Occupy Banksters & Crony Capitalism & GREED

The corporate bankruptcy wave has just gotten started
Axios | Dion Rabouin | date

Even with trillions of dollars in loans, grants and government support -- with markets having absorbed a record $1.22 trillion of corporate debt in just five months -- a slew of companies are defaulting on their loans and filing for bankruptcy in what is expected to be a record wave of insolvencies and defaults.

Why it matters: While equity and debt markets have rallied thanks to massive interventions from the Federal Reserve and Congress and excitement about the removal of lockdown orders, the real economy is quietly buckling, with many companies threatened by issues that predate the coronavirus pandemic.

What to watch: Already this year, 88 companies globally have defaulted on their debt, according to S&P Global. That's nearly double the number of corporate defaults to this point in 2019 and more than double 2018's total. Of the 88 defaults, 59 have been the result of missed interest and principal payments or bankruptcy. ... Read more

Schiff: Over-Leveraged Zombie Companies Threaten Economic Recovery
ZeroHedge | Schiff | 05/29/20

In the last couple of years, corporate debt has blown through the roof. So much so that the Federal Reserve issued warnings about the increasing levels of corporate indebtedness late last year.

The government shutdowns in response to COVID-19 have only exacerbated the problem. The Federal Reserve's prescription has been to encourage even more borrowing. Companies have obliged. As Bloomberg recently reported, "many of the companies hardest hit by the coronavirus outbreak have priced billions of dollars of bonds and loans in recent weeks."

Analysts say net corporate debt issuance could approach as much as $1 trillion this year. And according to Bloomberg, creditors are also waiving or loosening financial markers on existing debt, allowing companies to kick payments on current debt down the road. ... Read more

Trump FINALLY called out TO HIS FACE for lying about voter fraud | Brian Tyler Cohen | 05/28/20 | 6:15

The end of the beginning on energy companies' net-zero carbon pledges
Axios | Ben Geman | 05/28/20

Why it matters: A key thing to watch now is whether and how energy giants start providing more granular information on how to transform the pledges into concrete steps.

Thus far, while there have been varying levels of specifics, there remain very large blanks to fill in across the board, even as "net-zero" is the coin of the realm for European headquartered multinational oil giants (though resisted by U.S.-based majors ExxonMobil and Chevron).

Driving the news: Power giant Southern Company yesterday pledged to reach net-zero emissions by mid-century, joining a bunch of other big utilities who made similar vows over the past year or so. ... Read more

Veterans Affairs Secretary Robert Wilkie testifies on department's response to COVID-19 | PBS | 05/28/20 | 2:20:39

Live Fact-Check: President Trump Holds Press Briefing | At Michigan for Plant | older 05/22/20 | 1:39:40

US job losses pass 40m as coronavirus crisis sees claims rise 2.1m in a week
TheGuardian | Lauren Aratani | 05/28/20

The number of Americans who have lost their jobs in the past 10 weeks soared to more than 40 million as the number of unemployment claims continued to rise with 2.1 million people filing for unemployment last week.

The staggering job losses mark a grim milestone in the economic crisis that has gripped the US since the coronavirus triggered widespread shutdowns and stay-at-home orders in an effort to halt the spread of the deadly pandemic. ... Read more

Trump expected to sign executive order in bid to target Twitter and Facebook
TheGuardian | Tom McCarthy | 05/28/20

The move would also allow federal regulators and state-level prosecutors to sanction companies that in the government's judgment are not even-handed in their editorial practices.

The anticipated executive order, confirmed by the White House press secretary to reporters on Wednesday night, is the president's latest blow in an escalating battle with big tech companies including Twitter and Facebook.

Trump expected to sign executive order in bid to target Twitter and Facebook. ... Read more

Colombian designers prepare cardboard hospital beds that double as coffins
TheGuardian | Joe Parkin | 05/27/20

As coronavirus cases soar in Latin America, doctors say unorthodox idea may be necessary

A cardboard hospital bed that doubles as a coffin may seem morbid, but as Latin America emerges as the latest coronavirus hotspot, doctors have suggested it may be an innovation whose time has come.

