Light News Dump

https://gisanddata.maps.arcgis.com/apps/opsdashboard/index.html#/bda7594740fd40299423467b48e9ecf6
https://covidtracking.com/data/
https://www.ft.com/coronavirus-latest

'Huge Victory' for Standing Rock Sioux Tribe as Federal Court Rules DAPL Permits Violated Law | A federal judge handed down a major victory for the Standing Rock Sioux tribe of North Dakota on Wednesday, ruling that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers violated the National Environmental Policy Act by approving federal permits for the Dakota Access Pipeline. The USACE must complete a full environmental impact study of the pipeline, including full consideration of concerns presented by the Standing Rock Tribe, the judge ruled. The tribe has asked the court to ultimately shut the pipeline down. | The court chastised the USACE for moving ahead with affirming the permits in 2016 and allowing the construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL) crossing the Missouri River after President Donald Trump assumed office in 2017, without considering the expert analysis put forward by the tribe. The Standing Rock Sioux had raised concerns regarding the likelihood and danger of potential oil spills, DAPL's leak-detection system, and the safety record of Sunoco Logistics, the company behind the pipeline. Sunoco "has experienced 276 incidents resulting in over $53 million in property damage from 2006 to 2016" and has "one of the lowest performing safety records of any operator in the industry," the tribe's experts found.
https://www.commondreams.org/news/2020/03/25/huge-victory-standing-rock-sioux-tribe-federal-court-rules-dapl-permits-violated-law
https://earthjustice.org/news/press/2020/standing-rock-sioux-tribe-prevails-as-federal-judge-strikes-down-dapl-permits
https://earthjustice.org/features/faq-standing-rock-litigation
https://earthjustice.org/sites/default/files/files/standing-rock-sj.pdf

Catastrophic: U.S. weekly jobless claims for unemployment compensation were expected to hit a record-breaking 1.5 million for the week ended March 21. Instead, they soared to a record-breaking 3.28 million.
https://www.cnbc.com/2020/03/26/weekly-jobless-claims.html
https://www.dol.gov/ui/data.pdf

Have personally heard from people unable to get claims past overwhelmed websites and phone lines, analysts think it may be widespread enough to significantly affect the total. Today's staggering unemployment figures are an undercount
https://www.politico.com/news/2020/03/26/record-breaking-unemployment-claims-may-be-vast-undercount-150417

Great Barrier Reef - UNESCO World Heritage Centre
https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/154/

Great Barrier Reef suffers third mass bleaching in five years | Coral reefs are some of the most vibrant marine ecosystems on the planet -- between a quarter and one-third of all marine species rely on them at some point in their life cycle. And none is more vital than the Great Barrier Reef. Covering nearly 133,000 square miles, it is the world's largest coral reef and is home to more than 1,500 species of fish, 411 species of hard corals and dozens of other species. It's also a vital resource to Australia's economy, contributing more than $5.6 billion annually and supporting tens of thousands of jobs.
https://www.cnn.com/2020/03/25/world/great-barrier-reef-bleaching-2020-climate-change-trnd/index.html
https://www.cnn.com/interactive/2018/08/world/great-barrier-reef/
http://www.gbrmpa.gov.au/the-reef/reef-facts
http://www.gbrmpa.gov.au/the-reef/reef-facts

Calculate how much you’ll get from the $1,200 (or more) coronavirus checks
https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/business/coronavirus-stimulus-check-calculator/

Fauci: 'You don't make the timeline, the virus makes the timeline' on relaxing public health measures
https://www.cnn.com/2020/03/25/politics/anthony-fauci-coronavirus-timeline-cnntv/index.html

Atlas comet may soon be visible to the naked eye. The recently discovered comet has greatly brightened in recent months, and it's expected to shine nearly as bright as Venus by mid May. But as Canadian astronomy David Levy said, “Comets are like cats. They have tails and they do whatever they want.”
https://astronomy.com/news/observing/2020/03/comet-atlas-may-soon-be-visible-to-the-naked-eye

Mississippi's Republican governor reversed local stay-at-home orders in executive order defining most businesses as ‘essential’
https://lawandcrime.com/covid-19-pandemic/gop-governor-reverses-local-stay-at-home-orders-in-executive-order-defining-most-businesses-as-essential/
https://www.businessinsider.com/coronavirus-mississippi-governor-executive-order-most-businesses-essential-2020-3

