huffpost--2020-04-21--Queen Elizabeth Celebrates 94th Birthday In Lockdown

LONDON ( Reuters ) - Britain ’ s Queen Elizabeth turned 94 on Tuesday but the coronavirus lockdown meant there was little fanfare to mark the occasion .
Elizabeth , the world ’ s eldest and longest-reigning monarch , typically spends her birthday privately without much public celebration but this year the event will be even more muted .
Royal birthdays and anniversaries are traditionally marked by ceremonial gun salutes , in which blank rounds are fired from various locations across London , but the queen felt it would be inappropriate to allow this to go ahead given the circumstances @ @ @ @ @ @ @ about 16,000 Britons infected with the new coronavirus have died in hospital , the fifth highest number globally .
The nation is in its fourth week of lockdown , with most businesses closed and citizens ordered to stay at home .
Flags are usually flown on government buildings to mark the queen ’ s birthday but officials have been told that this year not everyone would be expected to arrange for that to happen .
The only official acknowledgment from the royal family came via Twitter where Buckingham Palace posted a private family @ @ @ @ @ @ @ playing with her late younger sister Margaret .
Thank you for your messages today , on The Queen ’ s 94th birthday .
🎈🎉 🎥 In this private footage from @ RCT , we see The Queen , then Princess Elizabeth , with her family , including her younger sister Princess Margaret .
pic.twitter.com/T5IUS8MmQj — The Royal Family ( @ RoyalFamily ) April 21 , 2020 “ Head of the Commonwealth , Head of the Armed Forces , Head of State in 16 countries and the longest reigning Monarch in British History .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Happy birthday , Your Majesty !
” the message said .
The queen is spending the day at Windsor Castle , west of London , where she has been during the lockdown with her 98-year-old husband Prince Philip .
From there , she has issued a number of rallying messages to the nation , including only the fifth televised address of her 68-year reign .
On Monday Philip made a statement , a rare event since he retired from public life three years ago , to thank those involved in the response @ @ @ @ @ @ @ who was born on April 21 , 1926 , in Bruton Street , central London , grew up not expecting to become queen .
Her father , George VI , only took the crown when his elder brother Edward VIII abdicated in 1936 to marry American divorcee Wallis Simpson .
Elizabeth ascended to the throne in 1952 at the age of 25 , and surpassed her great-great-grandmother Queen Victoria as Britain ’ s longest reigning monarch in September 2015 .
Buckingham Palace last month said a parade to celebrate the queen ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in June , would not go ahead in its traditional form in light of restrictions on social gatherings .

LOADING ERROR LOADING
LONDON (Reuters) - Britain’s Queen Elizabeth turned 94 on Tuesday but the coronavirus lockdown meant there was little fanfare to mark the occasion.
Elizabeth, the world’s eldest and longest-reigning monarch, typically spends her birthday privately without much public celebration but this year the event will be even more muted.
Advertisement
Royal birthdays and anniversaries are traditionally marked by ceremonial gun salutes, in which blank rounds are fired from various locations across London, but the queen felt it would be inappropriate to allow this to go ahead given the circumstances.
The latest official figures show that about 16,000 Britons infected with the new coronavirus have died in hospital, the fifth highest number globally. The nation is in its fourth week of lockdown, with most businesses closed and citizens ordered to stay at home.
Flags are usually flown on government buildings to mark the queen’s birthday but officials have been told that this year not everyone would be expected to arrange for that to happen.
The only official acknowledgment from the royal family came via Twitter where Buckingham Palace posted a private family film of Elizabeth as a child, playing with her late younger sister Margaret.
Advertisement
Thank you for your messages today, on The Queen’s 94th birthday. 🎈🎉
🎥 In this private footage from @RCT, we see The Queen, then Princess Elizabeth, with her family, including her younger sister Princess Margaret. pic.twitter.com/T5IUS8MmQj — The Royal Family (@RoyalFamily) April 21, 2020
“Head of the Commonwealth, Head of the Armed Forces, Head of State in 16 countries and the longest reigning Monarch in British History. Wife, mother, grandmother and great-grandmother. Happy birthday, Your Majesty!” the message said.
The queen is spending the day at Windsor Castle, west of London, where she has been during the lockdown with her 98-year-old husband Prince Philip.
From there, she has issued a number of rallying messages to the nation, including only the fifth televised address of her 68-year reign.
On Monday Philip made a statement, a rare event since he retired from public life three years ago, to thank those involved in the response to the coronavirus crisis.
Advertisement
Elizabeth, who was born on April 21, 1926, in Bruton Street, central London, grew up not expecting to become queen. Her father, George VI, only took the crown when his elder brother Edward VIII abdicated in 1936 to marry American divorcee Wallis Simpson.
Elizabeth ascended to the throne in 1952 at the age of 25, and surpassed her great-great-grandmother Queen Victoria as Britain’s longest reigning monarch in September 2015.
“Inevitably a long life can pass by many milestones,” she said at the time.
Buckingham Palace last month said a parade to celebrate the queen’s official birthday, which usually takes place in June, would not go ahead in its traditional form in light of restrictions on social gatherings.


huffpost--2020-04-16--Texas Judge Set To Order State To Allow Voting By Mail

A Texas judge said he was “ inclined ” to agree that the state should be required to allow voting by mail during the coronavirus pandemic as an alternative to voting in person .
Travis County District Judge Tim Sulak on Wednesday appeared to accept a Texas Democratic Party lawyer ’ s argument that voters faced two bad choices ― disenfranchisement or disease ― unless they are allowed to submit mail-in ballots in upcoming elections .
The judge didn ’ t immediately issue a final ruling .
Texas has sharp restrictions on who is eligible to vote by mail , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ age 65 , people who are incarcerated but not yet convicted , residents who are outside the country , or those who are sick or disabled .
At the same time , the state has issued a statewide stay-at-home order to curb the spread of COVID-19 , the disease caused by the coronavirus .
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention advises Americans to avoid large gatherings , and several states have postponed elections .
Texas Democrats filed a lawsuit last month seeking to clarify state elections law .
The party ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in court Wednesday that the state legislature did not write the vote-by-mail restrictions with the expectation they would force voters to face dire risks in a public health crisis .
“ It can not be the situation ― and is not the fact ― that the Texas legislature provided a situation that in a pandemic circumstance the right to vote is in conflict with public health , ” Dunn said .
State Attorney General Ken Paxton said the law ’ s provision allowing mail voting for those with a disability was not meant @ @ @ @ @ @ @ into a pandemic .
“ Mail ballots based on disability are specifically reserved for those who are physically ill and can not vote in-person as a result , ” Paxton said in a statement .
“ Fear of contracting COVID-19 does not amount to a sickness or physical condition as required by the Legislature ” “ The right to vote is central to our democracy , ” Hinojosa said in a statement .
“ In Wisconsin , we saw the debacle that ensues when voters are prevented from mailing their ballots during a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Wisconsin ’ s April 7 election .
Wisconsin Republicans pushed for the in-person election to be held in spite of the pandemic , forcing people into long lines and large groups .
“ Voters should not have to choose between their lives or their right to vote , ” Hinojosa said .
Sulak ’ s ruling is “ almost certain ” to be appealed by the state , according to The Texas Tribune .

LOADING ERROR LOADING
A Texas judge said he was “inclined” to agree that the state should be required to allow voting by mail during the coronavirus pandemic as an alternative to voting in person.
Travis County District Judge Tim Sulak on Wednesday appeared to accept a Texas Democratic Party lawyer’s argument that voters faced two bad choices ― disenfranchisement or disease ― unless they are allowed to submit mail-in ballots in upcoming elections. The judge didn’t immediately issue a final ruling.
Advertisement
Texas has sharp restrictions on who is eligible to vote by mail, allowing mail-in ballots only for people over age 65, people who are incarcerated but not yet convicted, residents who are outside the country, or those who are sick or disabled.
At the same time, the state has issued a statewide stay-at-home order to curb the spread of COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention advises Americans to avoid large gatherings, and several states have postponed elections.
Texas Democrats filed a lawsuit last month seeking to clarify state elections law. The party’s lawyer, Chad Dunn, argued in court Wednesday that the state legislature did not write the vote-by-mail restrictions with the expectation they would force voters to face dire risks in a public health crisis.
“It cannot be the situation ― and is not the fact ― that the Texas legislature provided a situation that in a pandemic circumstance the right to vote is in conflict with public health,” Dunn said.
Advertisement
State Attorney General Ken Paxton said the law’s provision allowing mail voting for those with a disability was not meant for voters who want to avoid traveling into a pandemic.
“Mail ballots based on disability are specifically reserved for those who are physically ill and cannot vote in-person as a result,” Paxton said in a statement. “Fear of contracting COVID-19 does not amount to a sickness or physical condition as required by the Legislature”
Allowing mail-in voting is a victory “for all Texans,” state Democratic Party Chair Gilberto Hinojosa said after the judge’s comments.
“The right to vote is central to our democracy,” Hinojosa said in a statement.
“In Wisconsin, we saw the debacle that ensues when voters are prevented from mailing their ballots during a pandemic,” Hinojosa added, referencing Wisconsin’s April 7 election. Wisconsin Republicans pushed for the in-person election to be held in spite of the pandemic, forcing people into long lines and large groups.
“Voters should not have to choose between their lives or their right to vote,” Hinojosa said.
Sulak’s ruling is “almost certain” to be appealed by the state, according to The Texas Tribune.
Voters crowd a polling station in Houston on Super Tuesday last month. MARK FELIX via Getty Images


huffpost--2020-04-21--36 Eerie Photos Of Empty Places Around The World During Social Distancing

Governments around the globe have established strict stay-at-home orders during the coronavirus pandemic , leaving some of the most widely @ @ @ @ @ or less empty .
While it ’ s jarring to witness , say , Hollywood @ @ @ @ @ or Mecca ’ s Grand Mosque nearly empty , it ’ s also impressive ; @ @ @ @ @ is proof that we ’ re all making an honest attempt to flatten the curve @ @ @ @ @ are 36 photos of places across the world that are nearly empty due to our @ @ @ @