"We were shut down for a couple of months like everyone else, until we had this idea," said Rodolfo Gómez, the founder of ABC Displays, which normally creates cardboard advertising props. "But when we saw what was happening in Ecuador, where bodies were piling up on the streets, we knew we had to prepare somehow."

Colombia's southern neighbour was the setting for one of the region's first major outbreaks in April, when residents in the city of Guayaquil were forced to dump the bodies of their dead in the streets. In that instance, local authorities ended up distributing cardboard coffins to alleviate a shortage of funeral supplies.

Now, caseloads are quickly rising across the region: Brazil is second only to the United States in confirmed cases and deaths, and on Friday World Health Organization officials warned: "In a sense, South America has become a new epicenter for the disease."... Read more

Kayleigh McEnany offered a straight-faced defence of Trump's wildest conspiracy theories during a Tuesday briefing
TheGuardian | David Smith | 05/27/20

"I will never lie to you," declared Kayleigh McEnany on her debut as the White House press secretary at the start of the month. "You have my word on that."

That would be a welcome change, reasoned critics of Donald Trump, but their hopes of a change in the way his administration communicates have been dashed.

McEnany has stunned viewers with her evangelical devotion to the US president ("who I believe is one of the best presidents, if not the best president, this country will ever have"), her straight-faced defence of his wildest conspiracy theories and her already-wearing-thin stunt of trying to turn the tables on reporters. ... Read more

Kayleigh McEnany FULL White House Briefing 5/26/20 | Fox10 | 05/26/20 | 20:55

TRUMP GOLF COUNT: 251 | Cost to Taxpayer: About $134,000,000
TRUMP GOLF COUNT: 251 | Cost to Taxpayer: About $134,000,000 | trumpgolfcount.com | current | website

Trump golf cart rentals have now cost US taxpayers more than half a million dollars
Trump golf cart rentals have now cost US taxpayers more than half a million dollars | qz.com | 11/21/19 | article

Trump's 29th Trip To Mar-a-Lago Brings Golf Tab To 334 Years Of Presidential Salary
HP | S.V. Date | older 02/14/20

President Donald Trump returned to Mar-a-Lago on Friday evening for the 29th golf-related trip of his presidency to his for-profit Palm Beach, Florida, resort, raising his total taxpayer golf tab to $133.8 million.

As he began his own run for the White House, candidate Trump repeatedly promised that golf would never make it onto a President Trump's schedule. "I love golf, but if I were in the White House, I don't think I'd ever see Turnberry again. I don't think I'd ever see Doral again," he told a rally audience in February 2016, referring to his courses in Scotland and Miami. "I don't ever think I'd see anything. I just want to stay in the White House and work my ass off."

Yet after three years in office, Trump has spent two-and-a-half times as many days on a golf course as Obama had done at the same point in his first term. If Trump plays golf both Saturday and Sunday, he will have played 248 times. Obama by his 1,123rd day in office had played 92 times.

And because Trump insists on playing at courses he owns, the cost to taxpayers has been nearly four times as high as it was for Obama. More than two-thirds of Trump's golf outings involve seven-figure trips aboard Air Force One, mainly to Florida and New Jersey, but also to Los Angeles, Ireland and Scotland. Obama, in contrast, played most of his golf on courses at military bases within a short drive of the White House. ... Read more

Michigan governor won't apologize for coronavirus lockdown
Axios | staff | 05/26/20

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer defended the strictness of her state's coronavirus lockdown in an interview with "Axios on HBO," saying it was necessary -- despite the protests that have drawn national attention -- because of how quickly the state's cases were rising.

