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| Coronavirus US live: cases soar as Sinclair TV stations to air Fauci conspiracy theory | Coronavirus US live: cases soar as Sinclair TV stations to air Fauci conspiracy theory |
| (32 minutes later) | |
| Local stations to show interview with Plandemic researcher as the question ‘Did Dr Fauci create Covid-19?’ appears on the screen | Local stations to show interview with Plandemic researcher as the question ‘Did Dr Fauci create Covid-19?’ appears on the screen |
| New York, once the center of Covid-19 infections in the US, has reported a drop in hospitalizations for the virus. Governor Andrew Cuomo said there were 646 hospitalizations on Friday, down 650 from the day before. Ten New Yorkers died from Covid-19 over the same period. Of the 71,466 tests for the virus, 750 came back positive. | |
| Cuomo has expressed concern recently about the increasing number of outdoor gatherings in New York as people let off steam during the warm summer months. | |
| NBC News reports that some GOP donors have been left with little to show for their money after the cancellation of a number of Republican National Convention events. | |
| Around $38m had been raised to hold the RNC in North Carolina, but the location was changed due to the Covid-19 pandemic and NBC reports most of that money has now been spent. The majority of the convention was then moved to Jacksonville, Florida, and an additional $6m raised. But with Florida now a Covid-19 hotspot, the large in-person events have been cancelled. GOP officials told NBC that much of the money raised for Jacksonville remains. | |
| While many Republicans have agreed with the decision, one anonymous GOP donor said they were angry with the cancellation. “This is the cancel culture run wild,” they said. | |
| With Trump trailing in the polls to Joe Biden, and the public skeptical of his ability to handle the pandemic, the president has attempted to show he is taking the dangers of Covid-19 more seriously in recent days. | |
| Monica Lewinsky has made light of her affair with Bill Clinton with a tweet that quickly went viral on Friday. | Monica Lewinsky has made light of her affair with Bill Clinton with a tweet that quickly went viral on Friday. |
| “I have a joke” was trending on Twitter on Friday, with users offering up one-line witticisms. When one user tweeted “I have a Charles Manson joke and it kills”, Lewinsky offered her own one-liner: ““I have an intern joke and it... nevermind”. | “I have a joke” was trending on Twitter on Friday, with users offering up one-line witticisms. When one user tweeted “I have a Charles Manson joke and it kills”, Lewinsky offered her own one-liner: ““I have an intern joke and it... nevermind”. |
| By Saturday morning, Lewinsky’s tweet had been liked more than 350,000 times. “Monica wins the internet,” tweeted Mia Farrow. | By Saturday morning, Lewinsky’s tweet had been liked more than 350,000 times. “Monica wins the internet,” tweeted Mia Farrow. |
| Lewinsky was an intern at Bill Clinton’s White House when she had an affair with the president. The affair led to Clinton’s impeachment by the US House of Representatives after he lied when denying he had extra-marital relations with Lewinsky. He was later acquitted by the Senate. Clinton was 49 at the time of the affair and Lewinsky was 22. | Lewinsky was an intern at Bill Clinton’s White House when she had an affair with the president. The affair led to Clinton’s impeachment by the US House of Representatives after he lied when denying he had extra-marital relations with Lewinsky. He was later acquitted by the Senate. Clinton was 49 at the time of the affair and Lewinsky was 22. |
| Lewinsky has joked about the affair before on Twitter. Earlier this month comedian Sarah Cooper tweeted: “My advice to the younger generation: make your mistakes now. Because by the time you’re 40, you’ll barely even remember them! And then you get to make the same mistakes all over again it’s really fun.” | Lewinsky has joked about the affair before on Twitter. Earlier this month comedian Sarah Cooper tweeted: “My advice to the younger generation: make your mistakes now. Because by the time you’re 40, you’ll barely even remember them! And then you get to make the same mistakes all over again it’s really fun.” |
| Lewinsky shared the tweet with the comment “uhhhmmmmmm.” | Lewinsky shared the tweet with the comment “uhhhmmmmmm.” |
| Lewinsky has spoken about how she was demonized and humiliated during the fallout from the scandal, while Clinton was protected by his power and influence. | Lewinsky has spoken about how she was demonized and humiliated during the fallout from the scandal, while Clinton was protected by his power and influence. |
| “I felt like every layer of my skin and my identity were ripped off of me in 98 and 99. It’s a skinning of sorts … the shame sticks to you like tar,” she told the Guardian in 2016. | “I felt like every layer of my skin and my identity were ripped off of me in 98 and 99. It’s a skinning of sorts … the shame sticks to you like tar,” she told the Guardian in 2016. |
