Maker of fast testing kit used by White House admits false positives . . . Abbott Laboratories said Thursday that it would change the instructions for using its fast coronavirus test for a second time, days after a preliminary study by a major medical center found the device frequently gave negative results for patients who were infected with the virus. The change will tell users that negative results produced by Abbott’s ID Now device are “presumptive” and should be verified with an alternative test for patients with signs of the virus. That means sacrificing the device’s quick turnaround time for some patients as tests are repeated using methods that can take much longer. Wall Street Journal

 

White House to change coronavirus task force, with lesser role for health officials . . .  The White House will add more figures to its coronavirus task force before the end of the week, according to senior administration officials, as it enters the crucial phase of trying to reopen the country safely. The president has been under pressure from conservatives to reduce the influence of scientists on the panel, including Dr. Anthony Fauci, one of the country’s leading infectious disease experts, who are accused of being too cautious in lifting social distancing restrictions. A senior administration official said the additions would mark a “reconfiguring” and a new step in the White House response. Washington Examiner

 

You can only contradict the president so many times

 

Researchers developing mask that glows when in contact with coronavirus . . . A bioengineering team from Harvard and MIT is designing a face mask that glows when it comes in contact with COVID-19. “As we open up our transit system, you could mention it being used in airports as we go though security, as we wait to get on a plane,” MIT bioengineer professor Jim Collins told Business Insider. “You or I could use it on the way to and from work. Hospitals could use it for patients as they come in or wait in the waiting room as a prescreen of who’s infected.” New York Daily News

 

CDC posts guidelines for reopening workplaces . . . New guidance from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention advising states on how to reopen bars, restaurants and workplaces was posted by the agency on Thursday. The guidance outlines a series of steps that should be taken to keep employees and customers safe, including encouraging hand-washing, social distancing and how to check for symptoms of potential Covid-19 cases. An earlier version of the guidance was held back by the Trump administration for being too prescriptive, especially for states that have had lesser outbreaks. Bloomberg

 

Restaurants trying out "coronavirus surcharges" . . . A $2.19 coronavirus surcharge from a restaurant in Missouri caused a backlash on social media this month. “Scuse me … what? A covid surcharge…?” a Twitter user wrote in a post  showing a Kiko Japanese Steakhouse & Sushi Lounge patron's receipt that included a “covid 19 surcharge.” The tweet quickly went viral with people upset by the extra charge, The New York Post reported. "If I ever see this on a bill I wld not pay it," one user wrote. "I’m tryin to recoup too. Who am I suppose to bill ??? Is this evn legal ?" Fox News

 

 

Trump supporters ignore social distancing as they rush his motorcade

 

Trump press secretary held report that savaged his pandemic plan . . .  The president, before he left to visit a medical supply factory in Allentown, Pennsylvania, had his press secretary Kayleigh McEnany wave before reporters a binder containing the 2018 'Pandemic Crisis Action Plan Ver. 2.0.'  But she was also holding an after-action report from the 'Crimson Contagion' simulation exercise which took place in 2019 -- which harshly criticized the federal government's pandemic preparedness plan in the other binder. The simulated scenario tested the capacity of the U.S. federal government and 12 states to handle a severe influenza outbreak originating in China, and warned of a disorganized response, funding shortfalls, and dangerous shortages of ventilators and medical masks. Daily Mail

 

Hopes fade for coronavirus relief deal before June . . . Striking a bipartisan deal over a new coronavirus relief bill is becoming increasingly unlikely before June as Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell(R-Ky.) and Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) are at odds over additional legislation.  The stalemate almost certainly ensures the House, Senate and White House won’t get an agreement on, and pass, another rescue package before the Memorial Day recess. Senators say that while they expect to pass something eventually, it probably won’t happen between now and next Friday when the recess begins. Daily Caller

 

Russia will spin consipiracies to undermine US cornovirus vaccine . . . Russian President Vladimir Putin wants to undermine public confidence in any coronavirus vaccines developed by the United States, according to Western officials and central European analysts. 