By entering your email and clicking Sign Up, you're agreeing to let us send you customized marketing messages about us and our advertising partners. You are also agreeing to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.


huffpost--2020-04-21--Dr. Fauci Warns Protests May 'Backfire': Economy Can't Recover Until People Do

Top White House coronavirus adviser Dr. Anthony Fauci warned Monday that protests against coronavirus safety measures could “ backfire ” and that the economy can not recover until the virus is under control .
“ Clearly this is something that is hurting from the standpoint of economics ... but unless we get the virus under control , the real recovery economically is not going to happen , ” Fauci told host George Stephanopoulos on ABC ’ s “ Good Morning America.
” “ If you jump the gun and go into a situation where you have a big spike , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ back , ” Fauci warned .
“ So as painful as it is to go by the careful guidelines of gradually phasing into a reopening , it ’ s going to backfire ” if the process is rushed .
“ That ’ s the problem.
” Protests have erupted in various cities against stay-at-home restrictions to stem the surge of COVID-19 .
The largest protest last week in Michigan was organized by a reelection campaign group for President Donald Trump , who has encouraged the actions .
Trump has also urged his supporters @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and Virginia , which some view as a call to armed insurrection .
Each of those states is headed by a Democratic governor .
Fauci , the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases , also discussed the national need for far more testing before people can start going back to safe workplaces .
In addition , he said there needs to be “ a partnership ” between the federal government and states on testing .
Trump has largely blamed testing shortfalls on governors , who have been pleading for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the number of tests .
Check out Fauci ’ s interview in the video above .
He addresses the protests at 5:27 .

Top White House coronavirus adviser Dr. Anthony Fauci warned Monday that protests against coronavirus safety measures could “backfire” and that the economy cannot recover until the virus is under control.
“Clearly this is something that is hurting from the standpoint of economics ... but unless we get the virus under control, the real recovery economically is not going to happen,” Fauci told host George Stephanopoulos on ABC’s “Good Morning America.”
Advertisement
“If you jump the gun and go into a situation where you have a big spike, you’re going to set yourself back,” Fauci warned. “So as painful as it is to go by the careful guidelines of gradually phasing into a reopening, it’s going to backfire” if the process is rushed. “That’s the problem.”
Protests have erupted in various cities against stay-at-home restrictions to stem the surge of COVID-19. The largest protest last week in Michigan was organized by a reelection campaign group for President Donald Trump, who has encouraged the actions. Trump has also urged his supporters to “liberate” Michigan, Minnesota and Virginia, which some view as a call to armed insurrection. Each of those states is headed by a Democratic governor.
Hundreds of protesters turned out in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, on Monday.
The protesters often ignore social distancing guidelines recommended by Trump’s own administration.
Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, also discussed the national need for far more testing before people can start going back to safe workplaces. In addition, he said there needs to be “a partnership” between the federal government and states on testing. Trump has largely blamed testing shortfalls on governors, who have been pleading for help from the Trump administration to boost the number of tests.
Check out Fauci’s interview in the video above. He addresses the protests at 5:27.
Advertisement


huffpost--2020-04-21--How Did We Get From Earth Day To Trump?

How Did We Get From Earth Day To Trump?

Among the leaders of this wrecking crew are Andrew Wheeler , the former coal lobbyist helming the Environmental Protection Agency , and David Bernhardt , the former oil lobbyist running the Department of Interior .
In President Donald Trump ’ s administration , 15 of the top 20 environmental managers have direct ties to the fossil fuel industry .
The speed by which this anti-environmental juggernaut is advancing — the Trump administration has targeted nearly 100 major environmental laws and regulations for rollbacks , according to a recent New York Times review — shows powerful new momentum for the anti-environmental @ @ @ @ @ @ @ To The White House The wise use movement achieved quite a bit : A mining law virtually untouched since 1872 allows companies to lay claim to U.S. public lands for less than $ 5 an acre , without paying royalties on the $ 400 billion they ’ ve extracted to date ; the cost of grazing permits for cattle have dropped to a new low monthly rate of $ 1.37 per animal per acre under Trump versus $ 22.60 average per animal per acre on private Western lands ; and federal agencies are @ @ @ @ @ @ @ more land for oil and gas pipelines .
In many hectoring lectures over the years , Pendley has repeated a common wise use conspiracy theory that the Endangered Species Act is “ rural genocide ” meant to drive residents off the land and into cities “ where they can be better controlled.
” He ’ s also repeatedly talked about the “ shoot , shovel and shut-up ” approach to endangered species , and in a 2014 opinion piece in the National Review , expressed sympathy for Cliven Bundy and his cowboy militia @ @ @ @ @ @ @ enforcement in Nevada .
Earth Day 1970 was the launching pad for much of what Pendley and the wise use movement came to detest , including the Endangered Species Act and other keystone environmental laws and reforms .
It also led to public investments in water treatment , waste management , air pollution reduction and wildlife protections that have had positive impacts on nature and U.S. public health .
And it sparked an environmental justice movement recognizing that big polluting industries disproportionately affect low-income communities of color .
When the wise use movement @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Nugget Hotel in Reno , Nevada , in 1988 , co-founders Ron Arnold of the Center for the Defense of Free Enterprise and Chuck Cushman of the American Land Rights Association said it was their fear that Bush would make good on his commitment to become “ the environmental president.
” Shortly after taking office , Bush mollified anti-environmentalists ’ concerns by appointing arch conservative John Sununu as his chief of staff .
After wise use members coordinated angry local rallies and demonstrations in 1991 against a National Park Service plan to protect @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Sununu ’ s lobbying that ultimately killed the plan .
Sununu also prevented the United States from entering into a global climate treaty that could have given the nation a decades-long lead on addressing the climate emergency , over objections from EPA Administrator William Reilly .
The wise use rhetoric and intimidation continued to escalate in the 1990s , targeting forest activists and others .
In Nevada , a Forest Service district ranger ’ s home and office were pipe bombed after he ordered cattle taken off National Forest land to improve the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ home at the time but his wife and daughter were . )
Diane Wilson , a shrimper who opposed the expansion of a plastic factory in Texas , also faced retaliation : Her dog was shot and her boat was sunk .
After Oklahoma City , some corporate sponsors of the movement began to fear that they ’ d created a Frankenstein ’ s monster .
Wise use lost almost all of its industry backing and went into rapid decline , while some of its more presentable members found new gigs with incoming @ @ @ @ @ @ @ began her career at Mountain States Legal Foundation , became George W. Bush ’ s interior secretary .
Myron Ebell , a former lobbyist for Chuck Cushman , found a home at the Competitive Enterprise Institute and later led the Trump administration ’ s transition team for the EPA .

