Dec 21, 2017

McConnell on Trump: "He likes to talk"

Caitlin Owens, author of Vitals

Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and President Trump celebrate passage of the tax bill. Photo: Carolyn Kaster/AP

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, whose relationship with President Trump got rocky over the summer, said at an Axios event on Thursday that the two are getting along "just fine."

Some fun quotes:

  • " You know, he likes to talk. He's talking to members all the time. I talk to him all the time. You'll get phone calls at the oddest hours."
  • He doesn't love the tweets, but "I like the tweet he sent out about me yesterday, so there are exceptions."
  • Regarding Trump's negative tweets about McConnell over the summer, "They weren't my favorite, no. But he's gotten better." When pressed on in what sense, McConnell responded, "We're doing just fine."

Go deeper

Rebecca Falconer, Orion Rummler, Rashaan Ayesh
Updated 7 mins ago - Politics & Policy

George Floyd updates

Protesters in Washington, D.C. on June 6. Photo: Samuel Corum/Getty Images

Thousands of demonstrators are gathering in cities across the U.S. and around the world to protest the killing of George Floyd. Huge crowds have assembled in Washington, D.C., Philadelphia and Chicago for full-day events.

Why it matters: Twelve days of nationwide protest in the U.S. has built pressure for states to make new changes on what kind of force law enforcement can use on civilians and prompted officials to review police conduct.

Go deeper (1 min. read)Arrow
Caitlin Owens
1 hour ago - Politics & Policy

Why the coronavirus pandemic is hitting minorities harder

Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios. Photo: Mark Makela/Getty Images

The coronavirus’ disproportionate impact on black and Latino communities has become a defining part of the pandemic.

The big picture: That's a result of myriad longstanding inequities within the health care system and the American economy.

Go deeper (2 min. read)Arrow
Axios
Updated 2 hours ago - Politics & Policy

Coronavirus dashboard

Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios

  1. Global: Total confirmed cases as of 3 p.m. ET: 6,804,044 — Total deaths: 362,678 — Total recoveries — 2,788,806 — Map.
  2. U.S.: Total confirmed cases as of 3 p.m. ET: 1,909,077 — Total deaths: 109,497 — Total recoveries: 491,706 — Total tested: 19,231,444 — Map.
  3. Public health: Some people are drinking and inhaling cleaning products in attempt to fight coronavirus, CDC says — Fauci: "Very concerned" about spread of virus amid George Floyd protests — Cities offer free testing for protesters.
  4. Tech: The pandemic is accelerating next-generation disease diagnostics — Robotics looks to copy software-as-a-service model as use of robots accelerates.
  5. Business: Sports, film production in California to resume June 12 after 3-month hiatus.
  6. Education: Students and teachers flunked remote learning.
Other resources (<1 min. read)Arrow