“We have seen some of these narratives circulating already in our region,” disinformation expert Daniel Milo, an analyst at GLOBSEC Policy Institute in Bratislava, Slovakia, told the Washington Examiner. “If you would be able to convince at least a part of the population that the government is actually trying to control you by implanting a microchip, you would achieve quite an important strategic advantage, I believe, just by lowering the overall trust of the population towards official authorities.” Washington Examiner

 

Chinese create biological weapons targeting ethnic groups . . . Chinese government deception regarding the coronavirus outbreak is raising new fears about Beijing’s biological weapons activities, including population-specific research on germ weapons capable of attacking ethnic groups, according to current and former U.S. officials. A senior Trump administration official told The Washington Times that China is known to be engaged in a covert program that includes development of biological weapons capable of attacking ethnic groups with pathogens. “We are looking at potential biological experiments on ethnic minorities,” the official said on the condition of anonymity. Washington Times

 

 

Qatar waging stealth influence operation across US academic sytem . . . Qatar is spending billions of dollars to infiltrate the American education system as part of a propaganda effort that legal advocates say violates federal statutes and warrants a full-scale investigation. The Qatar Foundation (QF), a state-controlled entity tasked with promoting the country's interests, has spent at least $1.5 billion since 2012 to fund a range of educational initiatives at 28 universities across America. Foreign funding of American universities has been a concern for some time, with countries such as Qatar, Russia, China, Saudi Arabia, and others injecting billions into their budgets. Washington Free Beacon

 

Bezos could become world's first trillionaire . . . 

PBS affiliates receiving millions in federal funds airing pro-China film . . . PBS affiliates that receive millions of dollars in federal funding each year are airing a pro-Beijing documentary produced in conjunction with CGTN, a Chinese-government controlled media outlet that is registered as a foreign agent with the Justice Department. The film, “Voices from the Frontline: China’s War on Poverty,” did not disclose CGTN’s links to the Chinese government. Nor did it detail the ties that the film’s producer, Robert Lawrence Kuhn, has to Chinese officials and the government’s State Council Information Office, which specializes in foreign propaganda. Daily Caller

 

Arrest warrants issued for two NFL cornerbacks . . . Police in southeast Florida have issued arrest warrants for two NFL players for armed robbery, according to the police department. DeAndre Baker, a cornerback for the New York Giants, and Quinton Dunbar, a cornerback for the Seattle Seahawks, are both wanted for their roles in an alleged armed robbery during a house party on Wednesday night. Several victims at the house party allege that Baker and Dunbar stole thousands of dollars in cash from them as well as valuable watches while armed with weapons. CNN

 

 

Back from the dead: Woman sent to hospice recovers . . . Phyliss Shepherd’s family found unexpected joy when she defied all prognoses and recovered from the novel coronavirus. Shepherd, 82, has been in a nursing facility for about a year, suffering from dementia. But when she became a coronvirus victim, the outlook was not good. Her family was told she should be moved into hospice care in order to make her comfortable before the end of her life. Shepherd’s family rushed to her window when they got the news, hoping for the chance to say goodbye. “So we all came the next day, expecting the worst. And when we got here she was alert, talking to us. Making jokes.” Breitbart

 

 

Biden routinely stripped naked in front of femal Secret Service agents . . . One of the reasons he was so disliked by the Secret Service was his creepy habit of stripping down naked in front of female Secret Service agents to go for a swim. “Mr. Biden’s lack of consideration was even more stunning when it came to female agents who were offended that the vice president bizarrely swam naked in front of them often daily at his pools at the vice president’s residence in Washington and at his home in Delaware.” Biden was consistently thoughtless. With just a few moments notice, Biden would decide to fly home to Delaware, disrupting any plans the agents might have had. This turned their “personal lives into nightmares.” Breitbart

 

Bible class Zoombombed by porn . . . A historic San Francisco church is suing Zoom, claiming the video-conferencing app’s security failures enabled a hacker to stream porn into a Bible-study class. The X-rated content, played at Saint Paulus Lutheran Church’s May 6 class, was seen by the church’s administrator and elderly congregants, leaving them “traumatized and helpless,” the suit alleges. Class attendees, most of them senior citizens, “had their computer screens hijacked and their control buttons disabled while being forced to watch pornographic video footages,” the suit says. New York Post