| Oxford scientists working on a coronavirus vaccine say there is now only a 50% chance of success because the number of UK cases is falling too quickly Posted: 24 May 2020 03:08 AM PDT  The Oxford mission to find a COVID-19 vaccine is in "a race against the virus disappearing, and against time," scientists Adam Hill said.
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| Pakistan plane crash survivor: 'All I could see was fire' Posted: 23 May 2020 04:51 AM PDT  At least 97 people have died after a plane hit a Karachi residential area as it tried to land.
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| North Korea's Kim, in first appearance in weeks, vows to bolster nuclear 'deterrence' Posted: 23 May 2020 02:59 PM PDT  North Korean leader Kim Jong Un hosted a meeting to discuss the country's nuclear capabilities, state media said on Sunday, marking his first appearance in three weeks after a previous absence sparked global speculation about his health. Ruling Workers' Party officials wore face masks to greet Kim as he entered the meeting of the party's powerful Central Military Commission, state television showed, but no one including Kim was seen wearing a mask during the meeting. Amid stalled denuclearization talks with the United States, the meeting discussed measures to bolster North Korea's armed forces and "reliably contain the persistent big or small military threats from the hostile forces," state news agency KCNA said.
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| Warren is reportedly turning back to wealthy donors in effort to boost Biden Posted: 24 May 2020 04:48 AM PDT  Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) is reportedly reaching back into her old toolbox in an attempt to help former Vice President Joe Biden.Warren has agreed to host a gathering of big money donors for the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, The New York Times reports. The event, which will take place online because of the coronavirus pandemic, is scheduled for June 15, three people with knowledge of the plans told the Times on condition of anonymity.During Warren's own presidential campaign, which ended shortly after Super Tuesday in March, the senator — a progressive Democrat — vowed not to attend private events or call wealthy potential donors for contributions. She subsequently relied heavily on grassroots donations for the rest of her run.But Warren, considered a possible vice presidential candidate who has shown a willingness of late to move a little closer to some of Biden's more centrist policy ideas, had previously built a network of high-dollar donors during her Senate campaigns, so she's no stranger to that world. Now, she'll reportedly turn back to that group to aid Biden in his battle against President Trump.A spokeswoman for Warren declined to comment, and Biden's campaign did not respond to the Times' request. Read more at The New York Times.More stories from theweek.com There's always a bigger scandal How pandemics change society We should be grateful for good news in Georgia
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| Two dead in severe storms in Carolinas; thousands without power Posted: 23 May 2020 11:04 AM PDT  A man in Charlotte, North Carolina, died when a tree crashed into his home, and in Lancaster County, South Carolina, a utility pole and tree fell on a driver's truck, killing him.
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| Two regional IS leaders killed in Syria: CentCom Posted: 22 May 2020 02:46 PM PDT  US-led coalition forces and their Kurdish allies the Syrian Democratic Forces killed two regional Islamic State group leaders in a raid in eastern Syria this week, US Central Command announced on Friday. Ahmad 'Isa Ismail al-Zawi and Ahmad 'Abd Muhammad Hasan al-Jughayfi were killed in the May 17 joint raid on an IS position in Deir Ezzor province, CentCom said in a statement. Al-Zawi, also known as Abu Ali al-Baghdadi, was the IS regional leader of North Baghdad, it said, and was "responsible for disseminating terrorist guidance from senior IS leadership to operatives in North Baghdad."
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| Coronavirus: Ohio health officials apologise for telling black Americans to avoid ‘gang symbolism’ on face masks Posted: 23 May 2020 06:20 AM PDT  Public health officials in Ohio were forced to issue an apology after their guidance on face masks told black Americans not to wear gang colours or symbols on home-made coverings.The Franklin County Public Health board, which covers the state's largest city Columbus, released a document last month addressed at "communities of colour" about wearing face masks.
