The Trump campaign is planning to make Joe Biden's posture toward China one of its major lines of attack during the 2020 campaign, top officials tell Axios.
Why it matters: The politics surrounding the U.S. relationship with China may become a bigger domestic issue in this campaign than in any presidential contest in the last half-century.
The $350 billion small business Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) — launched just over a week ago — will run dry in a matter of days, giving Democrats leverage to push more support for hospitals, local government and businesses in underserved communities.
Driving the news: House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer spoke with Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin on Friday about their demands for the interim bill, sources familiar with their conversations tell Axios.
The great debate over when and how to reopen the American economy is playing out on the Sunday morning news shows, in opinion pages of the nation's newspapers — and among an increasingly influential cohort of armchair critics taking issue with faulty projections on which the administration has been relying.
What we're watching: Dr. Anthony Fauci sounded a warning on CNN's "State of the Union," for people who are eager to quickly reopen the country. "There is always the possibility ... as we get into next fall, and the beginning of early winter, that we could see a rebound [of the virus]," Fauci said.
President Trump's tone on the coronavirus pandemic has dramatically shifted in the last month as the illness has swept across the U.S., which has now reported more confirmed cases than any country in the world.
Why it matters: Reporting from Axios, the New York Times, Washington Post, AP and other media outlets has revealed that Trump and his administration were repeatedly warned about the threat that the virus could pose to American lives and the economy. Earlier action could have curbed the spread.
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) tore into Congress Sunday for not doing enough to support state governments in the $2 trillion coronavirus stimulus bill, accusing lawmakers of "pork-barrel politics" and failing to address state budget shortfalls.
The big picture: Cuomo and Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan (R) issued a joint statement on Saturday calling on Congress to appropriate $500 billion in funding for state governments, as money from the CARES Act can't be used for budget stabilization.
Former Vice President Joe Biden won the Alaska Democratic presidential primary on Saturday night, which switched to all-mail voting because of concerns about the coronavirus outbreak.
Why it matters: Sen. Bernie Sanders suspended his 2020 campaign last Wednesday, but he asked for his name to remain on the ballot in the rest of this year's primaries in an attempt to assemble more delegates and "influence the party’s platform at this year’s Democratic National Convention," per AP. Sanders comprehensively defeated former Secretary of State and eventual nominee Hillary Clinton in the 2016 Alaska primary.
President Trump was informed in late January of a memo from White House economic adviser Peter Navarro that warned the novel coronavirus could kill up to half a million Americans and cost trillions of dollars, the New York Times reports.
Why it matters: Trump has repeatedlydenied seeing January and February memos that Navarro sent, while insisting he did "more or less" what his adviser suggested by banning non-U.S. citizens from traveling from China effective Feb. 2.
The Pentagon plans to award $133 million to companies to ramp up domestic production of more than 39 million N95 face masks, the Department of Defense announced Saturday.
Why it matters: The federal government began the process of deploying 90% of its stockpiled medical equipment this week to fight the coronavirus pandemic — which isn't enough to meet current state demands.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) released a joint statement Saturday indicating they will not negotiate with Democrats after their proposal to add $250 billion to the Paycheck Protection Program failed Thursday.
What they're saying: "Republicans did not ask to change any policy details that were negotiated by both parties and passed unanimously. All we want to do is put more money into a popular job-saving policy which both parties designed together."
Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, has maintained his position through six administrations by emphasizing facts and candor in his conversations with politicians, the New Yorker's Michael Specter reports.
Why it matters: "Americans have come to rely on Fauci’s authoritative presence," Specter writes. "Perhaps not since the Vietnam era, when Walter Cronkite, the avuncular anchor of the 'CBS Evening News,' was routinely described as the most trusted man in America, has the country depended so completely on one person to deliver a daily dose of plain talk."
Police around the globe are taking extra efforts to enforce social distancing over Easter weekend.
Why it matters: Officials say that mitigation efforts like social distancing are beginning to flatten the coronavirus curve in crucial areas across U.S. and Europe, like New York and Lombardy in Italy. Large Easter Sunday gatherings would mean some of that crucial progress is squandered.
Gov. Gavin Newsom offered President Trump praise about the federal government's efforts in helping California combat the coronavirus pandemic.
What Newsom told CNN: "Every single direct request that [Trump] was capable of meeting, he has met. We have the USNS Mercy in California because of his direct intervention and support."
The coronavirus may be a defining experience for Generation Z that shapes its outlook for decades to come — disrupting its entry to adulthood and altering its earning potential, trust in institutions and views on family and sex.
The big picture: Demographers have observed lasting impacts from national crises — like the AIDS epidemic, 9/11 and the Great Recession —on the political, economic, health and societal aspects of Americans who came of age at the time.
Small to medium airlines receiving bailouts of up to $100 million from the $2.2 trillion coronavirus rescue package will not have to provide the federal government with compensation or equity stakes, the Treasury Department announced Friday evening.
Why it matters: The airline industry got a $58 billion lifeline in the federal aid package, but the sector's operations and prospects will be forever changed by the global pandemic. Approximately 230 air carriers have applied for payroll assistance, the department said.
Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam (D) on Friday signed five gun control bills into law and repealed the state's 24-hour waiting period for individuals seeking abortions.