Alyssa Milano tells Trump to convert his New York hotels into hospitals for coronavirus patients
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/alyssa-milano-tells-trump-to-convert-his-new-york-hotels-into-hospitals-for-coronavirus-patients

Florida Republican Sen. Rick Scott and a group of conservatives erected a roadblock on the swift passage of a massive, $2 trillion coronavirus relief bill on Wednesday afternoon, arguing that the bill’s increased unemployment benefits will discourage people from working or trying to find a job. Scott, South Carolina Republican Sens. Lindsey Graham and Tim Scott, along with Nebraska Republican Sen. Ben Sasse, objected to the bill’s $600 per week increase in unemployment benefits in addition to benefits currently offered by a worker’s state. The conservative Republicans said unemployment benefits should be capped at a worker’s current income, as opposed to a $600 per week increase that could lead to unemployment being temporarily more lucrative for some workers than keeping their job. Increasing unemployment benefits during a government-induced recession to fight the spread of coronavirus was a major component of the far-reaching legislation that has yet to be finalized — and was in fact included in earlier versions of the bill. | But a spokesperson for Iowa Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley, who leads the Senate Finance Committee, said the $600 increase applies to every state so the benefits can be handed out quickly. “Each state has a different [unemployment insurance] program, so the drafters opted for a temporary across-the-board UI boost of $600, which can deliver needed aid in a timely manner rather than burning time to create a different administrative regime for each state,” Grassley spokesperson Taylor Foy said. “This increase is designed to make the average worker whole. It’s also important to remember that nobody who voluntarily leaves an available job is eligible for UI.” Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, the White House’s lead negotiator on the stimulus bill, said at a Wednesday evening White House press conference that the $600 per week increase was the only way to help unemployed people quickly when many states, including Florida, cannot effectively process unemployment claims.
https://www.miamiherald.com/news/coronavirus/article241471711.html

Republicans block most aid to help states plan for presidential election amid coronavirus pandemic | Voting reforms that would make it much easier to cast ballots by mail in the fall presidential election were left out of the $2 trillion rescue package that was unveiled Wednesday, but key lawmakers vowed to keep pushing for a series of measures that would prepare the country for an election in the likely scenario that the coronavirus will still be a major presence in the country. | The money included for now will be available to states “to increase the ability to vote by mail, expand early voting and online registration and increase the safety of voting in-person by providing additional voting facilities and more poll workers,” one House Democratic staffer told Yahoo News.
https://news.yahoo.com/republicans-block-most-aid-to-help-states-plan-for-presidential-election-amid-coronavirus-pandemic-223136209.html

Help Support Housekeepers And Day Laborers
https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-support-housekeepers-and-day-laborers
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/25/us/coronavirus-housekeepers-nannies-domestic-undocumented-immigrants.html

Italy’s death toll rises above 7,000 — but the number of new cases declines for the 4th day in a row: Death toll from the virus passed the 7,500 mark on Wednesday, the country’s Civil Protection Agency said, however it noted that the rate of new cases of contagion fell for the fourth day running.
https://www.cnbc.com/2020/03/26/italys-new-coronavirus-cases-declines-for-4th-day-in-a-row.html

HHS Inspector General to Investigate Whistleblower Complaint on Trump Admin’s Handling of COVID-19 Outbreak | The Office of Inspector General (OIG) for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is planning several different investigations into the Trump administration’s response to the novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. According to the Washington Examiner, at least five inquiries “related to HHS’s planning and response of the COVID-19 outbreak” will be conducted by the internal oversight authority.
https://lawandcrime.com/covid-19-pandemic/hhs-inspector-general-to-investigate-whistleblower-complaint-on-trump-admins-handling-of-covid-19-outbreak/

Dozens of elephants in Thailand permanently freed from carrying tourists in the wake of COVID-19 downturn.
https://www.yahoo.com/news/dozens-elephants-set-free-chairs-090000522.html

The novel coronavirus has been detected in wastewater in the Netherlands, according to RIVM research. A small percentage of patients with COVID-19 have the novel coronavirus in their gastrointestinal tract, and thus excrete it in their faeces
https://www.rivm.nl/node/153991

Rare Andean bears flock to cloud forest to feast on wild avocados: The real-life Paddington bears were in decline across South America, but records suggest their numbers are growing in Ecuador
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/mar/21/rare-andean-bears-flock-to-cloud-forest-to-feast-on-wild-avocados-aoe

