mostly under the age of 5.

Hes said she was "not surprised" by the report because children can sometimes develop Kawasaki disease after a bout with a common cold, which is caused by a different variety of bug in the coronavirus family. She added that Kawasaki could pop up "weeks to months later" after experiencing some kind of viral infection or "multiple viral infections."

Experts in Italy and Britain are looking into the possible link after doctors in hard-hit northern Italy reported "extraordinarily large numbers" of children under age 9 with severe cases of what looks to be Kawasaki, according to Reuters.

Researchers are now investigating whether clusters of infants arriving at hospitals in those two countries with high fevers and signs of inflammatory illness can be traced back to the coronavirus pandemic.

Dr. Hes said the ongoing research was "not published yet in peer review journals," but pointed out that not all of the children studied who had Kawasaki were diagnosed with COVID-19 .

However, she noted the rapidly-changing nature of information doctors are learning about the coronavirus.

"I think that what we're learning more and more is that COVID-19 can cause just about any symptom and attack any part of the body, but particularly the vasculature, it causes a lot of inflammation," she explained.

Such cases have not been seen in otherwise healthy children in New York City, according to Hes, who noted that she "just got off of the grand rounds" at New York Presbyterian Hospital.

"The children that we're seeing that have been critically ill, have been children who already have been critically ill with either kidney transplant or heart transplant," Hes said. "They are kids who are already immunosuppressed in some way."

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Wed, 29 Apr 2020 14:19

Log in Sign up NBC News @ NBCNews Dr. Fauci speaks on the clinical trial for potential coronavirus treatment drug remdesivir:''What it has proven is that a drug can block this virus ... This drug happens to be blocking an enzyme that the virus uses."

pic.twitter.com/hFTPUIa8No 9:57 AM - 29 Apr 2020 Twitter by: NBC News @NBCNews Dana Smith Dutra 🇺🇸 #StandWithJoe 🇺🇸 @ YDanasmithdutra

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@NBCNews Started on February 21st! So who knew about this before selling their stocks?

View conversation · Frog Legs @ 100FrogLegs

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@YDanasmithdutra @NBCNews So to address Dana's question, there's this to start. But why is David Perdue never included in this group photo?

pic.twitter.com/p9tzsNqSU6 View conversation · Jeff F @ JeffFarkas6

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@NBCNews By the body language of Trump,, he's totally disinterested and dismissive.

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@NBCNews @Yamiche pic.twitter.com/FRuwPaHzTE View conversation · KC @ bedogworthy

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@NBCNews @wbaltv11 But study shows no significant difference between placebo:

twitter.com/rishidesaimd/s'... View conversation · BirdResQR ðŸ...‰ðŸ¾ðŸ...' @ JennyCaldwell

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@bedogworthy @NBCNews @wbaltv11 This is a different study. The N is different. The one Fauci referenced has over 1000 patients.

View conversation · Daniel Paul @ GordonPronto

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@NBCNews @Yamiche Trump really could not be more frustrated that he is not the focus of this meeting and it shows.

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@NBCNews Thank you Dr Fauci.

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Wed, 29 Apr 2020 13:49

Stacey Abrams. | Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images for Bustle

Stacey Abrams, the former Georgia gubernatorial nominee whose name has been floated as a possible Democratic vice presidential pick, predicted in an interview published Friday that she will become president within the next two decades.

After Abrams said she ''absolutely'' believed Americans would send a black woman to the Oval Office in the next 20 years, journalist Clare Malone of FiveThirtyEight asked: ''Do you think they'll elect you?''

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''Yes. I do,'' Abrams responded. ''That's my plan. And I'm very pragmatic.''

The declaration from Abrams, a former Georgia state representative, adds to the political intrigue and professional speculation surrounding one of the Democratic Party's most rapidly ascending stars. Abrams, who lost a close 2018 race to be governor of Georgia, has been mentioned by several White House hopefuls as a potential running mate.

Prior to her declaration Friday that she will seek the presidency before 2040, Abrams said in a March interview that 2028 ''would be the earliest I would be ready to stand for president." In a subsequent tweet, however, she wrote that ''2020 is definitely on the table'' '-- a run she has since ruled out.

In August, Abrams announced she would not enter the current Democratic primary and would instead focus her efforts on combating voter suppression and boosting participation in the 2020 census. But she also said in an interview that same month that she would be ''honored to be considered by any nominee'' as a vice presidential contender.

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April 29, 2020 2020-04-29T14:11:12-04:00 https://images.c-span.org/Files/1f7/20200429141542001_hd.jpg House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and Majority Whip Representative James Clyburn (D-SC) hold a press briefing at the Capitol to announce members of a select subcommittee on the coronavirus pandemic.House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and Majority Whip Representative James Clyburn (D-SC) hold a press briefing at the Capitol to announce members of a select subcommittee on the coronavirus pandemic.

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*This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.

Related Video October 23, 2015 House Democrats on the Debt LimitHouse Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), Minority Whip Steny Hoyer (D-MD), and Representatives James Clyburn (D-SC)'...

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Wed, 29 Apr 2020 10:41

Democratic frontrunner Joe Biden turned heads Monday night when, in a CBS Miami interview, he suggested the U.S. needs more ''economic intercourse around the world.''

''I would get much more engaged in the world, we can't step back,'' Biden said. ''If in fact, for example, we solve the problem in the United States of America and you don't solve it in other parts of the world, you know what's going to happen?''

''You're going to have travel bans, you're going to not be able to do, have economic intercourse around the world,'' Biden continued. ''When it's America first, it's America alone.''

When asked if he was vulnerable because of his son Hunter's business dealings in China, he said he didn't believe so at all. He said his son's business dealings ''have nothing to do'' with him, and claimed that President Trump owes millions of dollars to the bank of China, a since-debunked claim.

HILLARY CLINTON TEASES SHE'LL BE 'SURPRISE GUEST' AT BIDEN TOWN HALL AMID ENDORSEMENT SPECULATION

''When you talk about business dealings, look at the business dealings the president has with China, he owes apparently millions of dollars to the bank of China,'' said Biden.

''I mean, this is all about whether or not we are going to be able to coexist with the largest and biggest population in the world and make sure we are the ones who set the standards,'' he continued.

On Friday, Politico published a story claiming the president owes ''millions to the bank of China,'' adding that ''the loan is due soon.''

TAMMY BRUCE: WILL DEMOCRATS ADJUST MOTTO TO 'BELIEVE ALL WOMEN, EXCEPT THIS WOMAN?'

On Monday, Politico released an editor's note saying ''new reporting and information have led us to update and correct the article after publication.''

''The article cited a nearly $1 billion refinancing deal from several banks, including the Bank of China, struck in 2012 with a New York City real estate venture in which the Trump Organization has a substantial minority interest,'' Politico wrote. ''We reported that President Trump, through the Trump Organization, owes the Chinese state-owned bank tens of millions of dollars on a loan that comes due in 2022.''

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The editor's note said it received a statement from the Bank of China USA, which the publication had not contacted beforehand, that the bank had sold off its debt shortly after the 2012 deal. ''A spokeswoman said the bank has no current financial interest in any Trump Organization properties.''

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Wed, 29 Apr 2020 08:46

One of the first images in the opening episode of the new History Channel show ''Unidentified: Inside America's UFO Investigation'' is a 2017 headline from the New York Times projected on a flickering screen: ''Glowing Auras and 'Black Money': The Pentagon's Mysterious UFO Program.''

It's the story that launched Luis Elizondo into the public eye, the article that ''shocked the world,'' the narrator of ''Unidentified'' declares, before continuing, ''A clandestine U.S. government program had been investigating UFOs. For eight years, the secret program was run by this man, Lue Elizondo.'' The camera then pans to a visual of the former military intelligence case officer in a darkened house peering out warily through half-drawn window shades.

It's an odd scene. Is Elizondo on the lookout for aliens or a bad guy from his old spook life? Either way, the History Channel show, which premiered on Friday and is being promoted as ''groundbreaking nonfiction,'' goes on to follow Elizondo as he re-investigates strange UFO incidents he says he learned of when he was at the Pentagon running the Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program, known as AATIP. It's as if Agent Mulder had handed off his X-Files to another paranoid government agent, this one with a pug face and billy-goat beard. In the screener I saw for ''Unidentified,'' the narrator says that Elizondo quit the Pentagon because he was ''frustrated by what he says was a cover-up.''

Whatever the truth about otherworldly UFOs (cue a collective eye-roll from scientists), there is one crucial detail missing from ''Unidentified,'' as well as from all the many stories that have quoted Elizondo since he outed himself nearly two years ago to a wide-eyed news media: There is no discernible evidence that he ever worked for a government UFO program, much less led one.

Yes, AATIP existed, and it ''did pursue research and investigation into unidentified aerial phenomena,'' Pentagon spokesperson Christopher Sherwood told me. However, he added: ''Mr. Elizondo had no responsibilities with regard to the AATIP program while he worked in OUSDI [the Office of Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence], up until the time he resigned effective 10/4/2017.''

That directly contradicts an email sent by a spokesperson for To The Stars Academy of Arts & Science, a UFO research and entertainment company that Elizondo joined after he left the Defense Department.

There is no discernible evidence that Luis Elizondo ever worked for a government UFO program, much less led one.

The email was sent over a year ago by Kari DeLonge, a public relations representative for To the Stars, to John Greenewald, a UFO researcher who runs an online archive of Freedom of Information Act-obtained government documents on a website called the Black Vault. At the time, Greenewald had become frustrated at the lack of tangible information about AATIP and Elizondo's role; additionally, Elizondo had spurned Greenewald's interview requests.

Greenewald told me that he had asked DeLonge specifically where Elizondo worked within the Department of Defense when he ran AATIP.

''Hi John '' Thanks for reaching out,'' DeLonge wrote. ''The program was initially run out of [the Defense Intelligence Agency] but when Lue took it over in 2010 as Director, he ran it out of the Office for the Secretary of Defense (OSD) under the Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence (USDI). Hope that clarifies.''

I tried contacting Elizondo multiple times via email and his cellphone. He has not responded. It's not as if he is on retreat somewhere; I noticed that in the run-up to his star turn on the new History Channel show, he has been speaking to everyone from the New York Times to UFO media personalities and military bloggers.

Indeed, judging by all the UFO stories lighting up the internet this week, the self-described ''career spy'' is having another big moment in the media spotlight. The timing is either an auspicious coincidence or the ''flying saucers are here'' brigade's well-oiled PR machine is working overtime.

Another important detail being glossed over or entirely left out of the breathless coverage surrounding the release of ''Unidentified'' is the relationship between its executive producer, Tom DeLonge, Elizondo, and other former Pentagon officials and members of the intelligence community who appear in the show.

DeLonge, a musician of Blink-182 fame and longtime UFO enthusiast, is the co-founder and interim CEO of To the Stars, the company Elizondo joined in October 2017, several days after he resigned from the Department of Defense. Since the company's inception, certain members of its ''elite team,'' including Elizondo, have appeared frequently in the news media.

