vox--2020-07-10--America still doesn’t have enough N95 masks

In the early weeks of the pandemic , it was nearly impossible to buy N95 masks .
These masks , unlike surgical masks or cloth masks , are tight-fitting and filter airborne particles that can carry the virus , making them a key source of protection for health care workers , some of whom have died after being exposed to Covid-19 at their medical facilities .
Now , as the United States continues to reopen and the number cases and hospitalizations surge , that troubling shortage of personal protective equipment — and especially N95 masks — is once again a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Nurses Union found that 85 percent of nurses reported being asked to reuse personal protective equipment that ’ s meant to be single-use .
At one private clinic in Arizona , medical workers are treating Covid-19 patients without being given any N95 masks , according to the New York Times .
The shortage is so dire that the inventor of the powerful filtration material in these masks has come out of retirement to look for ways to decontaminate his invention and make them safer for reuse .
But why is there still a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ were meant to reduce pressure on the health care system and give the US more time to prepare , production for personal protective equipment , which includes N95 masks , medical gowns , and medical gloves , never adjusted to meet the massive demand caused by the pandemic .
At the same time , reopening in many states has meant that other businesses , like outpatient medical offices and construction firms , are now in search of N95 masks too .
Meanwhile , the recent surge in Covid-19 cases that has followed reopening @ @ @ @ @ @ @ need for protective equipment in hospitals , especially in the places currently experiencing massive outbreaks , like Florida and Texas .
In early April , Donald Trump invoked the Defense Production Act ( DPA ) , which allows the federal government to order private companies to produce needed supplies , to obtain more masks produced by 3M , one of the major American mask manufacturers .
Later that month , the Department of Defense announced several other contracts for N95 masks .
But as it becomes increasingly evident that these measures weren ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Nurses United , a nationwide nurses union , and the American Medical Association have in recent weeks called for the Trump administration to use the law more aggressively to address the PPE shortage .
Earlier this week , presidential candidate Joe Biden released a supply chain plan for Covid-19 that calls for more broadly invoking the DPA , in part to deal with the ongoing shortage of N95 masks .
“ The Trump administration is still dragging its feet on using the DPA to produce urgently-needed supplies to combat the COVID-19 pandemic , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ domestic mobilization we need , ” the plan says .
“ There was sometime in May where I felt like it was getting to more of a steady state , ” Anne Miller , the sourcing lead for Project N95 , a protective equipment clearinghouse established during the pandemic , told Recode .
“ The whole tenor of everything seems to be ramping back up again , and we see lots of requests for N95 respirators , isolation gowns , and surgical masks.
” Since states across the country have moved toward full @ @ @ @ @ @ @ gotten worse than it has ever been .
On July 9 , the US saw nearly 60,000 new Covid-19 cases .
In a majority of US states , Covid-19 cases are increasing , according to the New York Times , and outbreaks risk overwhelming some rural hospitals and smaller cities that weren ’ t prepared for the pandemic .
“ It feels like right now we see more demand this week than we did last week , and I think we will continue to see that , ” said Miller , who expects @ @ @ @ @ @ @ cause another surge in cases , though she notes that heightened demand for N95 masks never really went away .
But national coordination of a supply chain was never set up to effectively distribute personal protective equipment and other supplies , despite calls for the federal government to step in .
The National Strategic Stockpile didn ’ t have a large amount of backup supplies to begin with , and it wasn ’ t set up to respond to the full needs of a pandemic .
Without leadership from the federal government — @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on the local and state level — governors and hospital systems have been arranging their own private purchases of personal protective equipment , often directly competing with one another .
It ’ s an approach that Illinois Gov .
J .
B. Pritzker recently likened to the Hunger Games .
Opening up means more people need protective equipment When the pandemic first started , the country ’ s primary concern was getting protective equipment to hospital health care workers who were treating Covid-19 patients .
But as the country opens back up , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , as well as other industries like construction , are looking for N95 masks too .
Michael Einhorn , the president of the medical supplier Dealmed , said there ’ s also an understandable incentive for medical facilities to buy more safety stock beyond what they need for present day-to-day operations .
He points to efforts like New York Gov .
Andrew Cuomo ’ s 90-Day Supply Goal as an example .
That guidance urges health care facilities to have in stock enough protective equipment to last about three months .
“ There @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
People need to get screened and tested .
There are people out there that need treatment outside of Covid , ” Einhorn told Recode .
“ These facilities that treat these patients don ’ t have access to N95s , and it ’ s a very big problem.
” At the end of June , the American Medical Association ( AMA ) sent a letter to the Federal Emergency Management Agency ( FEMA ) emphasizing that doctor ’ s offices and practices outside of hospital systems were struggling to get access to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the AMA ’ s CEO and executive vice president , raised the alarm about “ growing concern ” from doctors about shortages and said that despite pleas to Congress , “ a remedy remains elusive.
” In fact , the problem in outpatient medical facilities was bad enough that Madara also sent a letter to Vice President Mike Pence , asking the administration to invoke the Defense Production Act .
“ Without adequate PPE , physician practices may have to continue deferring care or remain closed , which will continue to have a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ patients , ” Madara wrote .
One major challenge is that many of these medical facilities don ’ t typically buy in bulk the way large hospital systems do and aren ’ t used to buying protective equipment for their daily operations .
One doctor told a local paper in Pennsylvania that if his surgery center and clinic were to reach full capacity , it would only have enough PPE to last a week or two and would then have to shut down .
“ If I ’ m a doctor , and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ practice and … need a respirator every day , I only need a box of 20 , ” explains Miller , from the N95 Project .
“ But you can ’ t go out and buy a box of 20.
” The supply chain is still riddled with problems On its own , the US simply isn ’ t producing enough N95 masks and other protective equipment to meet demand , despite major producers like 3M and Prestige Ameritech ramping up production .
Even before the pandemic , the US relied significantly on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ many point to a lack of leadership and coordination in the early months of the pandemic as a cause for the ongoing shortages .
The federal government actually turned down an early offer from Prestige Ameritech to produce millions of masks early this year , according to the Washington Post .
Leading companies in the medical equipment distribution industry also told members of Congress that between January and March , the administration gave them little effective guidance , and there ’ s still no national coordination of a supply chain .
At the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ steady and trustworthy supply of N95 masks was difficult .
Hospitals ended up with counterfeit and otherwise unreliable products , while others placed orders for masks that would never arrive .
There was also price gouging and hoarding , and a growing number of new , and often unreliable , suppliers attempting to take advantage of desperate buyers .
The murkiness of the supply chain has improved somewhat , though issues remain .
Miller , who has kept an eye on the gray markets for protective equipment , said that many “ opportunistic @ @ @ @ @ @ @ market.
” The ones that remain are more reliable , and payment terms for bulk purchases have begun to return to normal .
Dealmed ’ s Einhorn said that hospitals and buyers have become more aware of unreliable orders and the risk of counterfeit or otherwise suspicious products .
“ Our government has basically said that we ’ re going to allow the free economy to fix the issues , ” Val Griffeth , an Oregon-based doctor who co-founded a nonprofit PPE effort called Get Us PPE , told Vox last month .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ capital to ramp up production , and because the government has not devoted capital to helping solve the situation , we ’ re seeing a delay in its resolution.
” In fact , officials don ’ t seem to think shortages are as significant as some medical workers have said .
Vice President Mike Pence on Wednesday said that the supply of PPE is “ very strong ” and encouraged medical workers to re-use products .
“ I ’ m not going to tell you we ’ re able to meet all demand @ @ @ @ @ @ @ unfulfilled orders today than in April , ” the navy official who is overseeing medical supplies distributed by the federal government , John Polowczyk , told the Washington Post in early July .
“ I don ’ t have the sense of there being severe shortages.
” It ’ s difficult to estimate exactly how bad the national shortage is at scale , but direct reports from medical facilities are alarming .
Doctors at a medical center in Houston told the New York Times they ’ ve been instructed to reuse N95s for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ physician in Virginia , who is on the state ’ s testing task force , told local news that surgical masks continue to be used unless they become dirty , and disposable gowns are also reused .
In Bradenton , Florida , nurses have protested because , they say , they ’ re not given enough proper protective gear and aren ’ t updated about patients ’ Covid-19 statuses .
If cases continue to surge , there ’ s no doubt that concerning reports like these almost certainly will , too .
Open @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
All Open Sourced content is editorially independent and produced by our journalists .
Every day at Vox , we aim to answer your most important questions and provide you , and our audience around the world , with information that has the power to save lives .
Our mission has never been more vital than it is in this moment : to empower you through understanding .
Vox ’ s work is reaching more people than ever , but our distinctive brand of explanatory journalism takes resources — particularly during a pandemic @ @ @ @ @ @ @ contribution will not constitute a donation , but it will enable our staff to continue to offer free articles , videos , and podcasts at the quality and volume that this moment requires .
Please consider making a contribution to Vox today .

In the early weeks of the pandemic, it was nearly impossible to buy N95 masks. These masks, unlike surgical masks or cloth masks, are tight-fitting and filter airborne particles that can carry the virus, making them a key source of protection for health care workers, some of whom have died after being exposed to Covid-19 at their medical facilities. Now, as the United States continues to reopen and the number cases and hospitalizations surge, that troubling shortage of personal protective equipment — and especially N95 masks — is once again a problem.
A survey from the National Nurses Union found that 85 percent of nurses reported being asked to reuse personal protective equipment that’s meant to be single-use. At one private clinic in Arizona, medical workers are treating Covid-19 patients without being given any N95 masks, according to the New York Times. The shortage is so dire that the inventor of the powerful filtration material in these masks has come out of retirement to look for ways to decontaminate his invention and make them safer for reuse.
