Apr 27, 2017

Pentagon warned Flynn about foreign payments

Evan Vucci / AP

Former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn received an explicit warning against accepting payments from foreign nations upon his retirement from the Defense Intelligence Agency in 2014, according to documents obtained by CNN.

Flashback: This comes two days after the House Oversight Committee said there was "no evidence" Flynn properly disclosed payments for his foreign lobbying connected to Turkey and Russia.

Elijah Cummings, House Oversight's ranking member: "These documents raise grave questions about why General Flynn concealed the payments he received from foreign sources after he was warned explicitly by the Pentagon."

Go deeper

Courtenay Brown

15 mins ago - Economy & Business

Unemployment rate falls to 13.3% in May

Photo: Steve Jennings/Getty Images

The U.S. unemployment rate fell to 13.3% in May, with 2.5 million jobs gained, the government said on Friday.

Why it matters: The far better-than-expected numbers show improvements in a job market devastated by the coronavirus pandemic as economies reopen, the government said.

Go deeper (<1 min. read)

Dion Rabouin

47 mins ago - Economy & Business

The difficulty of calculating the real unemployment rate

Data: U.S. Department of Labor; Note: Initial traditional state claims from the weeks of May 23 and 30, continuing traditional claims from May 23. Initial PUA claims from May 16, 23, and 30, continuing PUA and other programs from May 16; Chart: Andrew Witherspoon/Axios

The shocking May jobs report — with a decline in the unemployment rate to 13.3% and more than 2 million jobs added — destroyed expectations of a much worse economic picture.

Why it matters: Traditional economic reports have failed to keep up with the devastation of the coronavirus pandemic and have made it nearly impossible for researchers to determine the state of the U.S. labor market or the economy.

Go deeper (2 min. read)

Kendall Baker

1 hour ago - Sports

How coronavirus could reshuffle the sports calendar

Illustration: Eniola Odetunde/Axios

The NBA's Board of Governors approved Thursday the league's 22-team plan to resume play at Walt Disney World — a plan that also includes tentative dates for both this season and next.

Why it matters: The league's proposed trip to Disney World not only impacts this season but could have a domino effect that impacts seasons in the future — and could permanently change what time of year the NBA plays its games.

Go deeper (1 min. read)