White House Orders Staff to Wear Masks as Trump Misrepresents Testing Record

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/11/us/politics/white-house-masks-trump-coronavirus.html?action=click&module=Spotlight&pgtype=Homepage

Declaring once again that “if somebody wants to be tested right now, they’ll be able to be tested,” Mr. Trump said that his administration was working with states to allow them to conduct 12.9 million tests in May, insisting that the testing ability in the United States compares favorably with other countries.

“We are testing more people per capita than South Korea, the United Kingdom, France, Japan, Sweden, Finland and many other countries,” he said, ignoring countries where testing on a per capita basis is higher, including Germany, Russia, Spain, Canada, Switzerland and at least 20 others, according to statistics compiled by Our World in Data.

Mr. Trump also mischaracterized the trajectory of new cases in the United States.

“The numbers are way down from what they were two weeks ago,” the president said. “The numbers are really coming down very substantially. This weekend was one of the lowest we’ve had. The numbers are coming down very rapidly.”

The number of new cases reported across the country this weekend was 45,227. That is lower than the 60,872 cases reported from April 25 to April 26. But over the past two weeks, the numbers of new cases over all have declined only slightly — not substantially.

The stakes of Trump's tax return case couldn't be higher

https://edition.cnn.com/2020/05/11/opinions/trump-tax-returns-supreme-court-stakes-honig/index.html

 After years of political wrangling and multi-front litigation, the Supreme Court will hear oral arguments Tuesday on the battle over President Donald Trump's tax returns. The stakes are enormous. The court will decide by the end of its current term not only whether Trump's tax returns ever see light of day, but also whether the President stands so far above the law that he cannot meaningfully be held accountable to other branches of government and the American public.

 

The dispute over Trump's tax returns has been politically heated but, legally, this should be an easy call for the court. Trump has fought to the bitter end, though ultimately the law should give him no refuge: the tax returns must go to Congress, and even as a sitting president, he cannot be immune from investigation by prosecutors.

Trump Concerned About Re-Election Chances: Report | Morning Joe | MSNBC

What’s a Pulse Oximeter, and Do I Really Need One at Home?

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/24/well/live/coronavirus-pulse-oximeter-oxygen.html

A tiny fingertip device can give you valuable information about your health during a bout of Covid-19 or any respiratory illness.

 

Health officials are divided on whether home monitoring with a pulse oximeter should be recommended on a widespread basis during Covid-19. Studies of reliability show mixed results, and there’s little guidance on how to choose one. But many doctors are advising patients to get one, making it the go-to gadget of the pandemic. We’ve answered common questions about the device, how it works and what to do with the information it gives you.

Senate panel backs assessment that Russia interfered in the 2016 election

https://www.fox10phoenix.com/news/senate-panel-backs-assessment-that-russia-interfered-in-the-2016-election

 A bipartisan Senate report released Tuesday affirms the U.S. intelligence community’s conclusions that Russia interfered in the 2016 presidential election in a far-ranging influence campaign approved by Russian President Vladimir Putin and aimed at helping Donald Trump win the White House.

The report rejects Trump's claims that the intelligence community was biased against him when it concluded that Russia had interfered on his behalf in the election. It says instead that intelligence officials had specific information that Russia preferred Trump in the election, that it sought to denigrate Democratic opponent Hillary Clinton and that Putin had “approved and directed aspects" of the Kremlin's influence campaign.

The Senate just proved Donald Trump wrong -- again -- on Russian interference in 2016

https://edition.cnn.com/2020/04/22/politics/senate-intelligence-committee-donald-trump-russia/index.html

The Senate Intelligence Committee, which is chaired by Republican Sen. Richard Burr of North Carolina, released its long-awaited 156-page report detailing its investigation into allegations that Russia sought to interfere in the 2016 election.

