President Trump cast the coronavirus crisis as a battle against an invisible enemy. One way he hopes to fight it is with checks to most Americans, with Congress still negotiating how much the checks would be for and who would get them. » Subscribe to NBC News: http://nbcnews.to/SubscribeToNBC » Watch more NBC video: http://bit.ly/MoreNBCNews
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The Senate voted on the legislation later than it originally hoped because Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., forced a vote on an amendment that ultimately failed. It ultimately voted on three amendments, all of which failed.
The House bill that the Senate considered provides enhanced unemployment insurance, ensures that businesses that have fewer than 500 employees offer two weeks of paid sick leave to their workers, and includes increased funding for food assistance programs and guarantees free testing for the coronavirus.
The bill faced opposition from Republican lawmakers in the House, who insisted on technical corrections to the bill. Rep. Louie Gohmert of Texas was the prime Republican who held the bill up earlier this week. The revised legislation made changes that could limit the number of people who could get up to 12 weeks of paid family and medical leave.
The Trump administration seeks an $850 billion to $1 trillion stimulus measure, which could include direct payments to Americans, tax cuts or relief to suffering industries.
McConnell said Wednesday he would “not adjourn the Senate until we pass a far bolder package which must include significant relief for small businesses all across our country.”
Senators even had to take precautions while voting Wednesday. McConnell told senators to “avoid congregating here in the well” on the Senate floor, encouraging them to “vote and depart the chamber.” Senators often stand and chat on the floor during votes.
During the series of votes on the bill and amendments to it, many lawmakers simply walked into the chamber, gave a thumbs up or thumbs down signal and walked out of the room. Even so, some senators huddled in groups to talk for short periods of time.
The coronavirus, which is believed to have originated in Wuhan, China, has spread to dozens of countries globally, with more than 212,000 cases worldwide and at least 8,727 deaths so far, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.
There are at least 7,324 cases in the United States and at least 115 deaths, according to the latest tallies from John Hopkins University.
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin promised Wednesday that the U.S. will not have a 20% unemployment rate, a day after he reportedly warned Republican senators that they risked seeing that high rate if they did not pass President Donald Trump‘s coronavirus plan.
“I’ve seen that number in the press,” Mnuchin told CNBC’s Jim Cramer in a television interview. “I didn’t in any way say I think we’re going to have that.”
“Let me be clear: If we follow the president’s plan we will not have that,” Mnuchin said.
Treasury officials later pushed back on those reports, saying that Mnuchin was not providing a forecast but trying to illustrate the potential risks of inaction.
“What I said was just a mathematical statement,” Mnuchin told CNBC on Wednesday. “Which is, 40 percent of the people that are employed in the private workforce are employed by companies [of] 500 people and less.”
“It was just a mathematical statement to to say, ‘If half these people were to lose their jobs, this is what it would be,'” he said.
“But we’re not going to let that happen,” Mnuchin added. “This isn’t like the [2008] financial crisis. There will be an end in sight.”
Mnuchin’s words of reassurance did nothing to boost investor confidence, as stocks continued to fall Wednesday, erasing the slight market rebound from a day earlier.
The White House is seeking a stimulus package worth anywhere from $850 billion to more than $1 trillion as the Trump administration looks to battle the economic impact from the coronavirus pandemic.
The COVID-19 virus, which is believed to have originated in the Chinese city of Wuhan, has quickly spread to dozens of countries globally. More than 201,000 confirmed cases worldwide and at least 8,007 deaths so far, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.
There are at least 6,496 cases in the United States and at least 114 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins.
The border between Canada and the U.S. will close for non-essential travel.
President Donald Trump confirmed the news in a tweet on Wednesday morning. “We will be, by mutual consent, temporarily closing our Northern Border with Canada to non-essential traffic. Trade will not be affected. Details to follow!” Trump tweeted.
“I just spoke to President Trump again this morning and we have agreed that both Canada and the United States will temporarily restrict all non-essential travel across the Canada-U.S. border,” Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said in a press conference on Wednesday morning.
Travelers won’t be permitted to cross the border for recreation and tourism, he explained.
Trudeau clarified that “essential travel” won’t stop. “Our governments recognize that it is critical we preserve supply chains between both countries,” Trudeau said. These supply chains include the passage of food, fuel and medicines reach people in both countries. Trucking won’t be affected, for example.
On Monday, Trudeau announced he was closing the country’s border to non-citizens, but American citizens had been exempt from the restriction up until now. Sophie Grégoire Trudeau, Trudeau’s wife, has coronavirus.
Processing thousands of people per day puts border agents at increased risk for contracting COVID-19 and passing it along to others.
CBP employees have been permitted to use protective equipment, such as masks, in appropriate circumstances.
Both the U.S. and Canada border agencies have reported increasing their questions at entry about international travel and health to spot ill travelers during the spread of the coronavirus.
Canada’s border agency has been updating its Twitter account with steps it is taking during the pandemic as well as information on mitigating the spread of the virus.
Coronavirus travel bans: Who can’t come into the U.S. now?
Trump did not get into specifics about the new Canada restrictions as of Wednesday morning, but there is a growing list of other countries’ citizens who are unable to enter the U.S. at this time.
All foreign nationals from China, Iran and certain European countries are barred from entering the United States. This ban includes anyone who visited these countries within the 14 days prior to their U.S. trip.
