Fortune: “With a negative net worth of $65 billion and an additional $140 billion in unfunded liabilities, the USPS originally expected to run out of liquidity by 2021 without intervention. That has accelerated rapidly because of COVID-19. Fewer people and businesses are sending mail because of the outbreak, which could hasten the decline of the Postal Service and close its doors as early as June.”
Sale of Trump Hotel Put on Hold
Washington Post: “Trump’s firm, which he still owns, has had to press pause on the proposed sale of its D.C. hotel lease due to the market’s collapse as potential buyers wait for banks and investors to return normal operations.”
“Trump’s company, now run by Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump, announced the planned sale in October and set a January deadline for initial bids.”
Mitch, Please!
Just published: Mitch, Please!: How Mitch McConnell Sold Out Kentucky (and America, Too) by Matt Jones.
“They say all politics is local. In 2020, Mitch McConnell will have served five full terms as a US Senator. Thirty years. The Senate Majority leader’s power is as undeniable as it is infuriating, and the people of Kentucky have had enough.”
- Amazon Kindle Edition
- Jones, Matt (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 461 Pages - 03/31/2020 (Publication Date) - Simon & Schuster (Publisher)
‘It’s Not Like You Had to Go to the Kennedy School’
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo at his daily press briefing on preparing for the coronavirus pandemic:
“Anyone could’ve told you a lot of these things… Did you really have to learn that 50 states shouldn’t compete against 50 states, and then FEMA shouldn’t come in late and compete with 50 states? It’s not like you had to go to the Harvard Kennedy School to learn this.”
Extra Bonus Quote of the Day
“We’ve seen all too terribly the consequences of those who denied warnings of a pandemic. We can’t afford any more consequences of climate denial. All of us, especially young people, have to demand better of our government at every level and vote this fall.”
— Barack Obama, on Twitter.
Chris Cuomo Tests Positive
CNN anchor Chris Cuomo, the brother of New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, has been diagnosed with coronavirus, CNN reports.
He is feeling well and will continue to anchor his 9 p.m. program from his home.
Gov. Cuomo confirmed the diagnosis at his press briefing: “He is going to be fine. He’s young, in good shape, strong, not as strong as he thinks, but he will be fine.”
Coronavirus Deaths Surpass 9/11
The coronavirus death toll has now surpassed that of the September 11 attacks, which claimed the lives of nearly 3,000 Americans.
Jonathan Last: “Understand that the publicly reported death toll is merely the lower bound on the true number. In order for a death to be included in this count, the patient must have tested positive for COVID-19 either pre- or post-mortem. In some cases hospitals are so overwhelmed that people in obvious respiratory distress are being admitted and treated for COVID-19 without being tested, because an official diagnosis is superfluous and tests are being rationed. Some of these people die.”
Trump Campaign Now Worried About Red State Deaths
A former White House official told the Los Angeles Times that President Trump’s reelection campaign advisors “are terrified that the coronavirus outbreak, which so far has hit largely Democratic coastal cities hardest, will soon scythe across the rural areas that remain deeply loyal to Trump.”
“The advisors have warned Trump that the political consequences at the ballot box in November will be even worse if he is seen as too lax.”
Said the former official: “Pay attention. You’re going to lose the election.”
Tim Miller: “How broken and depraved do you have to be to go on background with a reporter and say campaign aides are worried about red state deaths. Whoever said this needs to step away from politics and seek help.“
Trump Backs $2 Trillion Infrastructure Push
President Trump signaled agreement with Speaker Nancy Pelosi that rebuilding the nation’s infrastructure should be part of a Phase 4 economic relief bill:
“With interest rates for the United States being at ZERO, this is the time to do our decades long awaited Infrastructure Bill. It should be VERY BIG & BOLD, Two Trillion Dollars, and be focused solely on jobs and rebuilding the once great infrastructure of our Country!”
The Radio Right
Coming soon: The Radio Right: How a Band of Broadcasters Took on the Federal Government and Built the Modern Conservative Movement by Paul Matzko.
“The story of the 1960s far Right, who were frustrated by what they perceived to be liberal bias in the national media, particularly the media’s sycophantic relationship with the John F. Kennedy administration. These people turned for news and commentary to a resurgent form of ultra-conservative mass media: radio. As networks shifted their resources to television, radio increasingly became the preserve of cash-strapped, independent station owners who were willing to air the hundreds of new right-wing programs that sprang up in the late 1950s and 1960s.”
- Hardcover Book
- Matzko, Paul (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 320 Pages - 06/16/2020 (Publication Date) - Oxford University Press (Publisher)
Hoyer Tells Lawmakers to Keep Schedules Flexible
House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer urged lawmakers in a “Dear Colleague letter” to keep their schedules “very flexible” in the weeks and months to come.
McConnell Blames Impeachment for Slow Pandemic Action
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) told Hugh Hewitt that because the Senate was “tied down on the impeachment trial” during the early stages of the coronavirus outbreak, “it diverted the attention of the government, because everything every day was all about impeachment.”
An alternative view from Joshua Geltzer: “Impeachment didn’t distract Trump. It revealed how he would handle coronavirus.”
Trump Falsely Insists Lack of Testing Is Not a Problem
“President Trump told governors on a conference call on Monday that he had not ‘heard about testing in weeks,’ suggesting that a chronic lack of kits to screen people for the coronavirus was no longer a problem,” the New York Times reports.
“But governors painted a different picture on the ground.”
In fact, Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine (R) told CNN this morning his state will see its peak in coronavirus cases “between mid-April and mid-May… It’s a 30-day period time. We’re not quite sure when… Part of this is driven by the fact that we don’t have widespread testing.”
Coronavirus Sweeps Thru Detroit Police Department
Detroit Free Press: “The virus’ spread through the department and through the region as a whole has officers patrolling on edge. Multiple exposures — including the pancake breakfast, those that are travel-related, contact with infected coworkers and during the course of policing — had sent 556 Detroit Police Department employees, including 468 sworn members, into quarantine as of Friday. That same day, officials said 39 officers had tested positive for COVID-19 and the department previously announced the deaths of two members.”
Aircraft Carrier Has Coronavirus Outbreak
“The captain of a nuclear aircraft carrier with more than 100 sailors infected with the coronavirus pleaded Monday with U.S. Navy officials for resources to allow isolation of his entire crew and avoid possible deaths in a situation he described as quickly deteriorating,” the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
Trump Watches Pelosi
President Trump hasn’t spoken to Speaker Nancy Pelosi in more than five months but he tweeted he did watch her on MSNBC this morning.
Said Trump: “I watched a portion of low rated (very) Morning Psycho (Joe) this Morning in order to see what Nancy Pelosi had to say, & what moves she was planning to further hurt our Country. Actually, other than her usual complaining that I’m a terrible person, she wasn’t bad. Still praying!”
During the interview, Pelosi said she now just talks to Trump through the TV — and she was right.
Will the Conventions Be Virtual This Summer?
Larry Sabato’s Crystal Ball investigates how both parties might navigate having to hold their nominating conventions virtually, which may be more of a possibility for Democrats only because their convention is scheduled earlier in the summer.
No, No, No
Chris Cuomo asking his brother, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, whether he was thinking about running for president was quite amusing.