Illustration: Rebecca Zisser/HuffPost; Photos: Getty
Twenty million people rallied, marched and staged clean-ups across the country on April 22, 1970, the first Earth Day. Many carried signs that read “Mother Nature Bats Last.”
But who knew there would be actual bats involved?
Fifty years later, the COVID-19 pandemic is the starkest example of natural disasters foretold but not prepared for.
Advertisement
The destruction of unique habitats, logging of rainforests and consumption of displaced wildlife such as bats, chimps and endangered pangolins has led to most of our recent viral outbreaks, from AIDS and Ebola to the coronavirus. This only confirms the scientific consensus that human health and prosperity depend on a healthy environment.
The John Birch Society, a fringe, right-wing political advocacy group known for peddling conspiracy theories, claimed the first Earth Day was a veiled attempt to celebrate Russian communist revolutionary Vladimir Lenin’s birthday. The reality is that a growing cross section of the American public had become increasingly concerned about air and water pollution, driven in part by the Santa Barbara oil spill and the Cuyahoga River fire the year before.
Until Earth Day 1970, industrial contamination simply hadn’t been on the radar of traditional conservation groups, which traced back to the wilderness protection efforts of Republican President Teddy Roosevelt.
“Who knew there would be actual bats involved?”
Advertisement
Today, the United States, once a leader in environmental stewardship, is led by a Republican president and Senate majority doing all they can to dismantle the nation’s green legacy and sell it off for parts. That includes prioritizing oil and gas production, loosening clean air and water rules, and rolling back auto emissions standards as a deadly virus that attacks the lungs is wreaking havoc around the world.
Among the leaders of this wrecking crew are Andrew Wheeler, the former coal lobbyist helming the Environmental Protection Agency, and David Bernhardt, the former oil lobbyist running the Department of Interior. In President Donald Trump’s administration, 15 of the top 20 environmental managers have direct ties to the fossil fuel industry. The speed by which this anti-environmental juggernaut is advancing — the Trump administration has targeted nearly 100 major environmental laws and regulations for rollbacks, according to a recent New York Times review — shows powerful new momentum for the anti-environmental movement.
On the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, it’s worth reflecting on how we got from there to here.
From “Wise Use” To The White House
In 1988, a fringe group of anti-government organizations launched the “wise use” movement, which put out a 25-goal manifesto the following year. At the top of the list were opening up the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil drilling and the Tongass National Forest, in southern Alaska, to logging. The Trump administration has plans to do both.
In my 1994 book, “The War Against the Greens,” I identified the links between this anti-environmental backlash and industry efforts to establish the pro-corporate grassroots “astroturf” campaigns for “wise use” and “property rights” that exploded onto the scene between 1988 and 1995.
Without popular support, they still managed to stymie public lands reforms under the administrations of both Presidents George H.W. Bush (R) and Bill Clinton (D), often physically threatening green activists and federal employees. The illusion of a spontaneous anti-green citizen movement also attracted some notable media support. An environment reporter for The New York Times even referred to them as “mom and pop community environmental groups” in a discussion.
Advertisement
“In the Trump administration, 15 of the top 20 environmental managers have direct ties to the fossil fuel industry.”
Its real proprietors included mining companies, the timber and cattle industries, off-road vehicle manufacturers, the National Rifle Association and Exxon, with support from allies in real estate, development, and conservative think tanks like the Heritage Foundation and the American Legislative Exchange Council.
The wise use movement achieved quite a bit: A mining law virtually untouched since 1872 allows companies to lay claim to U.S. public lands for less than $5 an acre, without paying royalties on the $400 billion they’ve extracted to date; the cost of grazing permits for cattle have dropped to a new low monthly rate of $1.37 per animal per acre under Trump versus $22.60 average per animal per acre on private Western lands; and federal agencies are selling off public timber and opening up more land for oil and gas pipelines.
“If the troubles from environmentalists cannot be solved in the jury box or at the ballot box, perhaps the cartridge box should be used,” James Watt, who had headed up the Department of the Interior under President Ronald Reagan, said during a Wyoming Cattlemen’s Association meeting in 1991.
Fast-forward 28 years to Trump naming William Perry Pendley, the long-time president of the right-wing nonprofit Mountain States Legal Foundation, to lead the federal Bureau of Land Management. The foundation, which Watt founded, has long identified itself as “the litigation arm of the wise use movement.” As BLM’s acting director, Pendley is in charge of managing one-third of all federal land ― land that Pendley has long advocated selling off.
Advertisement
Pendley is not new to the D.C. swamp. In 1981, Watt recruited him to serve as his assistant secretary for energy and minerals. Their tenure included the largest public coal sale in history in the Powder River Basin of Montana and Wyoming.
Once a leader of the wise use movement, Pendley now prefers to link himself with the earlier, less violent Sagebrush Rebellion movement of the 1970s and ’80s, which also worked to transfer control of western lands from the federal government to the states (and was ultimately unsuccessful).
In many hectoring lectures over the years, Pendley has repeated a common wise use conspiracy theory that the Endangered Species Act is “rural genocide” meant to drive residents off the land and into cities “where they can be better controlled.” He’s also repeatedly talked about the “shoot, shovel and shut-up” approach to endangered species, and in a 2014 opinion piece in the National Review, expressed sympathy for Cliven Bundy and his cowboy militia in their armed standoff with BLM law enforcement in Nevada.
Earth Day 1970 was the launching pad for much of what Pendley and the wise use movement came to detest, including the Endangered Species Act and other keystone environmental laws and reforms. It also led to public investments in water treatment, waste management, air pollution reduction and wildlife protections that have had positive impacts on nature and U.S. public health. And it sparked an environmental justice movement recognizing that big polluting industries disproportionately affect low-income communities of color.
One region where those changes held less sway was the rural West, which the Economist magazine described in 1993 as having “tempered rugged individualism with socialist infrastructure.” There, the federal government provided below-market subsidies for public lands industries, including hard-rock, coal and uranium mining; timber harvesting; and livestock grazing.
Advertisement
A New Party Orthodoxy
When the wise use movement was launched at a conference at the Nugget Hotel in Reno, Nevada, in 1988, co-founders Ron Arnold of the Center for the Defense of Free Enterprise and Chuck Cushman of the American Land Rights Association said it was their fear that Bush would make good on his commitment to become “the environmental president.”
Shortly after taking office, Bush mollified anti-environmentalists’ concerns by appointing arch conservative John Sununu as his chief of staff. After wise use members coordinated angry local rallies and demonstrations in 1991 against a National Park Service plan to protect the ecosystem surrounding Yellowstone, it was Sununu’s lobbying that ultimately killed the plan. Sununu also prevented the United States from entering into a global climate treaty that could have given the nation a decades-long lead on addressing the climate emergency, over objections from EPA Administrator William Reilly.
President George H.W. Bush after delivering a speech on the environment at the Teton Science School in Wyoming. Bettmann via Getty Images
The wise use rhetoric and intimidation continued to escalate in the 1990s, targeting forest activists and others. In Nevada, a Forest Service district ranger’s home and office were pipe bombed after he ordered cattle taken off National Forest land to improve the habitat. (He wasn’t home at the time but his wife and daughter were.) Diane Wilson, a shrimper who opposed the expansion of a plastic factory in Texas, also faced retaliation: Her dog was shot and her boat was sunk.
It was also during the 1990s that wise use and other anti-government groups began to converge around the emerging militia movement, including the National Federal Lands Conference, which argued that county sheriffs should arrest federal employees enforcing environmental rules. In April 1995, Timothy McVeigh, an anti-government-militia sympathizer, bombed a federal building in Oklahoma City, killing 168 people and injuring hundreds more.
Advertisement
After Oklahoma City, some corporate sponsors of the movement began to fear that they’d created a Frankenstein’s monster. Wise use lost almost all of its industry backing and went into rapid decline, while some of its more presentable members found new gigs with incoming Republican administrations. Gayle Norton, who began her career at Mountain States Legal Foundation, became George W. Bush’s interior secretary. Myron Ebell, a former lobbyist for Chuck Cushman, found a home at the Competitive Enterprise Institute and later led the Trump administration’s transition team for the EPA.
A Trump rally in November 2018 in Huntington, West Virginia. ASSOCIATED PRESS
The Bush administration represented a shift in focus for the pro-development crowd, from Western mining and timber to a more broadly petroleum-centric agenda. Vice President Dick Cheney was a main advocate, leading closed-door energy policy meetings and the post-9/11 push for war in the oil-rich nation of Iraq. (Today the U.S. also occupies oil fields in northern Syria.)
Those interests had their own front groups, including the Greening Earth Society, which saturated media and congressional hearings with hand-picked and industry-funded climate skeptic scientists like Fred Singer and Republican pollsters like Frank Luntz who could generate public uncertainty about the growing scientific consensus on human-driven climate change.
The GOP had effectively established anti-environmental rhetoric and climate denial as litmus tests for leadership by the time the Supreme Court ruled in 2010 that there should be virtually no limits on corporate election spending.
Advertisement
A purge of environmental moderates was already underway. Today, finding an environmental Republican in Congress is like finding an ivory billed woodpecker in Central Park. When Trump insists that “global warming is a total and very expensive hoax” or claims that wind turbines cause cancer, he is very much keeping with party orthodoxy.
A Final Test
And yet, popular attitudes and market forces continue to shift in favor of a rapid transition to renewable energy. Polls indicate that young people of all parties strongly support environmental stewardship. A new determination and bravery has also suffused the environmental movement since the indigenous-led Standing Rock pipeline protests of 2016 and student climate strikes of 2019.
Protecting the environment has become one of the defining issues of the 2020 election ― or had, before the coronavirus outbreak at least ― with nearly two-thirds of Americans rating it a top policy priority, according to polling by the Pew Research Center. At the same time, the backlash has consolidated both within the Republican Party, and across the globe: Hundreds of environmental leaders have been murdered across the globe over the last five years. Beyond the U.S., climate deniers have reached the highest elected offices in major global powers, including those with hugely important public lands and waters like Australia and Brazil.
So, with polar ice melting, a pandemic expanding and climate-driven storms and wildfires raging, the 50th anniversary of Earth Day could be the final test of citizens’ commitment to protecting and restoring our blue marble planet.
This article is published as part of Covering Climate Now, a global journalism collaboration strengthening coverage of the climate story.


huffpost--2020-04-21--The Best Coronavirus Face Mask Materials, According To A New Study

In early April , when Americans began to embrace the idea of wearing face masks to flatten the curve of the coronavirus , President Donald Trump suggested it wouldn ’ t hurt the public to wear masks , but that scarves could be a perfectly suitable substitute .
“ It doesn ’ t have to be a mask .
It can be a scarf , ” Trump said .
“ What I do see people doing here is using scarves .
And I think in a certain way , depending on the fabric , I think in a certain way @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s actually better.
” A new study of the best and worst materials for DIY face masks just proved he was absolutely incorrect .
Smart Air , a social enterprise and certified B-Corp that promotes cost-effective , data-backed air filters as a solution to indoor particulate air pollution , has released the results of their latest research on DIY face mask materials , in which they tested over 30 different materials ― including bra pads , coffee filters , pillow cases , electrostatic cloths , cotton T-shirts , wool , bed sheets @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for their effectiveness in filtering coronavirus-sized microparticles , as well as their breathability .
Both those factors are vital , because while some materials may test high for filtration , they test low for breathability ― a mask you can ’ t actually breathe in isn ’ t exactly helpful to anyone .
Among the key takeaways : Trump ’ s scarves tested among the least effective materials , while denim , canvas and paper towels were among the best .

In early April, when Americans began to embrace the idea of wearing face masks to flatten the curve of the coronavirus, President Donald Trump suggested it wouldn’t hurt the public to wear masks, but that scarves could be a perfectly suitable substitute.
“It doesn’t have to be a mask. It can be a scarf,” Trump said. “What I do see people doing here is using scarves. And I think in a certain way, depending on the fabric, I think in a certain way, a scarf is better, it’s actually better.”
A new study of the best and worst materials for DIY face masks just proved he was absolutely incorrect.
Smart Air, a social enterprise and certified B-Corp that promotes cost-effective, data-backed air filters as a solution to indoor particulate air pollution, has released the results of their latest research on DIY face mask materials, in which they tested over 30 different materials ― including bra pads, coffee filters, pillow cases, electrostatic cloths, cotton T-shirts, wool, bed sheets, polyester, bandanas and more ― for their effectiveness in filtering coronavirus-sized microparticles, as well as their breathability.
Both those factors are vital, because while some materials may test high for filtration, they test low for breathability ― a mask you can’t actually breathe in isn’t exactly helpful to anyone.
Among the key takeaways: Trump’s scarves tested among the least effective materials, while denim, canvas and paper towels were among the best.


huffpost--2020-04-21--Michigan Gov. Says Trump's Messaging Putting Public In 'Greater Danger'