This week is a prime example. Another former Pentagon official with a prominent role in ''Unidentified'' appeared several days ago on ''Fox & Friends.''

''We know that UFOs exist,'' Chris Mellon, a deputy assistant secretary of defense for intelligence in the Clinton and George W. Bush administrations, pronounced on the show. ''This is no longer an issue. The issue is why are they here? Where are they coming from? And what is the technology behind these devices that we are observing?''

Mellon, like Elizondo, works for To the Stars (his title, according to the company's website, is national security affairs adviser). ''Fox & Friends'' neglected to mention this connection, along with the fact that the History Channel show was made by the company Elizondo and Mellon work for.

I'm not surprised. By now, Elizondo and Mellon have come to rely on a largely passive and credulous press to generate sensational UFO headlines.

The Pentagon on April 23, 2015.

Photo: Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images

Amid the mountain of media coverage of Elizondo in the last two years, I have found only one story that provides official confirmation that he headed the government UFO program known as AATIP.

''Pentagon spokeswoman Dana White confirmed to Politico that the program existed and was run by Elizondo,'' Bryan Bender wrote in December 2017. (Earlier this year, White, a Trump administration political appointee, resigned amid an internal probe into charges of misconduct.)

But Pentagon spokesperson Christopher Sherwood told me that he ''cannot confirm'' White's statement.

As it happens, Bender, who is Politico's defense editor, had a recurring role in the first episode of ''Unidentified.'' He appeared on camera numerous times as a kind of authoritative character witness for Elizondo, Mellon, and their UFO investigations.

''If you were trying to come up with the A-team of former, high-level government officials who would come forward on this issue, you can't really think of a better team,'' Bender says in the screener. ''Lue Elizondo, Chris Mellon '-- these guys still have security clearances, still have networks in Washington, still are in the business, if you will.''

''We know that UFOs exist. This is no longer an issue. The issue is why are they here? Where are they coming from? And what is the technology behind these devices that we are observing?''

That last part sounds like a cryptic reference to contract work they might be doing for a U.S. intelligence agency or some other government entity. Elizondo confirmed to me earlier this year that he is, in fact, working as a government contractor, ''but it's not what you think it is,'' he said. Mellon did not respond to my request for comment.

In the feverish UFO community, in which conspiracy theories have long thrived like a mutating virus (sometimes with good reason), some suspect that DeLonge is being played like a useful idiot '-- and that his To the Stars Academy is a front for some kind of black ops project.

If he is not a stooge, he is certainly an odd figure for Mellon and Elizondo to hitch their wagons to.

In fact, the whole origin story of To the Stars, which DeLonge recapped in a bizarre public rollout in October 2017 and in an even more bizarre interview with podcast host Joe Rogan, is pretty bananas. In sum, DeLonge claims that he is the military's chosen vessel for UFO disclosure.

''Why you?'' Rogan asked on his podcast. ''What could you do?''

''Communication,'' DeLong responded. ''They don't have a way to make a movie, a book. They don't have a way to go on a show like this.''

It's worth noting that, several years before DeLonge took on this momentous communications assignment, he created a website called Strange Times that was essentially a clearinghouse for UFO news and conspiracies. ''Think of it as a Huffington Post for the tin-foil-helmet wearing crowd,'' wrote one music blogger.

Somehow, we are to believe that this is the mindset with which staid former members of the military and intelligence community sought to join forces. But perhaps there's a more innocent answer. To the Stars, which raised more than $2 million from investors, was originally hyped as a UFO research company that would explore the ''outer edges of science,'' but its Security and Exchange Commission filing identifies it as a ''Motion Picture & Video Tape Production'' concern.

That designation seems appropriate now with the making of ''Unidentified,'' which lists DeLonge as executive producer. (He is also prominently featured in the show.) He appears to be having the last laugh at everyone who called him looney tunes for having chased after Bigfoot and flying saucers in the Nevada desert.

The Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program received widespread press coverage after Elizondo disclosed its existence almost two years ago. ''You can laugh if you want, but a lot of people are taking this revelation seriously,'' Brett Baer said on Fox News days after the New York Times broke the story with its lavish front-page Sunday spread on December 17, 2017.

Virtually overnight, Elizondo went from living ''in the shadows,'' in his words, to hopscotching between cable news studios, where he talked gravely about hypersonic, gravity-defying ''unidentified aerial vehicles'' that, in recent years, had encroached on military training areas in restricted airspace. Many of these reports were conveniently illustrated with videos taken from cockpit cameras of F-18 fighter jets that Elizondo had arranged for the Pentagon to release just before he quit. The grainy footage of tiny, darting objects, combined with Elizondo's earnest claims of ''compelling evidence'' for ''phenomena'' he couldn't identify, made for great television. (Sherwood, the Pentagon spokesperson, said the videos were released ''for research purposes '... and not for general public release,'' which seems a meaningless distinction given their widespread use by news organizations.)

Months later, after the attention from the mainstream media died down, Elizondo hit the UFO banquet circuit, where he stroked the egos of believers. ''People may have associated you with being fringe or out there,'' he told one rapt audience of hundreds at a UFO conference last July. ''All along, you were right.'' It was the first public forum in which Elizondo laid out the history and objectives of the AATIP; soundbites from his talk were sprinkled throughout the first episode of ''Unidentified.''

By then, though, longtime UFO researchers were having trouble finding out what the program exactly did, as well as the scope of Elizondo's role. FOIA requests were turning up dry.

The grainy footage of tiny, darting objects, combined with Elizondo's earnest claims of ''compelling evidence'' for ''phenomena'' he couldn't identify, made for great television.

Elizondo was ready for them. ''In the Department of Defense, there's always a paper trail,'' he told the audience at the UFO conference. ''When you establish an organization, there's a paper trail. When you dis-establish an organization, there's a paper trail. You won't find one for this program.''

Some dubious, unofficial documents leaked out to George Knapp, a Las Vegas TV journalist who, for decades, has been a fixture in the UFO media orbit. Knapp has been a vocal defender of Elizondo and DeLonge for the past two years, pushing back on critics who have raised thorny questions about To the Stars. Knapp also purchased stock in the company, something he has not always revealed to readers and viewers in his reporting.

In an email to The Intercept, Knapp acknowledged buying 400 shares of the academy's stock in 2018, ''not as an investment, but as a way to support their fledgling company and their work.'' He wrote that he had ''made that information public'' and ''informed'' his employer'' at KLAS-TV in Las Vegas. Knapp also said that he put the shares in a trust that ''would be donated to a charity.'' He believes that transaction has been completed and that he now owns ''zero stock'' in the company, he wrote.

As it happens, Knapp also appeared in the first episode of ''Unidentified,'' lauding DeLonge for his ''unprecedented'' efforts in advancing the UFO issue.

Another fixture in the UFO orbit is John Greenewald, the FOIA researcher and a sort of antithesis to Knapp. Initially enthusiastic about To the Stars, Greenewald became increasingly skeptical when he was unable to verify many of Elizondo's claims about the government's UFO program through FOIA requests and conversations with Pentagon representatives. So last year, Greenewald reached out to To the Stars spokesperson Kari DeLonge (Tom's sister) for more information about Elizondo's involvement in AATIP.

I mentioned Kari DeLonge's response '-- about Elizondo having taken over AATIP and run it ''out of the Office for the Secretary of Defense (OSD) under the Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence (USDI)'' '-- to Sherwood, the Pentagon spokesperson who had told me unequivocally that Elizondo ''had no responsibilities with regard to the AATIP program while he worked in OUSDI.''

I then asked Sherwood how he knew that Elizondo hadn't worked for AATIP during his time with the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence, where he was based from 2008 until his retirement in 2017. Sherwood said he'd spoken with OUSDI leadership, including individuals who are ''still there'' from the time when Elizondo started working in the office.

Maybe Elizondo was running AATIP under the purview of another office or agency within the Department of Defense? Sherwood acknowledged that Elizondo ''worked for other organizations in DoD.'' But that, too, would have contradicted Kari DeLonge's statement to Greenewald.

Kari DeLonge did not respond to multiple requests for comment.

It bears noting that, although Elizondo has made a point of providing various documents to reporters (including me) to establish his bona fides, he does not appear to have supplied any materials that validate his connection to the government UFO program he insists he led. No memorandums, no emails discussing deliverables or findings, and no paperwork addressed to or from him that connects him to AATIP.

The documents he has provided include recent annual Defense Department performance evaluations and his October 4, 2017 resignation letter to then-Defense Secretary James Mattis, which bears the apparent seal of the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense. In the letter, Elizondo alludes to internal opposition at the Pentagon to investigate UFOs that he wrote had menaced Navy Pilots and posed an ''existential threat to our national security.'' He was leaving, he strongly implied in his letter, because the Pentagon wasn't taking that threat seriously.

The letter does not mention AATIP or Elizondo's role as its director.

In ''Unidentified,'' Politico's Bender describes Elizondo as ''in many ways, an enigma. Here is a guy who spent decades in the intelligence community.''

That much appears to be true. Elizondo retired as an official at the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence. A public records search also reveals a series of home addresses for Elizondo over the last two decades that are close to intelligence facilities in Toa Baja, Puerto Rico (the site of an unacknowledged government surveillance program called ''Echelon'') and in Grovetown, Georgia.

''Being from Georgia, I can assure you, there is no reason anyone in their right mind would live in Grovetown unless they were working at Fort Gordon, home of the Army's principle signals intelligence units and school,'' Tim McMillan, who, like Greenewald, has a longtime interest in UFOs but has come to doubt Elizondo's involvement with any government UFO program.

In 2017, when Elizondo outed himself to the Times, he was portrayed as a reluctant whistleblower and a little paranoid. The three reporters who shared bylines on the story, including freelancer Leslie Kean (who wrote in 2016 that she was ''privileged to welcome'' Chris Mellon into the UFO organization to which she belonged) met Elizondo in a ''nondescript Washington hotel where he sat with his back to the wall, keeping an eye on the door.''

On the Times's podcast, ''The Daily,'' Helene Cooper, the newspaper's Pentagon correspondent, described Elizondo as a ''spooky, secretive guy'' but added that he was ''completely credible.'' He showed her documents, pictures, and military videos of potential UFOs, which appeared fantastic to her, but also persuasive. ''I did believe him,'' Cooper said on the podcast. ''It seemed completely credible to me in the moment.''

Later on, after she left the hotel room, Cooper acknowledged that doubts crept in. In the end, though, she decided that what mattered most was whether the Pentagon's UFO program was real. That, she said, was the focus of the story.

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Wed, 29 Apr 2020 08:46

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Wed, 29 Apr 2020 08:34

CORONAVIRUS City and county governments don't have the authority to overrule Gov. Greg Abbott's new executive order.

AUSTIN, Texas '-- Even though some people are hesitant and businesses may be worried about reopening on May 1 in Texas, local governments can't stop it from happening under Gov. Greg Abbott's new executive order.

The executive order doesn't require businesses to open nor does it require people to leave their homes, but it does allow them to if they want.

