Poll: Don't stop social distancing if coronavirus will spread . . . More than eight in 10 voters, 81 percent, say Americans “should continue to social distance for as long as is needed to curb the spread of coronavirus, even if it means continued damage to the economy.” Only 10 percent say Americans “should stop social distancing to stimulate the economy, even if it means increasing the spread of coronavirus.” Nine percent of voters have no opinion. Politico

 

 

Coronavirus testing has slowed . . . The number of coronavirus tests analyzed each day by commercial labs in the U.S. plummeted by more than 30 percent over the past week, even though new infections are still surging in many states and officials are desperately trying to ramp up testing so the country can reopen. One reason for the drop-off may be the narrow testing criteria that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention last revised in March. The agency’s guidelines prioritize hospitalized patients, health care workers and those thought to be especially vulnerable to the disease, such as the elderly. Health providers have been turning away others in part due to shortages of the swabs used to collect samples. Politico

 

 

Trump hands decision on economy reopening to governors . . . President Trump said some states will be ready to reopen before May 1 as he turned over the decision to governors and unveiled the business, religious, and policy leaders who he wants to help plot the country’s coronavirus recovery. The president’s announcement on Tuesday came a day after he claimed “total” authority on when to lift social distancing restrictions imposed to halt the spread of the disease. Instead, he said governors were best placed to make the decision but added that testing would be crucial to success and called on local authorities to test people as they crossed state lines. Washington Examiner

 

Democratic senator proposes bill to prevent Trump from firing Fauci

 

Obama helped convince Sanders to get out . . . With calibrated stealth, Mr. Obama has been considerably more engaged in the campaign’s denouement than has been previously revealed, even before he endorsed Mr. Biden on Tuesday. For months, Mr. Obama had kept in close contact with senior party officials, in hopes of preventing a repeat of the protracted and nasty 2016 primary race.

Then, in the weeks after it became clear that Mr. Biden was the party’s near-certain nominee, Mr. Obama — telling a friend he needed to “accelerate the endgame” — had at least four long conversations with his former vice president’s remaining rival, Senator Bernie Sanders. Mr. Obama’s efforts to ease the senator out of the race played a significant role in Mr. Sanders’s decision to end his bid and endorse Mr. Biden, according to people close to the Vermont independent. New York Times

 

Trump Schedule - Wednesday, April 15, 2020

 

Hunter Biden still listed as board member of Chinese company he said he'd leave . . . Hunter Biden received wall-to-wall media coverage and praise from his father, former Vice President Joe Biden, in October when he announced he would resign from the board of a Chinese private equity firm by the end of the month. But six months after Hunter Biden pledged to relinquish his position with BHR Partners, no evidence has surfaced to prove he actually followed through on his promise. Chinese business records still name Hunter Biden as a director of BHR. He also retains a 10% equity stake in BHR through his company, Skaneateles LLC, business records for the Chinese private equity firm show. Daily Caller

 

Conservatives fear expansion of Big Government . . . By the time the virus finally recedes, some health policy analysts predict, Trump will have overseen historic new levels of federal health spending. "There's an institutionalization effect," said Thomas Miller, a resident fellow at the conservative American Enterprise Institute. "Once you get to a certain point, it's very hard to go backwards." Politico

 

Bookies taking more bets Biden will choose Michelle Obama as his VP 

 

US investigating whether coronavirus leaked from Chinese lab . . . . U.S. intelligence agencies are investigating whether the coronavirus may have leaked from a Chinese laboratory in Wuhan, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said Tuesday. Army Gen. Mark A. Milley, the nation’s most senior military officer, told reporters at the Pentagon the initial assessments indicate the coronavirus causing the global pandemic appears to have been a “natural” event arising from animal-to-human transmission. However, he noted published reports that the origin may have occurred as an escape from a research laboratory. Washington Times

 

Italy and Spain start relaxing coronavirus destructions . . . Italy, Spain and Austria have announced plans for partial returns to work as countries across Europe reported further falls in new COVID-19 cases, according to an Associated Press survey. Among the establishments reopening soon are factories and construction sites in Spain, bookshops and laundromats in Italy, and public parks and hardware stores in Austria. The moves are tentative, and come amid warnings that moving too fast to loosen the reins could spark another deadly round of infection. Washington Times

 

 

Amazon's Jeff Bezos now worth $1.1 trillion . . . 

Jeff Bezos has seen his fortune grow by $24billion this year amid surging online orders during coronavirus lockdowns and workers protesting over fears they may contract the disease. The Amazon's founder saw his net worth spike by $6.4billion on Tuesday and Amazon is now worth $1.1 trillion after its shares hit a record high. 

While Amazon's founder saw his wealth rocket by 20% over the last four months to $138billion, his employees at many warehouses have warned their lives are at risk by continuing to go to work. The Seattle-based firm has been facing public scrutiny over safety and working conditions of warehouse, delivery and retail gig workers in the United States after cases of COVID-19 were reported in at least 74 of its facilities. Daily Mail

 

Feminist groups abandon "believe all women" for Biden . . . Women’s groups that backed sexual assault accusations against Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh have stayed silent regarding a woman who accused former Vice President Joe Biden of sexually assaulting her. When Christine Blasey Ford accused Kavanaugh in September 2018 of sexually assaulting her, women’s groups, including Planned Parenthood, Emily’s List, the Women’s March, the National Abortion Right’s Action League, the American Association of University Women, and the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Justice, condemned Kavanaugh and said they believed Blasey Ford. But none of these organizations have issued statements regarding former Biden staffer Tara Reade’s accusations against the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee. Daily Caller

 

 

Howard Kurtz rips media for not covering Biden accuser . . . While The Washington Post interviewed Reade last year, the outlet “did not run a story until Monday” after The New York Times ran theirs “19 days after she went public,” Kurtz noted. “These are tough judgment calls, but even now CNN, ABC, NBC and CBS have made no on air mention of the Biden allegations, a far cry from how they handled the harassment allegations against candidate Donald Trump,” Kurtz concluded. Daily Caller

 

Trump shuts down "loudmouth" Playboy reporter

 

Florida judge demands attorneys get dressed for Zoom hearings . . . A Florida judge has one request for attorneys showing up for court hearings via Zoom: Get out of bed and put on some clothes! Broward Circuit Judge Dennis Bailey made the plea in a letter published by the Weston Bar Association, news outlets reported. “It is remarkable how many ATTORNEYS appear inappropriately on camera,” Bailey said in the letter. “One male lawyer appeared shirtless and one female attorney appeared still in bed, still under the covers. Associated Press

 

Ricky Gervais slams celebs for moaning about being stuck in their mansions . . . He said: “After this is over I never want to hear people moaning about the welfare state again, I never want to hear people moaning about nurses again. Or porters. These people are doing 14-hour shifts and not complaining. Wearing masks, and being left with sores, after risking their own health and their families’ health selflessly. But then I see someone complaining about being in a mansion with a swimming pool. And, you know, honestly, I just don’t want to hear it.” Despite his serious, almost angry tone, he then quickly adds with his trademark chuckle: “I didn’t go out much anyway, and there’s always too much booze in the house. The Sun