Trump ’ s pronouncements about freezing immigration are “ scary ” for immigrants , family members hoping to immigrate to the U.S. , farmers who rely on seasonal migrant workers and Canadian nurses who work in Michigan , the Democratic governor said in an interview with The Associated Press .
“ These broad statements that come out I think are are so problematic and counter to I think what we need right now more than anything — which is fact based scientifically proven , best practices and an optimistic vision of where we are headed and the thrust to make @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , who said the focus should be on making swabs for testing .
“ This is what we need right now — not additional new things to be upset about , fearful of or mad about.
” The first-term governor ’ s comments were the latest in a series of criticisms she has directed at the president and his handling of the virus outbreak .
Her high-profile disputes with Trump have put her at the center of the states ’ fight with the federal government over equipment and testing — and helped raise @ @ @ @ @ @ @ focus now is on managing the crisis that has devastated her state ’ s economy and killed 2,700 people .
She said Michigan , along with other states , is struggling to conduct sufficient testing and urged Trump to use all his powers to force manufacturers to produce more test swabs .
She spoke as some Republican governors have begun the process of reopening the economy without waiting for more testing , moves that gives her “ great pause.
” “ I know that we ’ re going to have to be really @ @ @ @ @ @ @ our economy we engage in when it is going to be a slow re-entry .
Our biggest concern , of course , is a second wave , ” said Whitmer , who may relax her stay-at-home order beginning May 1 .
“ The worst thing would be for us to spike the football and think we are outside of the danger zone , and to re-engage and find another peak of COVID-19.
” More than 1 million Michigan residents — about a quarter of the state ’ s workforce — have filed for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said the state has the resources to pay jobless benefits “ for now ” but that Michigan , like every other state , will need more help from the federal government .
“ It ’ s too soon to say if that is precisely going to be the date to that things start re-engaging , ” Whitmer said when asked if she was OK with the carmaker ’ s plan .
“ But we are obviously eager to start engaging sectors responsibly when we ’ re able to safely.
” Whitmer , a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , would not address the potential political fallout if the unemployment rate does not improve significantly .
Michigan is a critical battleground for the November election , as Democrats try to win back a state that flipped in 2016 to help Trump become president .
“ The politics will take care of themselves , ” she said .
“ We ’ ve got to do the right thing right now ” rather than worry about what it means in November or when she is on the ballot again in 2022 .
Whitmer also @ @ @ @ @ @ @ staffer in Biden ’ s Senate office that he sexually assaulted her when he was a senator in the early 1990s “ does not comport with the Joe that I know.
” Biden ’ s campaign has denied the allegation by Tara Reade , who said the assault occurred in the basement of a Capitol Hill office building in the spring of 1993 .

LOADING ERROR LOADING
LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said Tuesday that President Donald Trump’s plan to suspend immigration is distracting from efforts to combat the coronavirus pandemic and part of “inconsistent messages” that spread fear and put the public in “greater danger.”
Trump’s pronouncements about freezing immigration are “scary” for immigrants, family members hoping to immigrate to the U.S., farmers who rely on seasonal migrant workers and Canadian nurses who work in Michigan, the Democratic governor said in an interview with The Associated Press.
Advertisement
“These broad statements that come out I think are are so problematic and counter to I think what we need right now more than anything — which is fact based scientifically proven, best practices and an optimistic vision of where we are headed and the thrust to make it a reality,” said Whitmer, who said the focus should be on making swabs for testing. “This is what we need right now — not additional new things to be upset about, fearful of or mad about.”
She said she worries Trump’s daily televised briefings only make things worse.
“I think that the nightly briefing has yielded a lot of inconsistent messages to the public — messages that put people in greater danger,” she said.
The first-term governor’s comments were the latest in a series of criticisms she has directed at the president and his handling of the virus outbreak. Her high-profile disputes with Trump have put her at the center of the states’ fight with the federal government over equipment and testing — and helped raise her political profile.
Whitmer, who is believed to a possible vice presidential contender, told AP she has not been asked by presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden to participate in any vetting for the role.
Advertisement
“Of course I would give whatever they’ve asked for,” she said. “But I’m not auditioning for any different job than the one that I have right now.”
Whitmer insisted her focus now is on managing the crisis that has devastated her state’s economy and killed 2,700 people. She said Michigan, along with other states, is struggling to conduct sufficient testing and urged Trump to use all his powers to force manufacturers to produce more test swabs. She spoke as some Republican governors have begun the process of reopening the economy without waiting for more testing, moves that gives her “great pause.”
“I know that we’re going to have to be really methodical and data-driven about what sectors of our economy we engage in when it is going to be a slow re-entry. Our biggest concern, of course, is a second wave,” said Whitmer, who may relax her stay-at-home order beginning May 1. “The worst thing would be for us to spike the football and think we are outside of the danger zone, and to re-engage and find another peak of COVID-19.”
More than 1 million Michigan residents — about a quarter of the state’s workforce — have filed for unemployment since the outbreak began. Whitmer said the state has the resources to pay jobless benefits “for now” but that Michigan, like every other state, will need more help from the federal government.
Detroit-area automakers, which suspended production roughly a month ago, are pushing to reopen factories. Fiat Chrysler has already announced a May 4 gradual restart date.
Advertisement
“It’s too soon to say if that is precisely going to be the date to that things start re-engaging,” Whitmer said when asked if she was OK with the carmaker’s plan. “But we are obviously eager to start engaging sectors responsibly when we’re able to safely.”
Whitmer, a national co-chair on Biden’s campaign, would not address the potential political fallout if the unemployment rate does not improve significantly. Michigan is a critical battleground for the November election, as Democrats try to win back a state that flipped in 2016 to help Trump become president.
“The politics will take care of themselves,” she said. “We’ve got to do the right thing right now” rather than worry about what it means in November or when she is on the ballot again in 2022.
Whitmer also said that an allegation by a former staffer in Biden’s Senate office that he sexually assaulted her when he was a senator in the early 1990s “does not comport with the Joe that I know.” Biden’s campaign has denied the allegation by Tara Reade, who said the assault occurred in the basement of a Capitol Hill office building in the spring of 1993.
“Women should be able to tell their stories,” Whitmer said. “Everything that I know about Joe Biden does not jive with the story that’s been told.”
Advertisement
___


huffpost--2020-04-21--Trump's Hoax: Obama Didn't Predict This Coronavirus And Design A Test For It

Or so claims President Donald Trump , who in his struggles to explain why he downplayed a deadly new virus for two months as his administration failed to come up with a robust testing plan has resorted to blaming predecessor Obama ― for failing to develop a test for a disease that would not come into existence until three years after he left office .
One GOP pollster who spoke on condition of anonymity said blaming Obama is clearly designed for consumption by Trump ’ s hard-core supporters .
Trump and his political team “ are all about the care @ @ @ @ @ @ @ he said .
“ That ’ s who he is.
” Douglas Brinkley , a historian at Rice University , said presidents have long blamed predecessors to explain away their own troubles .
“ But Trump ’ s taking it to where anything he does wrong is Barack Obama ’ s fault is beyond childish , ” Brinkley said .
“ It ’ s just kind of Trump ’ s insanity unspooling right in front of us.
” Trump has lied repeatedly about the pandemic and his handling of it , and has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ take responsibility at all ” for the federal response and the more than 43,000 Americans the disease has killed so far .
But his blaming of Obama for not devising a suitable test defies both common sense and the laws of temporal physics .
Tests for viruses are unique to each particular strain .
And this new coronavirus , believed to have originated in bats , did not infect its first human until October or November 2019 .
Chinese scientists did not publish its gene sequence until Jan. 10 of this year – @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Obama left office .
It remains unclear why , under Trump , the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention did not adopt that test , at least as a back-up , while it struggled over the next month to develop a working version of its own .
But those lost weeks crippled U.S. efforts to contain the virus to cities where it first emerged in the U.S. , and could wind up leading to tens of thousands of more deaths than might have occurred had there been a timely deployment of tests .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ for these folks .
It ’ s sad .
Former Rep. Joe Walsh ( R-Ill. ) , who briefly sought the 2020 GOP presidential nomination .
Trump , nevertheless , continues to insist he has done a great job .
Each time he has been asked about the problems with testing , he has blamed Obama .
Early on , he falsely blamed him for a regulation that he claimed slowed the production of tests , even though that regulation had never been formally adopted .
But that soon transitioned to repeated ― @ @ @ @ @ @ @ left a “ broken ” and “ obsolete system ” for developing and manufacturing tests , which then went even further to claims that Obama failed to develop a test for this particular virus .
“ The original test , the ones we inherited … they were broken .
They were obsolete .
They were not good tests , ” Trump said at an April 3 White House coronavirus briefing , a venue the president frequently turns into a lengthy session to complain about negative press coverage and to deflect blame .
Trump @ @ @ @ @ @ @ leaving a fully-stocked national stockpile of medical supplies ― “ Our cupboards were bare , ” he said Saturday , as he has in many of his briefings .
But he failed to acknowledge that Republicans in Congress refused to approve Obama administration requests to replenish the stockpile of N95 respirator masks depleted in the 2009-10 H1N1 swine flu pandemic .
More important , Trump fails to address why his administration did not act to replenish that stockpile in the three-plus years he has been in office .
Jason Miller , a top @ @ @ @ @ @ @ who remains an informal adviser , said the president was able to blame “ career politicians ” from both parties in the past , but that doing so for this pandemic is much harder .
“ People understand decades of terrible trade deals , ” he said .
“ Tougher job to explain lack of preparedness during Obama-Biden years.
” Ornstein pointed to Trump ’ s willingness to ride the lie that Obama was an illegitimate president because he was actually born in Kenya to a prominent role within the modern GOP .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ disdain for Obama , so it is another way for him to get resonance with that base , ” Ornstein said .

