usatoday--2020-09-03--Gov. Andrew Cuomo: Donald Trump will 'need an army' if he returns to New York City

ALBANY , N.Y. – New York Gov .
Andrew Cuomo angrily responded late Wednesday to President Donald Trump 's threat to `` defund '' New York City and other Democratic cities that have seen violent protests , warning Trump he would `` need an army '' if he returned to the city of his birth .
Cuomo , a Democrat , hastily called a conference call with reporters Wednesday night after the White House issued a five-page memo threatening to cut federal funding to what it called `` anarchist institutions . ''
The memo defines the term as as any @ @ @ @ @ @ @ reasonable measures '' to curb violence and property destruction .
But it specifically mentioned four largely Democratic cities : New York City , Portland , Seattle and Washington D.C. That drew a fiery response from Cuomo , who called Trump the `` worst president in history '' from New York City 's perspective .
He criticized Trump for his coronavirus response and accused Trump 's administration of slowing down several city-based projects , including a congestion-pricing system meant to boost funding for public transit .
Trump , a Republican who changed his permanent @ @ @ @ @ @ @ year , would not be welcomed back to the city , Cuomo said .
Cuomo and Trump are both originally from Queens .
`` He can ’ t come back to New York .
He can ’ t , '' said Cuomo , a Democrat .
`` He ’ s going to walk down the street in New York ?
Forget bodyguards , he better have an army if he thinks he ’ s going to walk down the street in New York . ''
Within minutes , Cuomo sought to clarify his @ @ @ @ @ @ @ only meant to suggest Trump wo n't come back to the city because he knows how New York residents feel about him .
`` All I ’ m saying is that he is persona non grata in New York City and I think he knows that and he ’ ll never come back to New York because New Yorkers will never forget how gratuitously mean he has been to New Yorkers , '' Cuomo said .
Vote by mail ?
Democratic group warns Trump may use it to prematurely declare victory even if @ @ @ @ @ @ @ which included the governor 's familiar criticism that Trump did not shut down European travel fast enough during the COVID-19 crisis , appeared to draw a response from Trump on Twitter Thursday morning .
In a tweet , Trump said Cuomo has the `` worst record '' on the coronavirus .
`` 11,000 people alone died in Nursing Homes because of his incompetence ! ''
Trump tweeted , a reference to an Associated Press story that suggested New York is under-counting the COVID-19 deaths of nursing home residents .
Cuomo senior adviser Rich @ @ @ @ @ @ @ was filled with `` lies and conspiracies . ''
`` You literally recommended that people inject bleach in their veins to fight COVID ... and some actually did , '' he tweeted in reference to Trump musing earlier this year about whether disinfectants could fight the coronavirus .
Cuomo 's `` army '' comment caused a stir on social media , where the governor 's name was trending on Twitter as of Thursday morning .
`` ( W ) hat he meant was Trump was persona non grata after everything he did to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Azzopardi tweeted .
`` Where was this faux outrage energy when Trump did 5th Ave. shooting comments ? ''
Coronavirus live updates : Canada 's top doctor says wear a mask during sex ; cyberattacks hit virtual class ; more colleges alter reopening

Gov. Andrew Cuomo: Donald Trump will 'need an army' if he returns to New York City
Show Caption Hide Caption Watch: Cuomo's speech at the Democratic National Convention Gov. Andrew Cuomo gave a five-minute address at the Democratic National Convention on Aug. 17, 2020. New York State Team
ALBANY, N.Y. – New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo angrily responded late Wednesday to President Donald Trump's threat to "defund" New York City and other Democratic cities that have seen violent protests, warning Trump he would "need an army" if he returned to the city of his birth.
Cuomo, a Democrat, hastily called a conference call with reporters Wednesday night after the White House issued a five-page memo threatening to cut federal funding to what it called "anarchist institutions."
The memo defines the term as as any city that has "refused to undertake reasonable measures" to curb violence and property destruction.
But it specifically mentioned four largely Democratic cities: New York City, Portland, Seattle and Washington D.C.
Nancy Pelosi calls for apology from San Francisco salon: Claims hair appointment 'setup'
That drew a fiery response from Cuomo, who called Trump the "worst president in history" from New York City's perspective. He criticized Trump for his coronavirus response and accused Trump's administration of slowing down several city-based projects, including a congestion-pricing system meant to boost funding for public transit.
Trump, a Republican who changed his permanent residence from New York to Florida last year, would not be welcomed back to the city, Cuomo said.
Cuomo and Trump are both originally from Queens.
"He can’t come back to New York. He can’t," said Cuomo, a Democrat. "He’s going to walk down the street in New York? Forget bodyguards, he better have an army if he thinks he’s going to walk down the street in New York."
Within minutes, Cuomo sought to clarify his "army" comment, saying he only meant to suggest Trump won't come back to the city because he knows how New York residents feel about him.
"All I’m saying is that he is persona non grata in New York City and I think he knows that and he’ll never come back to New York because New Yorkers will never forget how gratuitously mean he has been to New Yorkers," Cuomo said.
Vote by mail? Democratic group warns Trump may use it to prematurely declare victory even if he's losing
Cuomo's comments, which included the governor's familiar criticism that Trump did not shut down European travel fast enough during the COVID-19 crisis, appeared to draw a response from Trump on Twitter Thursday morning.
In a tweet, Trump said Cuomo has the "worst record" on the coronavirus.
"11,000 people alone died in Nursing Homes because of his incompetence!" Trump tweeted, a reference to an Associated Press story that suggested New York is under-counting the COVID-19 deaths of nursing home residents.
Governors Andrew Cuomo of New York has the worst record on death and China Virus. 11,000 people alone died in Nursing Homes because of his incompetence! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 3, 2020
Cuomo senior adviser Rich Azzopardi responded by saying Trump's tweet was filled with "lies and conspiracies."
"You literally recommended that people inject bleach in their veins to fight COVID ... and some actually did," he tweeted in reference to Trump musing earlier this year about whether disinfectants could fight the coronavirus.
Cuomo's "army" comment caused a stir on social media, where the governor's name was trending on Twitter as of Thursday morning.
"(W)hat he meant was Trump was persona non grata after everything he did to his now abandoned home town," Azzopardi tweeted. "Where was this faux outrage energy when Trump did 5th Ave. shooting comments?"
Follow reporter Jon Campbell on Twitter at @JonCampbellGAN.
Coronavirus live updates: Canada's top doctor says wear a mask during sex; cyberattacks hit virtual class; more colleges alter reopening


usatoday--2020-09-04--Economy added 1.4M jobs in August as unemployment fell to 8.4% amid persistent COVID-19 outbreaks

The U.S. economy added 1.4 million jobs in August as businesses shuttered by the COVID-19 pandemic continued to reopen and bring back workers , more than offsetting a fresh wave of layoffs by firms that have exhausted their federal loans .
The unemployment rate fell sharply to 8.4 % from 10.2 % in July , the Labor Department said Friday .
Economists surveyed by Bloomberg had estimated that 1.35 million jobs were added last month .
August ’ s payroll gains were healthy but mark the second straight monthly slowdown in hiring after employers added a record 4.8 million positions @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
That ’ s a troubling sign considering the nation has recouped slightly less than half the unprecedented 22 million jobs wiped out in early spring as states closed down nonessential businesses such as restaurants , malls and movie theaters .
“ The fact that employment is settling into a trend of slow , grinding improvement is a worrisome sign for the broader recovery , ” economist Lydia Boussour of Oxford Economics wrote in a note to clients .
The latest figures were inflated by the hiring of 238,000 temporary workers for the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ off in coming months .
The private sector added 1 million jobs , down substantially from 1.5 million in July .
Many states have allowed businesses to reopen in phases but others , especially in the South and West , paused or reversed their relaunch plans in July and August amid coronavirus surges .
Recently , cases in those hot-spot states generally have trended down but the results have been mixed .
Positive test rates have stayed high in Texas and Florida and edged down just slowly in California , Goldman Sachs says @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Coronavirus pandemic likely to leave legacy of fear and uncertainty that holds back economy for decades As a result , many businesses are running at just partial capacity because of lingering state restrictions and consumer fears of contagion .
Many struggling firms recently have exhausted the cash they received through federal loans that were forgivable as long as they retained or rehired workers .
After meeting those terms , many are letting workers go again .
Last month , the number of Americans on temporary layoff fell by 3 million to 6.1 million @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
At the same time , the number of workers permanently laid off jumped from 2.9 million to 3.4 million , indicating that some temporary layoffs have become permanent .
About 45 % of unemployed workers said they were on temporary layoff , down from 56 % the previous month .
`` The number of permanent job losses is mounting which is concerning and could result in scarring of the labor market , '' says economistRubeela Farouqi of High Frequency Economics .
Meanwhile , Congress remains deadlocked over a new stimulus package that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and renew at least part of the $ 600 federal supplement to state unemployment benefits that expired in late July .
`` The need for a further stimulus package remains acute , '' says economist Ian Shepherdson of Pantheon Macroeconomics .
A separate survey released by Cornell University earlier this month showed that 31 % of temporarily laid off or furloughed workers who have been rehired , said they were cut a second time and another 26 % have been told by their employer that they may be laid off again .
Retailers @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Professional and business services added 197,000 jobs but more than half came from temporary staffing agencies , indicating that many wary employers are filling openings with contingent workers amid lingering uncertainty .
Leisure and hospitality , the sector hardest hit by the pandemic , added 174,000 workers , mostly at bars and restaurants .
Transportation added 78,000 jobs and health care , 75,000 .
Manufacturing , still recovering from a sharp drop in demand and supply disruptions from overseas , added 29,000 jobs .
About 24 million Americans said they couldn ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ closed or lost business during the crisis , down from 31.3 million in July .
And about 5.2 million people were prevented from working or looking for jobs because of the outbreak .
Nearly a quarter of workers teleworked , down from 26.4 % in July .
Shifting tastes : Taco Bell removing Mexican Pizza and shredded chicken from menu , adding new Chicken Chipotle Melt

