npr--2020-07-13--CDC Employees Call Out Agency's 'Toxic Culture Of Racial Aggression'

More than 1,000 current employees at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have signed a letter calling for the federal agency to address `` ongoing and recurring acts of racism and discrimination '' against Black employees , NPR has learned .
In the letter , addressed to CDC Director Robert Redfield and dated June 30 , the authors put their call for change in the context of the coronavirus pandemic 's disproportionate impact on Black people and the killings of George Floyd , Ahmaud Arbery , Breonna Taylor and Rayshard Brooks .
NPR obtained a copy of the letter @ @ @ @ @ @ @ In light of the recent calls for justice across this country and around the world , we , as dedicated public health professionals , can no longer stay silent to the widespread acts of racism and discrimination within CDC that are , in fact , undermining the agency 's core mission , '' the letter reads .
The letter offers a rare glimpse inside a famously opaque federal agency , where career staff often work for decades , and information is carefully filtered to the public through the press office .
Dr. Camara @ @ @ @ @ @ @ officer at CDC for 14 years and remains in contact with current employees , says that after the letter was sent to Redfield , it was circulated among the 11,000 person workforce for signatures .
As of Sunday evening , 1,007 staff members signed the letter – 9 % of the agency 's workforce – and the number of signatories is growing , Jones says .
She adds that at least one division head signed , and around 300 employees chose to endorse the letter anonymously .
Only current CDC employees could sign @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sign it only once , according to Jones .
Any CDC employee could sign , not just people of color .
The racial breakdown of the signatories was not known .
In a statement to NPR , a CDC spokesman acknowledged that Redfield received the letter and responded to it , adding , `` CDC is committed to fostering a fair , equitable , and inclusive environment in which staff can openly share their concerns with agency leadership . ''
Jones says her understanding is that Redfield 's response did not address the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
`` I find that disheartening and disrespectful , '' she says .
In the letter , the authors point to a variety of `` well-meaning , yet under-funded '' efforts to diversify the agency 's workforce over the past several decades , and assert that none of them have made much difference .
They note that Black employees represent only 10 % of senior leadership and 6 % of CDC 's 2019 class of the Epidemic Intelligence Service , a fellowship program described as `` the training ground for tomorrow 's leaders @ @ @ @ @ @ @ an `` old boy/girl network '' where white managers promote white staff while allegedly stifling and discouraging Black staff .
It also says that hundreds of Equal Employment Opportunity complaints have been filed by Black employees in the past decades , many of them unresolved .
`` Systemic racism is not just a concept perpetrated outside these walls , '' the letter reads .
`` It is a crushing reality for people of color in their daily lived experiences here at CDC . ''
The authors make seven demands for action , including @ @ @ @ @ @ @ CDC 's culture , and publicly declaring racism a public health crisis in the U.S. CDC has stumbled in its attempts to address the disproportionate impact of the coronavirus on Black Americans and other communities of color .
Although data are incomplete , Black and Latino people in the U.S. are at least two times more likely than white people to die from COVID-19 , and three times more likely to get sick .
Congress required CDC to report data to lawmakers about COVID-19 and racial disparities .
But the agency 's first @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , was panned by Sen. Patty Murray , D-Wash. , as a `` lazy , four-page copy and paste project , '' that mostly consisted of links to CDC web pages .
The agency 's follow-up in June was longer , but also `` incomplete '' and `` still inadequate to the task at hand , '' according to written statement from Murray .
`` CDC has been MIA on race and COVID-19 , '' says Greg Millett , who worked as a senior scientist there until 2009 , and is now at @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
`` I think that it 's telling that here I am , sitting on the outside , a former CDC employee , and I 've been able to scoop the agency [ ... ] in the data that I 've been able to publish on COVID-19 's impact on African Americans , '' he says .
`` CDC has still not really come up with anything meaningful about what 's taking place in Black and brown communities around COVID-19 .
That to me is shameful , and shows that the scientists who @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are not necessarily being empowered to do that work . ''
`` We are hurt .
We are angry .
We are exhausted , '' the authors write .
`` And ultimately , we fear that , despite the global protests , little will be done to address the systemic racism we face each and every day . ''
Failing to address racism 's role in causing health problems , the authors say , `` is a key reason why we have witnessed little progress in reducing many of these disparities in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ . ''
Jones , who left CDC in 2014 , says she feels encouraged to see Black employees organizing to effect change .
`` When I first saw the letter , it was a feeling of resonance , '' she says .
`` I know that this is no exaggeration . ''
Her own work was on racism and public health , and she says she felt thwarted and undermined in her attempts to get the agency to address these issues .
She says after a lunchtime presentation she gave on racism , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ how racism `` 'unfairly advantages other individuals and communities ' off of my slide because that made white people uncomfortable . ''
After she left CDC , she served as president of the American Public Health Association , and taught at the Morehouse School of Medicine .
Although Millett personally felt supported by mentors during his time at CDC , he says the environment described in the letter resonated with him , too .
He 's supportive of the letter 's organizers and hopes it can lead to change at the agency .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ CDC who can help understand what 's taking place in our various communities , '' he says .
`` I do feel that we 're on the precipice of actually changing something here . ''
Jones is less hopeful .
She says there are troubling consequences to the sidelining of Black scientists at CDC , including from working on the impact of COVID on their own communities .
`` We are squandering genius , '' she says .
`` We 're squandering insight .
We 're squandering talent within CDC that could then @ @ @ @ @ @ @ health issues of the nation . ''

CDC Employees Call Out Agency's 'Toxic Culture Of Racial Aggressions'
Enlarge this image toggle caption Graeme Jennings/Getty Images Graeme Jennings/Getty Images
Updated 6:15 p.m. ET
More than 1,200 current employees at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have signed a letter calling for the federal agency to address "ongoing and recurring acts of racism and discrimination" against Black employees, NPR has learned.
In the letter, addressed to CDC Director Robert Redfield and dated June 30, the authors put their call for change in the context of the coronavirus pandemic's disproportionate impact on Black people and the killings of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor and Rayshard Brooks. NPR obtained a copy of the letter, which is published below.
"In light of the recent calls for justice across this country and around the world, we, as dedicated public health professionals, can no longer stay silent to the widespread acts of racism and discrimination within CDC that are, in fact, undermining the agency's core mission," the letter reads.
We are hurt. We are angry. We are exhausted. And ultimately, we fear that, despite the global protests, little will be done to address the systemic racism we face each and every day.
The letter offers a rare glimpse inside a famously opaque federal agency, where career staff often work for decades and information is carefully filtered to the public through the press office.
Dr. Camara Phyllis Jones, who was a medical officer at the CDC for 14 years and remains in contact with current employees, says that after the letter was sent to Redfield, it was circulated among the 11,000-person workforce for signatures.
As of Monday afternoon, 1,204 staff members had signed the letter — more than 10% of the agency's workforce — and the number of signatories is growing, Jones says. She adds that at least one division head signed, and about 300 employees chose to endorse the letter anonymously. Only current CDC employees could sign the letter, and each person could sign it only once, according to Jones. Any CDC employee could sign, not just people of color. The racial breakdown of the signatories was not known.
In a statement to NPR, a CDC spokesman acknowledged that Redfield received the letter and responded to it, adding, "CDC is committed to fostering a fair, equitable, and inclusive environment in which staff can openly share their concerns with agency leadership."
Jones says her understanding is that Redfield's response did not address the specific requests for action in the letter. "I find that disheartening and disrespectful," she says.
In the letter, the authors point to a variety of "well-meaning, yet under-funded" efforts to diversify the agency's workforce over the past several decades and assert that none of them have made much difference. They note that Black employees represent only 10% of senior leadership and 6% of the CDC's 2019 class of the Epidemic Intelligence Service, a fellowship program described as "the training ground for tomorrow's leaders within the agency."
It describes an "old boy/girl network," where white managers promote white staff while allegedly stifling and discouraging Black staff, and a "pervasive and toxic culture of racial aggressions." It also says that hundreds of Equal Employment Opportunity complaints have been filed by Black employees in the past decades, many of them unresolved.
"Systemic racism is not just a concept perpetrated outside these walls," the letter reads. "It is a crushing reality for people of color in their daily lived experiences here at CDC."
The authors make seven demands for action, including diversifying senior leadership, addressing racism in the CDC's culture, and publicly declaring racism a public health crisis in the U.S.
The CDC has stumbled in its attempts to address the disproportionate impact of the coronavirus on Black Americans and other communities of color. Although data are incomplete, Black and Latino people in the U.S. are at least two times more likely than white people to die from COVID-19 and three times more likely to get sick.
Congress required the CDC to report data to lawmakers about COVID-19 and racial disparities. But the agency's first report, sent to lawmakers in May, was panned by Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., as a "lazy, four-page copy and paste project" that mostly consisted of links to CDC webpages. The agency's follow-up in June was longer, but also "incomplete" and "still inadequate to the task at hand," according to a written statement from Murray.
"CDC has been MIA on race and COVID-19," says Greg Millett, who worked as a senior scientist there until 2009 and is now at amfAR, the Foundation for AIDS Research.
"I think that it's telling that here I am, sitting on the outside, a former CDC employee, and I've been able to scoop the agency [...] in the data that I've been able to publish on COVID-19's impact on African Americans," he says. "CDC has still not really come up with anything meaningful about what's taking place in Black and brown communities around COVID-19. That to me is shameful, and shows that the scientists who are there who can do that work are not necessarily being empowered to do that work."
"We are hurt. We are angry. We are exhausted," the authors write. "And ultimately, we fear that, despite the global protests, little will be done to address the systemic racism we face each and every day."
Failing to address racism's role in causing health problems, the authors say, "is a key reason why we have witnessed little progress in reducing many of these disparities in the United States over the past 50 years."
Jones, who left the CDC in 2014, says she feels encouraged to see Black employees organizing to effect change. "When I first saw the letter, it was a feeling of resonance," she says. "I know that this is no exaggeration."
Her own work was on racism and public health, and she says she felt thwarted and undermined in her attempts to get the agency to address these issues. She says after a lunchtime presentation she gave on racism, she was asked to remove references to how racism " 'unfairly advantages other individuals and communities' off of my slide because that made white people uncomfortable."
After she left the CDC, she served as president of the American Public Health Association and taught at the Morehouse School of Medicine.
Although Millett personally felt supported by mentors during his time at the CDC, he says the environment described in the letter resonated with him, too. He's supportive of the letter's organizers and hopes it can lead to change at the agency.
"We need more Black scientists at CDC who can help understand what's taking place in our various communities," he says. "I do feel that we're on the precipice of actually changing something here."
Jones is less hopeful. She says there are troubling consequences to the sidelining of Black scientists at the CDC, including from working on the impact of COVID-19 on their own communities.
"We are squandering genius," she says. "We're squandering insight. We're squandering talent within CDC that could then lead CDC's mission to address the health issues of the nation."


