social security – The Past 24 Hours Or So

The Past 24 Hours or So – Coronavirus, Trump Administration, and Presidential Campaign Updates

Read Time: 5 Minutes

Coronavirus/COVID-19 Update

The U.S. reported 53,923 new cases and 1,088 additional deaths. Twelve of the last fifteen days have seen deaths in excess of 1,000. Two of the sub-1,000 days were Sundays when states’ reporting of numbers is traditionally lower.

The United States has now recorded more than 5 million people infected.

Five hundred seventy children in America, most of them previously healthy, have experienced an inflammatory syndrome associated with Covid-19 called Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children or MIS-C. Most became so ill that they needed intensive care, according to a new report from the CDC.

A new report by the CDC reveals that Hispanic and Black children have been affected by the coronavirus pandemic at a disproportionate rate, underscoring how minority communities across the country have been among the hardest hit by COVID-19.

Dr. Anthony Fauci said Friday that the chances of scientists creating a highly effective vaccine — one that provides 98% or more guaranteed protection — for the virus are slim.

President Trump announced he was issuing multiple executive actions designed to provide relief to millions of financially struggling Americans after talks between his aides and Democratic leaders on a new pandemic relief package broke down this week.

Speaking from his golf club in Bedminster, NJ, Trump said his orders would provide $400 per week in unemployment benefits, which is $200 less than the supplemental benefit that expired at the end of July. States will cover 25% of the costs while the federal government will cover 75%.

Trump also said he would suspend payments on some student loans through the end of the year, protect renters from being evicted from their homes, and instruct employers to defer certain payroll taxes through the end of the year for Americans who earn less than $100,000 annually.

It’s unclear where Trump will get the money to pay for the actions and whether they will face legal challenges.

Several GOP senators voiced discomfort regarding President Trump’s issuing of four executive orders meant to address the economic fall out of the coronavirus and bypassing Congress.

Some members of the president’s party took issue with the move, asserting that Congress should be legislating.

An official from a northeastern state run by a Democratic governor laughed on Saturday when asked about President Donald Trump’s executive action asking states to pay 25% of the $400 unemployment relief.

“We don’t have that money,” the official said.

The official went on to say they were not given a heads up on this executive action and that in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, their funds are completely tapped.

Tens of thousands of motorcyclists swarmed the streets of Sturgis, SD on Saturday for an annual rally despite objections from residents — and with little regard for the coronavirus.

The herds of people overran every street in town, making no effort to keep six feet apart. Few masks could be seen, and free bandannas being passed out were mostly folded, or wrapped around people’s heads.

Johns Hopkins University is moving to remote learning and reducing undergraduate tuition by 10 percent for the fall term.

University of Massachusetts, Amherst backtracked on a previous plan to let students enrolled in online classes live on campus. Just weeks before the semester is scheduled to begin, the university said only a small subset of students “enrolled in essential face-to-face classes” would be allowed into dorms and dining halls.

Officials at Harvard said that they plan to allow up to 40 percent of undergraduates, including the entire freshman class, to return to campus for the fall, but that all instruction would be delivered online.

The Mid-American Conference has postponed its entire fall sports season, becoming the first FBS conference to make the drastic decision because of ongoing concerns surrounding the coronavirus pandemic.

South Carolina reported 1,178 new cases and 67 additional deaths.

In a new “Fight the Spread” campaign, South Carolina health officials are encouraging residents to fight the spread of Covid-19 as evidence increases about “high rates of infection in people who do not have symptoms and don’t know they are infectious.”

Residents are urged to wear masks, practice social distancing and get tested.

The state’s current positivity rate is 15.9%,

Illinois reported more than 2,000 new Covid-19 positive cases for the second day in a row. The 2,190 new cases are the highest daily reported number since May 24.

Wisconsin reported 1,165 new cases – its highest single-day number.

Texas reported 6,959 new cases and 247 additional deaths.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) extended his disaster declaration for all Texas counties.

Texas’ 7-day Covid-19 positivity rate has risen to 19.41% — the highest average since the pandemic began.

California reported 7,371 new cases and 178 additional deaths.

Trump Administration

TikTok has plans to sue the Trump administration over President Trump’s executive order on Thursday that targeted the Chinese-owned app, a person with direct knowledge of the pending complaint told NPR.

NPR’s source said that the wildly popular video app could file the lawsuit as early as Tuesday, adding it will be filed with the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California, where the company’s American headquarters is located.

White House Trade Advisor Peter Navarro and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin clashed in front of President Trump on Thursday before he signed an executive order requiring the Chinese parent company of TikTok, called ByteDance, to sell the app within 45 days or see it banned in the U.S.

Aides present at the meeting told the Washington Post that Mnuchin pushed for tech giant Microsoft to look into purchasing TikTok while Navarro pushed for a complete ban of the app in the U.S. and accused Mnuchin of being too soft on China, leading to their argument in front of the president.

Sources described the interaction to the Post as a “knockdown, drag-out” brawl.

Jewish and Muslim advocacy groups came out against retired Army Col. Douglas Macgregor, President Trump’s pick for ambassador to Germany, after a series of past controversial remarks about the Holocaust, Jews and use of force against civilians were unsurfaced this week.

Presidential Campaign

Joe Biden blasted President Trump’s executive order to cut payroll taxes as “a reckless war on Social Security.”

“He is laying out his roadmap to cutting Social Security,” Biden said. “Our seniors and millions of Americans with disabilities are under enough stress without Trump putting their hard-earned Social Security benefits in doubt.”