Economy added 1.4M jobs in August as unemployment fell to 8.4% amid persistent COVID-19 outbreaks
Show Caption Hide Caption Coronavirus: What to expect in a recession, depression The coronavirus (COVID-19) is impacting the global economy and raising fears of a recession. What causes a recession and what are the signs? Just the FAQs, USA TODAY
The U.S. economy added 1.4 million jobs in August as businesses shuttered by the COVID-19 pandemic continued to reopen and bring back workers, more than offsetting a fresh wave of layoffs by firms that have exhausted their federal loans.
The unemployment rate fell sharply to 8.4% from 10.2% in July, the Labor Department said Friday.
Economists surveyed by Bloomberg had estimated that 1.35 million jobs were added last month.
August’s payroll gains were healthy but mark the second straight monthly slowdown in hiring after employers added a record 4.8 million positions in June and 1.8 million in July. That’s a troubling sign considering the nation has recouped slightly less than half the unprecedented 22 million jobs wiped out in early spring as states closed down nonessential businesses such as restaurants, malls and movie theaters.
“The fact that employment is settling into a trend of slow, grinding improvement is a worrisome sign for the broader recovery,” economist Lydia Boussour of Oxford Economics wrote in a note to clients.
The latest figures were inflated by the hiring of 238,000 temporary workers for the 2020 Census who likely will be laid off in coming months. The private sector added 1 million jobs, down substantially from 1.5 million in July.
Many states have allowed businesses to reopen in phases but others, especially in the South and West, paused or reversed their relaunch plans in July and August amid coronavirus surges. Recently, cases in those hot-spot states generally have trended down but the results have been mixed. Positive test rates have stayed high in Texas and Florida and edged down just slowly in California, Goldman Sachs says.
Long-term pain from COVID-19?: Coronavirus pandemic likely to leave legacy of fear and uncertainty that holds back economy for decades
As a result, many businesses are running at just partial capacity because of lingering state restrictions and consumer fears of contagion. Many struggling firms recently have exhausted the cash they received through federal loans that were forgivable as long as they retained or rehired workers. After meeting those terms, many are letting workers go again.
Last month, the number of Americans on temporary layoff fell by 3 million to 6.1 million as more laid-off workers were called back. At the same time, the number of workers permanently laid off jumped from 2.9 million to 3.4 million, indicating that some temporary layoffs have become permanent.
About 45% of unemployed workers said they were on temporary layoff, down from 56% the previous month.
"The number of permanent job losses is mounting which is concerning and could result in scarring of the labor market," says economist Rubeela Farouqi of High Frequency Economics.
Meanwhile, Congress remains deadlocked over a new stimulus package that would provide more funds for teetering businesses and renew at least part of the $600 federal supplement to state unemployment benefits that expired in late July.
"The need for a further stimulus package remains acute," says economist Ian Shepherdson of Pantheon Macroeconomics.
A separate survey released by Cornell University earlier this month showed that 31% of temporarily laid off or furloughed workers who have been rehired said they were cut a second time and another 26% have been told by their employer that they may be laid off again.
Jessica Oyanagi, 40, of Maui, Hawaii, points up the bind ensnaring many workers as they try to stay afloat and recover from the crisis. In March, business came to a standstill for the freelance photographer who relied heavily on tourists requesting portrait shots, a service so popular that she had employed six contractors.
It took two months before Oyanagi received unemployment benefits but the $863 allowed her and her husband, John, a welder, to pay their bills. Now that the $600 federal supplement is gone, “We’re just burning through savings,” as they did while Jessica awaited jobless benefits. They’re also eliminating frills, such as eating out and ordering takeout for themselves and daughters ages four and seven.
They have deferred credit card and car loan payments but those bills are now due just as the unemployment bonus has vanished.
“Our bills have gone up, and unemployment has gone down,” she says.
After her photography business evaporated, Oyanagi took an online course and got her real estate license. But with her seven-year-old daughter at home this fall as schools remain closed for all but virtual classes, she can’t seek a job as a real estate broker.
“It’s really frustrating,” says Oyanagi, a member of a group called MomsRising that works to increase economic security for families and reduce discrimination against women and mothers. She added that the couple will deplete their savings in six months.
Other measures of economic activity also underscore a slowdown in the recovery from the steepest and shortest recession on record. Employment at small businesses tracked by Homebase -- which makes scheduling software – was up just slightly in August and has been roughly flat the past couple of months.
And Kronos, which track worker shifts, says average weekly shift growth slowed for the third straight month in August to just 0.5%.
Industries that are hiring
Retailers led the August payroll gains with 249,000. Professional and business services added 197,000 jobs but more than half came from temporary staffing agencies, indicating that many wary employers are filling openings with contingent workers amid lingering uncertainty.
Leisure and hospitality, the sector hardest hit by the pandemic, added 174,000 jobs, mostly at bars and restaurants. Transportation added 78,000 and health care, 75,000. Manufacturing, still recovering from a sharp drop in demand and supply disruptions from overseas, added 29,000 jobs.
Pandemic alters labor market
About 24 million Americans said they couldn’t work last month because their employer closed or lost business during the crisis, down from 31.3 million in July. And about 5.2 million people were prevented from working or looking for jobs because of the outbreak. Nearly a quarter of workers teleworked, down from 26.4% in July.
Shifting tastes: Taco Bell removing Mexican Pizza and shredded chicken from menu, adding new Chicken Chipotle Melt
Labor force participation rises
In August, the share of Americans working or looking for jobs – which together make up the labor force – rose from 61.4% to 61.7%. That’s good news because it means the unemployment rate fell even though the competition for jobs increased as the improved labor market drew in people who had been on the sidelines. It could also signify that the expiration of the extra $600 in jobless benefits prodded many people to look for work, says economist Andrew Hunter of Capital Economics.


usatoday--2020-09-04--Washington Football Team releases Adrian Peterson after two seasons with team

Another big-name running back has hit the open market as training camp wraps up and roster sizes dwindle .
Peterson played in all but one game over the past two seasons for Washington .
The 13-year veteran has amassed 14,216 career rushing yards , fifth on the all-time rushing list .
The 35-year-old is second on the active rushing list behind Frank Gore of the New York Jets .
Last season , Peterson carried the ball 211 times for 898 yards and five touchdowns after a 1,000-yard campaign in 2018 .
The move , made under first-year coach Ron Rivera @ @ @ @ @ @ @ J.D .
McKissic , Peyton Barber and Bryce Love as the running backs left on the roster .
The club picked up Peterson 's option for 2020 in February , with Rivera saying in a release at the time `` Adrian Peterson is the epitome of what it means to be a pro in this league . ''
Peterson spent the first 10 seasons of his career with the Minnesota Vikings , where he made seven Pro Bowls and earned four first-team All-Pro selections .
On Thursday , reports from Washington camp said @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the training staff during practice .
Earlier this week , the Jacksonville Jaguars moved on from 2017 No .
4 overall pick Leonard Fournette .
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have since added him to their roster .