The big picture: Whitmer, who has been a frequent target of President Trump, insisted that she had to act in the face of a lack of federal leadership -- and that thousands more people in her state would have died without the lockdown. "I'm never going to apologize for the fact that because there was a vacuum of leadership at the federal level, we had to take action to save people here in Michigan," she told Axios' Alexi McCammond. ... Read more

Whistleblowers silenced by China could have stopped global coronavirus spread | 60 Minutes Australia | 03/29/20 | 13:31

Fed's "National Activity Index" Crashes By Most In At Least 50 Years
ZeroHedge | | 05/26/20

Just another macro data point for so-called investors to ignore. US economic activity collapsed in April, according to the Chicago Fed. The national index, which draws on 85 economic indicators, crashed to a record low -16.74 in April versus -4.97 in March (and massively worse than the expected level of -3.50).

... Read more

St. Louis Post-Dispatch Editorial Exposes Trump's 'Colossal' Lie About Obama
HP | Ed Mazza | 05/26/20

The newspaper's editorial board said the Trump administration told Congress that the Obama administration left it with everything needed for a pandemic ? and sought big budget cuts from the programs as a result.

Trump's 2020 budget asked Congress to cut the pandemic preparedness budget by $102.9 million, part of $595.5 million in requested cuts to public health preparedness and response outlay.

"Obama left office with an unblemished record of building up the nation's pandemic preparedness," the newspaper said. "Trump systematically sought to dismantle it." ... Read more

Donald J. Trump Twitter Feed

A Complete List of 598 People, Places and Things Donald Trump Has Insulted on Twitter:

Democracy Now! U.S. and World News Headlines for Tuesday, May 26 [12:37]

Mayor REJECTS Trump, Don't Come To My City | TYT | 05/24/20 | 5:45

TRUMP GOLF COUNT: 251 | Cost to Taxpayer: About $134,000,000 | trumpgolfcount.com | current | website

Trump golf cart rentals have now cost US taxpayers more than half a million dollars | qz.com | 11/21/19 | article

Trump's 29th Trip To Mar-a-Lago Brings Golf Tab To 334 Years Of Presidential Salary
HP | S.V. Date | older 02/14/20

President Donald Trump returned to Mar-a-Lago on Friday evening for the 29th golf-related trip of his presidency to his for-profit Palm Beach, Florida, resort, raising his total taxpayer golf tab to $133.8 million.

As he began his own run for the White House, candidate Trump repeatedly promised that golf would never make it onto a President Trump's schedule. "I love golf, but if I were in the White House, I don't think I'd ever see Turnberry again. I don't think I'd ever see Doral again," he told a rally audience in February 2016, referring to his courses in Scotland and Miami. "I don't ever think I'd see anything. I just want to stay in the White House and work my ass off."

Yet after three years in office, Trump has spent two-and-a-half times as many days on a golf course as Obama had done at the same point in his first term. If Trump plays golf both Saturday and Sunday, he will have played 248 times. Obama by his 1,123rd day in office had played 92 times.

And because Trump insists on playing at courses he owns, the cost to taxpayers has been nearly four times as high as it was for Obama. More than two-thirds of Trump's golf outings involve seven-figure trips aboard Air Force One, mainly to Florida and New Jersey, but also to Los Angeles, Ireland and Scotland. Obama, in contrast, played most of his golf on courses at military bases within a short drive of the White House. ... Read more

Coronavirus could push Social Security to insolvency before 2030
Politico | Catlin Emma | 05/19/20

Social Security could be insolvent by the end of this decade because of the coronavirus pandemic, according to some new estimates, creating new pressure for Congress to fix the troubled program after decades of inaction.

The last official government projection had the program running out of money by 2035. But some outside economists are looking at the trends and moving up the date when the program starts paying out more than it takes in: Tens of millions of workers are suddenly unemployed and not paying into the government account that funds benefits for retired workers. At the same time, a flood of older Americans who've lost jobs are expected to start drawing benefits as soon as they're eligible. ... Read more

Trump's use of Hydroxychloroquine | 05/22/20 | 2:53

LIVE: President Trump White House News Conference | 1pm Eastern | Fox10 | 05/22/20 | Live

Study: 36,000 U.S. Lives Could've Been Saved If Social Distancing Was Imposed A Week Earlier
HP | Dominique Mosbergen | 05//20

An additional week of lockdown measures would've made a "big, big difference" on the number of COVID-19 cases and deaths, a Columbia University study says.