''All the counties in the State of Texas are required to follow that order and no county can issue an order contrary to the executive order that I issued yesterday,'' Gov. Abbott said in an interview with KVUE Political Anchor Ashley Goudeau on Tuesday.

According to the executive order, the State rules overrule local ones if the local order:

Restricts essential or reopened servicesAllows gatherings prohibited by the executive orderExpands the list of essential services or the list or scope of reopened servicesOn Tuesday, Austin and Travis County leaders scrambled to figure out what can be done locally to continue slowing the spread of COVID-19 following the governor's order.

As of Tuesday evening, Travis County has the fourth-highest number of confirmed coronavirus cases in the state, according to state health department data.

The Austin City Council held a special session while the Travis County Commissioners Court also convened to discuss the local response to reopening the state.

''I've talked to other mayors now around the state, and everyone's trying to figure out how to react. I think the overwhelming impression from most of the mayors is that they wish that the governor had waited another two or three weeks to do this,'' Austin Mayor Steve Adler told the city council on Tuesday morning.

The council heard updates from doctors about what relaxed social distancing guidelines could mean for increased hospitalizations and deaths in the Austin-Round Rock area.

''It has been very difficult, certainly to keep up with because the whole situation has been fluid,'' said Sherri Greenberg, a professor of practice at UT Austin's LBJ School of Public Affairs.

Even though cities and counties can work together and pass their own ordinances, the State can overrule, Greenberg said.

Past examples of that happening in Texas include the issues of rideshare background checks and plastic bag bans.

''If the governor comes in and says, 'No, we're going to at an earlier date, open up restaurants, 25%,' then that is the law, right?' That supersedes the local orders,'' Greenberg said.

So far, no local orders or recommendations have followed the governor's Monday announcement about businesses reopening.

WATCH: Travis County judge discusses county's next steps

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Wed, 29 Apr 2020 08:31

Published Wed, Apr 29 2020 8:36 AM EDT

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Gilead Sciences said Wednesday preliminary results of a coronavirus drug trial showed at least 50% of patients treated with a 5-day dosage of antiviral drug remdesivir improved and more than half were discharged from the hospital within two weeks.

Shares of Gilead were up more than 7% in premarket trading.

The clinical trial involved patients with severe cases of Covid-19. The severe study is "single-arm," meaning it did not evaluate the drug against a control group of patients who didn't receive the drug.

The study tracked two groups of patients who were hospitalized with Covid-19. One group received a 5-day treatment of remdesivir, while the other group took the drug for 10 days. The researchers said more than half of the patients in both treatment groups were discharged from the hospital within 14 days. They said 64.5% of the patients who received the shorter treatment course were discharged, compared with 53.8% of the group who were treated for 10 days.

"These data are encouraging as they indicate that patients who received a shorter, 5-day course of remdesivir experienced similar clinical improvement as patients who received a 10-day treatment course," said Aruna Subramanian, a lead investigator of the study.

There are no proven treatments for Covid-19, which has infected more than 3 million people worldwide and killed at least 217,569 as of Wednesday morning, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. U.S. health officials say producing a vaccine to prevent the disease will take at least 12 to 18 months, making finding an effective drug treatment soon even more crucial.

There a number of ongoing studies testing Gilead's remdesivir to see if it's effective in stopping the coronavirus from replicating.

Remdesivir has shown some promise in treating SARS and MERS, which are also caused by coronaviruses. Some health authorities in the U.S., China and other parts of the world have been using remdesivir, which was tested as a possible treatment for the Ebola outbreak, in hopes that the drug can reduce the duration of Covid-19 in patients.

Dr. Scott Gottlieb, shortly after the Gilead news was released, described remdesivir as "part of a better toolbox" for dealing with the coronavirus. But he said on CNBC's "Squawk Box" that it's "not a home run, a cure by any means."

"It's not going to be a cure, but it is going to be a drug potentially that if you use it particularly early in the course of the disease ... it could reduce their chances of having a really bad outcome," he said.

Earlier this month, Gilead surged after details leaked about one of its clinical trials, showing what appeared to be promising results in treating the disease. The University of Chicago found that patients with Covid-19 had "rapid recoveries in fever and respiratory symptoms" and were discharged in less than a week, according to STAT News.

This is breaking news. Please check back for updates.

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Wed, 29 Apr 2020 08:27

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Wed, 29 Apr 2020 06:17

AUSTIN (KXAN) '-- Both city of Austin and Travis County leaders are expressing concerns about Governor Greg Abbott's order to begin reopening the state's economy.

On Tuesday, Austin City Council members held a special work session to discuss the governor's order. Travis County Commissioners also discussed it during their weekly commisioners court meeting.

Mayor Steve Adler said he'd been in contact with a number of mayors across the state who feel the same.

''I think the overwhelming impression from most of the mayors is that they wish the governor had waited another two or three weeks to do this,'' Adler told council members. ''So that we would be at a better place with testing, better place with tracking, better place with PPE.''

Travis County Judge Sarah Eckhardt says the county does not meet federal guidelines for opening back up, with only a week of declining case numbers.

FULL COVERAGE: The latest coronavirus news in Austin, Texas, the United States and the world ''Additionally, we've seen a tripling of the number of deaths in the last two weeks, which certainly does not meet the gating criteria of a two week decline in death rate,'' Eckhardt said.

During Commissioners Court, county commissioners expressed fears that if cases spike again, local leaders may have to shut the community back down.

''I understand that it's just horrible for the economy and for so many people that have lost their jobs and can't pay bills, but I don't have a clear sense for how you try and retreat once you've gone forward with reopening,'' she said.

Local leaders said they plan to encourage people to go further than just following the governor's new order, in order to protect themselves.

''Regardless of what the governor says, we have the ability as a community to establish our own norms,'' Adler said.

Eckhardt and Adler both spoke of designing a new order that would be a guideline of sorts.

''A new Travis County order that we believe is in compliance with the governor's order, but has a greater degree of specificity and has guidance documents that perhaps set a higher standard that we cannot enforce '-- cannot require '-- but at least we'll speak with clarity about what we believe is a safer standard,'' Eckhardt explained.

FULL COVERAGE: The latest coronavirus news in Austin, Texas, the United States and the world Austin-Travis County Health Authority Dr. Mark Escott added that the stricter local expectations could start with businesses still requiring people to wear masks if they want to enter.

''It's concerning to me that we were preempted on the requirement,'' Dr. Escott said. ''Because if we want to stay open, if we want to keep people employed and businesses going, why would we then want to take away mechanisms that may help us do that?''

Adler proposed a way of recognizing and promoting businesses that follow guidelines for a higher community standard. One way he recommended doing that would be for the city to create signs for business owners following local guidelines to put outside of their establishments.

''To say, 'Not only are we doing what the governor required, but what the local community wants done,' so that anyone walking down the street or consumers can know who it is that's helping us and who it is that, even if their conduct might be legal, might be something that we agree is reckless,'' Adler said.

City and county leaders did not say Tuesday when they may introduce their new guideline orders.

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Wed, 29 Apr 2020 06:14

Stacey Abrams has made her ambition to be Joe Biden's running mate abundantly clear over the last couple of weeks. And to that end, she offered the presumptive Democratic nominee her unwavering support when questioned by CNN's Don Lemon about the sexual assault allegation against Biden on Tuesday night.

''As someone who wants to be his vice president, I think it's important that we speak about something that's in the news now,'' Lemon said near the end of his conversation with the former Georgia gubernatorial candidate, before laying out the details of Tara Reade's claim. ''CNN has now spoken on the record with her former neighbor who says Reade told her about the allegation within a few years of the alleged incident,'' Lemon said. ''Biden's campaign says untrue, never happened. Is this a credible allegation?''

''I believe that women deserve to be heard and I believe that they need to be listened to,'' Abrams said carefully. ''But I also believe that those allegations have to be investigated by credible sources.'' She cited an in-depth New York Times investigation that found the accusation was ''not credible,'' though new information has emerged in the two weeks since it was published.

''I believe Joe Biden,'' Abrams said. ''I believe that he is a person who has demonstrated that his love of family, his love of our community, has been made perfectly clear through his work as a congressional leader and as an American leader. I know Joe Biden and I think he's telling the truth and that this did not happen.''

With her conclusion, Abrams appeared to be parroting official Biden campaign talking points, which read, in part, ''Biden believes that all women have the right to be heard and to have their claims thoroughly reviewed. In this case, a thorough review by the New York Times has led to the truth: this incident did not happen.''

Lemon could have left things there, but instead he confronted Abrams with a tweet she posted in 2018 that condemned Senate Republicans for ''rushing'' Brett Kavanaugh's Supreme Court confirmation forward despite the ''courageous and compelling testimony from Dr. Christine Blasey Ford.''

''Are you applying a different standard now?'' Lemon asked.

''Not at all,'' Abrams replied. ''I believed then and I believe now that women deserve to be heard because too often they are not. And Tara Reade deserved to have her story listened to and investigated. What was happening with Christine Blasey Ford was there there was no investigation. There was a rush to move it forward so no investigation was conducted.''

''So you said you've heard her, you've heard enough, you don't believe her, you believe Joe Biden,'' Lemon said.

After once again returning to the Times investigation, Abrams said, ''I believe the Biden I know. And I think he will make women proud, that he will make America proud.'' Asked if Biden needs to ''address this more directly and more publicly,'' Abrams said, ''I believe his campaign has been very clear. And I believe that is the approach that they intend to take and I support the approach.

''We don't want women to ever be afraid to come forward,'' she concluded. ''But we also have to recognize that allegations should be investigated and that those investigations need to be borne out.''

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Wed, 29 Apr 2020 06:12

WASHINGTON '-- The White House has ordered intelligence agencies to comb through communications intercepts, human source reporting, satellite imagery and other data to establish whether China and the World Health Organization initially hid what they knew about the emerging coronavirus pandemic, current and former U.S. officials familiar with the matter told NBC News.

A specific "tasking" seeking information about the outbreak's early days was sent last week to the National Security Agency and the Defense Intelligence Agency, which includes the National Center for Medical Intelligence, an official directly familiar with the matter said. The CIA has received similar instructions, according to current and former officials familiar with the matter.

President Donald Trump appeared to refer to the request at his news conference Monday. "We're doing very serious investigations," Trump said. "We are not happy with that whole situation, because we believe it could have been stopped at the source, it could have been stopped quickly, and it wouldn't have spread all over the world."

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As part of the tasking, intelligence agencies were asked to determine what the WHO knew about two research labs studying coronaviruses in the Chinese province of Wuhan, where the virus was first observed. NBC News has previously reported that the spy agencies have been investigating the possibility that the virus escaped accidentally from one of the labs, although many experts believe that is unlikely.

RelatedThe move coincides with a public effort by the White House, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Trump's political allies to focus attention on China's inability to contain the virus shortly after it emerged. As NBC News previously reported, U.S. intelligence officials have said China initially failed to disclose the seriousness of the outbreak, robbing the rest of the world of information that might have led to earlier containment efforts.