Washington Football Team releases Adrian Peterson after two seasons with team
Show Caption Hide Caption Who are the top NFL fantasy football draft sleepers? USA TODAY Sports' Steve Gardner breaks down some potential fantasy football sleepers. USA TODAY
Another big-name running back has hit the open market as training camp wraps up and roster sizes dwindle.
The Washington Football Team released Adrian Peterson, the club announced Friday morning.
Peterson played in all but one game over the past two seasons for Washington. The 13-year veteran has amassed 14,216 career rushing yards, fifth on the all-time rushing list. The 35-year-old is second on the active rushing list behind Frank Gore of the New York Jets.
Last season, Peterson carried the ball 211 times for 898 yards and five touchdowns after a 1,000-yard campaign in 2018.
The move, made under first-year coach Ron Rivera, leaves Washington with Antonio Gibson, J.D. McKissic, Peyton Barber and Bryce Love as the running backs left on the roster.
We have released RB Adrian Peterson. — Washington Football Team (@WashingtonNFL) September 4, 2020
The club picked up Peterson's option for 2020 in February, with Rivera saying in a release at the time "Adrian Peterson is the epitome of what it means to be a pro in this league."
Peterson spent the first 10 seasons of his career with the Minnesota Vikings, where he made seven Pro Bowls and earned four first-team All-Pro selections. On Thursday, reports from Washington camp said Peterson worked on a side field with the training staff during practice.
Earlier this week, the Jacksonville Jaguars moved on from 2017 No. 4 overall pick Leonard Fournette. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have since added him to their roster.


usatoday--2020-09-04--Coronavirus live updates: Model predicts 410K US deaths by January; Labor Day weekend brings risk; S

Coronavirus live updates: Model predicts 410K US deaths by January; Labor Day weekend brings risk; South Dakota stages state fair

The Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington 's School of Medicine is predicting more than 410,000 deaths by January if mask usage stays at current rates .
If governments continue relaxing social distancing requirements , that number could increase .
Additionally , two-thirds of U.S. voters say they wo n't try to get a coronavirus vaccine as soon as it becomes available and one in four say they do n't want to get it ever , according to a new USA TODAY/Suffolk poll .
And this Labor Day weekend , health experts worry that gatherings @ @ @ @ @ @ @ another coronavirus surge .
With temperatures forecast to reach triple digits in California , the beaches are expected to be crowded .
Families and friends will gather for cookouts across the country .
And , in South Dakota , the annual state fair will bring together thousands for cotton candy and amusement rides .
• The U.S. could see more than 410,000 virus deaths by January 1 , according to a model from the University of Washington .
• More law enforcement officials could die of COVID-19 then those who died during 9/11 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ officers .
• More than 100 schools in Iowa — one of the nation 's latest hot spot — have reported coronavirus cases , according to the teachers ' union .
• Thousands are expected to flock to beaches as a triple-digit heat wave arrives in California this weekend .
📈 Today 's numbers : The U.S. has 6.1 million confirmed cases and over 186,000 deaths , according to Johns Hopkins University data .
Globally , there are 26 million cases and more than 869,000 people have died .
New case records were @ @ @ @ @ @ @ West Virginia , according to a USA TODAY analysis of Johns Hopkins data .
Record numbers of deaths were reported in Arkansas .
📰 What we 're reading : The coronavirus pandemic and social unrest have increased the demand for therapists of color .
`` COVID made it explicit , some of the needs that communities of color always had to struggle with : unemployment , health conditions , lack of insurance , lack of coverage for mental health , '' said Lucy Takagi , a clinical specialist at Montclair State University .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ day .
For updates in your inbox , subscribe to the Daily Briefing .
US death toll will reach 410,000 deaths by January : IHME More than 410,000 Americans will die of COVID-19 by Jan. 1 , according to a model cited by top health officials and once used by the White House .
The Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington 's School of Medicine predicts that number could exceed 620,000 if mask usage stays at current rates and governments continue relaxing social distancing requirements .
Global deaths @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the year in a worst case scenario , with a `` most likely '' scenario of 2.8 million .
Daily deaths in December could be as high as 30,000 .
`` Looking at the staggering COVID-19 estimates , it 's easy to get lost in the enormity of the numbers , '' said IHME Director Dr. Christopher Murray .
`` The number of deaths exceeds the capacity of the world 's 50 largest stadiums , a sobering image of the people who have lost their lives and livelihoods . ''
Murray said @ @ @ @ @ @ @ saved if mask usage is near-universal and governments implement social distancing requirements .
Two-thirds say they wo n't get COVID-19 vaccine when it 's first available Two-thirds of U.S. voters say they wo n't try to get a coronavirus vaccine as soon as it becomes available and one in four say they do n't want to get it ever , according to a new USA TODAY/Suffolk poll released the same week that the number of COVID-19 cases surpassed 6 million .
The poll of 1,000 voters follows similar surveys conducted in the past @ @ @ @ @ @ @ third of Americans would decline a vaccine , fueled by mistrust of the Trump administration 's push to speed up its development as well as a sizable slice of the country that generally oppose immunizations of any kind .
The Officer Down Memorial Page , a nonprofit organization dedicated to honoring fallen officers , reports more than 100 law enforcement officials have died of COVID-19 .
Line-of-duty officer deaths in 2020 have already exceeded the total from 2019 , when gunfire and vehicle crashes accounted for two-thirds of the 147 fatalities counted by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have been considered essential workers throughout the pandemic , which has been particularly cruel to corrections officers .
The Texas Department of Criminal Justice alone has had at least 16 confirmed line-of-duty deaths because of COVID-19 .
`` By the end of this pandemic , it is very likely that COVID will surpass 9/11 as the single largest incident cause of death for law enforcement officers , '' spokeswoman Jessica Rushing said .
South Dakota is one of the nation 's hot spots for COVID-19 infections .
That did n't stop another large-scale @ @ @ @ @ @ @ rural South Dakota State Fair , which reported an attendance of 205,000 people last year , is set to run through Labor Day with more hand-washing stations , social distancing reminders and an encouragement — but not a requirement — for attendees to wear masks .
It comes on the heels of the state 's two largest events : The Sturgis Motorcycle Rally and the The Sioux Empire Fair .
In the weeks following those events , South Dakota has emerged as a virus hotbed , according to data analysis .
State and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ cases is likely fueled by a combination of factors , including school reopenings , small gatherings and major events .
President Donald Trump dismissed questions about his own health and mocked his Democratic opponent for wearing a mask in a freewheeling rally Thursday in Pennsylvania that came as polls show a tightening race .
For a second day , Trump dismissed questions about an unscheduled visit he made to Walter Reed Medical Center in November , brushing aside a report about the visit as a conspiracy concocted by critics .
At the same @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Joe Biden 's own health , and criticized his mask-wearing .
`` They want to try to get me to be in Biden ’ s physical level , '' Trump told a crowded rally held in an airport hangar outside Pittsburgh .
`` I don ’ t like rumors like that .
It ’ s not true . ''
Trump was responding to a new book that asserted Vice President Mike Pence had been put on `` standby '' to take over the powers of the presidency during Trump 's November trip to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said Trump went there as part of his annual physical .
Some schools cancel online company after reports of 'inappropriate and racist content' As millions of students begin the semester online , a number of schools have terminated contracts with an online learning company following reports that some lessons included racist and sexually suggestive content .
Examples posted online by activists and confirmed by Kansas City-based Acellus , a learning company that contracts with about 6,000 schools , include suggestive language such as `` sweetie lips '' and a controversial illustration in a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ four elementary schools in Hawaii were among the first to cancel contracts .
In August , parents and community members posted images and video on social media and an online petition , saying they showed examples of content that caused concern .
Aliamanu Elementary School at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam decided to drop Acellus after reports of `` inappropriate and racist content '' that spanned course subjects and grade levels , Principal Sandra Yoshimi wrote in a letter sent to families .
California 's workplace safety regulator has ordered the San Quentin Prison @ @ @ @ @ @ @ work because unsafe practices are spreading COVID-19 .
The California Division of Occupational Health and Safety said workers were being put at risk of infection and banned dental work that sprays droplets from the patient 's mouth until the prison can meet a list of safety conditions , the San Francisco Chronicle reported .
The prison in the San Francisco Bay Area is the California lockup hit hardest by the coronavirus .
More than 2,200 inmates — about two-thirds of the prison population — have been infected , along with nearly 300 employees @ @ @ @ @ @ @ death row — have died from confirmed or suspected infections .
New Zealand is extending its coronavirus restriction until at least mid-September , Prime Minister Jacinda Arden announced Friday .
Officials continue to mandate face masks on public transport and restrict large gatherings across the country after the city of Auckland had an outbreak last month .
The country reported five new COVID-19 infections on Friday .
Three cases were connected to the Auckland outbreak while the other two were returning travelers who are under quarantine .
California is making `` a lot @ @ @ @ @ @ @ other theme parks , Gov .
Gavin Newsom said Wednesday .
Still , Newsom said in a news conference , `` we still have work to do '' to establish guidelines that would allow the parks to reopen for the first time since they shut down in March because of the coronavirus pandemic .
`` We ’ re still working on some details , '' he said , without offering any specifics .
State officials have not allowed theme parks to reopen because of a spike in coronavirus cases .
California has more @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as of Thursday , they totaled nearly more than 707,800 , according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention .
The Golden State also had the most new cases in the past week , with more than 34,700 reported .
• On Facebook : There 's still a lot unknown about the coronavirus .
But what we do know , we 're sharing with you .
Join our Facebook group , Coronavirus Watch , to receive daily updates in your feed and chat with others in the community about COVID-19 .
• @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the latest news on the coronavirus pandemic from the USA TODAY Network .
Sign up for the daily Coronavirus Watch newsletter .
• Tips for coping : Every Saturday and Tuesday we 'll be in your inbox , offering you a virtual hug and a little bit of solace in these difficult times .
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Coronavirus updates: Trump asks 'everybody to be careful' over Labor Day; 410K US deaths predicted by January
Show Caption Hide Caption COVID-19 vaccine trials rely on volunteers for breakthrough It takes a lot of people to develop a COVID-19 vaccine. Volunteers may be one of the most important. USA TODAY, Wochit
Amid promises this week from the president and pharmaceutical companies that there may be a COVID-19 vaccine within months, the head of the World Health Organization said Friday that the agency won’t recommend any vaccine before it is proven safe and effective.
A WHO spokesperson told Reuters Friday that the agency does not expect widespread vaccinations against COVID-19 until the middle of next year.
And this Labor Day weekend, health experts worry that gatherings — of all sizes — could push another coronavirus surge. With temperatures forecast to reach triple digits in California, the beaches are expected to be crowded. Families and friends will gather for cookouts across the country. And, in South Dakota, the annual state fair will bring together thousands for cotton candy and amusement rides.
On Friday, President Donald Trump addressed the holiday weekend, urging "everybody to be careful." He encouraged "social distancing, wearing a mask whenever the distancing is not possible." The comments come hours after Trump mocked Democratic opponent Joe Biden for wearing a mask.
Some significant developments:
Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden confirmed Friday that he has been tested for COVID-19 and said that he will continue to be tested “on a regular basis.”
The Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington's School of Medicine is predicting more than 410,000 deaths by January if mask usage stays at current rates. If governments continue relaxing social distancing requirements, that number could increase.
Thousands of Black and Hispanic Americans could go uncounted in the nation’s census this year because of the coronavirus pandemic and other disruptions.
The U.S. economy added 1.4 million jobs in August as businesses shuttered by the COVID-19 pandemic continued to reopen and bring back workers.
At least 7,000 health workers worldwide have died after contracting COVID-19, according to human rights organization Amnesty International.
📈 Today's numbers: The U.S. has about 6.2 million confirmed cases and over 187,000 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University data. Globally, there are 26 million cases and more than 872,000 people have died. New case records were set in Montana, North Dakota and West Virginia, according to a USA TODAY analysis of Johns Hopkins data. Record numbers of deaths were reported in Arkansas.