The European countries include Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland. President Donald Trump later added the United Kingdom and Ireland to this list.
U.S. citizens are allowed to return home but must fly into 13 designated airports and undergo “enhanced entry screening.”
Why is the border closure happening now?
“We took major measures on Monday to close off our borders to international travelers and we took two days to coordinate this further measure with the United States to ensure that we do it properly and in cooperation with each other,” Trudeau said. “Canadian Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland called Vice President Mike Pence on Tuesday for the purpose of beginning discussions on final phase and we were able to make the announcement today.”
Extra travel right now, based on government guidance, could be a hindrance to public health in stopping the spread of the virus. In both the U.S. and Canada, people are encouraged to to stay home.
“This collaborative and reciprocal measure is an extension of that prudent approach,” Trudeau said.
However, the border remaining open for essential travel due to health and economic safety.
“The fact is we are working very closely with the United States at this time to introduce specific rules that will keep both Canadians and Americans safe,” Trudeau said. It’s important for the border to remain open, considering the $2 billion worth of goods that cross it each day. It’s critical for health of economy and citizens.
When will the coronavirus travel ban go into effect? How will it be enforced?
“It will be happening very soon,” Trudeau said.
He noted Canada is working with the U.S. so measures can begin quickly, and the Canada Border Services Agency has adequate resources to meet the challenge of ensuring the ban’s enforcement.
When will the US-Canada border reopen?
It’s unclear.
“These measures will last in place as long as we feel that they need to last,” Trudeau said, adding that Canada and the U.S. will closely coordinate.
Defense Secretary Mark Esper in a Tuesday phone call with Gov. Andrew Cuomo pledged to deploy the Army Corps of Engineers to New York the “soonest” to help combat the coronavirus crisis.
Esper disclosed the decision in an interview on Fox News’ “Special Report with Bret Baier.”
The defense secretary told host Bret Baier that Cuomo expressed interest in “getting the Corps of Engineers engaged” in New York to address the anticipated shortage in hospital beds as the outbreak continues to grow.
Recounting the “good conversation,” Esper said of Cuomo: “what he sees, is a deficit, if you will, in hospital beds in New York state as he looks ahead to what may be coming.”
“I gave him my full commitment that we would get the Corps of Engineers up there soonest, to assess the problem and see how we can help out,” said Esper.
Cuomo acknowledged the call with Esper during his own appearance Tuesday night on MSNBC, saying the Army Corps of Engineers would be in New York by Wednesday.
“I spoke to the Secretary of Defense today,” Cuomo told host Rachel Maddow. “I have the Army Corps of Engineers coming in here tomorrow.”
The governor on Monday, appearing on ABC’s “Good Morning America,” called on the federal government to send the Army Corps of Engineers to retrofit state buildings in an effort to increase the number of hospital beds.
“I only have 3,000 intensive care beds, and these people are going to need the intensive care unit beds. The only hope we have now at this late date is to retrofit existing facilities,” Cuomo said Monday, referring to military bases, college dorms and other sites.
Another letter sent last week by 57 House Democrats led by Representative Andy Levin of Michigan made similar points: “During World War II, our country adapted to the demands of the time to produce mass quantities of bombers, tanks, and many smaller items needed to save democracy and freedom in the world. We know what the demands of this time are, and we must act now to meet these demands.”
Senator Jack Reed, Democrat of Rhode Island, said that Defense Secretary Mark T. Esper told him on Tuesday that the Pentagon would provide federal health workers with five million respirator masks and 2,000 specialized ventilators. “The American public is on wartime footing in terms of battling the spread of this disease, and the Pentagon has to be part of the effort to help protect the health and safety of the American people,” Mr. Reed said.
But Mr. Trump said on Tuesday that he was not ready to invoke the Defense Production Act. “We’re able to do that if we have to,” he told reporters. “Right now, we haven’t had to, but it’s certainly ready. If I want it, we can do it very quickly. We’ve studied it very closely over two weeks ago, actually. We’ll make that decision pretty quickly if we need it. We hope we don’t need it. It’s a big step.”
Passed in 1950 shortly after American troops went to war defending South Korea against an invasion from North Korea, the Defense Production Act was based on powers used during World War II and authorized the president to require businesses to prioritize and accept contracts necessary for national defense.
Over the years, its scope has been expanded to include domestic preparedness and national emergencies. A president can make direct loans or loan guarantees and purchase commitments, subsidies or other incentives to influence industry to help in times of crisis.
Other key decisions outlined as options for the president include distributing medical supplies and equipment from the Strategic National Stockpile, providing money to states to help them meet demands caused by the coronavirus outbreak and prioritizing the distribution of essential resources to focus on areas most in need.
“The spread and severity of Covid-19 will be difficult to forecast and characterize,” the government plan said. It warned of “significant shortages for government, private sector, and individual U.S. consumers.”
“This is not like the financial meltdown, where you had banks that made bad decisions and asked the government to bail them out,” said Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.). “We are basically telling people not to go out, not to spend money at these stores, and in some jurisdictions, not go to work. … It’s an unprecedented challenge.”
Republicans are eager to make that argument as they embark on a wide-ranging rescue mission and fend off charges that they’re ditching their free-market principles. Senior administration officials have been careful not to refer to President Donald Trump’s plan as a “bailout” — a tacit acknowledgement that the proposal could spark a revolt while being politically toxic for the GOP down the road. Some outside conservative groups are already urging lawmakers on Capitol Hill to reject direct aid for industries.