But why is there still a shortage? Despite months of shutdown that were meant to reduce pressure on the health care system and give the US more time to prepare, production for personal protective equipment, which includes N95 masks, medical gowns, and medical gloves, never adjusted to meet the massive demand caused by the pandemic. At the same time, reopening in many states has meant that other businesses, like outpatient medical offices and construction firms, are now in search of N95 masks too. Meanwhile, the recent surge in Covid-19 cases that has followed reopening is almost certainly leading to a greater need for protective equipment in hospitals, especially in the places currently experiencing massive outbreaks, like Florida and Texas.
In early April, Donald Trump invoked the Defense Production Act (DPA), which allows the federal government to order private companies to produce needed supplies, to obtain more masks produced by 3M, one of the major American mask manufacturers. Later that month, the Department of Defense announced several other contracts for N95 masks. But as it becomes increasingly evident that these measures weren’t enough, organizations like the National Nurses United, a nationwide nurses union, and the American Medical Association have in recent weeks called for the Trump administration to use the law more aggressively to address the PPE shortage.
Earlier this week, presidential candidate Joe Biden released a supply chain plan for Covid-19 that calls for more broadly invoking the DPA, in part to deal with the ongoing shortage of N95 masks. “The Trump administration is still dragging its feet on using the DPA to produce urgently-needed supplies to combat the COVID-19 pandemic, and has fallen far short of the domestic mobilization we need,” the plan says.
“There was sometime in May where I felt like it was getting to more of a steady state,” Anne Miller, the sourcing lead for Project N95, a protective equipment clearinghouse established during the pandemic, told Recode. “The whole tenor of everything seems to be ramping back up again, and we see lots of requests for N95 respirators, isolation gowns, and surgical masks.”
A growing number of cases is increasing demand
Since states across the country have moved toward full reopening, the coronavirus crisis has arguably gotten worse than it has ever been. On July 9, the US saw nearly 60,000 new Covid-19 cases. In a majority of US states, Covid-19 cases are increasing, according to the New York Times, and outbreaks risk overwhelming some rural hospitals and smaller cities that weren’t prepared for the pandemic.
“It feels like right now we see more demand this week than we did last week, and I think we will continue to see that,” said Miller, who expects that reopening schools and universities will also cause another surge in cases, though she notes that heightened demand for N95 masks never really went away.
But national coordination of a supply chain was never set up to effectively distribute personal protective equipment and other supplies, despite calls for the federal government to step in. The National Strategic Stockpile didn’t have a large amount of backup supplies to begin with, and it wasn’t set up to respond to the full needs of a pandemic. Without leadership from the federal government — which insisted that supplies should be handled on the local and state level — governors and hospital systems have been arranging their own private purchases of personal protective equipment, often directly competing with one another. It’s an approach that Illinois Gov. J. B. Pritzker recently likened to the Hunger Games.
Opening up means more people need protective equipment
When the pandemic first started, the country’s primary concern was getting protective equipment to hospital health care workers who were treating Covid-19 patients. But as the country opens back up, people working in medical and dental offices, as well as other industries like construction, are looking for N95 masks too.
Michael Einhorn, the president of the medical supplier Dealmed, said there’s also an understandable incentive for medical facilities to buy more safety stock beyond what they need for present day-to-day operations. He points to efforts like New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s 90-Day Supply Goal as an example. That guidance urges health care facilities to have in stock enough protective equipment to last about three months.
“There are biopsies that need to take place. People need to get screened and tested. There are people out there that need treatment outside of Covid,” Einhorn told Recode. “These facilities that treat these patients don’t have access to N95s, and it’s a very big problem.”
At the end of June, the American Medical Association (AMA) sent a letter to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) emphasizing that doctor’s offices and practices outside of hospital systems were struggling to get access to personal protective equipment. James Madara, the AMA’s CEO and executive vice president, raised the alarm about “growing concern” from doctors about shortages and said that despite pleas to Congress, “a remedy remains elusive.” In fact, the problem in outpatient medical facilities was bad enough that Madara also sent a letter to Vice President Mike Pence, asking the administration to invoke the Defense Production Act.
“Without adequate PPE, physician practices may have to continue deferring care or remain closed, which will continue to have a dramatic impact on the health of their patients,” Madara wrote.
One major challenge is that many of these medical facilities don’t typically buy in bulk the way large hospital systems do and aren’t used to buying protective equipment for their daily operations. One doctor told a local paper in Pennsylvania that if his surgery center and clinic were to reach full capacity, it would only have enough PPE to last a week or two and would then have to shut down.
“If I’m a doctor, and I’m going to open my practice and … need a respirator every day, I only need a box of 20,” explains Miller, from the N95 Project. “But you can’t go out and buy a box of 20.”
The supply chain is still riddled with problems
On its own, the US simply isn’t producing enough N95 masks and other protective equipment to meet demand, despite major producers like 3M and Prestige Ameritech ramping up production. Even before the pandemic, the US relied significantly on imports, especially from China, and many point to a lack of leadership and coordination in the early months of the pandemic as a cause for the ongoing shortages.
The federal government actually turned down an early offer from Prestige Ameritech to produce millions of masks early this year, according to the Washington Post. Leading companies in the medical equipment distribution industry also told members of Congress that between January and March, the administration gave them little effective guidance, and there’s still no national coordination of a supply chain.
At the beginning of the pandemic, finding a steady and trustworthy supply of N95 masks was difficult. Hospitals ended up with counterfeit and otherwise unreliable products, while others placed orders for masks that would never arrive. There was also price gouging and hoarding, and a growing number of new, and often unreliable, suppliers attempting to take advantage of desperate buyers.
The murkiness of the supply chain has improved somewhat, though issues remain. Miller, who has kept an eye on the gray markets for protective equipment, said that many “opportunistic players have been winnowed out of the market.” The ones that remain are more reliable, and payment terms for bulk purchases have begun to return to normal. Dealmed’s Einhorn said that hospitals and buyers have become more aware of unreliable orders and the risk of counterfeit or otherwise suspicious products.
“Our government has basically said that we’re going to allow the free economy to fix the issues,” Val Griffeth, an Oregon-based doctor who co-founded a nonprofit PPE effort called Get Us PPE, told Vox last month. “Unfortunately, it takes time and capital to ramp up production, and because the government has not devoted capital to helping solve the situation, we’re seeing a delay in its resolution.”
In fact, officials don’t seem to think shortages are as significant as some medical workers have said. Vice President Mike Pence on Wednesday said that the supply of PPE is “very strong” and encouraged medical workers to re-use products.
“I’m not going to tell you we’re able to meet all demand, but there’s significantly less unfulfilled orders today than in April,” the navy official who is overseeing medical supplies distributed by the federal government, John Polowczyk, told the Washington Post in early July. “I don’t have the sense of there being severe shortages.”
It’s difficult to estimate exactly how bad the national shortage is at scale, but direct reports from medical facilities are alarming. Doctors at a medical center in Houston told the New York Times they’ve been instructed to reuse N95s for up to two weeks. A family physician in Virginia, who is on the state’s testing task force, told local news that surgical masks continue to be used unless they become dirty, and disposable gowns are also reused. In Bradenton, Florida, nurses have protested because, they say, they’re not given enough proper protective gear and aren’t updated about patients’ Covid-19 statuses.
If cases continue to surge, there’s no doubt that concerning reports like these almost certainly will, too.
Open Sourced is made possible by Omidyar Network. All Open Sourced content is editorially independent and produced by our journalists.


vox--2020-07-10--Australia was a coronavirus success story. Now, an outbreak is prompting new lockdowns.

Australia initially contained its coronavirus outbreak so well that there were several days in May in which the entire country ’ s daily number of new cases was in just the single digits , and the country began to reopen .
But thanks to a new outbreak , the daily numbers are back in the hundreds — and once again , shutdowns are starting .
To contain the new resurgence , Australia on Wednesday closed the border separating Victoria and New South Wales , restricting nearly all travel between the two states .
The border was closed to contain an @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of Victoria , and the surrounding metropolitan area , where hundreds of new cases have been reported over the past several weeks .
Australia ’ s management of the pandemic has been a huge success — the country not only flattened its curve but “ crushed ” it , as University of South Australia biostatistics professor Adrian Esterman told me .
But epidemiologists told me that worldwide , even places with low numbers of new cases will still be susceptible to resurgences until a vaccine is available — so new case numbers , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to fluctuate .
“ You ’ ll have surges where everyone has to go into lockdown and then cases will go down .
Then you can start doing normal things again , then the cases will go up , then you ’ ll have to go into lockdown again , ” Raina MacIntyre , head of the Biosecurity Research Program at the Kirby Institute at the University of New South Wales , told me .
“ It ’ ll be intermittent periods of epidemic and inter-epidemic periods and intermittent lockdowns to manage the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” MacIntyre said .
How Australia managed to control the pandemic Australia has done a great job controlling the pandemic , experts told me .
But you really don ’ t need experts to tell you that — just look at the country ’ s total number of cases .
Only slightly more than 9,300 people in Australia have been diagnosed with Covid-19 to date , and about 100 people have died as of July 10 , according to Johns Hopkins University ’ s Coronavirus Resource Center .
To put that in perspective @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sizes to Australia ’ s — but each has reported over 300,000 coronavirus cases , with thousands of deaths as of the same date .
The Australian government took the pandemic seriously from the beginning and , unlike in the United States , government officials listened to the advice of public health experts , Esterman told me .
Esterman also said the vast majority of the public complied with social distancing and mask-wearing guidelines — again , unlike in the US , where masks are seen by some as an attack on individual @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with a ban on travelers from high-risk areas in February .
MacIntyre told me that most cases from the first outbreak were travelers returning to Australia .
That , and Australia ’ s lack of land borders with other countries , made it easier to identify who was infected or at risk .
Australia ’ s borders were closed to non-citizens on March 19 , and later that month public gathering places like movie theaters , bars , and schools were closed and social distancing rules were imposed .
Testing has also been @ @ @ @ @ @ @ people of Australia ’ s population of 25 million have been tested as of last week .
The country ’ s biggest misstep , Esterman told me , was the docking of a cruise ship in March with infected passengers on board .