📰 What we're reading: The coronavirus pandemic and social unrest have increased the demand for therapists of color. "COVID made it explicit, some of the needs that communities of color always had to struggle with: unemployment, health conditions, lack of insurance, lack of coverage for mental health," said Lucy Takagi, a clinical specialist at Montclair State University.
This file will be updated throughout the day. For updates in your inbox, subscribe to the Daily Briefing.
Hilton is closing its 478-room hotel in Times Square effective Oct. 1, according to a document it filed with state regulators this week. Two hundred employees will lose their jobs, the filing says, due to "unforeseeable business circumstances prompted by COVID-19."
The pandemic has wiped out hotel occupancy in urban areas, including the heart of New York City. According to a report this week from the American Hotel and Lodging Association, an industry group, hotel occupancy in urban markets was 38% in August, well below the 50% it takes for most properties to break even.
As an early epicenter of the coronavirus pandemic in the United States, New York has experienced a dramatic drop in tourism. While the city has recovered since the spring, restaurants remain closed to indoor dining and Broadway is closed until next year.
– Curtis Tate
Russian scientists have belatedly published first results from early trials into the experimental Sputnik V vaccine, which received government approval last month but drew considerable criticism from experts, as the shots had only been tested on several dozen people before being more widely administered.
In a report published in the journal Lancet on Friday, developers of the vaccine said it appeared to be safe and to prompt an antibody response in all 40 people tested in the second phase of the study within three weeks. However, the authors noted that participants were only followed for 42 days, the study sample was small and there was no placebo or control vaccine used.
One part of the safety trial included only men and the study mostly involved people in their 20s and 30s, so it is unclear how the vaccine might work in older populations most at risk of the more severe complications of COVID-19.
— The Associated Press
Google gives employees extra holiday amid pandemic
Many months into the pandemic, Google is making Friday a one-time paid holiday for "collective wellbeing" and encouraging employees to enjoy a four-day holiday weekend, the company confirmed.
Google announced in July that employees would continue to work from home until summer of 2021.
Thousands of Black and Hispanic Americans could go uncounted in the nation’s census this year because of the coronavirus pandemic and other disruptions that discouraged households in poor and heavily minority neighborhoods from filling out their forms.
In 63% of census tracts, fewer people provided initial responses this year than in 2010, a USA TODAY analysis found. Response rates fell particularly in tracts with high concentrations of Black or Latino residents, large percentages of families qualifying for government benefits, or low levels of access to broadband internet.
People of color and poor families are undercounted every census. But COVID-19 delayed delivery of Census questionnaires for hard-to-reach populations during the spring quarantine and delayed operations since then to reach households that failed to respond.
– Theresa Diffendal
The U.S. economy added 1.4 million jobs in August as businesses shuttered by the COVID-19 pandemic continued to reopen and bring back workers, more than offsetting a fresh wave of layoffs by firms that have exhausted their federal loans.
The unemployment rate fell sharply to 8.4% from 10.2% in July, the Labor Department said Friday.
August’s payroll gains were healthy but mark the second straight monthly slowdown in hiring after employers added a record 4.8 million positions in June and 1.8 million in July. That’s a troubling sign considering the nation has recouped slightly less than half the unprecedented 22 million jobs wiped out in early spring as states closed down nonessential businesses such as restaurants, malls and movie theaters.
– Paul Davidson
At least 7,000 health workers worldwide have died after contracting COVID-19, human rights organization Amnesty International said Thursday.
"For over seven thousand people to die while trying to save others is a crisis on a staggering scale. Every health worker has the right to be safe at work, and it is a scandal that so many are paying the ultimate price," Steve Cockburn, Head of Economic and Social Justice at Amnesty International, said in a statement.
At least 1,320 health workers are confirmed to have died in Mexico alone, the highest known figure for any country, the group said. The U.S. has seen the second-highest number of health care worker deaths, Amnesty International said, with more than 1,000 deaths.
More than 410,000 Americans will die of COVID-19 by Jan. 1, according to a model cited by top health officials and once used by the White House.
The Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington's School of Medicine predicts that number could exceed 620,000 if mask usage stays at current rates and governments continue relaxing social distancing requirements. Global deaths could reach 4 million by the end of the year in a worst case scenario, with a "most likely" scenario of 2.8 million.
Daily deaths in December could be as high as 30,000.
"Looking at the staggering COVID-19 estimates, it's easy to get lost in the enormity of the numbers," said IHME Director Dr. Christopher Murray. "The number of deaths exceeds the capacity of the world's 50 largest stadiums, a sobering image of the people who have lost their lives and livelihoods."
Murray said these numbers could imore lives could be saved if mask usage is near-universal and governments implement social distancing requirements.
What we're reading
Two-thirds of U.S. voters say they won't try to get a coronavirus vaccine as soon as it becomes available and one in four say they don't want to get it ever, according to a new USA TODAY/Suffolk poll released the same week that the number of COVID-19 cases surpassed 6 million.
The poll of 1,000 voters follows similar surveys conducted in the past month that indicate as many as one third of Americans would decline a vaccine, fueled by mistrust of the Trump administration's push to speed up its development as well as a sizable slice of the country that generally oppose immunizations of any kind.
– Sarah Elbeshbishi and Ledyard King
The Officer Down Memorial Page, a nonprofit organization dedicated to honoring fallen officers, reports more than 100 law enforcement officials have died of COVID-19. Line-of-duty officer deaths in 2020 have already exceeded the total from 2019, when gunfire and vehicle crashes accounted for two-thirds of the 147 fatalities counted by the Officer Down Memorial group.
Officers have been considered essential workers throughout the pandemic, which has been particularly cruel to corrections officers. The Texas Department of Criminal Justice alone has had at least 16 confirmed line-of-duty deaths because of COVID-19.
"By the end of this pandemic, it is very likely that COVID will surpass 9/11 as the single largest incident cause of death for law enforcement officers," spokeswoman Jessica Rushing said.
– John Bacon
South Dakota is one of the nation's hot spots for COVID-19 infections. That didn't stop another large-scale event from kicking off Thursday.
The rural South Dakota State Fair, which reported an attendance of 205,000 people last year, is set to run through Labor Day with more hand-washing stations, social distancing reminders and an encouragement — but not a requirement — for attendees to wear masks. It comes on the heels of the state's two largest events: The Sturgis Motorcycle Rally and the The Sioux Empire Fair.
In the weeks following those events, South Dakota has emerged as a virus hotbed, according to data analysis. State and national health experts say the rise in cases is likely fueled by a combination of factors, including school reopenings, small gatherings and major events.
– Joel Shannon
President Donald Trump dismissed questions about his own health and mocked his Democratic opponent for wearing a mask in a freewheeling rally Thursday in Pennsylvania that came as polls show a tightening race.
For a second day, Trump dismissed questions about an unscheduled visit he made to Walter Reed Medical Center in November, brushing aside a report about the visit as a conspiracy concocted by critics. At the same time, Trump raised unfounded questions about Joe Biden's own health, and criticized his mask-wearing.
"They want to try to get me to be in Biden’s physical level," Trump told a crowded rally held in an airport hangar outside Pittsburgh. "I don’t like rumors like that. It’s not true."
Trump was responding to a new book that asserted Vice President Mike Pence had been put on "standby" to take over the powers of the presidency during Trump's November trip to Walter Reed. The White House has said Trump went there as part of his annual physical.
– John Fritze and David Jackson
As millions of students begin the semester online, a number of schools have terminated contracts with an online learning company following reports that some lessons included racist and sexually suggestive content.
Examples posted online by activists and confirmed by Kansas City-based Acellus, a learning company that contracts with about 6,000 schools, include suggestive language such as "sweetie lips" and a controversial illustration in a lesson about Harriet Tubman.
At least four elementary schools in Hawaii were among the first to cancel contracts. In August, parents and community members posted images and video on social media and an online petition, saying they showed examples of content that caused concern.
Aliamanu Elementary School at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam decided to drop Acellus after reports of "inappropriate and racist content" that spanned course subjects and grade levels, Principal Sandra Yoshimi wrote in a letter sent to families.
– Elinor Aspegren
California's workplace safety regulator has ordered the San Quentin Prison dental clinic to stop drilling and other work because unsafe practices are spreading COVID-19.
The California Division of Occupational Health and Safety said workers were being put at risk of infection and banned dental work that sprays droplets from the patient's mouth until the prison can meet a list of safety conditions, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.
The prison in the San Francisco Bay Area is the California lockup hit hardest by the coronavirus. More than 2,200 inmates — about two-thirds of the prison population — have been infected, along with nearly 300 employees. Twenty-six inmates — including several on death row — have died from confirmed or suspected infections.
New Zealand is extending its coronavirus restriction until at least mid-September, Prime Minister Jacinda Arden announced Friday. Officials continue to mandate face masks on public transport and restrict large gatherings across the country after the city of Auckland had an outbreak last month.
The country reported five new COVID-19 infections on Friday. Three cases were connected to the Auckland outbreak while the other two were returning travelers who are under quarantine.
California is making "a lot of progress" toward reopening Disneyland and other theme parks, Gov. Gavin Newsom said Wednesday.
Still, Newsom said in a news conference, "we still have work to do" to establish guidelines that would allow the parks to reopen for the first time since they shut down in March because of the coronavirus pandemic.
"We’re still working on some details," he said, without offering any specifics.
State officials have not allowed theme parks to reopen because of a spike in coronavirus cases. California has more cases than any other state, and as of Thursday, they totaled nearly more than 707,800, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The Golden State also had the most new cases in the past week, with more than 34,700 reported.
– Curtis Tate
On Facebook: There's still a lot unknown about the coronavirus. But what we do know, we're sharing with you. Join our Facebook group, Coronavirus Watch , to receive daily updates in your feed and chat with others in the community about COVID-19.
There's still a lot unknown about the coronavirus. But what we do know, we're sharing with you. , to receive daily updates in your feed and chat with others in the community about COVID-19. In your inbox: Stay up-to-date with the latest news on the coronavirus pandemic from the USA TODAY Network. Sign up for the daily Coronavirus Watch newsletter.
Stay up-to-date with the latest news on the coronavirus pandemic from the USA TODAY Network. Tips for coping: Every Saturday and Tuesday we'll be in your inbox, offering you a virtual hug and a little bit of solace in these difficult times. Sign up for Staying Apart, Together.
Contributing: Jorge Ortiz, USA TODAY; The Associated Press