With coronavirus and locust plague, ‘nature is sending us a message,’ says UN environment head -- Biodiversity matters now more than ever as pathogens more easily pass from animals to people: Inger Andersen
https://www.marketwatch.com/story/with-coronavirus-and-locust-plague-nature-is-sending-us-a-message-says-un-environment-head-2020-03-25

Great news for the UK: Millions of 15-minute home coronavirus tests are set to be available on the high street or for Amazon delivery to people self-isolating, according to Public Health England (PHE), in a move that could restore many people’s lives to a semblance of pre-lockdown normality. Prof Sharon Peacock, the director of the national infection service at PHE, told MPs on the science and technology committee that mass testing in the UK would be possible within days, saying evaluation of the fingerprick tests should be completed this week. The government later took a more cautious line, saying that the tests would not be available so quickly. The UK government has bought 3.5m tests – which reveal whether someone has had the virus and is therefore thought to have some immunity – and is ordering millions more, it has said.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/mar/25/uk-coronavirus-mass-home-testing-to-be-made-available-within-days

Trump’s campaign is trying to remove a video of him appearing to call the coronavirus a ‘hoax,’ saying it’s misleading
https://www.businessinsider.com/trump-campaign-remove-video-saying-coronavirus-hoax-2020-3

1: “What he meant to say was...”
2: “He was only joking”
3: “The liberal media took this COMPLETELY out of context”
4: “That never happened, the video/audio/photo is fake”
5: “By criticizing this president, the democrats have proven that they hate America”
6: (ignore and commit another scandal to take over headlines)

"Just remember, what you are seeing and what you are reading is not what's happening," Trump said. "Just stick with us, don't believe the crap you see from these people, the fake news." -Donald Trump, July 24, 2018
https://www.inquirer.com/philly/news/politics/presidential/donald-trump-vfw-speech-kansas-city-what-youre-seeing-reading-not-whats-happening-20180724.html

Makes excuses for him all of the time, his base lying endlessly to rationalize his lies by claiming he meant this or that while in the same breath they say they love him because he tells it like it is.

Gov. Ron DeSantis won’t shut down Florida (3rd largest population state with largest population of people over 50+yrs)
https://www.tampabay.com/news/health/2020/03/25/gov-ron-desantis-wont-shut-down-florida-heres-who-hes-talking-to-about-that/

Nurse dies in New York hospital where workers are reduced to using trash bags as protective medical gear
https://www.businessinsider.com/kious-kelly-hospital-nurse-dies-trash-bags-2020-3

Republican Senator John Thune returned to South Dakota after falling ill Wednesday, according to an announcement from his spokesman.
https://www.argusleader.com/story/news/2020/03/25/thune-falls-ill-miss-vote/2913910001/

NRA tells employees to seek government aid as coronavirus forces cuts, layoffs
https://www.salon.com/2020/03/26/leaked-memo-nra-tells-employees-to-seek-government-aid-as-coronavirus-forces-cuts-layoffs/

Coronavirus-infected tourist, 37, is thrown in detention after 'continuing her holiday in Australia instead of self- isolating'
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8151621/Coronavirus-infected-tourist-accused-holidaying-Australia-KNOWING-COVID-19.html

South Korean man behind Telegram sex crime ring paraded in public in rare move amid outcry. Over 260,000 people were discovered to participate in a app that shared rape videos of woman and children.
https://www.straitstimes.com/asia/east-asia/south-korean-man-behind-telegram-sex-crime-ring-paraded-in-public-in-rare-move-amid

https://www.covidgraph.com/p/coronavirus.html#comorbidities

Blue and White has officially broken up, Benjamin Netanyahu remains PM (LOL) for at least 18 months, Gantz elected Knesset Speaker. Netanyahu is an absolute master at politics. Breaking up the only party that managed to successfully oppose him in decades, without having to pay any personal price (just a useless rotation agreement that he has absolutely no intention at following).
https://www.ynet.co.il/articles/0,7340,L-5702020,00.html
https://www.ynetnews.com/article/H1drie9UI
http://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/netanyahu-s-main-rival-voted-knesset-speaker-paving-way-unity-n1169511

The Fed is going to make commercial mortgage-backed debt purchases -- which it didn't even do during the 2008 crisis -- starting tomorrow. https://www.newyorkfed.org/markets/opolicy/operating_policy_200326

Netflix Creates $100 Million Coronavirus Relief Fund
https://variety.com/2020/film/news/netflix-coronavirus-relief-fund-100-million-dollars-1203540530/

Retweet this if you agree that gun stores are not essential businesses during the #coronavirus pandemic. #StopTheCoronavirusGunSurge
https://twitter.com/NewtownAction/status/1242947367747362817

McConnell said remote voting was a non-starter, so we get no Senate. It will be dangerous, if not impossible, to gather enough Senators to pass additional emergency legislation. Let’s be honest. Rand Paul basically ensured this by walking around the Senate for 6 days while infected. It’s not like the Senate is packed with youngsters. Coronavirus could end up killing a few of them. Also the break allows for massive disinfection of Congress.