npr--2020-07-13--A Senate Takeover Is Very Much A Possibility For Democrats. Just Follow The Money

A Senate Takeover Is Very Much A Possibility For Democrats .
Just Follow The Money To take control of the U.S. Senate , Democrats need to net three seats in November if former Vice President Joe Biden wins , and four if President Trump is reelected .
That once looked like a near impossibility , but it 's becoming a real possibility .
Republicans hold a 53-to-47 majority in the Senate , with the Democrats ' side including two independents who caucus with them .
Five Republican incumbents are looking increasingly vulnerable , with their races labeled as `` toss @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Meanwhile one Democrat , Doug Jones of Alabama , is seen as being in real jeopardy .
Those five Republicans are Arizona 's Martha McSally , Colorado 's Cory Gardner , Maine 's Susan Collins , Montana 's Steve Daines and North Carolina 's Thom Tillis .
Fundraising reports from the Federal Election Commission provide glimpses of Democratic strength .
In Arizona , for instance , challenger Mark Kelly has so far outraised the Republican incumbent McSally by some $ 12 million .
In all , there are 11 states that Cook @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lean '' toward one party or another .
Republicans hold fundraising advantages in six of those states , but in several of those races , the Democrat 's latest FEC report is a bit outdated , likely underselling the candidate 's money raised .
For example , challenger Cal Cunningham , in North Carolina , announced last week that he raised about $ 7 million in the second quarter .
So keep that in mind as you look at the how the money race stands in each of those 11 contests : Note @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Maine 's Democratic primary on Tuesday .
Note : Bullock 's fundraising report only goes through May 13 , while Daines ' goes through June 17 .
Note : Cunningham 's fundraising report only goes through March 31 , while Tillis ' goes through June 9 .
Note : Ossoff 's fundraising report only goes through May 20 , while Perdue 's goes through June 20 .
Note : The election in November is a special election and would go to a runoff if no one gets more than 50 % .
These @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the race .
Note : Greenfield 's fundraising report only goes through May 13 , while Ernst 's goes through June 30 .
Note : The Republican runoff election is Tuesday .
Jones ' fundraising report only goes through March 31 .
1 .
Alabama Senate matchup to be decided : There are elections in Alabama , Maine and Texas Tuesday .
The marquee race is the Alabama Republican Senate runoff , which pits former Sen. Jeff Sessions against former Auburn football coach Tommy Tuberville .
Back in March , Tuberville took the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 33 % of the vote to Sessions ' 32 % .
To win the nomination , a candidate needs more than 50 % of the vote .
Now , with it a two-man race , Tuberville is seen as the favorite .
Sessions has asked for debates , which Tuberville has n't agreed to .
And despite Sessions being the first U.S. senator to endorse Trump , Trump backed Tuberville and tweeted against Sessions .
`` Alabama , do not trust Jeff Sessions .
He let our Country down , '' Trump tweeted @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Mueller investigation as Trump 's attorney general .
2 .
Coronavirus cases continue to jump ... : About 135,000 Americans have died , and there have been more than 3 million Americans infected .
And Sunday brought more bad news for Florida , which reported 15,299 new coronavirus cases — the largest single-day increase of any state since the start of the pandemic .
And nearly half of Florida 's intensive care units are reportedly at least 90 % full .
Gov .
Ron DeSantis claimed last week that Florida 's curve @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , making the virus hang around longer .
3 .
... And Trump is passing the buck : Dr. Anthony Fauci , the nation 's top infectious disease expert , says he has n't briefed Trump on the coronavirus in two months and the last time he saw him in the White House was June 2 .
And yet Trump now is trying to lay blame on him .
`` Dr. Fauci is a nice man , but he 's made a lot of mistakes , '' Trump said on Fox News .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ pass the buck to , Americans are not approving of how he has handled the pandemic .
An ABC News/Ipsos poll found just 33 % approved of his handling of it , while 67 % disapprove .
That 's a record low , something reflected in an average of the polls as well .
4 .
Trump tries to push other areas : Trump is pushing for schools to reopen this fall , and there could be new guidelines issued to align with that from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ of executive orders coming from Trump , focusing on other areas like immigration , China , manufacturing and even prescription drug pricing .
On Wednesday , Trump travels to Atlanta to discuss transportation and infrastructure .
And we 'll see if the president announces another rally after canceling his scheduled outdoor one in New Hampshire that was supposed to take place this past weekend .
It was canceled due to the threat of a tropical storm .
Trump is searching around for anything to stick to get him out of this political hole @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the weekend : '' I 've never been against masks , but I do believe they have a time and a place . ''
-- After months of refusing to wear one , Trump was photographed wearing a mask during a visit to the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center on Saturday .
Staffers had reportedly had been `` pleading '' with him to wear one .

A Senate Takeover Is Very Much A Possibility For Democrats. Just Follow The Money
Enlarge this image toggle caption Mark Wilson/Getty Images Mark Wilson/Getty Images
Updated 11:52 a.m. ET
To take control of the U.S. Senate, Democrats need to net three seats in November if former Vice President Joe Biden wins, and four if President Trump is reelected.
That once looked like a near impossibility, but it's becoming a real possibility.
Republicans hold a 53-to-47 majority in the Senate, with the Democrats' side including two independents who caucus with them.
Five Republican incumbents are looking increasingly vulnerable, with their races labeled as "toss ups" by the Cook Political Report. Meanwhile one Democrat, Doug Jones of Alabama, is seen as being in real jeopardy.
Those five Republicans are Arizona's Martha McSally, Colorado's Cory Gardner, Maine's Susan Collins, Montana's Steve Daines and North Carolina's Thom Tillis.
Fundraising reports from the Federal Election Commission provide glimpses of Democratic strength. In Arizona, for instance, challenger Mark Kelly has so far outraised the Republican incumbent McSally by some $12 million.
In all, there are 11 states that Cook labels as toss-ups or that "lean" toward one party or another. Republicans hold fundraising advantages in six of those states, but in several of those races, the Democrat's latest FEC report is a bit outdated, likely underselling the candidate's money raised. For example, challenger Cal Cunningham in North Carolina announced last week that he raised about $7 million in the second quarter.
So keep that in mind as you look at the how the money race stands in each of those 11 contests:
Democratic Targets:
Arizona (McSally incumbent, toss-up)
- Kelly, D: $31.3 million raised, $19.7 million cash on hand
- McSally, R : $19 million raised, $10.3 million cash on hand
Colorado (Gardner incumbent, toss-up)
- Gardner, R: $15.7 million raised, $9.3 million cash on hand
- John Hickenlooper, D: $12.6 million raised, $5.9 million cash on hand
Maine (Collins incumbent, toss-up)
- Sara Gideon, D: $23 million raised, $5.5 million cash on hand
- Collins, R: $16.3 million raised, $5 million cash on hand
Note: Gideon is the favorite to win Maine's Democratic primary on Tuesday.
Montana (Daines incumbent, toss-up)
- Daines, R: $9.4 million raised, $5.8 million cash on hand
- Steve Bullock, D: $5.9 million raised, $4.1 million cash on hand
Note: Bullock's fundraising report only goes through May 13, while Daines' goes through June 17.
North Carolina (Tillis incumbent, toss-up)
- Tillis, R: $11.7 million raised, $6.5 million cash on hand
- Cunningham, D: $7.7 million raised, $3 million cash on hand
Note: Cunningham's fundraising report only goes through March 31, while Tillis' goes through June 9.
Georgia (Perdue incumbent, lean R)
- David Perdue, R: $13.2 million raised, $9.4 million cash on hand
- Jon Ossoff, D: $4.1 million raised, $1 million cash on hand
Note: Ossoff's fundraising report only goes through May 20, while Perdue's goes through June 20.
Georgia (Loeffler incumbent, lean R)
- Kelly Loeffler, R: $11.7 million raised, $6.1 million cash on hand
- Doug Collins, R: $2.5 million raised, $2.2 million cash on hand
- Raphael Warnock, D: $1.5 million raised, $1.2 million cash on hand
Note: The election in November is a special election and would go to a runoff if no one gets more than 50%. These three candidates led a recent poll of the race.
Iowa (Ernst incumbent, lean R)
- Joni Ernst, R: $12.3 million raised, $7 million cash on hand
- Theresa Greenfield, D: $7.1 million raised, $4.7 million cash on hand
Note: Greenfield's fundraising report only goes through May 13, while Ernst's goes through June 30.
Kansas (open seat with Sen. Pat Roberts retiring, lean R)
- Barbara Bollier*, D: $7 million raised, $4 million cash on hand
- Bob Hamilton, R: $2.2 million raised, $2.2 million cash on hand
- Roger Marshall, R: $2.1 million raised, $1.9 million cash on hand
- Kris Kobach, R: $595,000 raised, $317,000 cash on hand
Note: The state primaries are Aug. 4; *Bollier's numbers were released by the campaign, but not yet officially posted to the FEC.
Republican Targets:
Alabama (Jones incumbent, lean R)
- Doug Jones, D: $11.8 million raised, $8.3 million cash on hand
- Tommy Tuberville, R: $4 million raised, $448,000 cash on hand
- Jeff Sessions, R: $2.2 million raised, $500,000 cash on hand
Note: The Republican runoff election is Tuesday. Jones' fundraising report only goes through March 31.
Michigan (Peters incumbent, lean D)
- Gary Peters, D: $15.8 million raised, $8.8 million cash on hand
- John James, R: $13.1 million raised, $8.6 million cash on hand
4 things to watch this week:
Enlarge this image toggle caption Vasha Hunt/AP Vasha Hunt/AP
1. Alabama Senate matchup to be decided: There are elections in Alabama, Maine and Texas on Tuesday. The marquee race is the Alabama Republican Senate runoff, which pits former Sen. Jeff Sessions against former Auburn football coach Tommy Tuberville. Back in March, Tuberville took the top spot in the GOP primary with 33% of the vote to Sessions' 32%. To win the nomination, a candidate needs more than 50% of the vote. Now, with it a two-man race, Tuberville is seen as the favorite.
Sessions has asked for debates, which Tuberville hasn't agreed to. And despite Sessions being the first U.S. senator to endorse Trump, Trump backed Tuberville and tweeted against Sessions. "Alabama, do not trust Jeff Sessions. He let our Country down," Trump tweeted. All because Sessions recused himself from the Mueller investigation as Trump's attorney general.
2. Coronavirus cases continue to jump...: More than 135,000 Americans have died of COVID-19, and more than 3 million Americans have been infected with the coronavirus. And Sunday brought more bad news for Florida, which reported 15,299 new coronavirus cases — the largest single-day increase of any state since the start of the pandemic. And nearly half of Florida's intensive care units are reportedly at least 90% full. Gov. Ron DeSantis claimed last week that Florida's curve was "flatter" than other places, making the virus hang around longer.
3. ...And Trump is passing the buck: Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation's top infectious disease expert, says he hasn't briefed Trump on the coronavirus in two months and the last time he saw him in the White House was June 2. And yet Trump now is trying to lay blame on him. "Dr. Fauci is a nice man, but he's made a lot of mistakes," Trump said on Fox News. No matter who the president tries to pass the buck to, Americans are not approving of how he has handled the pandemic. An ABC News/Ipsos poll found just 33% approved of his handling of it, while 67% disapprove. That's a record low, something reflected in an average of the polls as well.
4. Trump tries to push other areas: Trump is pushing for schools to reopen this fall, and there could be new guidelines issued to align with that from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. But there could also be a series of executive orders coming from Trump, focusing on other areas like immigration, China, manufacturing and even prescription drug pricing. On Wednesday, Trump travels to Atlanta to discuss transportation and infrastructure.
And we'll see if the president announces another rally after canceling his scheduled outdoor one in New Hampshire that was supposed to take place this past weekend. It was canceled due to the threat of a tropical storm. Trump is searching around for anything to stick to get him out of this political hole he's dug for himself.
Quote of the weekend:
"I've never been against masks, but I do believe they have a time and a place."
After months of refusing to wear one, Trump was photographed wearing a mask during a visit to the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center on Saturday. Staffers reportedly had been "pleading" with him to wear one.