usatoday--2020-09-04--Car rams into crowd of protesters in New York City's Times Square, video shows

NEW YORK — Police are still searching for a suspect Friday after a car rammed through a crowd of protesters in Times Square during a rainy Thursday evening demonstration .
Video shared on social media around 8 p.m. Thursday showed a black sedan charge through a group of protesters , some with bikes , in a crosswalk in Times Square .
The group had been chanting messages protesting social injustice when a car horn begins to blare and the sedan comes into frame .
The car stops in front of two cyclists then plows ahead as the crowd chases after @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Thomas Antonetti told USA TODAY on Friday morning that the investigation was ongoing .
`` It 's unclear at this point who is responsible , '' Antonetti said .
In a tweet Thursday , police said the car involved was not an NYPD vehicle as some social media users said they believed it looked like an unmarked police car .
Antonetti said there were no injuries , though some social media users who tweeted video from the scene said a few minor injuries occurred .
NYPD said on Twitter on Thursday that there @ @ @ @ @ @ @ was injured should come forward .
Keith Powers , a New York City council member who represents a district that includes Times Square , tweeted that his office was looking into the incident .
`` Using a vehicle to hurt peaceful protestors is unacceptable and must be stopped , '' Powers tweeted .
In a disturbing trend amid recent protests against racial injustice , dozens of vehicles have rammed into demonstrations across the United States this summer .
In one incident , it was two NYPD vehicles that rammed into a crowd .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ calling for justice for Daniel Prude , a Black man who died from asphyxia during an incident with Rochester , New York , police in March .
Seven police officers involved in the Prude 's death were suspended Thursday after new details came to light this week about what occurred the night Prude died .
Prude , whose death has been ruled a homicide , was pinned to the ground as police restrained him , and officers also placed a `` spit hood '' over his head .
The incident occurred two months @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a Black man killed when a white police officer dug his knee into Floyd 's neck for over eight minutes .
Floyd 's death sparked massive unrest across the country as protesters repeated calls for changes to police departments and racial justice .

Car rams into crowd of protesters in New York City's Times Square, video shows
Show Caption Hide Caption Car plows through group of protesters in Times Square Police are still searching for a suspect after a car rammed through a crowd of protesters in Times Square. USA TODAY, Storyful
NEW YORK — Police are continuing to investigate after a car rammed through a crowd of protesters in Times Square during a rainy Thursday evening demonstration.
Video shared on social media around 8 p.m. Thursday showed a black sedan charge through a group of protesters, some with bikes, in a crosswalk in Times Square.
The group had been chanting messages protesting social injustice when a car horn begins to blare and the sedan comes into frame. The car stops in front of two cyclists then plows ahead as the crowd chases after it.
New York Police Department spokesperson Thomas Antonetti told USA TODAY on Friday morning that the investigation was ongoing.
"It's unclear at this point who is responsible," Antonetti said.
Juliet Germanotta, identified by the Associated Press as a passenger in the car, said a pro-police activist who wasn't part of their group offered to drive them away because, she says, “a mob" was trying to attack them.
“We tried to leave. We stopped because they blocked the street," Germanotta said. “They then begin to try to open the door and break the windows, so he drove to save our lives. That’s what happened.”
Germanotta made headlines this summer when she was arrested on several occasions for dumping paint onto a Black Lives Matter mural on the street outside Trump’s namesake Manhattan tower.
Gothamist, a New York City news outlet, reported that the car was carrying pro-Trump counter protesters who had received an NYPD escort before running into the crowd.
The website, citing an unnamed police spokesperson, reported that the vehicle was being ushered through a nearby hotel parking lot but "missed the turn." New York Police Department's public information office declined to comment further on the report.
The news outlet also reported that the license plate of the car matches that of a car frequently seen with a pro-NYPD activist, Hakim Gibson.
Gibson posted a video on his Facebook page indicating that he was at the Times Square protest Thursday night with Germanotta. She confirmed he was the driver and that she knew him as a photographer who took pictures at various protests.
“He saved our lives,” Germanotta said.
New York Police Commissioner Dermot Shea told WNYW-TV on Friday morning that police are still investigating whether a crime occurred and believe multiple were inside the vehicle.
In a tweet Thursday, police said the car involved was not an NYPD vehicle as some social media users said they believed it looked like an unmarked police car.
Antonetti said there were no injuries, though some social media users who tweeted video from the scene said a few minor injuries occurred. NYPD said on Twitter on Thursday that there were no complaints and that anyone who was injured should come forward.
Keith Powers, a New York City council member who represents a district that includes Times Square, tweeted that his office was looking into the incident.
"Using a vehicle to hurt peaceful protestors is unacceptable and must be stopped," Powers tweeted.
In a disturbing trend amid recent protests against racial injustice, dozens of vehicles have rammed into demonstrations across the United States this summer. In one incident, it was two NYPD vehicles that rammed into a crowd.
The protests Thursday in Times Square were calling for justice for Daniel Prude, a Black man who died from asphyxia during an incident with Rochester, New York, police in March.
Seven police officers involved in the Prude's death were suspended Thursday after new details came to light this week about what occurred the night Prude died.
Prude, whose death has been ruled a homicide, was pinned to the ground as police restrained him, and officers also placed a "spit hood" over his head.
The incident occurred two months before the death of George Floyd, a Black man killed when a white police officer dug his knee into Floyd's neck for over eight minutes. Floyd's death sparked massive unrest across the country as protesters repeated calls for changes to police departments and racial justice.
Contributing: John Connolly, The Bergen Record; Steve Orr, Rochester Democrat and Chronicle; The Associated Press