LOADING ERROR LOADING
WASHINGTON ― On top of being a bad president and possibly a Kenyan, Barack Obama was also a terrible psychic.
Or so claims President Donald Trump, who in his struggles to explain why he downplayed a deadly new virus for two months as his administration failed to come up with a robust testing plan has resorted to blaming predecessor Obama ― for failing to develop a test for a disease that would not come into existence until three years after he left office.
Advertisement
“Maybe (Obama) knew it was coming, but he and the ‘Deep State’ kept the cupboards bare,” joked Joe Walsh, a former Republican House member from Illinois who unsuccessfully ran against Trump for the 2020 GOP nomination.
White House officials did not respond to HuffPost queries on the matter.
One GOP pollster who spoke on condition of anonymity said blaming Obama is clearly designed for consumption by Trump’s hard-core supporters. Trump and his political team “are all about the care and feeding of his base,” he said. “That’s who he is.”
Douglas Brinkley, a historian at Rice University, said presidents have long blamed predecessors to explain away their own troubles. “But Trump’s taking it to where anything he does wrong is Barack Obama’s fault is beyond childish,” Brinkley said. “It’s just kind of Trump’s insanity unspooling right in front of us.”
Trump has lied repeatedly about the pandemic and his handling of it, and has already stated that he does not “take responsibility at all” for the federal response and the more than 43,000 Americans the disease has killed so far. But his blaming of Obama for not devising a suitable test defies both common sense and the laws of temporal physics.
Advertisement
Tests for viruses are unique to each particular strain. And this new coronavirus, believed to have originated in bats, did not infect its first human until October or November 2019. Chinese scientists did not publish its gene sequence until Jan. 10 of this year – just days shy of three years after Obama left office.
The first test was created by German researchers and made available by the World Health Organization to the international community on Jan. 17.
It remains unclear why, under Trump, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention did not adopt that test, at least as a back-up, while it struggled over the next month to develop a working version of its own. But those lost weeks crippled U.S. efforts to contain the virus to cities where it first emerged in the U.S., and could wind up leading to tens of thousands of more deaths than might have occurred had there been a timely deployment of tests.
“Obama will always be the perfect boogeyman for these folks. It’s sad.” - Former Rep. Joe Walsh (R-Ill.), who briefly sought the 2020 GOP presidential nomination.
Trump, nevertheless, continues to insist he has done a great job. Each time he has been asked about the problems with testing, he has blamed Obama. Early on, he falsely blamed him for a regulation that he claimed slowed the production of tests, even though that regulation had never been formally adopted.
Advertisement
But that soon transitioned to repeated ― and false ― claims that Obama had left a “broken” and “obsolete system” for developing and manufacturing tests, which then went even further to claims that Obama failed to develop a test for this particular virus.
“The original test, the ones we inherited … they were broken. They were obsolete. They were not good tests,” Trump said at an April 3 White House coronavirus briefing, a venue the president frequently turns into a lengthy session to complain about negative press coverage and to deflect blame.
“We inherited broken testing. We inherited nothing. What we inherited from the previous administration was totally broken,” he said at a briefing 10 days later.
At last Saturday’s briefing, he said: “I inherited broken junk.”
Trump has also repeatedly blamed Obama for not leaving a fully-stocked national stockpile of medical supplies ― “Our cupboards were bare,” he said Saturday, as he has in many of his briefings. But he failed to acknowledge that Republicans in Congress refused to approve Obama administration requests to replenish the stockpile of N95 respirator masks depleted in the 2009-10 H1N1 swine flu pandemic. More important, Trump fails to address why his administration did not act to replenish that stockpile in the three-plus years he has been in office.
Jason Miller, a top aide to Trump’s 2016 campaign who remains an informal adviser, said the president was able to blame “career politicians” from both parties in the past, but that doing so for this pandemic is much harder. “People understand decades of terrible trade deals,” he said. “Tougher job to explain lack of preparedness during Obama-Biden years.”
Advertisement
Norm Ornstein, a scholar at the conservative-leaning American Enterprise Institute, has an alternative theory about why Trump continues to blame and attack Obama: “He is a racist.”
Ornstein pointed to Trump’s willingness to ride the lie that Obama was an illegitimate president because he was actually born in Kenya to a prominent role within the modern GOP. “He knows that his base has disdain for Obama, so it is another way for him to get resonance with that base,” Ornstein said.


huffpost--2020-04-21--White Evangelicals Most Likely To Support Religious Exemptions To Stay-At-Home Orders

Most Americans of faith agree that houses of worship shouldn ’ t be allowed to evade state and local authorities ’ stay-at-home orders during the coronavirus pandemic ― but there ’ s a notable anomaly within that trend , a new survey suggests .
About one-third of white evangelical Protestants ― a religious group with strong ties to President Donald Trump and the Republican Party ― support the idea of granting religious exemptions to stay-at-home-orders , according to a Public Religion Research Institute report published last Wednesday .
White evangelicals were more likely than other religious Americans to favor allowing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in-person services , according to the survey .
About one-quarter of nonwhite Protestants said the same , along with 18 % of both white Catholics and the religiously unaffiliated of all races , and 15 % of white mainline Protestants .
More broadly , only about 21 % of all Americans favor religious exemptions to stay-at-home orders for churches .
Most Americans ( 77 % ) oppose allowing churches and religious organizations to hold in-person services , with 40 % strongly opposing the exemptions .
PRRI conducted its survey just before Easter , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Only 3 % of Americans who typically attend religious services at least a few times a year reported that they planned to attend in-person services for Easter or other religious occasions , according to PRRI .
States have approached religious exemptions to stay-at-home orders in a variety of ways .
Some states ― such as Florida , Michigan and New Mexico ― have added such exemptions to their stay-at-home orders , allowing houses of worship to hold religious services while encouraging ( or requiring ) worshippers to practice social distancing .
Other @ @ @ @ @ @ @ gathering in large numbers , prompting a showdown with some religious leaders , many of whom argue they can worship in person and practice social distancing at the same time .
Evangelical Christian pastors in California and Kentucky have gone to court to seek religious exemptions for stay-at-home orders , arguing that allowing people to go to grocery stores and laundromats while banning them from church is a violation of the First Amendment .
Attorney General William Barr has also intervened to support members of a small evangelical church in Greenville , Mississippi @ @ @ @ @ @ @ drive-in service with their car windows rolled up .
In a statement of interest issued last week , the Justice Department accused the city of Greenville of discriminating against these congregants , since the city allowed customers to eat at a nearby drive-in restaurant .
The city later withdrew the fines .
In Kansas , a Trump-appointed federal judge sided with two Baptist churches challenging Democratic Gov .
Laura Kelly ’ s 10-person limit on in-person attendance at religious services .
The Saturday ruling found that the governor ’ s stay-at-home order likely @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Kelly claims that at least four clusters of coronavirus cases in Kansas have been linked to “ church settings.
” Her office says that six deaths and 80 cases of the novel coronavirus are tied to religious gatherings in Kansas .

LOADING ERROR LOADING
Most Americans of faith agree that houses of worship shouldn’t be allowed to evade state and local authorities’ stay-at-home orders during the coronavirus pandemic ― but there’s a notable anomaly within that trend, a new survey suggests.
About one-third of white evangelical Protestants ― a religious group with strong ties to President Donald Trump and the Republican Party ― support the idea of granting religious exemptions to stay-at-home-orders, according to a Public Religion Research Institute report published last Wednesday.
Advertisement
White evangelicals were more likely than other religious Americans to favor allowing churches and other religious organizations to hold in-person services, according to the survey.
About one-quarter of nonwhite Protestants said the same, along with 18% of both white Catholics and the religiously unaffiliated of all races, and 15% of white mainline Protestants.
More broadly, only about 21% of all Americans favor religious exemptions to stay-at-home orders for churches. Most Americans (77%) oppose allowing churches and religious organizations to hold in-person services, with 40% strongly opposing the exemptions.
PRRI conducted its survey just before Easter, a Sunday when churches are usually packed. Only 3% of Americans who typically attend religious services at least a few times a year reported that they planned to attend in-person services for Easter or other religious occasions, according to PRRI.
Advertisement
A woman prays during a communion service at the Godspeaker Calvary Chapel sanctuary on April 5, 2020, in Thousand Oaks, California. APU GOMES via Getty Images
States have approached religious exemptions to stay-at-home orders in a variety of ways. Some states ― such as Florida, Michigan and New Mexico ― have added such exemptions to their stay-at-home orders, allowing houses of worship to hold religious services while encouraging (or requiring) worshippers to practice social distancing. Other states have explicitly banned religious groups from gathering in large numbers, prompting a showdown with some religious leaders, many of whom argue they can worship in person and practice social distancing at the same time.
Evangelical Christian pastors in California and Kentucky have gone to court to seek religious exemptions for stay-at-home orders, arguing that allowing people to go to grocery stores and laundromats while banning them from church is a violation of the First Amendment.
Attorney General William Barr has also intervened to support members of a small evangelical church in Greenville, Mississippi, who were fined for attending a drive-in service with their car windows rolled up. In a statement of interest issued last week, the Justice Department accused the city of Greenville of discriminating against these congregants, since the city allowed customers to eat at a nearby drive-in restaurant. The city later withdrew the fines.
A worshipper holds a sign to alert drivers to a drive-in service at On Fire Christian Church on April 5, 2020, in Louisville, Kentucky. Andy Lyons via Getty Images
Advertisement
In Kansas, a Trump-appointed federal judge sided with two Baptist churches challenging Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly’s 10-person limit on in-person attendance at religious services. The Saturday ruling found that the governor’s stay-at-home order likely violated the churchgoers’ First Amendment rights.
Kelly claims that at least four clusters of coronavirus cases in Kansas have been linked to “church settings.”
Her office says that six deaths and 80 cases of the novel coronavirus are tied to religious gatherings in Kansas.
“This is not about religion. This is about a public health crisis,” Kelly told The Associated Press.
PRRI's telephone survey of 1,007 adults took place between April 6 and 11 and has a margin of error of +/- 3.4 percentage points.


huffpost--2020-05-13--Coronavirus Live Updates: More Than 300,000 People Have Died Worldwide

