buzzfeed--2020-05-01--Tara Reade Knows She Has A Difficult Allegation. And She’s Had A Difficult Time Getting A Hearing.

Reade , who has alleged Joe Biden assaulted her in 1993 , believes the media is applying a double standard to her story and Democrats aren ’ t taking her seriously .
She has seen Joe Biden take questions on cable news and late-night television .
She has watched him host virtual town halls with voters and online fundraisers with donors .
And from her home in California , where she is keeping a daily watch on Twitter , Tara Reade has been waiting for someone — anyone — to ask the former vice president about her story .
“ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ No one asked him .
No one ’ s asking the question , ” Reade said in a phone interview earlier this month .
“ No one ’ s even posing the question.
” On that particular day , Biden sat for an interview with Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski on MSNBC ’ s Morning Joe , appeared on a CNN coronavirus town hall with Anderson Cooper , and took questions during a 45-minute fundraiser with dozens of donors .
More than a month after Reade first detailed a serious allegation of sexual @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the subject in a Morning Joe interview scheduled for Friday morning .
For weeks , he didn ’ t receive a question about the claims , despite doing multiple interviews .
Reade , who has fielded dozens of requests from reporters this month , said she is acutely aware that her allegations pose complex terrain for the “ mainstream media ’ s ” coverage of a Democratic Party that has long viewed both Biden as a beloved figure and President Donald Trump as a man accused of sexism and more than a dozen @ @ @ @ @ @ @ As Democrats came to Biden ’ s defense this month as an advocate for women — marking a turn for a party that has embraced the notion of “ believing women ” as a baseline posture in the # MeToo era — Reade said she believes her story has been given short shrift compared to other accusations of sexual abuse against powerful figures .
She named as an example Christine Blasey Ford , the woman who said she was sexually assaulted by Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh , then Trump ’ s nominee @ @ @ @ @ @ @ story refracted through the lens of Political Twitter , Reade said in a series of interviews this month she ’ s felt “ marginalized , ” “ smeared , ” and “ discounted ” — betrayed by Democrats she said she once admired .
“ It was really devastating when [ Kirsten ] Gillibrand and Stacey Abrams and Hillary Clinton , all on the same day , just basically implied my story was n't true and they believe Joe Biden .
I can ’ t describe to you what that felt like , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ herself as a “ lifelong Democrat ” and in particular a fan of Abrams ' , the former Georgia House minority leader who has been campaigning to serve on the ticket with Biden as his vice presidential nominee .
“ I just— I ’ m stunned , ” Reade said .
“ They did n't just say , ‘ Oh , we 're standing with Joe Biden until we hear more.
’ They just discounted me .
They marginalized me .
They said they did n't believe me .
I ca n't tell @ @ @ @ @ @ @ off .
“ I cried for a while because they 're important in my life .
They 've been figures that I looked up to.
” At points over the last month , Reade has been scrutinized as much as her allegations .
Some Democrats have pointed to her pro–Bernie Sanders tweets ( “ Bernie stay in !
” she tweeted in late March ) , her writings praising Vladimir Putin ( she told BuzzFeed News earlier this month that she had changed her views about Putin after reading writers like Julia Ioffe @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and her decision to first seek a platform for her story on left-wing media outlets like Katie Halper ’ s podcast ( “ She 's very trauma-informed , ” she says of Halper ) as markers of her credibility .
Reade , a 56-year-old who says she put herself through law school as a single mother and still has hundreds of thousands of dollars in student and medical debt , says she is not ashamed to identify herself as “ a working-class poor person.
” She has followed the online discussion , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in which survivors are received in the public square .
“ I am not an ‘ imperfect victim , ’ ” Reade tweeted on Tuesday .
Reade has accused Biden of digitally penetrating her in a Senate hallway when she was a staff assistant in his Senate office in 1993 .
She has said she filed a Senate personnel report at the time , told others in the office about the incident , and was removed from her duty of overseeing the interns .
The Biden campaign has said the incident did not @ @ @ @ @ @ @ all of whom Reade said she complained to directly at the time about the assault , have said they don ’ t remember any such complaint or that it did not take place .
One of them , Biden ’ s former executive assistant from 1982 to 2000 , Marianne Baker , said in a statement provided by the campaign that she never once witnessed or heard of “ any reports of inappropriate conduct , period — not from Ms. Reade , not from anyone.
” Subsequent reporting has corroborated elements of Reade @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Senate office remember Reade being reassigned away from managing them , according to the New York Times .
After Reade mentioned that her mother had called into Larry King Live , the Intercept published the transcript from a 1993 episode where a caller described her daughter ’ s negative experience with a “ prominent senator , ” though the caller does not detail the nature of the experience .
Across different outlets , people who knew Reade have said she told them that she had had a bad experience with her boss @ @ @ @ @ @ @ detail .
In an interview with Business Insider , a former neighbor , Lynda LaCasse , said Reade detailed her full allegation against Biden in the 1990s .
The New York Times and Washington Post each reported they spoke with an unnamed friend who had said Reade told her about the allegation in the 1990s as well .
Others have provided more limited accounts — one friend told the Washington Post , for instance , that she remembered Reade saying Biden touched her arm and behaved inappropriately , but did not have other @ @ @ @ @ @ @ told the Post he remembered her telling him that Biden was “ inappropriate , ” but followed up days later to clarify that he recalled Reade telling him that the then-senator had put his hands under her clothes .
Through it all , Biden himself has remained silent .
Publicly , aides have referred reporters back to a single statement , dated April 13 , saying that while the former vice president believes women should have the space to tell their stories , this incident didn ’ t occur .
Privately , they @ @ @ @ @ @ @ advising them to rely on a New York Times investigation and to ( inaccurately ) insist the article concluded the incident never happened .
Though the mainstream media has now started to aggressively cover the story , Reade has been disappointed with the length of time it took major news outlets to cover her allegation , as well as the tone of some of the coverage .
Last year — when other women had come forward to say Biden had touched them in a way that made them uncomfortable — Reade told her @ @ @ @ @ @ @ former senator , he touched her neck and shoulders .
In the same 2019 column , she said a supervisor told her that Biden wanted her to serve drinks at an event because he liked the way she looked .
When she refused , Reade told the newspaper , her responsibilities were reduced .
This spring , she turned to leftist outlets to tell her serious allegation of sexual assault by Biden , appearing on Halper ’ s podcast and Democracy Now .
“ I used to think that a Republican talking point @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , ” Reade said .
“ So I used to think , Oh , that 's just a talking point for them .
I do n't believe it .
But now I 'm living it [ in ] real time , and I see it — like , I see it for what it is .
Because I am a Democrat , or I was .
But now I 'm not anything , really .
I ’ m politically homeless.
” Reade said she doesn ’ t intend to vote in the national @ @ @ @ @ @ @ local elections .
In one recent interview , she identified herself as a supporter of Elizabeth Warren during this year ’ s Democratic primary .
She later supported Bernie Sanders .
The TV network that has asked her on most frequently , she said , has been Fox News .
She said Thursday that she 's received four or more invitations from the station to come on air .
Only in the last day or two have other TV networks expressed interest ; early on Thursday , Reade said she had just received @ @ @ @ @ @ @ News , had been contacted by MSNBC that morning , and CBS News had reached out to her the previous night .
( Asked about their bookings , CNN and ABC News said they do not comment on such practices . )
Later , after the announcement that Biden would address the allegations on Morning Joe , Reade said she had now received invitations to come on air from all of the major networks ; she said she was still deciding where to do her first on-air interview and would likely make a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , Reade has declined the Fox News invitations , which she said had been from shows such as Hannity and Tucker Carlson .
“ I 'm not on Fox .
I 'm not cooperating with Republicans , because I 'm not interested in my story being politically hijacked , ” Reade said earlier this month .
“ I want a safe platform to tell my full history with Joe Biden.
” Reade was quoted in the New York Times on Thursday as saying that she plans to do her first on-air interview with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ told BuzzFeed News the same day , shortly after the Times piece posted , that she “ hasn ’ t made a decision about that.
” Though Reade said on Thursday that she ’ s “ honored to be invited on a national show ” and has expressed gratitude to Fox News for inviting her , she is “ having to cut through the political noise and people trying to call it partisan politics.
” She ’ d been “ pigeonholed ” as a “ Bernie Bro , ” she said , because @ @ @ @ @ @ @ left media , and “ then there was this new narrative that it 's only the conservative press , which is pegged by some media as being Fox , you know , to lift my voice .
And so I 've been wanting to find a platform that 's more neutral.
” She is still , she said , handling press requests on her own — no lawyer , no publicist .
She said she doesn ’ t have a television , adding , “ I have to look up names to see @ @ @ @ @ @ @ not in that world , it ’ s not my world .
So I 'm learning a lot .
And what I would say is that there has n't been a lot to field , it 's been mostly print that has called me and very little television , if any at all.
” Her daughter recently taught her the word “ doxing , ” she said earlier this month .
Reade said she has received threats and been the subject of online harassment .
She ’ s found support among some prominent @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the # MeToo wave .
Actor Rose McGowan , who accused Harvey Weinstein of rape and reached a $ 100,000 settlement in 1997 , reached out to her shortly after she went public with her full allegation .
The two connected for a phone call for two or three hours , McGowan said .
They have kept in touch since .
“ She 's a very scared , damaged , traumatized woman , but I 've seen her as time has gone just get stronger and stronger , and it 's really great @ @ @ @ @ @ @ an interview on Wednesday .
“ She 's challenging , you know , one of the most powerful men on earth .
And when you mess with power , they mess back.
” McGowan said that Reade was being “ belittled and dragged and positioned as just this kind of kooky — which of course they did to me — this kooky woman out there , you know , because she does n't look like the more J.Crew friendly type of blonde they prefer.
” Reade has also been speaking to Sarah Ann @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Weinstein of sexual abuse .
“ I do think the press is complicit in sort of not taking this as seriously as they 've taken other stories of sexual violence in the past , ” Masse said .
“ I do think it 's because Joe Biden is , you know — it might be because he 's a Democrat .
I think it 's certainly because he 's running against Donald Trump .
”