npr--2020-07-13--Sessions Fights For His Political Life, As Trump Looms Over Alabama Senate Race

Sessions Fights For His Political Life , As Trump Looms Over Alabama Senate Race Veterans gathered recently beside the USS Alabama battleship on Mobile Bay in a show of support for former U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions .
`` Let 's hear it for the man of the hour , the once and future senator from Alabama , the honorable veteran Jeff Sessions , '' retired Brig .
Gen. Richard Allen said in introducing Sessions .
But the crowd was sparse .
And only one television camera showed up , even though the appearance was in his hometown of Mobile @ @ @ @ @ @ @ life in a Republican runoff for his old Alabama Senate seat .
The 73-year-old faces a political newcomer , the former Auburn University football coach Tommy Tuberville , who has a double-digit advantage , according to recent polling .
The winner in Tuesday 's runoff will advance to the general election to take on Sen. Doug Jones , the most vulnerable Democrat in the Senate and the GOP 's best shot to win a seat held by a Democrat .
While Sessions is touting local endorsements , his opponent has one from the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ state : President Trump .
Sessions says it 's not up to Washington to dictate the race .
`` The president can endorse who he wishes , '' he said .
`` But the people of Alabama will decide this race . ''
Sessions finds himself in a completely different position than he was in 2016 , when throngs cheered for him in Mobile as he appeared with then-candidate Donald Trump .
Sessions was one of the first Deep South politicians to endorse him .
`` We have a man here who really @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the time .
`` He 's the one person I sought his counsel because he 's so spot-on . ''
Sessions served 20 years in the Senate and was the leading voice against illegal immigration , long before Trump called for a border wall .
Sessions argues he remains the candidate most aligned with the president 's agenda .
But he 's most associated now with his troubled tenure in the Trump administration , and his decision to recuse himself from special counsel Robert Mueller 's Russia probe .
Sessions was ousted as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ mocked by Trump , who 's called Sessions a `` disaster . ''
`` I know that he has his strong feelings about this race , '' Sessions said .
`` I know he 's upset about the long , prolonged investigation that really disrupted his life and , in many ways , made it hard for him to govern effectively . ''
Sessions says he was bound to follow the law .
`` I did my duty as I saw it , '' he said .
`` And I believe in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ '' On Saturday , Trump once again took to Twitter in support of Tuberville .
`` [ H ] e is a winner who will never let you down , '' Trump wrote .
`` Jeff Sessions is a disaster who has let us all down .
We do n't want him back in Washington ! ''
Sessions responded more forcefully than he has in the past .
`` My honor and integrity are far more important than these juvenile insults , '' he clapped back .
Tuberville 's campaign has sought to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ damaged goods .
`` You ca n't fake it .
You 're either strong or you 're not .
Jeff Sessions , he 's not , '' the former Auburn coach says in an ad set in a gym with weightlifters behind him .
`` He was n't man enough to stand with President Trump when things got tough . ''
The ad also shows a clip of Tuberville walking down the steps of Air Force One with Trump on a June trip to Dallas .
Tuberville earned the nickname `` the Riverboat @ @ @ @ @ @ @ football field during his coaching career , but with a polling lead , he has taken few risks in this runoff , which was moved to July from March because of the coronavirus pandemic .
Tuberville has refused to debate and is generally avoiding media in the run-up to Tuesday 's vote .
With no political record , he 's faced scrutiny for his role in a hedge fund that defrauded investors , and Sessions has criticized him for living in Florida before coming back to Alabama to run for Senate .
But @ @ @ @ @ @ @ gets the celebrity coach treatment in a state where college football is the holy grail .
`` What 's up , Coach Tub ? ''
fans ask in a Facebook video from Tuberville 's visit to a boat parade honoring Trump in Orange Beach over the Fourth of July weekend .
`` I need your vote to send a U.S. senator to Washington , D.C. , to represent this state , this country and Donald Trump , '' Tuberville tells people packed on boats flying Trump 2020 campaign flags .
Back at Battleship @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a veteran who served in the Iraq and Gulf wars , said he 's torn on which Republican to vote for .
He 's a Trump supporter but says the president 's demeaning tweets about Sessions are n't a factor for him .
`` Just nitpicking , to me that 's childish , '' he said .
Hartz thinks the race comes down to whether Alabama needs a political outsider or someone who knows the halls of power .
`` I 'm an Auburn fan but yet you got a career politician versus @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and knows very little about politics , '' Hartz said .
Whichever candidate wins the GOP runoff will have the advantage heading into November against the Democrat Jones , in a state where Trump has his highest net approval rating in the country .

Sessions Fights For His Political Life As Trump Looms Over Alabama Senate Race
Enlarge this image toggle caption Vasha Hunt/AP Vasha Hunt/AP
Veterans gathered recently beside the USS Alabama battleship on Mobile Bay in a show of support for former U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions.
"Let's hear it for the man of the hour, the once and future senator from Alabama, the honorable veteran Jeff Sessions," retired Brig. Gen. Richard Allen said in introducing Sessions.
But the crowd was sparse. And only one television camera showed up, even though the appearance was in his hometown of Mobile, Ala.
Sessions is fighting for his political life in a Republican runoff for his old Alabama Senate seat. The 73-year-old faces a political newcomer, the former Auburn University football coach Tommy Tuberville, who has a double-digit advantage, according to recent polling. The winner in Tuesday's runoff will advance to the general election to take on Sen. Doug Jones, the most vulnerable Democrat in the Senate and the GOP's best shot to win a seat held by a Democrat.
While Sessions is touting local endorsements, his opponent has one from the most popular politician in this deeply red state: President Trump.
Sessions says it's not up to Washington to dictate the race.
"The president can endorse who he wishes," he said. "But the people of Alabama will decide this race."
Enlarge this image toggle caption John Minchillo/AP John Minchillo/AP
Sessions finds himself in a completely different position than he was in 2016, when throngs cheered for him in Mobile as he appeared with then-candidate Donald Trump. Sessions was one of the first Deep South politicians to endorse him.
"We have a man here who really helped me," Trump said at the time. "He's the one person I sought his counsel because he's so spot-on."
Sessions served 20 years in the Senate and was the leading voice against illegal immigration, long before Trump called for a border wall. Sessions argues that he remains the candidate most aligned with the president's agenda.
But he's most associated now with his troubled tenure in the Trump administration, and his decision to recuse himself from special counsel Robert Mueller's Russia probe. Sessions was ousted as attorney general in 2018 after being repeatedly mocked by Trump, who has called Sessions a "disaster."
"I know that he has his strong feelings about this race," Sessions said. "I know he's upset about the long, prolonged investigation that really disrupted his life and, in many ways, made it hard for him to govern effectively."
Sessions says he was bound to follow the law.
"I did my duty as I saw it," he said. "And I believe in the long run, it worked out."
On Saturday, Trump once again took to Twitter in support of Tuberville. "[H]e is a winner who will never let you down," Trump wrote. "Jeff Sessions is a disaster who has let us all down. We don't want him back in Washington!"
Sessions responded more forcefully than he has in the past: "My honor and integrity are far more important than these juvenile insults."
Tuberville's campaign has sought to exploit the notion that Sessions is now damaged goods.
"You can't fake it. You're either strong or you're not. Jeff Sessions, he's not," the former Auburn coach says in an ad set in a gym with weightlifters behind him. "He wasn't man enough to stand with President Trump when things got tough."
The ad also shows a clip of Tuberville walking down the steps of Air Force One with Trump on a June trip to Dallas.
Tuberville earned the nickname "the Riverboat Gambler" for taking risks on the football field during his coaching career, but with a polling lead, he has taken few risks in this runoff, which was moved to July from March because of the coronavirus pandemic. Tuberville has refused to debate and is generally avoiding media in the run-up to Tuesday's vote.
With no political record, he has faced scrutiny for his role in a hedge fund that defrauded investors, and Sessions has criticized him for living in Florida before coming back to Alabama to run for Senate.
But out on the campaign trail, Tuberville gets the celebrity coach treatment in a state where college football is the holy grail.
"What's up, Coach Tub?" fans ask in a Facebook video from Tuberville's visit to a boat parade honoring Trump in Orange Beach over the Fourth of July weekend.
"I need your vote to send a U.S. senator to Washington, D.C., to represent this state, this country and Donald Trump," Tuberville tells people packed on boats flying Trump 2020 campaign flags.
Enlarge this image toggle caption Nicholas Kamm/AFP via Getty Images Nicholas Kamm/AFP via Getty Images
Back at Battleship Park in Mobile, Reginald Hartz, a veteran who served in the Iraq and Gulf wars, said he's torn about which Republican to vote for. He's a Trump supporter but says the president's demeaning tweets about Sessions aren't a factor for him.
"Just nitpicking, to me that's childish," he said.
Hartz thinks the race comes down to whether Alabama needs a political outsider or someone who knows the halls of power.
"I'm an Auburn fan but yet you got a career politician versus a guy that's never set foot and knows very little about politics," Hartz said.
Whichever candidate wins the GOP runoff will have the advantage heading into November against the Democrat Jones, in a state where Trump has his highest net approval rating in the country.


