President Trump on Saturday said the administration is weighing a plan to allocate some funding to the World Health Organization, although he noted that a final decision has not been made.
Flashback: Trump announced last month that the U.S. would hold funding to the agency for 60–90 days over its handling of the coronavirus pandemic, pending a review.
Catch up quick: Amash, the only Republican who supported impeaching President Trump, left the GOP last year. He launched an exploratory committee in late April to seek the Libertarian Party's 2020 nomination for a possible run.
November seems a long way off, but deadlines already are beginning this month for states to figure out how to hold safe elections this fall, when the coronavirus will still be spreading.
Why it matters: In the next few months, decisions by state and federal courts and lawmakers, governors and local election officials will determine how Americans cast their ballots in the middle of a pandemic.
President Trump moved late Friday to remove the State Department's inspector general Steve Linick.
Why it matters: Linick, a Justice Department veteran appointed by former President Obama played a small part in the House impeachment proceedings against President Trump. He is among a collection of watchdogs to be fired in recent months.
House Democrats' $3 trillion coronavirus rescue package, the HEROES Act, passed by 208-199 on Friday, although it is expected to die in the Senate.
The big picture: Millions of eligible Americans received one-time payments of $1,200 or $2,400 from the last relief bill passed by Congress — the largest in modern history. This package would cost another $1 trillion and offers money for state governments.
Acting Director of National Intelligence Richard Grenell announced Friday that his office would take the lead role in election security briefings for political candidates, amid other organizational changes to the DNI's National Counterterrorism Center.
The big picture, via the New York Times:Grenell "has been racing against the clock to make changes to his office before his appointment ends and he is replaced with a Senate-confirmed official."
House members voted 217-189 on Friday to temporarily allow remote voting, which follows recommended social distancing guidelines to limit the spread of the coronavirus.
Why it matters: This marks the first time in history that House members will be able to direct another member to vote on their behalf and attend committees virtually amid the pandemic.
Homeschooling students amid the coronavirus pandemic significantly amplifies economic inequities between households.
Why it matters: States across the U.S. have closed schools for the remainder of the 2019-2020 school year. And keeping students remote after summer break brews as an option amid public health officials' concerns for a COVID-19 resurgence in the fall and winter.
Attacks on NIAD Director Anthony Fauci are part of a larger trend of "suppressing of the inconvenient scientific voice," Andy Slavitt, former Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Acting Administrator, said at a virtual Axios event on Friday.
What he's saying: "Belittling him just keeps us on a track to saying that expertise doesn't matter, it puts us on a track to continue to silence people and to surround our decision-makers only with people who will nod their heads in agreement or at best try to work around something they don't agree with," he said.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell told Fox News on Thursday that the Obama administration did leave behind a pandemic playbook after initially criticizing them for failing to do so.
"I was wrong. They did leave behind a plan. So, I clearly made a mistake in that regard. As to whether or not the plan was followed and who is the critic and all the rest, I don't have any observation about that because I don't know enough about the details of it to comment on it in any detail."
A rolling, living experiment — and preview of coming attractions for the rest of the country — has begun in Wisconsin, after a surprise court ruling made the Badger State the first in the nation where businesses can reopen.
The state of play: Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers (D) warned of “massive confusion” after his stay-at-home order was thrown out Wednesday night by the state's Supreme Court.
Republicans raised nearly $60 million on their new digital fundraising platform "WinRed" in April, sources tell Axios, its largest single-month fundraising haul ever.
Why it matters: The GOP is on pace to bring in roughly $400 million from small-dollar donations via WinRed in its first year of operations. Republicans have for years trailed Democrats in soliciting small-dollar donations online prior to launching WinRed.
President Trump has called himself a "wartime president" leading the country in a battle against the coronavirus — and that idea is sticking with some Iowa swing voters who think he should be the one to see this through.
Between the lines: These focus group participants also say they're less focused on national politics and more plugged in to what's going on in their region, consuming mostly local news and getting information from their governor.
