FDA warns nine hand sanitizers contain potentially fatal ingredient . . . The US Food and Drug Administration is warning people not to use certain hand sanitizer products due to the potential presence of methanol, a toxic substance when absorbed through skin or ingested. Methanol is a toxic alcohol that is used industrially as a solvent, pesticide, and alternative fuel source. Significant exposure to methanol can result in nausea, vomiting, headache, blurred vision, permanent blindness, seizures, coma, permanent damage to the nervous system or death. USA Today

 

Rally participants test positive for coronavirus . . . A protest organizer in South Carolina said he will postpone future demonstrations after at least 13 people who took part in recent rallies tested positive for the coronavirus. With cases climbing in the U.S. following the states' reversals of shutdown policies, an increase in testing, as well as protests across the country -- Lawrence Dishawn Nathaniel urged those who attended previous rallies to get tested. Fox News

 

Trump issues executive order limiting temporary work visas . . . President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Monday that will suspend temporary visas for foreign workers until the end of 2020, angering advocates who say he is targeting immigrants for domestic political reasons. The order applies to a variety of work visas used for many types of jobs, a move that the administration says could free up as many as 525,000 jobs to be filled by Americans. But immigration groups, which have been bracing for the order for days, argue that Trump is targeting immigrants to placate his political base. Wall Street Journal

 

 

Police thwart effort to tear down Andrew Jackson statue in front of White House . . . Protesters attempted to topple a bronze statue of former president Andrew Jackson in a park next to the White House on Monday night but were thwarted when police intervened. The scene unfolded dramatically as hundreds of demonstrators protesting police brutality locked arms around the statue in Lafayette Square shortly before 8 p.m., while chanting, “Hey, hey, ho, ho, Andrew Jackson’s got to go.” Inside the metal pickets surrounding the statue, a smaller group — some clad in black with goggles, helmets and gas masks — scaled the statue and draped ropes around the seventh president astride a horse. Someone scrawled “killer” in black on the pedestal below. But then, U.S. Park Police officers in riot gear approached from the west and clashed with the protesters, swinging batons and releasing pepper spray as they moved the protesters back. Washington Post

 

 

Trump suggests Obama committed treason . . . President Trump on Monday suggested that his predecessor, former President Obama, committed treason in connection with the investigation into the 2016 Trump campaign’s contacts with Russia. “Treason. Treason. It’s treason,” Trump said in an interview with CBN News. The president did not elaborate on the specific charge but repeated his assertion that the previous administration “spied” on his campaign in the course of the Russia probe. “They’d been spying on my campaign,” Trump told CBN News’s David Brody. “Turned out I was right. Let’s see what happens to them now.” The Hill

 

Primary day is a civil war between the left and the Democratic establishment . . . Establishment-backed Democrats in Kentucky and New York are facing a left-wing backlash that could see millions of dollars go to waste and threaten party unity in the run-up to the 2020 election. In the Kentucky Democratic Senate primary, the emergence of an African-American state lawmaker with support from progressive groups is threatening to derail Amy McGrath's campaign to challenge Sen. Mitch McConnell (R.) in November. And in New York, Justice Democrats candidate Jamaal Bowman is seeking to unseat 16-term Rep. Eliot Engel by painting the incumbent Democrat as out of touch with his increasingly progressive district. Party leaders, who back McGrath and Engel, face a potential lose-lose situation with both the establishment candidates facing fierce competition in their primary races this Tuesday. Washington Free Beacon

 

 

Secret Service tells press to leave White House grounds . . . The US Secret Service on Monday evening told members of the White House press corps to immediately leave the White House grounds.

The decision came during an ongoing demonstration in Lafayette Square, across the street from the White House where protesters were trying to bring down a statue of former President Andrew Jackson that stands in the middle of the park. Those protesters were eventually pushed back out of the park by police. The US Secret Service issued a statement early Tuesday, saying "four members of the media were misdirected" to leave the White House grounds. CNN

 

US brands four Chinese state media outlets "foreign missions . . . Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has branded four more Chinese state-run media outlets as foreign missions, a decision that subjects the employees to the scrutiny and restrictions applied to diplomats and undercover intelligence officers. “The decision to designate these entities is not based on any content produced by these entities, nor does it place any restrictions on what the designated entities may publish in the United States,” State Department spokeswoman Morgan Ortagus said Monday. “It simply recognizes them for what they are.” The new announcement applies to China Central Television, China News Service, the People’s Daily, and the Global Times. Washington Examiner

 

 

More than 100 GOP lawmakers back Netanyahu annexing part of West Bank . . . A delegation of congressional Republicans wrote to Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday to express its support for the Israeli leader's decision to annex portions of Palestinian territory in the West Bank, saying Israel has the right to execute any policy it sees as integral to its security. One-hundred-sixteen Republicans led by Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R., Calif.) and other senior lawmakers told Netanyahu that they fully support Israel's move, which would see the country take over several contested territories long-controlled by the Palestinians. Netanyahu is reportedly seeking to take this step early next month. Washington Free Beacon

 

 

Global Economy Shows Signs of Pulling Out of Its Slump . . . The global economy is gradually starting to pull out of its stall as lockdowns ease, according to surveys of purchasing managers, with output contracting at a slower pace in much of Europe and Asia this month, and in some instances expanding.