Miami’s Jackson Memorial Hospital, a taxpayer-financed system that’s the largest in the state, won’t publicly disclose the number of coronavirus and suspected coronavirus cases it has, saying the mere disclosure of the number somehow compromises patient privacy
https://twitter.com/MarcACaputo/status/1243234188045795328

That’s utter and absolute garbage. As a physician, revealing numbers isn’t HIPPA violation when no personal identification is being given.
https://twitter.com/DhwaniYPandya/status/1243234763072290816

A thread on how anchors like @jaketapper @DavidMuir @NorahODonnell @LesterHoltNBC might revise how they're holding the White House accountable, based on the editorial independence demonstrated by their predecessors in 1979-1980 during the Iran Hostage Crisis (1/7)
https://twitter.com/MichaelSocolow/status/1243215706495299591

They should use clear & easily understood metrics daily. Open and/or close broadcasts with these same accurate and verifiable metrics, and tie them directly to the administration's response to the pandemic. (2/7)
https://twitter.com/MichaelSocolow/status/1243215707921362944

Example: "It's has now been 19 days since President Trump assured the American people 'Anybody that needs a test, gets a test.' The President was wrong then, and there's no evidence that sufficient tests exist today, 19 days later." (3/7)
https://twitter.com/MichaelSocolow/status/1243215708940533760
https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2020/03/trumps-lies-about-coronavirus/608647/

Tomorrow: "It's now been 20 days since President Trump assured the American people 'Anybody that needs a test, gets a test.' The President was wrong then, and there's no evidence that sufficient tests exist 20 days later." (4/7)
https://twitter.com/MichaelSocolow/status/1243215710366597123

This is but one example. It demonstrates journalistic independence and provides a public health service. By pointing out the inadequacy of the administration's response, it pressures them to fix the situation. It's public service journalism of the highest order (5/7)
https://twitter.com/MichaelSocolow/status/1243215711742410754

Very important: Clarity & repetition is *everything.* It's even more important than the selected data/metric. The audience must anticipate - and be primed for - that metric everyday. The power doesn't come from the data, it comes from the repetition. (6/7)
https://twitter.com/MichaelSocolow/status/1243215713071968261

Example: Gov. Bashear's livestreams in KY get rave reviews because they open in an identical way everyday. It's reassuring & provides important continuity for building credibility & trust. All networks should try this- it could be effective. (7/7)
https://twitter.com/MichaelSocolow/status/1243215714691006466
https://www.npr.org/2020/03/25/821310994/gov-beshear-receives-praise-for-his-handling-of-coronavirus-pandemic

In letter to governors, Trump suggests the new guidelines will categorize counties by “high-risk, medium-risk, or low-risk.”
https://twitter.com/EliStokols/status/1243234455109672961

Trump and Republicans REFUSE TO ACKNOWLEDGE COVID-19 IS HIGH-RISK EVERYWHERE, ACROSS THE ENTIRE FUCKING GLOBE. AND WITHOUT WIDESPREAD TESTING EVERYWHERE YOU DON'T KNOW HOW MANY PEOPLE ARE INFECTED. And and most people venture out of their counties every day all the time, I fucking WALK between two counties every fucking day. People in "low-risk areas" will become complacent, leading to a loosening of precautions, leading to a spike in infection rates.

New York state has approved technology that allows two patients to share a single ventilator, in an effort to address a desperate need as the number of coronavirus patients in the state rocketed past 37,000. Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Thursday referred to the method as "splitting" and said it involves adding a second set of tubes to a ventilator. "It's not ideal," Cuomo said, "but we believe it's workable." The governor has repeatedly said the state needs at least 30,000 ventilators to treat coronavirus patients, but it has only a fraction of that. Cuomo said Wednesday that New York has 4,000 ventilators in the hospital system and the federal government has sent another 4,0000. The state has purchased an additional 7,000 and is looking for more. The governor previewed the "experimental" splitting strategy on Tuesday, saying, "We have no alternative." He explained Thursday that the demand for ventilators is so high, in part, because some Covid-19 patients need them for an extended period of time. Patients in other situations are typically on ventilators for three to four days, Cuomo said, while Covid-19 patients are on them anywhere from 11 to 21 days. The state is exploring converting anesthesia machines to works as ventilators, the governor said. But New York officials continue to search for more ventilators to add to their supply.
https://www.cnn.com/2020/03/26/health/splitting-ventilators-coronavirus/index.html

Happy birthday Madam Speaker of the House of Representatives. You are a National treasure and I pray you have many more birthdays. This Country would be in even more danger if not for your intelligence and fight. I've so much respect for you. May G/d continue to bless and protect you.