Hundreds of cases could be traced back to the Ruby Princess cruise ship , where passengers that were clearly sick left the ship without being tested , dispersing around the country .
Reopening began in May , with the intent of safely reopening the economy fully by July .
In @ @ @ @ @ @ @ impacting Black , Latinx , and Native American communities .
But in Australia , although institutional racism against Indigenous populations in health care is pervasive , Esterman said there were not significant racial disparities in Covid-19 infection rates during the initial outbreak because not many people were infected in the first place .
“ There were basically too few cases for there to be any differentiation , ” Esterman said .
But the new Melbourne-area outbreak is largely affecting immigrant communities .
This outbreak began because of failures at quarantine hotels , where @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for two weeks under mandatory quarantine .
The BBC reports that improperly trained private security forces are facing the blame , including allegations of rule-breaking — like sharing cigarette lighters and having sex with quarantined travelers .
From the hotels , the virus spread to low-income communities with large immigrant populations in Melbourne , Esterman told me .
He said the government also didn ’ t spend enough time communicating with these non-English-speaking communities about the importance of mask-wearing and social distancing , leaving them vulnerable .
Victoria logged a record-high 288 new @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the state ’ s highest number since the 212 new cases reported on March 28 , during the peak of the first outbreak .
3,379 cases have been reported in Victoria to date .
“ These are unsustainably high numbers of new cases , ” Victoria state premier Daniel Andrews told reporters on Tuesday .
“ It ’ s clear we are on the cusp of our second wave — and we can not let this virus cut through our communities.
” Lockdowns are being reimposed to contain the new outbreaks Now , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lockdown , which began Wednesday , with limited exceptions for leaving home or traveling outside the metropolitan area .
The Victoria-New South Wales border was closed Tuesday for the first time in 101 years — the last closure was an attempt to contain the Spanish flu in 1919 , which killed 15,000 Australians .
People who cross the border , which is guarded by New South Wales police and military personnel , will face large fines ; 14-day permits are available for a few exceptions , and emergency service and law enforcement workers @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are free to cross .
People in the metropolitan Melbourne area aren ’ t eligible for permits except in extreme circumstances , the Guardian reported .
MacIntyre told me that the decision to close the border was made once daily new cases hit triple digits .
Previously , affected suburbs and apartment buildings were locked down , but case numbers continued to rise , MacIntyre said .
The border closure is meant to prevent people from bringing Covid-19 from areas with a high number of cases into unaffected areas , Krutika Kuppalli , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in biosecurity fellow at Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security , told me .
Kuppalli compared the Australian border closure to stay-at-home orders and quarantine mandates in the US , which are also intended to limit travel .
More than 50,000 people crossed the border into New South Wales on Wednesday but were forced to wait for hours due to delays with the online permit system .
One person has already been arrested for attempting to cross the border without a valid permit or exemption , the Guardian reported .
Esterman said the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and cross the border at all could be dangerous .
“ If you live in Victoria and work in South Australia , they will let you through , ” he said .
“ How is that helpful in trying to stop it from spreading from other states ?
” Areas that controlled the spread of the virus will continue to see outbreaks Australia ’ s new outbreak and the reimplementation of strict prevention measures show that areas that have limited the spread of the virus aren ’ t immune to spikes in Covid-19 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are lifted .
“ I think there ’ s always going to be a risk of resurgence until there is a vaccine , and the decision of when to initially reopen the economy and initially reopen society can be guided by best practices and evidence , ” Gregory Tasian , an associate professor of urology and epidemiology at the University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine , told me .
South Korea also contained its virus outbreak well but then faced spikes in new cases , including one linked to nightclub reopenings .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ Seoul area is facing a second wave .
Tasian said areas that meet criteria for reopening should effectively communicate universal masking and implement social-distancing guidelines in the workplace to decrease the overall transmission .
But the United States is in a completely different situation than countries like Australia and South Korea , which have both managed to flatten their country ’ s curve of Covid-19 cases , Tasian said .
The Northeast , which was once the US ’ s epicenter , has been able to control the pandemic , but cases in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ rise .
“ The US never got out of the first wave , ” MacIntyre told me .
“ So opening up is going to be extremely dangerous .
It is guaranteed it ’ s going to result in another big surge of cases.
” Tasian said that to ideally manage the pandemic , the US should implement nationwide policies , like masking and social distancing , and policies targeted to areas seeing spikes in cases — but that widespread testing is necessary to know which areas are facing larger outbreaks .
Even @ @ @ @ @ @ @ spread of the coronavirus nationwide — which doesn ’ t seem to be happening any time soon , as cases have just topped 3 million and a record-breaking nearly 60,000 cases were reported Thursday — it ’ s clear that we ’ ll be seeing outbreaks until we finally have a vaccine .
Every day at Vox , we aim to answer your most important questions and provide you , and our audience around the world , with information that has the power to save lives .
Our mission has never been more @ @ @ @ @ @ @ : to empower you through understanding .
Vox ’ s work is reaching more people than ever , but our distinctive brand of explanatory journalism takes resources — particularly during a pandemic and an economic downturn .
Your financial contribution will not constitute a donation , but it will enable our staff to continue to offer free articles , videos , and podcasts at the quality and volume that this moment requires .
Please consider making a contribution to Vox today .

Australia initially contained its coronavirus outbreak so well that there were several days in May in which the entire country’s daily number of new cases was in just the single digits, and the country began to reopen. But thanks to a new outbreak, the daily numbers are back in the hundreds — and once again, shutdowns are starting.
To contain the new resurgence, Australia on Wednesday closed the border separating Victoria and New South Wales, restricting nearly all travel between the two states. The border was closed to contain an outbreak in Melbourne, the capital city of Victoria, and the surrounding metropolitan area, where hundreds of new cases have been reported over the past several weeks.
Australia’s management of the pandemic has been a huge success — the country not only flattened its curve but “crushed” it, as University of South Australia biostatistics professor Adrian Esterman told me.
But epidemiologists told me that worldwide, even places with low numbers of new cases will still be susceptible to resurgences until a vaccine is available — so new case numbers, in Australia and elsewhere, will continue to fluctuate.
“You’ll have surges where everyone has to go into lockdown and then cases will go down. Then you can start doing normal things again, then the cases will go up, then you’ll have to go into lockdown again,” Raina MacIntyre, head of the Biosecurity Research Program at the Kirby Institute at the University of New South Wales, told me.
“It’ll be intermittent periods of epidemic and inter-epidemic periods and intermittent lockdowns to manage the situation until we have a vaccine,” MacIntyre said.
How Australia managed to control the pandemic
Australia has done a great job controlling the pandemic, experts told me. But you really don’t need experts to tell you that — just look at the country’s total number of cases.
Only slightly more than 9,300 people in Australia have been diagnosed with Covid-19 to date, and about 100 people have died as of July 10, according to Johns Hopkins University’s Coronavirus Resource Center. To put that in perspective, Peru and Chile have comparable population sizes to Australia’s — but each has reported over 300,000 coronavirus cases, with thousands of deaths as of the same date.
The Australian government took the pandemic seriously from the beginning and, unlike in the United States, government officials listened to the advice of public health experts, Esterman told me. Esterman also said the vast majority of the public complied with social distancing and mask-wearing guidelines — again, unlike in the US, where masks are seen by some as an attack on individual liberty.
Australia first tackled the virus with a ban on travelers from high-risk areas in February. MacIntyre told me that most cases from the first outbreak were travelers returning to Australia. That, and Australia’s lack of land borders with other countries, made it easier to identify who was infected or at risk.
Australia’s borders were closed to non-citizens on March 19, and later that month public gathering places like movie theaters, bars, and schools were closed and social distancing rules were imposed. Testing has also been widely available — more than 2.6 million people of Australia’s population of 25 million have been tested as of last week.
The country’s biggest misstep, Esterman told me, was the docking of a cruise ship in March with infected passengers on board. Hundreds of cases could be traced back to the Ruby Princess cruise ship, where passengers that were clearly sick left the ship without being tested, dispersing around the country.
Reopening began in May, with the intent of safely reopening the economy fully by July.
In the US, the coronavirus is disproportionately impacting Black, Latinx, and Native American communities. But in Australia, although institutional racism against Indigenous populations in health care is pervasive, Esterman said there were not significant racial disparities in Covid-19 infection rates during the initial outbreak because not many people were infected in the first place.
“There were basically too few cases for there to be any differentiation,” Esterman said.
But the new Melbourne-area outbreak is largely affecting immigrant communities. This outbreak began because of failures at quarantine hotels, where people who fly into Australia must stay for two weeks under mandatory quarantine. The BBC reports that improperly trained private security forces are facing the blame, including allegations of rule-breaking — like sharing cigarette lighters and having sex with quarantined travelers.
From the hotels, the virus spread to low-income communities with large immigrant populations in Melbourne, Esterman told me. He said the government also didn’t spend enough time communicating with these non-English-speaking communities about the importance of mask-wearing and social distancing, leaving them vulnerable.
Victoria logged a record-high 288 new cases on Friday. That’s the state’s highest number since the 212 new cases reported on March 28, during the peak of the first outbreak. 3,379 cases have been reported in Victoria to date.
“These are unsustainably high numbers of new cases,” Victoria state premier Daniel Andrews told reporters on Tuesday. “It’s clear we are on the cusp of our second wave — and we cannot let this virus cut through our communities.”
Lockdowns are being reimposed to contain the new outbreaks
Now, metropolitan Melbourne residents are in a six-week lockdown, which began Wednesday, with limited exceptions for leaving home or traveling outside the metropolitan area.
The Victoria-New South Wales border was closed Tuesday for the first time in 101 years — the last closure was an attempt to contain the Spanish flu in 1919, which killed 15,000 Australians.
People who cross the border, which is guarded by New South Wales police and military personnel, will face large fines; 14-day permits are available for a few exceptions, and emergency service and law enforcement workers as well as people seeking medical care are free to cross.