Sources: ABC News, Associated Press, The Atlantic, Axios, Bloomberg, CBS News, CNN, Financial Times, Fox News,The Hill, Independent, NBC News, NJ.com, NPR, NY Times, Politico, Reuters, Salon, Slate, Vanity Fair, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post

The Past 24 Hours or So – Coronavirus/COVID-19 Update

Read Time: 5 Minutes

The U.S. reported 61,520 new cases and 1,333 additional deaths.

The U.S. response to the novel coronavirus ranked as 31st out of 36 ranked countries in the world as assessed by Foreign Policy Magazine.

The U.S. got the lowest score for “fact-based communication” as the magazine specifically noted President Trump for “amplifying misinformation and conspiracy theories about the virus” while highlighting his remarks during the July 4 celebration in which he claimed 99% of the cases are “harmless.”

The US also got low marks for its lack of testing and for how little it has spent on emergency healthcare, compared to other countries.

Mobility data collected from cell phones shows people in many parts of the country are moving around as much as they did before the pandemic started. More movement predicts more spread of the virus.

“We’re almost back to pre-Covid levels of mobility, so we’re just not being as cautious as other people are in other countries,” said Dr. Christopher Murray, director of the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington.

Murray said that when cases start to come down, people tend to start interacting more, resulting in the up and down phenomenon many states have experienced with Covid-19 cases.

Consistently wearing masks could save the lives of nearly 70,000 people projected to die of the virus by December 1.

“It’s rare that you see something so simple, so inexpensive, so easy for everybody to participate in can have such an extraordinary impact in the US and also all over the world,” Murray said.

Dr. Anthony Fauci said states should look closely at their percent positive rates to gauge how their state is doing.

“When you have a percent positive that clicks up even [slightly], it almost never turns around spontaneously, unless you do something different than you’re doing,” Fauci said.

The Covid-19 pandemic is moving into younger populations with cases skyrocketing among children, teens and young adults.

The CDC has closed several buildings it leases because Legionella bacteria, the bacteria that causes Legionnaires disease, have been found in their water systems.

The plumbing in buildings that have been closed for months could provide a perfect breeding ground for Legionella and other waterborne pathogens.

Negotiations over the next stimulus package stalled on Capitol Hill with Democrats and Trump administration officials walking away after talks broke down on Friday and devolved into partisan finger-pointing.

Lead White House negotiators Mark Meadows and Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin said they were recommending Trump move ahead with a series of executive orders.

Democrats warn that executive action taken will be insufficient to address the extent of the economic and public health crisis faced by Americans during the pandemic.

The economic downturn could accelerate the Social Security and Medicare trust funds running out of money. According to the Bipartisan Policy Center, in 2029 beneficiaries could see retirement payments cut by a third.

Prior to the coronavirus pandemic, the program’s trustees had projected funds would be depleted in 2035.

President Trump’s push for a payroll tax suspension could leave Social Security and Medicare on shakier ground.

The U.S. economy added another 1.8 million jobs in July, a sharp slowdown from June and a small step for an economy that’s still down 12.9 million jobs during the pandemic.

Dozens of mostly maskless guests gathered at President Trump’s private club in Bedminster, NJ to watch his Friday evening news conference, flouting the state’s coronavirus restrictions.

Princeton University will not offer on-campus learning for its undergraduates for the fall semester. The university had previously said it would stagger its semesters, with freshmen and juniors returning in the fall and sophomores and seniors in the spring.

Howard University President Dr. Wayne Frederick said in a statement that the upcoming fall semester will be fully online.

Six football players, including three starters from last season, at the University of Maryland have opted out of the upcoming season.

Vermont Gov. Phil Scott (R) said his administration is working with the Vermont Principals Association, the Superintendent’s Association of School Athletic Directors and Coaches, “with a goal that will allow for all [high school and rec] sports to move forward in some fashion.”

Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker (R) indefinitely postponed the state’s reopening plan and decreased the limits on gatherings after a “slight uptick in positive cases.”. He also authorized state and local police to enforce shutdown orders.

Schools in New York can reopen for in-person instruction this fall, Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) said Friday. It is now up to local politicians and superintendents to decide whether to reopen, and how to do so. Their in-person reopening plans must also be approved by the state’s education and health departments in the coming weeks.

Georgia reported 4,177 new cases and 92 additional deaths.

At least 260 students and eight teachers from a suburban school district in Atlanta, Georgia, were quarantined after multiple students and teachers tested positive for Covid-19 during the first week of school.

Florida reported 7,686 new cases and 180 additional deaths.

Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker (D) announced new rules designed to better enforce mask requirements and give local authorities guidelines for issuing warnings and fines for non-compliance.

Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson (R) signed an executive order that will allow people with “COVID-related concerns about going to the polls in November” to qualify for absentee ballots.

Las Vegas fined the Ahern Hotel for hosting a religious campaign event for President Trump that broke Nevada’s restrictions on large gatherings amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Gatherings of more than 50 people in either indoor and outdoor areas are prohibited.

The group, Evangelicals for Trump, held an event, headlined by the president’s personal pastor Paula White, with more than 500 attendees.

California reported 142 new coronavirus deaths, bringing the statewide total to 10,011.

California colleges and universities reopening this fall will need to follow guidelines issued by the California Department of Public Health, which include the use of face coverings, social distancing, and cleaning protocols.

While indoor lectures are currently prohibited in counties on the state’s monitoring list, courses offered in specialized indoor settings like labs and studio arts will be permitted as long as substantial physical distancing measures are in place.

Many campuses in the state have announced they will start the school year with mostly online classes.

Public schools on the Hawaiian island of Oahu will move to distance learning for the first four weeks of the academic year.