In the first week of March, President Donald Trump was still downplaying the threat that COVID-19 posed on the United States. He urged Americans during a March 5 town hall to be "calm," saying "it's going to all work out."

But according to research published this week by infectious disease modelers at New York's Columbia University, tens of thousands of lives in the U.S. could have been saved had social distancing measures been imposed around the time of Trump's town hall.

It wasn't until March 16 that Trump told Americans to avoid non-essential travel and gathering in groups. The new study, which has yet to be peer-reviewed, says the lives of about 36,000 people could have been saved if such restrictions had been introduced just one week earlier.

And if the same restrictions had been imposed on March 1, researchers said, an estimated 54,000 fewer people would have died from the coronavirus by the first week of May. ... Read more

Corporate debt issuance has already topped $1 trillion in 2020
Axios | Dion Rabouin | 05/21/20

Barely five months into the year, U.S. investment-grade companies already have issued more than $1 trillion in debt -- nearly as much as in all of 2019, which was well above average.

Why it matters: And buying shows no sign of letting up, thanks in large part to ultra-low interest rates and the Fed's promise of "no limit" purchases of Treasury, investment-grade corporate and even junk bonds.

What's happening: "Nearly $200 billion in debt has been issued in May so far as companies capitalize on growing risk-on attitudes," Bank of America research analysts said in a recent note to clients. ...

... Of note: Highly indebted "zombie" companies -- firms that don't earn enough revenue to pay the interest on their debt -- are one out of every six U.S. companies and currently control nearly 2.2 million jobs. Read more

Many Americans live in places with no coronavirus test sites
Axios | Caitlin Owens | 05/20/20

More than half of U.S. counties don't have a single coronavirus testing site, according to a recent report by Castlight, a health software company.

Why it matters: That leaves a wide swath of the country -- particularly rural areas -- vulnerable to undetected coronavirus outbreaks, especially as lockdown measures ease. Asking people to travel long distances to get a coronavirus test is both unrealistic and potentially dangerous.

By the numbers: 54% of all counties don't have a testing site. Among counties with 50,000 or more people, 38% don't have any testing sites. ... Read more

MI-Safe-Start-Plan.pdf

Whistleblower Rick Bright: The 60 Minutes interview | 60 Minutes | 05/17/20 | 13:14

Meet The Press Broadcast (Full) - May 17th, 2020 | Meet The Press | NBC News | 05/17/20 | 47:35

Google Celebrates Hawaiian Singer Israel Kamakawiwo'ole with 'Somewhere Over the Rainbow' Doodle
Newsweek | | 05/20/20

oday's Google Doodle honors Hawaiian singer Israel Kamakawiwo'ole on what would have been his 61st birthday and celebrates Asian Pacific American Heritage Month in the U.S.

Kamakawiwo'ole, also known as IZ, is remembered around the world for his rendition of "Somewhere Over the Rainbow," which provides the soundtrack to today's Google Doodle video. ... Read more

Somewhere Over the Rainbow 2011 - Israel "IZ" Kamakawiwo'ole | older | 3:26

Alarm and Confusion at Fox News as Trump Says He Takes Hydroxychloroquine
TheIntercept | Robert Mackey | 05/19/20

FOX NEWS VIEWERS were warned on Monday not to take medical advice from the president, following Donald Trump's surprise announcement that he takes the drug hydroxychloroquine, based on his belief that it could prevent him from becoming infected with Covid-19 -- a belief unsupported by scientific evidence.

