Cut to the News
Cut through the clutter to today's top news
May 11, 2020
Good morning
Welcome to today's top news.
Leading the News . . .
Trump officials warn economy is going to get worse before it gets better . . . Trump administration officials sought Sunday to lower short-term expectations on the cratering economy. “The reported numbers are probably going to get worse before they get better, but that is why we are focused on rebuilding this economy,” said Treasury Secretary Steven T. Mnuchin on “Fox News Sunday.” “We’ll have a better third quarter. We’ll have
a better fourth quarter. And next year is going to be a great year.” White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett warned Sunday that Americans should expect more pain for at least another month, with the jobless rate expected to top 20% in May or June as initial claims for unemployment insurance arrive at a clip of about three million per week. Washington Times
Model predicts grim numbers as states begin to reopen . . . A leading model has increased its US coronavirus death toll projection again as governors continue lifting measures toward a reopening.
The model from the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington now forecasts more than 137,000 Americans will die by early August. That rise is largely due to Americans moving around more, IHME Director Dr. Christopher Murray said in a news
release, adding that in some places the upward trend in movement began before statewide measures were relaxed. Researchers tracked that movement through anonymous cell phone data, according to the release. "Unless and until we see accelerated testing, contact tracing, isolating people who test positive, and widespread use of masks in public, there is a significant likelihood of new infections," Murray said in the release. CNN
Lesson from Spanish Flu: Don't end restrictions too early . . . Social distancing didn’t meaningfully reduce the number of deaths from the Spanish flu a century ago because it didn’t last long enough, says a new research paper that has implications for the response to Covid-19. Harvard University economist
Robert Barro writes that “the likely reason” school closings, prohibitions on public gatherings, and quarantines and isolation in various U.S. cities didn’t save many lives is that they “had an average duration of only one month.” Bloomberg
American Airlines, Hyatt to give NYC healthcare workers free vacations . . . American Airlines and Hyatt Hotels Corporation announced in a joint statement Friday that they would be giving thousands of free vacations to New York City health care workers on the frontlines of the coronavirus pandemic. The
companies said in the statement that more than 4,000 workers employed at the NYC Health + Hospitals/Elmhurst medical center would be treated to roundtrip vacations to
destinations throughout the U.S. and the Caribbean once they can “take time for themselves.” Breitbart
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Kamala Harris emerges as a top VP prospect for Biden . . . Kamala Harris was written off as a possible vice presidential pick for Joe Biden last year after a cutting debate performance where she seemed to suggest he was racially insensitive. Now, Harris is not only in top contention, but Biden aides, surrogates and major donors see her as the best fit at the onset of the process — at least on paper — to join
him atop the Democratic ticket. Biden’s campaign has formally started vetting a group of prospects that includes roughly a dozen women. But in interviews, more than two dozen Democrats, including advisers, allies and donors aligned with Biden, returned to Harris as an early frontrunner. Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, the favorite among progressives, was also seen as rising above the pack. Politico
Is she best suited for the job? Who knows? Does she check a lot of boxes? Yes.
Flynn's attorney accuses Obama of framing him . . . The lead attorney for former national security adviser Michael Flynn on Sunday accused Barack Obama, other top administration officials and the FBI of setting up her client. Sidney cited the revelation in recently released-documents that FBI agents didn’t tell Fynn he was under investigation or that lying to them would be a federal crime. “These agents specifically
schemed and planned with each other how to not tip him off, that he was even the person being investigated,” she said. She also pointed out that Obama knew about Flynn’s calls in December 2016 to then-Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak before FBI agents interviewed Flynn on Jan. 24, 2017 — a development that surprised then-Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates. New York Post
Why is the press not clamoring to know what Obama knew and when he knew it?
Mail-in voting could trigger Florida 2000-like chaos . . . With tens of millions of Americans expected to mail in their ballots for the Nov. 3 general election amid a tangle of state laws, the country may not know whether President Donald Trump or Joe Biden won for days, even weeks. And during those weeks, there will likely be charges of cheating, lawsuits and demands for recounts in a country that prides itself on open, fair and efficient
elections. With no-excuse voting by mail already legal in 34 states, elections experts say the number of mail-in ballots could dramatically increase from the nearly 25% of votes that were cast by mail in 2016, given the public’s ongoing fear of gathering in large groups before the coronavirus is vanquished. Bloomberg
Pence denies he is self-quarantining after aide tests positive for virus . . . Vice President Mike Pence is not planning to enter self-quarantine after his press secretary tested positive for coronavirus on Friday and plans to be at the White House on Monday, his office said on Sunday. Pence spokesperson Devin O'Malley said the vice president "will continue to follow the advice of the White House Medical
Unit and is not in quarantine." "Additionally, Vice President Pence has tested negative every single day and plans to be at the White House tomorrow," O'Malley said in the statement. CNN
White House begins talks with Congress on more relief . . . The White House has begun informal talks with Republicans and Democrats in Congress about what to include in another round of coronavirus relief legislation. Officials including Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow, said they were holding discussions with lawmakers on issues including potential aid to states whose finances have been
devastated by the pandemic. Another White House economic adviser, Kevin Hassett, said future legislation could include food aid to help Americans struggling with hunger amid widespread job losses that have ruined the finances of many people. Reuters
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Iran accidentally blows up one of its own Navy ships . . . An Iranian missile fired during a training exercise struck a support ship in the Gulf of Oman on Sunday, killing 19 sailors and injuring 15 others, according to a report on Monday. The missile struck Konarak, a Hendijan-class support ship, which Iranian media said was too close to a target during the exercise. The incident was called an accident.