usatoday--2020-09-04--'You have no authority over us': Church leader, sons jailed for insisting chemical's power to heal t

At 8 a.m. on July 8 , Food and Drug Administration agents backed up by Manatee County Sheriff ’ s deputies and Hazmat crews descended on a family compound in a quiet residential neighborhood of Bradenton , Florida .
Their quarry : family patriarch Mark Grenon and his Miracle Mineral Solution , a bleach-like substance he promotes as a religious sacrament and coronavirus cure .
Grenon , founder of Genesis II Church of Health and Healing , was not home .
So agents arrested two of his adult sons , Jonathan and Jordan , and charged them with conspiring to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ misbranded drug .
They busted into the family 's safe , removing $ 65,000 in cash , gold and coins .
They seized computers and documents , confiscated thousands of pounds of raw materials used to make MMS , then shut down the family ’ s New York bank accounts .
Interviewed on YouTube from his second home in Santa Marta , Columbia , the following day , Grenon complained about the lengths federal authorities had taken .
“ The amount of people who came in was ridiculous , ” Grenon said .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ , a hazmat truck , buses , a SWAT team , armored vehicles.
” The FDA raided the family 's compound in part because the agency believes MMS , or chlorine dioxide , is dangerous .
There have been more than 16,000 cases of chlorine dioxide poisoning , including approximately 2,500 cases involving children under 12 years old , since 2014 , according to the American Association of Poison Control Centers .
That includes a 6-year-old autistic girl who was hospitalized with liver failure in 2017 .
The Grenons also have been among @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Hack – a U.S. government program aimed at cracking down on anyone found to be marketing false coronavirus cures .
Not only have family members openly defied the FDA ’ s orders to stop distributing MMS to church members , but prosecutors say Grenon has threatened violence against the U.S. government and the judge presiding over their case in Florida ’ s Southern District .
In his weekly church podcast on April 26 , Grenon lashed out against the government : “ When Congress does immoral things , passes immoral laws , that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , right ?
” “ You want a Waco ?
Do they want a Waco ?
” Two weeks later , he turned his attention to Judge Kathleen M. Williams : “ You think we ’ re afraid of some Obama-appointed judge that broke their oath ?
” “ This judge could go to jail.
” “ You could be taken out , Ms. Williams.
” At least a dozen companies and individuals caught up in Operation Quack Hack have openly criticized the FDA and the Federal Trade Commission .
Some have accused @ @ @ @ @ @ @ : protecting big pharmaceutical companies from the competition of alternative health care providers .
But no one has been as dismissive of government authority as the Grenons .
Because they run a “ non-religious church ” they maintain they should be held to a different standard than an ordinary business , and because they distribute Miracle Mineral Solution as a sacrament in return for donations instead of selling it , they insist they are exempt from the laws of interstate commerce .
“ We are NOT under your authority in regard to your @ @ @ @ @ @ @ FDA after receiving a warning letter in April .
“ We DO NOT need your approval for ( MMS ) or for anything we do in our Church .
You have NO authority over us so why would we even consider your Act ?
” Instead of hiring an attorney and filing official responses in court , Grenon sent letters directly to Judge Williams saying that distributing MMS around the world is a conviction for which he ’ s ready to die .
He used podcasts and YouTube videos to warn the FDA @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and the judge to be careful how they treat his church , because , he said , the president is watching , the attorney general is watching and the entire country is watching .
“ My prayer is that Trump steps in , or Barr – I wrote them both – and says dismiss this case and put everything back the way it was , ” Grenon said in a YouTube video interview with investigative journalist and fellow FDA warning letter recipient Maryam Henein .
Grenon , who declined through Henein to speak @ @ @ @ @ @ @ video interview that he was eager to face his accusers in court and would come at them “ with the full force of the rule of law.
” “ What I want to see , ” Grenon concluded , “ is that judge in jail , the attorney in jail , and the FDA completely disassembled.
” 'Religious rituals are for other churches' The story of Miracle Mineral Solution does n't begin with the Grenons .
It starts with Jim Humble , a retired engineer and former member of the Church of Scientology @ @ @ @ @ @ @ first iteration of MMS while prospecting for gold in the jungles of Guyana in 1996 .
According to his book `` The Miracle Mineral Supplement of the 21st Century , '' four members of his camp came down with malaria , and the oxygenated water he whipped together had them back on their feet within 24 hours .
Through trial and error over the next 12 months , Humble refined his potion into chlorine dioxide .
By testing it in a dozen African and Latin America countries over the next decade , he @ @ @ @ @ @ @ more than malaria .
In fact , Humble said there were n't a lot of illnesses or ailments that MMS couldn ’ t cure .
From cancer to arthritis , Lyme tick disease to hepatitis , HIV/AIDs , skin rashes and spider bites , Humble said MMS had an ability to attack only germs , bacteria and viruses that harm the body , while leaving friendly bacteria and healthy cells alone .
In a promotional film , Grenon said he learned of the power of MMS a little over 10 years ago when @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , a stubborn staph infection .
Grenon was a missionary pilot based in the Dominican Republic at the time .
He flew in doctors from the United States to care for the island 's poor .
Despite his access to some of the best doctors and antibiotics , Grenon said nothing worked .
So he began searching the internet for a cure and landed on Humble 's original book on MMS .
Grenon invited Humble to come stay with him in the Dominican Republic .
Within six months , he said , everyone @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
What ’ s more , the two men had devised a plan for treating the poor in the Dominican Republic and Haiti and for creating and expanding Genesis II Church , dedicated to healing the sick . '
I 'm not gon na say cure ... because I can get in trouble' “ Worshipping God and other religious rituals are for other churches , ” Humble wrote in his second book , `` The Master Mineral Solution of the Third Millennium . ''
Both Grenon and Humble have explained in their writings @ @ @ @ @ @ @ was important for two reasons : It gave them certain rights and protections under the law as a religious organization and allowed them to dodge the tedious and extremely expensive process of getting MMS approved as a new drug .
“ Approval ?
” Grenon wrote in an April 23 letter to Judge Williams .
“ A Church sacrament only needs approval from God NOT a federal agency . ''
Grenon and Humble opted to expand the church and increase the distribution of MMS through franchising and by holding conferences at Grenon ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ For $ 1,500 , attendees received room , board and 10 days instruction on how to use MMS in a variety of scenarios : mixed with bath water to treat skin conditions , in a foot bath to treat foot fungus , in a spray bottle to treat skin cancer , in misting machines to treat pneumonia or asthma , in liquid or pill form to treat disease , and in enemas to treat constipation .
When they were finished with the course , attendees would receive minister of health certificates , which @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the paper and start their own Genesis II Church chapters .
They could then charge membership fees and benefit from the distribution of MMS in a two-bottle set , in return for each $ 25 donation .
Humble said he and his partners trained 178 ministers of health from 49 countries over the first 11 months in the Dominican Republic .
Within five years , they had reached 1,800 ministers from 115 countries .
Rather than waiting for people to keep showing up at their Caribbean compound , they began to take their @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , Grenon said he had held seminars in 20 countries , including two-day events in England , Ireland , Canada , Australia and New Zealand .
The Grenons averaged $ 32,000 a month in revenues from the distribution of MMS between April and December 2019 , according to documents seized during the FDA ’ s raid , a sum that shot up to $ 123,000 in March as pandemic fear spread .
But expanding the reach of the Genesis II Church was never easy .
As soon as the church got off the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ heavy fire from governments around the world and the medical establishment , and was deeply scrutinized by the media .
The FDA and similar agencies in the United Kingdom , Canada and New Zealand issued consumer warnings .
Then , after receiving reports of adverse reactions to MMS , including hospitalizations , life-threatening conditions , and death , at least six countries banned the product outright Doctors told reporters that ingesting the bleach-like substance was akin to drinking poison that could cause major organ failure , and major media outlets regularly highlighted problems @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , the Melbourne Herald Sun reported that at least 10 people had been poisoned by MMS in Australia .
The following year , a BBC reporter in England revealed that parents were using it to treat their autistic children .
`` I 'm not gon na say cure ... because I can get in trouble , ” Genesis II representative Leon Edwards , was quoted as saying in the BBC report .
“ I 'd say purge .
It can purge autism.
” In 2016 , ABC ’ s 20/20 conducted an undercover @ @ @ @ @ @ @ autism amounted to torture , causing nausea , diarrhea and skin rashes that looked like chemical burns .
Protesters around the world rose up to demand changes in laws to protect people from MMS .
“ Like St. Patrick and the snakes , we got rid of it , ” said Fiona O ’ Leary , the mother of three children with autism who has been fighting MMS for seven years .
“ We have nothing here in Ireland .
If there ’ s even a sniff of the stuff , the HPRA @ @ @ @ @ @ @ be all over it.
” There ’ s still plenty to worry about in the rest of the world , O'Leary said , especially in South America .
In Bolivia , the Ministry of Health recently approved the use of chlorine dioxide , she said , and in Peru , Columbia and Argentina , thousands of followers are promoting MMS , according to the BBC and other major media organizations .
Grenon sees all the criticism from his opponents – the medical industry , big media and governments – as evidence of globalist @ @ @ @ @ @ @ erosion of their wealth and power .
“ These people are evil geniuses … they ’ re very smart , satanic smart , ” Grenon said in his video interview with Henein .
“ They ’ re coming after us because what we do , if it ’ s made legal , it will wipe out 90 % of all the pharmaceuticals.
” Banned from distributing the product as a supplement in many countries , he and his followers have rebranded it as a water purifier .
Unable to meet for conferences at @ @ @ @ @ @ @ meetings in train stations , which have continued in private homes .
Unable to get positive news from the big media networks , the Grenons started their own weekly podcasts that air over the internet – and reach thousands of listeners .
The U.S. regulatory agencies and the courts have presented a more substantial hurdle .
Ever since Genesis II received a letter in April warning it to stop claiming MMS `` has every hope of eradicating COVID-19 , '' Grenon has made sure the FDA and the FTC know that he has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are not going to play games , ” Grenon said in one of his podcasts .
“ We are not entering your evil system.
” “ The FDA/FTC are the criminals here by putting a Church Sacrament under a code that does n't apply to a Church Sacrament , ” he said in another .
“ DISMISS THIS CASE TODAY AND ALL WILL BE FORGIVEN !
” Grenon ’ s rage and bravado began to dissipate about a week after the government raided his family ’ s Florida compound , when his son @ @ @ @ @ @ @ high blood pressure in the Pinellas County Jail .
“ The Doctor told his wife a few minutes ago that Jonathan 's blood pressure is at a dangerous level !
, ” Grenon wrote in an email to Judge Williams .
“ He also told Jonathan that he might have a heart attack !
He might die !
His health is in your hands .
Please release my sons today .
They are being effected physically , mentally and Spiritually.
” Six days later , Grenon sent the judge a letter via email @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of him .
He ’ d talked to all his sons and was ready to do anything the government asked .
“ I founded this Church to help mankind and together with my sons we have helped many and now it is time to stop , ” Grenon said .
“ If we open another Church it will be just for the preaching and teaching of the Bible as I have been doing for the past 41 yrs .
and have nothing to do with MMS , chlorine dioxide and providing those Sacraments @ @ @ @ @ @ @ only want to help others and are only looking for freedom of choice for what goes into our temples , i.e .
our bodies , ” Grenon continued .
“ As a father , I ask if at all possible , could my sons be released tomorrow , Monday , July 20th to attend the audio conference Tuesday from home .
That would be a blessing to them.
” Floridians who promoted bleach cocktail as a COVID-19 cure arrested in Colombia | CBC News On Aug. 12 , Colombian law enforcement officials arrested @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , Joseph , in the beach town of Santa Marta on a U.S. warrant for selling MMS as a cure for COVID-19 .
Colombian prosecutors told CBC News of Canada that the Grenons had been shipping the product to clients in the United States and Africa .
In the meantime , the U.S. government has ordered the church to recall and destroy its raw materials and finished products , and to provide refunds to customers on request .
In an audio message from his jail in Bogota posted on Twitter by Henein on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ his old self .
He was healthy , he said , and being treated well by the guards .
“ I believe we ’ re going to be out soon , ” he said .
“ I even had a dream that we ’ re going to be at the White House .
We ’ re going to be proclaiming .
It ’ s going to be legal , and the FDA is going to be taken down , and the Department of Justice is going to be cleaned up , and we @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
”