At points over the last month, Reade has been scrutinized as much as her allegations. Some Democrats have pointed to her pro–Bernie Sanders tweets (“Bernie stay in!” she tweeted in late March), her writings praising Vladimir Putin (she told BuzzFeed News earlier this month that she had changed her views about Putin after reading writers like Julia Ioffe and Russian opposition activist Alexei Navalny), and her decision to first seek a platform for her story on left-wing media outlets like Katie Halper’s podcast (“She's very trauma-informed,” she says of Halper) as markers of her credibility. Reade, a 56-year-old who says she put herself through law school as a single mother and still has hundreds of thousands of dollars in student and medical debt, says she is not ashamed to identify herself as “a working-class poor person.”
She has followed the online discussion, political and academic, over the ways in which survivors are received in the public square.
“I am not an ‘imperfect victim,’” Reade tweeted on Tuesday.
Reade has accused Biden of digitally penetrating her in a Senate hallway when she was a staff assistant in his Senate office in 1993. She has said she filed a Senate personnel report at the time, told others in the office about the incident, and was removed from her duty of overseeing the interns.
The Biden campaign has said the incident did not happen. Three former Senate aides, all of whom Reade said she complained to directly at the time, have said they don’t remember any such complaint or that it did not take place. One of them, Biden’s former executive assistant from 1982 to 2000, Marianne Baker, said in a statement provided by the campaign that she never once witnessed or heard of “any reports of inappropriate conduct, period — not from Ms. Reade, not from anyone.”
Subsequent reporting has corroborated elements of Reade’s story. Former interns from the Senate office remember Reade being reassigned away from managing them, according to the New York Times. After Reade mentioned that her mother had called into Larry King Live, the Intercept published the transcript from a 1993 episode where a caller described her daughter’s negative experience with a “prominent senator,” though the caller does not detail the nature of the experience.
Across different outlets, people who knew Reade have said she told them that she had had a bad experience with her boss in Washington — with varied levels of detail. In an interview with Business Insider, a former neighbor, Lynda LaCasse, said Reade detailed her full allegation against Biden in the 1990s. The New York Times and Washington Post each reported they spoke with an unnamed friend who had said Reade told her about the allegation in the 1990s as well.
Others have provided more limited accounts — one friend told the Washington Post, for instance, that she remembered Reade saying Biden touched her arm and behaved inappropriately, but did not have other details. Reade’s brother initially told the Post he remembered her telling him that Biden was “inappropriate,” but followed up days later to clarify that he recalled Reade telling him that the then-senator had put his hands under her clothes.
Through it all, Biden himself has remained silent. Publicly, aides have referred reporters back to a single statement, dated April 13, saying that while the former vice president believes women should have the space to tell their stories, this incident didn’t occur. Privately, they have distributed talking points to other Democrats advising them to rely on a New York Times investigation and to (inaccurately) insist the article concluded the incident never happened.
Though the mainstream media has now started to aggressively cover the story, Reade has been disappointed with the length of time it took major news outlets to cover her allegation, as well as the tone of some of the coverage.
Last year — when other women had come forward to say Biden had touched them in a way that made them uncomfortable — Reade told her local paper that while working for the former senator, he touched her neck and shoulders. In the same 2019 column, she said a supervisor told her that Biden wanted her to serve drinks at an event because he liked the way she looked. When she refused, Reade told the newspaper, her responsibilities were reduced.
This spring, she turned to leftist outlets to tell her serious allegation of sexual assault by Biden, appearing on Halper’s podcast and Democracy Now.
“I used to think that a Republican talking point was to call the mainstream media biased,” Reade said. “So I used to think, Oh, that's just a talking point for them. I don't believe it. But now I'm living it [in] real time, and I see it — like, I see it for what it is. Because I am a Democrat, or I was. But now I'm not anything, really. I’m politically homeless.”


buzzfeed--2020-04-30--A US Senator Wants To Know Which Federal Authorities Are Using Clearview AI To Track The Coronavirus

Clearview AI , the facial recognition company that claims to have scraped over 3 billion photos from social media to power its face-matching tool , is now facing questions from Massachusetts Sen. Ed Markey about recent claims that it ’ s developing a digital contact tracing tool for COVID-19 , the disease caused by the novel coronavirus .
Clearview AI CEO Hoan Ton-That claimed in a recent NBC interview that the company is in talks with “ federal and state ” authorities about developing a tool that would use facial recognition to track where a person diagnosed with COVID-19 has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in contact with .
Clearview has not identified any of these authorities nor the length of the agreements or contracts it has signed or is seeking .
It ’ s also unclear how Clearview ’ s facial recognition tools would aid in contact tracing efforts or how the company would obtain pictures of people diagnosed with the disease and track their movements at scale .
In a letter to Ton-That , Markey asked Clearview to name the government agencies it claims to be communicating with and to disclose any agreements it may have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ if Clearview is planning to use real-time facial recognition to power its contact tracing tool .
BuzzFeed News previously reported that Clearview had developed a sister company called Insight Camera that partnered with at least two organizations to do real-time facial recognition and surveillance .
“ Technology has an important role to play in mitigating the COVID-19 pandemic , but this health crisis can not justify using unreliable surveillance tools that could undermine our privacy rights , ” the letter reads .
“ Given that your responses to my previous letter failed to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ particularly around accuracy and bias testing — any plans to deploy it widely to fight the coronavirus could further increase Clearview 's threat to the public 's privacy.
” In response to a detailed list of questions , Ton-That told BuzzFeed News : “ We just received the letter from Senator Markey , for whom we have great respect .
We will be responding to him directly.
” Asked by BuzzFeed News , Ton-That did not comment on which state or federal authorities the company is working with .

Clearview AI, the facial recognition company that claims to have scraped over 3 billion photos from social media to power its face-matching tool, is now facing questions from Massachusetts Sen. Ed Markey about recent claims that it’s developing a digital contact tracing tool for COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus.
Clearview AI CEO Hoan Ton-That claimed in a recent NBC interview that the company is in talks with “federal and state” authorities about developing a tool that would use facial recognition to track where a person diagnosed with COVID-19 has traveled and whom they may have come in contact with. Clearview has not identified any of these authorities nor the length of the agreements or contracts it has signed or is seeking. It’s also unclear how Clearview’s facial recognition tools would aid in contact tracing efforts or how the company would obtain pictures of people diagnosed with the disease and track their movements at scale.
In a letter to Ton-That, Markey asked Clearview to name the government agencies it claims to be communicating with and to disclose any agreements it may have reached with them. He also asked if Clearview is planning to use real-time facial recognition to power its contact tracing tool. BuzzFeed News previously reported that Clearview had developed a sister company called Insight Camera that partnered with at least two organizations to do real-time facial recognition and surveillance.
“Technology has an important role to play in mitigating the COVID-19 pandemic, but this health crisis cannot justify using unreliable surveillance tools that could undermine our privacy rights,” the letter reads. “Given that your responses to my previous letter failed to address ongoing concerns about your product — particularly around accuracy and bias testing — any plans to deploy it widely to fight the coronavirus could further increase Clearview's threat to the public's privacy.”
In response to a detailed list of questions, Ton-That told BuzzFeed News: “We just received the letter from Senator Markey, for whom we have great respect. We will be responding to him directly.” Asked by BuzzFeed News, Ton-That did not comment on which state or federal authorities the company is working with.


buzzfeed--2020-04-30--Congress Is Ratcheting Up Its Efforts To Force The Trump Administration To Publicly Reveal Who Order

Congress Is Ratcheting Up Its Efforts To Force The Trump Administration To Publicly Reveal Who Ordered Jamal Khashoggi’s Killing