The U.S. now has 75,000+ cases and appears on track to surpass Italy as the country with the second higher number of cases today or tomorrow. It could also surpass China as the country with most cases (if you believe China's stats.)

21 states have issued broad stay-at-home coronavirus orders. This means at least 200 million people in 21 states, 47 counties and 14 cities are being urged to stay home.
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/us/coronavirus-stay-at-home-order.html

These orders are a joke, "coronavirus spreads like wildfire when everybody is out and about so we order you to stay home, but of course there are exceptions, everybody is exempted from the order, play in parks and go to school and go to church and go shopping and go travel, do whatever you want, just stay 6ft away from each other, and guns and alcohol are essential but legal abortion is not....."
https://newsroom.ocfl.net/2020/03/stay-at-home-to-flatten-the-curve-orange-county-issues-stay-at-home-order-effective-march-26-2020-faqs/

Germany ramps up coronavirus tests to 500,000 a week
https://www.thelocal.de/20200326/germany-ramps-up-coronavirus-tests-to-500000-a-week

Cannes Film Festival repurposes grounds to shelter homeless people during coronavirus lockdown
https://www.nme.com/news/film/cannes-film-festival-palais-homeless-shelter-2634871

We Now Know Who Society’s Essential Workers Are. And They’re Among The Lowest Paid. | The coronavirus pandemic is putting grocery store and restaurant workers at risk, often with no health protections and just a handful of safety precautions in place. | This includes not just medical services but also jobs often considered low-skilled or low-status: grocery store clerks, trash and recycling collectors, domestic workers, child care providers, delivery services, warehouse and distribution center workers, and postal employees. The pandemic is laying bare just how vital these workers are to keeping our everyday lives running smoothly ― and they’re among the country’s lowest paid, often with few benefits. Food workers, who make up 14% of the U.S. workforce, typically make under $12 an hour, less than half the average hourly wage of more than $28 across all industries. The annual income for someone working in elder home care is about $16,000. | Several supermarket chains, including Safeway, Trader Joe’s, Target, Whole Foods and the Texas-based chain H-E-B, have increased hourly wages by $2 ― but only temporarily. United Natural Food, one of the nation’s largest distributors to grocery stores (its warehouse workers typically earn $14 to $28 an hour), is also implementing a $2 per hour “state of emergency bonus” until the end of the month. | Under the Families First Coronavirus Emergency Response Act, some essential workers will be eligible for free COVID-19 testing along with food assistance and unemployment insurance. | What’s more, those who don’t have social security numbers ― such as some immigrant and undocumented workers ― and instead use a taxpayer identification number (TIN) to file their taxes, also risk falling through the cracks. “It is our understanding that people who pay via TIN are not included in the package,” said Kashen of the Senate’s relief provisions. “That is a huge problem.” | As Sarah Jones at New York magazine wrote, “The outbreak of the novel coronavirus should debunk at last the idea that low-wage labor is less essential than other kinds of work.” | In addition to deserving free health care and paid sick leave because of their risk of exposure to coronavirus, all food workers should also be entitled to a minimum wage of at least $15 an hour “and have equal legal rights and labor protections,” argued an editorial published by CivilEats. “If we do the right thing in this time of emergency, we will recognize that our debt to food workers does not end when this pandemic does; they deserve dignity, fair wages, and a safe workplace at all times.” | “If we had [paid sick days and universal family care] in place before this started, we’d be in much better shape,” Kashen said.
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/essential-workers-lowest-paid_n_5e7bc7f7c5b6256a7a23e6f5
https://www.bls.gov/news.release/empsit.t19.htm
https://www.sacbee.com/news/coronavirus/article241385776.html
https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2020/03/low-wage-work-is-essential-work.html
https://civileats.com/2020/03/20/op-ed-food-workers-are-on-the-frontlines-of-coronavirus-they-need-our-support/