But at least for now, Republicans are mostly brushing aside long-held cost concerns in order to salvage the economy — and perhaps Trump’s reelection, as well as their own.
“The term ‘bailout’ does give everyone pause, and justifiably so,” said Rep. Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.), chairman of the conservative House Freedom Caucus.
But even Biggs, who voted against the House’s $100 billion coronavirus bill last week, didn’t entirely shut the door on supporting the next round of stimulus. “We do want this country to be strong,” he said. “You have to consider future generations.”
Particularly in the face of an extraordinary public health crisis — which Sen. John Boozman (R-Ark.) compared to World War II — lawmakers are calculating that there is a far greater risk if they don’t take aggressive steps to protect the economy.
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin on Tuesday pitched Senate Republicans on what’s likely to be a $1 trillion package, with around $500 billion in direct cash payments for individuals as well as money for emergency loans for small businesses hit by the economic slowdown and assistance for the airline industry.
GOP Rep. Peter King of New York, who backed the 2008 financial industry rescue, said he is inclined to support whatever Trump and GOP leadership come up with, even if it’s not ideal.
“In ordinary times, some would have those concerns,” about the cost and the deficit, King said. But, he added, “in times of crisis, you can’t let the perfect be the enemy of the good.”
Trump’s strong support for a stimulus package could also provide Republicans with some much-needed political cover — especially if it means resuscitating the economy, which was supposed to be the GOP’s crown jewel in the 2020 elections.
Last Friday, the Capitol was at a standstill waiting for Trump to tweet his support for the House’s coronavirus relief bill, which expands access to free testing, provides $1 billion in food aid and extends sick leave benefits to vulnerable Americans. When Trump finally did, all but 40 Republicans ended up voting for the legislation.
But some GOP lawmakers were frustrated that they voted in the early hours of Saturday morning on a bill they didn’t have time to fully read. And the legislation was so hastily written that the chamber had to pass 90 pages of “technical corrections” on Monday.
House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) and Mnuchin sought to alleviate some concerns during a conference call with ranking members and GOP caucus leaders on Tuesday during which they walked lawmakers through the changes and vowed to be more inclusive in the next phase of their economic response. But Republicans also recognize the sense of urgency and the need to act fast.
“Would you like to slow it down? Yeah, we’re talking about a lot of money here. But we’re also talking about an unprecedented challenge to the economy,” said Rep. Tom Cole of Oklahoma, the top Republican on the House Rules Committee, who was on the call. “The sheer speed with how this virus spreads requires a speedy response.”
“Having lived through [Troubled Asset Relief Program] calls and TARP meetings,” Cole added, “there’s just not been the level of acrimony.”
The GOP’s early embrace of a pricey stimulus package caps a transformation of the party that has been three years in the making. Trump has kept a firm grip on the GOP, overseeing a massive tax cut and putting the deficit on track to surpass $1 trillion.
There are still a number of fiscal hawks and conservative hard-liners who have pushed back against deficit-busting bills — and they are certain to raise concerns during the coming debate.
Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) is vowing to offer an amendment to cut spending from other programs for every dollar added in stimulus spending, while the Club for Growth and other conservative groups backed by megadonor Charles Koch are urging lawmakers to reject any tax-payer funded bailouts that provide direct relief to industries hit by the coronavirus.
Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-Texas) even threatened to hold up quick passage of the House’s revised coronavirus bill, though he eventually backed off. Still, his antics sparked some concern among Republicans that the party’s right flank will get in Trump’s ear and sour him on the idea of a massive economic relief plan.
“What we do have to worry about is Louie Gohmert, a few others, getting to Fox News,” said one GOP lawmaker. “If momentum [against it] builds up on its own, the president may turn on it.”
But Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is undeterred, vowing to press ahead with the stimulus package at “warp speed.”
“These are not ordinary times. This is not an ordinary situation, the Kentucky Republican told reporters. “So it requires extraordinary measures.”
“During the meeting with Senate Republicans today, Secretary Mnuchin used several mathematical examples for illustrative purposes, but he never implied this would be the case,” Treasury spokeswoman Monica Crowley said in an emailed statement.
Mnuchin’s comments to the senators were first reported by Bloomberg.
The warning was similar to one issued to U.S. lawmakers at the depths of the 2008 financial crisis, when Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson and Federal Reserve Chair Ben Bernanke went to Capitol Hill to urge passage of a $700 billion plan to buy toxic mortgage assets.
They told lawmakers here that inaction could devastate an already weak economy, sending the jobless rate soaring. Congress ultimately passed the plan and later stimulus measures to tackle the crisis. Unemployment peaked at 10.2% in October 2009.
The lights went out on the famed Las Vegas Strip, the worldwide death toll topped 8,000 and the total of confirmed infections surged past 200,000 Wednesday as the coronavirus tightened its grip on the globe.
The U.S. death toll reached 114, and America’s sense of normal continued to evolve. President Donald Trump’s promise of financial assistance did provide hope to the potentially millions of workers facing layoffs and furloughs.
“For the people that are now out of work because of the important and necessary containment policies, for instance the shutting down of hotels, bars and restaurants, money will soon be coming to you,” Trump tweeted Wednesday.
Kansas became the first state to announce that schools would remain closed for in-person teaching for the rest of the school year. Nevada’s governor ordered the statewide shutdown of all casinos and other nonessential businesses starting Wednesday.