WASHINGTON — House Democrats are working on new legislation to force the Trump administration to release secret findings on the full extent of Saudi Arabia ’ s role in the brutal killing of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi .
A massive defense spending bill that became law in December ordered the country ’ s top intelligence official to send Congress an unclassified report identifying those responsible for Khashoggi ’ s death at a Saudi consulate in 2018 .
But that official , the director of national intelligence , failed to do so by the required mid-January deadline , prompting complaints @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Office of the Director of National Intelligence responded by sending Congress a letter saying the office couldn ’ t provide any unclassified information about Khashoggi ’ s death , as well as a classified annex with intelligence officials ’ findings .
Though part of the defense bill allowed for such an annex , lawmakers have said the ODNI hasn ’ t met the conditions set out in the law .
Declassifying the annex , while making some necessary redactions , would fulfill ODNI ’ s obligations without harming national security , House Intelligence @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Press reports citing unnamed US officials have revealed that the CIA concluded that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman ordered Khashoggi ’ s killing at the consulate in Istanbul , Turkey .
But the crown prince has denied that he was involved , and President Donald Trump has given him the benefit of the doubt .
Khashoggi , a critic of the Saudi regime , was reportedly tortured , killed , and dismembered with a bone saw by a squad of more than a dozen men .
If released , the ODNI @ @ @ @ @ @ @ first public acknowledgment of the breadth of the Saudi government ’ s role in Khashoggi ’ s death .
“ I can ’ t talk about the content , ” New Jersey Rep. Tom Malinowski , a member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee , said this week .
“ But I can tell you that it is a thorough accounting of responsibility for the murder of Jamal Khashoggi and exactly the sort of thing that should be before the public so that we can have an informed debate about our relationship with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to receive the declassified annex .
Now , Schiff and his team are escalating their efforts , looking at measures to further compel ODNI to declassify the document , which would allow Congress to make it public .
“ There can be no accountability for the brutal murder of Jamal Khashoggi until the Administration makes public what the U.S. government knows regarding who in the Saudi government ordered , carried out , and attempted to cover-up the killing , ” Schiff said in a statement to BuzzFeed News .
“ Since ODNI has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ] , Congress will need to take further legislative and budgetary steps to ensure declassification of a report the Intelligence Community provided to Congress earlier this year.
” Those legislative steps , according to a committee official , would be comparable to a yearslong effort in Congress to pressure the Obama administration to declassify a different secret document about Saudi Arabia that had been hidden from the public on national security grounds : the so-called 28 pages from Congress ’ s 9/11 report that alleged links between the Saudi government and those who @ @ @ @ @ @ @ were declassified by the administration and subsequently released by the House Intelligence Committee in July 2016 following a bipartisan public pressure campaign that involved a series of bills and resolutions .
“ The Committee is considering a similar legislative approach to require declassification of a classified report on Khashoggi ’ s murder that ODNI provided to Congress in February 2020 , ” the committee official said , speaking on background .
“ The legislation under consideration would require ODNI to declassify the report it provided to Congress in February 2020 , consistent with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Intelligence Authorization Act ] that required ODNI to submit an unclassified report.
” But ODNI “ believes its response satisfies Congress ’ s specific requests , ” a spokesperson for the office said ; the provisions in the defense bill allowed for a classified annex and a report that protected the sensitive sources and methods used by the intelligence community .
“ The IC has consistently provided our oversight committees with all relevant intelligence , ” wrote Matt Lahr , deputy assistant DNI for strategic communications .
“ This particular request asks @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the public .
That is something that can not be done without jeopardizing sources and methods.
” In February , ODNI told lawmakers the same thing : hat it could not provide any unclassified information about Khashoggi ’ s death due to concerns about revealing sources and methods .
The letter , provided to BuzzFeed News by the office of Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden — who authored one of the provisions calling for an unclassified report on Khashoggi ’ s killing — was just over one page long and accompanied the classified annex @

WASHINGTON — House Democrats are working on new legislation to force the Trump administration to release secret findings on the full extent of Saudi Arabia’s role in the brutal killing of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi.
A massive defense spending bill that became law in December ordered the country’s top intelligence official to send Congress an unclassified report identifying those responsible for Khashoggi’s death at a Saudi consulate in 2018. But that official, the director of national intelligence, failed to do so by the required mid-January deadline, prompting complaints from lawmakers.
In February, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence responded by sending Congress a letter saying the office couldn’t provide any unclassified information about Khashoggi’s death, as well as a classified annex with intelligence officials’ findings. Though part of the defense bill allowed for such an annex, lawmakers have said the ODNI hasn’t met the conditions set out in the law. Declassifying the annex, while making some necessary redactions, would fulfill ODNI’s obligations without harming national security, House Intelligence Committee Chair Adam Schiff told the office.
Press reports citing unnamed US officials have revealed that the CIA concluded that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman ordered Khashoggi’s killing at the consulate in Istanbul, Turkey. But the crown prince has denied that he was involved, and President Donald Trump has given him the benefit of the doubt. Khashoggi, a critic of the Saudi regime, was reportedly tortured, killed, and dismembered with a bone saw by a squad of more than a dozen men. If released, the ODNI annex could provide the administration’s first public acknowledgment of the breadth of the Saudi government’s role in Khashoggi’s death.
“I can’t talk about the content,” New Jersey Rep. Tom Malinowski, a member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said this week. “But I can tell you that it is a thorough accounting of responsibility for the murder of Jamal Khashoggi and exactly the sort of thing that should be before the public so that we can have an informed debate about our relationship with Saudi Arabia.”
But Congress has yet to receive the declassified annex. Now, Schiff and his team are escalating their efforts, looking at measures to further compel ODNI to declassify the document, which would allow Congress to make it public.
“There can be no accountability for the brutal murder of Jamal Khashoggi until the Administration makes public what the U.S. government knows regarding who in the Saudi government ordered, carried out, and attempted to cover-up the killing,” Schiff said in a statement to BuzzFeed News. “Since ODNI has failed to comply with [the law], Congress will need to take further legislative and budgetary steps to ensure declassification of a report the Intelligence Community provided to Congress earlier this year.”
Those legislative steps, according to a committee official, would be comparable to a yearslong effort in Congress to pressure the Obama administration to declassify a different secret document about Saudi Arabia that had been hidden from the public on national security grounds: the so-called 28 pages from Congress’s 9/11 report that alleged links between the Saudi government and those who perpetrated the terrorist attacks. The pages were declassified by the administration and subsequently released by the House Intelligence Committee in July 2016 following a bipartisan public pressure campaign that involved a series of bills and resolutions.
“The Committee is considering a similar legislative approach to require declassification of a classified report on Khashoggi’s murder that ODNI provided to Congress in February 2020,” the committee official said, speaking on background. “The legislation under consideration would require ODNI to declassify the report it provided to Congress in February 2020, consistent with provisions of the 2019 NDAA and [the Intelligence Authorization Act] that required ODNI to submit an unclassified report.”
But ODNI “believes its response satisfies Congress’s specific requests,” a spokesperson for the office said; the provisions in the defense bill allowed for a classified annex and a report that protected the sensitive sources and methods used by the intelligence community. “The IC has consistently provided our oversight committees with all relevant intelligence,” wrote Matt Lahr, deputy assistant DNI for strategic communications. “This particular request asks us to make that intelligence available to the public. That is something that cannot be done without jeopardizing sources and methods.”
In February, ODNI told lawmakers the same thing: hat it could not provide any unclassified information about Khashoggi’s death due to concerns about revealing sources and methods. The letter, provided to BuzzFeed News by the office of Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden — who authored one of the provisions calling for an unclassified report on Khashoggi’s killing — was just over one page long and accompanied the classified annex.


buzzfeed--2020-04-30--Sen. Kamala Harris Is Introducing A Bill To Address The Racial Disparity In Coronavirus Cases

BuzzFeed News has reporters across five continents bringing you trustworthy stories about the impact of the coronavirus .
To help keep this news free , become a member and sign up for our newsletter , Outbreak Today .
WASHINGTON — Sen. Kamala Harris will introduce , on Monday , legislation to create a task force to address the racial disparity plaguing communities of color amid the coronavirus global pandemic .
The COVID-19 Racial Disparities Task Force Act , which BuzzFeed News received in advance , would require the director of Secretary of Health and Human Services , Alex Azar , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ experts and community leaders to gather data and provide recommendations on the coronavirus response in communities of color who have been disproportionately affected by the disease .
Harris ’ s proposal comes after BuzzFeed News reported that the coronavirus has killed black Americans at outsize rates throughout the US .
Insufficient housing , high-risk jobs , and poor health — all a result of longstanding inequalities — contribute to the disparity , experts say .
In New York City , which has become the epicenter of the global pandemic , black and Hispanic @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of deaths in , according to state data .
The disparity also exists in other metropolitan areas , including in Chicago , Milwaukee , and Louisiana .
“ The disproportionate impact is no doubt a reflection of persistent income disparities , lower access to health care , and generations of environmental injustice that make communities of color more vulnerable to the virus , ” Harris told BuzzFeed News in a statement .
The task force would provide weekly reports to Congress and the Federal Emergency Management Agency ( FEMA ) on the distribution @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of color including ventilators , personal protection equipment , testing supplies , and vaccines .
The task force would also advise federal agencies on disbursing money from the Coronavirus Aid , Relief , and Economic Security ( CARES ) Act , which includes funding for small businesses and education grants for states .
Sens .
Cory Booker , Michael Bennet , Bernie Sanders , Sheldon Whitehouse , Sherrod Brown , and Tina Smith will sponsor the bill .
`` Early reports overwhelmingly show that COVID-19 is disproportionately infecting and killing minorities across the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ And sadly — but not surprisingly — what we ’ re seeing reflects long-standing inequities in our health care and economic systems.
” Harris ’ s bill also calls on the CDC to publish more detailed race and ethnicity data for COVID-19 as it relates to hospitalizations , ventilation , and mortality rates .
The CDC agreed to publish race and ethnicity data for COVID-19 cases , after members of Congress , across both parties , sent letters asking them to do so , but has subsequently released incomplete statistics .
The task @ @ @ @ @ @ @ local and federal governments who disagree on how to distribute pandemic funding .
On Monday , a federal judge ruled that the Trump administration could not give relief funds to for-profit native corporations that were meant to help tribal communities .
Rep. Robin Kelly , who represents parts of Chicago , is introducing the same legislation in the House .
“ It ’ s critical that we examine these disparities at the highest possible levels of our government and develop solutions to address , reduce , and end them , ” Kelly told @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Fundamentally , we need this analysis to give us hard , in-your-face proof of what we ’ ve known for generations to drive policy change.
” The Senate is scheduled to return to session on May 4 .
The House had planned to return to Washington as well , but reversed course on Tuesday and postponed resuming regularly scheduled congressional workdays so it ’ s unclear when the bill would be considered .
“ These inequities will be exacerbated if the federal government fails to provide a tailored response to the unique needs @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .

WASHINGTON — Sen. Kamala Harris will introduce, on Monday, legislation to create a task force to address the racial disparity plaguing communities of color amid the coronavirus global pandemic.
The COVID-19 Racial Disparities Task Force Act, which BuzzFeed News received in advance, would require the director of Secretary of Health and Human Services, Alex Azar, to create a panel of health care experts and community leaders to gather data and provide recommendations on the coronavirus response in communities of color who have been disproportionately affected by the disease.
Harris’s proposal comes after BuzzFeed News reported that the coronavirus has killed black Americans at outsize rates throughout the US. Insufficient housing, high-risk jobs, and poor health — all a result of longstanding inequalities — contribute to the disparity, experts say.
In New York City, which has become the epicenter of the global pandemic, black and Hispanic people account for more than 60% of deaths in, according to state data. The disparity also exists in other metropolitan areas, including in Chicago, Milwaukee, and Louisiana.
“The disproportionate impact is no doubt a reflection of persistent income disparities, lower access to health care, and generations of environmental injustice that make communities of color more vulnerable to the virus,” Harris told BuzzFeed News in a statement.
The task force would provide weekly reports to Congress and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) on the distribution of COVID-19 resources throughout the hardest-hit communities of color including ventilators, personal protection equipment, testing supplies, and vaccines.
The task force would also advise federal agencies on disbursing money from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, which includes funding for small businesses and education grants for states.
Sens. Cory Booker, Michael Bennet, Bernie Sanders, Sheldon Whitehouse, Sherrod Brown, and Tina Smith will sponsor the bill.
"Early reports overwhelmingly show that COVID-19 is disproportionately infecting and killing minorities across the nation,” Harris said. “And sadly — but not surprisingly — what we’re seeing reflects long-standing inequities in our health care and economic systems.”
Harris’s bill also calls on the CDC to publish more detailed race and ethnicity data for COVID-19 as it relates to hospitalizations, ventilation, and mortality rates.
The CDC agreed to publish race and ethnicity data for COVID-19 cases, after members of Congress, across both parties, sent letters asking them to do so, but has subsequently released incomplete statistics.
The task force could help to settle disputes between local and federal governments who disagree on how to distribute pandemic funding. On Monday, a federal judge ruled that the Trump administration could not give relief funds to for-profit native corporations that were meant to help tribal communities.
Rep. Robin Kelly, who represents parts of Chicago, is introducing the same legislation in the House.
“It’s critical that we examine these disparities at the highest possible levels of our government and develop solutions to address, reduce, and end them,” Kelly told BuzzFeed News in a statement. “Fundamentally, we need this analysis to give us hard, in-your-face proof of what we’ve known for generations to drive policy change.”
The Senate is scheduled to return to session on May 4. The House had planned to return to Washington as well, but reversed course on Tuesday and postponed resuming regularly scheduled congressional workdays so it’s unclear when the bill would be considered.
“These inequities will be exacerbated if the federal government fails to provide a tailored response to the unique needs of these communities,” said Harris.


buzzfeed--2020-04-30--Past Coronavirus Research Grants Are Being Used To Smear Anthony Fauci

BuzzFeed News has reporters across five continents bringing you trustworthy stories about the impact of the coronavirus .
To help keep this news free , become a member and sign up for our newsletter , Outbreak Today .
Right-wing media and conspiracy theorists have seized on a series of grants awarded over the course of six years to study coronaviruses to undermine Dr. Anthony Fauci , the immunologist who ’ s been at the helm of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases since 1984 .
The narrative moved to the spotlight at the White House when , during @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a reporter with Newsmax asked President Donald Trump about the grants , totaling $ 3.7 million since 2014 .
The Daily Mail , a British tabloid known for publishing unreliable stories , first reported the $ 3.7 million figure on April 11 .
The paper wrote a story on the funding , parts of which went to the Wuhan Institute of Virology in China .
Although the article stated that there ’ s no evidence the novel coronavirus leaked from the lab , it implied a correlation between the grants and the pandemic @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Institute was experimenting on bats from the area already known to be the source of COVID-19 — and doing so with American money — has sparked further fears that the lab , and not the market , is the original outbreak source . ''
Those questions have had real effects .
Politico reported on April 27 that the National Institutes of Health would be revoking grants given to New York–based nonprofit organization EcoHealth Alliance in 2019 , including funds for 2020 that the nonprofit now has to return .
But in reality , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ do with the coronavirus pandemic .
In fact , they were awarded after a different kind of coronavirus — SARS — spread across the world in 2003 .
The NIH also didn ’ t give the funds directly to the Wuhan Institute , instead awarding them to EcoHealth Alliance , which invests in health research globally .
The money helped support research that led to 20 research papers on coronaviruses published over the six years , according to the NIH .
It ’ s not clear whether Fauci was personally involved in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Wuhan Institute , those funds also went to research facilities in Shanghai , Beijing , and Singapore .
The grants were meant to “ support research that aims to understand what factors allow coronaviruses , including close relatives to SARS , to evolve and jump into the human population and cause disease ( called a spillover event ) , ” an NIH spokesperson told BuzzFeed News .
“ Most emerging human viruses come from wildlife , and these represent a significant threat to public health and biosecurity in the US and globally @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of 2002–03 , and the current COVID-19 pandemic , ” the spokesperson said .
“ The project includes studying viral diversity in animal ( bats ) reservoirs , surveying people that live in high-risk communities for evidence of bat-coronavirus infection , and conducting laboratory experiments to analyze and predict which newly discovered viruses pose the greatest threat to human health.
” The grant also wasn ’ t the first awarded to EcoHealth Alliance .
The NIH has been funding infectious disease research projects through the nonprofit since 2005 .
But the Daily Mail @ @ @ @ @ @ @ did the Newsmax reporter , who on April 17 asked Trump : `` There was also another report [ saying ] that the NIH under the Obama administration in 2015 gave that lab $ 3.7 million in a grant .
Why would the US give a grant like that to China ?
” Newsmax reporter Emerald Robinson did not return a request for comment .
For Joan Donovan , the director of the Technology and Social Change Project at Harvard 's Shorenstein Center , the attacks and conspiracies are part of a larger @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ If you don ’ t trust the scientist , you don ’ t trust the science , ” Donovan said .
And the right-wing media and conspiratorial YouTube channels have used the grants to stoke that distrust .
On April 26 , Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani called for an investigation of the grant on a New York morning radio show .
Falsely and without evidence , the former mayor of New York implied the virus was created as a biological weapon , blaming Fauci and the administration of President Barack Obama .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ 12 years has been carrying on these experiments , including in this Wuhan laboratory , with animals , and actually making this virus more dangerous , ” Giuliani said on the show .
“ You could say that ’ s for scientific purposes , or you could say that ’ s for the purpose of weaponizing them.
” “ 'Paid for the Damn Virus That ’ s Killing Us ' : Giuliani Rips Fauci Over Grants to Wuhan Laboratory , ” said a Washington Examiner headline on April 26 , gathering over 150,000 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
“ Anthony Fauci Should Explain ' $ 3.7 Million to the Wuhan Laboratory ' ” read a headline in the Washington Times on April 27 , which received over 165,000 Facebook likes , shares , and comments .
Rep. Matt Gaetz and Newsweek may have also perpetuated the falsely shaded narrative , but the most popular piece of content about the grants came from the Next News Network , a YouTube channel known for circulating baseless claims , including a fabricated story about President Bill Clinton sexually assaulting a teenager .
Hosted @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , the channel has over a million subscribers and surpassed a billion views in December , according to Forbes .
On April 19 , the Next News Network posted a video about the grants , which has received over 2.3 million views .
In it , osteopath Rashid Buttar drew a direct line between the grant , Fauci , and the pandemic .
According to YouTube , the video did not violate the social media company 's policies .
“ Is Fauci directly responsible for this pandemic ?
” Franchi asked Buttar in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ going to say this : I ’ ve seen some petitions going around . ''
Buttar responded .
“ I think he ’ s a criminal .
He ’ s going against the law .
He ’ s going against the government.
” Franchi told BuzzFeed News he was asking Buttar `` to clarify his belief that Dr. Fauci ’ s work with coronaviruses has led to the pandemic.
” He added : “ The video as a whole revolves around President Trump responding to a reporter that he is investigating the widely @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Wuhan Lab in 2015 by the NIH to continue coronavirus research after a moratorium was placed on such research in the United States and Dr. Fauci ’ s involvement with the funding of that research.
” In addition to spreading conspiracy theories about the pandemic , Buttar has a history of action taken against him by medical authorities .
In 2010 , the North Carolina medical board reprimanded him for , among other complaints , three cancer patients who sought treatment from him and paid for treatment that had “ no known value @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Buttar has spent years selling skin drops at $ 150 a bottle as a treatment for diseases ranging from autism to cancer , ” WCNC reported at the time .
In 2013 , the FDA sent Buttar a warning letter for promoting and distributing unapproved medical products on his websites and YouTube videos .
Buttar did not respond to a request for comment on his statements about Dr. Fauci .
`` The medical board and FDA have a responsibility to make sure doctors do n't push too close to the edge , '' @ @ @ @ @ @ @ BuzzFeed News .
`` The regulatory bodies serve an important function and are needed to safeguard the public . ''