| White House chief of staff Mark Meadows is expected on Capitol Hill on Saturday for talks with Senate Republicans over the next coronavirus relief package. | White House chief of staff Mark Meadows is expected on Capitol Hill on Saturday for talks with Senate Republicans over the next coronavirus relief package. |
| The stakes are high. US unemployment rose again on Friday after months of falls, enhanced benefits are due to run out at the end of the month and evictions of Americans unable to pay rent are rising. | The stakes are high. US unemployment rose again on Friday after months of falls, enhanced benefits are due to run out at the end of the month and evictions of Americans unable to pay rent are rising. |
| Democrats and the Trump administration want a deal by the end of next week. But on Friday Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell said: “Hopefully we can come together behind some package we can agree on in the next few weeks.” | Democrats and the Trump administration want a deal by the end of next week. But on Friday Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell said: “Hopefully we can come together behind some package we can agree on in the next few weeks.” |
| In a tweet referring to the pandemic-inspired special unemployment rate of $600 a week, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said: “The Senate must take up the House-passed Heroes Act and extend this critical lifeline for working families.” | In a tweet referring to the pandemic-inspired special unemployment rate of $600 a week, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said: “The Senate must take up the House-passed Heroes Act and extend this critical lifeline for working families.” |
| The House passed its relief package in May but the Senate has not taken it up. Republicans in the upper chamber are debating reducing unemployment payments, which they believe provide a disincentive to seek work. | The House passed its relief package in May but the Senate has not taken it up. Republicans in the upper chamber are debating reducing unemployment payments, which they believe provide a disincentive to seek work. |
| The US economy has been battered by the coronavirus pandemic, which is now surging in mainly Republican-run states which sought to reopen their economies early. | The US economy has been battered by the coronavirus pandemic, which is now surging in mainly Republican-run states which sought to reopen their economies early. |
| “A wall of Vets” has been formed in Portland to protect demonstrators from federal agents. | “A wall of Vets” has been formed in Portland to protect demonstrators from federal agents. |
| Duston Obermeyer, a Marines veteran, said the group of around 30 had been created after video emerged last week showing agents beating and tear gassing a navy veteran at the Portland protests. | Duston Obermeyer, a Marines veteran, said the group of around 30 had been created after video emerged last week showing agents beating and tear gassing a navy veteran at the Portland protests. |
| “They are not supposed to be coming and attacking protesters,” Obermeyer told the Guardian. “They didn’t even give any warning, there was no ‘hey you need to move’, ‘hey back up’. There was basically them walking out and assaulting a protester just to prove that they could.” | “They are not supposed to be coming and attacking protesters,” Obermeyer told the Guardian. “They didn’t even give any warning, there was no ‘hey you need to move’, ‘hey back up’. There was basically them walking out and assaulting a protester just to prove that they could.” |
| Ron Wyden, a Democrat senator from Oregon told the Guardian that America is “staring down the barrel of martial law” after Donald Trump’s heavy handed crackdown on the protests in Portland. | Ron Wyden, a Democrat senator from Oregon told the Guardian that America is “staring down the barrel of martial law” after Donald Trump’s heavy handed crackdown on the protests in Portland. |
| Wyden said he had recently spoken with a legal adviser for the head of national intelligence about the situation in Portland. | Wyden said he had recently spoken with a legal adviser for the head of national intelligence about the situation in Portland. |
| “I asked him again and again what was the constitutional justification for what the Trump administration is doing in my home town and he completely ducked the questions and several times said, ‘Well, I just want to extend my best wishes to your constituents.’ | “I asked him again and again what was the constitutional justification for what the Trump administration is doing in my home town and he completely ducked the questions and several times said, ‘Well, I just want to extend my best wishes to your constituents.’ |
| “After I heard him say it several times, I said my constituents don’t want your best wishes. They want to know when you’re going to stop trashing their constitutional rights.” | “After I heard him say it several times, I said my constituents don’t want your best wishes. They want to know when you’re going to stop trashing their constitutional rights.” |