There were more than 6,490 confirmed cases in the U.S. as of early Wednesday, according to the Johns Hopkins University data dashboard. One week ago, the U.S. death toll had climbed to 33, the number of U.S. cases rolled past 1,300 and federal health officials said the virus has spread to at least 38 states.
Worldwide, the virus has killed nearly 8,000 people. A week ago that number was about 4,600.
Our live blog on the coronavirus is being updated throughout the day. Refresh for the latest news. More headlines:
Need a lift? Coronavirus ruined their Las Vegas wedding, so this Michigan couple improvised. More uplifting stories as the outbreak continues.
Health care experts brace for ventilator shortage
Italy’s scramble to find ventilators for the booming number of coronavirus patients with serious lung problems is a scenario that could soon repeat in the U.S., experts warn. Hospitals here are on the cusp of too many severely-ill patients without enough intensive care unit beds and ventilators to keep those patients breathing. It’s why health officials are desperately trying to delay new infections through social distancing measures such as school closings and work-from-home mandates.
Italy’s issues are a “preview of a movie that is about to play in the United States,” said Marty Makary, a Johns Hopkins University surgeon and health policy expert. Read more here.
– Ken Alltucker and Nick Penzenstadler
Kansas becomes first to cancel in-person teaching for school year
Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly canceled in-person K-12 school and classes for the remainder of the school year, saying students would continue online learning. The decision late Tuesday was the first of its kind by any state in the nation. More than a dozen states have canceled traditional classes for two or three weeks, but none so far has stopped in-person teaching for the rest of the academic year.
A task force of 40 educators was preparing to deliver guidelines for Kansas school districts by Wednesday night. Challenges include child care, delivery of meals, and alternative instruction for school kids who lack devices or internet access.
Nevada orders all casinos, other nonessential businesses, closed
In Nevada, Gov. Steve Sisolak ordered the statewide shutdown of all casinos and other nonessential businesses starting noon Wednesday. The state’s latest coronavirus containment effort will apply to all bars, gyms, beauty salons, barber shops, malls and restaurants that do not provide takeout and delivery services.
Sisolak said casinos and hotels will be given time to remove their guests before closing for 30 days. Retail malls and stores will also be mothballed for a month. Gaming machines are to be emptied and shut down by midnight. Some of Nevada’s largest casino companies — among them MGM Resorts, Wynn Resorts and Las Vegas Sands — voluntarily shuttered their properties earlier this week.
“My ultimate goal here is to come together as Nevadans to save lives,” he told reporters in Las Vegas. “That requires aggressive strategies aimed at limiting community spread.
— Reno Gazette Journal
Asian stocks falter after early gains despite Wall Street resurgence
Major Asian stock markets fell back after early gains on Wednesday after Wall Street jumped on President Donald Trump’s promise of aid to get the U.S. economy through the coronavirus outbreak.
Benchmarks in Shanghai, Tokyo and Hong Kong all advanced and then fell. Australia’s main index fell 6.4% and smaller Asian markets also were mostly lower.
The White House proposal could approach $1 trillion in spending to ward off the pressure of business closures to contain the virus. The Federal Reserve announced more measures to keep financial markets operating.
On Wall Street, the benchmark S&P 500 index rose by an unusually wide daily margin of 6%, regaining just under half of the previous day’s history-making loss. Professional investors expect more big daily swings in both directions until the spreading virus is brought under control.
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said Trump wants to send checks to Americans in the next two weeks to help support them while more parts of the economy come closer to shutting down.
The proposal would include $250 billion for small businesses and $50 billion for airlines.
Some stores dedicating time for elderly, vulnerable shoppers
Some retailers are setting aside time for their most vulnerable customers to shop. The elderly and people with underlying health conditions are more susceptible to COVID-19, so some retailers are dedicating time or opening earlier for senior shoppers and other at-risk groups.
All Target stores will dedicate an hour of shopping each week for the elderly and those with underlying health concerns. Albertsons, which has 2,200-plus stores under banners including Safeway, Acme and Vons, says it is reserving two hours every Tuesday and Thursday morning for vulnerable shoppers, including senior citizens, pregnant women or those with compromised immune systems. Whole Foods Market stores will let customers who are 60 and older shop one hour before opening to the public. The company, owned by Amazon, has approximately 500 stores in the U.S., U.K., Canada.
Canned water only on Southwest Airlines flights, starting Wednesday
Southwest Airlines is suspending traditional drink service on its flights to limit interactions between flight attendants and passengers during the coronavirus crisis. The new policy takes effect Wednesday.
Southwest, the nation’s largest domestic carrier, will offer only unopened cans of water to passengers requesting a drink on most flights. The airline will still serve pretzels and, on longer flights, other packaged snacks.
On short hops — dozens of Southwest flights under 250 miles, including Atlanta-Nashville, Dallas-Houston and Los Angeles-Las Vegas — the airline won’t serve any drinks or snacks so the crew can focus on other aspects of in-flight hygiene.
— Dawn Gilbertson
Savannah Guthrie has sore throat, will host ‘Today’ show from her basement
Like many Americans, Savannah Guthrie is working from home amid the coronavirus pandemic. The “Today” host, 48, announced on Instagram that she was anchoring the NBC News morning show from her basement Wednesday because she isn’t feeling 100%. “Well, this will be a first. I’m going to be anchoring TODAY from my house!” she wrote. “In an abundance of caution, and to model the super vigilance the CDC has asked of all of us, I’m staying home because I have a mild sore throat and runny nose.” Hoda Kotb was co-hosting the show live from Studio 1A.
