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National

President Trump told reporters Saturday his presidential campaign will "not be pursuing" a baseless claim that Sen. Kamala Harris, Joe Biden's running mate, may be ineligible to serve as vice president because both her parents were not naturalized citizens at her birth.

Why it matters: Harris was born in Oakland, California. She is an American citizen and is eligible for the office. Critics, including some Republicans, denounced an op-ed published by Newsweek this week as a new attempt at "birtherism" — the conspiracy theory that President Obama was not actually born in the U.S. — targeting the first woman of color on a presidential ticket.

“It’s not something that we will be pursuing” Trump said of Harris’ eligibility to serve as VP.

But, but, but: When pressed on Saturday, the president refused to say affirmatively that Harris is in fact eligible.

Driving the news: Newsweek on Friday apologized for article, saying it "was never intended to spark or to take part in the racist lie of Birtherism, the conspiracy theory aimed at delegitimizing Barack Obama, but we should have recognized the potential, even probability, that that could happen."

What he's saying: "I have nothing to do with that," Trump said of the op-ed. "I read something about it, and I will say he's a brilliant lawyer," referring to the author of the editorial. "...so, I know nothing about it, but it's not something that bothers me."

"It's not something we will be pursuing. Let me put it differently, to me, it doesn't bother me at all. I don't know about it. I read one quick article. The lawyer happens to be a brilliant lawyer."

"If she's got a problem, you'd have thought that she would have been vetted by Sleepy  Joe," Trump added.

Trump says he won't pursue Kamala Harris birth smear

Harris is an American citizen and was born in Oakland, California.

Trump speaking on Aug. 15. Photo: Jim Watson/AFP via Getty Images

Politics

2020 presidential election

Kamala Harris

2020 election

Joe Biden

2024 will be an election year like no other, as President Biden seeks re-election amid economic uncertainty, two wars and questions about his age. His likely foe, former President Trump, faces felony charges and vows revenge on his political enemies. Meanwhile, Americans generally are dissatisfied with those choices and are divided over immigration, race, education and more.

Politics & Policy

President Trump continued his ongoing attacks on mail-in voting during a press conference Saturday, claiming without strong evidence that voting by mail will make the U.S. a “laughingstock."

What he's saying: When asked if Postmaster General Louis DeJoy's has Trump's backing, the president responded: "Yeah, he wants to make the post office great again."

"Universal mail-in voting is going to be catastrophic. It's going to make the U.S. a laughingstock all over the world," Trump said.

He noted that,"Absentee voting is great," just days after Palm Beach County election officials sent his and First Lady Melania Trump's mail-in ballots for Florida’s Aug. 18 primary election.

"...but now they want to send in millions and millions of ballots and you see what's happened. They're being lost, they're being discarded ... it's going to be a catastrophe."

"There’s no way they’re going to get it accurately," Trump said of universal mail-in voting.

"The problem with the mail-in voting, number one, you're never going to know when the election's over."

Trump also predicted it could take “months” or “years” to  know the results of the November elections.

Context: DeJoy has implemented a number of changes to the Postal Service, shaking up its leadership and eliminating overtime and certain delivery policies.

Congressional Democrats and some state and local officials have criticized DeJoy's changes, saying they fear cost-cutting measures and modifications could delay election mail, which could disenfranchise voters and delay election results.

Congress is seeking $25 billion in aid for USPS ahead of an anticipated spike in mail-in voting this November due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Trump has repeatedly vowed to block funding to help the agency as it prepares to processes mail-in ballots unless Democrats agree to some Republican compromises in the coronavirus stimulus bill.

DeJoy, who took over USPS in June, is a Trump donor and defender.

Trump says postmaster general wants to make USPS "great again”

"Universal mail-in voting is going to be catastrophic," Trump said Saturday.

United States Postal Service (USPS)

Donald Trump

President Trump told reporters at a Saturday press conference that Clemson star quarterback Trevor Lawrence called him about the upcoming college football season.

What they're saying: “...I want college football to come back. These are strong, healthy, incredible people. These are people that want to play football very badly," Trump said Saturday evening. "A great, great talented quarterback Trevor Lawrence called me two days ago; I spoke to him a couple times." 

"He said, 'Sir, I want to just tell you we want it back, we want to play.' He's an incredible quarterback from an incredible school, Clemson. And he's going to have a very good future in the NFL."

"He made the statement that he feels he's safer on the field than he is outside of the field."

A Clemson football spokesman told Axios that according to Lawrence, the White House reached out and provided him a number to call.

Driving the news: Lawrence is among several high-profile players who voiced their desire to play the fall season, Axios' Kendall Baker writes.

"Football is a safe haven for so many people," Lawrence tweeted last Sunday. "We are more likely to get the virus in everyday life than playing football."

Following Lawrence's tweets, a dozen players from all five major NCAA conferences released a joint statement, expressing their desire to play the 2020 season, while laying out their plans to form a players' association in the future.

The big picture: The Big Ten and Pac-12 announced this week they've voted to postpone their 2020 fall sports seasons, including football, due to risks posed by the coronavirus pandemic, hoping instead to play next spring.

Trump has repeatedly pushed for college football to return this fall.

The president's effort to resume football is "elevating the emotionally charged cultural debate as part of his push to reopen the country amid the coronavirus pandemic," the Washington Post writes.

Trump says he talked to Clemson QB Trevor Lawrence about fall play

Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence on June 13.

Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence on June 13. Photo: Maddie Meyer/Getty Images

Sports

College football

Coronavirus

Shifts in technology and media are changing the way we play, watch and understand sports. Business models are adapting and social change is forcing those in charge of teams and leagues to reconsider decades-old practices.

The U.S. health system faces critical questions about cost, access and equity. Technological advances and new discoveries about diseases like cancer and Alzheimer’s are transforming patient care and reshaping public health.