Moments after the president told reporters that he began taking the medication about a week and a half ago -- which is when the vice president's press secretary, Katie Miller, tested positive for the coronavirus -- Fox News host Neil Cavuto issued an urgent warning, telling the channel's largely elderly audience that there is no evidence the drug can ward off Covid-19 but it can cause potentially fatal irregular heartbeats. ... Read more

MI-Safe-Start-Plan.pdf

TAKING ON THE MEDIA: President Trump FULL White House News Conference 5/18/20 | Fox10 | 05/18/20 | 35:25

1918 Pandemic Influenza Historic Timeline.pdf

Fed chair: "There's no limit" to coronavirus stimulus response
Axios | Dion Rabouin | 05/18/20

Ahead of his testimony before the Senate Banking Committee on Tuesday, Fed Chair Jerome Powell previewed what Americans can expect in the coming months from policymakers: a whole lot more.

What it means: Powell has been adamant that the Fed has not run out of ammunition, even after adding more than $2.5 trillion to the central bank's balance sheet -- more than half its pre-2020 total -- in just the past two months. ... Read more

Fed Chair Jerome Powell's 60 Minutes interview on economic recovery from the coronavirus pandemic | 60Minutes | 05/17/20 | 13:46

Why PPP is coming up short
Axios | Dion Rabouin | 05/15/20

A report from the Census Bureau finds that three out of four U.S. small businesses have sought financial assistance through the Small Business Administration's Paycheck Protection Program, but data show that just a fraction of those have received funding.

The state of play: While the first iteration of the PPP exhausted its $349 billion of capital in two weeks, the second round of the program still has nearly 40% of its funding left, almost three weeks after being launched.

What it means: There are more than 30 million small businesses in the country but just under 6 million have gotten the loans. That means it's likely many in need of funding haven't been able to get it or have chosen not to pursue it. ... Read more

Some Charts and Facts to Chew On | Still working on this |

90000 LUMEN! | | 2019 | 1:07

Does the justice department work for the Trump campaign now? Barr thinks so.

The pandemic broke America
Axios | Nicholas Johnston | 05/14/20

Eight weeks into this nation's greatest crisis since World War II, we seem no closer to a national strategy to reopen the nation, rebuild the economy and defeat the coronavirus.

Why it matters: America's ongoing cultural wars over everything have weakened our ability to respond to this pandemic. We may be our worst enemy. The response is being hobbled by the same trends that have impacted so much of our lives: growing income inequality, the rise of misinformation, lack of trust in institutions, the rural/urban divide and hyper-partisanship.

Without even a basic agreement on the danger of the pandemic and its toll, here's how we see the national response unfold: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the crown jewel of the globe's public health infrastructure, has been sidelined, its recommendations dismissed by the White House. ... Read more

Live: Dr. Bright Testifies at House Hearing on Coronavirus Response | NBC News | 05/14/20 | Live

**Screen New Deal
TheIntercept | Naomi Klein | 05/08/20

Pandemic Shock Doctrine is beginning to emerge

"We are ready, we're all-in," the governor gushed. "We are New Yorkers, so we're aggressive about it, we're ambitious about it. ... We realize that change is not only imminent, but it can actually be a friend if done the right way."

The inspiration for these uncharacteristically good vibes was a video visit from former Google CEO Eric Schmidt, who joined the governor's briefing to announce that he will be heading up a blue-ribbon commission to reimagine New York state's post-Covid reality, with an emphasis on permanently integrating technology into every aspect of civic life.

"The first priorities of what we're trying to do," Schmidt said, "are focused on telehealth, remote learning, and broadband. ... We need to look for solutions that can be presented now, and accelerated, and use technology to make things better." Lest there be any doubt that the former Google chair's goals were purely benevolent, his video background featured a framed pair of golden angel wings. ... Read more

Americans don't realize that coronavirus recovery may take months
Axios | Dion Rabouin | 05/13/20

Economic experts including Fed chair Jerome Powell, IMF chief economist Gita Gopinath and a multitude of top market analysts and economists have been saying for weeks that a quick economic recovery is a "fantasy" and likely at least a year away.

The state of play: Average Americans aren't listening, and many are still banking on a V-shaped bounceback from the coronavirus pandemic once lockdown orders are lifted.