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| FBI launches internal review of Michael Flynn investigation; inquiry to focus on possible misconduct Posted: 22 May 2020 01:25 PM PDT  FBI Director Christopher Wray has ordered an internal review of the Michael Flynn investigation; the inquiry will examine possible misconduct.
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| Doctors on USS Theodore Roosevelt warned that dozens of sailors could die the same day Capt. Crozier wrote his desperate plea Posted: 22 May 2020 11:26 AM PDT  'The only solution to save the lives of sailors is to immediately get everyone off the ship," four of the doctors wrote in a March 30 memo.
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| How the Restaurant Industry Viciously Exploits Its Workers, From Wage Theft to Sexual Abuse Posted: 23 May 2020 02:08 AM PDT  For labor organizers working within the restaurant industry, there's another NRA: the National Restaurant Association. This NRA "represent[s] and advocate[s] on behalf of more than 500,000 restaurant businesses," including some of the biggest chains in the country. For decades, this has meant keeping tipped workers earning a minimum of $2.13 an hour in 43 states (in California, where I live, tipped workers must earn at least the state-wide minimum wage of $12.00 per hour for employers with 25 or fewer employees and $13.00 per hour for employers with more than 25 employees). During the COVID-19 pandemic, when many restaurant and cafe workers are realizing that they are much better off financially leaving their jobs and collecting unemployment insurance, there's a renewed focus on how service work is systemically devalued in the U.S.The so-called logic behind this $2.13 tipped worker minimum wage is that tips will meet or exceed the federal minimum wage of $7.25 and, legally speaking, when they don't, employers must make up the difference. According to many employees in the industry, in practice, the latter almost never happens—the restaurant industry specifically is notorious for wage and tip theft. Throughout the U.S.—excluding West Coast states, Nevada, Montana, Minnesota, and Alaska—if tips aren't good or are nonexistent, good luck making rent. In director Abby Ginzberg's documentary Waging Change, streamable on Women Make Movies from May 22 to May 31, the NRA's machinations to keep the tipped minimum wage at $2.13 an hour in as many states as possible is exposed for its strategic seediness. In a "Save Our Tips" campaign, the NRA funded an astroturf movement that convinced many restaurant workers that One Fair Wage legislation in Washington, D.C., would compromise their earnings—the idea being that if customers know servers and bartenders are earning the minimum wage or more, they will be less likely to tip or tip well. In fact, studies have shown that in cities where there is one minimum wage across all industries—and when that minimum wage is on the high end of the current spectrum—tipping is much better. White Anti-Quarantine Protesters Have Cruelly Co-opted an Enslaved Black Woman from the 18th CenturyThis Giant Monument to Elon Musk Has Tulsa Residents FuriousThere's also a prevailing idea that most restaurants cannot afford to pay even the minimum wage, let alone a living wage, and if they did, they would have to lay off many workers. Waging Change goes to small, local restaurants around the country to show that living wage structures and even co-ops (in which the workers own the business) are possible and in fact can improve business. It's also telling that many of the restaurants with the worst wages and practices are the huge chains, from IHOP to McDonald's to TGI Friday's. Even high-end restaurants that charge in the hundreds for a single meal have settled lawsuits for wage theft and other unfair labor practices. In many cases, the problem is at best incompetent management and at worst, greed. The One Fair Wage movement, which has been backed by bartender-turned-congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, also aims to address the rampant sexual harassment and abuse that the tipped minimum wage structure doesn't simply exacerbate, but provides the foundation for. If servers and bartenders have to make tips to make rent, then they're especially vulnerable to abuse. According to 20 years of government data reported by BuzzFeed in 2017, more sexual harassment claims are filed in the restaurant industry than in any other industry. And according to a survey by Restaurant Opportunities Centers (ROC), the labor organization prominently featured in Waging Change, 60 percent of women report that they have experienced some form of sexual harassment on the job, and over half say they experience it on a daily basis. This same study also reports that "one-fifth of women working in the restaurant industry live below the poverty line, and nearly one-half (46%) live below twice the poverty line, compared to 40% of men in the restaurant industry and 20% of women in other industries." One strategy proposed—beyond the organizing that restaurant workers do with ROC and other organizations to spur legislative change—is to vote with your wallet, to only patronize business that pay workers a living wage both in the front and