U.S. coronavirus cases surpass 2 million

The United States has surpassed 2 million coronavirus cases, even as states forge ahead with reopening their economies and demonstrators gather en masse to protest police brutality and racial inequality. It took the U.S. nearly three months to officially hit 1 million confirmed cases on April 28, but just six weeks to double it. Reporting…

Under pressure, Trump administration weighs extending National Guard deployments

Trump administration officials are preparing plans to extend the federal deployment of more than 40,000 National Guard members performing coronavirus relief work across the country, after scores of lawmakers moved to pressure President Donald Trump to keep the Guards in place past June. Four people familiar with the matter said the administration is prepared to…

‘Abusive, dictatorial, tyrannical’: Republicans ramp up attacks on lockdowns

Rep. Andy Harris is fed up with being locked down. “They promised 2 million dead at the beginning of this,” Harris fumed to constituents during a recent teletown hall, later adding, “The media has a vested interest in making things sound worse so that you tune in the next day.” The conservative Maryland Republican also…

Will the Pandemic Keep Third Parties Off the 2020 Ballot?

The pandemic may have robbed Donald Trump of a growing economy. It may have trapped Joe Biden in his basement. But it may yet do something even worse to the Libertarian and Green party nominees: keep them off the ballot in many of this year’s key states. In 2016, the Libertarian Party was on the…

Hot spots erupt in farm belt states where governors insist lockdowns aren’t needed

The only hospital in Grand Island, Neb., is full. The mayor has asked for a statewide stay-at-home order that the GOP governor insists isn’t needed. More than one-third of those tested for coronavirus in the surrounding county are positive — and there aren’t enough tests to go around. Grand Island is the fourth-biggest city in…

Cuomo: ‘We would have a problem’ if Trump tries to reopen New York

Gov. Andrew Cuomo of New York warned Tuesday that he and President Donald Trump "would have a problem" if the White House forged ahead with plans to reopen the state absent Albany’s approval, setting the stage for a potential constitutional clash against the backdrop of a global pandemic. "Look, if he pushed it to that…

Trump: It’s my decision, not governors’, to reopen country

President Donald Trump insisted Monday that he alone could declare the United States reopen for business, continuing a contradictory line of messaging toward the nation’s governors as they have taken on greater responsibilities to combat the coronavirus pandemic in the face of federal inaction. “For the purpose of creating conflict and confusion, some in the…

6 Northeast governors planning regional economic restart

ALBANY, N.Y. — Six Northeast governors will form a working group to come up with a plan to restart the regional economy, they announced on Monday. Speaking on a conference call, the governors of New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Delaware and Rhode Island agreed that it was essential to work together in developing plans…