One level deeper: Workers have shown similar optimism, with 78% of all unemployed Americans expecting to be rehired in the next six months.

However, a new study by top academic researchers projects that more than 100,000 small businesses have closed permanently since late March, with at least 2% of all American small businesses now gone. ... Read more

Live tracker: How many coronavirus cases have been reported in each U.S. state?
Politico | Beatrice Jin | 05/13/20

The United States' ability to detect Covid-19 is crucial to understanding how the coronavirus -- now confirmed in nearly every state and territory -- is spreading. While the Trump administration has promised a mass rollout of tests, supply in the U.S has lagged behind that in other countries, making the scope of the disease harder to track.

With the help of The COVID Tracking Project -- a volunteer-run accounting of every coronavirus test conducted in America -- we're monitoring how many Americans have been tested in all 50 states. We will update our numbers as new results come in. ... Read more

Live tracker: How many coronavirus cases have been reported in each U.S. state?

The doctor vs. the White House
Axios | Jonathan Swan | 05/12/20

Dr. Anthony Fauci's goal for his testimony on the Hill today -- to warn the country of the dangers of reopening too quickly -- precisely undercuts what President Trump and the White House are trying to achieve this week.

The state of play: Trump and his team built its messaging this week around convincing Americans that they had enough testing and personal protective equipment to begin to safely return to work -- and Trump has been publicly chiding blue-state governors for keeping their states closed longer than he'd like.

Fauci plans to tell a Senate hearing Tuesday Americans will face "needless suffering and death" if the U.S. prematurely reopens its economy during the novel coronavirus pandemic, the New York Times reports. ... Read more

Live: Dr. Fauci testifies before Senate on coronavirus response | FoxNews | 05/12/20 | Live

Biden Ad Says Trump's Failure To Lead 'Destroyed' The Economy | Morning Joe | MSNBC | 05/12/20 | 3:20

The money is on Trump
Axios | Dion Rabouin | 05/11/20

Even after the White House's delayed response to the coronavirus outbreak, unprecedented job losses and a bruising recession, investors and betting markets are still putting their money on President Trump to win re-election.

The big picture: Presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden holds a sizable lead in most national and individual swing state polls -- but money managers expect Trump to retake the White House in November.

In a late April survey of U.S.-based investors with at least $1 million of assets, UBS found that 53% said they planned to vote for Biden. But 52% think Trump will win. ... Read more

USPS: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver | John Oliver | 05/10/20 | 18:14

Live tracker: How many coronavirus cases have been reported in each U.S. state?
Politico | Beatrce Jin | 05/11/20

The United States' ability to detect Covid-19 is crucial to understanding how the coronavirus -- now confirmed in nearly every state and territory -- is spreading. While the Trump administration has promised a mass rollout of tests, supply in the U.S has lagged behind that in other countries, making the scope of the disease harder to track.

With the help of The COVID Tracking Projec -- a volunteer-run accounting of every coronavirus test conducted in America -- we're monitoring how many Americans have been tested in all 50 states. We will update our numbers as new results come in. ... Read more

What to make of the Trump administration's Wuhan lab theory
Axios | Dave Lawler | 05/08/20

Trump pressed repeatedly on ENDING task force as COVID cases again surge | Brian Tyler Cohen | 05/06/20 | 6:24

Trump casts doubt on U.S.-China trade deal, contradicting his officials
TheGuardian | Doug Palmer | 05/08/20

President Donald Trump suggested again on Friday that he could abandon his trade deal with China that was signed less than four months ago with great fanfare.

"I'm very torn," Trump said in an interview on Fox News, adding that he had "not decided" whether to maintain the deal.

The remark came less than 12 hours after U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin spoke with Chinese Vice Premier Liu He and released a joint statement saying they were optimistic China would meet its purchase commitments under the deal.