back of house (racism in the restaurant industry is also rampant, with bussers, dishwashers, and prep cooks often being black and brown, and servers, hosts, and bartenders usually being white). But voting with your wallet often means relying on restaurant marketing to "know" who is treating their workers fairly; now that touting fair labor practices—like "sustainability" in the fashion industry—is trendy, it's hard to know who is just talking the talk. In fact, supporting labor organizations, unions, and campaigns run by restaurant workers themselves is often the most direct way to either vote with your wallet or actions. (You'd also do well to tip in cash, a more reliable way to ensure your server and other workers in the restaurant actually get your tip, and quickly.)Waging Change addresses the curveball thrown by coronavirus on the gains made by the One Fair Wage and $15 minimum wage movements, since many restaurant workers have been furloughed or laid off due to restaurant shutdowns. The documentary points out that are relief funds for those workers ineligible for unemployment insurance (because, cruelly enough, they earn too little to qualify), and as inequity in the U.S. is sharply revealed through this crisis, workers are still protesting for fair wages, including hazard pay and sick leave.But what coronavirus has made clear is how unnecessary worker vulnerability is. In many other countries, robust social safety nets—with free health care, well-appointed public housing, free university, free childcare, and more—mean that even in hard times, workers can still pay the bills and businesses are more incentivized to provide good compensation and working conditions to retain staff (the reality, however, is usually much different for "unskilled" immigrant workers, who are not often provided social benefits no matter where they go). But in the U.S., where business lobbies like the other NRA hold enormous power and regular people are dependent on whatever wages these businesses decide to hand out—anything that might compromise this precarious arrangement, even when it's as justified as public health protocol, compromises us. As a result, social welfare is looked down upon, and both local and federal governments typically do all they can to make those benefits hard to receive and insufficient for a decent quality of life. To wage change, we'll also have to look beyond the wage itself. Read more at The Daily Beast.Got a tip? Send it to The Daily Beast hereGet our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.
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| Brazil jumps to world No. 2 in coronavirus cases, behind the U.S. Posted: 22 May 2020 03:30 PM PDT  Brazil became the world No. 2 hotspot for coronavirus cases on Friday, second only to the United States, after it confirmed that 330,890 people had been infected by the virus, overtaking Russia, the Health Ministry said. Brazil registered 1,001 daily coronavirus deaths on Friday, taking total deaths to 21,048, according to the Health Ministry. Far-right President Jair Bolsonaro has been widely criticized for his handling of the outbreak and is at the center too of a deepening political crisis.
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| Declining infection rate provides challenge for Oxford coronavirus vaccine Posted: 24 May 2020 07:37 AM PDT  Just days ago, scientists leading the University of Oxford's coronavirus vaccine development expressed optimism about their progress — more than 1,000 people in the United Kingdom have been inoculated already, and 10,000 more will be given the vaccine in May and June. But there's some cause for concern, The Telegraph reports.Professor Adrian Hill, director of the University's Jenner Institute, said what was formerly an 80 percent chance of developing an effective vaccine by September — possibly in time for a potential second wave of infections — has dwindled to 50 percent. That's not because the team no longer believes in its work, which is reportedly still going well. Instead, the U.K.'s infection rate decline may make it tough to gauge the vaccine's efficacy. "It's a race against the virus disappearing, and against time," Hill said.Hill only expects fewer than 50 of the 10,000 trial volunteers to catch the virus, which has faded since the U.K. and other countries implemented strict lockdowns, and if it turns out that fewer than 20 test positive, the study's results may be useless.The vaccine showed promise when it was tested in six rhesus macaque monkeys earlier this year, but it will obviously need to show that it provides the same protection in humans before it can be distributed.More stories from theweek.com There's always a bigger scandal How pandemics change society We should be grateful for good news in Georgia
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| Trump wants justices' help to stymie investigations and lawsuits Posted: 22 May 2020 11:05 AM PDT  President Trump won at least a temporary reprieve from the Supreme Court this week in keeping secret grand jury materials from the Russia investigation away from Democratic lawmakers. The president and his administration are counting on the justices for more help to stymie other investigations and lawsuits.
