Why is Iran's reported mortality rate for coronavirus higher than in other countries?

Iran has now suspended parliament indefinitely due to the outbreak. Secretary of State Pompeo says the U.S. has offered to help Iran respond to the virus.

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Trump moves to calm virus fears after first death on US soil

US President Donald Trump moved to quell fears about the novel coronavirus after the first death on US soil was confirmed Saturday. The US fatality occurred in Washington State's King county, which includes Seattle, a city of more than 700,000 people, said health officials. The victim was not immediately identified, but Trump told reporters that the victim was a woman in her late 50s.

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Trump Wait-in-Mexico Asylum Policy Blocked as Too Dangerous

(Bloomberg) -- The Trump administration is blocked from making thousands of Central American migrants wait out the result of their asylum applications to the U.S. in Mexico.The San Francisco-based appeals court on Friday upheld a judge’s order barring the Homeland Security Department’s policy, which prevents migrants from countries like Guatemala and Honduras from living in the U.S. during the yearslong review process.The administration was allowed in May by a three-judge panel to implement the Migrant Protections Protocols policy -- one of its major initiatives to stem immigration across the U.S. southern border -- but Friday’s ruling halts it while the legal fight continues. The administration is expected to appeal again, possibly asking the Supreme Court to intervene.Read More: Trump Barred From Forcing Asylum Seekers to Wait in Mexico”Uncontested evidence” shows that non-Mexicans returned to Mexico under Trump’s policy “risk substantial harm, even death, while they await adjudication of their applications for asylum,” U.S. Circuit Judge William Fletcher wrote for the majority in the 2-1 ruling.As of January, more than 57,000 asylum seekers and migrants had been returned to Mexico to wait for their court dates, according to Human Rights First, a New York-based international nonprofit. The organization said Friday it has collected more than 1,000 public reports of kidnappings, torture, rape and assaults against asylum seekers, including at least 228 kidnapping incidents involving children.The Justice Department said the administration has “acted faithfully to implement a statutory authority provided by Congress over two decades ago and signed into law by President Clinton.”The court’s decision “not only ignores the constitutional authority of Congress and the administration for a policy in effect for over a year, but also extends relief beyond the parties before the court,” a department spokesman said in an emailed statement.An attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union called on the administration to stop “putting asylum seekers in harm’s way.”“The court forcefully rejected the Trump administration’s assertion that it could strand asylum seekers in Mexico and subject them to grave danger,” Judy Rabinovitz said in a statement.Fletcher, who was appointed by President Bill Clinton, was joined in his opinion by Richard Paez, another Clinton appointee.In a dissent, Circuit Judge Ferdinand Fernandez, an appointee of George H.W. Bush, said the lower-court order should have been struck down because the migrants challenging the policy weren’t likely to prevail on their claims.In a separate ruling Friday, the same three-judge panel upheld a San Francisco judge’s 2018 order blocking the Trump administration’s policy of automatically denying asylum applications of migrants who cross the U.S. border outside official ports of entry.The case is Innovation Law Lab v. McAleenan, 19-15716, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (San Francisco).(Updates with Justice Department comment in sixth paragraph.)\--With assistance from Malathi Nayak and Jordan Fabian.To contact the reporter on this story: Edvard Pettersson in Los Angeles at epettersson@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Peter Blumberg at pblumberg1@bloomberg.net, Joe SchneiderFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2020 Bloomberg L.P.

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At least two dozen US police departments have spread misinformation linking coronavirus to meth

"This attempt, although a long shot, still had some possibility behind it," one police department said in response to criticism.

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Trump moves to calm virus fears after first death on US soil

President Donald Trump urged Americans not to panic over the novel coronavirus Saturday after the first death on US soil was confirmed, even as France ramped up its security measures by cancelling all mass gatherings. The virus has now hit 61 countries across the globe, prompting the World Health Organization to raise its risk assessment to its highest level. Its rapid spread beyond China's borders in the past week has caused stock markets to sink to their lowest levels since the 2008 global financial crisis over fears the disease could wreak havoc on the world economy.

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Christian woman in Pakistan blasphemy row: I've been invited to live in France

Asia Bibi, a Christian woman sentenced to death for blasphemy in Pakistan, said on Friday after meeting President Emmanuel Macron that she had been invited her to live in France. Bibi was acquitted of the blasphemy conviction last year and has since been living with her family in Canada.

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Turkey Will Allow Up to One Million Syrian Refugees to Breach Its Borders to Reach Europe

Turkey will allow up to one million Syrian refugees to pass through its territory to reach Europe ahead of a Russian-backed Syrian government offensive on the last rebel-held territory in the war-torn country."We have decided, effectively immediately, not to stop Syrian refugees from reaching Europe by land or sea," a Turkish official told Reuters. "All refugees, including Syrians, are now welcome to cross into the European Union."Footage of Syrian refugees boarding boats attempting to reach the islands of Greece was broadcast on CNN Turkey, while a reporter for Middle East Eye shared a picture of a bus placed by Greek authorities in front of its Pazarkule border crossing with Turkey, to prevent refugees from entering.Syria's offensive on Idlib province, targeting the last remnants of the rebellion including several Al-Qaeda groups, has forced one million people to flee their homes. International aid groups have struggled to provide food and shelter to refugees, some of whom have frozen to death after repeated cold winter nights.The Turkish army, stationed along the country's border with Syria, has repeatedly come into conflict with Syrian government forces. Syria killed 33 Turkish soldiers on Thursday in a series of air strikes.Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in a phone conversation Friday told Russian leader Vladimir Putin, who backs Syrian government forces, that any Syrian military position was a legitimate target for Turkish forces. Erdogan is scheduled to speak with President Trump on Friday regarding the attacks on the Turkish military and the refugee issue.The nine-year Syrian civil war has produced one of the world's largest refugee crises, with millions of migrants fleeing to Europe throughout the conflict.

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Traveling during the coronavirus outbreak? Here’s what you need to know

With COVID-19 spreading around the globe, the U.S. State Department and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have issued these travel advisories.