Joe Scarborough: Democrats "look more pro-life" than Republicans amid calls to "euthanize" elderly - "They are ready to euthanize, because they want Boeing's corporate earnings to not dip too low," MSNBC host says
https://www.salon.com/2020/03/26/joe-scarborough-democrats-look-more-pro-life-than-republicans-amid-calls-to-euthanize-elderly/

Reminder: Mississippi's Republican governor halts legally-protected abortions over coronavirus but bans cities from closing gun stores (guns are not essential and guns murder people)
https://www.salon.com/2020/03/26/mississippis-gop-governor-halts-abortions-over-coronavirus-but-bans-cities-from-closing-gun-stores/

The Berniebros keep claiming Bernie added an amendment to give people unemployment insurance in the stimulus bill yet you can go on the Congress website and see that Bernie didn't add a single amendment in the bill
https://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/house-bill/748/amendments?searchResultViewType=expanded&KWICView=false

Pistons’ Christian Wood has been cleared from coronavirus, sources tell @TheAthleticNBA @Stadium. Wood registered negative test results late Wednesday night.
http://twitter.com/ShamsCharania/status/1243216486514204673

The White House intentionally and knowingly deviated from pandemic response plan, delaying some measures by months
https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/489608-white-house-deviated-from-pandemic-plan-report

Keep in mind that it's not only covid-19 that is a threat right now. With the hospitals overtaxed, ANY illness, condition or injury is less likely to be treated effectively, if at all.

The majority of rapid test coronavirus test kits supplied by China to Spain and the Czech Republic are faulty, local news outlets reported. Up to 80 percent of the 150,000 portable, quick coronavirus test kits China delivered to the Czech Republic earlier this month were faulty, according to local Czech news site Expats.cz. The tests can produce a result in 10 or 15 minutes but are usually less accurate than other tests. Because of the high error rate, the country will continue to rely on conventional laboratory tests, of which they perform about 900 a day.
https://www.yahoo.com/news/china-supplied-faulty-coronavirus-test-162306412.html

Conspiracy theorist Alex Jones was ordered Wednesday to pay more than $20,000 in attorney fees after losing another appeal in a defamation case related to the Sandy Hook shooting. He now owes nearly $150,000 in legal fees before he even faces a jury.
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/alex-jones-loses-another-sandy-hook-court-battle-must-now-pay-150000-in-court-costs_n_5e7cf82dc5b6cb9dc19cadf0

Today we launch #WhileAtHome, a resource hub for anyone impacted by COVID-19. Get tested. Find grants & loans. Tools for teachers. Find job or apply for benefits. Organize. Tips for parents. Repair your small business. Volunteer. & much more.
https://whileathome.org/

Sen. Klobuchar’s husband is released from the hospital and recovering at home after testing positive for coronavirus, she says in a statement.
https://twitter.com/NBCPolitics/status/1243273776932040704

Christian pastor who thought COVID-19 is just ‘mass hysteria’ is among the first in Virginia to die from virus
https://twitter.com/RawStory/status/1243265481601093637
https://www.rawstory.com/2020/03/christian-pastor-who-thought-covid-19-is-just-mass-hysteria-is-among-the-first-in-virginia-to-die-from-virus/

I just got briefed on the $454 billion in the relief bill for large firms. I thought it all had to run through the Fed but Treasury has a ton of discretion. Trump can use it to bail out the oil industry if he wants. And the protections for workers seem weak to nonexistent.
https://twitter.com/MikeGrunwald/status/1243278373562003456

Triple-digit billion dollar cruise industry begging for a handout: Why! They are not U.S. companies. They don't pay U.S. taxes. Most of their employees are not U.S. citizens. Why should the U.S. tax payer bail them out?
https://twitter.com/juliaioffe/status/1243249378749530114

Joe Biden: "The harsh reality is that at least 3 million people now don’t have jobs because our president didn’t do his job when it mattered."
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/biden-blames-record-unemployment-surge-on-trump-didnt-do-his-job-when-it-mattered

3.2 million jobs per week?...: Reminder: Commerce Sec. Wilbur Ross, 1/30: “Coronavirus could bring jobs back to the U.S.”
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/30/business/economy/wilbur-ross-coronavirus-jobs.html
Funeral homes, gravediggers, cemetery landscapers, headstone carvers, granite quarry workers,  coffin makers, cremation service workers, florists