People in the metropolitan Melbourne area aren’t eligible for permits except in extreme circumstances, the Guardian reported.
MacIntyre told me that the decision to close the border was made once daily new cases hit triple digits. Previously, affected suburbs and apartment buildings were locked down, but case numbers continued to rise, MacIntyre said.
The border closure is meant to prevent people from bringing Covid-19 from areas with a high number of cases into unaffected areas, Krutika Kuppalli, an infectious disease physician and emerging leader in biosecurity fellow at Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security, told me. Kuppalli compared the Australian border closure to stay-at-home orders and quarantine mandates in the US, which are also intended to limit travel.
More than 50,000 people crossed the border into New South Wales on Wednesday but were forced to wait for hours due to delays with the online permit system. One person has already been arrested for attempting to cross the border without a valid permit or exemption, the Guardian reported.
Esterman said the fact that people can get a permit and cross the border at all could be dangerous.
“If you live in Victoria and work in South Australia, they will let you through,” he said. “How is that helpful in trying to stop it from spreading from other states?”
Areas that controlled the spread of the virus will continue to see outbreaks
Australia’s new outbreak and the reimplementation of strict prevention measures show that areas that have limited the spread of the virus aren’t immune to spikes in Covid-19 cases once economies reopen and lockdown policies are lifted.
“I think there’s always going to be a risk of resurgence until there is a vaccine, and the decision of when to initially reopen the economy and initially reopen society can be guided by best practices and evidence,” Gregory Tasian, an associate professor of urology and epidemiology at the University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, told me.
South Korea also contained its virus outbreak well but then faced spikes in new cases, including one linked to nightclub reopenings. Officials declared in June that the greater Seoul area is facing a second wave.
Tasian said areas that meet criteria for reopening should effectively communicate universal masking and implement social-distancing guidelines in the workplace to decrease the overall transmission.
But the United States is in a completely different situation than countries like Australia and South Korea, which have both managed to flatten their country’s curve of Covid-19 cases, Tasian said. The Northeast, which was once the US’s epicenter, has been able to control the pandemic, but cases in the South and West are on the rise.
“The US never got out of the first wave,” MacIntyre told me. “So opening up is going to be extremely dangerous. It is guaranteed it’s going to result in another big surge of cases.”
Tasian said that to ideally manage the pandemic, the US should implement nationwide policies, like masking and social distancing, and policies targeted to areas seeing spikes in cases — but that widespread testing is necessary to know which areas are facing larger outbreaks.
Even if the US manages to slow the spread of the coronavirus nationwide — which doesn’t seem to be happening any time soon, as cases have just topped 3 million and a record-breaking nearly 60,000 cases were reported Thursday — it’s clear that we’ll be seeing outbreaks until we finally have a vaccine.


vox--2020-07-10--The past 24 hours in Trump legal issues and controversies, explained

A pair of Supreme Court decisions related to President Donald Trump ’ s financial records and a closed-door hearing featuring a fired US attorney were just the start of an eventful day for Trump ’ s legal problems Thursday .
In an opinion written by Chief Justice John Roberts , the Supreme Court ruled that a New York state grand jury does have the authority to investigate President Trump .
The Court also ruled that congressional subpoena power to investigate the president should be limited — but not eliminated out of hand , as Trump hoped .
But as for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ actually be turned over anytime soon , don ’ t hold your breath .
Both of these cases were sent back to lower courts for further proceedings , and Trump ’ s legal team has promised to challenge them further .
Meanwhile , Geoffrey Berman , who was the US attorney for the Southern District of New York until his firing last month , testified at a closed-door House Judiciary Committee hearing about his dismissal .
Berman had alluded to concern that his firing could be an effort to impede “ important investigations @ @ @ @ @ @ @ He didn ’ t specify which , but the office has probed many matters related to Trump .
In his testimony , Berman described how Attorney General Bill Barr first tried to offer him another Justice Department job .
When Berman said he wasn ’ t interested , Barr told him that he should resign , because “ getting fired ” wouldn ’ t be good for his “ resume or future job prospects.
“ There were also developments regarding Russia investigation loose ends .
The first was in the case of former @ @ @ @ @ @ @ who pleaded guilty to making false statements to the FBI as part of special counsel Robert Mueller ’ s Russia probe .
New appointees at the Justice Department have been trying to get the case against Flynn thrown out , but Judge Emmet Sullivan , who is overseeing the case , isn ’ t ready to do so just yet .
A panel of DC Circuit Court judges told him to do it anyway — but , on Thursday , Sullivan started the process of appealing that decision to the full DC Circuit @ @ @ @ @ @ @ development , Fox News reported that John Durham , the US attorney whom Barr appointed to investigate the Russia investigation itself , might not complete his findings before the election — which , if true , would disappoint Trump allies who hope his report will finally uncover evidence of a vast Obama conspiracy against Trump .
And last , former Trump lawyer Michael Cohen was taken into custody — again .
Here are the key takeaways from this swirl of news developments .
What the Supreme Court decisions mean for investigations into Trump @ @ @ @ @ @ @ opinions Thursday were in a sense victories for investigators trying to obtain President Trump ’ s financial records — but they may have been Pyrrhic ones .
“ The end result of both opinions concerning Trump ’ s financial records is that there will be additional litigation in both cases and no one will likely see the records before the election — if ever , ” George Washington University Law School professor Randall Eliason tweeted .
There are two sets of investigators we ’ re talking about here : state prosecutors from New @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Organization ’ s role in hush money payments to women alleging sexual encounters with Trump ; and congressional committees , which are investigating the same matter , as well as potential money laundering or foreign influence on the Trump Organization .
Both subpoenaed Trump ’ s accounting firm or banks for his financial records ( though only New York state prosecutors demanded Trump ’ s tax returns as well ) .
In response , Trump ’ s lawyers argued that a sitting president should be immune from both requests .
The Supreme Court @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Regarding the New York state prosecutors ’ requests , the Court held that the president does not get special exemption from state criminal investigations .
“ Two hundred years ago , a great jurist of our Court established that no citizen , not even the President , is categorically above the common duty to produce evidence when called upon in a criminal proceeding , ” Roberts wrote .
“ We reaffirm that principle today.
” Practically , however , the Court did not call for the subpoenaed documents to be handed over @ @ @ @ @ @ @ down to the district court for further action .
Barbara McQuade , a former US attorney and a professor at Michigan Law School , suggested that Trump will likely “ raise further arguments ” and continue “ the stall tactics.
” When I asked Eliason what might happen next , he pointed me toward language at the end of the opinion stressing that , like any other citizen , the president can still challenge subpoenas “ on any grounds permitted by state law , which usually include bad faith and undue burden or @ @ @ @ @ @ @ it “ as an attempt to influence the performance of his official duties ” or that compliance “ would impede his constitutional duties.
” So Trump still has options here .
Regarding the congressional subpoenas , the Court ’ s decision was more mixed .
It denied Trump ’ s claim of total presidential immunity , but the justices also determined that some congressional subpoenas really can present separation-of-powers concerns .
So the justices set out a new test for lower courts to use , to review congressional subpoenas to make sure they @ @ @ @ @ @ @ This means the committees ’ subpoenas will go back to the lower courts to face new arguments based on this new standard .
That wouldn ’ t seem devastating , except for one thing : the clock .
New arguments mean there will likely be further appeals from Trump ’ s team , and the continuation of a lengthy judicial process .
The issue isn ’ t just that this will go past this fall ’ s election — it ’ s that the House subpoenas will expire at the end of each @ @ @ @ @ @ @ early January 2021 ) .
As University of Texas School of Law professor Steve Vladeck points out , unless some sort of “ fast track ” process is created to move this wrangling more quickly through the court system , it will be easy for presidents to use the legal process to delay and eventually escape such subpoenas .
Overall , Trump lawyer Jay Sekulow is taking the glass-half-full approach .
“ We are pleased that in the decisions issued today , the Supreme Court has temporarily blocked both Congress and New York @ @ @ @ @ @ @ financial records , ” Sekulow said in an emailed statement to reporters .
“ We will now proceed to raise additional Constitutional and legal issues in the lower courts.
” Shortly after the Supreme Court issued those final opinions of the term , Geoffrey Berman , the fired US attorney for the Southern District of New York , went in to give closed-door testimony to the House Judiciary Committee .
Berman was Trump ’ s pick to head the highest-profile US attorney ’ s office in the country , the office that oversaw @ @ @ @ @ @ @ though Berman recused himself from that ) and into Rudy Giuliani ’ s associates Lev Parnas and Igor Fruman .
His sudden and controversial firing last month appeared to many to be an attempt by Attorney General Bill Barr to take greater control of that office , as the election loomed .
In Berman ’ s opening statement ( later posted by Politico ) , he detailed the conversations he had with Barr just before his dismissal last month .
Overall , Berman described how Barr used both carrots ( offers of other @ @ @ @ @ @ @ being fired would hurt his career prospects ) to try to get him to resign his post , while giving inconsistent or unclear explanations about why he was doing so .
For instance , Barr insisted to Berman that the only reason he was being asked to leave was because the administration wanted Jay Clayton , chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission , to have the US attorney job .
But there ’ s a catch here — Clayton needs to be confirmed by the Senate .
And Barr was making very @ @ @ @ @ @ @ happened .
Berman smelled a rat : “ I asked the Attorney General why I was being asked to resign prior to a nominee being confirmed , ” he said .
Barr ’ s answer , according to Berman , was basically a dodge : Per Berman , Barr said that “ the Administration wanted to get Clayton into that position.
” But the true aim appeared to be to get Berman out , and quickly .
Barr offered Berman a new job as the head of the Justice Department ’ s Civil @ @ @ @ @ @ @ post would purportedly be for Berman ’ s career once he left government .
“ He said that I should want to create a book of business once I returned to the private sector , which that role would help achieve , ” Berman said .