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| Bodies from the sky: horror as plane crashes among homes in Pakistan Posted: 22 May 2020 11:39 AM PDT  Raja Amjad was out for an ordinary afternoon drive in Karachi, Pakistan's largest city, when he was blindsided by a crashing plane and the body that landed on his car. The body came from Pakistan International Airlines flight PK8303, which ploughed into buildings in a crowded Karachi neighbourhood, exploding upon impact and sending a plume of thick-black smoke into the air. As Amjad jumped from his vehicle, he looked overhead to see another passenger still alive and dangling from the plane's emergency exit, calling for help.
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| Taliban leverages pandemic to burnish image as violence in Afghanistan surges Posted: 23 May 2020 04:14 PM PDT  "Some districts don't have doctors," said Kate Clark, co-director of the Afghan Analysts Network. "It's confusing, it's a mess."
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| Lawyer for woman accusing Biden of sex assault drops case following claims over her educational record Posted: 22 May 2020 11:51 AM PDT  The lawyer representing Tara Reade announced he is no longer taking her on as a client.Doug Widgor said the decision to drop Ms Reade as a client was not reflective of his views on the veracity of her claim that 2020 election hopeful and former Vice President Joe Biden sexually assaulted her.
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| Letters to the Editor: Why is the Trump administration working so hard to deport immigrant children? Posted: 24 May 2020 03:00 AM PDT  There's nothing that can justify preventing a 16-year-old immigrant from seeing her lawyer and suddenly deporting her by herself.
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| Judge orders Los Angeles to move thousands of homeless Posted: 22 May 2020 05:07 PM PDT  A federal judge on Friday ordered Los Angeles city and county to move thousands of homeless people living near freeways after an agreement on a plan fell through. U.S. District Court Judge David O. Carter issued a preliminary injunction requiring the relocation, by Sept. 1, of an estimated 6,000 to 7,000 people camping near freeway ramps and overpasses, saying they face a health risk emergency. Carter ordered a status report on the relocation plan to be ready by June 12, with updates to follow, and warned that he would move up the deadline if he doesn't see "satisfactory progress."
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| Palestinians report first coronavirus death in Gaza Posted: 23 May 2020 09:07 AM PDT  A woman has died in Gaza Strip after contracting coronavirus, the Palestinian enclave's first known fatality from the global pandemic, the health ministry said on Saturday. Blockaded and short on medical facilities, Gaza, run by the Islamist group Hamas, has reported only 55 coronavirus infection cases among its population of two million. Meanwhile, in the Israeli occupied West Bank, where Palestinians have limited self-rule, there have been two deaths and 423 cases.
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| Iran oil tanker reaches Venezuela amid US tension Posted: 24 May 2020 06:27 AM PDT  Five tankers are being escorted by the Venezuelan military as the country struggles with shortages.
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| Netanyahu attacks 'fabricated' graft charges as trial begins Posted: 24 May 2020 08:48 AM PDT  A combative Benjamin Netanyahu stood in court Sunday for the start of his long-anticipated corruption trial, after lashing out at the "fabricated" charges against him. The veteran Israeli Prime Minister, who has just forged a new unity government after more than a year of political turmoil, is the country's first premier to face criminal charges while in office. Flanked by ministers from his right-wing Likud party, Netanyahu addressed the public in a live Facebook broadcast before entering the Jerusalem District Court to face charges of bribery, fraud and breach of trust.