"As the president has said, the United States is thoroughly investigating this matter," White House spokesman Hogan Gidley said. "Understanding the origins of the virus is important to help the world respond to this pandemic but also to inform rapid-response efforts to future infectious disease outbreaks."

The CIA and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence declined to comment.

Trump has shifted from initially praising China's handling of the outbreak to sharply criticizing it as the threat the pandemic poses to the U.S. economy and his re-election prospects has crystallized. Blaming China for America's economic struggles has proven effective for Trump with his political base, and his allies believe it's a message that could resonate in November with voters in the Midwest.

"The president is now running against China as much as anyone," said a person close to the president.

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The Trump administration has also accused the WHO of erring in January when it reported no evidence of human-to-human transmission. Trump, alleging that China exercised undue influence over the agency, has suspended U.S. funding of the WHO.

Initially, the WHO used conservative language. In a statement about the disease on Jan. 14 '-- regarding the first case outside China, in Thailand '-- the WHO said, "There is no clear evidence of human-to-human transmission."

The agency soon stopped saying that, and by mid-January it was clear that the virus was spreading well beyond China.

Critics see the White House focus on China and the WHO as an effort to distract attention from the open question of what warnings Trump got in January and February from his own health and intelligence advisers during a time when he was downplaying the severity of the virus.

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The Washington Post reported Monday that the intelligence reporting and analysis about the pandemic appeared in the president's daily intelligence brief more than a dozen times, although the newspaper did not specifically describe what information was passed along.

An administration official confirmed to NBC News that the President's Daily Brief, or PDB, included more than a dozen mentions in January and February of U.S. intelligence about the coronavirus in China, as well as Beijing's attempts to cover it up and suppress information about it.

The official played down the significance of the intelligence, saying there was not much more detail in the briefings than what was in the public domain. The official also said the briefings did not include any warning about how widespread and deadly the virus has now become around the globe.

Asked Tuesday to clarify what intelligence officials were telling him in January and February, the president said, "I would have to check."

"I want to look to the exact dates of warnings," he said.

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NBC News has reported that U.S. intelligence agencies saw early warning signs of a health crisis in Wuhan as far back as November and that the National Center for Medical Intelligence predicted that the coronavirus would cause a global pandemic in February, well before the WHO declared one.

The House and Senate intelligence committees have requested access to all intelligence products produced about the pandemic and are closely examining what has already been turned over to them, officials from both committees have told NBC News.

The committees typically are not granted access to the PDB, the officials said. The congressionally sponsored commission that investigated the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, was allowed to review presidential briefs and determined that President George W. Bush was warned in the summer of 2001 that Osama bin Laden was "determined to strike" inside the United States.

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Tue, 28 Apr 2020 18:54

Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Tuesday that the coronavirus pandemic ''would be a terrible crisis to waste'' by not creating ''universal health care.''

Clinton, the Democratic Party nominee in the 2016 presidential election, was speaking to former Vice President Joe Biden in a virtual women's ''town hall'' meeting, during which she endorsed him for president.

Biden nodded in agreement as Clinton spoke about exploiting the coronavirus pandemic to bring about the left's dream of ''universal health care'':

This is a high-stakes time, because of the pandemic. But this is also a really high-stakes election. And every form of health care should continue to be available, including reproductive health care for every woman in this country. And then it needs to be part of a much larger system that eventually '-- and quickly, I hope '-- gets us to universal health care. [Biden nods] So I can only say, ''Amen,'' to everything you're saying, but also to, again, enlist people that this would be a terrible crisis to waste, as the old saying goes. [Biden nods] We've learned a lot about what our absolute frailties are in our country when it comes to health justice and economic justice.

The ''old saying'' to which Clinton referred may have been the statement of President Barack Obama's incoming chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel in December 2008, who told the Wall Street Journal: ''You never want a serious crisis to go to waste.''

Rahm Emanuel, Mayor of Chicago, holds a Hillary Clinton sign during the final day of the 2016 Democratic National Convention on July 28, 2016, at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. / AFP / Brendan SMIALOWSKI (Photo credit should read BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images)

Emanuel specifically noted that health care was one policy area that the Obama administration hoped to use the opportunity of the financial crisis '-- then in full swing '-- to address. Just over a year later, President Obama signed Obamacare into law.

Republicans criticized the program for, among other things, serving as a ''Trojan horse'' for universal, government-run health care. In the 2020 Democratic Party presidential primary, Biden theoretically rejected the more ambitious ''Medicare for All'' policy adopted by many of his rivals, but embraced a policy allowing all individuals under 65 to buy into Medicare. He has since offered to expand to those 60 years old or older, in a bit to appease supporters of Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT).

Democrats have repeatedly suggested using the coronavirus crisis to advance specific ideological ends. House Majority Whip Rep. James Clyburn (D-SC), a key Biden supporter, reportedly told fellow House Democrats during a conference call on the first coronavirus relief bill in March: ''''This is a tremendous opportunity to restructure things to fit our vision.''

Nearly 60,000 Americans have died from coronavirus thus far, and there have been over one million confirmed cases.

Clinton did not explain how ''universal health care'' would have helped; countries like Italy, with a fully socialized health care system, were among the hardest hit by the pandemic, which began in late December in communist China.

Joel B. Pollak is Senior Editor-at-Large at Breitbart News and the host of Breitbart News Sunday on Sirius XM Patriot on Sunday evenings from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET (4 p.m. to 7 p.m. PT). His new book, RED NOVEMBER, is available for pre-order. He is a winner of the 2018 Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellowship. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak.

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Tue, 28 Apr 2020 18:49

It was President Donald Trump who suggested the possibility of treating the coronavirus with disinfectant injections. But the hosts of The View lay just as much blame on Dr. Deborah Birx for refusing to correct him in real time.

''You cannot inject disinfectant into your body,'' Whoopi Goldberg said Monday morning. ''We spend so much money telling kids, don't do that, and here you do this. And where was Dr. Birx sitting right there? Why didn't she say, no, sir, you cannot do that?''

After calling out Trump's ''dangerous'' comments, Sunny Hostin agreed that ''the people that are flanking him are also complicit at this point, like the Dr. Birxes that aren't saying anything.''

''No!'' Goldberg replied. ''Which blew my face off!''

Always the contrarian, Meghan McCain defended Drs. Birx and Anthony Fauci, who are ''being put in a completely untenable situation'' where they have to say things like ''don't inject yourself with Lysol.'' She added, ''I don't want these doctors to go. They're doing the best they can. Try to think of yourself in that situation. They're trying to help the American public, and there's only so much controlling that people'--anyone can do with President Trump.''

''I have to say this because it is one of the things that drives me crazy,'' Goldberg said next ''If you want adults to, you know, listen to you, that's one thing, but little kids are in the room, and they are listening to these conferences as well. And that kind of information, I needed Dr. Birx to get up and say, 'No, sir.' It could have been respectful. But someone needed to say, 'No, sir. No one can ingest bleach. No one.' And that, for me, would have been a big sign that somebody was looking out.''

Later in the show, after playing a clip of Dr. Birx dismissing the seriousness of Trump's comments on CNN, Joy Behar said she feels ''kind of sorry'' for her because ''she's less of a doctor and more like an elderly care nurse to this guy,'' referring to the president. ''Like, he's running around the house in his pajamas yelling at the TV set, not getting up out of bed until late. He's losing it. He's like the grandpa who walks out in the middle of the birthday party with his pants off, and then Dr. Birx as a surrogate at the birthday party has to say, 'Grandpa is just liberating himself, isn't he funny?'''

Hostin went even further, calling Birx ''part of the problem,'' and noting that when she appeared on The View earlier this month, ''She said a lot, and said nothing. It was like one big word salad. It's time for her to speak the facts and to speak factually.'' She added, ''I know she has had a storied career, but at this point she is losing her integrity, and I'm really surprised and disappointed in Dr. Birx. Very, very disappointed.''

Finally, Goldberg returned to the basic fact that no one should be injecting bleach. ''You know, the last person that really even suggested anyone use bleach was a man called Dr. Mengele,'' she said, referring to the Nazi doctor known as the Angel of Death. ''And he did bad things to people. So we don't discuss bleach.''

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Tue, 28 Apr 2020 18:47

Replying to

@TrumpWarRoom @HillaryClinton I can't shake this feeling that the Dems are behind the whole Tara Reade coming out now, it's almost like they want a reason to remove Joe Biden and this video proves my point because we know HC doesn't care about women!

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Tue, 28 Apr 2020 16:58

Here for you.During these difficult and uncertain times, we remain 100% committed to helping those struggling with sleep apnea. We've implemented new tools on our site to make it easier than ever for you to learn about Inspire from the comfort of home.

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Why Choose Inspire Alternative to CPAPInspire treats the root cause of sleep apnea by applying gentle stimulation to key airway muscles during sleep, allowing you to breathe normally, and more importantly, sleep without a mask, hose, or machine.

OutpatientInspire is placed under the skin of the neck and chest during a short, outpatient procedure. Shortly after the procedure, Inspire is turned on and you'll be ready to get the sleep you've been dreaming of.

FDA ApprovedInspire was FDA approved in 2014 and has been proven both safe and effective in multiple clinical studies. It is the only FDA approved obstructive sleep apnea treatment that works inside the body with just the click of a button.

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Shortly after the procedure, head back to your doctor to turn Inspire on. After some fine-tuning, you'll be ready to get the sleep you've been dreaming about.

Sign up for a free online educational event in your area where you can learn more about Inspire and speak with an Inspire user.

Free Online Informational Events

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Tue, 28 Apr 2020 15:56

The vaccine is already made. It kills fertility in both men and women. Tue 7:57 pm +00:00, 28 Apr 2020 posted by Tapestry

The vaccine is already made. It contains HCG '' to cause sterility in women. 61 out of 63 women became infertile in tests. The male vaccine is GNRH which shrinks testicle size, lowers sperm count and kills its mitochondrial DNA, and shrinks prostate. It was tested on baboons. The sperm of vaccinated animals made females infertile. Bill and Melinda gates foundation has made very large donations to the members of the UK Vaccine Network which is apparently made up of leading experts from academia, industry and policy. All their members are invited to join the Network in a personal capacity, not as representatives of specific organisations or bodies.