Right-wing media and conspiracy theorists have seized on a series of grants awarded over the course of six years to study coronaviruses to undermine Dr. Anthony Fauci, the immunologist who’s been at the helm of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases since 1984. The narrative moved to the spotlight at the White House when, during a press conference on April 17, a reporter with Newsmax asked President Donald Trump about the grants, totaling $3.7 million since 2014.
The Daily Mail, a British tabloid known for publishing unreliable stories, first reported the $3.7 million figure on April 11. The paper wrote a story on the funding, parts of which went to the Wuhan Institute of Virology in China. Although the article stated that there’s no evidence the novel coronavirus leaked from the lab, it implied a correlation between the grants and the pandemic: "The revelation that the Wuhan Institute was experimenting on bats from the area already known to be the source of COVID-19 — and doing so with American money — has sparked further fears that the lab, and not the market, is the original outbreak source."
Those questions have had real effects. Politico reported on April 27 that the National Institutes of Health would be revoking grants given to New York–based nonprofit organization EcoHealth Alliance in 2019, including funds for 2020 that the nonprofit now has to return.
But in reality, the grants appear to have nothing to do with the coronavirus pandemic. In fact, they were awarded after a different kind of coronavirus — SARS — spread across the world in 2003. The NIH also didn’t give the funds directly to the Wuhan Institute, instead awarding them to EcoHealth Alliance, which invests in health research globally. The money helped support research that led to 20 research papers on coronaviruses published over the six years, according to the NIH. It’s not clear whether Fauci was personally involved in the grants in any way.
Aside from the Wuhan Institute, those funds also went to research facilities in Shanghai, Beijing, and Singapore. The grants were meant to “support research that aims to understand what factors allow coronaviruses, including close relatives to SARS, to evolve and jump into the human population and cause disease (called a spillover event),” an NIH spokesperson told BuzzFeed News.
“Most emerging human viruses come from wildlife, and these represent a significant threat to public health and biosecurity in the US and globally, as demonstrated by the SARS epidemic of 2002–03, and the current COVID-19 pandemic,” the spokesperson said. “The project includes studying viral diversity in animal (bats) reservoirs, surveying people that live in high-risk communities for evidence of bat-coronavirus infection, and conducting laboratory experiments to analyze and predict which newly discovered viruses pose the greatest threat to human health.”
The grant also wasn’t the first awarded to EcoHealth Alliance. The NIH has been funding infectious disease research projects through the nonprofit since 2005.
But the Daily Mail failed to note that context, as did the Newsmax reporter, who on April 17 asked Trump: "There was also another report [saying] that the NIH under the Obama administration in 2015 gave that lab $3.7 million in a grant. Why would the US give a grant like that to China?”
Newsmax reporter Emerald Robinson did not return a request for comment.
For Joan Donovan, the director of the Technology and Social Change Project at Harvard's Shorenstein Center, the attacks and conspiracies are part of a larger narrative undermining Fauci and his work. “If you don’t trust the scientist, you don’t trust the science,” Donovan said.
And the right-wing media and conspiratorial YouTube channels have used the grants to stoke that distrust.
On April 26, Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani called for an investigation of the grant on a New York morning radio show. Falsely and without evidence, the former mayor of New York implied the virus was created as a biological weapon, blaming Fauci and the administration of President Barack Obama.
“China for the last 10 to 12 years has been carrying on these experiments, including in this Wuhan laboratory, with animals, and actually making this virus more dangerous,” Giuliani said on the show. “You could say that’s for scientific purposes, or you could say that’s for the purpose of weaponizing them.”
“'Paid for the Damn Virus That’s Killing Us': Giuliani Rips Fauci Over Grants to Wuhan Laboratory,” said a Washington Examiner headline on April 26, gathering over 150,000 Facebook likes, shares, and comments.
“Anthony Fauci Should Explain '$3.7 Million to the Wuhan Laboratory'” read a headline in the Washington Times on April 27, which received over 165,000 Facebook likes, shares, and comments.
Rep. Matt Gaetz and Newsweek may have also perpetuated the falsely shaded narrative, but the most popular piece of content about the grants came from the Next News Network, a YouTube channel known for circulating baseless claims, including a fabricated story about President Bill Clinton sexually assaulting a teenager. Hosted by commentator and conspiracy theorist Gary Franchi, the channel has over a million subscribers and surpassed a billion views in December, according to Forbes.
On April 19, the Next News Network posted a video about the grants, which has received over 2.3 million views. In it, osteopath Rashid Buttar drew a direct line between the grant, Fauci, and the pandemic. According to YouTube, the video did not violate the social media company's policies.
“Is Fauci directly responsible for this pandemic?” Franchi asked Buttar in the clip.
“I’m going to say this: I’ve seen some petitions going around." Buttar responded. “I think he’s a criminal. He’s going against the law. He’s going against the government.”
Franchi told BuzzFeed News he was asking Buttar "to clarify his belief that Dr. Fauci’s work with coronaviruses has led to the pandemic.”
He added: “The video as a whole revolves around President Trump responding to a reporter that he is investigating the widely reported 3.7 million dollars sent to the Wuhan Lab in 2015 by the NIH to continue coronavirus research after a moratorium was placed on such research in the United States and Dr. Fauci’s involvement with the funding of that research.”
In addition to spreading conspiracy theories about the pandemic, Buttar has a history of action taken against him by medical authorities. In 2010, the North Carolina medical board reprimanded him for, among other complaints, three cancer patients who sought treatment from him and paid for treatment that had “no known value for the treatment of cancer.”
“Buttar has spent years selling skin drops at $150 a bottle as a treatment for diseases ranging from autism to cancer,” WCNC reported at the time.
In 2013, the FDA sent Buttar a warning letter for promoting and distributing unapproved medical products on his websites and YouTube videos.
Buttar did not respond to a request for comment on his statements about Dr. Fauci.
"The medical board and FDA have a responsibility to make sure doctors don't push too close to the edge," he said in an emailed statement to BuzzFeed News. "The regulatory bodies serve an important function and are needed to safeguard the public."


buzzfeed--2020-05-01--When Will Your State Reopen? Here’s The Data Being Used To Decide.