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| Navajo Nation enters 57-hour lockdown as virus death toll rises Posted: 23 May 2020 11:04 AM PDT  Even essential businesses must remain closed as the entire tribe enters a strict lockdown for Memorial Day weekend.
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| Black Americans are in an abusive relationship with the Democratic party Posted: 22 May 2020 01:02 PM PDT  An offensive comment by the Democratic presidential candidate is a reminder that black people – all people – deserve better than Joe BidenI am very tired of Joe Biden. My vote for him was already hanging by a thread before his disastrous interview with Charlamagne tha God on Friday. Interrupting the Breakfast Club host's explanation that black people needed assurances that our communities will benefit from his presidency, Biden asserted: "If you've got a problem figuring out whether you're for me or for Trump, then you ain't black."Again, I am very tired of Joe Biden. Not because I am a purist, or have inflexible ideological commitments of what it will take to remove Donald Trump from office. But rather because Biden's condescension towards black communities is intolerable.I want to believe that Biden's condescension started after the respected Representative James Clyburn called the former vice-president an "honorary black man" at a private dinner in March. But his mistreatment of black people, verbally and politically, is decades old, and is a reflection of the Democratic party in general.Throughout Biden's career, he has boasted about his ability to bridge partisan divides by sacrificing the needs of black people and poor people in the name of "compromise". For the last 30 years, Biden has repeatedly talked about freezing, cutting, or raising the age for social security and other benefits – as much as $2tn one time. His response to concerns that these cuts would hurt the poor? "We're going to do lots of hard things … we might as well do this."Social security is an important program for black people, especially as we age. Among African Americans receiving social security, 35% of elderly married couples and 58% of unmarried elderly persons relied on it for 90% or more of their income. The reliance is not due to laziness or spending habits – people of color and white people make similar choices and contributions to retirement – but due to racism, lack of workplace retirement plans and barriers to accessing high-paying jobs."They know where my heart is," Biden has said, of black voters.But do we?Senator Kamala Harris was severely scrutinized for her treatment of poor black women as a prosecutor – yet Biden's criminal justice record makes Harris look like Thurgood Marshall. Biden authored and successfully passed the $30bn 1994 Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act. Besides putting 100,000 additional police officers in the streets, the crime bill distributed funding for new prison construction, encouraged prosecutors to charge children as adults, and even added the death penalty for 28 new areas, including drug-related offenses. Pushing for further criminalization, then senator Biden argued that George HW Bush's crime plan did not go far enough because it did not "include enough police officers to catch the violent thugs, not enough prosecutors to convict them, not enough judges to sentence them, and not enough prison cells to put them away for a long time". An older black generation fought through Jim Crow only for Biden to help make sure that their children and grandchildren lived through a new Jim Crow.On the House floor, Biden compared his criminal justice approach to Richard Nixon's law and order stance: "I would say, 'Lock the SOBs up.'" Black people were arrested in droves following this bill, despite comparable drug use rates to white people; many are still sitting in prison today. Biden has since acknowledged flaws in the bill, but last summer he reiterated his support for the bill. The law spent $30bn but contributed to only a 1.3% decline in violent crime. He has yet to call for it to be repealed.Today, some cities plan to expunge marijuana records and hope to pay reparations to black people formerly incarcerated for marijuana offenses. But Biden can't seem to let go; he is inconsistent and ambivalent about marijuana legalization. He has argued it may be a gateway drug, a statement he has since dialed back. Of course, keeping marijuana illegal at the federal level does not mean that people will not use it, but rather that the extra police that he put on the street will send people of color to jail for using it. Ironically, the police were probably nowhere to be found when Biden's friends George W Bush and Barack Obama used marijuana. If anything, the drug seems to be a gateway to the White House.Despite attempting to cut social programs and increasing mass incarceration, Biden claims to care about black families. But he doesn't seem to know many. During the September 2019 Democratic debate he claimed that poor families should put on a record player so their children will know more words. Recently, during an interview with the New York Times editorial board, he argued that poor black parents