👉Chair of vaccine uk: Chris Whitty, Chief Scientific Adviser to the Department of Health and Social Care

👉Members & donated amounts: Adrian Hill 'ž¸ £10 million Andrew Pollard 'ž¸ £39 million Bryan Charleston 'ž¸ £5.5 million Ceri Lyn-Adams 'ž¸ £4.4 million Charlie Weller 'ž¸ funded fully by bill. Charlotte Watts 'ž¸ £59 million Chris Whitty 'ž¸ £31 million Christian Schneider 'ž¸ funded by bill. Eleanor Riley 'ž¸ £50 million Fiona Tomley 'ž¸ funded by bill. Gary Entrican 'ž¸ funded by bill. Ian Hudson 'ž¸ £980,000 Jean Lang 'ž¸ funded by bill. Jeffrey Almond 'ž¸ funded by bill Joann Prior 'ž¸ funded by GSK. Johan Van Hoof 'ž¸ recieved funding. John Edmunds 'ž¸ recieved funding. Jonathan Pearce 'ž¸ works with bill. Julian Bonnerjea 'ž¸ funded by bill. Mahesh Kumar 'ž¸ funded by bill. Massimo Pamlarini 'ž¸ £3 million. Mike Francis 'ž¸ funded by bill. Miles Carroll 'ž¸ £1.1 million. Neil Ferguson 'ž¸ funded by bill. Nick Adkin 'ž¸ £80 million. Paul Cosford 'ž¸ £1.1 million. Peter Openshaw 'ž¸ partnership with bill. Simon Foster 'ž¸ $400,000 Stephen Inglis 'ž¸ funded by bill. Steve Chatfield 'ž¸ funded by bill. Sue Middleton 'ž¸ works at & funded by GSK. Tarit Mukhopadhyay 'ž¸ £100,000 Timothy Atkins 'ž¸ reports to bill. Xiao-Ning Xu 'ž¸ funded by bill. It turns out that, out of the 34 members, 32 were directly funded and has an on going financial relationship with The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

The Vaccine Network operates through a series of working groups. Each group has a specific focus and they feedback their findings to the Network. A full list of contributors for each working group is listed at the bottom of this page.

Make no mistake what Bill Gates and GlaxoSmithKline are about to do, will be in the future seen as Genocide and Crimes Against Humanity. According to the United Nations own definitions they all ready fit the bill, no pun intended.

According to the Treason Act of 1351'...it is treason for government officials to form conspiracies to usurp by force and in defiance of the authority of Parliament, the government of the Kingdom, to destroy its constitution and in so doing to destroy the Monarchy'...holding consultations or entering into agreement, or advising, soliciting or persuading others for any such purposes, or assenting to such purposes'...the moment the power of the government is usurped, the King is in affect deposed'...

As for Chris Whitty, our Chief Medical Officer, and Sir Patrick Vallance, Chief Scientific Advisor, they have committed treason by following the orders of a foreign power. In this case Bill Gates, GSK, and the World Health Organisation, which is controlled by China and funded by The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

The vaccine is to be sold at £477/per injection if Bill Gates and Glaxo Smith Kline (GSK) aren't stopped they stand to make from the UK alone in excess of £45 billion pounds.

It's time to stop trusting the uk government, the full board of vaccines team are in bill hand, funded by him or charity donations from him under the bill and melinda gates charity name.

Now it's time to remove your faith from the W.H.O and the uk vaccine board. Please support this effort to test the vaccine independently and put pressure on the government. Otherwise population will crash.

The uk vaccine network team is basically owned by the bill and melinda gates Foundation.

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Tue, 28 Apr 2020 15:52

An emergency room doctor from Odessa, Texas told MSNBC on Tuesday that he believed the state's economy should open back up to allow the virus to ''go through all of us.''

''Is Odessa ready for more people in public and a spike that could come with it?'' MSNBC host Chuck Todd asked Dr. Sudip Bose.

''It's tough decisions, like, which direction would you rather be wrong?'' Bose replied. ''For us, a tiered opening does make sense at this time and from the emergency room here, to be brutally honest, I think that this virus, in my opinion, is going to go through all of us throughout the United States.''

The doctor predicted that vaccines would not be of much help against COVID-19.

''The flu vaccine was 50% effective and you really have to get things right,'' he explained. ''If you don't bind that properly, actually antibodies bind to it and it increases advancement into the cell. So long story short, I don't think a vaccine is going to rescue us or a med, looking at the trials currently.''

Bose continued: ''I think the best case scenario is you open things up in a calculated manor based on numbers and facts, not feelings. And let it go through. And the best case scenario, it may go through our kids first.''

The doctor claimed ''kids are almost 100% protected.''

''And then it goes to their young parents,'' he added. ''And what we did in Italy that was good, was culturally those kids went to grandma and grandpa and they got sick. So, we've got to do this in a calculated manner.''

''And I think it is time to open our economy now,'' Bose said.

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Tue, 28 Apr 2020 14:42

NEW YORK - A special military flyover roared across the skies of New York City on Tuesday to pay tribute to those on the frontlines fighting the coronavirus.

Seven Navy Blue Angel jets flew in formation alongside eight Air Force Thunderbird F-16 Jets.

LIVE UPDATES: Coronavirus in New York CityLIVES LOST: Remembering Victims of the CoronavirusWhat to Do If You Test Positive for COVID-19CDC Coronavirus PageWHO Coronavirus PageThe Blue Angels are part of the Navy's flight demonstration squadron.

The flyover started over the George Washington Bridge at noon then made its way over Manhattan and Newark, first crossing the East River around 12:15 p.m.

The jets then flew out to Long Island before circling back over the Bronx and down the East River again.

New Yorkers were encouraged to watch the flyover from home and not travel or gather anywhere. However, people were seen outside watching the event in parks and public spaces.

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Tue, 28 Apr 2020 14:39

FollowCuomo just flubbed and said reopening could be "November 15th"

Mistake? Freudian Slip?

It's hard to mistake "May" or "June" for................NOVEMBER.

Time: 13:00 ET on the dot should be https://www. youtube.com/watch?v=XgGSlRGYac w

It's live so I can't tell you the spot.

Huh, sounds like he's channeling Sniffy Joe Biden or Crazy Nancy Pile-osi. ðŸ'(C)🂠@ commandlinekid

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Tue, 28 Apr 2020 14:28

Former US Attorney Joe diGenova held another riveting interview on Monday about General Flynn's case and the Durham investigation. About the Durham investigation, diGenova said the following at the 5:20 mark in the video below:

Remember what [US Attorney John Durham] is doing is, he is deconstructing the Mueller '' Weissman inquiry. This investigation by Durham will show conclusively that the Mueller '' Weissman investigation was a fraud. That it was never intended to find a crime. That it was intended to entrap the President to get an impeachment for a false statement if he gave an interview. Which of course his lawyers and lawyers like us, told him never to do, never to give that information.

So that's why it's taking time, Mary. It's taking time because he's destroying Mueller as he makes the case against Clapper, Brennan, Comey, and Sally Yates and others. This is a big deal. He's actually investigating the greatest crime in American history!

TRENDING: BREAKING: California Doctors Go on Ingraham Angle, Challenge Official COVID Policy -- YOUTUBE THEN TAKES DOWN THEIR VIDEOS!

diGenova earlier in the interview claimed that Durham has broought in former FBI agents to assist with his investigation, because he knows them and he knows he can trust them.

This is a very big deal!

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Tue, 28 Apr 2020 14:24

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Tue, 28 Apr 2020 14:21

Replying to

@DonaldJTrumpJr OMG, the memes are hilarious, nobody honestly thinks he can win, you Dad will walk all over him, his mind is deteriorating daily, a sad thing to watch, the DNC must be horrified. NOT.

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Tue, 28 Apr 2020 11:53

Image copyright EPA Image caption Use of the Australian government's new coronavirus tracing app "COVIDSafe" is voluntary - but ministers hope it will be widely downloaded More than a million Australians have downloaded a coronavirus contact tracing app within hours of it being released by the government.

The COVIDSafe smartphone app uses a Bluetooth wireless signal to exchange a "digital handshake" with another user when they come within 1.5m (4.9ft).

The app then logs this contact and encrypts it.

Users will be notified if they have had more than 15 minutes of close contact with another user who tests positive.

Australia has recorded 6,694 confirmed coronavirus cases and 80 deaths from the virus, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.

The rise in infections has slowed considerably in recent weeks, however, with just 16 new cases recorded on Sunday.

The app - based on one introduced in Singapore - went live at 1800 local time on Sunday (0900 BST), and Health Minister Greg Hunt confirmed the download figures on Sunday night.

"As at 10:30 PM, 1 million Australians have now downloaded and registered for the #COVIDSafeapp - please join us and help protect ourselves, our families, each other but above all else our nurses and doctors," Mr Hunt wrote on Twitter.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison has said social restrictions could be eased if enough people use the app. The government has said that for maximum effectiveness, some 40% of the population would need to download it.

Amid privacy concerns about who will have access to the app's stored data, the government said only state health authorities would qualify. The data will be stored in Australia, and the health minister said "not even a court order" would allow other authorities such as the police to access it.

Media playback is unsupported on your device

Media caption WATCH: What is contact tracing and how does it work?The protections have not yet been put into legislation, however, as Australia's Parliament is not sitting regularly.

The app asks users to supply their age range, a mobile number, a post code and a name - which can be a pseudonym.

The government said all data would be wiped after 21 days, or when someone deleted the app from their phone.

On Sunday, the Australian states of Queensland and Western Australia said they would relax social distancing rules this week to permit larger outdoor gatherings - but the state of Victoria will continue with stricter curbs.

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Tue, 28 Apr 2020 11:51

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Tue, 28 Apr 2020 11:50

Updated Privacy PolicyTerms of ServiceDo Not Sell my Personal Information FCC Public FileEEO Public FileClosed Captioning Contact UsThis material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. (C)2020 FOX Television Stations

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Tue, 28 Apr 2020 11:20

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Tue, 28 Apr 2020 11:16

Enter a topic, @name, or fullname

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Tue, 28 Apr 2020 09:26

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Tue, 28 Apr 2020 08:37

April 27, 2020 2020-04-27T17:37:36-04:00 https://images.c-span.org/Files/331/20200427174318001_hd.jpg President Trump and members of the White House Coronavirus Task Force held a news conference on the federal government's response to the pandemic. They announced new plans for a nationwide coronavirus testing strategy. The president confirmed that over 5 million tests had been conducted so far. Following the announcement, he took questions from reporters on other issues, including the health of North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un, comments made by Attorney General William Barr on how states are handling re-opening, and the state of the economy. ''I built the greatest economy in the history of the world,'' President Trump told reporters in the Rose Garden.President Trump and members of the White House Coronavirus Task Force held a news conference on the federal government's response to the pandemic. They'... read more

President Trump and members of the White House Coronavirus Task Force held a news conference on the federal government's response to the pandemic. They announced new plans for a nationwide coronavirus testing strategy. The president confirmed that over 5 million tests had been conducted so far. Following the announcement, he took questions from reporters on other issues, including the health of North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un, comments made by Attorney General William Barr on how states are handling re-opening, and the state of the economy. ''I built the greatest economy in the history of the world,'' President Trump told reporters in the Rose Garden. close

Report Video IssueGo to Live Event";// $('div#video-embed').html(cookieMsg);// return;// }// });

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*This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.

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Hosting Organization

White HouseWhite House

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Tue, 28 Apr 2020 08:30

FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Deutsche Bank (DBKGn.DE ) has declined a request by prominent U.S. senators to provide information about the German lender's recent business dealings with U.S. President Donald Trump and his family, according to a letter this week seen by Reuters.

Four Democratic senators, led by Elizabeth Warren, earlier this month demanded details from Deutsche Bank Chief Executive Christian Sewing about the bank's interaction this year with Trump and his family's companies. (here)

The bank is one of the largest creditors for Trump's hotels, golf courses and other properties, according to filings. The senators are concerned the bank may be giving the family preferential treatment on loan repayments in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak as Deutsche Bank itself remains under investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice.