| The Associated Press reports from Portland, Oregon that “thousands of protesters gathered outside the federal courthouse into the early hours of Saturday, shooting fireworks at the building as plumes of tear gas, dispensed by US agents, lingered above. | The Associated Press reports from Portland, Oregon that “thousands of protesters gathered outside the federal courthouse into the early hours of Saturday, shooting fireworks at the building as plumes of tear gas, dispensed by US agents, lingered above. |
| “The demonstration went on for hours until federal agents entered the crowd around 2.30am and marched in a line down the street, clearing remaining protesters with tear gas at close range. They also extinguished a large fire in the street outside the courthouse. | “The demonstration went on for hours until federal agents entered the crowd around 2.30am and marched in a line down the street, clearing remaining protesters with tear gas at close range. They also extinguished a large fire in the street outside the courthouse. |
| “The Federal Protective Service had declared the gathering ‘an unlawful assembly’ and cited that officers had been injured. By 3am, most demonstrators had left with with only some small groups roaming the streets.” | “The Federal Protective Service had declared the gathering ‘an unlawful assembly’ and cited that officers had been injured. By 3am, most demonstrators had left with with only some small groups roaming the streets.” |
| The situation in the city remains an extraordinary expression of the partisan divide in US society, which Donald Trump is seeking to exploit as he looks to make up polling deficits in his election race against Joe Biden. | The situation in the city remains an extraordinary expression of the partisan divide in US society, which Donald Trump is seeking to exploit as he looks to make up polling deficits in his election race against Joe Biden. |
| The Guardian has spoken to Oregon’s two US senators, both Democrats, and they have stark warnings to make: | The Guardian has spoken to Oregon’s two US senators, both Democrats, and they have stark warnings to make: |
| Ron Wyden: “Unless America draws a line in the sand right now, I think we could be staring down the barrel of martial law in the middle of a presidential election.” | Ron Wyden: “Unless America draws a line in the sand right now, I think we could be staring down the barrel of martial law in the middle of a presidential election.” |
| Jeff Merkley: “It’s very clear what the president is trying to do is incite violence and then display that violence in campaign ads. And I say this because that’s exactly what he’s doing right now. This is not some theory.” | Jeff Merkley: “It’s very clear what the president is trying to do is incite violence and then display that violence in campaign ads. And I say this because that’s exactly what he’s doing right now. This is not some theory.” |
| Here’s the full story, from David Smith and Daniel Strauss in Washington DC: | Here’s the full story, from David Smith and Daniel Strauss in Washington DC: |
| Donald Trump is up and tossing his tweets about, with some boosterism for the executive orders on drugs prices he signed yesterday and, of course, more messaging around his key campaign theme, law and order: | Donald Trump is up and tossing his tweets about, with some boosterism for the executive orders on drugs prices he signed yesterday and, of course, more messaging around his key campaign theme, law and order: |
| Who is Brandon Straka? In the words of NBC News, he used to be: | Who is Brandon Straka? In the words of NBC News, he used to be: |
| Straka’s “Walk Away” effort will host a rally in Baltimore on Saturday, seeking to “rescue America” from “radical leftists”. And he’s appearing on Fox News, which might explain why Trump is tweeting about him. | Straka’s “Walk Away” effort will host a rally in Baltimore on Saturday, seeking to “rescue America” from “radical leftists”. And he’s appearing on Fox News, which might explain why Trump is tweeting about him. |
| Do Democrats want to defund the police? No, in the sense that Joe Biden doesn’t, whatever Trump claimed on Fox News Sunday last week. | Do Democrats want to defund the police? No, in the sense that Joe Biden doesn’t, whatever Trump claimed on Fox News Sunday last week. |
| Are many Democrats leaving the party to vote for Republicans and Trump? The polls don’t say so, and the nonpartisan Cook Report thinks a blue tsunami is coming. | Are many Democrats leaving the party to vote for Republicans and Trump? The polls don’t say so, and the nonpartisan Cook Report thinks a blue tsunami is coming. |
| Trump is also saying this morning “the Dems have gone Stone Cold Left – Venezuela on steroids!” It’s hard to know where to start with that, except to say that the policy compact Biden reached with Bernie Sanders does not represent Venezuelan politics or policies on steroids. | Trump is also saying this morning “the Dems have gone Stone Cold Left – Venezuela on steroids!” It’s hard to know where to start with that, except to say that the policy compact Biden reached with Bernie Sanders does not represent Venezuelan politics or policies on steroids. |
| Here’s some more sensible reading on Biden’s policies, from Oliver Milman: | Here’s some more sensible reading on Biden’s policies, from Oliver Milman: |