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210 people have reportedly died from coronavirus in Iran, but the government is saying the death toll is only 34

The death toll in Iran from the novel coronavirus could be far higher than the government is letting on.

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First coronavirus death on US soil confirmed, Trump calls for calm

The first fatality from the novel coronavirus has been confirmed on US soil, as President Donald Trump on Saturday urged Americans not to panic. Health officials said the man who died in Washington state was one of a handful with no known links to global hot zones to have contracted the virus -- indicating that the pathogen was now likely spreading in communities. The death occurred in King County, the most populous in the state and home to Seattle, a city of more than 700,000 people, officials told AFP.

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'I guess I wasn't arrested': Joe Biden reverses on claim of an arrest in South Africa

Joe Biden has previously told of being arrested in South Africa while traveling with black lawmakers. He reversed himself Friday in a CNN interview.

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U.S. Navy Coronavirus Quarantine Could Get Ugly

The U.S. Navy’s new plan to preemptively self-quarantine ships in the Pacific region, where they will remain at sea for 14 days over fears about the 2019 novel coronavirus, sparked concerns of disastrous consequences mirroring the explosion of cases on a cruise ship off Japan.It was almost fitting that, hours after the plan went public, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced Friday it had confirmed two more cases of the deadly disease in Americans who were rescued from the Diamond Princess cruise ship.As of Friday, there were 62 confirmed cases of the virus in the U.S. One of those cases—a severely ill person in northern California who had not traveled abroad—marked the first infection of unknown origin on American soil, while 14 patients came through the American health system after traveling to China or having close contact with someone who had. The rest, aside from the 44 cases from the cruise ship, were repatriated individuals who fled the vicinity of the virus’s origin in China on State Department-chartered planes.In the case of the Diamond Princess, a man boarded the ship carrying the virus, then disembarked in Hong Kong, and—after a controversial quarantine that one expert called “the stupidest idea ever”—ultimately helped transmit it to hundreds of people.The Coronavirus Stock Market Rollercoaster Isn’t Stopping Anytime Soon“It’s a cold virus, and colds are readily transmissible from person-to-person,” explained Dr. Jeffrey Klausner, an adjunct professor of epidemiology at the University of California Los Angeles who previously worked for the CDC and who described the cruise quarantine as “a disaster.”After the quarantine, the Diamond Princess was the largest single outbreak outside China until this week’s developments in South Korea and Italy. The cruise company has said it was following recommendations from Japanese health authorities.The saga made it all the more remarkable when, on Thursday evening, the U.S. Navy signaled it would self-quarantine ships and monitor sailors who’ve traveled to higher-risk areas in the Pacific Fleet for symptoms of the virus “out of an abundance of caution.” Navy spokesman Lt. James Adams told CNN that there were “no indications that any U.S Navy personnel have contracted Coronavirus Disease 2019.” (One U.S. military member in South Korea has previously been reported to have the virus.)“The health and welfare of our sailors, civilians and their families is paramount and our efforts are directed at detection and, if required, prevention of the spread of this illness,” Adams said.Adams did not immediately respond to requests for further comment on details about or the wisdom of a seaborne quarantine from The Daily Beast. But experts’ takes on the plan ranged from cautious optimism to profound skepticism.“If your goal is to spread the virus, that’s probably a very good thing to do,” deadpanned Dr. Timothy Brewer, a professor of epidemiology and medicine at UCLA who has served as an adviser for the World Health Organization, CDC, and National Institutes of Health. “I mean, seriously.”“There are two possibilities, right? Either someone is infected on some of those ships, or not. If nobody is infected, they’re going to spend 14 days sitting out on the open ocean and nothing happens,” said Brewer. “On the other hand, if somebody is infected and contagious, you have a bunch of people in a confined space who can’t get away from each other. That’s actually how you maximize transmission.”“The Diamond Princess is a perfect example of that,” said Brewer. “It doesn’t make a whole lot of sense. If I had to guess, it’s because they feel like they have to do something and they don’t know what to do.”Irwin Redlener, director of the National Center for Disaster Preparedness at Columbia University, had a more tempered response, suggesting the plan “isn’t unreasonable” if officials are careful to screen people with fever or upper respiratory symptoms. “I don’t think it’s a terrible idea, but they have to do it right,” he said.Klausner, meanwhile, pointed out that, “for the Diamond Princess, there was chaos that I would not expect on a U.S. Navy vessel.”“With the Navy, there’s normally an onboard medical facility, and they can have on board testing and devices,” said Klausner. “I would expect it would be a lot more organized.”Read more at The Daily Beast.Got a tip? Send it to The Daily Beast hereGet our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.

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Bernie Sanders has a convenient change of heart on delegate rules. Will Democrats buy it?

There’s one big issue that Bernie Sanders has reversed himself on — and it could complicate his path to the nomination. The issue is the role of so-called superdelegates at the Democratic convention. These are the elected officials and party leaders who are automatically seated but whose votes only come into play after the first ballot.

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Iran reports new surge in coronavirus cases

Iran on Saturday reported a surge in new coronavirus cases as the number of deaths jumped to 43, but it dismissed as "rumours" a report the real toll was much higher. Since it announced its first deaths from COVID-19, Iran has scrambled to bring the outbreak under control, shutting schools, suspending cultural and sporting events and halting meetings of the cabinet and parliament. The health ministry on Saturday reported nine new deaths and a 53 percent jump in infections over the previous 24 hours, taking the overall totals to 43 deaths among 593 cases.

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South Carolina exit polls: Black and moderate voters fuel Biden to victory

The former vice president won 60 percent of the black vote and received solid backing from moderate and religious voters Saturday.