feel ashamed because they cannot read and skip parent-teacher conferences. He was hoping to encourage them to be better parents. But his assertion is incorrect. Black and white parents have comparable participation rates overall and attend parent-teacher conferences at the exact same rates. In fact, black parents and poor parents are the most likely to check their children's homework and meet with guidance counselors. Biden instead relied on stereotypes that black people are not involved in their children's lives.Harris forced Biden to confront his work with racist elected officials to stop integration efforts using school busing. That was not his only education mistake. Biden played a significant role in creating the student debt crisis, including making student loan discharge "nearly impossible". This is devastating to black people, who disproportionately carry school debt. While the average school debt for black women with a bachelor's degree is about $25,000, that level of education does not provide the same level of financial security for black women as it does other groups, including white people with less education (primarily because of sexism and racism).Again and again, Biden's relationship with black Americans, like the Democratic National Committee's relationship, has been patronizing at best and actively harmful at worst.> Biden's friendship with one black person does not mean that he's a friend to black peopleSome black people will support Biden because of his association with Barack Obama – even though Obama himself doesn't seem especially excited about Biden becoming president. The Obama days feel distant yet warm compared to Donald Trump's current presidency. But remember: Biden cycled millions of black people in and out of jail, voted for massive numbers of poor people to go to war in Iraq, threw Anita Hill under the bus to confirm a conservative justice to the US supreme court, and, under Obama's administration, helped to deport millions of immigrants and bombed brown countries. When Biden was vice-president, black home ownership and wealth declined significantly, even as it rose for other races. Biden's friendship with one black person does not mean that he's a friend to black people.The Democratic party holds black people in an abusive relationship but says you cannot leave because the other option is more abusive. That's why I don't believe that a vote against Biden solely means a vote for Trump. Perhaps it is a vote against being captured by the party that makes empty promises every four years when it is election time, and delivers nothing. Perhaps it is a vote against the crime bill, drones and deportations. Perhaps it is a vote against covert and overt racism.Biden and others will rightfully argue that Trump is worse, and I agree. But what can Biden actually deliver? Will there be fewer drones if he's president? Maybe not. Fewer deportations? Maybe not. Less money to police departments? No. Will fewer black people die from police? Unlikely. Will black people have healthcare? Unlikely. Will black wealth increase? Unlikely. Will Palestinian lives be safer? Unlikely. Commitments to preserving our climate? Doubtful. If black people have a hard time figuring out the differences between Trump and Biden, then that is Biden's problem, not ours.Joe Biden refuses to reckon with the harm that he has caused to people all over the world. His best line is that he is better than the other guy, and that is exactly how abusive relationships function. Black people – all people – deserve better than Biden and the Democratic party. And yes, we are still black. * Derecka Purnell is a social movement lawyer and writer based in Washington, DC. Guardian US columnist
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| Latest on global search for coronavirus vaccine: Three candidates show early promise Posted: 22 May 2020 05:08 PM PDT  This week's coronavirus vaccine race news: U.S. bets big on possible vaccine, Chinese entry shows promise, experts caution 'slow is fast.'
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| Asia Today: 6 million Australians download virus tracing app Posted: 23 May 2020 05:37 PM PDT  Six million Australians have downloaded a smartphone app that helps health authorities trace coronavirus infections, officials said Sunday. Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt said the COVIDSafe app is playing a strong role in Australia's response to the pandemic and that several countries have expressed interest in learning from its positive impacts. The government has said at least 40% of Australia's 26 million people need to use the app for it to be effective.
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| Former head of pandemic response team at the NSC speaks out: 'I'm frankly scared' Posted: 23 May 2020 01:46 PM PDT  The official who oversaw epidemic preparedness for the National Security Council under President Obama said the absence of public guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention during the COVID-19 pandemic leaves her "frankly scared." She also believes and that eliminating her position weakened the American response to the coronavirus when it emerged 18 months later.