| … and welcome to another day of coverage of the coronavirus outbreak in the US, and of course the politics of it and of everything else. | … and welcome to another day of coverage of the coronavirus outbreak in the US, and of course the politics of it and of everything else. |
| The US now stands, according to Johns Hopkins University, at more than 4.1m cases confirmed and more than 145,000 people dead. The economy is still cratering and in Congress negotiations over the next stimulus and relief package are dragging on – with extra unemployment assistance due to run out in less than a week and evictions beginning to climb. | The US now stands, according to Johns Hopkins University, at more than 4.1m cases confirmed and more than 145,000 people dead. The economy is still cratering and in Congress negotiations over the next stimulus and relief package are dragging on – with extra unemployment assistance due to run out in less than a week and evictions beginning to climb. |
| The president has resumed coronavirus briefings – without his senior public health experts and while hilarity swirls over his fixation on a simple cognitive test he says proves he is sharper than his election opponent. | The president has resumed coronavirus briefings – without his senior public health experts and while hilarity swirls over his fixation on a simple cognitive test he says proves he is sharper than his election opponent. |
| Ongoing protests over racial injustice, meanwhile, are being met with a militarised response in Portland, Oregon, and federal agents are on their way to other cities at the behest of Donald Trump, seeking to portray himself as a president of law and order. | Ongoing protests over racial injustice, meanwhile, are being met with a militarised response in Portland, Oregon, and federal agents are on their way to other cities at the behest of Donald Trump, seeking to portray himself as a president of law and order. |
| And in the middle of all this, local TV stations across the US owned by Sinclair Television will this weekend run an interview with a conspiracy theorist in which the question “DID DR FAUCI CREATE COVID-19?” will appear on the screen. | And in the middle of all this, local TV stations across the US owned by Sinclair Television will this weekend run an interview with a conspiracy theorist in which the question “DID DR FAUCI CREATE COVID-19?” will appear on the screen. |
| Anthony Fauci is the 79-year-old director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. He has served six presidents but this president has sought to keep him off TV, called him “alarmist” and generally undermined his work. | Anthony Fauci is the 79-year-old director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. He has served six presidents but this president has sought to keep him off TV, called him “alarmist” and generally undermined his work. |
| The conspiracy theorist is Judy Mikovits, who is behind the widely discredited Plandemic video. Her lawyer, Larry Klayman, also appears on the segment with the former Fox News host Eric Bolling, which is up online before broadcast this weekend. | The conspiracy theorist is Judy Mikovits, who is behind the widely discredited Plandemic video. Her lawyer, Larry Klayman, also appears on the segment with the former Fox News host Eric Bolling, which is up online before broadcast this weekend. |
| Mikovits claimed that in the last decade Fauci “manufactured” and shipped coronaviruses to Wuhan, China, which is widely accepted to have been the origin of the coronavirus outbreak. | Mikovits claimed that in the last decade Fauci “manufactured” and shipped coronaviruses to Wuhan, China, which is widely accepted to have been the origin of the coronavirus outbreak. |
| Bolling told CNN he did not “know of any video [Mikovits] was in prior to or after appearing on my show” and said: “Frankly, I was shocked when she made the accusation.” | Bolling told CNN he did not “know of any video [Mikovits] was in prior to or after appearing on my show” and said: “Frankly, I was shocked when she made the accusation.” |
| Bolling said he had questioned her claim about Fauci, which on air he called “hefty”, and had added Dr Nicole Saphier, a Fox News contributor, to the show in order to balance out the segment. | Bolling said he had questioned her claim about Fauci, which on air he called “hefty”, and had added Dr Nicole Saphier, a Fox News contributor, to the show in order to balance out the segment. |
| “I asked our producers to add Saphier to the show for the express purpose of debunking the conspiracy theory,” he told CNN. “I believe viewers see that I did not and do not endorse her theory.” | “I asked our producers to add Saphier to the show for the express purpose of debunking the conspiracy theory,” he told CNN. “I believe viewers see that I did not and do not endorse her theory.” |
| Sinclair is the biggest owner of local TV stations in the US. Its chairman has said that in 2016, he told Trump: “We are here to deliver your message.” | Sinclair is the biggest owner of local TV stations in the US. Its chairman has said that in 2016, he told Trump: “We are here to deliver your message.” |
| More to come. Here’s some sobering further reading from our Washington bureau chief, David Smith: | More to come. Here’s some sobering further reading from our Washington bureau chief, David Smith: |