Two poll workers in one of Florida’s most troublesome counties when it comes to elections, Broward, tested positive for the coronavirus after working in 2 precincts during the March 17th presidential primary
https://twitter.com/MarcACaputo/status/1243285169714466816

Since Trump made it clear how terrified he was of Americans learning the truth about how his incompetence has put us all in danger, we decided to expand the buy for this ad into Arizona starting tomorrow in addition to FL, MI, WI, & PA.
https://twitter.com/PatrickJMcHugh/status/1243225484877594624

Kaiser Permanente has restricted the lupus and rheumatoid arthritis treatment hydroxychloroquine amid a national shortage, prompted by the drug's potential to treat the coronavirus. "We face the real possibility of running out of the drug."
https://khn.org/news/why-hoarding-of-hydroxychloroquine-needs-to-stop/

"This is not stay at home and then invite all your friends over for a visit," says Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey, sounding a more dire alarm today. She urged Alabamians to stay isolated in their homes and take this outbreak seriously.
https://twitter.com/ChallenStephens/status/1243283712994873345

The U.S. now has more coronavirus cases than any other nation in the world. US population roughly 340+ million (all people in the US, legal and undocumented). The US surpassed China (population 1.3+ billion)
https://gisanddata.maps.arcgis.com/apps/opsdashboard/index.html#/bda7594740fd40299423467

b48e9ecf6

NHS workers are being evicted by landlords who fear they'll bring coronavirus back from hospitals
https://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/news/18332799.doctor-kicked-landlord-coronavirus-fears/
https://metro.co.uk/2020/03/22/paramedic-12437744/

This is great: @Fanatics, which makes official MLB uniforms, is halting production on them and turning their material into masks and gowns to be donated to hospital workers. They'll first be distributed in Pennsylvania, where a factory is located, then in New York and New Jersey.
https://twitter.com/jeffpassan/status/1243276394823589894?s=21

ICE requests 45,000 N95 masks despite dangerous shortage in U.S. hospitals
https://www.sfchronicle.com/nation/article/Coronavirus-ICE-requests-45-000-N95-masks-15157187.php

China's media censorship could have cost thousands of lives by preventing early coronavirus warning.
https://www.newsweek.com/chinas-media-censorship-could-have-cost-thousands-lives-preventing-early-coronavirus-warning-1494218

Worldwide coronavirus cases top 500,000, doubling in just over a week
https://www.cnbc.com/2020/03/26/worldwide-coronavirus-cases-top-500000-doubling-in-just-over-a-week.html

Looking at pictures of these fish, I never knew they looked that way from "extreme tissue damage". Imagine what this guy's death felt like?
https://i.redd.it/dbzcuoils0p41.jpg

Trump and Republicans illegally shut down the EPA. EPA suspends enforcement of environmental laws amid coronavirus. Industries freed to pollute all they want.
https://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/489753-epa-suspends-enforcement-of-environmental-laws-amid-coronavirus

As nurses, doctors and healthcare workers change shifts around the world, residents stand on their balconies to applaud the frontline heroes.
https://twitter.com/NBCNewsWorld/status/1243311215444725761

That was a piss poor performance by the reporters in the briefing room. Just embarrassing. There is zero reason to give the President a free campaign commercial every day where he's free to spread misinformation that could kill people.

This is criminal, these need to go to hospital workers and first responders in New York and New Jersey and Washington and elsewhere: CBP has 1.5 million expired N95 masks sitting in an Indiana warehouse that it plans to give to TSA, not hospitals or FEMA. The CDC issued guidelines nearly 4 weeks ago for the safe use of past-date masks, saying they remain effective
https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/coronavirus-government-mask-stockpile/2020/03/26/89d729c8-6f5b-11ea-96a0-df4c5d9284af_story.html

This is as clear an indicator that Trump intends to declare the economy open and demand that airports and airlines boot up to full speed on their schedules. It is a crazy idea.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/coronavirus-government-mask-stockpile/2020/03/26/89d729c8-6f5b-11ea-96a0-df4c5d9284af_story.html

One month ago today, Trump said "when you have 15 people, and the 15 within a couple of days is going to be down to close to zero, that’s a pretty good job we’ve done." As of today, the US, with 81,782 confirmed cases, has more total cases than any country in the world.
https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefings-statements/remarks-president-trump-vice-president-pence-members-coronavirus-task-force-press-conference/

Kious Kelly, a 48-year-old assistant nurse manager at Mount Sinai West, may have been the first NYC nurse to die from the virus. Angry co-workers blame a lack of protective gear. "I'm okay. Don't tell Mom and Dad. They'll worry," he wrote to his sister.
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/26/nyregion/nurse-dies-coronavirus-mount-sinai.html