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| Buenos Aires lockdown extended until June 7 after rise in coronavirus cases Posted: 23 May 2020 04:51 PM PDT  Argentina extended until June 7 a mandatory lockdown in Buenos Aires on Saturday and tightened some movement restrictions, after a steady increase in the city's confirmed coronavirus cases in recent days. Officials will tighten traffic controls between the capital and Buenos Aires province, the area with the second highest concentration of cases, President Alberto Fernandez said in a televised press conference. Argentina has a commercial flight ban until Sept. 1, one of the world's strictest travel measures during the pandemic.
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| Decision not to extend Pa. vote-by-mail deadline could lower AAPI turnout Posted: 23 May 2020 01:24 PM PDT  With the primary less than two weeks away, community organizers are scrambling to mobilize socially and linguistically isolated AAPI voters.
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| A Nike warehouse reportedly denied a Tennessee health official access to its facility after a worker died of COVID-19 Posted: 23 May 2020 12:20 PM PDT  A temporary worker employed by Adecco at the Nike facility died after contracting COVID-19, according to ProPublica.
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| Afghan president to free up to 2,000 Taliban prisoners after ceasefire offer Posted: 24 May 2020 08:35 AM PDT  Afghan President Ashraf Ghani began a process Sunday to release up to 2,000 Taliban prisoners as a goodwill gesture after the insurgents proposed a surprise ceasefire during the Eid holiday. Ghani also said the government was ready to hold peace talks with the Taliban after accepting their offer of a three-day truce over the Eid al-Fitr holiday starting Sunday that marks the end of the Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan. The decision to release the prisoners was a "good will gesture" and was taken "to ensure success of the peace process", Ghani's spokesman Sediq Sediqqi said on Twitter.
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| Joe Biden attacks Trump for playing golf over Memorial Day weekend as death toll heads toward 100,000 in new ad Posted: 24 May 2020 02:38 AM PDT  Joe Biden has hit out at Donald Trump for playing golf on Memorial Day weekend as the coronavirus death toll continues to rise in the US to almost 100,000.The former vice president unveiled a 30-second clip displaying Mr Trump playing a round of golf at his Virginia club on Saturday.
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| North Dakota governor on brink of tears as he decries ‘mask shaming’ Posted: 23 May 2020 11:51 AM PDT  Republican Doug Burgum called out 'senseless dividing line' between Americans over whether masks should be worn in public * Coronavirus – live US updates * Live global updatesIn North Dakota on Friday, the Republican governor, Doug Burgum, decried a "senseless dividing line" between US citizens over whether masks should be worn in public during the coronavirus pandemic.As he pleaded with citizens of his state to "try to dial up your empathy and your understanding", Burgum was moved to the brink of tears."We're all in this together and there's only one battle we're fighting," he said. "And that's the battle of the virus."As Donald Trump encourages states to reopen their battered economies, federal authorities are recommending covering the face in public when social distancing is difficult, for example in grocery stores.Some states require residents to wear masks in public settings. North Dakota, where Burgum allowed reopening to start from 1 May, does not.The president has notably refused to wear a mask in public, although he was photographed wearing one on a visit to a Ford plant in Michigan this week.On Saturday, Secret Service officers who were with the president on a trip to a golf course were pictured wearing masks. Trump was not.Some rightwing protesters have attracted publicity by refusing to wear masks, while some shopkeepers have reportedly sought to deny service to people wearing face coverings.Speaking to reporters at the state capitol in Bismarck on Friday, Bergum said he "would really love to see in North Dakota that we could just skip this thing that other parts of the nation are going through, that they're creating a divide. Either it's ideological or political or something around mask versus no mask."This is I would say a senseless dividing line and I would ask people to try to dial up your empathy and your understanding. If someone is wearing a mask, they're not doing it to represent what political party they're in or what candidates they support."As he continued, Burgum struggled not to break down in tears."They might be doing it because they've got a five-year-old who's been going through cancer treatments," he said."They might have vulnerable adults in their life who currently have Covid-19 and are fighting."So again, I would just love to see our state, as part of being 'North Dakota smart', also be 'North Dakota kind', 'North Dakota empathetic', 'North Dakota understanding', to do this thing. Because if somebody wants to wear a mask, there should be no mask shaming."According to Johns Hopkins University, by Saturday North Dakota had recorded 2,317 coronavirus cases and 52 deaths.