Opinion: Was Michael Flynn cleared ‘in the interests of justice’ — or to please Trump?

https://www.latimes.com/opinion/story/2020-05-07/opinion-was-flynn-cleared-in-the-interests-of-justice-or-to-please-trump

 The criminal case against Michael Flynn, President Trump’s disastrous first national security advisor, took the latest of many twists Thursday when the Justice Department moved to drop the prosecution against him. Never mind that Flynn pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI about his conversations with the Russian ambassador between the 2016 election and Trump’s inauguration. (He later tried to withdraw the plea and have the charge dismissed.)

 

Senate report details foreign meddling in 2016 election, urges Trump to take preventative measures for 2020

https://www.foxnews.com/politics/bipartisan-senate-report-foreign-meddling-2016-trump-2020-election

The Senate Intelligence Committee on Tuesday issued a report urging President Trump to warn the public about efforts by foreign governments to interfere in U.S. elections and take steps to prevent hostile nations from using social media to meddle in the 2020 vote.

 

Gregg Jarrett: Evidence of Russian interference in 2020 election 'completely overstated'

https://www.foxnews.com/media/gregg-jarrett-evidence-russian-interference-2020-overstated

Discussing the claim that Russia is making a specific "play" to boost President Trump's reelection bid on "The Story" Monday, Jarrett said he spoke privately with a "key official" involved with the matter who called the media narrative "completely overstated."

 WOW!!!!!

FBI Didn’t Clear Michael Flynn

https://www.factcheck.org/2018/11/fbi-didnt-clear-michael-flynn/

 Q: Was former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn recently cleared by the FBI in the Russia probe?  

A: No. A website makes that claim based on an outdated news story that was published prior to Flynn pleading guilty to making false statements to FBI agents about his conversations with a top Russian official.

His head wasn't in the world of reality': how the plot to invade Venezuela fell apart

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/may/08/his-head-wasnt-in-the-world-of-reality-how-the-plot-to-invade-venezuela-fell-apart

The plan to overthrow Venezuela’s president, Nicolás Maduro, and bundle him off to Florida to face drug trafficking charges seemed foolproof to a former US army staff sergeant, Jordan Goudreau, as he mapped it out in a luxury Miami apartment in late 2019. The 43-year-old Canadian-American was certain his years as a green beret in Iraq and Afghanistan had prepared him for the task.

 

Bipartisan Senate Report Backs Assessment That Russia Interfered in the 2016 Presidential Election

https://time.com/5825061/senate-report-russia-interference/

1. A bipartisan Senate report released Tuesday confirms the U.S. intelligence community’s conclusions that Russia interfered in the 2016 presidential election to sow chaos. Senators warned that it could happen again this presidential election year.
2. The heavily redacted report from the Senate Intelligence Committee is part of the panel’s more than three-year investigation into the Russian interference. The intelligence agencies concluded in January 2017 that Russians had engaged in cyber-espionage and distributed messages through Russian-controlled propaganda outlets to undermine public faith in the democratic process, hurt Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton and help Donald Trump.
3. 
   
4. President Trump has repeatedly questioned the assessment, which was also confirmed by former special counsel Robert Mueller in his report last year. Mueller concluded that Russian interference was “sweeping and systematic,” but he did not find a criminal conspiracy between Russia and the Trump campaign.

Read the declassified report on Russian interference in the U.S. election

https://apps.washingtonpost.com/g/documents/national/read-the-declassified-report-on-russian-interference-in-the-us-election/2433/

The declassified 14-page report, which was released in January, concluded Russian President Vladi­mir Putin ordered the effort to undermine faith in the U.S. presidential election and helped Trump win the White House.

 

‘God is telling us something’: Deri says 70% of Israel’s virus cases are Haredim

https://www.timesofisrael.com/deri-calls-for-ultra-orthodox-soul-searching-amid-high-virus-infection-rate/

Interior minister and Shas party chief urges ‘soul-searching’ in ultra-Orthodox community, cites high virus infection rate in its major cities and smaller neighborhoods