The journalists at BuzzFeed News are proud to bring you trustworthy and relevant reporting about the coronavirus .
To help keep this news free , become a member and sign up for our newsletter , Outbreak Today .
The easiest of the White House criteria to assess is the two-week decline in the number of new reported cases of COVID-19 per day .
To help you judge how close your state is to meeting that goal , BuzzFeed News has plotted the trajectory of new cases for each US state and territory .
“ You need an infrastructure of an @ @ @ @ @ @ @ contact tracing , ” Ezekiel Emanuel , vice provost of global initiatives at the University of Pennsylvania and a former health policy adviser to the Obama administration , told BuzzFeed News .
“ Those are absolutely essential for going forward.
” But the criteria don ’ t explicitly include a provision for widespread population testing and tracing of the contacts of people who test positive — which many experts say is crucial .
The White House ’ s criteria for states to start reopening their economies have three components : They should have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 14 days ; reports of symptoms that might represent undiagnosed COVID-19 should have been in decline for the same period ; and hospitals should have enough capacity to handle cases without operating in crisis mode and have a “ robust testing program ” for health care workers .
But in a departure from his administration ’ s own reopening plan , the next day Trump tweeted “ LIBERATE MINNESOTA !
” followed by similar tweets about Michigan and Virginia — calling out states with Democratic governors under lockdowns and apparently giving his approval @ @ @ @ @ @ @ streets to protest stay-at-home orders .
“ We must have a working economy , and we want to get it back very , very quickly , and that ’ s what ’ s going to happen , ” Trump said on April 16 .
That day , the White House released guidelines for “ Opening Up America Again , ” intended to help state and local officials judge when it ’ s safe to start relaxing social distancing rules .
Measures taken by many states including stay-at-home orders and business closures are credited @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and saving lives , but that has come with a high economic cost .
With the US economy taking a battering from COVID-19 lockdowns , President Donald Trump wants states to get back to business as soon as possible .
While some states may decide on relaxing their COVID-19 restrictions individually , others — including Michigan and Minnesota — have joined regional alliances to coordinate their plans .
Few states currently have a clearly declining trajectory of new cases .
Of those targeted by Trump ’ s “ liberate ” tweets , only @ @ @ @ @ @ @ seeing a peak in the number of new cases around April 7 .
New cases in Minnesota and Virginia still seem to be on the rise .
We have highlighted the worst-affected state , New York , the most populous , California , and the three states targeted in Trump ’ s tweets , plus two states that were badly affected but are now on a declining trajectory of new cases : Washington and Louisiana .
Other states and territories are shown in gray .
You can search for any state , including @ @ @ @ @ @ @ box at the top of the chart — start typing its name or use the dropdown menu , and the state ’ s trajectory of new cases will appear in black .
Because delays in reporting cases can cause spikes and dips in the data , this chart plots the daily average number of new cases recorded over the preceding seven days to show a smoother trajectory .
The vertical axis has a logarithmic scale , which makes the difference between 10 and 100 take up the same height on the chart as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ That makes it easier to see the trajectories for the states with fewer cases , which would otherwise be clustered together at the bottom of the chart .
This chart shows the trajectory of new cases for these regional groupings .
The Western group comprises California , Oregon , and Washington ; the Midwest group includes Illinois , Indiana , Kentucky , Michigan , Minnesota , Ohio , and Wisconsin ; and the Northeast group is Connecticut , Delaware , Massachusetts , New Jersey , New York , Pennsylvania , and Rhode Island @ @ @ @ @ @ @ showing a slight decline in new cases is the Western grouping .
On April 14 , California Gov .
Gavin Newsom warned state residents against expecting a rapid return to normal , even after restrictions start to be lifted .
“ You may be having dinner with a waiter wearing gloves , maybe a face mask , dinner where the menu is disposable , where ... half the tables in that restaurant no longer appear , where your temperature is checked before you walk into the establishment , ” he said .
Some @ @ @ @ @ @ @ number of new cases is the best measure for deciding whether to reopen , however .
Emanuel said that a declining trajectory of new cases may not be enough to safely relax restrictions , if the number of cases is still high .
Computational epidemiologist Maia Majumder of Harvard University warned that daily counts of new cases may be an unreliable indicator of whether the epidemic is subsiding , given differences in the extent of testing from state-to-state and over time .
Across the nation , the number of tests being conducted each @ @ @ @ @ @ @ declining , according to data collected by the COVID Tracking Project .
This means that a decline in the number of new cases in some states could reflect a falloff in testing , rather than a real decline in transmission of the coronavirus .
“ New deaths per day might be the better metric to watch , given that deaths from COVID-19 are less likely to be misclassified , ” Majumder told BuzzFeed News by email .
( There are also concerns that deaths may have been undercounted , and states are taking @ @ @ @ @ @ @ presumed to have died as a result of COVID-19 without a positive diagnosis . )
In addition to a decline in new cases , a second White House criterion suggests that states should wait for a 14-day decline in reports of symptoms that might represent undiagnosed COVID-19 cases .
But those numbers may also be difficult to reliably assess .
The CDC ’ s FluView surveillance program each week calculates the percentage of outpatient consultations for a sample of health care providers in each state that involve patients reporting a fever and a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ known cause other than influenza .
Those numbers likely include some people who actually have COVID-19 .
But the pandemic may have changed the way in which people seek medical help , potentially biasing the numbers .
The CDC has warned that its surveillance systems “ are currently being affected by recent changes in health care seeking behavior , including increasing use of telemedicine.
” The White House ’ s third criterion addresses the need for hospitals to be able to cope with treating COVID-19 patients , including robust testing of health care @ @ @ @ @ @ @ tests to reveal who has been infected and beaten off the virus , which could help identify workers who may have some immunity .
But meeting this goal will also be difficult : Few of the available tests have been approved for use by the FDA and their accuracy is far from guaranteed .
It ’ s also unclear whether having antibodies against the coronavirus will give people complete immunity .
The White House criteria are broadly similar to other recommendations made to state governors by public health experts .
On April 17 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Johns Hopkins University released a report co-authored by former FDA commissioner Scott Gottlieb that also suggested states should consider starting to reopen their economies after the number of new cases has declined for at least 14 days .
In addition , it suggested states must have the ability to test , at minimum , all people with COVID-19 symptoms , be able to safely care for all patients and provide personal protective equipment for health care workers .
Finally , the report said that states must be able to trace contacts of all @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of thousands of workers to conduct this laborious work across the country .
The White House guidelines don ’ t include a provision for widespread testing and contact tracing as an explicit criterion for starting to reopen a state ’ s economy .
Instead , this is included under a separate heading of “ Core State Preparedness Responsibilities.
” Although the guidelines put responsibility for testing and contact tracing onto the states , the slow rollout of testing across the nation has widely been blamed on bureaucratic obstacles imposed by the federal government @ @ @ @ @ @ @ manufactured by the CDC .
Experts consulted by BuzzFeed News urged states to concentrate on improving their capacity for testing before relaxing their COVID-19 restrictions .
“ I don ’ t think there ’ s a responsible expert out there that thinks we ’ ve done enough testing , ” Emanuel said .
Emanuel wants to see testing expanded to people without symptoms who may be spreading COVID-19 , including essential workers like grocery clerks and bus drivers who could infect many people .
Exact estimates differ , but asymptomatic cases may make @ @ @ @ @ @ @ total cases , according to CDC director Robert Redfield .
Both the White House and Center for Health Security guidelines call for a phased reopening of facilities including schools , restaurants , and other businesses .
But it ’ s still unclear which aspects of the current restrictions are doing the most to limit transmission of COVID-19 .
That means states should carefully monitor the effects of reopening to see which moves cause transmission to ramp up again and which have relatively small effects , according to Jessica Metcalf , a demographer at @ @ @ @ @ @ @ infectious disease .
“ One of the big questions is which pieces of social distancing policies are having the largest effects , ” Metcalf told BuzzFeed News .
“ Amazingly , we do n't really know.
” Learning which policies have the biggest effect in limiting viral spread is important because most experts predict that we may need several cycles of social distancing and relaxation of these controls before an effective vaccine is developed and it becomes safe to go back to something resembling normality .
“ We just can ’ t squander @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said .

This chart shows the trajectory of new cases for these regional groupings. The Western group comprises California, Oregon, and Washington; the Midwest group includes Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, and Wisconsin; and the Northeast group is Connecticut, Delaware, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, and Rhode Island.
The Western grouping has seen a slight decline in new cases. On April 14, California Gov. Gavin Newsom warned state residents against expecting a rapid return to normal, even after restrictions start to be lifted. “You may be having dinner with a waiter wearing gloves, maybe a face mask, dinner where the menu is disposable, where ... half the tables in that restaurant no longer appear, where your temperature is checked before you walk into the establishment,” he said.
Some experts question whether a decline in the number of new cases is the best measure for deciding whether to reopen, however. Emanuel said that a declining trajectory of new cases may not be enough to safely relax restrictions, if the number of cases is still high.
Computational epidemiologist Maia Majumder of Harvard University warned that daily counts of new cases may be an unreliable indicator of whether the epidemic is subsiding, given differences in the extent of testing from state-to-state and over time.
Across the nation, the number of tests being conducted each day seems to be plateauing or even declining, according to data collected by the COVID Tracking Project. This means that a decline in the number of new cases in some states could reflect a falloff in testing, rather than a real decline in transmission of the coronavirus.
“New deaths per day might be the better metric to watch, given that deaths from COVID-19 are less likely to be misclassified,” Majumder told BuzzFeed News by email. (There are also concerns that deaths may have been undercounted, and states are taking different positions on whether to count people presumed to have died as a result of COVID-19 without a positive diagnosis.)
In addition to a decline in new cases, a second White House criterion suggests that states should wait for a 14-day decline in reports of symptoms that might represent undiagnosed COVID-19 cases. But those numbers may also be difficult to reliably assess.
The CDC’s FluView surveillance program each week calculates the percentage of outpatient consultations for a sample of health care providers in each state that involve patients reporting a fever and a cough or a sore throat without a known cause other than influenza. Those numbers likely include some people who actually have COVID-19. But the pandemic may have changed the way in which people seek medical help, potentially biasing the numbers. The CDC has warned that its surveillance systems “are currently being affected by recent changes in health care seeking behavior, including increasing use of telemedicine.”
The White House’s third criterion addresses the need for hospitals to be able to cope with treating COVID-19 patients, including robust testing of health care workers. This criterion suggests using antibody tests to reveal who has been infected and beaten off the virus, which could help identify workers who may have some immunity.
But meeting this goal will also be difficult: Few of the available tests have been approved for use by the FDA and their accuracy is far from guaranteed. It’s also unclear whether having antibodies against the coronavirus will give people complete immunity.
The White House criteria are broadly similar to other recommendations made to state governors by public health experts. On April 17, the Center for Health Security at Johns Hopkins University released a report co-authored by former FDA commissioner Scott Gottlieb that also suggested states should consider starting to reopen their economies after the number of new cases has declined for at least 14 days.
In addition, it suggested states must have the ability to test, at minimum, all people with COVID-19 symptoms, be able to safely care for all patients and provide personal protective equipment for health care workers. Finally, the report said that states must be able to trace contacts of all new cases — which may require tens of thousands of workers to conduct this laborious work across the country.
The White House guidelines don’t include a provision for widespread testing and contact tracing as an explicit criterion for starting to reopen a state’s economy. Instead, this is included under a separate heading of “Core State Preparedness Responsibilities.”
Although the guidelines put responsibility for testing and contact tracing onto the states, the slow rollout of testing across the nation has widely been blamed on bureaucratic obstacles imposed by the federal government and the distribution of faulty test kits manufactured by the CDC.
Experts consulted by BuzzFeed News urged states to concentrate on improving their capacity for testing before relaxing their COVID-19 restrictions. “I don’t think there’s a responsible expert out there that thinks we’ve done enough testing,” Emanuel said.
Emanuel wants to see testing expanded to people without symptoms who may be spreading COVID-19, including essential workers like grocery clerks and bus drivers who could infect many people. Exact estimates differ, but asymptomatic cases may make up as much as 25% of total cases, according to CDC director Robert Redfield.
Both the White House and Center for Health Security guidelines call for a phased reopening of facilities including schools, restaurants, and other businesses. But it’s still unclear which aspects of the current restrictions are doing the most to limit transmission of COVID-19.
That means states should carefully monitor the effects of reopening to see which moves cause transmission to ramp up again and which have relatively small effects, according to Jessica Metcalf, a demographer at Princeton University who studies the dynamics of infectious disease.
“One of the big questions is which pieces of social distancing policies are having the largest effects,” Metcalf told BuzzFeed News. “Amazingly, we don't really know.”
Learning which policies have the biggest effect in limiting viral spread is important because most experts predict that we may need several cycles of social distancing and relaxation of these controls before an effective vaccine is developed and it becomes safe to go back to something resembling normality.
“We just can’t squander any opportunity to learn,” Metcalf said.