The improvement, albeit tentative, is most visible in countries that issued stringent stay-at-home rules, where economic activity fell sharply in March, April and May. The lifting of many of those restrictions appears to have led to a stronger rebound in June. Wall Street Journal

 

Economists post gloomy long-term outlook . . . The Federal Reserve struck the right tone in its first pandemic-era economic outlook, suggesting years of extraordinary policy support for an economy facing a slow and long slog back, according to a majority of economists in a Reuters poll.  While the June 15-22 poll of over 100 economists showed a recovery from the steepest economic downturn was underway as commerce reopens, the loss of output in the first half of this year was not expected to be recouped by the end of next year. Reuters

 

Trump wants more stimulus checks, but some Republicans and aides disagree . . . President Trump has told aides he is largely supportive of sending Americans another round of stimulus checks, believing the payments will boost the economy and help his chances at reelection in November, according to three people aware of internal administration deliberations. However, leading congressional Republicans and some senior White House officials remain skeptical of sending more checks, creating a rift within conservative circles that could have significant consequences for the stimulus package set to be taken up by lawmakers in July. The White House has not officially taken a position on the matter. Washington Post

 

Left-wing activist: Tear down statues of white Jesus . . . Left-wing activist Shaun King tweeted Monday all statues of Jesus that portray him as a “white European” should be torn down because they are “a form of white supremacy.” “Yes, I think the statues of the white European they claim is Jesus should also come down,” wrote King, a self-described black man whose family says he is white. “They are a form of white supremacy. Always have been. In the Bible, when the family of Jesus wanted to hide, and blend in, guess where they went? EGYPT! Not Denmark. Tear them down.” Breitbart

 

Rice University students demand "black house" . . . A student group at Rice University in Houston, Texas, is "demanding" the administration fund a "non-residential Black House" on campus, as well as remove a prominent statue of the university's founder -- and top student officials are deleting some comments disagreeing with those positions, Fox News has learned this week. The Black House, according to the BSA's Instagram page, should have all the "features of a residential college" but be "specifically made for Black students and Black organizations to congregate and hold events. ... It would be best to have a central, safe space that Black students can meet and hangout in anytime of the day." Fox News

 

 

Jimmy Kimmel repeatedly used the N-word . . . Jimmy Kimmel, who urged actor Tom Arnold to release an alleged “N-word” tape of President Trump in 2018, admitted years ago that he imitated rapper Snoop Dogg’s voice for a track in a 1996 Christmas album — an original song in which Kimmel used the “N-word” several times. The admission came in a January 2013 podcast obtained this weekend by Fox News. In the podcast, Kimmel also changed his speech pattern in an attempt to adopt the voice of black comedian George Wallace, in what host Adam Carolla called Kimmel’s “crazy black voice.” Kimmel acknowledged imitating black people on other occasions as well. New York Post

 

 

New York Times taps leftie to run opinion page . . . The New York Times has hired Charlotte Greensit of the left-wing Intercept to be its opinion section's managing editor and an associate editorial page editor. In 2017, she shared an Intercept article that said Cotton "may be America's most dangerous senator." She has also tweeted articles that referred to President Donald Trump as a "Quack-in-Chief" and Vice President Mike Pence as the "most powerful Christian supremacist in U.S. history." She also promoted articles that argued Gazans were justified in trying to invade Israel and defended Rep. Ilhan Omar (D., Minn.) against bipartisan criticism of her anti-Semitic comments. Washington Free Beacon

 

Film warns of "end-time world government of the anti-Christ" . . . Evangelical and social conservative supporters of President Trump are producing a film warning of a “one world government” based on socialism, the rise of the anti-Christ and other end-times calamities if Mr. Trump is not reelected in November. “Trump 2024: The World After Trump” features interviews with a diverse group of Christian and conservative commentators, including former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, the Rev. Franklin Graham, syndicated columnist Star Parker and Mike Lindell, CEO of My Pillow, among others. Washington Times

 

Baseball plans 60-game schedule . . . MLB announced on Monday it will proceed with the 2020 season. The season, which will reportedly be 60 games, was chosen by commissioner Rob Manfred on Monday after the MLBPA rejected the owners' latest proposal. The season will be officially approved upon the Players Association's response on a pair of questions. MLB is requesting confirmation that players can report to camp by July 1. It is also asking the MLBPA to "agree on the Operating Manual which contains the health and safety protocols necessary to give us the best opportunity to conduct and complete our regular season and Postseason." Sports Illustrated

 

Multimillionaire ex of Elizabeth Hurley jumps to his death . . . Liz Hurley has paid tribute to her multimillionaire ex Steve Bing - the father of her son Damian – after he jumped to his death from the 27th floor of his Los Angeles apartment block aged 55 amid a battle with depression. The British actress, also 55, said she was 'saddened beyond belief' at news of his suicide, calling it a 'terrible end'. She dated the real estate heir for 18 months between 2000 and 2002 before they split amid a bitter paternity row. 'Although we went through some tough times, it’s the good, wonderful memories of a sweet, kind man that matter,' she wrote on Instagram alongside pictures of the pair together. Daily Mail

 

"OMG, Francine is naked!" . . . Attendees of the Zoom bat mitzvah for stand-up comic Gilbert Gottfried and wife Dara Kravitz’s daughter, Lily, last week got a little something extra when a 70-year-old guest accidentally exposed herself. “She wasn’t familiar with how to work Zoom and proceeded to take off her bathing suit, get naked, and take a shower in the middle of the bat mitzvah and entirely on camera,” said a giggly source. Apparently someone remarked, “OMG Francine is naked!” “She couldn’t figure out how to get the sound to work, so she couldn’t hear anyone telling her she was naked,” the source said. “And she didn’t realize that we could all see her get undressed, walk around her bathroom, take a shower, answer the phone with a close-up shot.” New York Post