Tonight Florida is up to 2,484 cases - 507 more than last night and 29 deaths
https://fdoh.maps.arcgis.com/apps/opsdashboard/index.html#/8d0de33f260d444c852a615dc7837c86

Dr. Alex Hsu first medical professional to die from coronavirus in South Florida "He positively touched many of our patients' lives throughout the years, and he will truly be missed. Our deepest condolences go out to his family."
https://www.wptv.com/news/coronavirus/dr-alex-hsu-first-medical-professional-to-die-from-coronavirus-in-south-florida

Reminder, we have very high unemployment numbers because we have to do radical social distancing. We have to do social distancing because we do not have enough tests to know where the virus is. We do not have enough tests because the Trump Admin bungled the tests.

Addiction experts call the coronavirus pandemic an extraordinary relapse trigger. Here are some virtual supports to help people in isolation maintain sobriety.
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/26/health/coronavirus-alcoholics-drugs-online.html


Miami’s Jackson Memorial Hospital, a taxpayer-financed system that’s the largest in the state, won’t publicly disclose the number of coronavirus and suspected coronavirus cases it has, saying the mere disclosure of the number somehow compromises patient privacy
https://twitter.com/MarcACaputo/status/1243234188045795328

Jacksonville Florida's excuse is using state statute 381.95 which is specifically tied to records exemption when an act of terrorism is involved. My theory is our Trump sycophant Gov (and mayor) is minimizing public knowledge of the problem.
https://twitter.com/rpettross/status/1243236850250272775

There’s no explanation for Florida’s ongoing coronavirus coverup other than @GovRonDeSantis choosing to protect Trump’s image rather than the lives of Floridians. Their blood will be on his hands.
https://twitter.com/CKhalil_/status/1243274656540430342

It's not a HIPAA violation unless they are providing information that can allow the public to identify these patients. Absurd that they are refusing to be transparent about COVID cases in the middle of a fucking pandemic.

Then how would he know if they had the Coronavirus: Another example of Trump minimizing the Coronavirus: “I just spoke to two people who had it. They never went to a doctor.”
https://twitter.com/Acosta/status/1243297901679386624

Postponed space missions are a drop in the bucket of coronavirus-related delays around the world, but they provide the starkest reminder of something fundamental: This is the only planet we have
https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2020/03/coronavirus-nasa-space-exploration/608782/

NYC has a third of the coronavirus cases in the nation. At least 365 deaths reported. There's no longer a 'six degrees of coronavirus.' I spoke to NYers who say they know several infected. This has become personal.
https://twitter.com/erikjhortiz/status/1243320785793626112

Job Vacancies and Inexperience Mar Federal Response to Coronavirus | Unfilled jobs and high turnover mean the government is ill equipped for a public health crisis, said many former and current federal officials and disaster experts.
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/26/us/politics/coronavirus-expertise-trump.html

White House Considers $1 Billion Price Tag for Ventilators — and Has Second Thoughts | A deal with General Motors and Ventec Life Systems to produce tens of thousands of the critical lifesaving devices seemed imminent. Then the announcement was pulled back. | The White House had been preparing on Wednesday to announce amid an escalating pandemic that a joint venture between General Motors and Ventec Life Systems would begin producing as many as 80,000 desperately needed ventilators when word suddenly came down that the announcement was off. The decision to cancel the announcement, according to government officials, came after the Federal Emergency Management Agency said it needed more time to assess whether the estimated cost was prohibitive — more than $1 billion, with several hundred million dollars to be paid upfront to General Motors to retool the car parts plant in Kokomo, Ind., where the ventilators would be made with Ventec’s technology.
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/26/us/politics/coronavirus-ventilators-trump.html

The pricetag and whether they would end up with an expensive surplus of ventilators. The pricetag would be just over $1 bill for duration of deal. The govt just forged a $2 trill spending deal......

Just think about this for a second: the White House is more worried about having too many ventilators than too few.
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/26/us/politics/coronavirus-ventilators-trump.html

More than 150 Boston hospital workers test positive for coronavirus
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2020/03/26/metro/dozens-boston-hospital-staffers-have-contracted-coronavirus/

Can Congress & the courts adjust to social distancing, while continuing to meet constitutional functions? Can the three branches meet virtually?
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/governing-during-social-distancing/id83213431?i=1000469641757