'You have no authority over us': Church leader, sons jailed for insisting chemical's power to heal trumps laws of the state
At 8 a.m. on July 8, Food and Drug Administration agents backed up by Manatee County Sheriff’s deputies and Hazmat crews descended on a family compound in a quiet residential neighborhood of Bradenton, Florida.
Their quarry: family patriarch Mark Grenon and his Miracle Mineral Solution, a bleach-like substance he promotes as a religious sacrament and coronavirus cure.
Grenon, founder of Genesis II Church of Health and Healing, was not home. So agents arrested two of his adult sons, Jonathan and Jordan, and charged them with conspiring to defraud consumers by manufacturing and distributing a misbranded drug. They busted into the family's safe, removing $65,000 in cash, gold and coins. They seized computers and documents, confiscated thousands of pounds of raw materials used to make MMS, then shut down the family’s New York bank accounts.
Interviewed on YouTube from his second home in Santa Marta, Columbia, the following day, Grenon complained about the lengths federal authorities had taken.
“The amount of people who came in was ridiculous,” Grenon said. “There were helicopters over the house, a hazmat truck, buses, a SWAT team, armored vehicles.”
The FDA raided the family's compound in part because the agency believes MMS, or chlorine dioxide, is dangerous.
There have been more than 16,000 cases of chlorine dioxide poisoning, including approximately 2,500 cases involving children under 12 years old, since 2014, according to the American Association of Poison Control Centers. That includes a 6-year-old autistic girl who was hospitalized with liver failure in 2017.
The Grenons also have been among the most uncooperative targets of Operation Quack Hack – a U.S. government program aimed at cracking down on anyone found to be marketing false coronavirus cures. Not only have family members openly defied the FDA’s orders to stop distributing MMS to church members, but prosecutors say Grenon has threatened violence against the U.S. government and the judge presiding over their case in Florida’s Southern District.
In his weekly church podcast on April 26, Grenon lashed out against the government: “When Congress does immoral things, passes immoral laws, that’s when you pick up guns, right?” “You want a Waco? Do they want a Waco?” Two weeks later, he turned his attention to Judge Kathleen M. Williams: “You think we’re afraid of some Obama-appointed judge that broke their oath?” “This judge could go to jail.” “You could be taken out, Ms. Williams.”
At least a dozen companies and individuals caught up in Operation Quack Hack have openly criticized the FDA and the Federal Trade Commission. Some have accused the two agencies of a nefarious motive: protecting big pharmaceutical companies from the competition of alternative health care providers.
But no one has been as dismissive of government authority as the Grenons.
Because they run a “non-religious church” they maintain they should be held to a different standard than an ordinary business, and because they distribute Miracle Mineral Solution as a sacrament in return for donations instead of selling it, they insist they are exempt from the laws of interstate commerce.
“We are NOT under your authority in regard to your agencies,” Mark Grenon told the FDA after receiving a warning letter in April. “We DO NOT need your approval for (MMS) or for anything we do in our Church. You have NO authority over us so why would we even consider your Act?”
Instead of hiring an attorney and filing official responses in court, Grenon sent letters directly to Judge Williams saying that distributing MMS around the world is a conviction for which he’s ready to die. He used podcasts and YouTube videos to warn the FDA, the U.S. attorneys prosecuting his case and the judge to be careful how they treat his church, because, he said, the president is watching, the attorney general is watching and the entire country is watching.
“My prayer is that Trump steps in, or Barr – I wrote them both – and says dismiss this case and put everything back the way it was,” Grenon said in a YouTube video interview with investigative journalist and fellow FDA warning letter recipient Maryam Henein.
Grenon, who declined through Henein to speak with USA TODAY, added in the video interview that he was eager to face his accusers in court and would come at them “with the full force of the rule of law.”
“What I want to see,” Grenon concluded, “is that judge in jail, the attorney in jail, and the FDA completely disassembled.”
'Religious rituals are for other churches'
The story of Miracle Mineral Solution doesn't begin with the Grenons. It starts with Jim Humble, a retired engineer and former member of the Church of Scientology, who says he stumbled across the first iteration of MMS while prospecting for gold in the jungles of Guyana in 1996.
According to his book "The Miracle Mineral Supplement of the 21st Century," four members of his camp came down with malaria, and the oxygenated water he whipped together had them back on their feet within 24 hours.
Through trial and error over the next 12 months, Humble refined his potion into chlorine dioxide. By testing it in a dozen African and Latin America countries over the next decade, he found it could cure a whole lot more than malaria.
In fact, Humble said there weren't a lot of illnesses or ailments that MMS couldn’t cure. From cancer to arthritis, Lyme tick disease to hepatitis, HIV/AIDs, skin rashes and spider bites, Humble said MMS had an ability to attack only germs, bacteria and viruses that harm the body, while leaving friendly bacteria and healthy cells alone.
In a promotional film, Grenon said he learned of the power of MMS a little over 10 years ago when his entire family came down with MRSA, a stubborn staph infection. Grenon was a missionary pilot based in the Dominican Republic at the time. He flew in doctors from the United States to care for the island's poor.
Despite his access to some of the best doctors and antibiotics, Grenon said nothing worked. So he began searching the internet for a cure and landed on Humble's original book on MMS.
Grenon invited Humble to come stay with him in the Dominican Republic. Within six months, he said, everyone in his family was clear of MRSA. What’s more, the two men had devised a plan for treating the poor in the Dominican Republic and Haiti and for creating and expanding Genesis II Church, dedicated to healing the sick.
'I'm not gonna say cure ... because I can get in trouble'
“Worshipping God and other religious rituals are for other churches,” Humble wrote in his second book, "The Master Mineral Solution of the Third Millennium."
Both Grenon and Humble have explained in their writings that structuring their enterprise as a church was important for two reasons: It gave them certain rights and protections under the law as a religious organization and allowed them to dodge the tedious and extremely expensive process of getting MMS approved as a new drug.
“Approval?” Grenon wrote in an April 23 letter to Judge Williams. “A Church sacrament only needs approval from God NOT a federal agency."
Grenon and Humble opted to expand the church and increase the distribution of MMS through franchising and by holding conferences at Grenon’s compound in the Dominican Republic.
For $1,500, attendees received room, board and 10 days instruction on how to use MMS in a variety of scenarios: mixed with bath water to treat skin conditions, in a foot bath to treat foot fungus, in a spray bottle to treat skin cancer, in misting machines to treat pneumonia or asthma, in liquid or pill form to treat disease, and in enemas to treat constipation.
When they were finished with the course, attendees would receive minister of health certificates, which allowed them to put an ad in the paper and start their own Genesis II Church chapters. They could then charge membership fees and benefit from the distribution of MMS in a two-bottle set, in return for each $25 donation.
Humble said he and his partners trained 178 ministers of health from 49 countries over the first 11 months in the Dominican Republic. Within five years, they had reached 1,800 ministers from 115 countries. Rather than waiting for people to keep showing up at their Caribbean compound, they began to take their show on the road.
By 2020, Grenon said he had held seminars in 20 countries, including two-day events in England, Ireland, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.
The Grenons averaged $32,000 a month in revenues from the distribution of MMS between April and December 2019, according to documents seized during the FDA’s raid, a sum that shot up to $123,000 in March as pandemic fear spread.
But expanding the reach of the Genesis II Church was never easy. As soon as the church got off the ground in 2010, it came under heavy fire from governments around the world and the medical establishment, and was deeply scrutinized by the media.
The FDA and similar agencies in the United Kingdom, Canada and New Zealand issued consumer warnings. Then, after receiving reports of adverse reactions to MMS, including hospitalizations, life-threatening conditions, and death, at least six countries banned the product outright
Doctors told reporters that ingesting the bleach-like substance was akin to drinking poison that could cause major organ failure, and major media outlets regularly highlighted problems caused by the potion.
In 2014, the Melbourne Herald Sun reported that at least 10 people had been poisoned by MMS in Australia. The following year, a BBC reporter in England revealed that parents were using it to treat their autistic children.
"I'm not gonna say cure ... because I can get in trouble,” Genesis II representative Leon Edwards, was quoted as saying in the BBC report. “I'd say purge. It can purge autism.”
In 2016, ABC’s 20/20 conducted an undercover report showing that using MMS to treat autism amounted to torture, causing nausea, diarrhea and skin rashes that looked like chemical burns.
Protesters around the world rose up to demand changes in laws to protect people from MMS.
“Like St. Patrick and the snakes, we got rid of it,” said Fiona O’Leary, the mother of three children with autism who has been fighting MMS for seven years. “We have nothing here in Ireland. If there’s even a sniff of the stuff, the HPRA (Ireland’s FDA) would be all over it.”
There’s still plenty to worry about in the rest of the world, O'Leary said, especially in South America. In Bolivia, the Ministry of Health recently approved the use of chlorine dioxide, she said, and in Peru, Columbia and Argentina, thousands of followers are promoting MMS, according to the BBC and other major media organizations.
'These people are evil geniuses … satanic smart'
Grenon sees all the criticism from his opponents – the medical industry, big media and governments – as evidence of globalist conspiracy of greed, to prevent any erosion of their wealth and power.
“These people are evil geniuses … they’re very smart, satanic smart,” Grenon said in his video interview with Henein. “They’re coming after us because what we do, if it’s made legal, it will wipe out 90% of all the pharmaceuticals.”
Banned from distributing the product as a supplement in many countries, he and his followers have rebranded it as a water purifier. Unable to meet for conferences at hotels, they have set up flash meetings in train stations, which have continued in private homes.
Unable to get positive news from the big media networks, the Grenons started their own weekly podcasts that air over the internet – and reach thousands of listeners.
The U.S. regulatory agencies and the courts have presented a more substantial hurdle.
Ever since Genesis II received a letter in April warning it to stop claiming MMS "has every hope of eradicating COVID-19," Grenon has made sure the FDA and the FTC know that he has no intention of cooperating.
“We are not going to play games,” Grenon said in one of his podcasts. “We are not entering your evil system.”
“The FDA/FTC are the criminals here by putting a Church Sacrament under a code that doesn't apply to a Church Sacrament,” he said in another. “DISMISS THIS CASE TODAY AND ALL WILL BE FORGIVEN!”
Grenon’s rage and bravado began to dissipate about a week after the government raided his family’s Florida compound, when his son, Jonathan, suffered an attack of high blood pressure in the Pinellas County Jail.
“The Doctor told his wife a few minutes ago that Jonathan's blood pressure is at a dangerous level!,” Grenon wrote in an email to Judge Williams. “He also told Jonathan that he might have a heart attack! He might die! His health is in your hands. Please release my sons today. They are being effected physically, mentally and Spiritually.”
Six days later, Grenon sent the judge a letter via email. The fight seemed to be out of him. He’d talked to all his sons and was ready to do anything the government asked.
“I founded this Church to help mankind and together with my sons we have helped many and now it is time to stop,” Grenon said. “If we open another Church it will be just for the preaching and teaching of the Bible as I have been doing for the past 41 yrs. and have nothing to do with MMS, chlorine dioxide and providing those Sacraments.
“We are peaceful people and only want to help others and are only looking for freedom of choice for what goes into our temples, i.e. our bodies,” Grenon continued. “As a father, I ask if at all possible, could my sons be released tomorrow, Monday, July 20th to attend the audio conference Tuesday from home. That would be a blessing to them.”
Jonathan and Jordan Grenon remain jail.
On Aug. 12, Colombian law enforcement officials arrested Mark Grenon and another of his sons, Joseph, in the beach town of Santa Marta on a U.S. warrant for selling MMS as a cure for COVID-19. Colombian prosecutors told CBC News of Canada that the Grenons had been shipping the product to clients in the United States and Africa.
They are awaiting extradition.
In the meantime, the U.S. government has ordered the church to recall and destroy its raw materials and finished products, and to provide refunds to customers on request.
In an audio message from his jail in Bogota posted on Twitter by Henein on Aug. 16, Grenon was back to his old self. He was healthy, he said, and being treated well by the guards.
“I believe we’re going to be out soon,” he said. “I even had a dream that we’re going to be at the White House. We’re going to be proclaiming. It’s going to be legal, and the FDA is going to be taken down, and the Department of Justice is going to be cleaned up, and we’re all in this fight together.”