— Hannah Yasharoff
Map: All 50 states now have at least 1 case of coronavirus
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The former vice president’s first win of the night was also his biggest, as he cruised to a rout over Vermont Sen. Sanders in Florida — packed with 219 party delegates — by nearly 40 percentage points, 61.9 percent to 22.8 percent with 99 percent of precincts reporting.
“Today, it looks like once again . . . our campaign has had a very good night,” Biden said in a subdued statement livestreamed from his Wilmington, Del., home.
“We moved closer to securing the Democratic Party’s nomination for president.”
Biden followed up his Sunshine State win with a commanding triumph in Illinois, where, with 96 percent of precincts reporting, he was up 59.5 percent to 35.8 percent.
And as Arizona returns came in early Wednesday (EDT), Biden had a healthy lead there of 42.7 percent to 30 percent, with 38 percent reporting.
Fueled by dominant wins in South Carolina on Feb. 29, on Super Tuesday (March 3), last week in Michigan and in a string of Southern states, Biden has now surged past 1,100 total projected delegates — leaving Sanders with no realistic path to victory.
The Tuesday blowouts helped Biden widen what was already a triple-digit lead in the delegate count, awarded proportionally to candidates’ vote totals.
Sanders did not speak publicly following the Tuesday drubbing, but those familiar with the self-described democratic socialist’s thinking expressed doubts that he would wave the white flag anytime soon.
“What I know about Senator Sanders’ thought process and focus is, it’s all about representing the movement and leading what he initially called the political revolution,” Kurt Ehrenberg, Sanders’ former longtime strategist in New Hampshire, told Politico.
“And not letting down the people who have been with him all along. I think that’s the most important consideration for him.”
Even in the three states where the primaries proceeded, the ever-expanding pandemic loomed large.
One day after President Trump urged Americans to avoid gatherings of 10 people or more to stem the infection’s spread, low turnout was the norm — both among voters and poll workers.
In Florida’s Palm Beach County, some 800 volunteer poll workers backed out, with only 100 new ones coming in.
Arizona election officials consolidated polling places, lined up backup poll workers and emphasized disinfecting equipment, while in Illinois, there was a push to relocate about 50 Chicago-area polling places after host sites canceled at the last minute.
“Biden and Sanders are debating the merits of marginally different policies in this little pseudo-reality, while America is consumed by an unprecedented crisis,” said Jesse Lehrich, a Democratic operative based in the Windy City who called the state’s election “understandably, a bit of a mess.”
“That’s not a criticism of the candidates,” said Lehrich. “Everything else in politics feels small in the shadow of coronavirus.”
Running against only token opposition, Trump reaped all but one of the available delegates this primary season, with former Massachusetts Gov. Bill Weld winning that one in the Iowa caucuses.
California Governor Gavin Newsom warned today that the state’s public schools will likely stay closed for the remainder of the academic year. The state is gearing up remote education opportunities to accommodate the shocking new normal.
“This is a very sobering thing to say,” Newsom said. “I don’t want to mislead you.”
Newsom made the remarks today at a press conference at the state’s emergency headquarters. While many school districts have only announced closures for a few weeks, Newsom amended that prediction in his remarks, saying a return was unlikely before the summer breaks start in May or June.
“Don’t anticipate schools are going to open up in a week,” he said. “It’s unlikely that many of these schools — few if any — will open before the summer break. Boy, I hope I’m wrong, but I believe that to be the case.”
More than 6 million California public school students are now at home, with 99 percent of the state’s schools closed. There is no state mandate to close, but most districts have voluntarily shuttered as part of the effort to steam the COVID-19 outbreak.
Newsom said that he has also asked the US Dept. of Education to halt standardized testing for the duration.
Earlier on Tuesday, Kansas became the first state to declare its schools would not reopen for the rest of the academic year.
Yet it’s not clear what comes next — for Mr. Sanders or the primary itself.
Georgia was supposed to vote next week, but that primary has been delayed. And given his string of poor performances the pressure for Mr. Sanders to exit the race is likely only to grow, even as the pandemic has frozen traditional campaigning and pushed multiple states to delay their planned elections.
Here are four takeawaysfrom a primary night in three key states for both parties:
Biden is winning almost everywhere — by a lot
It has been only 35 days since Mr. Biden’s low point in the 2020 primaries: a fifth-place finish in New Hampshire so embarrassing that he bolted the state before the polls closed and decamped to South Carolina for what looked like a potential last stand.
Now Mr. Biden is routing Mr. Sanders in every region of the country. In Florida, a voter survey showed Mr. Biden winning men and women, white voters and nonwhite voters, those with college degrees and those without — all with more than 60 percent of the vote. The victory was so thorough that Mr. Biden was even leading in Florida among “very liberal” Democrats, a typical Sanders base. He was similarly dominant in Illinois.
In fact, Mr. Biden was leading in every county in Florida — sometimes tripling and quadrupling the vote total of Mr. Sanders, just as the former vice president had swept every county in Michigan, Mississippi and Missouri a week ago.