Deutsche's counsel rejected the senators' request on privacy grounds, according to the letter dated April 21 seen by Reuters.

''We hope that you will understand Deutsche Bank's need to respect the legal, as well as contractual, boundaries that exist with respect to such confidential information,'' the bank's law firm, Akin Gump, wrote.

Deutsche ''must answer our questions'', Warren said in an emailed statement to Reuters on Saturday.

''It's outrageous we don't know what secret favors the President and his family might be getting from the bank, or what favors the bank may be getting in return,'' she said.

Senator Chris Van Hollen, who worked with Warren on the request for information from Deutsche, said on Saturday that Deutsche's response was ''inadequate and unresponsive''.

''The American people deserve answers and anything less is unacceptable,'' Van Hollen said in an emailed statement to Reuters.

FILE PHOTO: The logo of Deutsche Bank is in London, Britain July 8, 2019. REUTERS/Simon Dawson/File PhotoDeutsche Bank declined to comment.

The White House, the Trump Organization, Kushner Companies, and Akin Gump didn't respond to requests for comment outside of business hours.

Next month, the U.S. Supreme Court is scheduled to hear arguments in a case over whether Deutsche must turn over Trump's financial records subpoenaed by two congressional committees.

Reporting by Tom Sims; Editing by Louise Heavens and Diane Craft

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Tue, 28 Apr 2020 08:21

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Tue, 28 Apr 2020 08:21

1HorseSteeplechase.BBC.ECD31.wav'‚¬ 8.10 * Sport, Horse Racing: National Hunt Racing, Tote Hall, With Racing Star Paperman, Footsteps, Some Chat And Distant P.A.2.04:06SportSport Horse Racing16 Bit / 44100 Hz38331BBC Sound Effects Library2HorsesFlatRaces.BBC.ECD17.wav'‚¬ 3.60 * Sport, Horse Racing: Horse Racing, Horses Pass (with Speech In Background).2.00:23SportSport Horse Racing16 Bit / 44100 Hz38327BBC Sound Effects Library3HorsesFlatRaces.BBC.EC53Hc.wav'‚¬ 1.80 * Sport, Horse Racing: Epsom Race Course, Oaks Stakes, Race Announcements Over P.A. System (""Under Starter"s Orders""And""They"re Off"".) (Flat Racing.)2.00:05SportSport Horse Racing16 Bit / 44100 Hz38326BBC Sound Effects Library4HorseRacePoint.BBC.ECD31c.wav'‚¬ 3.60 * Sport, Horse Racing: Point To Point Racing, Two Horses Pass Over Jump, Some Faint P.A. And Birdsong.2.00:38SportSport Horse Racing16 Bit / 44100 Hz38356BBC Sound Effects Library5HorseRacePoint.BBC.ECD31f.wav'‚¬ 3.60 * Sport, Horse Racing: Point To Point Racing, Field Passes Over Jump, With One Straggler.2.00:42SportSport Horse Racing16 Bit / 44100 Hz38351BBC Sound Effects Library6HorsesFlatRaces.BBC.EC53Bc.wav'‚¬ 6.30 * Sport, Horse Racing: Newbury Race Course, Silver Ring Atmosphere Before Race. (Flat Racing.)2.03:58SportSport Horse Racing16 Bit / 44100 Hz38345BBC Sound Effects Library7HorsesFlatRaces.BBC.EC53Cf.wav'‚¬ 6.30 * Sport, Horse Racing: Newbury Race Course, Public Address System Announcement ""under Starter"s Orders, They"re Off""And Race Commentary, With General Atmosphere. (Flat Racing.)2.03:03SportSport Horse Racing16 Bit / 44100 Hz38340BBC Sound Effects Library8HorsesFlatRaces.BBC.EC53Ba.wav'‚¬ 8.10 * Sport, Horse Racing: Newbury Race Course, Atmosphere Before Race. (Flat Racing.)2.04:23SportSport Horse Racing16 Bit / 44100 Hz38335BBC Sound Effects Library9HorseSteeplechase.BBC.ECD_1.wav'‚¬ 8.10 * Sport, Horse Racing: National Hunt Racing, Refreshment Hut, Very Busy With Chat.2.05:29SportSport Horse Racing16 Bit / 44100 Hz38329BBC Sound Effects Library10HorsesFlatRaces.BBC.EC53Ha.wav'‚¬ 8.10 * Sport, Horse Racing: Epsom Race Course, Derby Stakes, General Atmosphere Between Races. (Flat Racing.)2.06:33SportSport Horse Racing16 Bit / 44100 Hz38323BBC Sound Effects Library11HorseRacePoint.BBC.ECD31h.wav'‚¬ 3.60 * Sport, Horse Racing: Point To Point Racing, Finish Of Race With Horses, Crowd And Distinct P.A. (Recorded By Winning Post.) 2.00:38SportSport Horse Racing16 Bit / 44100 Hz38353BBC Sound Effects Library12HorsesFlatRaces.BBC.EC53Dc.wav'‚¬ 8.10 * Sport, Horse Racing: Newbury Race Course, Tote Background With Customers Placing Bets. (Flat Racing.)2.04:03SportSport Horse Racing16 Bit / 44100 Hz38347BBC Sound Effects Library13HorsesFlatRaces.BBC.EC53Ce.wav'‚¬ 4.50 * Sport, Horse Racing: Newbury Race Course, Public Address System Announcement About Runners For Washington Stakes, With General Atmosphere. (Flat Racing.)2.01:47SportSport Horse Racing16 Bit / 44100 Hz38342BBC Sound Effects Library14HorsesFlatRaces.BBC.EC53Bd.wav'‚¬ 4.50 * Sport, Horse Racing: Newbury Race Course, Crowd Atmosphere With Commentary On P.A. System. (""Under Starters Orders, They"re Off", Race Commentary And Photo Finish.) (Flat Racing.)2.01:57SportSport Horse Racing16 Bit / 44100 Hz38337BBC Sound Effects Library15HorsesFlatRaces.BBC.EC53Eb.wav'‚¬ 2.70 * Sport, Horse Racing: Newbury Race Course, Atmosphere At Starting Gate, Horses Away. (Flat Racing.)2.00:06SportSport Horse Racing16 Bit / 44100 Hz38332BBC Sound Effects Library16HorsesFlatRaces.BBC.EC53Hb.wav'‚¬ 5.40 * Sport, Horse Racing: Epsom Race Course, Oaks Stakes, General Atmosphere Before Race. (Flat Racing.)2.02:46SportSport Horse Racing16 Bit / 44100 Hz38325BBC Sound Effects Library17HorseRacePoint.BBC.ECD31a.wav'‚¬ 3.60 * Sport, Horse Racing: Point To Point Racing, Start Of Race With P.A.2.00:19SportSport Horse Racing16 Bit / 44100 Hz38355BBC Sound Effects Library18HorseRacePoint.BBC.ECD31b.wav'‚¬ 3.60 * Sport, Horse Racing: Point To Point Racing, Field Passes Over Jump With 2 Stragglers, Very Faint P.A. And Some Birdsong.2.00:56SportSport Horse Racing16 Bit / 44100 Hz38350BBC Sound Effects Library19HorsesFlatRaces.BBC.EC53Cc.wav'‚¬ 4.50 * Sport, Horse Racing: Newbury Race Course, Public Address System Announcement About Tote Returns, With General Atmosphere. (Flat Racing.)2.01:29SportSport Horse Racing16 Bit / 44100 Hz38344BBC Sound Effects Library20HorsesFlatRaces.BBC.EC53Cd.wav'‚¬ 4.50 * Sport, Horse Racing: Newbury Race Course, Public Address System Announcement ""jockeys Please Mount"", With General Atmosphere. (Flat Racing.)2.01:17SportSport Horse Racing16 Bit / 44100 Hz38339BBC Sound Effects Library21HorsesFlatRaces.BBC.EC53Ea.wav'‚¬ 1.80 * Sport, Horse Racing: Newbury Race Course, Atmosphere At Starting Gate. (Flat Racing.)2.00:04SportSport Horse Racing16 Bit / 44100 Hz38334BBC Sound Effects Library22HorseSteeplechase.BBC.ECD_2.wav'‚¬ 4.50 * Sport, Horse Racing: National Hunt Racing, Atmosphere At Start Of Race, With P.A., Jockeys" Chat And Very Distant Siren, Starter Asks ""Anybody Else?"", False Start Andreal Start. 2.01:52SportSport Horse Racing16 Bit / 44100 Hz38328BBC Sound Effects Library23HorseRacePoint.BBC.ECD31e.wav'‚¬ 3.60 * Sport, Horse Racing: Point To Point Racing, Field Passes Over Jump.2.00:31SportSport Horse Racing16 Bit / 44100 Hz38352BBC Sound Effects Library24HorsesFlatRaces.BBC.EC53Db.wav'‚¬ 5.40 * Sport, Horse Racing: Newbury Race Course, Tote Background With Customers Placing Bets And Tote Bell. (Flat Racing.)2.02:16SportSport Horse Racing16 Bit / 44100 Hz38346BBC Sound Effects Library25HorsesFlatRaces.BBC.EC53Ca.wav'‚¬ 6.30 * Sport, Horse Racing: Newbury Race Course, Public Address System Announcement About Race Draw, With General Atmosphere. (Flat Racing.)2.03:01SportSport Horse Racing16 Bit / 44100 Hz38341BBC Sound Effects Library26HorsesFlatRaces.BBC.EC53Bb.wav'‚¬ 5.40 * Sport, Horse Racing: Newbury Race Course, Crowd Atmosphere With Commentary And Results On P.A. System. (Indistinct P.A. At Times.) (Flat Racing.)2.02:19SportSport Horse Racing16 Bit / 44100 Hz38336BBC Sound Effects Library27HorseSteeplechase.BBC.ECD_3.wav'‚¬ 2.70 * Sport, Horse Racing: National Hunt Racing, Start Of Race.2.00:10SportSport Horse Racing16 Bit / 44100 Hz38330BBC Sound Effects Library28HorsesFlatRaces.BBC.EC53Hd.wav'‚¬ 6.30 * Sport, Horse Racing: Epsom Race Course, Oaks Stakes, End Of Race With General Atmosphere. (Flat Racing.)2.03:01SportSport Horse Racing16 Bit / 44100 Hz38324BBC Sound Effects Library29HorseRacePoint.BBC.ECD31d.wav'‚¬ 3.60 * Sport, Horse Racing: Point To Point Racing, Large Field Passes Over Jump.2.00:34SportSport Horse Racing16 Bit / 44100 Hz38354BBC Sound Effects Library30HorseRacePoint.BBC.ECD31g.wav'‚¬ 3.60 * Sport, Horse Racing: Point To Point Racing, Field Passes On Flat, With Distinct P.A. And One Straggler.2.00:23SportSport Horse Racing16 Bit / 44100 Hz38349BBC Sound Effects Library

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Tue, 28 Apr 2020 08:11

April 24, 2020 in News, Video by RBN Staff

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Comments Off on HUGE NEWS! ILLINOIS CV-TASK FORCE ADMITS THE CV NUMBERS ARE SERIOUSLY RIGGED!!