buzzfeed--2020-05-02--The FDA Has Approved Emergency Use Of Remdesivir To Treat COVID-19

BuzzFeed News has reporters across five continents bringing you trustworthy stories about the impact of the coronavirus .
To help keep this news free , become a member and sign up for our newsletter , Outbreak Today .
The FDA approved the experimental drug remdesivir for emergency use to treat COVID-19 on Friday , just days after a preliminary study reported it shortened hospital stays for COVID-19 patients .
In an emergency use approval statement , the FDA 's chief scientist , Denise Hinton , concluded , `` It is reasonable to believe that the known and potential benefits of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ potential risks of the drug for the treatment of patients hospitalized with severe COVID-19 . ''
The drug 's approval came just two days after the report of a National Institutes of Health–sponsored test .
In an experiment on 1,063 patients , the study found that while the drug did not statistically reduce mortality in COVID-19 patients , it did lead to a median hospital stay of 11 days rather than 15 for patients who received a placebo .
News of the approval came from President Donald Trump in an Oval Office announcement @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Sciences , the drug 's maker .
Remdesivir is an antiviral drug that interferes with the reproduction of viruses in cells , originally intended to treat the MERS and SARS coronaviruses .
`` I think this really illustrates what can happen in such a short time , '' said Deborah Birx of the White House coronavirus task force .
A separate , smaller trial of remdesivir in 237 patients published in the Lancet on Wednesday found no clinical benefits to treating COVID-19 patients with the drug ; it was halted because the drug @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
However , the study did show similar signs of shortening hospital stays , although not to a statistically significant extent .
Both studies started in February .
`` The bottom line is that we have shown that an antiviral can affect this virus , and that is in and of itself a great advance , '' Peter Jüni , a University of Toronto professor and the editor-in-chief of the journal Trials , told BuzzFeed News .
Jüni suggested that larger clinical trials will show when during an infection patients will benefit the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Possible side effects of remdesivir include nausea , low blood pressure , and an increase in liver enzymes associated with inflammation or damage to the organ , according to the FDA .
The emergency use approval for remdesivir is the second one issued for a drug to treat COVID-19 , the first coming in March for hydroxychloroquine phosphate and chloroquine sulfate .
The FDA issued a warning a month later against widespread use of the drugs after more than a dozen patients died in a small clinical trial in Brazil .

The FDA approved the experimental drug remdesivir for emergency use to treat COVID-19 on Friday, just days after a preliminary study reported it shortened hospital stays for COVID-19 patients.
In an emergency use authorization statement, the FDA's chief scientist, Denise Hinton, concluded, "It is reasonable to believe that the known and potential benefits of [remdesivir] outweigh the known and potential risks of the drug for the treatment of patients hospitalized with severe COVID-19."
The drug's authorization came just two days after the report of a National Institutes of Health–sponsored test. In an experiment on 1,063 patients, the study found that while the drug did not statistically reduce mortality in COVID-19 patients, it did lead to a median hospital stay of 11 days rather than 15 for patients who received a placebo.
News of the approval came from President Donald Trump in an Oval Office announcement on Friday with the CEO of Gilead Sciences, the drug's maker. Remdesivir is an antiviral drug that interferes with the reproduction of viruses in cells, originally intended to treat the MERS and SARS coronaviruses.
"I think this really illustrates what can happen in such a short time," said Deborah Birx of the White House coronavirus task force.
A separate, smaller trial of remdesivir in 237 patients published in the Lancet on Wednesday found no clinical benefits to treating COVID-19 patients with the drug; its use was halted because the drug caused a higher percentage of side effects. However, the study did show similar signs of shortening hospital stays, although not to a statistically significant extent. Both studies started in February.
"It is not just because of the reduction in time to hospital discharge that this is a big deal," Peter Jüni, a University of Toronto professor and the editor-in-chief of the journal Trials, told BuzzFeed News. "It is a big deal because it shows there's a way with drugs to influence the course of the disease." Jüni suggested that larger clinical trials will show when during an infection patients will benefit the most from infusion with the drug.
Possible side effects of remdesivir include nausea, low blood pressure, and an increase in liver enzymes associated with inflammation or damage to the organ, according to the FDA.
The emergency use approval for remdesivir is the second one issued for a drug to treat COVID-19, the first coming in March for hydroxychloroquine phosphate and chloroquine sulfate. The FDA issued a warning a month later against widespread use of the drugs after more than a dozen patients died in a small clinical trial in Brazil.


buzzfeed--2020-05-02--Joe Biden Says Tara Reade’s Account Of Sexual Assault "Never Happened"