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Americans of all parties agree: Joe Biden is old, Michael Bloomberg is rich

Pollsters at The Associated Press and NORC gave the public a chance to describe presidential candidates in one word or short phrase. The results were... telling.Democrats described former South Bend, Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigieg as nearly equal parts "smart," "young," and "gay." Independents and Republicans were far more likely to describe him as "gay," as well as "inexperienced," and "centrist." Philanthropist Tom Steyer was more overwhelmingly described as "rich" by Democrats, while independents and Republicans opted for "inexperienced."While former Vice President Joe Biden scored some mentions of "good person" among Democrats, he mostly got "old." Independents and Republicans also mostly called him "old," followed by "corrupt" and "creepy."Democrats and independents similarly described Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) as "old" at the highest rate, though Republicans went straight for "socialist," followed by "old," and "communist."> How poll respondents described 2020 candidates in one (or a few more) words. https://t.co/I53LZ1dSR1 pic.twitter.com/GbcahfoHCl> > — Philip Bump (@pbump) February 28, 2020Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who is older than Biden and just months younger than Sanders, is universally regarded as "rich" (a fair assessment), and Republicans said he's "buying the election."Democrats were split in describing Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) as "smart" and "strong," though independents and Republicans view her primarily as a "liar," as well as "crazy" and a "woman," which is hardly up for debate.While the Democratic candidates were generally regarded more positively by members of their own party, surveyed Republicans didn't come up with great words for President Trump. Most Republicans simply said "president," followed by "bumbling" and "jerk."The AP-NORC poll was conducted Feb. 12-16 via phone interviews with 1,074 adults. The margin of error is ±4.2 percentage points. View the full results at AP-NORC.More stories from theweek.com Stock markets are headed for a 40 percent plunge, says economist who predicted financial crisis Trump mocks Bloomberg's height, Biden's age in wild CPAC speech The growing viral threat

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South Koreans told to stay home as coronavirus infections surpass 3,100

South Korea urged citizens on Saturday to stay indoors as it warned of a "critical moment" in its battle on the coronavirus after recording the biggest daily jump in infections, as 813 new cases took the tally to 3,150. South Korea is grappling with the largest outbreak of the virus outside China, as a new death took the toll to 17, amid a record daily increase in infections since the country confirmed its first patient on Jan. 20. It was a "critical moment" in reining in the spread of the virus, he said, adding, "Please stay at home and refrain from going outside and minimize contact with other people."

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Why the Navy's New Lrasm Missile Would Be a Real Ship-Killer

A very good idea.

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Trump Team Testing ‘Off-the-Shelf’ Drugs to Cure Coronavirus

(Bloomberg) -- The Trump administration is testing existing “off-the-shelf” drugs to combat the coronavirus, a cabinet official said Saturday.A national lab in Tennessee recently made “an important discovery” involving existing drugs, Energy Secretary Dan Brouillette said at the Conservative Political Action Conference in Maryland.“The scientists at our Oak Ridge National Laboratory were able to look at the protein strains and determine -- perhaps, it’s still early -- that we can find some off-the-shelf drugs that can help us not only cure the disease but stop the spread of the infection,” Brouillette said.Brouillette was responding to a question about what his agency is doing to help combat the virus, which has caused markets to plunge and killed nearly 3,000 people across the globe. In the U.S., where 22 cases have been reported, the virus has killed one person -- a woman from Washington state -- and more cases are likely, President Donald Trump said Saturday.In addition to the laboratory tests, Brouillette said he’s harnessing the power of his agency’s “super computers” as well as artificial intelligence capabilities to assist organizations like the Centers for Disease Control and the World Heath Organization to conduct modeling on the virus.“We want to know how far is this going to spread and at what point might it peak,” he said.To contact the reporter on this story: Ari Natter in Washington at anatter5@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Jon Morgan at jmorgan97@bloomberg.net, Matthew G. Miller, Virginia Van NattaFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2020 Bloomberg L.P.

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Man whose son was found encased in cement sentenced to 72 years in prison

A Colorado man whose seven-year-old son was repeatedly abused before being found encased in concrete in a Denver storage unit has been sentenced to 72 years in prison for the death.Leland Pankey received the sentence on Friday, with one count of child abuse landing him 48 years in prison and 24 years for tampering with the body.

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40% of Americans don't think the US government is prepared to handle coronavirus

Only 7% of Americans said they felt the US government is "extremely prepared" for coronavirus, while 12% said "very prepared."

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South Korea virus cases surge as WHO sounds maximum alert

South Korea reported its biggest surge in new coronavirus cases on Saturday as concerns grew of a possible epidemic in the United States and the World Health Organization raised its risk alert to its highest level. The virus has rapidly spread across the world in the past week, causing stock markets to sink to their lowest levels since the 2008 global financial crisis over fears that the disease could wreak havoc on the world economy. The vast majority of infections have been in China but more daily cases are now logged outside the country, with South Korea, Italy and Iran emerging as major hotspots.

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The FDA just announced the first drug shortage caused by the coronavirus, but wouldn't identify the drug

China is a critical player in the global supply chain for drugs, as many ingredients in the medicines we take are manufactured there.

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'He fought us every single step of the way': How Bloomberg embraced stop-and-frisk as mayor

"He dug in and fought us all the way to his last day in office," an activist who opposed stop-and-frisk recalled.

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A man convicted for killing his high school girlfriend was freed by decades-old DNA evidence. Now he's on a mission to find the real killer.

Leah Freeman's shoes were the only clue police had in her murder — and the only evidence that her high school boyfriend Nick McGuffin wasn't her killer.

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Libya officials: 21 civilians killed in Tripoli since Jan. 9

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Chancellor Hopefuls Clash in Duel for Post-Merkel Germany