'† The Data Is In'... Stop The Panic & End The Total IsolationAfter Decades Of Brainwashing, MSM & Governments Are Losing Control Of The People '†'

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Tue, 28 Apr 2020 07:58

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Tue, 28 Apr 2020 07:14

28 April 2020, 09:17 | Updated: 28 April 2020, 12:22

Health Secretary Matt Hancock today said he was ''very worried'' about a rare and potentially fatal new condition that has been identified in a very small number of children in the UK as a result of coronavirus.

After a warning was sent to GPs on Sunday evening, the Health Secretary told Nick Ferrari on LBC this morning: ''I am worried about it and we're looking into it. It's a new disease that we think may be caused by coronavirus, we're not sure.''

He stressed that the new disease was ''rare''.

Read more: Son of doctor who died from coronavirus asks Matt Hancock for an apology

Read more: Donald Trump says he 'cannot be held responsible' for disinfectant misuse

Read more: McDonalds tests social distancing and PPE for staff as branches prepare to reopen

Read more: the latest on coronavirus - live

He said: ''I'm very worried about the early signs that in rare cases there is an impact of an autoimmune response in children that causes a significant disease.

"We put out at the weekend a call across the NHS because some cases of this have been identified, and this call essentially says to doctors in other parts of the country - have you seen this condition?

Matt Hancock said he was very worried about the emergence of a rare new condition in children. Picture: PA "And then they collect the information and find out what's going on.

"We haven't seen information about this from elsewhere in the world.

"We can spot relatively rare conditions that happen in a number of different hospitals, we are worried about it, we are looking into it.

"It's a fresh, new disease that we think may be caused by coronavirus and the Covid-19 virus.

"We're not 100% sure because some of the people who got it hadn't tested positive. We're doing a lot of research now but it is something we're worried about.

"What I would also stress is that it is rare.

"Although it is very significant for those children who do get it the number of cases is small."

Another doctor told Nick Ferrari there was a "very, very" rare condition affecting children in the UK and that he was aware that around ten children had been taken to hospital with the new condition in the UK.

Guidance was sent to doctors in north London describing ''an apparent rise in the number of children of all ages presenting with a multi-system inflammatory state requiring intensive care across London and also in other regions of the UK".

The information was shared by the UK Paediatric Intensive Care Society on Sunday providing guidance for doctors to be alert to certain symptoms in children that may be a sign of something more serious.

It said the effects had been seen in children both with and without coronavirus, but there was evidence that some had had coronavirus previously.

At the daily government briefing on coronavirus yesterday, the medical director of the NHS Professor Stephen Powis said they were looking into it "as a matter of urgency" and England's Chief Medical Officer Professor Chris Whitty said it's "entirely plausible" that it is coronavirus.

Read more: Next phase of coronavirus lockdown could see family and friends mixing in 'bubbles'

Read more: Analysis: Boris Johnson's cautious return to work

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A small number of children are reportedly showing symptoms similar to toxic shock syndrome, a severe illness associated with infections, and have blood markers in line with severe Covid-19 in children, the alert states.

They may also have abdominal pain and symptoms of inflammation around the heart.

The alert was sent out by an NHS trust in London and tweeted by the Paediatric Intensive Care Society.

It says GPs should refer children with symptoms including abdominal pain as a 'matter of urgency'.

The alert says: "There is a growing concern that a SARS CoV-2 (Covid-19) related inflammatory syndrome is emerging in children in the UK, or that there may be another, as yet unidentified, infectious pathogen associated with these cases."

It also talks about atypical Kawasaki disease, a condition that mainly affects children under the age of five.

Professor Simon Kenny, the NHS's national clinical director for children and young people, said: "Thankfully Kawasaki-like diseases are very rare, as currently are serious complications in children related to Covid-19, but it is important that clinicians are made aware of any potential emerging links so that they are able to give children and young people the right care fast.

"The advice to parents remains the same: If you are worried about your child for whatever reason, contact NHS 111 or your family doctor for urgent advice, or 999 in an emergency, and if a professional tells you to go to hospital, please go to hospital."

The guidance to GPs is aimed at ensuring they are alert to any potential emerging links so that any children presenting symptoms can get the right care. The NHS said that both Kawasaki-related diseases and covid-related complications in children are very rare, and that there was not yet any confirmed link between the two.

Professor Martin Marshall, Chair of the Royal College of GPs, said: ''Covid-19 is a new virus, and we are learning more about it all the time, including that certain symptoms can be similar to other diseases.

''GPs are keeping abreast, as far as is possible, of new evidence and information to ensure they can continue to deliver the best possible care to their patients.

''In general practice, at least for the moment, we are encouraged that the cases in children are not increasing, but these particular symptoms sound concerning and we will be working closely with our specialist paediatric colleagues to ensure that we respond appropriately.

''Parents should be reassured that the evidence currently suggests that COVID-19 is generally a mild disease in children, with a low morbidity and mortality rate. If parents do have concerns about their child's health, we would urge them to seek the appropriate medical advice, either contacting NHS 111, their GP- or in emergencies dialling 999.''

Paediatric Infectious Diseases and Immunology consultant Liz Whittaker said on Twitter the matter had been referred to NHS England and Public Health England."

Coronavirus is understood to be less serious in children. The exact number of cases of the 'coronavirus-linked' syndrome is not known, although it is believed to be small.

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Tue, 28 Apr 2020 06:58

Former MP and billionaire Clive Palmer has taken out an ad in Melbourne newspaper the Herald Sun claiming he has purchased almost 33 million doses of an experimental drug some have claimed works against COVID-19.

In the ad published in this morning's paper, Mr Palmer announced he had purchased 32,900,000 doses of hydroxychloroquine, an anti-malaria drug being tested for usage in combating coronavirus.

Spread over three full pages, the ad claims Mr Palmer intends to treat Australians with the drug via "The Palmer Foundation".

The advertisement placed by Clive Palmer. (Herald Sun/Clive Palmer (advertisement)) "The Palmer Foundation has acquired 32.9 million doses of hydroxychloroquine for treating Australians free of charge," the ad reads.

"Part of this is a significant quantity of the active pharmaceutical ingredient which will enable the manufacture of the tablets right here in Australia."

Hydroxychloroquine first reached mainstream attention when US President Donald Trump championed the drug as a potential cure for COVID-19.

Medical experts have spoken out to warn there is not enough evidence to begin prescribing the drug en-masse to Australians.

Billionaire and former MP Clive Palmer. (AAP) Studies in American and France have shown the drug to have little impact on coronavirus patients, and a study in Brazil last week had to be halted after 16 people died following being administered high doses of the drug.

The US Food and Drug Administration has warned against the use of hydroxychloroquine and another drug, chloroquine, that have been touted by Mr Trump as potential coronavirus treatments.

They should only be used in hospitals or clinical trials because they can kill or cause serious side effects, the FDA said.

Hydroxychloroquine is a commonly used drug to treat malaria, but has been dubiously linked to curing coronavirus. (AP) Side effects include serious heart rhythm problems in COVID-19 patients treated with the drugs, especially when they are combined with the antibiotic azithromycin or other medications that can affect the heart.

Professor Peter Collignon, an infectious diseases physician and microbiologist at Canberra Hospital, told 9News the main worry with high doses of this drug was existing heart problems.

"The main risk we're worrying about is it effects the electrical conductions in the heart if you're in high doses so you can suddenly have what we call an arrhythmia and effectively have a heart attack that kills you," he said.

Mr Palmer declined to comment to 9News.

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Mon, 27 Apr 2020 23:59

Towards the end of Monday's coronavirus task force briefing, New York Magazine correspondent Olivia Nuzzi asked President Donald Trump about the coronavirus death toll being close to surpassing the total number of Americans that died in the Vietnam War.

''If an American president loses more Americans over the course of six weeks than died in the entirety of the Vietnam war, does he deserve to be reelected?'' Nuzzi asked.

''We've lost a lot of people,'' the president responded, ''but if you look at what original projections were '-- 2.2 million '-- we're probably heading to 60,000, 70,000. One person is far too many for this.''

He praised the work of the coronavirus task force and said, ''The press doesn't talk about ventilators anymore. They just don't want to talk about them, and that's okay. But the reason they don't want to talk '-- that was a subject that nobody could get off of. They don't want to talk about them.''

You can watch above, via Fox News.

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Mon, 27 Apr 2020 23:55

Purposes: Information storage and access Personalisation Ad selection, delivery, reporting Content selection, delivery, reporting Measurement Legitimate Interest Purposes: Information storage and access Personalisation Ad selection, delivery, reporting Content selection, delivery, reporting Features: Matching Data to Offline Sources Linking Devices Precise Geographic Location Data Purposes: Information storage and access Personalisation Ad selection, delivery, reporting Features: Matching Data to Offline Sources Linking Devices Precise Geographic Location Data Purposes: Information storage and access Legitimate Interest Purposes: Personalisation Ad selection, delivery, reporting Content selection, delivery, reporting Measurement Features: Precise Geographic Location Data Purposes: Information storage and access Features: Linking Devices Precise Geographic Location Data Purposes: Information storage and access Measurement Features: Linking Devices Purposes: Information storage and access Measurement Purposes: Information storage and access Personalisation Ad selection, delivery, reporting Content selection, delivery, reporting Measurement Features: Matching Data to Offline Sources Linking Devices Purposes: Information storage and access Legitimate Interest Purposes: Personalisation Ad selection, delivery, reporting Content selection, delivery, reporting Measurement Features: Matching Data to Offline Sources Linking Devices Purposes: Information storage and access Legitimate Interest Purposes: Personalisation Ad selection, delivery, reporting Content selection, delivery, reporting Measurement Purposes: Information storage and access Personalisation Ad selection, delivery, reporting Measurement Legitimate Interest Purposes: Content selection, delivery, reporting Features: Matching Data to Offline Sources Purposes: Information storage and access Personalisation Legitimate Interest Purposes: Ad selection, delivery, reporting Content selection, delivery, reporting Measurement Features: Linking Devices Precise Geographic Location Data Purposes: Information storage and access Personalisation Legitimate Interest Purposes: Measurement Features: Matching Data to Offline Sources Linking Devices Legitimate Interest Purposes: Information storage and access Personalisation Ad selection, delivery, reporting Content selection, delivery, reporting Measurement Purposes: Information storage and access Personalisation Ad selection, delivery, reporting Content selection, delivery, reporting Measurement

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Mon, 27 Apr 2020 18:51

Dane Bourdo delivers food at Home Slice Pizza as part of their curbside pickup service on Monday. [LOLA GOMEZ / AMERICAN-STATESMAN]'–²

Austin retailers, restaurants and other businesses late Monday were just beginning to process what Gov. Greg Abbott's reopening plan means to their businesses.