Restaurants , cafes and bars in Australia ’ s most populous state reopened on Friday after a two-month shutdown under coronavirus lockdown measures , boosting the federal government ’ s bid to get people back in work .
The easing of quarantine measures in New South Wales ( NSW ) comes just a day after the national statistics office reported unprecedented record-high job losses and Prime Minister Scott Morrison warned that worse was still to come .
In Sydney , locals braved a cold , wet morning to catch up with friends and family over a coffee .
“ It @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Jess Best , who met up with a friend in a cafe in the city ’ s eastern suburbs .
“ To be able to sit down with other people around and chat to my friend .
I can have a normal morning , not hiding away in my home.
” NSW officials reported eight new cases of COVID-19 on Friday , the highest daily tally in just over a week .
The national daily increase has slowed to an average of less than 20 a day .
Officials have credited lockdown measures @ @ @ @ @ @ @ country ’ s borders and ordering people to stay home unless on essential business , with constraining the spread of the virus .
Australia has recorded about 7,000 COVID-19 cases , including 98 deaths , significantly below the levels reported in North America and Europe .
Read more More Than 300,000 People Have Died From COVID-19 Worldwide ― 5/14/2020 , 3:21 p.m .
ET The coronavirus has claimed at least 300,000 lives around the globe , according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University .
Nearly one-third of those fatalities have been reported @ @ @ @ @ @ @ people have died after falling ill with COVID-19 .
Overall , more than 4.4 million people have had confirmed cases of the virus .
With 1.4 million confirmed cases , the U.S. has by far the world ’ s highest number of infections , and currently ranks seventh in terms of deaths per 100,000 people .
Whistleblower Dr. Rick Bright Warns Coronavirus Resurgence Would ‘ Devastate ’ U.S. — 5/14/2020 , 3:08 p.m .
ET Dr. Rick Bright , the whistleblower and former government scientist who was abruptly fired after pushing back against @ @ @ @ @ @ @ testimony Thursday that the country desperately needs a plan to combat a potentially resurgent coronavirus during the upcoming flu season .
Bright testified that he was removed from his position as director of the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority last month , likely in retaliation for having repeatedly warned the Trump White House it wasn ’ t doing enough to combat COVID-19 .
“ I believe we could have done better , ” Bright told the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health .
“ I believe there were critical steps we @ @ @ @ @ @ @ particular , Bright said that emails urging increased production of critical medical equipment like masks went unheeded .
California Prepares For Another Potentially Disastrous Wildfire Season Amid Pandemic — 5/14/2020 , 6 a.m .
ET California Gov .
Gavin Newsom on Wednesday laid out his plan for dealing with the upcoming wildfire season amid the coronavirus pandemic .
“ We got ta walk and chew gum at the same time , ” he said at a news conference in El Dorado County , near Sacramento .
The governor will propose additional funds in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to local counties .
Mark Ghilarducci , director of California ’ s office of emergency services , said his team is working on protocols for evacuating people safely from fire zones while respecting social distancing .
Yellowstone , Grand Canyon National Parks To Welcome Back Visitors On Limited Basis — 5/14/2020 , 5:30 a.m. Yellowstone and Grand Canyon are among the national parks planning to welcome back visitors on a limited basis following lengthy closures due to COVID-19 .
Portions of the two popular parks will remain closed to the public , and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ coverings .
Overnight lodging and campgrounds will also remain closed in both parks and no tour buses will be permitted , Reuters reported .
Maryland To Lift Stay-At-Home Orders On Friday — 5/13/2020 , 5:58 p.m .
ET Maryland Gov .
Larry Hogan announced Wednesday that he ’ s lifting the state ’ s stay-at-home orders this Friday at 5 p.m. “ Maryland has achieved the 14-day trend of plateauing and declining numbers , ” the Republican governor said at a press conference , even though public health officials warn relaxing so many @ @ @ @ @ @ @ high risk of coronavirus cases resurging .
On Friday , a “ safer at home public health advisory ” will go into effect that allows retail , salon , manufacturing and religious services to resume with some limits in place .
People will not be allowed to gather in groups of more than 10 .
None of the new guidance will be enforced under the rule of the law .
Cuomo Finally Provides Sign Language Interpreter At Daily Briefing After Lawsuit From Deaf New Yorkers — 5/13/20 , 1:30 p.m .
ET Wednesday @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Andrew Cuomo ( D ) provided a real-time American Sign Language ( ASL ) interpreter onscreen during his daily , widely viewed COVID-19 update , two weeks after a lawsuit from a group of deaf New Yorkers and disability rights advocates .
Filed on April 29 , the lawsuit said Cuomo was the only U.S. governor holding daily coronavirus briefings without a visible , real-time ASL interpreter onscreen — known as “ televised in frame ASL interpretation.
” In the lawsuit , the group Disability Rights New York said it had received @ @ @ @ @ @ @ deaf New Yorkers who are unable to understand Governor Cuomo ’ s daily briefings due to the lack of in frame televised ASL interpretation.
” Several of the plaintiffs in the lawsuit cited difficulties in receiving accurate and prompt information about the state ’ s response to the pandemic , including several major directives , like Cuomo ’ s stay-at-home order and the requirement to wear masks in public .
D.C. Extends Stay-At-Home Order Through June 8 — 5/13/20 , 11:40 a.m .
ET The nation ’ s capital will extend its stay-at-home @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Muriel Bowser announced Thursday morning .
The city initially planned to begin reopening on May 15 , but Bowser said measures including more testing and contact tracing must happen before D.C. can safely do so .
Tuesday was the region ’ s worst day yet : Coronavirus deaths reached an all-time high , with 70 new confirmed deaths in Maryland , 41 in Virginia and eight in D.C. Putin Spokesman Hospitalized With COVID-19 As Cases Surge In Russia — 5/13/2020 , 7 a.m .
ET Dmitry Peskov , President Vladimir Putin ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ aides , confirmed to state-run media on Tuesday that he had “ fallen ill ” with the virus .
He and his wife , Tatyana Navka , have been hospitalized .
Russia overtook Spain this week as the country with the highest number of COVID-19 cases after the United States .
The country has reported over 230,000 confirmed infections to date and about 2,100 deaths .
Several top Kremlin officials have been sick with the coronavirus .
Despite the rising number of cases , Putin announced Monday that the country would start to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Lockdowns Lifted As Brazil Records Deadliest Day — 5/13/20 , 4:15 a.m .
ET

Restaurants, cafes and bars in Australia’s most populous state reopened on Friday after a two-month shutdown under coronavirus lockdown measures, boosting the federal government’s bid to get people back in work.
The easing of quarantine measures in New South Wales (NSW) comes just a day after the national statistics office reported unprecedented record-high job losses and Prime Minister Scott Morrison warned that worse was still to come.
In Sydney, locals braved a cold, wet morning to catch up with friends and family over a coffee.
“It is such a treat,” said Jess Best, who met up with a friend in a cafe in the city’s eastern suburbs. “To be able to sit down with other people around and chat to my friend. I can have a normal morning, not hiding away in my home.”
NSW officials reported eight new cases of COVID-19 on Friday, the highest daily tally in just over a week. The national daily increase has slowed to an average of less than 20 a day.
Officials have credited lockdown measures adopted in March, including closing the country’s borders and ordering people to stay home unless on essential business, with constraining the spread of the virus. Australia has recorded about 7,000 COVID-19 cases, including 98 deaths, significantly below the levels reported in North America and Europe. Read more
— James Martin
More Than 300,000 People Have Died From COVID-19 Worldwide ― 5/14/2020, 3:21 p.m. ET
The coronavirus has claimed at least 300,000 lives around the globe, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.
Nearly one-third of those fatalities have been reported in the U.S., where some 85,000 people have died after falling ill with COVID-19.
Overall, more than 4.4 million people have had confirmed cases of the virus. With 1.4 million confirmed cases, the U.S. has by far the world’s highest number of infections, and currently ranks seventh in terms of deaths per 100,000 people.
― Lydia O’Connor
Whistleblower Dr. Rick Bright Warns Coronavirus Resurgence Would ‘Devastate’ U.S. — 5/14/2020, 3:08 p.m. ET
Dr. Rick Bright, the whistleblower and former government scientist who was abruptly fired after pushing back against the Trump administration, warned in congressional testimony Thursday that the country desperately needs a plan to combat a potentially resurgent coronavirus during the upcoming flu season.
Bright testified that he was removed from his position as director of the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority last month, likely in retaliation for having repeatedly warned the Trump White House it wasn’t doing enough to combat COVID-19.
“I believe we could have done better,” Bright told the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health. “I believe there were critical steps we did not take in time.”
In particular, Bright said that emails urging increased production of critical medical equipment like masks went unheeded.
Read more here.
― Ryan Grenoble
California Prepares For Another Potentially Disastrous Wildfire Season Amid Pandemic — 5/14/2020, 6 a.m. ET
California Gov. Gavin Newsom on Wednesday laid out his plan for dealing with the upcoming wildfire season amid the coronavirus pandemic. “We gotta walk and chew gum at the same time,” he said at a news conference in El Dorado County, near Sacramento. The governor will propose additional funds in the budget for hiring firefighters and grants to local counties.
Mark Ghilarducci, director of California’s office of emergency services, said his team is working on protocols for evacuating people safely from fire zones while respecting social distancing.
— Sarah Ruiz-Grossman
Yellowstone, Grand Canyon National Parks To Welcome Back Visitors On Limited Basis — 5/14/2020, 5:30 a.m.
Yellowstone and Grand Canyon are among the national parks planning to welcome back visitors on a limited basis following lengthy closures due to COVID-19. Portions of the two popular parks will remain closed to the public, and visitors have been encouraged to wear face coverings.
Overnight lodging and campgrounds will also remain closed in both parks and no tour buses will be permitted, Reuters reported.
— Dominique Mosbergen
Maryland To Lift Stay-At-Home Orders On Friday — 5/13/2020, 5:58 p.m. ET
Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan announced Wednesday that he’s lifting the state’s stay-at-home orders this Friday at 5 p.m.
“Maryland has achieved the 14-day trend of plateauing and declining numbers,” the Republican governor said at a press conference, even though public health officials warn relaxing so many rules at this time comes with a high risk of coronavirus cases resurging.
On Friday, a “safer at home public health advisory” will go into effect that allows retail, salon, manufacturing and religious services to resume with some limits in place. People will not be allowed to gather in groups of more than 10. None of the new guidance will be enforced under the rule of the law.
― Lydia O’Connor
Cuomo Finally Provides Sign Language Interpreter At Daily Briefing After Lawsuit From Deaf New Yorkers — 5/13/20, 1:30 p.m. ET
Wednesday marked the first time New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) provided a real-time American Sign Language (ASL) interpreter onscreen during his daily, widely viewed COVID-19 update, two weeks after a lawsuit from a group of deaf New Yorkers and disability rights advocates.
Filed on April 29, the lawsuit said Cuomo was the only U.S. governor holding daily coronavirus briefings without a visible, real-time ASL interpreter onscreen — known as “televised in frame ASL interpretation.”
In the lawsuit, the group Disability Rights New York said it had received “a large number of complaints from deaf New Yorkers who are unable to understand Governor Cuomo’s daily briefings due to the lack of in frame televised ASL interpretation.” Several of the plaintiffs in the lawsuit cited difficulties in receiving accurate and prompt information about the state’s response to the pandemic, including several major directives, like Cuomo’s stay-at-home order and the requirement to wear masks in public.
Read more here.
— Marina Fang
D.C. Extends Stay-At-Home Order Through June 8 — 5/13/20, 11:40 a.m. ET
The nation’s capital will extend its stay-at-home order through June 8, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser announced Thursday morning. The city initially planned to begin reopening on May 15, but Bowser said measures including more testing and contact tracing must happen before D.C. can safely do so.
Tuesday was the region’s worst day yet: Coronavirus deaths reached an all-time high, with 70 new confirmed deaths in Maryland, 41 in Virginia and eight in D.C.
— Sebastian Murdock
Putin Spokesman Hospitalized With COVID-19 As Cases Surge In Russia — 5/13/2020, 7 a.m. ET
Dmitry Peskov, President Vladimir Putin’s press secretary and one of his closest aides, confirmed to state-run media on Tuesday that he had “fallen ill” with the virus. He and his wife, Tatyana Navka, have been hospitalized.
Russia overtook Spain this week as the country with the highest number of COVID-19 cases after the United States. The country has reported over 230,000 confirmed infections to date and about 2,100 deaths.
Several top Kremlin officials have been sick with the coronavirus. Despite the rising number of cases, Putin announced Monday that the country would start to lift its partial lockdown.
— Dominique Mosbergen
Bolsonaro Wants Lockdowns Lifted As Brazil Records Deadliest Day — 5/13/20, 4:15 a.m. ET