(Bloomberg) -- Emotions were running high in an old brewery in the region where Chancellor Angela Merkel’s party stumbled into its worst crisis in decades.In the town of Apolda in the eastern German state of Thuringia, supporters of the Christian Democratic Union shouted down local media, claiming reporters smeared the state chapter. With beer flowing freely, that anger quickly turned to wild cheers when Friedrich Merz appeared before some 1,300 sympathizers, a day after the race to lead Germany’s most powerful party started.For the bulk in attendance, Merkel -- and not a rogue decision by local CDU lawmakers to ally with the far-right Alternative for Germany -- was the problem, and Merz is the answer.The long-time Merkel antagonist “is the only one in the CDU right now who has the courage” to stand up to the German leader, party member Bernhard Koegel said between speeches and folk music in Apolda. “He is the only one who will be able to stop Merkel.”Crowd SizeAbout 170 miles west of Apolda, a crowd of about half the size of Merz’s gathered to hear Armin Laschet, a moderate in Merkel’s mold who’s considered the clear front-runner. After officially announcing their respective candidacies to lead the CDU on Tuesday in Berlin, the two events were the first stops to woo the base.The eight-week contest will culminate in a special convention on April 25. The winner will have the inside track to succeed Merkel and set the trajectory for Europe’s most powerful economy for years to come. The stakes are high for Germany and its partners.Merz has accused Laschet of representing “continuity,” while pledging to be the only candidate who can take the CDU forward into a post-Merkel era.Health Minister Jens Spahn, who this week set aside his own leadership ambitions to back Laschet, took issue with Merz’s accusation in a Wednesday night television interview. Spahn’s decision not to run was a bid to unite his more conservative faction with Laschet’s centrist backers and dealt a blow to Merz’s chances.“I also have a bit of change in me, certainly compared to Friedrich Merz,” said the 39-year-old Spahn, who would be Laschet’s deputy if he wins. He has repeatedly lamented the CDU’s deepest-ever crisis and urged the party to reach out to voters leaked to the Greens and the AfD.At a barn-like clubhouse of a local rifle association in the remote village of Lennestadt-Kirchveischede, the contrast between the contenders was clear. It was Merz’s fervor and promise of change versus Laschet’s stability and his standing as head of Germany’s largest state.At the Laschet event, Martin Solbach acknowledged that Merz still has strong support in the rolling hills of rural western Germany even after his long hiatus from politics. But the CDU councilman in the nearby town of Wenden said he supports the state premier of North Rhine-Westphalia.Laschet “can show he has done a lot, which is saying more than his opponent,” who went into business after losing out in a power struggle with Merkel a decade ago, Solbach, 61, said as a traditional brass band played. “Laschet is closer to the base, but he needs to become a little more aggressive.”In his first speech since announcing his candidacy, Laschet pulled his punches when it came to his CDU political rivals. At best, he indirectly took issue with Merz’s criticism of Merkel’s energy policy, saying any approach in the age of climate change is fraught.Political TraditionThe performance was unusually tepid for an Ash Wednesday speech, a tradition in German politics. The events, often held in locations off the beaten path, typically offer politicians a platform to address issues in a more emotional way, a departure from staid stump speeches.Accompanied by a traditional brass band, Laschet took to the stage amid moderate applause from the beer-drinking CDU locals spilled out over benches. Most of Laschet’s attacks were reserved for the far-right AfD, who he said are trying to “break” the country and represent “everything the CDU is against.”He also took aim at the Greens, criticizing the environmental party for seeking growth-sapping regulations and demonizing Germany’s auto industry.“Nobody would treat a key industry like the Germans do,” Laschet said. He acknowledged the damage inflicted by the 2015 diesel-cheating scandal, “but that’s not a reason to bad talk a whole industry.”As a leader, Laschet said he wanted to talk less and deal less with regulation. “I just want to do it,” he said to loud applause.Merz’s TurfThe most aggressive aspect of the performance was its location in the rolling hills of Sauerland -- a traditional CDU stronghold that also happens to be where Merz is from.The former CDU caucus leader, meanwhile, went straight to the heart of the crisis in Thuringia. Cow bells rang, and the band played a march as Merz shook the hand of the leader of the state chapter, who’s decision sparked national outrage. The gesture went over well, as did Merz’s combative style.“Things can’t stay as they are,” said Merz to the raucous crowd. “We have to transfer the enthusiasm here to the outside,” he said, adding that he would welcome having Laschet part of his team.(Updates with Spahn comments from seventh paragraph)\--With assistance from Iain Rogers.To contact the reporters on this story: Arne Delfs in Apolda, Germany at adelfs@bloomberg.net;Patrick Donahue in Lennestadt-Kirchveischede, Germany at pdonahue1@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Ben Sills at bsills@bloomberg.net, Chris Reiter, Chad ThomasFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2020 Bloomberg L.P.

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Trump hadn't slept for at least 'a day and a half' before his coronavirus press conference, Mick Mulvaney says

You'd think President Trump was being haunted by Freddy Krueger based on his sleep habits as described by acting White House Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney. Mulvaney while speaking at Friday's Conservative Political Action Conference declared that the president basically "never sleeps," having apparently barely done so before addressing the nation about the coronavirus crisis earlier this week. "He flew to India, did a day and a half of work, flew back, did not sleep on the flight home, and I know that because he's emailing and texting and taking phone calls," Mulvaney said. Trump arrived back in the U.S. on an 18-hour return trip from India, during which Mulvaney claims he got no sleep whatsoever, early on Wednesday morning, proceeding to deliver a press conference about 12 hours later running on what Mulvaney described to be at least "a day and a half" without sleep. Although Mulvaney chalked up Trump's wacky sleep schedule to his desire to get the most out of his time in office, Trump seemingly didn't get a whole lot of sleep even as a private citizen. In his 2004 book Think Like a Billionaire, he wrote that he sleeps "about four hours per night," urging readers not to "sleep any more than you have to." > "He had not slept for a day and a half ... the man never sleeps" -- here's Mulvaney claiming Trump didn't sleep at all on his return trip from India, then didn't sleep the next day either pic.twitter.com/5AmEtDZOWG> > -- Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) February 28, 2020More stories from theweek.com The New Yorker wordlessly sums up Trump's coronavirus problem A coronavirus recession would likely end Trump's presidency Gwyneth Paltrow confesses her least favorite performance

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AOC takes down Ted Cruz over coronavirus comment: 'I’m surprised you’re asking about chromosomes given you don’t believe in evolution'

New York congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has delivered an online lesson to Republican Ted Cruz after he questioned her authority to comment on matters of science.In the aftermath of Donald Trump’s decision to appoint vice president Mike Pence to spearhead the administration’s response to the coronavirus, many have questioned the move.

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Biden says he's not worried about Trump refusing to leave if defeated in November

Joe Biden says he isn't worried about the prospect of President Trump refusing to leave his post if he’s defeated in November.