"Both sides agreed that good progress is being made on creating the governmental infrastructures necessary to make the agreement a success," Lighthizer and Mnuchin said.... Read more

The U.S.' coronavirus recovery is way behind Europe's
Axios | Dave Lawler, Caitlin Owens | 05/07/20/span>

Other countries -- even some hit hard by the coronavirus -- are beating back their outbreaks more successfully than the U.S.

Why it matters: The number of new cases every day is holding steady in the U.S., but it's not going down -- a key benchmark many other countries achieved before loosening their lockdowns and social distancing measures.

The big picture: "It seems that this is a controllable pandemic without it having to run its natural course," says Columbia University economist Jeffrey Sachs.

The bottom line: The U.S. is not currently on track to join it, even as states attempt to leave lockdown behind. ... Read more

Russia overtakes Germany and France after record rise in cases
TheGuardian | staff | 05/07/20

1. Global: Total confirmed cases as of 8 a.m. ET: 3,682,968 -- Total deaths: 257,906 -- Total recoveries -- 1,207,548.
2. U.S.: Total confirmed cases as of 8 a.m. ET: 1,204,475 -- Total deaths: 71,078 -- Total recoveries -- 189,791 -- Total tested: 7,544,328.
3. Trump administration: Trump says it's "possible" some lives will be lost as U.S. reopens -- Whistleblower alleges Trump admin ignored pandemic warnings -- Pence says the White House is considering disbanding the coronavirus task force.
4. World: Top U.K. coronavirus scientist resigns after breaking lockdown rules, as country overtakes Italy for highest death toll in Europe.

Kushner’s Inexperienced COVID-19 Volunteers Bungled Hunt For Medical Supplies
HP | Dominique Mosbergen | 05/06/20

A team of volunteers recruited by President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner to aid the government’s response to the coronavirus pandemic has bungled efforts to secure personal protective equipment (PPE) for the nation’s hospitals and their staff, according to reports Tuesday in The Washington Post and The New York Times.

The volunteer force ? part of a larger coronavirus response team established by Kushner ? has been tasked with vetting possible suppliers for PPE in the face of critical shortages of such equipment at medical facilities nationwide. The volunteers ? most of whom are reportedly in their 20s, some fresh out of college ? are then meant to forward the best options to the Federal Emergency Management Agency. ... Read more

LIVE: President Trump Celebrates National Nurses Day Inside Oval Office | 12:45pm Eastern | FOX 10 Phoenix | 05/06/20 | Live

Instructions

Microgreen Instructions.pdf

Supplies

Microgreens Supplies.pdf

Sprouts, microgreens, and baby greens are very young, tender plants, used as salads or garnishes on many types of dishes. Each of the names- sprouts, microgreens, and baby greens are all considered different products, as the plant is harvested for eating at different times. They can add color, texture, and interesting flavors to meals. Microgreens, in particular, are gaining popularity among chefs and more farmers are growing them. These are easy to grow and sprouts and microgreens can be grown indoors at home.

Scientists see microgreens as a functional food, which means that they can provide key nutrients in a practical way. Some people call them a superfood. People have long grown mustard and cress on their kitchen window ledges and in classrooms. They are fun to grow, tasty to eat, and healthful.

1. Global: Total confirmed cases as of 9 a.m. ET: 3,603,217 -- Total deaths: 251,910 -- Total recoveries -- 1,174,006.
2. U.S.: Total confirmed cases as of 9 a.m. ET: 1,180,634 -- Total deaths: 68,934 -- Total recoveries -- 187,180 -- Total tested: 7,285,178.
3. Axios-Ipsos Coronavirus Index: Americans are split along partisan lines on whether the death count is accurate.
4. Business: The pandemic is shifting offices toward toward telecommuting, new layouts and a different work-life balance.
5. Trump administration: New modeling privately projects significant May surge in coronavirus cases and deaths.

CDC privately projects significant May surge in coronavirus cases and deaths
Axios | Marisa Fernandez | 05/05/20

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is projecting that by June 1, the U.S. will see a surge in daily new coronavirus cases from about 25,000 to 200,000, and an increase in daily deaths from about 1,750 to about 3,000, according to an internal document obtained by the New York Times.