On Mr. Sanders’s website, just below where he asks visitors to enter their email address, there is a giant banner that reads, “Bernie beats Trump.” But his lopsided losses in Florida and Arizona, a week after Mr. Biden crushed him in the key Midwestern swing state of Michigan, has severely undercut any electability case that Mr. Sanders hoped to make.
The lone remaining source of electoral strength for Mr. Sanders has proved to be younger voters, whom he continued to win over but who comprise only a small share of the electorate.
“The results tonight only confirmed what we knew a week ago — that Joe Biden is the prohibitive favorite to be the nominee of the Democratic Party,” said Guy Cecil, the chairman of Priorities USA, a leading Democratic super PAC devoted to the 2020 race. “It’s critical that Democratic organizations and allies need to be focused on taking on Donald Trump and on not allowing any of the lies he is telling about the likely nominee to take hold.”
Sanders still relishes his megaphone
Mr. Sanders may have skipped the traditional election night speech but he did hold a live-streamed event on Tuesday evening and rolled out a proposal for counteracting the potential looming recession from the coronavirus: $2,000 monthly cash payments to every household for the duration of the crisis.
The live-stream was, almost unintentionally, an encapsulation of where Mr. Sanders is in the race: a candidate pressing more for his ideas than himself — and wedded deeply to the platform that running for president provides his agenda. Mr. Sanders urged that any fiscal countermeasures from Washington to the pandemic would not amount to “another money making opportunity for corporate America and for Wall Street.”
Still, some members of the Sanders team seem to be itching for a prolonged primary fight, even as few know what exactly Mr. Sanders and his wife, Jane, plan to do next.
Mr. Sanders made one other announcement on Tuesday: that he had processed more than 10 million contributions in his 2020 campaign, adding up to more than $191 million.
That includes $2 million on Sunday, even as the nation was facing a financial standstill from the mass closures of businesses and “stay home” edicts from health officials.
In other words, Mr. Sanders is likely to have the money to keep running if he wants to.
But as traditional organizing and campaigning come to a halt — and with the media glare almost entirely on the virus — the path forward now seems narrower than ever.
Biden is pivoting to the general (while trying to bring in Sanders fans)
Addressing the country on Tuesday night from his home in Wilmington, Del., Mr. Biden spoke first and foremost about the virus upending people’s lives, looking far more toward the general election in the fall than the evening’s primary election results.
“This is a moment where we need our leaders to lead,” Mr. Biden said.
He invoked empathy for the suffering, offered prayers for the sick, expressed concerns over hospitals being overloaded and cited the hardships being endured by average Americans.
Mr. Biden also explicitly, again, tried to reach out to supporters of Mr. Sanders, citing the “remarkable passion and tenacity” of his rival and those supporters. “We share a common vision,” he said, referring specifically to providing “affordable health care to all Americans” and tackling climate change.
He addressed young voters directly.
“I hear you. I know what’s at stake,” Mr. Biden said, “I know what we have to do. Our goal as a campaign, and my goal as a candidate, is to unify this party and unify this nation.”
Coronavirus clouds the future of the primary
What comes next is one giant question mark.
Georgia postponed its primary next week. Ohio was supposed to have voted on Tuesday but the governor pushed back its primary. Kentucky, Maryland and Louisiana have delayed or moved to delay theirs as well. And most future contests are in limbo given the restrictions on group gatherings being pressed by state and federal officials.
“As our country deals with the uncertainty of Covid-19, it is critical that states provide clarity and not confusion, which could lead to disenfranchising voters,” Democratic National Committee Chairman Tom Perez said on Tuesday, as he urged the remaining states to allow vote-by-mail balloting.
Mr. Perez worried about “moving primaries to later in the cycle when timing around the virus remains unpredictable.”
In New York, for instance, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo said Tuesday the peak of the virus could come in 45 days — right around the current April 28 primary date.
Overall, turnout on Tuesday represented a mixed bag.
In Arizona, the mayor of Phoenix, the largest city in the state, ordered the shut down of bars and restaurants as of 8 p.m. local time on Tuesday — not long after the polls closed. Yet turnout among voters who physically went to the polls in Maricopa County (home to Phoenix) was actually higher in the 2020 primary than in 2016.
In Florida, total turnout ended up topping the 2016 Democratic primary but that appeared largely because of heavy early voting. In Illinois, the total vote was far below the 2 million who turned out for the 2016 primary.
For now, Mr. Biden can hope that the next time voters go to the polls, he will be the only candidate still running.
Vice President Mike Pence joins Sean Hannity for an exclusive interview on ‘Hannity.’
Vice President Mike Pence appeared on “Hannity” Tuesday and once again encouraged Americans and business to follow the coronavirus guidelines released by the Trump administration’s coronavirus task force Monday.
“We need every American, every American business to step forward and recognize that if we act now, if we act now, we can limit the spread of the coronavirus significantly and ultimately save lives,” Pence told host Sean Hannity, pushing “social distancing.”
When Hannity asked Pence about drive-thru testing, the VP said the process was ramping up.
“What’s happening is that as of last week, ten states around the country had initiated drive-thru testing centers. But Sean, they were using the old manual testing methods in labs, which could only test about 40 to 60 people a week,” Pence said. “Because President Trump two weeks ago brought together the top commercial labs in the country and because the FDA moved in record time, now we have what are called high-throughput tests, automated tests that can literally test thousands of people a day for the coronavirus.”