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FOX NEWS: World Health Organization raises coronavirus threat to highest level

World Health Organization raises coronavirus threat to highest level



Reaction from Baylor College of Medicine professor Dr. Peter Hotez.

Tucker Carlson Turns to AOC Creepshot Guy for Coronavirus Expertise

Amid growing fears of a coronavirus outbreak and U.S. financial markets hitting a record drop on Thursday, Fox News host Tucker Carlson turned to a conservative columnist best known for taking creepy photos of Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) as his expert on the crisis on Thursday night.It should perhaps come as no surprise that Carlson’s guest, Washington Examiner columnist Eddie Scarry, used his primetime cable news appearance to talk about the “Commie cough” and to claim that Chinese people eating skunks are responsible for the rise of the virus.In kicking off his Fox News program, Carlson argued that it is liberals’ “attitude” towards diversity that has “left us vulnerable to the coronavirus” before welcoming on Scarry to enlighten viewers on the health crisis horrors caused by political correctness. “You spent a lot of time thinking about this mindset,” the Fox News host asked Scarry. “Here we are facing what could become a pandemic. Thousands have died. Yet a certain segment of well-educated America is more concerned that people might say insensitive things. Explain the mindset.”Scarry, who is hawking a new book that argues rape victims and trans people are the most privileged in American society, went on to praise Carlson for his monologue before saying the left cares “more about ideology” than what’s happening with the virus.“It turns out most people in America, even the Chinese, don’t want the Commie cough but all we’re hearing about who is the privileged and who is the victim,” Scarry asserted. “In this case it’s supposed to be — the victims are everyone else who is spreading this disease, where it’s coming from, coming from China obviously. But we’re the privileged so we’re just supposed to accept it, we’re just supposed to be okay with what’s going on.”Carlson, meanwhile, told Scarry that “everything” he said “is true,” further asking him if he is surprised to see this attitude from liberals even when “facing a question of life and death.” Scarry took that opportunity to bemoan Democrats calling on Americans to not “perpetuate racist stereotypes” amid coronavirus fears.“We’re worried about the racial implications of blaming this on anybody,” the right-wing provocateur stated. “Well, no, I’m sorry. If it turns out, which I did read this time in The New York Times no less, this may have come from eating skunks in China. Maybe we should consider the idea that, all right, either food or something or somebody should not be coming from China.”The Daily Beast was unable to find any reference in The New York Times to the disease being linked to Chinese people eating skunks. It would appear, however, that Scarry likely got his information from a fellow Examiner columnist’s piece that cited a former Trump official’s tweet claiming civet cats in China are skunks. (The Times’ Maggie Haberman tweeted on Thursday that a top U.S. health official said the disease jumped from bats to civet cats, which are eaten by Chinese at feasts.)Scarry’s primetime appearance appears to mark his first major return to the limelight after he sparked backlash and gained a reputation as a “creep” in Nov. 2018 after tweeting out a surreptitiously shot photo of Ocasio-Cortez. Scarry was moved from his position as media reporter to commentary by the Examiner. The paper claimed at the time that the move had been in the works prior to the infamous tweet.Read more at The Daily Beast.Get our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.

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Airlines in China are selling tickets for as low as $4 during the coronavirus outbreak

About two-thirds of the flights in China have been canceled because of the outbreak, but some are still running.

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Trump’s Crisis Management Put to the Test

(Bloomberg) -- This time, Donald Trump is facing a crisis not of his own making.The coronavirus’s spread has foisted a fresh challenge upon the U.S. president eight months out from the elections.Trump — back yesterday from an at-times rock-star-like tour of India — is seeking to close ranks within his administration about his government's plans to stop the virus’s spread.The focus follows mixed messages from Trump and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention about the threat posed to public health that rattled Wall Street and sparked an uproar in Washington. One Republican senator publicly demanded “some straight answers” from Trump’s team. Investors anxious about the virus’s spread from China have driven five consecutive days of losses in U.S. markets.Flanked by public health officials, Trump addressed the nation last night from the White House briefing room for only the second time in his presidency. The message was that while a broader outbreak in the U.S. is possible, the risk to average Americans is low.“There’s a chance it could get worse. There’s a chance it could get fairly, substantially worse,” Trump said. “But nothing’s inevitable.”While he put Vice President Mike Pence in charge of the government’s response, that might not be enough to shield Trump from the political risks.He faces an unpredictable crisis that could threaten the stability of the world’s largest economy and his own political future at November’s elections, where the competence of his response may become a key issue.Global HeadlinesAlliance frictions | NATO has survived for more than 70 years as the security umbrella for Europe, despite periodic differences between its members. But increasingly the U.S. under Trump is dragging it into broader trans-Atlantic tensions over trade and China’s Huawei which, as one analyst warns, risks European allies feeling they are “being coerced on some fairly key foreign policy issues.”Italy’s disappointment | The Italian government took a gamble when it became the first Group of Seven nation to sign up to Chinese President Xi Jinping’s Belt and Road Initiative. One year and another government later, Rome has yet to see any tangible benefits, Alan Crawford reports. Instead, economic disappointment is being compounded by tensions over the coronavirus.Race begins | The top candidates to become leader of German Chancellor Angela Merkel's ruling Christian Democratic Union kicked off their campaigns as they vie for momentum before a party convention on April 25. Long-time Merkel foe Friedrich Merz is facing off with front-runner Armin Laschet, a moderate in Merkel’s mold, for a chance to set the trajectory for Europe’s most powerful economy for years to come.India carnage | Families wept as they collected bodies wrapped in white shrouds from a hospital mortuary in Delhi as the death toll rises from some of the worst religious riots India’s capital has seen in decades. Relatives blamed the government and police for letting the violence spin out of control, Muneeza Naqvi reports, after Hindu groups attacked mostly Muslim protesters demonstrating against the country’s new religion-based citizenship law.Missing ingredient? | Pete Buttigieg executed his strategy almost perfectly. He won in Iowa and finished in a closer-than-expected second place in New Hampshire. But, as Tyler Pager reports, those early successes have failed to make him a front runner. Now, Buttigieg faces his most serious test as the race for the Democratic presidential nomination turns national.A brewing fight about which country has the right to tax some of the world’s most profitable companies, including Facebook and Google, could devolve into a multi-front trade war, regardless of whether Trump wins a second term.What to WatchTunisia’s prime minister-designate, Elyes Fakhfakh, won parliamentary support for his proposed administration, breaking four months of deadlock that’s delayed much-needed economic reforms in the birthplace of the Arab Spring.Prime Minister Boris Johnson put the U.K. on a collision course with the European Union, telling the bloc he'll walk away from the negotiating table in June if it's not clear he'll get a Canada-style free-trade agreement.Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad said parliament will meet on March 2 to decide who becomes the next premier, after telling reporters the king couldn’t find anyone with a distinct majority.The credibility of South Africa’s proposals to curb debt and save its sole investment-grade credit rating will be put to the test by powerful unions outraged by plans to pare back the government's wage bill.Tell us how we’re doing or what we’re missing at balancepower@bloomberg.net.And finally … Saudi Arabia temporarily halted religious visits to Mecca and Medina, the Islamic world’s holiest cities, which draw millions of people each year, to help halt the coronavirus. While Saudi authorities have reported no infections so far, neighboring countries including Kuwait, Bahrain, Iraq and the United Arab Emirates have flagged dozens of cases. In the Iranian city of Qom, the epicenter of that country’s outbreak, faithful continue to visit one of Shiite Islam’s holiest shrines even after officials banned religious ceremonies. \--With assistance from Karl Maier, Rosalind Mathieson and Alan Crawford.To contact the author of this story: Kathleen Hunter in London at khunter9@bloomberg.netTo contact the editor responsible for this story: Anthony Halpin at thalpin5@bloomberg.net, Michael WinfreyFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2020 Bloomberg L.P.