Why it matters: The report comes as the federal government and individual states have been working to reopen parts of the economy after a seven-week shutdown. The model was created by Johns Hopkins professor Justin Lessler, who said it was a range of possibilities, according to WashPost. "I had no role in the process by which that was presented and shown ... it was not in any way intended to be a forecast." ... Read more

We Are The Lincoln Project | The Lincoln Project | 01/28/20 | 1:11

Mourning in America | The Lincoln Project | 05/04/20 | 1:00

Microgreen Instructions.pdf

Microgreens Supplies.pdf

Sprouts, microgreens, and baby greens are very young, tender plants, used as salads or garnishes on many types of dishes. Each of the names- sprouts, microgreens, and baby greens are all considered different products, as the plant is harvested for eating at different times. They can add color, texture, and interesting flavors to meals. Microgreens, in particular, are gaining popularity among chefs and more farmers are growing them. These are easy to grow and sprouts and microgreens can be grown indoors at home.

Scientists see microgreens as a functional food, which means that they can provide key nutrients in a practical way. Some people call them a superfood. People have long grown mustard and cress on their kitchen window ledges and in classrooms. They are fun to grow, tasty to eat, and healthful.

Trump Changes Estimates Again, Says Coronavirus Death Toll Could Hit 100,000
HP | Nick Visser | 05/03/20

President Donald Trump dramatically raised his prediction for the eventual death toll from the coronavirus pandemic within the United States, saying up to 100,000 people could die.

That figure is a sharp increase from the president's comments just last month when he said he believed around 60,000 people would die from the virus. Despite the shift, Trump said his response to the outbreak in the United States -- where more than 1.1 million people have been infected -- had been "successful" and said without his intervention more than a million people could have died. ... Read more

Coronavirus VI: Testing: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver | John Oliver | 05/04/20 | 23:13

Trump uses virtual town hall as an appeal for reelection
Politico | Nolan McCaskill | 05/04/20

The event at the Lincoln Memorial centered on coronavirus, but Trump boasted of having "done more than any other president in the history of our country."

President Donald Trump on Sunday turned a town hall that was centered on the coronavirus pandemic into an appeal for his reelection, leveraging the two-hour time slot on Fox News at the Lincoln Memorial to tout himself as an unrivaled American leader.

Trump took some tough, substantive questions from Fox News' Bret Baier and Martha MacCallum, as well as Americans who submitted video queries over the past week. But the president was also evasive and defensive at times, and the hosts often didn't follow up when Trump was vague, incorrect or misleading in his responses.

He seized on a question about his bullying rhetoric and answers to the press by bullying the press, arguing that the vast majority of reporters are "hostile" despite, he said, his having "done more than any other president in the history of our country," like creating a Space Force and combating terrorism. ... Read more

Jared Kushner, Mike Pence & the Entitled Elites Destroying America | The Common Good w/ Robert Reich | 05/01/20 | 30:57

Central banks load up for a long war against coronavirus
Axios | Dion Rabouin | 05/01/20

The world's most powerful central banks made clear this week that they expect the economic damage from the coronavirus pandemic to be deep and long-lasting and they are arming themselves for war.

Why it matters: We are entering an uncharted era of central banking that will see the Fed and its peers lend money directly to businesses, take unprecedented risks and directly support tremendous portions of the global economy.

Driving the news: After announcing Wednesday that it would do whatever it takes and then some to buoy the U.S. economy, the Fed unveiled a beefed-up new version of its $600 billion Main Street Lending Program that will effectively shred parts of the 1913 Federal Reserve Act (with authorization from the Treasury Department). ... Read more

LIVE: President Trump Speech | 4pm Eastern | FOX 10 Phoenix | yesterday 04/30/20 | 11:55:00

Canada is Quietly Building The Trading Empire Of The World | | 04/22/20 | 16:09

Is This the End For Big Oil? | Two Bit da Vinci | 04/22/20 | 15:05