npr--2020-07-13--Signed, Sealed, Undelivered: Thousands Of Mail-In Ballots Rejected For Tardiness

Mail-in voting , which tens of millions of Americans are expected to use this November , is fraught with potential problems .
Hundreds of thousands of ballots go uncounted each year because people make mistakes , such as forgetting to sign the form or sending it in too late .
An NPR analysis has found that in the primary elections held so far this year , at least 65,000 absentee or mail-in ballots have been rejected because they arrived past the deadline , often through no fault of the voter .
While the numbers are relatively small — around 1 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ prove crucial in a close election , especially one in which many more voters are expected to cast absentee and mail-in ballots to avoid going to the polls during a pandemic .
Those who use mail-in voting for the first time — especially young , Black and Latino voters — are more likely to have their ballots rejected because of errors , said Charles Stewart , a political scientist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology who studies election administration .
''That 's the sort of thing that makes me wary about what 's @ @ @ @ @ @ @ get an even larger influx of people who have n't voted , or have n't voted by mail in the past , '' he says .
The political parties and voting groups are well aware of what 's at stake and have launched aggressive legal campaigns to try to shape the rules for November .
Democrats and voter advocacy groups have filed suits in at least 10 states , challenging laws that require mail-in ballots to be received by or before Election Day .
They 're asking judges to allow ballots to be @ @ @ @ @ @ @ by Election Day , because of difficulties voters might encounter due to the pandemic and delayed mail delivery .
The Republican Party and election integrity groups are fighting back .
They argue that extending the deadline will undermine public confidence in the results , which could be delayed for weeks .
They also insist , without evidence , that it will raise the potential for fraud — a position President Trump has taken repeatedly .
In the meantime , voters have been left confused , discouraged and in some cases disenfranchised .
Susie @ @ @ @ @ @ @ she tried to be extra-careful to make sure her ballot was postmarked on time when she voted in a mayoral race in May .
But when she heard that more than 1,100 ballots — 9 % of the total — had been rejected , she checked with the local election office and was shocked to discover that hers was one of them .
`` It was just really disappointing and surprising that by following the instructions that are printed on the ballot , I was set up for failure , '' she says @ @ @ @ @ @ @ see anywhere that her ballot needed to be received within two days of the election to count , which was especially frustrating because the mayor 's race was decided by only 195 votes .
Residents held a rally outside town hall the day the new mayor was sworn in , calling for officials to `` count every vote '' in future elections .
Other states are also reporting large numbers of rejected ballots .
More than 5 % were not counted in Virginia 's June primary because they arrived too late .
More @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Pennsylvania and Nevada were also not counted last month for the same reason .
In Wisconsin 's chaotic April primary , 2,659 ballots were rejected for missing the deadline , but the number could have been much higher .
About 79,000 ballots were received after Election Day but within a six-day period that was allowed on an emergency basis .
Tens of thousands of other ballots were discarded this year for other reasons , most often because of a missing or mismatched signature .
Last week , the League of Women Voters filed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ more than 34,000 absentee ballots — or 14 % of the total — were rejected in 2018 .
The group wants voters to have the opportunity to correct any problems before their ballots are discarded .
The suit is part of a flood of litigation over mail-in voting this year .
Democrats and progressive groups are suing to change the rules in Florida , where 18,504 vote-by-mail ballots — more than 1.3 % of the total — were rejected in the state 's March primary for a variety of reasons , including missed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ballots should have to be only postmarked — not received — by 7 p.m. on Election Day .
Kirk Nielsen , the plaintiff in the case , says the fate of a ballot is out of a voter 's hands once it goes in the mail .
His was one of thousands of ballots rejected in the state in 2018 .
Nielsen says he mailed it eight days before Election Day , but it was not received until eight days after .
He worries about being disenfranchised again .
`` I want to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the pandemic .
I do n't want to get sick at a crowded polling place .
That said , I think there 's an even greater risk this year voting by mail that my mail ballot might not be counted , along with thousands of others , '' Nielsen says .
His case is scheduled to be heard this month , but Republicans were heartened by the judge 's refusal to issue a preliminary injunction against the state 's mail-in rules .
The judge said the Election Day receipt deadline `` eliminates the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ even altered postmarks , eliminates delay that can have adverse consequences , and eliminates the remote possibility that in an extremely close election — Florida has had some — a person who did not vote on or before Election Day can fill out and submit a ballot later . ''
These are all arguments that Republicans have made in defense of keeping the Election Day deadline currently in place in most states .
`` Allowing massive amounts of ballots to arrive or the counting to continue well after Election Day really allows room @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , national press secretary for the Republican National Committee .
`` It allows losing candidates or other partisan operatives to go find more late votes that could potentially change the legitimate outcome of an election and really just leaves room for unnecessary litigation . ''
While Merritt did not offer an example , she says even the possibility of fraud would undermine voters ' confidence in the results .
Most election officials would disagree that candidates could `` find more late votes '' to change the results , but some do worry about @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Katie Hobbs , Arizona 's Democratic secretary of state , thinks voters would be confused if the deadline were switched so close to the election , especially in a year when the pandemic has upended voting in so many other ways .
She says it takes time to educate the public and to implement such changes , which can be more complicated than people think .
`` There 's an assumption that every piece of mail automatically gets postmarked , and that 's just not the case , '' says Hobbs .
`` @ @ @ @ @ @ @ they 're sent with bulk permits , and oftentimes those pieces of mail are not postmarked . ''
Hobbs says having a postmark deadline would require the state to arrange with post offices to provide such postmarks or to come up with another system to track the ballots .
Arizona recently reached a settlement with progressive groups that had sued to extend the ballot deadline .
The state has agreed to boost voter education and outreach programs and to encourage other options , including drop boxes where voters can deposit their absentee ballots @ @ @ @ @ @ @ election officials .
Hobbs says this option allows voters to get their ballots in on time without risking exposure to the coronavirus at the post office or a polling site .
A number of states have increased their use of drop boxes .
But the Republican National Committee and the Trump campaign do n't like that option either .
They recently filed a lawsuit against the state of Pennsylvania , arguing that such drop boxes are insecure , are prone to fraud and should be prohibited .