“ He also stated that I would just have to sit there for five months and see who won the election before deciding what came next for me.
” “ I told the Attorney General that there were important investigations in the Office that I wanted to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ continued , making clear that he was not intending to resign .
So Barr took a more threatening tack .
“ The Attorney General said that if I did not resign from my position I would be fired .
He added that getting fired from my job would not be good for my resume or future job prospects.
” What really alarmed Berman was that Barr seemingly intended to force him out quickly and , while Clayton was awaiting confirmation , replace him with someone outside the ordinary line of succession .
And @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Justice Department issued a press release claiming that Berman was “ stepping down , ” and would be temporarily replaced by Craig Carpenito , the US attorney for New Jersey , until Clayton could be confirmed .
Berman then issued a defiant public statement claiming he would not step down .
And the next day , Barr fired him .
Berman explains , however , that Barr made “ a critical concession ” — that Berman ’ s deputy , Audrey Strauss , would succeed him .
“ With that concession , and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the important work of the Office , I decided to step down and not litigate my removal , ” Berman explained .
It remains unclear whether Barr wanted Berman out merely because of a general sense of his political unreliability , or because of specific pending cases .
But overall , Berman ’ s account of events makes the whole situation look shady and strange .
Michael Flynn ’ s case isn ’ t being thrown out just yet Back in December 2017 , Flynn pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI about @ @ @ @ @ @ @ — specifically , he said he hadn ’ t discussed US sanctions on Russia with Kislyak , but evidence showed he had .
( The scandal around this topic , which leaked out publicly long before Flynn was charged , led to his resignation as national security adviser . )
Flynn reiterated his guilty plea at his initial sentencing hearing in December 2018 .
But when Judge Emmet Sullivan harshly criticized him and seemed ready to give him prison time , Flynn said he wanted to delay his sentencing until his cooperation in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ agreed .
Instead , though , Flynn ’ s cooperation fell apart ; he switched his legal team and began making legal filings aimed at challenging his case .
Flynn ’ s allies have long argued that he was railroaded , and eventually , Barr appointed a US attorney to review his case .
Then in May 2020 , before Flynn could be sentenced again , the Justice Department announced that it would withdraw Flynn ’ s prosecution — even though he had already pleaded guilty .
Judge Sullivan , worried about political @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , essentially said , “ Not so fast.
” The judge hired his own lawyers to review whether he was in fact obligated to throw out the case .
Flynn ’ s team appealed to the DC Circuit asking for the case to be immediately dismissed , and a three-judge panel ( with two Republican appointees ) ruled that Sullivan had to throw it out .
On Thursday , Sullivan filed his own appeal , to the full DC Circuit Court of Appeals .
Emphasizing that he hadn ’ t even ruled on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that he hoped to hear arguments from both sides , Sullivan asked the court to let him do so .
So Flynn ’ s years-long legal saga will continue at least a little longer .
Fox News hears that John Durham might not finish before the election Meanwhile , there was an intriguing report in Fox News about other goings-on at Trump ’ s Justice Department — namely , that prosecutor John Durham , whom conservatives hope will vindicate President Trump ’ s claims that the Russia investigation was a “ witch hunt @ @ @ @ @ @ @ his work until after the election .
Last year Barr tasked Durham , the US attorney for Connecticut , with investigating the origins of the Russia investigation , and whether there was some sort of political bias at play against Trump .
In public statements , Barr has frequently implied that Durham has unearthed “ troubling ” information , and teased the timeline of when Durham might reveal his findings .
Conservatives have long been abuzz with speculation about what Durham might have found ( just as liberals once were about the Mueller @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ t seen any of the results of Durham ’ s work so far , and exactly what he has focused on remains somewhat mysterious .
On Monday , Sen. Chuck Grassley ( R-IA ) expressed some concern that Durham was taking too long .
“ IF NO PROSECUTIONS TIL AFTER ELECTIONS SAD SAD , ” Grassley tweeted , adding that “ Durham [ should ] be producing some fruit of his labor.
” Grassley not only seemed to be demanding Durham prosecute some unnamed people , he was apparently also demanding the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Then on Thursday , Fox News ’ s Brooke Singman reported , citing two anonymous sources “ familiar ” with the investigation , that Durham was “ under pressure ” to wrap up the investigation by the end of summer .
( Barr has publicly said that he expects there will be “ developments ” in Durham ’ s probe “ before the end of the summer.
” ) But , Singman wrote , there are a few problems .
First is that “ several lines of investigation are not yet complete @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Durham thinks “ it ’ s critical to do them.
” That source also told Singman that Durham “ does not want this to look political ” and could “ punt it to after the election.
” For now , then , whatever Durham ’ s up to will remain a mystery .
Michael Cohen was taken back into custody Finally , former Trump lawyer Michael Cohen made it back into the news Thursday , when he was taken into custody — again .
In 2018 , Cohen pleaded guilty to campaign finance @ @ @ @ @ @ @ made to women who ’ d alleged having sexual encounters with Trump , and to other financial crimes .
He was sentenced to three years in prison and began serving that sentence — until , on May 21 , he was released on furlough due to concerns about Covid-19 ( as other inmates have been ) .
According to an emailed statement sent to reporters by the Bureau of Prisons , Cohen ’ s furlough release was temporary , pending his “ placement on home confinement.
” However , Cohen “ refused the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a result , has been returned to a BOP facility.
” The New York Times reported that Cohen “ had refused to sign papers agreeing to certain conditions related to media appearances and writing books ” while under that home confinement .
Mother Jones obtained the order from the Bureau of Prisons that Cohen ’ s lawyers say he ’ d refused to sign .
In it , Cohen is told he should have “ no engagement of any kind with the media , including print , tv , film , books , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and “ no posting on social media.
” The reason , per the order , was “ to avoid glamorizing or bringing publicity to your status as a sentenced inmate serving a custodial term in the community.
” Notably , Cohen had recently been posting on social media and revealed he was working on a book : So this could be an attempt to either silence a Trump critic from writing a negative book — or prevent a convicted criminal from cashing in and drumming up press before he ’ s even finished @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , we aim to answer your most important questions and provide you , and our audience around the world , with information that has the power to save lives .
Our mission has never been more vital than it is in this moment : to empower you through understanding .
Vox ’ s work is reaching more people than ever , but our distinctive brand of explanatory journalism takes resources — particularly during a pandemic and an economic downturn .
Your financial contribution will not constitute a donation , but it will enable @ @ @ @ @ @ @ articles , videos , and podcasts at the quality and volume that this moment requires .
Please consider making a contribution to Vox today .

A pair of Supreme Court decisions related to President Donald Trump’s financial records and a closed-door hearing featuring a fired US attorney were just the start of an eventful day for Trump’s legal problems Thursday.
In an opinion written by Chief Justice John Roberts, the Supreme Court ruled that a New York state grand jury does have the authority to investigate President Trump. The Court also ruled that congressional subpoena power to investigate the president should be limited — but not eliminated out of hand, as Trump hoped.
But as for whether Trump’s financial records will actually be turned over anytime soon, don’t hold your breath. Both of these cases were sent back to lower courts for further proceedings, and Trump’s legal team has promised to challenge them further.
Meanwhile, Geoffrey Berman, who was the US attorney for the Southern District of New York until his firing last month, testified at a closed-door House Judiciary Committee hearing about his dismissal. Berman had alluded to concern that his firing could be an effort to impede “important investigations” taking place in the office. He didn’t specify which, but the office has probed many matters related to Trump.
In his testimony, Berman described how Attorney General Bill Barr first tried to offer him another Justice Department job. When Berman said he wasn’t interested, Barr told him that he should resign, because “getting fired” wouldn’t be good for his “resume or future job prospects.“
There were also developments regarding Russia investigation loose ends. The first was in the case of former Trump National Security Adviser Michael Flynn, who pleaded guilty to making false statements to the FBI as part of special counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia probe. New appointees at the Justice Department have been trying to get the case against Flynn thrown out, but Judge Emmet Sullivan, who is overseeing the case, isn’t ready to do so just yet. A panel of DC Circuit Court judges told him to do it anyway — but, on Thursday, Sullivan started the process of appealing that decision to the full DC Circuit Court of Appeals.
In the second development, Fox News reported that John Durham, the US attorney whom Barr appointed to investigate the Russia investigation itself, might not complete his findings before the election — which, if true, would disappoint Trump allies who hope his report will finally uncover evidence of a vast Obama conspiracy against Trump.
And last, former Trump lawyer Michael Cohen was taken into custody — again. Here are the key takeaways from this swirl of news developments.
What the Supreme Court decisions mean for investigations into Trump
Chief Justice John Roberts’s two opinions Thursday were in a sense victories for investigators trying to obtain President Trump’s financial records — but they may have been Pyrrhic ones.
“The end result of both opinions concerning Trump’s financial records is that there will be additional litigation in both cases and no one will likely see the records before the election — if ever,” George Washington University Law School professor Randall Eliason tweeted.
There are two sets of investigators we’re talking about here: state prosecutors from New York, who are investigating the Trump Organization’s role in hush money payments to women alleging sexual encounters with Trump; and congressional committees, which are investigating the same matter, as well as potential money laundering or foreign influence on the Trump Organization.
Both subpoenaed Trump’s accounting firm or banks for his financial records (though only New York state prosecutors demanded Trump’s tax returns as well). In response, Trump’s lawyers argued that a sitting president should be immune from both requests.
The Supreme Court denied those broad claims of presidential immunity. Regarding the New York state prosecutors’ requests, the Court held that the president does not get special exemption from state criminal investigations.
“Two hundred years ago, a great jurist of our Court established that no citizen, not even the President, is categorically above the common duty to produce evidence when called upon in a criminal proceeding,” Roberts wrote. “We reaffirm that principle today.”