Fox News
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Russia overtakes Italy and Britain after record rise in coronavirus cases . . . Russia’s coronavirus cases overtook Italian and British infections on Monday to become the third highest in the world after a record daily rise hours before President Vladimir Putin was due to review the country’s lockdown regime. The official tally surged to 221,344, meaning Russia now has more registered cases than Italy or Britain and only trails
Spain and the United States, as the number of new cases of the novel coronavirus jumped by 11,656 in the past 24 hours. More than half of all cases and deaths are in Moscow, the epicentre of Russia’s outbreak. On Monday, it reported an overnight increase of 6,169 new cases, bringing its official total to 115,909. Reuters
Wuhan reports first virus cluster since end of lockdown . . . Wuhan reported five new cases on Monday, after confirming its first case since 3 April on Sunday. Authorities said the small cluster of cases were all from the same residential compound. China has been easing restrictions in recent weeks and cases had been declining. Health authorities and experts have warned that as countries emerge from strict lockdowns and people move around more
freely, a rise in infections is likely. BBC
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Factories close for good as coronavirus cuts demand . . . Factory furloughs across the U.S. are becoming permanent closings, a sign of the heavy damage the coronavirus pandemic and shutdowns are exerting on the industrial economy. Makers of dishware in North Carolina, furniture foam in Oregon and cutting boards in Michigan are among the companies closing factories in recent weeks. Caterpillar said it
is considering closing plants in Germany, boat-and-motorcycle-maker Polaris plans to close a plant in Syracuse, Ind., and tire maker Goodyear plans to close a plant in Gadsden, Ala. Those factory shutdowns will further erode an industrial workforce that has been shrinking as a share of the overall U.S. economy for decades. Wall Street Journal
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Jerry Stiller dies at 92 . . . Jerry Stiller, a classically trained actor who became a comedy star twice — in the 1960s in partnership with his wife, Anne Meara, and in the 1990s with a memorable recurring role on “Seinfeld” — has died. He was 92. His death was confirmed on Monday by his son, the actor Ben Stiller, in a tweet, who said his father had died of natural causes. Mr. Stiller’s accomplishments as an actor were considerable. He appeared on Broadway in Terrence McNally’s frantic farce “The Ritz” in 1975 and David Rabe’s dark drama “Hurlyburly” in 1984. Off Broadway, he was in “The Threepenny Opera”; in Central Park, he played Shakespearean clowns for Joseph Papp; onscreen, he was seen as, among other
things, a police detective in “The Taking of Pelham One, Two, Three” (1974) and Divine’s husband in John Waters’s “Hairspray” (1988). But he was best known as a comedian. New York Times
NBC News admits deceptively editing Barr remarks . . . NBC News' Chuck Todd aired a deceptively edited clip of Attorney General Bill Barr discussing the Michael Flynn case during his "Meet the Press" broadcast on Sunday, prompting the network to concede the mistake hours later. Asked how history would judge the DOJ's decision to move to dismiss the Flynn case, Barr initially responded, laughing: "Well, history is
written by the winners, so it largely depends on who's writing the history." Todd remarked that he was "struck by the cynicism of the answer . . . He didn't make the case that he was upholding the rule of law. He was almost admitting that, yeah, this was a political job." In the full clip, which did not air, Barr immediately went on to state explicitly that, in fact, he felt the Flynn decision upheld the rule of law. Fox News
Five shot at coronavirus-defying party of 600 in Texas . . . Five people were injured during a shooting at a crowded southeast Fort Worth park on Sunday, according to MedStar and police.
Two people were critically wounded and three had non-life-threatening injuries in the shooting at a party about 6:30 p.m. at Village Creek Park, Fort Worth Officer Buddy Calzada said. Police didn’t release the ages of the victims. MedStar said they were all adults. About 600 people were attending the party in the center of the park, according to police.
Witnesses said fireworks were set off in the park’s center followed by about 30 rounds of gunfire, Calzada said. Police were called out to the park at 6:59 p.m. Fort Worth Star-Telegram
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Fowl play: Police search for chicken chasing customers from ATM . . . Police are searching for an “aggressive chicken” accused of engaging in fowl play at an Louisiana bank. The Walker Police Department responded to a complaint about the brazen animal Friday, the agency said in a social media post over the weekend. Witnesses told police the chicken had been spotted at the bank multiple times last week, approaching patrons at the ATM, chasing customers and even attempting to climb into cars in the drive-thru, according to the department’s post. Associated Press
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Keith
Keith Koffler
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