Signed, Sealed, Undelivered: Thousands Of Mail-In Ballots Rejected For Tardiness
Enlarge this image toggle caption Kate Albright/Montclair Local Kate Albright/Montclair Local
Mail-in voting, which tens of millions of Americans are expected to use this November, is fraught with potential problems. Hundreds of thousands of ballots go uncounted each year because people make mistakes, such as forgetting to sign the form or sending it in too late.
An NPR analysis has found that in the primary elections held so far this year, more than 50,000 absentee or mail-in ballots have been rejected because they arrived past the deadline, often through no fault of the voter.
While the numbers are relatively small — around 1% in most states — they could prove crucial in a close election, especially one in which many more voters are expected to cast absentee and mail-in ballots to avoid going to the polls during a pandemic.
Those who use mail-in voting for the first time — especially young, Black and Latino voters — are more likely to have their ballots rejected because of errors, said Charles Stewart, a political scientist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology who studies election administration.
''That's the sort of thing that makes me wary about what's going to happen in November when we get an even larger influx of people who haven't voted, or haven't voted by mail in the past," he says.
Loading...
The political parties and voting groups are well aware of what's at stake and have launched aggressive legal campaigns to try to shape the rules for November.
Democrats and voter advocacy groups have filed suits in at least 10 states, challenging laws that require mail-in ballots to be received by or before Election Day. They're asking judges to allow ballots to be accepted as long as they are postmarked by Election Day, because of difficulties voters might encounter due to the pandemic and delayed mail delivery.
The Republican Party and election integrity groups are fighting back. They argue that extending the deadline will undermine public confidence in the results, which could be delayed for weeks. They also insist, without evidence, that it will raise the potential for fraud — a position President Trump has taken repeatedly.
In the meantime, voters have been left confused, discouraged and in some cases disenfranchised.
Enlarge this image toggle caption Ethan Miller/Getty Images Ethan Miller/Getty Images
Susie Sonneborn of Montclair, N.J., says she tried to be extra-careful to make sure her ballot was postmarked on time when she voted in a mayoral race in May. But when she heard that more than 1,100 ballots — 9% of the total — had been rejected, she checked with the local election office and was shocked to discover that hers was one of them.
"It was just really disappointing and surprising that by following the instructions that are printed on the ballot, I was set up for failure," she says. Sonneborn insists that she didn't see anywhere that her ballot needed to be received within two days of the election to count, which was especially frustrating because the mayor's race was decided by only 195 votes. Residents held a rally outside town hall the day the new mayor was sworn in, calling for officials to "count every vote" in future elections.
Other states are also reporting large numbers of rejected ballots. More than 1% of the ballots in Pennsylvania and Nevada were not counted last month for the same reason.
In Wisconsin's chaotic April primary, 2,659 ballots were rejected for missing the deadline, but the number could have been much higher. About 79,000 ballots were received after Election Day but within a six-day period that was allowed on an emergency basis.
Tens of thousands of other ballots were discarded this year for other reasons, most often because of a missing or mismatched signature. Last week, the League of Women Voters filed suit in New York state, where more than 34,000 absentee ballots — or 14% of the total — were rejected in 2018. The group wants voters to have the opportunity to correct any problems before their ballots are discarded.
The suit is part of a flood of litigation over mail-in voting this year.
Enlarge this image toggle caption Ethan Miller/Getty Images Ethan Miller/Getty Images
Democrats and progressive groups are suing to change the rules in Florida, where 18,504 vote-by-mail ballots — more than 1.3% of the total — were rejected in the state's March primary for a variety of reasons, including missed deadlines. The lawsuit argues that mail-in ballots should have to be only postmarked — not received — by 7 p.m. on Election Day.
Kirk Nielsen, one of 10 plaintiffs in the case, says the fate of a ballot is out of a voter's hands once it goes in the mail. His was one of thousands of ballots rejected in the state in 2018. Nielsen says he mailed it eight days before Election Day, but it was not received until eight days after. He worries about being disenfranchised again.
"I want to vote by mail this year because of the pandemic. I don't want to get sick at a crowded polling place and I don't want to contribute to spreading the virus by going to a crowded polling place, but that said, I think there's an even greater risk this year voting by mail that my mail ballot might not be counted, along with thousands of others," Nielsen says.
His case is scheduled to be heard this month, but Republicans were heartened by the judge's refusal to issue a preliminary injunction against the state's mail-in rules.
The judge said the Election Day receipt deadline "eliminates the problem of missing, unclear, or even altered postmarks, eliminates delay that can have adverse consequences, and eliminates the remote possibility that in an extremely close election — Florida has had some — a person who did not vote on or before Election Day can fill out and submit a ballot later."
These are all arguments that Republicans have made in defense of keeping the Election Day deadline currently in place in most states.
"Allowing massive amounts of ballots to arrive or the counting to continue well after Election Day really allows room for fraud," says Mandi Merritt, national press secretary for the Republican National Committee. "It allows losing candidates or other partisan operatives to go find more late votes that could potentially change the legitimate outcome of an election and really just leaves room for unnecessary litigation."
While Merritt did not offer an example, she says even the possibility of fraud would undermine voters' confidence in the results.
Most election officials would disagree that candidates could "find more late votes" to change the results, but some do worry about extending the deadline for other reasons.
Katie Hobbs, Arizona's Democratic secretary of state, thinks voters would be confused if the deadline were switched so close to the election, especially in a year when the pandemic has upended voting in so many other ways. She says it takes time to educate the public and to implement such changes, which can be more complicated than people think.
"There's an assumption that every piece of mail automatically gets postmarked, and that's just not the case," says Hobbs. "Our ballots are postage paid, so they're sent with bulk permits, and oftentimes those pieces of mail are not postmarked."
Hobbs says having a postmark deadline would require the state to arrange with post offices to provide such postmarks or to come up with another system to track the ballots.
Arizona recently reached a settlement with progressive groups that had sued to extend the ballot deadline. The state has agreed to boost voter education and outreach programs and to encourage other options, including drop boxes where voters can deposit their absentee ballots, to be picked up later by election officials. Hobbs says this option allows voters to get their ballots in on time without risking exposure to the coronavirus at the post office or a polling site.
A number of states have increased their use of drop boxes. But the Republican National Committee and the Trump campaign don't like that option either. They recently filed a lawsuit against the state of Pennsylvania, arguing that such drop boxes are insecure, are prone to fraud and should be prohibited.


npr--2020-07-13--New York To Require Contact Info From Air Travelers From States That Must Quarantine

New York To Require Contact Info From Air Travelers From States That Must Quarantine Travelers flying into New York from certain states are now required to show proof that they 've completed a form with their contact information and travel plans before they can leave airports across the state .
Starting Tuesday , teams that include police officers will meet passengers at arrival gates to check if the travel form has been completed on paper or online , New York Gov .
Andrew Cuomo announced Monday .
The move is part of the state 's effort to try to enforce @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 19 restricted states with rising numbers of people testing positive for the coronavirus .
`` We ca n't be in a situation where we have people coming from other states in the country bringing the virus again , '' Cuomo said during a press conference .
`` It is that simple . ''
Travelers who leave an airport in New York state without filling out a form could face a $ 2,000 fine and be required to attend a hearing and complete a mandatory quarantine .
It remains unclear , however , how @ @ @ @ @ @ @ from the restricted states who do fill out the form will follow the state 's 14-day quarantine requirement , which is part of an executive order the governor issued late last month .
Asked about the number of warnings or citations that have been issued to any visitors who do not self-quarantine for 14 days after they land in New York , Caitlin Girouard , a spokesperson for Cuomo , replied to NPR by email : `` We refer all cases where a quarantine is necessary to the local health department for compliance @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of Republican lawmakers in the New York state Senate called the new requirements for air travelers put in place by the administration of the Democratic governor an `` overreach of power '' that `` violates the civil liberties of New Yorkers and citizens across this country , '' New York State Public Radio 's Karen DeWitt reports .
`` This is putting an unwelcome mat at New York 's door , '' New York State Sen .
Rob Ortt said in a statement .
`` Such severe action will keep people and their @ @ @ @ @ @ @ our businesses need them most . ''
Despite New York 's low COVID-19 infection rate , Cuomo said he remains concerned that the state is `` not a hermetically sealed bubble . ''
`` It came in through the airports , '' the governor noted .
`` It will come in through the airports once again . ''

New York To Require Contact Info From Air Travelers From Restricted States
Enlarge this image toggle caption Kathy Willens/AP Kathy Willens/AP
Updated Tuesday at 11:17 a.m. ET
Travelers flying into New York from certain states are now required to show proof that they've completed a form with their contact information and travel plans before they can leave airports across the state.
Starting Tuesday, teams that include police officers will meet passengers at arrival gates to check if the travel form has been completed on paper or online, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced Monday.
The move is part of the state's effort to try to enforce its 14-day quarantine requirements for travelers from 22 states who, as of Tuesday, are under a travel advisory because of rising numbers of people testing positive for the coronavirus in their states.
"We can't be in a situation where we have people coming from other states in the country bringing the virus again," Cuomo said during a press conference. "It is that simple."
Travelers who leave an airport in New York state without filling out a form could face a $2,000 fine and be required to attend a hearing and complete a mandatory quarantine.
It remains unclear, however, how the state will make sure that visitors from the restricted states who do fill out the form will follow the state's 14-day quarantine requirement, which is part of an executive order the governor issued late last month.
Asked about the number of warnings or citations that have been issued to any visitors who do not self-quarantine for 14 days after they land in New York, Caitlin Girouard, a spokesperson for Cuomo, replied to NPR by email: "We refer all cases where a quarantine is necessary to the local health department for compliance and follow-up."
The leader of Republican lawmakers in the New York state Senate called the new requirements for air travelers put in place by the administration of the Democratic governor an "overreach of power" that "violates the civil liberties of New Yorkers and citizens across this country," New York State Public Radio's Karen DeWitt reports.
"This is putting an unwelcome mat at New York's door," New York State Sen. Rob Ortt said in a statement. "Such severe action will keep people and their dollars away, at a time when our businesses need them most."
Despite New York's low COVID-19 infection rate, Cuomo said he remains concerned that the state is "not a hermetically sealed bubble."
"It came in through the airports," the governor noted. "It will come in through the airports once again."


npr--2020-07-13--California Closes Indoor Businesses Statewide As COVID-19 Cases Surge