Practically, however, the Court did not call for the subpoenaed documents to be handed over, but instead sent the matter back down to the district court for further action. Barbara McQuade, a former US attorney and a professor at Michigan Law School, suggested that Trump will likely “raise further arguments” and continue “the stall tactics.”
When I asked Eliason what might happen next, he pointed me toward language at the end of the opinion stressing that, like any other citizen, the president can still challenge subpoenas “on any grounds permitted by state law, which usually include bad faith and undue burden or breadth,” or he could challenge it “as an attempt to influence the performance of his official duties” or that compliance “would impede his constitutional duties.” So Trump still has options here.
Regarding the congressional subpoenas, the Court’s decision was more mixed. It denied Trump’s claim of total presidential immunity, but the justices also determined that some congressional subpoenas really can present separation-of-powers concerns. So the justices set out a new test for lower courts to use, to review congressional subpoenas to make sure they appropriately respect the separation of powers.
This means the committees’ subpoenas will go back to the lower courts to face new arguments based on this new standard. That wouldn’t seem devastating, except for one thing: the clock.
New arguments mean there will likely be further appeals from Trump’s team, and the continuation of a lengthy judicial process. The issue isn’t just that this will go past this fall’s election — it’s that the House subpoenas will expire at the end of each Congress (in this case, in early January 2021).
As University of Texas School of Law professor Steve Vladeck points out, unless some sort of “fast track” process is created to move this wrangling more quickly through the court system, it will be easy for presidents to use the legal process to delay and eventually escape such subpoenas.
Overall, Trump lawyer Jay Sekulow is taking the glass-half-full approach. “We are pleased that in the decisions issued today, the Supreme Court has temporarily blocked both Congress and New York prosecutors from obtaining the President’s financial records,” Sekulow said in an emailed statement to reporters. “We will now proceed to raise additional Constitutional and legal issues in the lower courts.”
Fired US Attorney Geoffrey Berman testified about Bill Barr
Shortly after the Supreme Court issued those final opinions of the term, Geoffrey Berman, the fired US attorney for the Southern District of New York, went in to give closed-door testimony to the House Judiciary Committee.
Berman was Trump’s pick to head the highest-profile US attorney’s office in the country, the office that oversaw investigations into Trump lawyer Michael Cohen (though Berman recused himself from that) and into Rudy Giuliani’s associates Lev Parnas and Igor Fruman. His sudden and controversial firing last month appeared to many to be an attempt by Attorney General Bill Barr to take greater control of that office, as the election loomed.
In Berman’s opening statement (later posted by Politico), he detailed the conversations he had with Barr just before his dismissal last month. Overall, Berman described how Barr used both carrots (offers of other jobs) and sticks (threats that being fired would hurt his career prospects) to try to get him to resign his post, while giving inconsistent or unclear explanations about why he was doing so.
For instance, Barr insisted to Berman that the only reason he was being asked to leave was because the administration wanted Jay Clayton, chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission, to have the US attorney job. But there’s a catch here — Clayton needs to be confirmed by the Senate. And Barr was making very clear he wanted Berman gone before that happened.
Berman smelled a rat: “I asked the Attorney General why I was being asked to resign prior to a nominee being confirmed,” he said. Barr’s answer, according to Berman, was basically a dodge: Per Berman, Barr said that “the Administration wanted to get Clayton into that position.” But the true aim appeared to be to get Berman out, and quickly.
Barr offered Berman a new job as the head of the Justice Department’s Civil Division, and emphasized how good that post would purportedly be for Berman’s career once he left government. “He said that I should want to create a book of business once I returned to the private sector, which that role would help achieve,” Berman said. “He also stated that I would just have to sit there for five months and see who won the election before deciding what came next for me.”
“I told the Attorney General that there were important investigations in the Office that I wanted to see through to completion,” Berman continued, making clear that he was not intending to resign. So Barr took a more threatening tack. “The Attorney General said that if I did not resign from my position I would be fired. He added that getting fired from my job would not be good for my resume or future job prospects.”
What really alarmed Berman was that Barr seemingly intended to force him out quickly and, while Clayton was awaiting confirmation, replace him with someone outside the ordinary line of succession. And indeed, later that night, the Justice Department issued a press release claiming that Berman was “stepping down,” and would be temporarily replaced by Craig Carpenito, the US attorney for New Jersey, until Clayton could be confirmed.
Berman then issued a defiant public statement claiming he would not step down. And the next day, Barr fired him. Berman explains, however, that Barr made “a critical concession” — that Berman’s deputy, Audrey Strauss, would succeed him. “With that concession, and having full confidence that Audrey would continue the important work of the Office, I decided to step down and not litigate my removal,” Berman explained.
It remains unclear whether Barr wanted Berman out merely because of a general sense of his political unreliability, or because of specific pending cases. But overall, Berman’s account of events makes the whole situation look shady and strange.
Michael Flynn’s case isn’t being thrown out just yet
Back in December 2017, Flynn pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI about his contacts with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak — specifically, he said he hadn’t discussed US sanctions on Russia with Kislyak, but evidence showed he had. (The scandal around this topic, which leaked out publicly long before Flynn was charged, led to his resignation as national security adviser.)
Flynn reiterated his guilty plea at his initial sentencing hearing in December 2018. But when Judge Emmet Sullivan harshly criticized him and seemed ready to give him prison time, Flynn said he wanted to delay his sentencing until his cooperation in another trial was complete, and Sullivan agreed.
Instead, though, Flynn’s cooperation fell apart; he switched his legal team and began making legal filings aimed at challenging his case.
Flynn’s allies have long argued that he was railroaded, and eventually, Barr appointed a US attorney to review his case. Then in May 2020, before Flynn could be sentenced again, the Justice Department announced that it would withdraw Flynn’s prosecution — even though he had already pleaded guilty.
Judge Sullivan, worried about political influence at Barr’s Justice Department, essentially said, “Not so fast.” The judge hired his own lawyers to review whether he was in fact obligated to throw out the case. Flynn’s team appealed to the DC Circuit asking for the case to be immediately dismissed, and a three-judge panel (with two Republican appointees) ruled that Sullivan had to throw it out.
On Thursday, Sullivan filed his own appeal, to the full DC Circuit Court of Appeals. Emphasizing that he hadn’t even ruled on the prosecution’s dismissal yet and that he hoped to hear arguments from both sides, Sullivan asked the court to let him do so.
So Flynn’s years-long legal saga will continue at least a little longer.
Fox News hears that John Durham might not finish before the election
Meanwhile, there was an intriguing report in Fox News about other goings-on at Trump’s Justice Department — namely, that prosecutor John Durham, whom conservatives hope will vindicate President Trump’s claims that the Russia investigation was a “witch hunt” against him, might not finish his work until after the election.
Last year Barr tasked Durham, the US attorney for Connecticut, with investigating the origins of the Russia investigation, and whether there was some sort of political bias at play against Trump. In public statements, Barr has frequently implied that Durham has unearthed “troubling” information, and teased the timeline of when Durham might reveal his findings.
Conservatives have long been abuzz with speculation about what Durham might have found (just as liberals once were about the Mueller investigation). However, we haven’t seen any of the results of Durham’s work so far, and exactly what he has focused on remains somewhat mysterious.
On Monday, Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) expressed some concern that Durham was taking too long. “IF NO PROSECUTIONS TIL AFTER ELECTIONS SAD SAD,” Grassley tweeted, adding that “Durham [should] be producing some fruit of his labor.” Grassley not only seemed to be demanding Durham prosecute some unnamed people, he was apparently also demanding the timing be tailored to the political calendar.
Then on Thursday, Fox News’s Brooke Singman reported, citing two anonymous sources “familiar” with the investigation, that Durham was “under pressure” to wrap up the investigation by the end of summer. (Barr has publicly said that he expects there will be “developments” in Durham’s probe “before the end of the summer.”)
But, Singman wrote, there are a few problems. First is that “several lines of investigation are not yet complete” and, per one source, Durham thinks “it’s critical to do them.” That source also told Singman that Durham “does not want this to look political” and could “punt it to after the election.”
For now, then, whatever Durham’s up to will remain a mystery.
Michael Cohen was taken back into custody
Finally, former Trump lawyer Michael Cohen made it back into the news Thursday, when he was taken into custody — again.
In 2018, Cohen pleaded guilty to campaign finance violations related to hush money payments he made to women who’d alleged having sexual encounters with Trump, and to other financial crimes. He was sentenced to three years in prison and began serving that sentence — until, on May 21, he was released on furlough due to concerns about Covid-19 (as other inmates have been).
According to an emailed statement sent to reporters by the Bureau of Prisons, Cohen’s furlough release was temporary, pending his “placement on home confinement.” However, Cohen “refused the conditions of his home confinement and as a result, has been returned to a BOP facility.”
The New York Times reported that Cohen “had refused to sign papers agreeing to certain conditions related to media appearances and writing books” while under that home confinement.
Mother Jones obtained the order from the Bureau of Prisons that Cohen’s lawyers say he’d refused to sign. In it, Cohen is told he should have “no engagement of any kind with the media, including print, tv, film, books, or any other form of media/news” and “no posting on social media.” The reason, per the order, was “to avoid glamorizing or bringing publicity to your status as a sentenced inmate serving a custodial term in the community.”
Notably, Cohen had recently been posting on social media and revealed he was working on a book:
Favorable ruling yesterday by the Court as I am close to completion of my book...https://t.co/lprtpkdl7K — Michael Cohen (@MichaelCohen212) July 2, 2020
So this could be an attempt to either silence a Trump critic from writing a negative book — or prevent a convicted criminal from cashing in and drumming up press before he’s even finished his sentence.


vox--2020-07-10--This week’s movie releases are astoundingly good

Theaters are mostly closed .
Blockbusters are delayed .
Drive-ins are having a moment .
And with the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic still a clear threat to Americans , streaming is the main way many people are seeing films .
But there are still new movies coming out — and the latest crop is particularly brilliant .
Seven great films are premiering this week ( one of which had an all-too-brief run before theaters closed in March ) .