“We’re going to be supporting state efforts. We’re going to be working with them to make sure that those great retailers, which are CVS and Target and Walgreens and WalMart that are opening their parking lots for drive-thru centers are included,” Pence added. “But the American people can be confident that now that we have the commercial labs around the country with those high-speed automated tests, you’re literally going to see tens of thousands of tests in the days and weeks ahead for the American people.”
Pence also said Trump had “convened” the nation’s top industrial suppliers, including Home Depot and Amazon, and directed them to ensure critical medical supplies are being focused exclusively on the needs of our health care industry, saying “our priority is people that that have contracted the coronavirus.”
Hannity then asked Pence about the amount spent to continue to keep the economy afloat, in response to which the vice president assured the host that the administration was “going to do whatever it takes” to get the economy back on track.
“Any hourly worker in this country who feels like they may have contracted the coronavirus should stay home and they shouldn’t worry about missing a paycheck,” Pence said. “We’re working with Congress to ensure that paid leave is available for hardworking Americans. But making sure that this economy gets back on its feet, [and] that Americans are able to weather this time as is also a priority for President Trump.”
Pence also said both parties on Capitol Hill are working on legislation “that will bring paid family leave and cover the cost of a coronavirus test for every American, whether they have insurance or not.”
Newman, who came within 2,200 votes of ousting Lipinski in 2018, crafted a formidable and well-funded campaign operation for the rematch. Her turnout operation knocked over 100,000 doors and she nabbed early endorsements from nearly every high-profile progressive, including Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.).
That support helped Newman tap a groundswell of grassroots donors from around the country. She raised upwards of $1.6 million and was outspending Lipinski by a two-to-one margin on the air.
A coalition of women’s groups, including EMILY’s List and NARAL Pro-Choice, funneled $1 million into TV ads to help Newman, but Lipinski was left to fend for himself on the airwaves, a dynamic that made his team nervous heading into the election.
In a statement Tuesday night, NARAL President Ilyse Hogue hailed the victory as a “culmination of years of work to unseat an entrenched incumbent.”
“Voters across the country are in no mind to stand by as their elected officials throw women and families under the bus,” she said.
There were some serious warning signs for Lipinski in the buildup to Tuesday night. He getting slammed on the airwaves and his supporters became nervous enough that they sent what appeared to be automated text messages to GOP voters urging them to “stop” Newman by pulling a Democratic ballot.
Newman may also have benefited from a decrease in turnout caused by fears over the rapid spread of the coronavirus. Lipinski, a product of Chicago’s machine politics, likely held an advantage with older voters, who are disproportionately at risk for contracting the virus and perhaps more likely to stay home.
The district spans from the southwest side of Chicago, where Lipinski’s support is strong, out to the western suburbs, where Newman’s base resides.
Lipinski, has long been atop liberal target lists for positions he has held throughout his career. He voted against the Affordable Care Act, the Defense of Marriage Act and has voted to defund Planned Parenthood.
“We desperately need positive change here,” Newman told reporters in a call last week. “What I hear in all 350 of my meet-and-greets we’ve had over the last year is the same thing: We need a real Democrat with a real plan.”
Yet Lipinski pitched himself as in line with the district’s voters and cast Newman as too extreme, citing her support for “Medicare for All” and the Green New Deal.
“We should remain focused on what’s important,” he told reporters in an interview last week in the Capitol. “What really holds us all together as Democrats: the type of agenda that we have had in the House with our majority in this Congress.”
Newman’s campaign message relied less on touting her liberal policy positions and more on painting Lipinski as ineffective. She stressed her plans to make health care affordable, better transportation in the district and reduce gun violence.
The district leans heavily Democratic but Lipinski was likely able to hang onto it in part because of his ties to the Chicago political machine. He won the seat in 2004 after his father, then-Rep. Bill Lipinski, announced a surprise retirement a few months before the election and persuaded local Democratic committeemen to place his son on the ballot in his place.
Newman’s victory is a huge win for the progressive movement, providing them with crucial momentum at a time when their leading presidential candidate is floundering.
On Super Tuesday, two left-leaning challengers failed to push past more moderate candidates in Senate primaries in North Carolina and Texas. And another huge loss came in South Texas when Jessica Cisneros, a 26-year-old immigration attorney failed to dislodge moderate Democratic Rep. Henry Cuellar, who has also opposed abortion rights and once had a A rating from the National Rifle Association.
Now liberal groups will enter the next crop of primaries with tangible excitement. The Progressive Change Campaign Committee sent out a fundraising plea late Tuesday night, touting Newman’s win and urging supporters to donate to other progressive candidates.
Progressives may also draw encouragement from other Illinois results. Longtime Democratic Rep. Bill Foster faced a closer-than-expected primary challenge from an under-funded local official who advocated for the Green New Deal and Medicare for All.
In the coming months, several members of the Congressional Black Caucus face upstart primary challengers, many of whom are making a generational argument.
Rep. Joyce Beatty (D-Ohio) was supposed to face off Tuesday against Morgan Harper, a consumer advocate backed by Justice Democrats, before Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine ordered polling places shuttered out of concern for the coronavirus.
The Justice Democrats are also backing challengers to Reps. Eliot Engel (D-N.Y.), Richie Neal (D-Mass.) and Lacy Clay (D-Mo.).
One of the biggest problems facing the United States during the coronavirus pandemic is a lack of paid leave for workers.
