Dec 5, 2019 - Politics & Policy

John Kerry endorses Joe Biden

Photo: Drew Angerer/Getty Images

Former Secretary of State John Kerry endorsed Joe Biden in an interview with the Washington Post Thursday, adding that he will join the former vice president on the campaign trail beginning on Friday.

Why it matters: The endorsement isn't a surprise, but it comes from a former Democratic nominee for president and a respected figure within the party.

"The world is broken. Our politics are broken. The country faces extraordinary challenges. And I believe very deeply that Joe Biden’s character, his ability to persevere, his decency and the experiences that he brings to the table are critical to the moment. The world has to be put back together, the world that Donald Trump has smashed apart.”

— Kerry

Go deeper: Biden's endorsements crush 2020 field

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Axios

Updated 21 mins ago - Politics & Policy

Coronavirus dashboard

Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios

Global: Total confirmed cases as of 6 p.m. ET: 13,203,571 — Total deaths: 575,201 — Total recoveries — 7,331,068 — Map.
U.S.: Total confirmed cases as of 6 p.m. ET: 3,407,798 — Total deaths: 136,252 — Total recoveries: 1,031,939 — Total tested: 41,004,275 — Map.
Politics: Biden welcomes Trump wearing mask in public but warns "it’s not enough"
Public health: Four former CDC heads say Trump's undermining of agency puts lives at risk — CDC director: U.S. could get coronavirus "under control" in 4–8 weeks if all wear masks.

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Courtenay Brown

26 mins ago - Economy & Business

Bank CEOs brace for worsening economic scenario

JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon. Photo: J. Lawler Duggan/For The Washington Post via Getty Images

Wells Fargo swung to its first loss since the financial crisis — while JPMorgan Chase and Citigroup reported significantly lower profits from a year earlier — as the banks set aside billions of dollars more in the second quarter for loans that may go bad.

Why it matters: The cumulative $28 billion in loan loss provisions that banks have so far announced they’re reserving serves as a signal they’re preparing for a colossal wave of loan defaults as the economy slogs through a coronavirus-driven downturn.

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Bob Herman

50 mins ago - Health

Moderna's vaccine spurred immune system response to coronavirus

Moderna's stock rose 16% after hours on this news. Photo: Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto via Getty Images

Healthy volunteers who took Moderna's coronavirus vaccine candidate appeared to generate an immune system response to the virus, and there were "no trial-limiting safety concerns," according to a new study published in the New England Journal of Medicine.

Why it matters: The phase one trial is still small and does not definitively determine how effective the vaccine is. But Anthony Fauci of the National Institutes of Health, which is running the trial, told the Wall Street Journal that these data make it "pretty clear that this vaccine is capable of inducing quite good [levels] of neutralizing antibodies."