With coronavirus cases and hospitalizations continuing their rise in California , Gov .
Gavin Newsom announced on Monday he is reimposing restrictions on many indoor businesses statewide , effective immediately .
Restaurants , wineries , movie theaters , family entertainment centers , zoos , museums and card rooms must suspend their indoor operations , and bars must close altogether .
Thirty counties must also close indoor operations of fitness centers , places of worship , offices for noncritical sectors , personal care services , hair salons , barber shops and malls .
Those 30 counties have been on a monitoring @ @ @ @ @ @ @ represent about 80 % of the state 's population , according to Newsom .
They include Los Angeles , Sacramento , San Joaquin , Orange , San Diego and Fresno .
The closures will stay in place until counties meet standards set out by the state .
Newsom emphasized the importance of making decisions based on local conditions and data , and said recent trend lines had created `` caution and concern . ''
`` We 're moving back into a modification mode of our original stay-at-home order , but doing so utilizing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 'dimmer switch , ' not an 'on and off switch , ' `` he said .
Newsom specifically cited a rise in hospitalizations , intensive care unit beds and the rate of positive test results in the state .
As of Monday , state hospitals reported a 27.8 % increase in hospitalized patients over the last 14 days , and a 19.9 % increase in ICU hospitalized patients over that same period .
Data indicate that 36 % of ICU beds and 72 % of ventilators are available .
On Sunday , the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ recorded 8,460 new cases and 72 new fatalities .
They reported 6,322 confirmed hospitalized COVID-19 patients , with 1,806 in the ICU .
`` That 's why it 's incumbent upon all of us to recognize , soberly , that COVID-19 is not going away anytime soon , '' Newsom said .
California began reopening in early May and emerged as a hot spot in June , largely driven by case increases in populous Los Angeles County .
By the end of that month , the number of hospitalizations in the state had @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Newsom has taken action to try to slow the spread .
A statewide mandate requiring face coverings in public spaces took effect on June 18 .
On July 1 , he ordered 19 counties to close all bars and indoor operations of certain sectors .
Meanwhile , certain entities in the state have taken it upon themselves to delay reopening .
Disney announced it will keep its Southern California parks , initially set to open July 17 , closed indefinitely .
And on Monday , Los Angeles and San Diego public schools @ @ @ @ @ @ @ entirely remotely .
The state is in stage two of its four-phase reopening plan , which allows certain lower-risk workplaces to open with restrictions .
Eligible counties could apply for variances to progress through the phase more quickly , but that has also been put on hold .
As of Monday , the state 's website said , no county attestations will be accepted `` until further notice . ''

California Closes Indoor Businesses Statewide As COVID-19 Cases Surge
Enlarge this image toggle caption Jae C. Hong/AP Jae C. Hong/AP
With coronavirus cases and hospitalizations continuing their rise in California, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced on Monday he is reimposing restrictions on many indoor businesses statewide, effective immediately.
Restaurants, wineries, movie theaters, family entertainment centers, zoos, museums and card rooms must suspend their indoor operations, and bars must close altogether.
Thirty counties must also close indoor operations of fitness centers, places of worship, offices for noncritical sectors, personal care services, hair salons, barber shops and malls.
Those 30 counties have been on a monitoring list for three consecutive days, and represent about 80% of the state's population, according to Newsom. They include Los Angeles, Sacramento, San Joaquin, Orange, San Diego and Fresno.
The closures will stay in place until counties meet standards set out by the state.
Newsom emphasized the importance of making decisions based on local conditions and data, and said recent trend lines had created "caution and concern."
"We're moving back into a modification mode of our original stay-at-home order, but doing so utilizing what is commonly referred to as a 'dimmer switch,' not an 'on and off switch,' " he said.
Newsom specifically cited a rise in hospitalizations, intensive care unit beds and the rate of positive test results in the state.
As of Monday, state hospitals reported a 27.8% increase in hospitalized patients over the last 14 days, and a 19.9% increase in ICU hospitalized patients over that same period. Data indicate that 36% of ICU beds and 72% of ventilators are available.
On Sunday, the most recent reporting period, health officials recorded 8,460 new cases and 72 new fatalities. They reported 6,322 confirmed hospitalized COVID-19 patients, with 1,806 in the ICU.
"That's why it's incumbent upon all of us to recognize, soberly, that COVID-19 is not going away anytime soon," Newsom said.
California began reopening in early May and emerged as a hot spot in June, largely driven by case increases in populous Los Angeles County. By the end of that month, the number of hospitalizations in the state had surpassed a record previously set in April.
Newsom has taken action to try to slow the spread. A statewide mandate requiring face coverings in public spaces took effect on June 18. On July 1, he ordered 19 counties to close all bars and indoor operations of certain sectors.
Meanwhile, certain entities in the state have taken it upon themselves to delay reopening. Disney announced it will keep its Southern California parks, initially set to open July 17, closed indefinitely. And on Monday, Los Angeles and San Diego public schools announced they will begin the academic year entirely remotely.
The state is in stage two of its four-phase reopening plan, which allows certain lower-risk workplaces to open with restrictions.
Eligible counties could apply for variances to progress through the phase more quickly, but that has also been put on hold. As of Monday, the state's website said, no county attestations will be accepted "until further notice."


npr--2020-07-13--Miami Hospital ICU Doctor: New Influx Of Patients Is Younger Than Before

Miami Hospital ICU Doctor : New Influx Of Patients Is Younger Than Before Florida is breaking records in its explosion of coronavirus cases .
On Sunday , the state reported 15,299 new resident cases from the day before , a jump larger than any seen before in a single U.S. state .
Dozens of hospitals are at the limit of their intensive care unit capacity , according to Florida 's Agency for Health Care Administration .
And one Miami doctor is particularly worried about the type of people he 's now seeing lots of in the ICU : young people @ @ @ @ @ @ @ J .
De La Zerda , the director of medical ICU at Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami , says his major concern is the change in patients — and the severity of their cases .
De La Zerda tells All Things Considered 's Ailsa Chang about what he 's seeing in the ICU as the coronavirus continues spreading in Florida .
Here are excerpts : These patients that you 're seeing in the ICU today , are you noticing any differences from the COVID-19 patients you were seeing just two months ago ?
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ [ Their ] age , last time , was probably around 65 .
Now , our average age is between 25 to 35 , 45 years old .
That 's one big change .
Much younger patients , pretty much healthy .
Not really major past medical history .
We are not seeing that much obesity .
I know there are some reports about obesity , but at least in the ICU , I would guess maybe 20 % of patients are obese .
Most of them are pretty young and healthy patients @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the previous [ wave ] .
Mortality has not been a major issue because they are younger patients .
But I think as the days go on , we might also see a change in mortality .
Can you describe what `` sicker , '' when it comes to the coronavirus , looks like ?
The delivery of oxygen is much higher , that 's one .
Second is the blood pressure has been low .
So we have to use a lot of medications to actually bring the blood pressure to a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , the use of medications to keep the blood pressure high , and second , the amount of oxygen these patients are required , which is more than last time .
Can you talk about how the last several months have been for you personally as an ICU doctor ?
The last months are really tough for all the health workers here .
...
It 's a big toll to our families .
I do n't get to see my kids that often .
And also our nurses .
So the burnout that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ high .
... Also we would like to see more community support , in the sense like when you go out , people being wearing masks and so forth .
And sometimes you do n't see this here in Miami unfortunately .
So it 's also the frustration of seeing the community [ not ] doing their part .
NPR 's Apoorva Mittal and Christopher Intagliata produced and edited the audio interview .

Miami Hospital ICU Doctor: New Influx Of Patients Is Younger Than Before
Enlarge this image toggle caption Wilfredo Lee/AP Wilfredo Lee/AP
Florida is breaking records in its explosion of coronavirus cases. On Sunday, the state reported 15,299 new resident cases from the day before, a jump larger than any seen before in a single U.S. state.
Dozens of hospitals are at the limit of their intensive care unit capacity, according to Florida's Agency for Health Care Administration.
And one Miami doctor is particularly worried about the type of people he's now seeing lots of in the ICU: young people with no medical history.
Dr. David J. De La Zerda, the director of medical ICU at Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami, says his major concern is the change in patients — and the severity of their cases.
De La Zerda tells All Things Considered's Ailsa Chang about what he's seeing in the ICU as the coronavirus continues spreading in Florida. Here are excerpts:
These patients that you're seeing in the ICU today, are you noticing any differences from the COVID-19 patients you were seeing just two months ago?
Yes, they're younger patients. [Their] age, last time, was probably around 65. Now, our average age is between 25 to 35, 45 years old.
That's one big change. Much younger patients, pretty much healthy. Not really major past medical history.
We are not seeing that much obesity. I know there are some reports about obesity, but at least in the ICU, I would guess maybe 20% of patients are obese. Most of them are pretty young and healthy patients.
And also they get sicker than the previous [wave]. Mortality has not been a major issue because they are younger patients. But I think as the days go on, we might also see a change in mortality.
Can you describe what "sicker," when it comes to the coronavirus, looks like?
The delivery of oxygen is much higher, that's one. Second is the blood pressure has been low. So we have to use a lot of medications to actually bring the blood pressure to a normal level. So it's one, the use of medications to keep the blood pressure high, and second, the amount of oxygen these patients are required, which is more than last time.
Can you talk about how the last several months have been for you personally as an ICU doctor?
The last months are really tough for all the health workers here. ... It's a big toll to our families. I don't get to see my kids that often. And also our nurses. So the burnout that we see in our ICUs is really high. ...
Also we would like to see more community support, in the sense like when you go out, people being wearing masks and so forth. And sometimes you don't see this here in Miami unfortunately. So it's also the frustration of seeing the community [not] doing their part.
NPR's Apoorva Mittal and Christopher Intagliata produced and edited the audio interview.


npr--2020-07-13--U.S. Military Is Sending Medical Staff To COVID-19 Hotspots

U.S. Military Is Sending Medical Staff To COVID-19 Hotspots With coronavirus cases on the rise in southern and western states , U.S. military medical personnel are once again being called upon to help .
Army officials have announced that some 740 military health professionals are being sent to Texas and California .
The new deployments come several months after thousands of military medical personnel , including two hospital ships , one on each coast , were sent to help governors and mayors in New York , San Francisco and Los Angeles .
With some states opening up early and residents @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have skyrocketed in states such as California , Arizona , Florida and Texas .
The bulk of the new medical personnel — doctors and nurses and support staff — are heading to Texas .
The first group is heading to hospitals in San Antonio and Houston , with four other locations in Texas still to be determined .
Texas Gov .
Greg Abbott is expected to put out a statement soon on the new deployments .
Meanwhile , more than 150 Air Force medical personnel will be dispatched to California .
There is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ personnel will be sent .
One U.S. official tells NPR it makes more sense to send military personnel directly to hospitals where they are needed most , instead of sending hospital ships or setting up field hospitals .
Another official tells NPR it 's possible even more military personnel will be sent , including to Florida .
Neither official was authorized to speak publicly .