huffpost--2020-05-13--Senate Rejects Bid To Prevent Warrantless Government Surveillance Of Internet Use

The Senate on Wednesday narrowly defeated a measure seeking to prevent Americans ’ internet browsing and search histories from warrantless surveillance by the federal government .
The vote was 59 in favor , 37 opposed ― short of the necessary 60 votes needed for adoption .
Offered as an amendment by Sens .
Ron Wyden ( D-Ore. ) and Steve Daines ( R-Mont . )
to the renewal of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act ( FISA ) , the vote on it was marked by a scrambling of the Senate ’ s partisan divide .
Backing the proposal were 34 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
But , with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell ( R-Ky. ) a prime opponent , voting against it were 27 Republicans and 10 Democrats .
“ Is it right at this unique time when millions of law-abiding citizens are at home , for the government to be able to spy on their internet searches and web browsing without a warrant ?
” Wyden , a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee , asked on Wednesday , referring to the coronavirus epidemic .
“ That ’ s exactly what the government has the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Wyden , saying the Senate should stop “ further eroding Americans ’ privacy and civil liberties , ” pinned the blame for the amendment ’ s defeat on McConnell , But also key were the “ no ” votes by the 10 national security-minded Democrats : Tom Carper of Delaware , Bob Casey of Pennsylvania , Dianne Feinstein of California , Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire , Doug Jones of Alabama , Tim Kaine of Virginia , Joe Manchin of West Virginia , Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire , Mark Warner of Virginia @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Carper said he opposed the amendment because of concerns expressed by House leaders , including Speaker Nancy Pelosi ( D-Calif. ) , that it would threaten the entire law from being reauthorized by requiring the lower chamber to sign off on the change .
Shaheen said she believes the secretive FISA court , which oversees requests for surveillance warrants , will act as a sufficient check on the government ’ s requests for Internet browsing history .
Whitehouse said private companies have “ far greater ” access to Internet search history and he @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on the matter .
“ I actually trust the U.S. government more than I trust Google Inc. , ” he added , referring to Google ’ s parent company , Alphabet .
Four senators were absent for the vote : Lamar Alexander ( R-Tenn. ) , Ben Sasse ( R-Neb . )
, Bernie Sanders ( I-Vt. ) and Patty Murray ( D-Wash. ) As the vote broke , support from just one of them would have passed the amendment .

LOADING ERROR LOADING
The Senate on Wednesday narrowly defeated a measure seeking to prevent Americans’ internet browsing and search histories from warrantless surveillance by the federal government.
The vote was 59 in favor, 37 opposed ― short of the necessary 60 votes needed for adoption.
Offered as an amendment by Sens. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and Steve Daines (R-Mont.) to the renewal of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), the vote on it was marked by a scrambling of the Senate’s partisan divide.
Advertisement
Backing the proposal were 34 Democrats, 24 Republicans and one independent. But, with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) a prime opponent, voting against it were 27 Republicans and 10 Democrats.
“Is it right at this unique time when millions of law-abiding citizens are at home, for the government to be able to spy on their internet searches and web browsing without a warrant?” Wyden, a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, asked on Wednesday, referring to the coronavirus epidemic. “That’s exactly what the government has the power to do without our amendment.”
Wyden, saying the Senate should stop “further eroding Americans’ privacy and civil liberties,” pinned the blame for the amendment’s defeat on McConnell,
But also key were the “no” votes by the 10 national security-minded Democrats: Tom Carper of Delaware, Bob Casey of Pennsylvania, Dianne Feinstein of California, Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire, Doug Jones of Alabama, Tim Kaine of Virginia, Joe Manchin of West Virginia, Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire, Mark Warner of Virginia and Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island.
Advertisement
Carper said he opposed the amendment because of concerns expressed by House leaders, including Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), that it would threaten the entire law from being reauthorized by requiring the lower chamber to sign off on the change.
Shaheen said she believes the secretive FISA court, which oversees requests for surveillance warrants, will act as a sufficient check on the government’s requests for Internet browsing history.
Whitehouse said private companies have “far greater” access to Internet search history and he was not inclined to hamstring federal officials on the matter.
“I actually trust the U.S. government more than I trust Google Inc.,” he added, referring to Google’s parent company, Alphabet.
Four senators were absent for the vote: Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), Ben Sasse (R-Neb.), Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Patty Murray (D-Wash.) As the vote broke, support from just one of them would have passed the amendment.
Advertisement
The vote on reauthorizing FISA, which expired in March, is expected later this week.


huffpost--2020-03-15--Countries Around The World Announce More Coronavirus Restrictions

President Donald Trump announced that the U.S. , which days ago barred travelers from most of Europe , will extend the ban to Britain and Ireland .
And more cities in the U.S. put in place curbs on gatherings of more than a few hundred people , with one New Jersey city even announcing an overnight curfew .
In a lockdown similar to the one already imposed in Italy , people will be allowed to leave their homes only to buy food and medicine , commute to work , go to hospitals and banks , or take trips related to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ elderly .
All schools and universities were closed , along with restaurants , bars , hotels and other nonessential retail businesses .
Despite pleas for calm from authorities , shoppers packed supermarkets in Spain in the morning .
But overall , the normally bustling streets of the country ’ s two biggest cities were noticeably quieter as the message sank in that social distancing is the only way to stop the pandemic .
“ We had to close and remain shut for 15 days , ” restaurant owner Rachel Paparardo said in Barcelona @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
“ But this is nothing .
It is just so more people don ’ t get infected and we can recover from this.
” In the Philippines , new restrictions for metropolitan Manila — home to more than 12 million people — that went into effect Sunday mean the suspension of domestic travel by land , air and sea to and from the capital region , as well as an overnight curfew .
In Britain , the death toll nearly doubled from the day before to 21 , and the number of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Ireland had 90 confirmed cases and one death as of Friday .
Greece ’ s infection total approached 230 with three deaths , and police there arrested 45 shopkeepers Saturday for violating a ban on operations .
The U.S. has seen 60 deaths and more than 2,100 cases .
In hard-hit Washington state , where 40 have died and and more than 550 have been infected , officials said the disease is straining the supply of protective gear available to medical providers despite shipments from the federal government .