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More than 30,000 pounds of yogurt spilled on New York highway after accident

A tractor trailer carrying more than 30,000 pounds of yogurt in western New York jackknifed on a highway Thursday afternoon.

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Panel seeks censure, coaching for foul-mouthed Kansas judge

A foul-mouthed Kansas judge who cursed at courthouse employees so often that a trial clerk kept a “swear journal” documenting his outbursts should be publicly censured and receive professional coaching, but not kicked off the bench, a disciplinary panel recommended Friday. The Kansas Commission on Judicial Conduct unanimously concluded that Montgomery County Judge F. William Cullins violated central judicial canons of independence, integrity and impartiality. Its recommendations will be sent to the Kansas Supreme Court, which will ultimately decide his fate.

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AOC says Bloomberg would lead to an 'even worse' version of Trump in the future

New York Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has warned that electing former New York mayor Mike Bloomberg as president would set the stage for a candidate “even worse” than Donald Trump in the future.Ms Ocasio-Cortez is fully against nominating Mr Bloomberg as candidate for the 2020 election.

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Federal appeals court rules against Trump in two major immigration cases

The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals reinstated a block on the administration’s policy of forcing migrants seeking asylum to wait in Mexico while the cases play out.

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Trump 'could suck coronavirus out of 60,000 people' and he'd still be criticized – Huckabee

* Top Republican on Fox News defends Trump and Mike Pence * Vice-president leading coronavirus containment effort in US * Whistleblower: US coronavirus staff were untrained and unprotectedDonald Trump could “personally suck” the coronavirus “out of every one of the 60,000 people in the world, suck it out of their lungs, swim to the bottom of the ocean and spit it out, and he would be accused of pollution for messing up the ocean”, a top Republican has claimed.Former Republican Arkansas governor and ex-presidential candidate Mike Huckabee made the outlandish statement on Twitter on Thursday night and on Fox News’ Fox & Friends show on Friday morning.> Mike Huckabee says Trump "could personally sick the virus out of every one of the 60,000 people in the world, suck it out of their lungs, swim to the bottom of the ocean and spit it out, and he would be accused of pollution for messing up the ocean." pic.twitter.com/X7xbC5ebDz> > — Brian Stelter (@brianstelter) February 28, 2020According to the World Health Organization (WHO) more than 82,000 cases of the coronavirus have in fact been confirmed worldwide, with about 2,800 deaths. According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there are 60 confirmed cases in the US.In the US, Huckabee’s widely ridiculed comment followed the publication of a column for Fox News in which he took aim at criticism of Trump’s choice of Vice-President Mike Pence to lead US containment efforts.Critics have said Pence’s religious faith, plus the decisions he took as governor of Indiana on scientific and public health matters, make him a poor choice to lead efforts undermined by budget cuts and poor organization.Huckabee said Pence was “a proven leader who knows how to get people with different perspectives working together effectively” on public health matters including the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (Mers) outbreak of 2014.“Instead of calling for bipartisan cooperation in this life-or-death effort,” he wrote, “liberals reacted with collective outrage, even going so far as to ridicule the vice-president’s Christian faith as a way of suggesting that he’s not qualified for the role.“Numerous media outlets have also published and broadcast one-sided reports trashing Pence’s handling of an HIV outbreak as governor of Indiana, but such criticisms are both inaccurate and irrelevant.”The outbreak in question happened in 2015. Pence declared a public health emergency but many said faith-driven cuts to sexual health programs made the situation worse.Huckabee, the father of the former Trump press secretary Sarah Sanders, is not the first rightwing commentator to claim Democrats and the media are using concerns over the coronavirus outbreak to attack and undermine the president.Earlier this week, the conservative shock jock and presidential medal of freedom honoree Rush Limbaugh claimed “the coronavirus is being weaponized as yet another element to bring down Donald Trump” and said “the coronavirus is the common cold”.Some experts have criticised media coverage of the outbreak as inaccurate and potentially alarmist.According to the Guardian’s guide to the coronavirus, sufferers report “coughs, fever and breathing difficulties. In severe cases there can be organ failure. As this is viral pneumonia, antibiotics are of no use … Recovery depends on the strength of the immune system. Many of those who have died were already in poor health.”The outbreak began in China. The WHO has not yet declared it a pandemic but international markets, trade, travel and sporting events have been severely affected. In the US on Friday the Dow Jones Index plunged again, at the end of the markets’ worst week since the financial crisis of 2008.In Geneva, a WHO spokesman said: “The outbreak is getting bigger. The scenario of the coronavirus reaching multiple countries, if not all countries around the world, is something we have been looking at and warning against since quite a while.”