“ I am requesting that the Secretary of the Senate ask the Archives to identify any record of the complaint she alleges she filed and make available to the press any such document , ” the former vice president said in the statement , which arrived about a half-hour before he was set to do his first interview on the subject with MSNBC ’ s Morning Joe .
“ If there was ever any such complaint , the record will be there.
” Biden also called on the National Archives to release any records that might exist of the complaint @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 1993 .
Joe Biden , the presumptive Democratic nominee for president , has responded for the first time to a former Senate aide ’ s accusation of sexual assault , saying in a Friday morning statement that Tara Reade ’ s accounts “ aren ’ t true ” and “ never happened.
” Reade has accused Biden of sexually assaulting her in 1993 , when she worked for him in the Senate .
Reade first publicly detailed the allegation earlier this year , after being one of several women in early 2019 to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ them feel uncomfortable .
“ This never ever happened , ” Biden said toward the end of prolonged and intense questioning by Brzezinski , who asked what he would say to Reade if he had the opportunity to speak with her .
“ I don ’ t know what is motivating her .
I don ’ t know what ’ s behind any of it .
But it ’ s irrelevant .
It never happened.
” “ She has a right to say whatever she wants to say , ” Biden said of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
“ But I have a right to say look at the facts .
Check it out.
” Reade , who said she initially backed Sen. Elizabeth Warren in the primary before supporting Sen. Bernie Sanders , told BuzzFeed News in multiple interviews this month that she has been frustrated by the fact that , up until now , Biden had not addressed her accusation himself .
When asked about it , Biden ’ s campaign has primarily pointed reporters to a statement dated April 13 , saying that though the former vice @ @ @ @ @ @ @ be heard , Reade ’ s story did not happen .
Biden echoed that Friday in his statement , which began with a lengthy acknowledgment that April , which ended Thursday , was Sexual Assault Awareness Month and a recap of his work as a senator to pass the Violence Against Women Act .
“ I recognize my responsibility to be a voice , an advocate , and a leader for the change in culture that has begun but is nowhere near finished , ” Biden said .
“ So I want to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ I engaged in misconduct 27 years ago.
” Brzezinski pressed Biden repeatedly on his past statements that women who come forward with allegations of sexual harassment and assault should be given the benefit of the doubt — including comments Biden made during the 2018 confirmation hearings of US Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh .
Democrats at the time were unhappy with how Senate Republicans treated Christine Blasey Ford , who had accused Kavanaugh of sexual assault when they were in high school .
“ Are women to be believed unless it pertains to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ point .
Biden began his reply with exasperation .
“ Look , ” he said , “ women are to be believed , given the benefit of the doubt if they come forward and say something that they said happened to them .
They should start out with the presumption of truth.
” But then , Biden added , people should look at the facts in each case .
“ I assure you , ” he said , referring to Reade ’ s accusation against him , “ it did not happen .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ several weeks , and across several news outlets , several people who knew Reade at the time have said they had been told different aspects of her story .
A former neighbor , Lynda LaCasse , told Business Insider that Reade had detailed her full allegation of sexual assault in the 1990s .
Both the New York Times and Washington Post reported they spoke with an unnamed friend who said Reade had detailed the allegation at that time .
The Intercept published a transcript of what Reade said was her mother calling in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ask for advice about a generally negative experience her daughter had had with a “ prominent senator.
” Biden is the last Democrat actively campaigning for his party ’ s nomination to face President Donald Trump in this fall ’ s general election .
Trump has been accused of more than a dozen instances of sexual harassment or assault .
Biden ’ s campaign previously had sent talking points to Democrats in April that leaned on a New York Times report to insist that Reade ’ s claim is false , even though @ @ @ @ @ @ @ determination .
Reade has said that soon after the incident , she filed a report in the Senate and complained directly to three former Senate aides , all of whom say they do not remember that happening .
One of those aides , Biden ’ s former executive assistant Marianne Baker , said in a statement provided by the campaign this week that she never once witnessed or heard of “ any reports of inappropriate conduct , period — not from Ms. Reade , not from anyone.
” Biden emphasized in his Friday @ @ @ @ @ @ @ aides have corroborated Reade ’ s accounts .
“ She has said she raised some of these issues with her supervisor and senior staffers from my office at the time , ” Biden said .
“ They — both men and a woman — have said , unequivocally , that she never came to them and complained or raised issues .
News organizations that have talked with literally dozens of former staffers have not found one — not one — who corroborated her allegations in any way .
Indeed , many of them @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that would not have tolerated harassment in any way — as indeed I would not have.
” On MSNBC , Brzezinski also asked if Biden ever asked past employees to sign nondisclosure agreements that might prevent others from coming forward with accusations .
“ There ’ s no NDA signed , ” Biden said .
“ No one ’ s ever signed .
I ’ ve never asked anyone to sign an NDA .
There are no NDAs , period , in my case .
None.
” One particularly extended line of questioning @ @ @ @ @ @ @ making public Biden ’ s Senate papers , which he donated to the University of Delaware .
Biden said any personnel records related to Reade would be at the National Archives , not at Delaware , but Brzezinski wondered why Biden wouldn ’ t commit to more transparency .
Someone , perhaps a third party , could search for documents that might include Reade ’ s name , Brzezinski suggested .
Biden seemed skeptical about how that process would work .
“ The fact is that there are a lot of things of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 've taken , interviews that I did overseas with people , all of those things related to my job , ” Biden said in explaining his refusal to release the Senate papers now .
“ And the idea that they would be made public while I was running for public office , they could be really taken out of context .
The papers are position papers .
They are documents that existed when I , for example , when I met with Putin , or when I met with whoever .
And all @ @ @ @ @ @ @ campaign at this time , I do n't know of anybody whose done anything like that.
” Andrea Boyle Tippett , a spokesperson for the University of Delaware , said in a Thursday email to BuzzFeed News that staff there is “ currently curating the collection , a process that we estimate will carry at least into the spring of 2021.
” “ As the curating process is not complete , ” she added , “ the papers are not yet available to the public , and we are not able to identify @ @ @ @ @ @ @ within the collection.
” Asked if the university would make the files available for public inspection if Biden requested that , she replied : “ I wo n't speculate about a hypothetical situation.
” Brzezinski asked Biden if he was sure a National Archives search would turn up no complaint from Reade .
“ I ’ m confident there ’ s nothing , ” he replied .
“ No one ever brought it to the attention of me .
”

Reade has accused Biden of sexually assaulting her in 1993, when she worked for him in the Senate. Reade first publicly detailed the allegation earlier this year, after being one of several women in early 2019 to say Biden’s behavior had made them feel uncomfortable.
“This never ever happened,” Biden said toward the end of prolonged and intense questioning by Brzezinski, who asked what he would say to Reade if he had the opportunity to speak with her. “I don’t know what is motivating her. I don’t know what’s behind any of it. But it’s irrelevant. It never happened.”
“She has a right to say whatever she wants to say,” Biden said of Reade at another point in the interview. “But I have a right to say look at the facts. Check it out.”
Reade, who said she initially backed Sen. Elizabeth Warren in the primary before supporting Sen. Bernie Sanders, told BuzzFeed News in multiple interviews this month that she has been frustrated by the fact that, up until now, Biden had not addressed her accusation himself. When asked about it, Biden’s campaign has primarily pointed reporters to a statement dated April 13, saying that though the former vice president believes women have the right to be heard, Reade’s story did not happen.
Biden echoed that Friday in his statement, which began with a lengthy acknowledgment that April, which ended Thursday, was Sexual Assault Awareness Month and a recap of his work as a senator to pass the Violence Against Women Act.
“I recognize my responsibility to be a voice, an advocate, and a leader for the change in culture that has begun but is nowhere near finished,” Biden said. “So I want to address allegations by a former staffer that I engaged in misconduct 27 years ago.”
“They aren’t true,” Biden added. “This never happened.”
Brzezinski pressed Biden repeatedly on his past statements that women who come forward with allegations of sexual harassment and assault should be given the benefit of the doubt — including comments Biden made during the 2018 confirmation hearings of US Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh. Democrats at the time were unhappy with how Senate Republicans treated Christine Blasey Ford, who had accused Kavanaugh of sexual assault when they were in high school.
“Are women to be believed unless it pertains to you?” Brzezinski asked at one point.
Biden began his reply with exasperation. “Look,” he said, “women are to be believed, given the benefit of the doubt if they come forward and say something that they said happened to them. They should start out with the presumption of truth.”
But then, Biden added, people should look at the facts in each case. “I assure you,” he said, referring to Reade’s accusation against him, “it did not happen. Period. Period.”
Over the last several weeks, and across several news outlets, several people who knew Reade at the time have said they had been told different aspects of her story. A former neighbor, Lynda LaCasse, told Business Insider that Reade had detailed her full allegation of sexual assault in the 1990s. Both the New York Times and Washington Post reported they spoke with an unnamed friend who said Reade had detailed the allegation at that time. The Intercept published a transcript of what Reade said was her mother calling in to Larry King Live in 1993 to ask for advice about a generally negative experience her daughter had had with a “prominent senator.”
Biden is the last Democrat actively campaigning for his party’s nomination to face President Donald Trump in this fall’s general election. Trump has been accused of more than a dozen instances of sexual harassment or assault.
Biden’s campaign previously had sent talking points to Democrats in April that leaned on a New York Times report to insist that Reade’s claim is false, even though the Times report did not make that determination.
Reade has said that soon after the incident, she filed a report in the Senate and complained directly to three former Senate aides, all of whom say they do not remember that happening. One of those aides, Biden’s former executive assistant Marianne Baker, said in a statement provided by the campaign this week that she never once witnessed or heard of “any reports of inappropriate conduct, period — not from Ms. Reade, not from anyone.”
Biden emphasized in his Friday statement that none of his other past aides have corroborated Reade’s accounts.
“She has said she raised some of these issues with her supervisor and senior staffers from my office at the time,” Biden said. “They — both men and a woman — have said, unequivocally, that she never came to them and complained or raised issues. News organizations that have talked with literally dozens of former staffers have not found one — not one — who corroborated her allegations in any way. Indeed, many of them spoke to the culture of an office that would not have tolerated harassment in any way — as indeed I would not have.”
On MSNBC, Brzezinski also asked if Biden ever asked past employees to sign nondisclosure agreements that might prevent others from coming forward with accusations.
“There’s no NDA signed,” Biden said. “No one’s ever signed. I’ve never asked anyone to sign an NDA. There are no NDAs, period, in my case. None.”
One particularly extended line of questioning from Brzezinski focused on the delay in making public Biden’s Senate papers, which he donated to the University of Delaware. Biden said any personnel records related to Reade would be at the National Archives, not at Delaware, but Brzezinski wondered why Biden wouldn’t commit to more transparency. Someone, perhaps a third party, could search for documents that might include Reade’s name, Brzezinski suggested. Biden seemed skeptical about how that process would work.
“The fact is that there are a lot of things of speeches I've made, positions I've taken, interviews that I did overseas with people, all of those things related to my job,” Biden said in explaining his refusal to release the Senate papers now. “And the idea that they would be made public while I was running for public office, they could be really taken out of context. The papers are position papers. They are documents that existed when I, for example, when I met with Putin, or when I met with whoever. And all of that to be fodder in a campaign at this time, I don't know of anybody whose done anything like that.”
Andrea Boyle Tippett, a spokesperson for the University of Delaware, said in a Thursday email to BuzzFeed News that staff there is “currently curating the collection, a process that we estimate will carry at least into the spring of 2021.”
“As the curating process is not complete,” she added, “the papers are not yet available to the public, and we are not able to identify what documents or files can be found within the collection.”
Asked if the university would make the files available for public inspection if Biden requested that, she replied: “I won't speculate about a hypothetical situation.”
Brzezinski asked Biden if he was sure a National Archives search would turn up no complaint from Reade.
“I’m confident there’s nothing,” he replied. “No one ever brought it to the attention of me.”


buzzfeed--2020-05-01--Congress Is Ratcheting Up Its Efforts To Force The Trump Administration To Publicly Reveal Who Order