Hydroxychloroquine Questions Intensify as Journal Says Its Drug Study 'Did Not Meet Expected Standards'

https://www.newsweek.com/hydroxychloroquine-questions-intensify-journal-says-its-drug-study-did-not-meet-expected-1496459

In Monday's press briefing, President Trump would not allow his medical expert, Dr. Anthony Fauci, to answer a question about the anti-malarial drug hydroxychloroquine, which has gotten a lot of attention recently as a possible treatment for COVID-19.

This particular question, posed by a CNN reporter, turns out to be especially pertinent: "What is the medical evidence?"

Three days before, on April 3, the publisher of the scientific paper that first brought the drug to the attention of public health experts--and President Trump—cast doubt on the reliability of the original research.

"The article does not meet the [publisher's] expected standard," said the International Journal of Anti-Microbial Agents in a statement. The journal, which published "Hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin as a treatment of Covid-19: results of an open-label non-randomized clinical trial" on March 20 after an accelerated peer review, stopped short of retracting the article.

Jerusalem municipality to collect chametz for burning ahead of Passover

https://www.jerusalem.muni.il/he/residents/environment/sanitation/containers-for-pickling-chametz/

https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry/jerusalem-municipality-to-collect-chametz-for-burning-ahead-of-passover/ 

The Jerusalem municipality says it will be collecting chametz, or leaven products, to burn ahead of Passover.

Special trash bins will be distributed in each neighborhood and collected by Wednesday at 9 a.m.

The city will oversee the burning, it says.

Sell your Chametz online

https://www.gov.il/en/service/chametz_sale

Use this service to sell your Chametz online n Israel or abroad through the Chief Rabbinate of Israel.

 https://www.chabad.org/holidays/passover/sell_chometz_cdo/jewish/Sell-Your-Chametz-Online.htm

 Chabad.org facilitates this service here at no charge. Note: Halachic authorities have ruled that online authorizations are acceptable for this sale (though transacting the authorization personally with one's rabbi is normally preferable).

How a Ship’s Coronavirus Outbreak Became a Moral Crisis for the Military

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/06/us/politics/coronavirus-navy-secretary-roosevelt-crozier.html

Like much in the Trump administration, what began as a seemingly straightforward challenge — the arrival of coronavirus onboard a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier — has now engulfed the military, leading to far-reaching questions of undue command influence and the demoralization of young men and women who promise to protect the country. At its heart, the crisis aboard the Theodore Roosevelt has become a window into what matters, and what does not, in an administration where remaining on the right side of a mercurial president is valued above all else.

Mr. Modly’s decision to remove Captain Crozier without first conducting an investigation went contrary to the wishes of both the Navy’s top admiral, Michael M. Gilday, the chief of naval operations, and the military’s top officer, Gen. Mark A. Milley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

“I am appalled at the content of his address to the crew,” retired Adm. Mike Mullen, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff under Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama, said in a telephone interview, referring to Mr. Modly.

Mr. Modly, Admiral Mullen said, “has become a vehicle for the president. He basically has completely undermined, throughout the T.R. situation, the uniformed leadership of the Navy and the military leadership in general.”

 Several current and former Navy and national security officials said the Roosevelt episode illustrated how civilian leaders in this administration made questionable decisions based on what they feared Mr. Trump’s response would be.

NYT: January memo warned White House of pandemic risks

New York Times reporter Maggie Haberman talks about her new report detailing a memo dated January 29 from White House Trade Adviser Peter Navarro that warned of the risk of a pandemic hitting the US. Haberman says it is not known if President Donald Trump saw the memo.

Trump Demands Praise As Surgeon General Warns Of A 'Pearl Harbor Moment' | The 11th Hour | MSNBC

Government Watchdog: Hospitals Face Severe Shortages Of Medical Gear | Morning Joe | MSNBC

Coronavirus: Trump voices hope for ‘levelling-off’ in US hotspots

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-52175746

Optimism from Dr Birx and Mr Trump contrasted with other leading US experts, including top advisor Dr Anthony Fauci, who earlier said the short-term outlook was "really bad".

 

How did coronavirus break out? Theories abound as researchers race to solve genetic detective story

https://edition.cnn.com/2020/04/06/us/coronavirus-scientists-debate-origin-theories-invs/index.html

A vacuum of knowledge about the origins of the new coronavirus ravaging the world has provided fertile ground for all manner of theories -- from the fantastic, to the dubious to the believable.

It was a bioweapon manufactured by the Chinese. The US Army brought the virus to Wuhan. It leaked -- like a genie out of a bottle -- from a lab in an accident. It took root at a wildlife market in Wuhan.

Scientists have banded together across international borders to condemn the nationalist-tinged conspiracy theories. And yet, they are divided on what was once widely thought the most likely culprit: a so-called wet market in Wuhan, where wild animals are kept in cages and sold as pets or food. It is believed that a bat-infected animal -- perhaps a pangolin -- infected the first human.

Anderson Cooper rips Trump for hijacking coronavirus briefing

Did Trump Golf, Hold Rallies After Learning About COVID-19 Threat?

https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/trump-golf-rallies-coronavirus/

McConnell told conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt that the outbreak “came up while we were tied down on the impeachment trial. And I think it diverted the attention of the government, because everything every day was all about impeachment.” 

Shortly after McConnell made these remarks, a number of op-eds were published refuting this claim. Trump even responded, saying, “I don’t think I would have done any better had I not been impeached.”

U.S. President Donald Trump golfed several times and held a number of rallies after learning about the threat of the coronavirus.

 

True

A timeline of Trump promises and predictions on coronavirus -- and how they stack up against the facts

https://edition.cnn.com/2020/04/05/politics/timeline-trump-promises-coronavirus/index.html

 

Washington (CNN)It's been almost a month since the World Health Organization declared the coronavirus a pandemic. In that time, the virus has swept across the US, which has gone from having just a few outbreaks to now leading the world in infections.

 Throughout, the Trump administration has issued a series of promises, predictions and proclamations as it has tried to calm the American people and give the impression the virus is under control. But on topics ranging from testing, to treatments, to the critical supplies that health workers need, reality has continued to fall short of President Donald Trump's rhetoric.

While this is a fluid situation, with facts changing every day, here's a look back at some of the promises and predictions the President has made and how they stack up against reality as of Sunday April 5.

Watchdog report finds severe shortages and significant challenges to hospitals' coronavirus responses

https://edition.cnn.com/2020/04/06/politics/department-of-health-and-human-services-shortages/index.html

When asked about the report during Monday's coronavirus press briefing, President Donald Trump questioned whether politics tinged the findings of the report.

"Give me the name of the inspector general. Could politics be entered into that?" Trump said.

Trump also questioned the integrity of the leadership in HHS' Office of the Inspector General, saying, "Well where did he come from, the inspector general? What's his name?"

The report was signed by a woman -- Christi Grimm, the principal deputy inspector general for HHS. Grimm has served in the federal government for more than two decades in both Democratic and Republican administrations.

 

Trump’s Statements About the Coronavirus

https://www.factcheck.org/2020/03/trumps-statements-about-the-coronavirus/

“This is a pandemic,” President Donald Trump said at a March 17 press conference. “I felt it was a pandemic long before it was called a pandemic.”

While it’s not possible to know what Trump “felt,” there’s no doubt that Trump had minimized the threat of the new coronavirus for weeks in statement after statement.