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Millions of uninsured Americans like me are a coronavirus timebomb

I haven’t gone to the doctor since 2013. When you multiply my situation by 27.5 million, that’s a scary prospectLike 27.5 million other Americans, I don’t have health insurance. It’s not for a lack of trying – I make too much to qualify for Medicaid, but not enough to buy a private health insurance plan on the Affordable Care Act exchanges. Since I can’t afford to see a doctor, my healthcare strategy as a 32-year-old uninsured American has been simply to sleep eight hours, eat vegetables, and get daily exercise. But now that there are confirmed coronavirus cases in the United States, the deadly virus could spread rapidly, thanks to others like me who have no feasible way to get the care we need if we start exhibiting symptoms.According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there are confirmed coronavirus cases in at least 50 countries on six continents, and more than 2,800 patients have died from the virus. This certainly qualifies as a pandemic under the World Health Organization’s (WHO) definition of the term, which, under a typical presidency, should necessitate a swift response from US health officials. However, the Trump administration appears to still be prioritizing the profit margin of the healthcare industry over preventing the spread of a deadly pandemic.Earlier this week, the Department of Health and Human Services secretary, Alex Azar, (a former senior executive at pharmaceutical manufacturer Eli Lilly) refused to commit to implementing price controls on a coronavirus vaccine “because we need the private sector to invest … price controls won’t get us there”. Even the House speaker, Nancy Pelosi, notably didn’t use the word “free” when referring to a coronavirus vaccine, and instead used the word “affordable”. What may be considered affordable for the third-most powerful person in the US government with an estimated net worth of $16m may not be affordable for someone who can’t afford a basic private health insurance plan that still requires a patient to pay thousands of dollars out of pocket.Given the high cost of healthcare in the US, I haven’t seen a doctor since 2013, when I visited an emergency room after being run off the road while riding my bike. After waiting for four hours, the doctor put my arm in a sling, prescribed pain medication and sent me home. That visit cost more than $4,000, and the unpaid balance eventually went to collections and still haunts my credit to this day, making it needlessly difficult to rent an apartment or buy a car. But even a low-premium bronze plan on the exchange comes with a sky-high deductible in the thousands of dollars, meaning even if I was insured, I’d have still paid for that ER visit entirely out of pocket.> When you multiply my situation by 27.5 million, you end up with a country full of people who won’t see a doctor unless they’re extremely sickThis system is exactly why a 2018 West Health Institute/NORC at the University of Chicago national poll found that 44% of Americans declined to see a doctor due to cost, and why nearly a third of Americans polled said they didn’t get their prescriptions filled due to the high cost of their medicine. This is the same system that killed 38-year-old Texas public school teacher Heather Holland, who couldn’t afford the $116 co-pay for her flu medication and later died from flu complications. It’s the same system that Guardian contributor Luke O’Neil refers to as “Go viral or die trying”, in which Americans who can’t afford life-saving healthcare procedures are forced to become their own advocate and PR agency by launching a viral GoFundMe campaign to ask strangers on the internet to save their lives.When you multiply my situation by 27.5 million, you end up with a country full of people who won’t see a doctor unless they’re extremely sick. And when you combine a for-profit healthcare system – in which only those wealthy enough to get care actually receive it – with a global pandemic, the only outcome will be unmitigated disaster. This could be somewhat remedied if the US had a single-payer, universal healthcare system, like every other industrialized nation. And as a team of Yale epidemiologists discovered in a study recently published in the Lancet, a single-payer healthcare system in the US could simultaneously save 68,000 lives and $450bn in taxpayer dollars each year.Yes, countries with single-payer systems still have coronavirus cases, Italy and Japan. But the spread of the virus in those countries would likely pale in comparison to the potential spread of coronavirus in the US, in which a significant portion of the population simply won’t go to the doctor if they’re sick. Coronavirus is a worldwide public health emergency, and massive profits for health insurers and pharmaceutical manufacturers shouldn’t come before the basic health and safety of human beings. * Carl Gibson is an independent journalist whose work has been published in CNN, the Guardian, the Washington Post, the Houston Chronicle and NPR, among others

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Central Park Five's Kevin Richardson slams Bloomberg campaign

Kevin Richardson, a member of the Central Park Five, has hit out at Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s presidential run and his blocking of a multimillion-dollar settlement over the group’s wrongful persecution.Mr Richardson, one of the five teenagers wrongfully convicted for the shocking assault of Trishia Meili in 1989, was reported to have criticised Mr Bloomberg at an event outside his campaign office in Manhattan.

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Map: Confirmed coronavirus cases, worldwide

More than 81,000 people have been sickened by a coronavirus, mostly in China. This map is updated daily.

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Police identify victims, shooter in Milwaukee brewery shooting rampage

Police in Milwaukee on Thursday identified the five brewery employees shot and killed by a co-worker who later took his own life in the latest spasm of gun violence plaguing U.S. workplaces and schools. The motive for the carnage was unclear a day after the shooting at the landmark Molson Coors Beverage Co complex shook Wisconsin's largest city. "Reasons for this are still under investigation," Milwaukee Police Chief Alfonso Morales said.

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Anti-Greta Blasts ‘Climate Alarmism’ to Conservative Gathering

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'He fought us every single step of the way': How Bloomberg embraced stop-and-frisk as mayor

"He dug in and fought us all the way to his last day in office," an activist who opposed stop-and-frisk recalled.

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Trump complains Democrats are blaming him for coronavirus

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Mom of missing Idaho kids wants $5 million bail reduced

A mother arrested in Hawaii in connection with the disappearance of her two Idaho children wants a judge to reconsider her $5 million bail.

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Shooter at Milwaukee Molson Coors had a long-running dispute with a co-worker

Five people were killed Wednesday by a gunman during a rampage on the Milwaukee campus of Molson Coors. He has been identified as Anthony N. Ferrill.