There ’ s an engrossing action movie starring Charlize Theron and an engrossing war movie starring ( and written by ! )
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ almost too on-the-nose comedy about being stuck in a time loop .
Emily Mortimer watches her mother decay in a terrifying horror film .
A documentary ( of sorts ) celebrates dive bars and the end of the world .
A cow arrives in a frontier town .
And one of the most beloved figures in Latin culture gets his due .
Among them , there ’ s something to suit most tastes .
( But if none of them pique your interest , you can always check out one of the 28 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ . )
In the extraordinary Bloody Nose , Empty Pockets , documentarians and brothers Bill and Turner Ross chronicle the last night of service at a Las Vegas dive bar called Roaring ’ 20s — as regulars come and go , fight and kiss , and try to face the fact that the place that felt most like it was theirs will no longer exist .
For them , it ’ s the end of the world .
But there ’ s a catch : The Ross brothers used a real bar in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ people to play characters much like themselves .
Is the movie fiction ?
Yes , technically .
Is it nonfiction ?
Not exactly .
Is it “ real ” ?
Absolutely .
Bloody Nose , Empty Pockets reminds us that we ’ re constantly reinventing and performing ourselves , even in our most comfortable , cherished settings — and cinema does , too .
How to watch it : Bloody Nose , Empty Pockets is in virtual theatrical release .
A list of participating theaters is available on the film ’ s website @ @ @ @ @ @ @ rental link , and profits help support the independent theater you select on the page . )
Kelly Reichardt ’ s First Cow is set in a 19th-century frontier settlement of tiny houses somewhere in Oregon , near the Columbia River , populated by people who are trying to scratch out a living in the New World , as well as the First Nations people who ’ ve been living there for generations .
Into that settlement , a cow arrives , setting off a chain of events that are both momentous and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ much more than just that .
First Cow is also a gentle ( and gently devastating ) tale about male friendship , about finding someone to share your aspirations and dreams with , and , most deliciously , about cooking .
It ’ s also about the kinds of constructed hierarchies — based on factors like race , class , money , and firepower — that seem to be imposed on the world wherever new civilizations pop up .
How to watch it : After a brief theatrical run in March before theaters @ @ @ @ @ @ @ digitally purchase on platforms including iTunes , Amazon , Google Play , Vudu , and on-demand providers .
( It will be available to rent on July 21 . )
First Cow is also playing in select “ virtual theatrical ” release .
See the film ’ s website for full details .
Tom Hanks both wrote and stars in Greyhound , an old-fashioned nail-biter about heroism inspired by actual events ( not unfamiliar territory for Hanks ) .
He plays Captain Ernest Krause , who is tasked with leading an international convoy @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Great Britain during World War II .
Those ships are vulnerable to German U-boats in an area of the Atlantic called the “ Black Pit , ” and along the way , they run into trouble .
Krause is a man of faith and quiet valor , and most of Greyhound is spent watching him peer out at the dark waters and give authoritative orders to his trusting men .
It ’ s a simple and straightforward movie — rather than relying on thrills and scares , Greyhound is interested in the intricate @ @ @ @ @ @ @ — but if that ’ s what you ’ re in the mood for , it ’ s thoroughly satisfying .
How to watch it : Greyhound is streaming for Apple TV+ subscribers .
The Puerto Rican psychic and astrologer Walter Mercado , who passed away last November , was more than just a familiar TV personality .
For decades , millions of Latinx viewers looked to his flamboyant personality , warm televised horoscopes , and pioneering gender nonconforming persona as a beloved anchor point for life .
He was both a guide @ @ @ @ @ @ @ he disappeared from the public eye in 2007 , and despite becoming a touchpoint and even a meme for younger people , many wondered where he ’ d gone .
In Mucho Mucho Amor : The Legend of Walter Mercado , documentarians Cristina Costantini and Kareem Tabsch let Mercado tell his own story through extensive interviews conducted in his own home , as well as discussions with people who loved him ( including performers like Eugenio Derbez and Lin-Manuel Miranda ) .
The film is a fond farewell to Mercado and a celebration @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for Mercado newbies and those who grew up at his proverbial knee .
How to watch it : Mucho Mucho Amor : The Legend of Walter Mercado is streaming on Netflix .
Seemingly custom-made to scratch the summer action movie itch , The Old Guard is a globetrotting thriller with a compelling story at its core .
It centers on a small group of people — Andy ( Charlize Theron ) , Booker ( Matthias Schoenaerts ) , Joe ( Marwan Kenzari ) , and Nicky ( Luca Marinelli ) — who form @ @ @ @ @ @ @ elite assassins and carry out highly secretive missions .
But then the movie goes sideways , and that ’ s when it gets interesting .
Director Gina Prince-Bythewood , working from a screenplay by Greg Rucka ( based on his own comic book series ) , deftly handles shoot-em-up set pieces with a skill too rarely seen in action movies .
And The Old Guard asks some existential questions that leave the audience wanting more .
If Netflix is trying to develop an action franchise ( and it seems as if it might @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a promising start .
How to watch it : The Old Guard is streaming on Netflix .
When Palm Springs premiered at Sundance in January , it was impossible to realize we ’ d be trapped in its premise by the time it came out in July .
Nyles ( Andy Samberg ) is at a wedding with his girlfriend , whom he doesn ’ t like very much .
After a strange occurrence , he wakes up to realize that today is ... yesterday .
And it happens again , and again @ @ @ @ @ @ @ repeat day until he meets fellow wedding guest Sarah ( Cristin Milioti ) .
The same-day-over-again concept seems ripped from Groundhog Day or Russian Doll , but Palm Springs takes it in a different direction , exploring the routes we try to take out of existential despair and the struggle of living through it all .
Sound familiar ?
How to watch it : Palm Springs is streaming on Hulu and playing at select drive-in theaters .
Relationships between mothers and daughters provide rich fodder for horror films .
So does the fear @ @ @ @ @ @ @ parents .
Relic dives into those familiar waters with a creepy , taut story about Kay ( Emily Mortimer ) and her daughter Sam ( Bella Heathcote ) , who go to Kay ’ s mother ’ s house when they get a call that she ’ s missing .
Edna ( Robyn Nevin ) eventually turns up , though it ’ s clear her dementia is beginning to advance .
Edna starts to do things that can ’ t be easily explained by her dementia , and she ’ s not alone @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s house itself seems to be haunted by something that nobody can quite figure out , and relationships between the three women become ever more strained .
Relic is a slow movie , and a quiet one ; director Natalie Erika James is in no hurry to explain to us what ’ s happening .
But that ’ s what makes it so effective , so chilling , and so unsettling in the end .
How to watch it : Relic is playing in select theaters and drive-ins , and available to digitally @ @ @ @ @ @ @ iTunes and Amazon .
See the film ’ s website for details .
Every day at Vox , we aim to answer your most important questions and provide you , and our audience around the world , with information that has the power to save lives .
Our mission has never been more vital than it is in this moment : to empower you through understanding .
Vox ’ s work is reaching more people than ever , but our distinctive brand of explanatory journalism takes resources — particularly during a pandemic and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ will not constitute a donation , but it will enable our staff to continue to offer free articles , videos , and podcasts at the quality and volume that this moment requires .
Please consider making a contribution to Vox today .

Theaters are mostly closed. Blockbusters are delayed. Drive-ins are having a moment. And with the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic still a clear threat to Americans, streaming is the main way many people are seeing films.
But there are still new movies coming out — and the latest crop is particularly brilliant. Seven great films are premiering this week (one of which had an all-too-brief run before theaters closed in March). There’s an engrossing action movie starring Charlize Theron and an engrossing war movie starring (and written by!) Tom Hanks. Andy Samberg leads an almost too on-the-nose comedy about being stuck in a time loop. Emily Mortimer watches her mother decay in a terrifying horror film. A documentary (of sorts) celebrates dive bars and the end of the world. A cow arrives in a frontier town. And one of the most beloved figures in Latin culture gets his due.
Among them, there’s something to suit most tastes. (But if none of them pique your interest, you can always check out one of the 28 best films from this year so far.)
Bloody Nose, Empty Pockets
In the extraordinary Bloody Nose, Empty Pockets, documentarians and brothers Bill and Turner Ross chronicle the last night of service at a Las Vegas dive bar called Roaring ’20s — as regulars come and go, fight and kiss, and try to face the fact that the place that felt most like it was theirs will no longer exist. For them, it’s the end of the world.
But there’s a catch: The Ross brothers used a real bar in New Orleans as a set and asked people to play characters much like themselves. Is the movie fiction? Yes, technically. Is it nonfiction? Not exactly. Is it “real”? Absolutely. Bloody Nose, Empty Pockets reminds us that we’re constantly reinventing and performing ourselves, even in our most comfortable, cherished settings — and cinema does, too.
How to watch it: Bloody Nose, Empty Pockets is in virtual theatrical release. A list of participating theaters is available on the film’s website. (You’ll receive a rental link, and profits help support the independent theater you select on the page.)
First Cow
Kelly Reichardt’s First Cow is set in a 19th-century frontier settlement of tiny houses somewhere in Oregon, near the Columbia River, populated by people who are trying to scratch out a living in the New World, as well as the First Nations people who’ve been living there for generations. Into that settlement, a cow arrives, setting off a chain of events that are both momentous and small. But the film is about much more than just that.
First Cow is also a gentle (and gently devastating) tale about male friendship, about finding someone to share your aspirations and dreams with, and, most deliciously, about cooking. It’s also about the kinds of constructed hierarchies — based on factors like race, class, money, and firepower — that seem to be imposed on the world wherever new civilizations pop up.
How to watch it: After a brief theatrical run in March before theaters closed, First Cow is available to digitally purchase on platforms including iTunes, Amazon, Google Play, Vudu, and on-demand providers. (It will be available to rent on July 21.) First Cow is also playing in select “virtual theatrical” release. See the film’s website for full details.