U.S. Military Is Sending Medical Staff To COVID-19 Hotspots
Enlarge this image toggle caption Go Nakamura/Getty Images Go Nakamura/Getty Images
With coronavirus cases on the rise in southern and western states, U.S. military medical personnel are once again being called upon to help.
Army officials have announced that some 740 military health professionals are being sent to Texas and California.
The new deployments come several months after thousands of military medical personnel, including two hospital ships, one on each coast, were sent to help governors and mayors in New York, San Francisco and Los Angeles.
With some states opening up early and residents not abiding by CDC guidelines, cases have skyrocketed in states such as California, Arizona, Florida and Texas.
The bulk of the new medical personnel — doctors and nurses and support staff — are heading to Texas.
The first group is heading to hospitals in San Antonio and Houston, with four other locations in Texas still to be determined. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott is expected to put out a statement soon on the new deployments.
Meanwhile, more than 150 Air Force medical personnel will be dispatched to California. There is currently no word on exactly where those personnel will be sent.
One U.S. official tells NPR it makes more sense to send military personnel directly to hospitals where they are needed most, instead of sending hospital ships or setting up field hospitals. Another official tells NPR it's possible even more military personnel will be sent, including to Florida. Neither official was authorized to speak publicly.


npr--2020-07-13--Schools, Businesses, Cities Push Back On Rule Blocking Some International Students

One week ago , the Trump administration announced it would ban international students from attending U.S. colleges in the fall if they only take online classes .
Now hundreds of colleges and universities , dozens of cities , and some of the country 's biggest tech companies are pushing back .
In several court filings Friday and Monday , the groups stand with the international students .
They argue providing remote education is crucial given how contagious COVID-19 is — and they say they crafted policies for the fall by depending on earlier assurances from the federal government that international @ @ @ @ @ @ @ remotely `` for the duration of the emergency '' while still retaining their F-1 or M-1 visa status .
They 're supporting an initial legal challenge by Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology , the first to sue the administration over its new policy .
Existing law had prohibited international students from taking all their courses online , but the administration temporarily lifted that rule in March .
In a response Monday , the government said that just because it offered leniency in March , it does n't have to extend @ @ @ @ @ @ @ request to do so `` subverts the deference afforded administrative agencies in complex and interrelated fields like immigration enforcement , '' the U.S. Department of Homeland Security said .
According to the Institute of International Education , more than 1 million international students take courses in the U.S. — about 5 % of the total student body .
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement `` blindsided the whole of higher education , '' more than 180 colleges and universities wrote in their amicus brief filed with U.S. District Court in Massachusetts , where Harvard @ @ @ @ @ @ @ schools range from small private colleges to large public universities , spread across the nation .
`` Though diverse in faith , academic mission , geography , and size , these institutions are deeply concerned with and impacted by ICE 's July 6 directive , '' they wrote .
`` ICE 's abrupt policy change guts the enormous reliance interests of higher education institutions and their students — all of whom planned for the fall 2020 semester based on ICE 's earlier confirmation that its March 2020 position would remain so long as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ schools wrote .
They 're arguing that , legally , ICE ca n't just change its mind after so many schools spent months crafting policies based on the government 's guidance .
To change course so completely without adequate justification is `` arbitrary and capricious , '' the schools wrote , citing the legal standard used by courts .
They are asking the federal court to put a hold on the government 's proposal until the courts can rule on its legality .
When the coronavirus began to spread , schools across the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ they immediately had to make hard decisions about the fall term .
The California State University system — one of the largest higher education systems in the country , with 480,000 students — felt it would be `` irresponsible '' to postpone a decision on in-person classes until the summer .
`` Because of its size , the CSU system had to sacrifice flexibility for certainty , '' the filing said .
So CSU decided in the spring that its 23 campuses would mostly offer classes remotely for the fall term .
The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ some schools .
At the Stevens Institute of Technology — a private research university in Hoboken , N.J. — international students make up one-third of its overall student body and 61 % of graduate students .
`` With such a large volume of international students , inability to continue educating these students would be devastating , '' the schools wrote .
And international students make `` immense contributions '' to campuses nationwide , they said , fostering diversity and enhancing schools ' intellectual and athletic competitiveness .
Blocking these students from attending American @ @ @ @ @ @ @ giving an advantage to foreign nations , the schools said .
An amicus brief filed by America 's top technology companies makes a similar point .
International students are both customers and future employees of these companies , wrote Google , Facebook , Twitter , Spotify , Adobe and others in a filing Monday .
If international students lose their visas and are forced to return home , American businesses and the economy at large will suffer , they said .
In addition to the tens of billions of dollars that international students @ @ @ @ @ @ @ year , they also help ensure that American companies `` continue leading the world in innovation , '' they wrote .
And without international students , American schools will suffer , they said : `` The loss of international students as a result of the July 6 Directive threatens the very existence of educational programs — for both American and international students — that are critical to training the employees U.S. businesses need and supporting the research that enables America to lead the world in innovation . ''
If international students are barred @ @ @ @ @ @ @ coronavirus pandemic is over , the companies said , many will simply never return .
Companies in turn wo n't be able to recruit those students .
And the entire economy will suffer .
Dozens of municipalities filed their own brief in support of Harvard and MIT 's challenge .
International students `` make significant economic contributions '' to their communities , wrote the municipalities , which include Los Angeles , Boston , Seattle , New York and about two dozen other cities large and small .
`` In New York City , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ billion in economic value annually , '' they wrote .
`` In Pittsburgh , one job is created for every two international students enrolled in the city 's colleges and universities .
And in Iowa City , the 2,500 resident international students at the University of Iowa contribute millions of dollars to the city 's economy annually . ''
The federal government 's `` rash '' decision could also have health consequences , they wrote : It 's `` likely to send students threatened with removal into the shadows , where public health @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the midst of a pandemic . ''
The court in Massachusetts is scheduled to hear arguments in the case on Tuesday .
Several other organizations have filed their own lawsuits challenging the Trump administration 's new policy .
Massachusetts filed a federal suit joined by attorneys general in 16 states and the District of Columbia ; Johns Hopkins University filed suit Friday ; and the University of California system has pledged its own lawsuit .

Schools, Businesses, Cities Push Back On Rule Blocking Some International Students
Enlarge this image toggle caption Charles Krupa/AP Charles Krupa/AP
One week ago, the Trump administration announced it would ban international students from attending U.S. colleges in the fall if they only take online classes. Now hundreds of colleges and universities, dozens of cities, and some of the country's biggest tech companies are pushing back.
In several court filings Friday and Monday, the groups stand with the international students. They argue providing remote education is crucial given how contagious COVID-19 is — and they say they crafted policies for the fall by depending on earlier assurances from the federal government that international students would be able to attend class remotely "for the duration of the emergency" while still retaining their F-1 or M-1 visa status.
They're supporting an initial legal challenge by Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the first to sue the administration over its new policy. Existing law had prohibited international students from taking all their courses online, but the administration temporarily lifted that rule in March.
In a response Monday, the government said that just because it offered leniency in March, it doesn't have to extend that policy through the fall. The request to do so "subverts the deference afforded administrative agencies in complex and interrelated fields like immigration enforcement," the U.S. Department of Homeland Security said.
According to the Institute of International Education, more than 1 million international students take courses in the U.S. — about 5% of the total student body.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement "blindsided the whole of higher education," more than 180 colleges and universities wrote in their amicus brief filed with U.S. District Court in Massachusetts, where Harvard's challenge is being heard. The schools range from small private colleges to large public universities, spread across the nation. "Though diverse in faith, academic mission, geography, and size, these institutions are deeply concerned with and impacted by ICE's July 6 directive," they wrote.
"ICE's abrupt policy change guts the enormous reliance interests of higher education institutions and their students — all of whom planned for the fall 2020 semester based on ICE's earlier confirmation that its March 2020 position would remain so long as the 'emergency' continued," the schools wrote.
They're arguing that, legally, ICE can't just change its mind after so many schools spent months crafting policies based on the government's guidance. To change course so completely without adequate justification is "arbitrary and capricious," the schools wrote, citing the legal standard used by courts.
They are asking the federal court to put a hold on the government's proposal until the courts can rule on its legality.
When the coronavirus began to spread, schools across the country moved their coursework online. And they immediately had to make hard decisions about the fall term. The California State University system — one of the largest higher education systems in the country, with 480,000 students — felt it would be "irresponsible" to postpone a decision on in-person classes until the summer. "Because of its size, the CSU system had to sacrifice flexibility for certainty," the filing said. So CSU decided in the spring that its 23 campuses would mostly offer classes remotely for the fall term.
The administration's plan could be catastrophic to some schools. At the Stevens Institute of Technology — a private research university in Hoboken, N.J. — international students make up one-third of its overall student body and 61% of graduate students. "With such a large volume of international students, inability to continue educating these students would be devastating," the schools wrote.
And international students make "immense contributions" to campuses nationwide, they said, fostering diversity and enhancing schools' intellectual and athletic competitiveness. Blocking these students from attending American schools would only send them elsewhere, giving an advantage to foreign nations, the schools said.
An amicus brief filed by America's top technology companies makes a similar point. International students are both customers and future employees of these companies, wrote Google, Facebook, Twitter, Spotify, Adobe and others in a filing Monday. If international students lose their visas and are forced to return home, American businesses and the economy at large will suffer, they said.
In addition to the tens of billions of dollars that international students contribute directly to the U.S. economy each year, they also help ensure that American companies "continue leading the world in innovation," they wrote.
And without international students, American schools will suffer, they said: "The loss of international students as a result of the July 6 Directive threatens the very existence of educational programs — for both American and international students — that are critical to training the employees U.S. businesses need and supporting the research that enables America to lead the world in innovation."
If international students are barred from studying in the U.S. until the coronavirus pandemic is over, the companies said, many will simply never return. Companies in turn won't be able to recruit those students. And the entire economy will suffer.
Dozens of municipalities filed their own brief in support of Harvard and MIT's challenge. International students "make significant economic contributions" to their communities, wrote the municipalities, which include Los Angeles, Boston, Seattle, New York and about two dozen other cities large and small.
"In New York City, international students contribute more than $3 billion in economic value annually," they wrote. "In Pittsburgh, one job is created for every two international students enrolled in the city's colleges and universities. And in Iowa City, the 2,500 resident international students at the University of Iowa contribute millions of dollars to the city's economy annually."
The federal government's "rash" decision could also have health consequences, they wrote: It's "likely to send students threatened with removal into the shadows, where public health efforts will not reach them, in the midst of a pandemic."
The court in Massachusetts is scheduled to hear arguments in the case on Tuesday.
Several other organizations have filed their own lawsuits challenging the Trump administration's new policy. Massachusetts filed a federal suit joined by attorneys general in 16 states and the District of Columbia; Johns Hopkins University filed suit Friday; and the University of California system has pledged its own lawsuit.