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Pence will reportedly approve all government messaging about coronavirus

Vice President Mike Pence won't just be behind the scenes — he'll be the star of the show.After President Trump announced on Wednesday night that Pence will lead the government's response to the coronavirus outbreak, The New York Times reported Thursday Pence would also run the government's messaging on the issue.Pence will reportedly approve all coronavirus messaging by government health officials, including both public statements and public appearances. "Officials insist the goal is not to control the content of what subject-matter experts and other officials are saying," writes the Times, "but to make sure their efforts are being coordinated, after days of confusion with various administration officials showing up on television."There are 81,000 confirmed cases of the coronavirus worldwide, with 60 in the United States. Nearly 3,000 people have died from the virus. Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar was the initial lead in the coronavirus response, and will remain the chair of the government's task force, but the administration reportedly wants to show the very top of the executive branch is taking the matter seriously. Pence will become the face of the response so that all lawmakers and health officials have one person to turn to, the Times reports. As The Washington Post reports, selecting Pence as the coronavirus "czar" was bound to garner criticism, seeing as Pence was governor of Indiana during the state's worst-ever HIV outbreak. Critics said Pence's handling of the crisis and policies cutting public health spending worsened the outbreak.Read more at The New York Times.More stories from theweek.com A new 'conspiracy theory' hints at intense Instagram feud between royal couples What it's like to be in Venice during coronavirus lockdown Harvard scientist predicts coronavirus will infect up to 70 percent of humanity

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Russian state TV: Turkish army is firing on Russian planes in Syria's Idlib

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Why is Iran's reported mortality rate for coronavirus higher than in other countries?

Four doctors in Iran said that the total number of those infected is likely substantially higher than the number released by Iranian health authorities.

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Duterte says Philippines can 'survive' without America

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte on Wednesday said his country’s security forces can fight insurgents and Muslim extremists without American military help, in a defense of his recent decision to terminate a U.S. security pact.

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Halt of Muslim pilgrimage over virus brings worldwide dismay

For years, Ibrahim al-Dabba has been saving up money to make the umrah pilgrimage to Islam's holiest sites in Saudi Arabia, which for many Palestinians is the only way to leave the impoverished and isolated Gaza Strip. The outbreak could potentially affect the much larger annual hajj pilgrimage, set to begin in late July. For the 2 million Palestinians in Gaza, the Saudi decision closes one of the last avenues for leaving the narrow coastal strip, which has been ruled by the Islamic militant group Hamas and blockaded by Israel and Egypt since 2007.

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Iran’s Incompetent Response to Coronavirus Threatens the Middle East and the World

The Iranian government has covered up an outbreak of coronavirus that now threatens the Middle East and has led to border closures and hospitalizations in five countries. Over the weekend of February 21, president Hassan Rouhani and other Iranian officials downplayed the growing crises as Iran’s death toll from the virus climbed. It is now apparent that the regime, which has threatened the region with ballistic missiles, drones, naval mines, and militias over the last few years, has become a health threat as well, as it incubates a potential pandemic. The coronavirus has likely traveled from China to Iran’s city of Qom along the same route that pilgrims and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps uses to travel, illustrating the regime’s disregard for its own citizens and neighbors.It all began with Iran’s wanting to show the world it had higher turnout at recent elections. Iranian member of parliament Mahmoud Sadeghi called on officials to take the coronavirus seriously during elections, and alleged that the government was hiding the outbreak of the contagious virus last week. Instead, Iran’s regime kept the extent of the spread of the virus under wraps, keeping it off the homepages of major local media. Turkish officials also warned last week that there were 750 coronavirus cases in Iran, and that it had spread from the religious city of Qom to other regions. Yet Iran’s deputy health minister Iraj Harirchi downplayed fears on Monday, claiming rumors of 50 deaths were false. Now Haririchi and Sadeghi are both sick, and Iran’s death toll is the second-worst for the virus, after China itself.Iran’s failure to confront the health crises is not just due to the regime’s authoritarianism. China has fought the virus with authoritarian quarantining of Wuhan. Instead, it is the regime’s preexisting arrogance, conspiracy-minded behavior, and siege mentality that led to its discounting an emerging crisis and enabled Shi’ite pilgrims traveling to Qom from all over the world to continue praying together and traveling without checks, becoming incubators of the virus. People returning from Iran have spread the virus across the Gulf to Kuwait, Bahrain, and Oman. They have returned to Najaf, a holy city in Iraq, where dozens are now under observation.Iran couldn’t have chosen a worse time in the Middle East to do this. Countries such as Iraq are beset by protests and uncertainty, with Iraq specifically lacking a new government and threatened by ISIS resurgence. The Gulf already has one crisis between Saudi Arabia and Qatar and is economically on edge due to serving as a transport hub linked to global trade amid all this. China’s coronavirus has spooked markets, and Iran is adding to the disaster.The Iranian regime has mocked coronavirus as similar to the flu in recent comments. And it has weaponized the tragedy to use it against U.S. sanctions by claiming that, like the sanctions, it is overrated. Iran’s government is using the Iranian people as a human shield, and their alleged lack of suffering from the virus as a propaganda tool. Yet ultimately, the virus may be more of a threat to Rouhani’s government than he realizes. With officials sick, schools closed, and the military, police, and IRGC mobilized, the regime may find that propaganda won’t cure this crisis. Iran’s regime has survived using brutality, killing protesters last year, shooting down an airline this year, and blaming others for its problems while it seeks to attack Israel, Saudi Arabia, and the U.S. But Iran was unprepared for an epidemic, and its normal arsenal won’t save it.Unfortunately for the Gulf, Iraq, and other countries, Iran’s incubation is a threat to the world now. Its airlines, such as Mahan Air, have likely spread the virus to Lebanon and brought it from China. Mahan Air and other Iranian IRGC-linked firms have transported arms and operatives throughout the region. It wouldn’t be a surprise if a similar route enabled the virus to spread unchecked. The regime’s toxic blend of religion, militancy, and authoritarianism have come together in the worst possible way at the worst time in a fragile region.

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