Greyhound
Tom Hanks both wrote and stars in Greyhound, an old-fashioned nail-biter about heroism inspired by actual events (not unfamiliar territory for Hanks). He plays Captain Ernest Krause, who is tasked with leading an international convoy of ships carrying troops and supplies to Great Britain during World War II. Those ships are vulnerable to German U-boats in an area of the Atlantic called the “Black Pit,” and along the way, they run into trouble.
Krause is a man of faith and quiet valor, and most of Greyhound is spent watching him peer out at the dark waters and give authoritative orders to his trusting men. It’s a simple and straightforward movie — rather than relying on thrills and scares, Greyhound is interested in the intricate work of fighting on the high seas — but if that’s what you’re in the mood for, it’s thoroughly satisfying.
How to watch it: Greyhound is streaming for Apple TV+ subscribers.
Mucho Mucho Amor: The Legend of Walter Mercado
The Puerto Rican psychic and astrologer Walter Mercado, who passed away last November, was more than just a familiar TV personality. For decades, millions of Latinx viewers looked to his flamboyant personality, warm televised horoscopes, and pioneering gender nonconforming persona as a beloved anchor point for life. He was both a guide and a kind of friend. But he disappeared from the public eye in 2007, and despite becoming a touchpoint and even a meme for younger people, many wondered where he’d gone.
In Mucho Mucho Amor: The Legend of Walter Mercado, documentarians Cristina Costantini and Kareem Tabsch let Mercado tell his own story through extensive interviews conducted in his own home, as well as discussions with people who loved him (including performers like Eugenio Derbez and Lin-Manuel Miranda). The film is a fond farewell to Mercado and a celebration of his life, and enlightening both for Mercado newbies and those who grew up at his proverbial knee.
How to watch it: Mucho Mucho Amor: The Legend of Walter Mercado is streaming on Netflix.
The Old Guard
Seemingly custom-made to scratch the summer action movie itch, The Old Guard is a globetrotting thriller with a compelling story at its core. It centers on a small group of people — Andy (Charlize Theron), Booker (Matthias Schoenaerts), Joe (Marwan Kenzari), and Nicky (Luca Marinelli) — who form what seems to be a band of elite assassins and carry out highly secretive missions. But then the movie goes sideways, and that’s when it gets interesting.
Director Gina Prince-Bythewood, working from a screenplay by Greg Rucka (based on his own comic book series), deftly handles shoot-em-up set pieces with a skill too rarely seen in action movies. And The Old Guard asks some existential questions that leave the audience wanting more. If Netflix is trying to develop an action franchise (and it seems as if it might be), The Old Guard is a promising start.
How to watch it: The Old Guard is streaming on Netflix.
Palm Springs
When Palm Springs premiered at Sundance in January, it was impossible to realize we’d be trapped in its premise by the time it came out in July. Nyles (Andy Samberg) is at a wedding with his girlfriend, whom he doesn’t like very much. After a strange occurrence, he wakes up to realize that today is ... yesterday. And it happens again, and again, and again — an unendingly bleak repeat day until he meets fellow wedding guest Sarah (Cristin Milioti). The same-day-over-again concept seems ripped from Groundhog Day or Russian Doll, but Palm Springs takes it in a different direction, exploring the routes we try to take out of existential despair and the struggle of living through it all. Sound familiar?
How to watch it: Palm Springs is streaming on Hulu and playing at select drive-in theaters.
Relic
Relationships between mothers and daughters provide rich fodder for horror films. So does the fear of what you might inherit from your parents. Relic dives into those familiar waters with a creepy, taut story about Kay (Emily Mortimer) and her daughter Sam (Bella Heathcote), who go to Kay’s mother’s house when they get a call that she’s missing. Edna (Robyn Nevin) eventually turns up, though it’s clear her dementia is beginning to advance.
Edna starts to do things that can’t be easily explained by her dementia, and she’s not alone in her odd behavior; Edna’s house itself seems to be haunted by something that nobody can quite figure out, and relationships between the three women become ever more strained. Relic is a slow movie, and a quiet one; director Natalie Erika James is in no hurry to explain to us what’s happening. But that’s what makes it so effective, so chilling, and so unsettling in the end.
How to watch it: Relic is playing in select theaters and drive-ins, and available to digitally rent or purchase on digital platforms including iTunes and Amazon. See the film’s website for details.


vox--2020-07-10--Lonely Island’s Palm Springs is a funny existential comedy about two dirtbags who find each other

Nyles ( Andy Samberg ) is a nihilistic dirtbag stuck in Palm Springs for a wedding he really , really doesn ’ t want to attend , with a girlfriend he really , really doesn ’ t like .
Sarah ( Cristin Milioti ) is the bride ’ s sister and maid of honor — and she wants to be there even less .
They ’ re both frustrated screw-ups , unhappy with life and love , and thus naturally drawn to one another .
But when they break away from the wedding for a tryst out in the desert @ @ @ @ @ @ @ they find themselves stuck with one another in a way neither expected .
Nyles ’ s lackadaisical , nothing-matters attitude seems like the only way to survive .
But maybe there are life lessons to be learned here .
To compare Palm Springs to other movies would be to give away the delightful concept , and I don ’ t want to do that .
But I can say that when the movie premiered at Sundance in January , it was impossible to realize we ’ d be trapped in its premise by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
It ’ s a twist on an old comedic formula meant to explore where life ’ s meaning truly resides , and whether it ’ s better to take risks in life or just coast along trying to survive .
And it ’ s a distinctly , cheekily 21st-century version of that tale .
Palm Springs set a record at Sundance when Hulu and Neon jointly announced that they ’ d acquired the film for a very specific sum : $ 17.5 million ... and 69 cents .
( The previous record @ @ @ @ @ @ @ irreverent sense of humor inherent in that announcement matches that of the film and the Lonely Island gang , the trio consisting of comics Samberg , Akiva Schaffer , and Jorma Taccone , who rose to prominence through their work writing and performing on Saturday Night Live , including classic digital shorts like “ D*ck in a Box , ” “ I ’ m on a Boat , ” and “ Lazy Sunday.
” They ’ re also the team behind movies like the 2016 feature film Popstar : Never Stop Never Stopping @ @ @ @ @ @ @ along with Becky Sloviter , and it boasts some of the same sweet , existential , occasionally rude vibe of their comedic ventures , in a nimble directorial outing for Max Barbakow from a screenplay by Andy Siara ( Lodge 49 ) .
But the most prominent drivers are Samberg and Milioti , playing a pair of lost souls who are thrown together in a way that could destroy them both , or help them find a way out .
( There ’ s also a great role for J.K. Simmons , as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ wisdom to impart . )
Palm Springs is not groundbreaking or quite as compulsively quotable as some of Lonely Island ’ s previous outings .
But it is an oddly perceptive effort , a movie that feels primed in particular for millennial audiences just starting to creep toward middle age who are trying to sort out what life really means , and how best to live it .
Zinging between humor and poignance with a lot of charm , it achieves in its most insightful moments what comedy does best : Let us @ @ @ @ @ @ @ by way of learning something about ourselves .
Palm Springs premiered at the Sundance Film Festival on January 26 , 2020 .
It is streaming on Hulu and playing at select drive-in theaters .

Nyles (Andy Samberg) is a nihilistic dirtbag stuck in Palm Springs for a wedding he really, really doesn’t want to attend, with a girlfriend he really, really doesn’t like. Sarah (Cristin Milioti) is the bride’s sister and maid of honor — and she wants to be there even less. They’re both frustrated screw-ups, unhappy with life and love, and thus naturally drawn to one another.
But when they break away from the wedding for a tryst out in the desert, something goes very wrong, and they find themselves stuck with one another in a way neither expected. Nyles’s lackadaisical, nothing-matters attitude seems like the only way to survive. But maybe there are life lessons to be learned here.
Rating: 3.5 out of 5 vox-mark vox-mark vox-mark vox-mark vox-mark
To compare Palm Springs to other movies would be to give away the delightful concept, and I don’t want to do that. But I can say that when the movie premiered at Sundance in January, it was impossible to realize we’d be trapped in its premise by the time it came out in July. It’s a twist on an old comedic formula meant to explore where life’s meaning truly resides, and whether it’s better to take risks in life or just coast along trying to survive.
And it’s a distinctly, cheekily 21st-century version of that tale. Palm Springs set a record at Sundance when Hulu and Neon jointly announced that they’d acquired the film for a very specific sum: $17.5 million ... and 69 cents. (The previous record was $17.5 million.) The irreverent sense of humor inherent in that announcement matches that of the film and the Lonely Island gang, the trio consisting of comics Samberg, Akiva Schaffer, and Jorma Taccone, who rose to prominence through their work writing and performing on Saturday Night Live, including classic digital shorts like “D*ck in a Box,” “I’m on a Boat,” and “Lazy Sunday.” They’re also the team behind movies like the 2016 feature film Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping.
The trio produced Palm Springs, along with Becky Sloviter, and it boasts some of the same sweet, existential, occasionally rude vibe of their comedic ventures, in a nimble directorial outing for Max Barbakow from a screenplay by Andy Siara (Lodge 49).
But the most prominent drivers are Samberg and Milioti, playing a pair of lost souls who are thrown together in a way that could destroy them both, or help them find a way out. (There’s also a great role for J.K. Simmons, as a man with strange and very specific wisdom to impart.)
Palm Springs is not groundbreaking or quite as compulsively quotable as some of Lonely Island’s previous outings. But it is an oddly perceptive effort, a movie that feels primed in particular for millennial audiences just starting to creep toward middle age who are trying to sort out what life really means, and how best to live it. Zinging between humor and poignance with a lot of charm, it achieves in its most insightful moments what comedy does best: Let us laugh at the world a little, by way of learning something about ourselves.
Palm Springs premiered at the Sundance Film Festival on January 26, 2020. It is streaming on Hulu and playing at select drive-in theaters.