npr--2020-07-13--At U.K. Care Home, Residents Brilliantly Recreate Iconic Album Covers On Twitter

Residents at the Sydmar Lodge Care Home in Edgeware , England , have been in lockdown for four months .
As activities manager at the home , Robert Speker wanted to keep spirits up while visitors and outside entertainment are n't permitted .
Thus , a brilliant project was born : recreating classic album covers , with residents cast as the rock stars .
Speker tweeted side-by-side photos of the original covers and the Sydmar Lodge residents ' new takes , and the tweets quickly took off .
Riffing on Springsteen 's famous Born In The U.S. , there 's @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the English flag .
Could anyone improve upon David Bowie 's iconic lightning-bolt painted face ?
Roma Cohen appears to be an icon herself , with the lightning bolt highlighted by her white hair .
There 's Toba David as Michael Jackson , tough in a leather jacket .
And Sheila Solomon as a Sydmar Lodge punk , reinventing The Clash 's guitar-smashing with a walking cane ready to come crashing down .
Staffers got in on the project , too , with four carers lit from below , looking every bit as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the suggestions of which albums and which resident best suited the look , or had a vague similarity to the artist , '' Speker explained on Twitter .
`` Then I proposed the idea to each resident .
Gladly all of them were enthused and perhaps a bit bemused by the idea , but happy to participate . ''
He says he did the residents ' makeup , drew their tattoos , and did the photography and editing .
A care home manager helped with hair and makeup touch-ups .
Speker , who @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , has won accolades for his inventiveness before .
`` Robert continues to astound us with his creative , and somewhat 'out of the box ' ideas , '' Sydmar Lodge Manager Julie Davey testifies on the home 's website .
Noting that Speker had won an activities coordinator award , Sydmar Lodge notes that he `` performs his activities with creativeness , ingenuity , individuality and originality , '' and recently took a resident swimming for the first time in 20 years .
These have been bleak times at some care homes @ @ @ @ @ @ @ nursing homes in England and Wales from December 28 , 2019 , to June 12 , 2020 , there were nearly 30,000 more deaths than during the same period last year .
`` As this situation is on-going it could be months before the situation changes for them and the need to keep them happy entertained and full of spirit has never been more crucial , '' Speker wrote on a GoFundMe page he created to support the care home .
`` Elderly people will remain in lockdown for a long time , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ want to make their time as happy and full of enjoyment and interest as possible . ''

At U.K. Care Home, Residents Brilliantly Re-Create Iconic Album Covers On Twitter
Residents at the Sydmar Lodge Care Home in Edgeware, England, have been in lockdown for four months.
As activities manager at the home, Robert Speker wanted to keep spirits up while visitors and outside entertainment aren't permitted.
Thus, a brilliant project was born: re-creating classic album covers with residents cast as the rock stars.
Speker tweeted side-by-side photos of the original covers and the Sydmar Lodge residents' new takes, and the tweets quickly took off.
Instead of British singer Adele, meet 93-year-old Vera.
Riffing on Springsteen's famous Born In The U.S.A., there's a blue-jeaned Martin Steinberg in front of the English flag.
Could anyone improve upon David Bowie's iconic lightning-bolt painted face? Roma Cohen appears to be an icon herself with the lightning bolt highlighted by her white hair.
There's Toba David as Michael Jackson, tough in a leather jacket.
And Sheila Solomon as a Sydmar Lodge punk, reinventing The Clash's guitar-smashing with a walking cane ready to come crashing down.
Staffers got in on the project, too, with four carers lit from below looking every bit as moody as Queen.
"I made the suggestions of which albums and which resident best suited the look, or had a vague similarity to the artist," Speker explained on Twitter. "Then I proposed the idea to each resident. Gladly all of them were enthused and perhaps a bit bemused by the idea, but happy to participate."
He says he did the residents' makeup, drew their tattoos, and did the photography and editing. A care home manager helped with hair and makeup touch-ups.
Speker, who began working at Sydmar Lodge in 2015, has won accolades for his inventiveness before. "Robert continues to astound us with his creative, and somewhat 'out of the box' ideas," Sydmar Lodge Manager Julie Davey testifies on the home's website.
Noting that Speker had won an activities coordinator award, Sydmar Lodge notes that he "performs his activities with creativeness, ingenuity, individuality and originality" and recently took a resident swimming for the first time in 20 years.
These have been bleak times at some care homes in the U.K. Among residents at nursing homes in England and Wales from Dec. 28, 2019, to June 12, 2020, there were nearly 30,000 more deaths than during the same period last year.
"As this situation is on-going it could be months before the situation changes for them and the need to keep them happy entertained and full of spirit has never been more crucial," Speker wrote on a GoFundMe page he created to support the care home.
"Elderly people will remain in lockdown for a long time," he wrote, "and I want to make their time as happy and full of enjoyment and interest as possible."


npr--2020-07-13--Red Ink Overflowing: In June, U.S. Borrowed A Typical Year's Worth

The federal deficit ballooned last month as the U.S. government tried to cushion the blow from the coronavirus pandemic .
@ @ @ @ @ alone totaled $ 864 billion .
The federal government ran a bigger deficit last month @ @ @ @ @ all year .
Washington spent hundreds of billions of dollars trying to prop up small @ @ @ @ @ .
With three months left in the government 's fiscal year , the year 's @ @ @ @ @ is already nearly twice as large as the previous record of $ 1.4 trillion , @ @ @ @ @ Great Recession .
While the government is spending heavily on the pandemic , tax collections @ @ @ @ @ usual .
The filing deadline for 2019 income taxes was postponed until July 15 .
@ @ @ @ @ deficit for the full year to reach $ 3.7 trillion .
With infections on the @ @ @ @ @ to consider additional relief measures this month .

Red Ink Overflowing: In June, U.S. Borrowed A Typical Year's Worth
Enlarge this image toggle caption Olivier Douliery/AFP via Getty Images Olivier Douliery/AFP via Getty Images
The federal deficit ballooned last month as the U.S. government tried to cushion the blow from the coronavirus pandemic. The red ink in June alone totaled $864 billion.
The federal government ran a bigger deficit last month alone than it usually does all year. Washington spent hundreds of billions of dollars trying to prop up small businesses and assist laid-off workers.
With three months left in the government's fiscal year, the year's deficit of $2.7 trillion is already nearly twice as large as the previous record of $1.4 trillion, set in 2009 during the Great Recession.
While the government is spending heavily on the pandemic, tax collections in June were lower than usual. The filing deadline for 2019 income taxes was postponed until July 15.
Congressional forecasters expect the federal deficit for the full year to reach $3.7 trillion. With infections on the rise, Congress is expected to consider additional relief measures this month.


npr--2020-07-13--U.N. Report Says Pandemic Could Push Up To 132 Million People Into Hunger

U.N. Report Says Pandemic Could Push Up To 132 Million People Into Hunger The coronavirus pandemic could push up to 132 million people into hunger by the end of 2020 , according to a new report from the United Nations .
`` As progress in fighting hunger stalls , the COVID-19 pandemic is intensifying the vulnerabilities and inadequacies of global food systems , '' UNICEF said in a statement .
`` While it is too early to assess the full impact of the lockdowns and other containment measures , at least another 83 million people , and possibly as many @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in 2020 , '' the agency added .
The finding was included in the latest version of The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World , published annually by U.N. agencies , including the World Health Organization .
The report said an economic recovery expected in 2021 would bring the number of undernourished people down — but it 's not clear by how much , and the number will remain above pre-pandemic projections .
World hunger had been declining for years before 2014 , the U.N. reported , but has shot @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
It estimated that around 690 million people were undernourished in 2019 .
Asia has the highest number of hungry individuals .
The report estimates that 381 million people there were undernourished in 2019 — more than half of the world total .
UNICEF also highlighted the high numbers of people without access to a healthy diet , saying that `` the race to end malnutrition appears compromised . ''
The report estimated that around 3 billion people worldwide can not afford a healthy diet .

U.N. Report Says Pandemic Could Push Up To 132 Million People Into Hunger
Enlarge this image toggle caption Charles Rex Arbogast/AP Charles Rex Arbogast/AP
The coronavirus pandemic could push up to 132 million people into hunger by the end of 2020, according to a new report from the United Nations.
"As progress in fighting hunger stalls, the COVID-19 pandemic is intensifying the vulnerabilities and inadequacies of global food systems," UNICEF said in a statement.
"While it is too early to assess the full impact of the lockdowns and other containment measures, at least another 83 million people, and possibly as many as 132 million, may go hungry in 2020," the agency added.
The finding was included in the latest version of The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World, published annually by U.N. agencies, including the World Health Organization.
The report said an economic recovery expected in 2021 would bring the number of undernourished people down — but it's not clear by how much, and the number will remain above pre-pandemic projections.
World hunger had been declining for years before 2014, the U.N. reported, but has shot up by nearly 60 million since then. It estimated that around 690 million people were undernourished in 2019.
Asia has the highest number of hungry individuals. The report estimates that 381 million people there were undernourished in 2019 — more than half of the world total.
UNICEF also highlighted the high numbers of people without access to a healthy diet, saying that "the race to end malnutrition appears compromised."
The report estimated that around 3 billion people worldwide cannot afford a healthy diet.