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| Police: Miami mom faked son's abduction, faces murder charge Posted: 23 May 2020 08:10 AM PDT  A Miami woman faked her son's abduction after trying to drown him twice, with witnesses rescuing the boy from a canal the first time, and the second attempt ending in the boy's death, officials said Saturday. Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle said Patricia Ripley, 45, is facing attempted and premeditated murder charges and being held in jail with no bond. The boy, Alejandro Ripley, 9, was autistic and nonverbal.
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| Massive fire erupts on San Francisco's iconic waterfront Posted: 23 May 2020 03:54 PM PDT  More than 100 firefighters responded to towering flames around 4 a.m. local time.
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| Project leader: Oxford's COVID-19 vaccine trial has 50% chance of success - Telegraph Posted: 23 May 2020 03:01 PM PDT  Adrian Hill, director of Oxford's Jenner Institute, which has teamed up with drugmaker AstraZeneca Plc to develop the vaccine, said that an upcoming trial, involving 10,000 volunteers, threatened to return "no result" due to low transmission of COVID-19 in the community. "It's a race against the virus disappearing, and against time", Hill told the British newspaper. The experimental vaccine, known as ChAdOx1 nCoV-19, is one of the front-runners in the global race to provide protection against the new coronavirus causing the COVID-19 pandemic.
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| Prosecutor dismisses charges against Breonna Taylor's boyfriend, more investigation 'necessary' Posted: 24 May 2020 05:12 AM PDT  Commonwealth Attorney Tom Wine acknowledged that a grand jury should have seen more information before deciding to indict Kenneth Walker.
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| Nevada casinos may reopen June 4 if coronavirus cases don't spike this weekend Posted: 22 May 2020 06:54 PM PDT  Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak will make the final announcement Tuesday at a news conference. Vegas hotel-casinos look to reopen soon.
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| Fox News Poll: Biden widens national lead over Trump Posted: 23 May 2020 11:15 AM PDT  RNC National spokeswoman Liz Harrington discusses 2020 campaign strategy on 'America's News HQ.'
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| Biden regrets saying black voters considering Trump 'ain't black' Posted: 23 May 2020 04:21 AM PDT  The Democrat had said African Americans "ain't black" if they even considered voting for Donald Trump.
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| Judge demands ICE better explain why it won't release kids Posted: 22 May 2020 06:27 PM PDT |
| SpaceX ready to launch astronauts into space for the first time Posted: 23 May 2020 07:48 PM PDT  US President Donald Trump will be among the spectators at Kennedy Space Center in Florida to witness the launch, which has been given the green light despite months of shutdowns due to the coronavirus pandemic. The general public, in a nod to virus restrictions, has been told to watch via a livestream as Crew Dragon is launched by a Falcon 9 rocket toward the International Space Station. NASA's Commercial Crew program, aimed at developing private spacecraft to transport American astronauts in to space, began under Barack Obama.
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| Brazil registers 965 new coronavirus deaths, confirmed cases hit 347,398 Posted: 23 May 2020 04:32 PM PDT  Brazil registered 965 new coronavirus deaths on Saturday, taking the total number of fatalities to 22,013, the Health Ministry said. The country now has 347,398 confirmed cases, according to the ministry, up 16,508 from Friday, when it surpassed Russia to become the world's virus hot spot behind the United States. Brazil's far-right President Jair Bolsonaro has been fiercely criticized for his handling of the outbreak, which has led to the exit of two health ministers amid his insistence in opposing social distancing measures while advocating the use of unproven drugs for treatment.
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