Abbott announced Monday that the first phase of his plan to reopen the Texas economy will begin Friday, allowing all retailers, restaurants, movie theaters, malls and museums to reopen May 1 at 25% of their licensed capacity. Museums and libraries also can reopen with the same occupancy numbers.

Many small businesses are still deciding whether to open their doors on Friday, said Dixie Patrick of the Austin Independent Business Alliance.

"Retailers in Austin were still adjusting to the retail-to-go order that went into effect last Friday when these new broader guidelines were announced," Patrick said. "While the prospect of sales is exciting, we find that, overall, business owners are approaching any attempt at reopening cautiously with the health and safety of their employees and customers at the forefront."

Mallary Carroll, owner of Austin boutiques Good Company and Good Home, has been doing business by curbside and delivery since temporarily closing her shops on March 18.

Carroll said she has no immediate plans to reopen.

"Delivery has been going well because this community is amazing and everyone has really supported us," Carroll said. "But I just can't imagine reopening right now. The safety of our customers and our team is certainly what's most important."

Jason Sabala, the owner of Buzzmill, a coffee, beer and booze bar, predicted his business would wait at least a week or two before opening up again. Buzzmill has been serving to-go and delivery from its onsite food trucks since closing.

"I really wasn't expecting this." Sabala said. "This is a huge surprise hearing that it's that early."

Sabala said he originally expected the earliest opening would be May 18 and still plans to take baby steps.

Opening up the business would require bringing more employees back in, as well as making sure that plans for proper social distancing and safety policies are in place. He also predicted that customers won't rush back to bars and businesses.

"We're real tight-knit with our community and I've been delivering to a lot of the homes and talking to a lot of people in the community, and I just don't feel (opening) is a benefit today." Sabala said.

When Buzzmill does open, tables will be spaced six feet apart and the space will have limited capacity. Servers in face masks and gloves will either bring items directly to tables, or place them on a sterile table in the center of the space.

The restaurant also plans to use technology from Order Text which will allow customers to order from their table on their phone to limit interaction.

"if you've got a restaurant, and you're ready to go and you think you've got all the stuff in place then more power to you." Sabala said. "We need to make sure everything is in place. This isn't just flipping the switch."

Some Austin movie theaters aren't ready to turn their projectors back on, even if they're allowed to do so. Rebecca Campell, CEO of Austin Film Society, which operates the arthouse AFS Cinema in North Austin, expressed dismay at Abbott's order. The theater announced March 17 that it would close temporarily.

She cited the low number of coronavirus tests in Texas, rising COVID-19 cases in Travis County and warnings from experts around the world as reasons to keep its movie screens dark.

"We are shocked at the decision of the governor to declare it safe to open movie theaters, even at 25% capacity," Campbell said. "The AFS Cinema will remain closed until further notice as we do our part to prevent the spread of this deadly virus."

In the wake of the pandemic closure, AFS on March 25 announced furloughs and staff reductions, including layoffs of all hourly workers at the cinema.

Violet Crown Cinema on West Second Street said safety for customers and staff amid the pandemic remains its priority as well. It also announced a temporary closure March 17.

"With that in mind, we will not open our cinemas on May 1 and do not have a confirmed re-open date at this time," said David Gil, director of marketing and programming for the downtown theater.

Sarah Story, executive director of the Umlauf Sculpture Garden and Museum, located near Zilker Park, said the museum looks forward to reopening.

"This closure has been financially devastating for the UMLAUF (and) we are ready to safely reopen in accordance with the guidelines laid out" by the state and city, Story said. "I can't wait to welcome our community back into the museum and gardens very soon."

Staff writers Kara Carlson, Eric Webb and Kristin Finan contributed to this report.

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Mon, 27 Apr 2020 16:29

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@SpeakerPelosi calls for release of federal prisoners: "In our caucus, we are very devoted to the Gospel of Matthew; 'When I was hungry, you fed me, when I was homeless, you sheltered me, when I was imprisoned, you visited me.' And so this for us is a part of our value system."

pic.twitter.com/GGN7F6llQU

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Mon, 27 Apr 2020 16:28

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Mon, 27 Apr 2020 16:22

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Mon, 27 Apr 2020 16:20

HAMILTON '-- A math teacher at Steinert High School was caught on video this week shouting at a group of teenagers playing football in the park that they should ''die a long, painful death'' from the coronavirus.

The teacher was identified by multiple sources as Nicole Griggs, who has been a township teacher for the last 15 years and also taught middle school, according to the district website.

One of the teenagers, a freshman at Steinert, told The Trentonian that he and a group of school friends were playing football Thursday at the former Homedell School, on the 500 block of East Franklin Street, when Griggs stopped to admonish them from behind a chain-link fence.

One of the township students captured the encounter on Snapchat and sent it to friends.

Then another Steinert student posted the clip on TikTok, a social media platform that often features viral videos, with the caption, ''Y'all Mrs Griggs is losing her damn mind how tf is she a teacher #coronavirus.''

At first, Griggs, who appears to be wearing a gray sweatshirt and walking her dog, seems to be looking out for the teens by telling them the parks are closed because of the virus outbreak.

She asks them if they need her to scream the warning ''loud enough so you can hear me over your music. Parks closed. You will get arrested if the cops come."

She soon melts down when one of the teens asks, ''Wait, can we go over there?''

The teacher goes so far as to tell the teens she doesn't care if they put her on blast online.

''Parks closed. The whole area,'' Griggs says. ''Get it through your thick head. You are the reason we are in this situation. You are the problem, not the solution. Go ahead keep recording. Who are you going to show it to? Post me on social media. You're the idiot doing the wrong thing. I'm just trying to save your ass and save your life. But die, OK. I hope both of you get the coronavirus. I hope you both die a long, painful death.''

The video of the teacher wishing death upon the teens is another example of the bad behavior exhibited by some during the pandemic.

This browser does not support the video element.

Gov. Phil Murphy has taken to calling people who are charged for coughing on cops and claiming they're infected, and committing other dumb acts "knuckleheads," saying they belong in the hall of shame.

The Steinert freshman said he hasn't had a class with Griggs, but several of his friends recognized her and sent pictures that looked just like the woman in the video.

A second source confirmed it's Griggs, who did not return phone messages seeking comment, in the video.

Griggs lives on the 500 block of Redfern Street, a tenth of a mile away from the park and well within walking distance, according to property records.

Wishing infection and death upon people who aren't following social distancing guidelines appears to be Griggs' M.O.

In an April 6 post on the Facebook page of Nikki Leigh, which Griggs appears to operate under an alias, she says: ''We are surrounded by idiots!!!!!! Rode our bikes near Kuser Park this afternoon and what to [sic] we see but a younger couple with their daughter maybe 2/3 years old UNDOING the caution tape around the jungle gym so she could slide. I totally called them out on it, wished illness on them and commented that it was scary to even think they were parents. Their response: 'We were going to put it back.'''

The Trentonian confirmed the Facebook page belongs to Griggs.

The Whitepages lists Griggs' middle initial as L and has Deborah Griggs as one of her relatives.

Deborah Griggs, who indicates she used to work for the Hamilton Township Board of Education, lists Nikki Leigh as her daughter in the family section of Facebook.

This post appears on a Facebook page belonging to Griggs. Screengrab of Facebook'–²The Steinert freshman said that Griggs threatened to call the cops on them, and that a cop actually showed up at the park but didn't cite them and told them to go somewhere.

The Trentonian was unable to reach a Hamilton Township Police spokesman after hours Saturday to confirm whether officers were dispatched to the park.

The Steinert student said he and his friends now know they shouldn't have been in the park and left soon after their frightening encounter with Griggs.

Regardless, he said he was shocked a teacher would wish death upon them.

''When she said that, I was shocked,'' the Steinert student said. ''I didn't know someone would say something like that, especially a teacher. She should be smarter with her words.''

Mayor Jeff Martin said he was not aware of the video or that it depicted a Hamilton teacher but condemned the teacher's comments. No one, he said, should be ''wishing death or harm on people.''

''This is a very serious thing,'' he said. ''We've got at least 50 people who have actually died from it, 50 families. It's not something to joke around about. Teacher or not, it's unacceptable.''

The township has 724 total cases of the virus and 51 deaths, according to the township website. At least 170 people have recovered from the virus.

It is unclear whether Griggs will face disciplinary action for her comments.

Schools superintendent Scott Rocco said in a statement late Saturday the district was made aware of the video and will investigate.

''We will address the issue immediately,'' he said.

The president of the Hamilton teachers union, Frank Gatto, had no comment for this story.

''I can't comment on it,'' he said Saturday night, ''because I don't know anything about it.''

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Mon, 27 Apr 2020 16:14

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Mon, 27 Apr 2020 16:08

Speaker Pelosi on Trump's China travel restriction: "Tens of thousands of people were still allowed in from China. It wasn't as it is described as this great moment. ... If you're going to shut the door because you have an evaluation of an epidemic, then shut the door"

#CNNSOTU pic.twitter.com/jpKFxYVCu6

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Mon, 27 Apr 2020 16:07

This doctor says that she wants to get rid of all the white people in the United States because non-white immigrants are more likely to accept vaccines.Mask off.

pic.twitter.com/JuwkSnMeCV

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Mon, 27 Apr 2020 16:05

Enter a topic, @name, or fullname

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Mon, 27 Apr 2020 15:56

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Mon, 27 Apr 2020 15:53

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Sun, 26 Apr 2020 19:21

A rally was held Saturday in Frisco, near Dallas, to support salon owner Shelley Luther who broke quarantine to save her business.

Shelley as served a citation from the city of Dallas Saturday morning.

At the rally today SHE RIPPED IT UP!

Shelley Luther wants to save her business and the Texas economy.The crowd gathered to support her.

TRENDING: "We Have a Right to Feed Our Children!" Crowd Cheers Brave Dallas Salon Owner Shelley Luther as "Our Rosa Parks" - Defied Tyrannical Govt. to Save Her Business and Feed Her Children! (VIDEO)

Here's video from Saturday's rally.

FOX4News reported:

A crowd of people gathered in Frisco Saturday afternoon, choosing to ignore social distancing practices. They believe reversing the fall of the state's economy is the top priority.

A feeling shared by Salon A La Mode owner Shelley Luther.

''And if they want to lock those doors, I'll put chairs out here and my stylists can work out here on the patio, gladly,'' she said.

She was served a citation from the city of Dallas, and a cease and desist letter from Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins on Friday. Still, she said she's not leaving.

A line formed before she opened again on Saturday. It's unclear what actions officials will take.

''Everything's been vague because they're all looking at each other saying, what do we do, because this is unprecedented,'' Luther added.

She's had steady lines of support.

''She's, you know, fighting the good fight for all of us,'' customer Lynne said. ''As a business owner, every single day matters. It's utterly agonizing to look at a pile of bills and get more bills and know that you're getting further and further behind.''

This happened today in DFW. Watch what this woman does with the citation she was issued for opening her salon yesterday'...'... pic.twitter.com/RFO2Jb16O3

'-- Tom Smith (@stars_at_night) April 26, 2020