LOADING ERROR LOADING
BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Authorities around the world turned to increasingly drastic measures Sunday to try to slow the spread of the new coronavirus, with lockdowns, curfews and travel restrictions spreading.
Soldiers and police sealed the densely populated Philippine capital from most domestic travelers in one of Southeast Asia’s most drastic containment measures. The move mirrored a lockdown Spain announced just hours earlier for its 46 million citizens.
Advertisement
France ordered the closing of just about everything the rest of the world loves about it — the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre, the cafes and restaurants — as governments took increasingly desperate measures to put more space between people and contain the virus.
A screen announces the closure of the Eiffel Tower after the French government banned all gatherings of over 100 people to limit the spread of the virus COVID-19, in Paris, Saturday, March 14, 2020. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena) ASSOCIATED PRESS
At U.S. airports, travelers returning from Europe were greeted with hourslong waits for required medical screenings. While American citizens, green card holders and some others are allowed to return to the U.S. amid new European travel restrictions, they’re being funneled to 13 U.S. airports where they’re subject to health screenings and quarantine orders.
Videos and photos posted on social media showed packed, winding lines of returning travelers. On Twitter, airports like Dallas/Fort Worth and Chicago O’Hare acknowledged the delays and asked for patience.
Advertisement
President Donald Trump announced that the U.S., which days ago barred travelers from most of Europe, will extend the ban to Britain and Ireland. And more cities in the U.S. put in place curbs on gatherings of more than a few hundred people, with one New Jersey city even announcing an overnight curfew.
Travelers wearing surgical masks wait in line, Friday, March 13, 2020, at Miami International Airport in Miami. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee) ASSOCIATED PRESS
In China, where the virus was first detected in December, those arriving on overseas flights were routed to a converted exhibition center for initial checks before being shuttled off to their homes or other quarantine locations.
It was clear, however, that the center of gravity in the crisis had shifted westward toward Europe and North America. The virus has infected more than 150,000 people worldwide and killed over 5,600.
In a nationally televised address Saturday, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez detailed the battery of exceptional measures put in place as part of a two-week state of emergency to fight the sharp rise in infections.
Advertisement
Later Saturday, Spain’s government said Sánchez’s wife had tested positive for the coronavirus. Begoña Gómez and the prime minister are in good health, the government said.
In a lockdown similar to the one already imposed in Italy, people will be allowed to leave their homes only to buy food and medicine, commute to work, go to hospitals and banks, or take trips related to the care of the young and the elderly. All schools and universities were closed, along with restaurants, bars, hotels and other nonessential retail businesses.
“From now we enter into a new phase,” Sánchez said after a Cabinet meeting that lasted over seven hours. “We won’t hesitate in doing what we must to beat the virus. We are putting health first.”
A man wearing a mask walks past empty shelves in a meat market in Barcelona, Spain, Saturday, March 14, 2020. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti) ASSOCIATED PRESS
Spanish authorities said the number of infections climbed past 5,700, half of them in the capital, Madrid. That represents a national increase of over 1,500 in 24 hours. The country had 136 deaths, up from 120. Spain has the fifth-highest number of cases, behind China, Italy, Iran and South Korea.
Advertisement
For most people, the coronavirus causes only mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia. The vast majority of people recover in a matter of weeks.
Despite pleas for calm from authorities, shoppers packed supermarkets in Spain in the morning. But overall, the normally bustling streets of the country’s two biggest cities were noticeably quieter as the message sank in that social distancing is the only way to stop the pandemic.
“We had to close and remain shut for 15 days,” restaurant owner Rachel Paparardo said in Barcelona, which was already under regional restrictions. “But this is nothing. It is just so more people don’t get infected and we can recover from this.”
In the Philippines, new restrictions for metropolitan Manila — home to more than 12 million people — that went into effect Sunday mean the suspension of domestic travel by land, air and sea to and from the capital region, as well as an overnight curfew.
Large gatherings are prohibited and most government work in executive department offices will be suspended in the metropolis for a month. School closures at all levels were extended in the Philippines, which has confirmed 140 cases of the virus, including 11 deaths.
Advertisement
An army trooper uses a thermal scanner to check the temperature of man before entering the metropolis at a checkpoint on the outskirts of Quezon city, Philippines Sunday, March 15, 2020. (AP Photo/Aaron Favila) ASSOCIATED PRESS
In the Middle East, Muslim authorities announced that Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa mosque, Islam’s third-holiest site, would be closed indefinitely due to concerns about the outbreak, with prayers continuing to be held on the sprawling esplanade outside.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s trial on serious corruption charges, which was supposed to begin this week, was postponed for two months due to restrictions on public gatherings.
Paris followed other cities in shuttering major tourist attractions, and France announced the closing of all restaurants, cafes, theaters and nonessential shops starting Sunday. France has recorded at least 3,600 infections. It has banned all gatherings of more than 100 people, ordered all schools closed and asked companies to allow workers to stay home.
France pressed ahead with nationwide municipal elections on Sunday but ordered special measures to keep people at a safe distance and to sanitize surfaces.
Advertisement
In Italy, the worst-hit European country, the number of deaths climbed past 1,400 and infections surged roughly 20% overnight to more than 21,000 because of what authorities characterized as irresponsible behavior by people still socializing despite the nationwide lockdown. Many Italian cities, including Rome and Milan, decided to close playgrounds and parks, too.
A couple applauds next to an Italian flag reading everything will be alright, at the Garbatella neighborhood, in Rome, Saturday, March 14, 2020. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino) ASSOCIATED PRESS
In Britain, the death toll nearly doubled from the day before to 21, and the number of people infected rose to over 1,100. Ireland had 90 confirmed cases and one death as of Friday. Greece’s infection total approached 230 with three deaths, and police there arrested 45 shopkeepers Saturday for violating a ban on operations.
The U.S. has seen 60 deaths and more than 2,100 cases. In hard-hit Washington state, where 40 have died and and more than 550 have been infected, officials said the disease is straining the supply of protective gear available to medical providers despite shipments from the federal government.
Trump tested negative for the new coronavirus, the president’s personal physician said Saturday.
European countries took steps to isolate themselves from their neighbors.
Denmark closed its borders and halted passenger traffic to and from the country. Poland planned to close is borders at midnight and deny all foreigners entry unless they lived in Poland or had personal ties there. The Czech Republic and Slovakia took similar action.
Advertisement
Russia said its borders with Norway and Poland will be closed to most foreigners beginning Sunday.
In the Pacific, Australia and New Zealand announced that incoming travelers will be required to isolate themselves for 14 days, with few exceptions.
In New Zealand, passengers aboard a cruise ship in the South Island tourist town of Akaroa were not being allowed off the vessel Sunday while three passengers are tested for the new coronavirus.
Director-General of Health Ashley Bloomfield said that one of the passengers on the Golden Princess is being treated as a suspected case because that person has developed symptoms of the disease and is a close contact of another person who has been confirmed as having contracted COVID-19.
Bloomfield said they should get the test results on Monday, and that officials are considering their response should the case be confirmed.
He says one lesson from observing problems with the virus spreading on other cruise ships is to avoid leaving everybody on board. Bloomfield didn’t elaborate on what form any response might take.
Advertisement
___
Moulson reported from Berlin. Associated Press writers Aritz Parra in Madrid, Sylvie Corbet in Paris, Yanan Wang in Beijing, Frances D’Emilio in Rome, Joseph Wilson in Barcelona, Spain, Andrew Taylor in Washington, Karel Janicek in Prague, Nick Perry in Christchurch, New Zealand, and Jim Gomez in Manila contributed to this report.
___
The Associated Press receives support for health and science coverage from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
___


huffpost--2020-03-15--Ireland Orders All Of Its Pubs To Close On Eve Of St Patrick's Day

DUBLIN ( Reuters ) - Ireland on Sunday said all bars in the country should close until at least the end of the month to curb the spread of coronavirus after videos of groups singing in packed Dublin venues sparked anger on social media .
The government ’ s move comes just two days before Ireland ’ s national day , St Patrick ’ s Day , which traditionally sees bars across the country packed from early in the day .
The annual parade celebrating the day had already been canceled .
Ireland , known around the world for its @ @ @ @ @ @ @ number of confirmed COVID-19 cases had increased to 169 from 129 .
It closed schools and universities last week and advised people to cancel all indoor gatherings of 100 people or more .
People stand outside The Quays Bar in Dublin as pubs and clubs in the Irish tourist hotspot Temple Bar closed with immediate effect amid coronavirus fears .
But it stopped short of closing cafes , bars and restaurants , as some European countries have done , citing the potential impact on workers and small businesses and saying owners should ensure @ @ @ @ @ @ @ from each other .
But showing packed bars with sing-alongs and crowded streets in Temple Bar , Dublin ’ s busiest nightlife district , went viral on social media on Saturday under the # CloseThePubs hashtag .
One stag party , usually involving a group of men celebrating shortly before one their number gets married , was shown walking down the street in medical overalls and face masks .
A sign on the door of The Temple Bar announces its closure amid coronavirus fears , in Dublin , Ireland , on Sunday .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ closures , but on Sunday afternoon the government moved after a meeting with pub owners , and called on “ all public houses and bars ( including hotel bars ) to close from this evening until at least March 29.
” Publicans reported “ real difficulty in implementing ... guidelines on social distancing ... as pubs are specifically designed to promote social interaction in a situation where alcohol reduces personal inhibitions , ” the statement said .
Twitter users praised the pubs that had closed voluntarily , with the DublinByPub.ie bar guide offering @ @ @ @ @ @ @ go on the lash in when this is all over .
”

LOADING ERROR LOADING
DUBLIN (Reuters) - Ireland on Sunday said all bars in the country should close until at least the end of the month to curb the spread of coronavirus after videos of groups singing in packed Dublin venues sparked anger on social media.
The government’s move comes just two days before Ireland’s national day, St Patrick’s Day, which traditionally sees bars across the country packed from early in the day. The annual parade celebrating the day had already been canceled.
Advertisement
Ireland, known around the world for its traditional pubs, on Sunday said the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases had increased to 169 from 129. It closed schools and universities last week and advised people to cancel all indoor gatherings of 100 people or more.
People stand outside The Quays Bar in Dublin as pubs and clubs in the Irish tourist hotspot Temple Bar closed with immediate effect amid coronavirus fears. ASSOCIATED PRESS
But it stopped short of closing cafes, bars and restaurants, as some European countries have done, citing the potential impact on workers and small businesses and saying owners should ensure customers are kept at a safe distance from each other.
But showing packed bars with sing-alongs and crowded streets in Temple Bar, Dublin’s busiest nightlife district, went viral on social media on Saturday under the #CloseThePubs hashtag.
Advertisement
One stag party, usually involving a group of men celebrating shortly before one their number gets married, was shown walking down the street in medical overalls and face masks.
Ireland’s Health Minister Simon Harris, described the images of packed pubs as an insult to medical workers.
A sign on the door of The Temple Bar announces its closure amid coronavirus fears, in Dublin, Ireland, on Sunday. ASSOCIATED PRESS
A number of pubs had announced voluntary closures, but on Sunday afternoon the government moved after a meeting with pub owners, and called on “all public houses and bars (including hotel bars) to close from this evening until at least March 29.”
Publicans reported “real difficulty in implementing ... guidelines on social distancing ... as pubs are specifically designed to promote social interaction in a situation where alcohol reduces personal inhibitions,” the statement said.
Advertisement
Publican group the Licensed Vintners Association said 7,000 pubs would close, with 50,000 jobs affected.
The government called on people not to organize private parties for the same reason.