Even though health officials recommend that anyone who feels sick stay home from work to help slow the spread of the virus, many Americans risk losing pay — or their jobs — if they stay home. And with schools and daycare centers closed across the country, many parents have few job protections if they take time off to care for their kids.
Congress aimed to fix that this week with the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, which was supposed to help workers across the country take care of themselves and their loved ones in this time of national crisis. President Trump even praised the bill on Saturday, citing “good teamwork” between Democrats and Republicans.
Good teamwork between Republicans & Democrats as the House passes the big CoronaVirus Relief Bill. People really pulled together. Nice to see!
But after amendments by Republicans on Monday, the bill could leave out millions of Americans who work for small businesses. The amendments also limited paid family leave to parents dealing with school closures — leaving out people who need to stay home because a family member was exposed to the virus or is displaying symptoms.
Overall, the bill — which is expected to pass in the Senate — may solve some of the glaring problems with the American social safety net that the coronavirus crisis has exposed. But the fact that so many workers and situations aren’t covered “adds up to a giant individual health and financial security risk, as well as a giant community health risk,” Vicki Shabo, a senior fellow for paid leave policy and strategy, at the New America Foundation’s Better Life Lab, told Vox.
As much as health experts and government officials are telling Americans to stay home right now to avoid spreading the virus, “people literally cannot necessarily afford to do that,” Shabo said. “We all pay the price.”
Republicans created loopholes in the new sick-leave bill that could hang employees out to dry
Nearly 200 countries around the world guarantee paid sick leave to workers, according to PRI. As Vox’s Dylan Scott notes, it’s often seen as an issue of simple justice: People shouldn’t lose their jobs or income just because they get sick. But the US isn’t among those 200 countries, and large swathes of American workers lack paid time off — for example, just 27 percent of those whose wages fall in the bottom 10 percent in the country have access to sick leave.
That’s always been a public health risk as well as an individual one, and now it’s even more so, since coronavirus spreads easily from person to person and experts say one of the best ways to contain it is for everyone — especially the sick — to keep their distance.
That’s why guaranteeing some form of paid sick leave has been a big priority for lawmakers in this time. The Families First Coronavirus Response Act does that, guaranteeing two weeks of paid sick leave to people who are sick or quarantined because of Covid-19, as well as caregivers for family members who are sick.
But there are big exceptions. Businesses with more than 500 employees are exempt — something the White House and congressional Republicans demanded before they would support the bill, according to the New York Times. This includes corporations like McDonald’s and Amazon, which employ millions (though many of those corporations have said they will voluntarily provide paid sick time during the crisis).
And now because of amendments introduced on Monday — also under pressure from Republicans — the bill now also exempts businesses with fewer than 50 employees and many health care providers, if the Labor Department determines that offering paid leave “would jeopardize the viability of the business as a going concern,” the Times reports.
About 59 million Americans work for businesses with more than 500 employees, according to the Times, and about 6.5 million of them have no paid sick days. Meanwhile, 12 million Americans working at small businesses have no paid sick leave. These workers could be forced to choose between following CDC recommendations and keeping their jobs. (That’s not counting the roughly 16 million workers who are self-employed, including gig economy workers.)
The bill was also supposed to address family leave, a crucial issue as parents nationwide are now without a source of child care as thousands of schools close. And the current version of the bill will provide 12 weeks of paid leave total to parents of children whose schools are closed, at 67 percent of the worker’s normal pay, up to $200 a day.
But small and large businesses are also exempted from this provision, leaving their employees potentially without benefits. Meanwhile, an earlier version of the bill allowed workers to take paid time off to care for a family member with symptoms or who had been exposed to the virus, but this portion was also removed during the amendment process.
The new version of the bill also allows employers to designate employees as necessary health care personnel and exempt them from paid benefits. And yet “there’s no accommodation for child care in this bill for those workers, and there’s also obviously a public health concern with having health providers and emergency responders potentially going to work after having been exposed to and exhibiting symptoms of the virus,” Shabo said.
Overall, the bill does move toward solving some of the problems laid bare by the coronavirus epidemic, and keeping workers and their families safe. But, Shabo said, the exemptions in the legislation show that “we’re still a nation of haves and have-nots when it comes to access to paid sick time and paid family and medical leave.”
De Blasio put out a blanket call for anyone in the city who has health-care skills. He said there are 9,000 licensed and retired health-care workers registered in the Medical Reserve Corps that will be mobilized immediately.
He asked retired medical workers to return to service and said he would be expediting licensing for students.
The city is preparing for an “onslaught” of cases, he said, adding that local officials believe there will be thousands of confirmed infections by next week.
“We’re in a period where we have a very few days and weeks to prepare for a massive number of cases,” he said. “It’s not that long before we hit 10,000 cases.”
Across the state, the virus has spread to about 1,700 people, hospitalizing 19% of them and killing at least 12, state officials announced Tuesday.
The state is scrambling to expand its hospital capacity to handle an influx of cases before infections are expected to peak in about 45 days, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said at a press conference in Albany.
New York state doesn’t have enough hospital beds or respirators to handle the expected surge in respiratory cases, Cuomo said. There are 53,000 hospital beds across the state and 3,000 ICU beds, he said, adding that the state will need at least 55,000 hospital beds and between 18,600 to 37,200 ICU beds at the peak of the outbreak.
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