Health

Science

Axios Science

Perhaps the most jarring reality of the COVID-19 pandemic for families has been the sudden and dramatic disruption to all levels of education, which is expected to have deep social and economic repercussions for years — if not decades — to come. 

Why it matters: As millions of students are about to start the school year virtually, at least in part, experts fear students may fall off an educational cliff — missing key academic milestones, falling behind grade level and in some cases dropping out of the educational system altogether. 

They're also missing out on crucial social development that only comes from interactions with peers. 

The economic impact could be staggering: McKinsey estimates the average K-12 student in the U.S. could lose $61,000 to $82,000 in lifetime earnings — or the equivalent of a year of full-time work, as a result of learning losses related to COVID-19.

Losses are expected to be even greater for Black, Hispanic and low-income students, widening the existing achievement gaps by 15%-20%, per McKinsey.

All in all, this translates to an estimated loss of $110 billion in annual earnings across current K-12 students.

The World Bank estimates that close to 7 million students worldwide could drop out of school due to the income shock of the pandemic alone. Globally, a school shutdown of five months could cause learning losses amounting to $10 trillion.

What's happening: As many schools transition to online learning this fall, some students will be able to log on consistently and attend classes with help from family and hired caregivers, in the biggest test of remote learning yet. 

Yes, but: Other students will have limited access to computers, internet and adult help to support their learning, likely exacerbating the stark divide in this pandemic's disproportionate effects.

A clear trend emerged from decades of studies on summer slide: students from lower-income families are more likely to fall behind than students who live in higher-income homes, RAND’s Jennifer McCombs told Harvard EdCast in March.

The spring school closures gave a window into potential losses. A June NWEA study of "COVID slide" suggested students would return to school this fall with about 70% of the learning gains in reading compared to a typical school year. 

In math, students were likely to return with less than 50% of the previous school year's learning gains, and in some grades nearly a whole year behind what would be expected under normal circumstances.

Gauging where students are academically when they resume classes will be a challenge. Educators are more focused on tending to safety, food security and other pandemic-related trauma students are facing. 

"People aren't rushing to get a kid in front of a test, and I think that's probably a healthy thing," said Beth Tarasawa, executive vice president of research at NWEA, a nonprofit that creates academic assessments for students pre-K-12. Eventually, though, those data points will be needed to plan interventions and support.

Despite the difficulties, experts agree that lowering academic standards is not the answer. 

"What we can't get comfortable with is that kids aren't going to learn if they are at home. The reality is kids are at home and kids must learn. What do we need to put in place to make sure that is happening for every child?" says Susan Schaeffler, CEO of KIPP DC, which operates 18 public charter schools in Washington, D.C.

What's next: Some learning loss can be addressed with basic, tried-and-true strategies, said Robin Lake, director of the Center on Reinventing Public Education at the University of Washington Bothell. 

One-on-one tutoring and small-group lessons can help, even though they are more tricky in a virtual setting and require resources.

"What we know from research is that it matters how quickly educators address learning losses because they cascade and students disengage when they don't think they can do the work in front of them," Lake said.

She added: "We have to limit the learning loss curve as quickly as possible because, otherwise, educators will be overwhelmed both by the enormity of the need plus all the other stuff they're dealing with, like health and public safety and budget crunches."

Parents — juggling work and caring for families while making sure their children are set up to learn — already feel the pressure.

"Now we have this continual conversation about how this is going to devastate our children," particularly children of color, said Keri Rodrigues, co-founder and president of the National Parents Union. 

"That puts everyone in the mindset that our children are broken. It is our job as the adult to push on and persevere to figure this out for them."

The bottom line: Keeping kids on track will require much more communication and teamwork between parents and educators. 

One positive "is that [the pandemic] has forced parents and schools to lean on each other in a way that I hope continues when we are back face-to-face," says Schaeffler. 

Go deeper...  Podcast: Cap podcast on the loss of learning 

The COVID-19 learning cliff

Experts fear students may fall off an educational cliff.

Illustration of lightbulb with a grid background and circles

Education

Deep Dive - Education

Health Care

Axios AM

Freelance writer Mark Delaney tells me he took this photo Aug. 8 of a postal worker in Portland, Ore., removing mailboxes. Via Twitter

In 24 hours, signs of a pre-election postal slowdown have moved from the shadows to the spotlight, with evidence emerging all over the country that this isn't a just a potential threat, but is happening before our eyes.

Why it matters: If you're the Trump administration, and you're in charge of the federal government, remember that a Pew poll published in April found the Postal Service was viewed favorably by 91% of Americans.

Between the lines: There's pretty high brand equity for the organization that got soldiers' letters back from the front lines, delivered care packages to your summer camp, and shoved your college acceptance through the front door.

What's happening: Louis DeJoy, a top Trump donor, was sworn in as postmaster general in June. Since then:

Social media exploded with reports from Oregon, Montana, Manhattan and Pennsylvania that the Postal Service was unbolting and hauling away mailboxes. "Some of the boxes scheduled to be removed from downtown Billings are nearly overflowing daily,” Julie Quilliam, president of the Montana Letter Carriers Association, wrote on Facebook, per AP. 

The Postal Service backed off Friday, telling NBC News: "We are not going to be removing any boxes ... After the election, we’re going to take a look at operations."

The WashPost scooped that the Postal Service sent letters July 29 to 46 states and D.C. "warning that it cannot guarantee all ballots cast by mail for the November election will arrive in time to be counted." The Post said that could mean that even if people "follow all of their state’s election rules, the pace of Postal Service delivery may disqualify their votes."

And high-speed sorting machines are being yanked from processing plants.

Of note: Joe Biden is seizing on the postal fiasco, saying on Friday at a virtual fundraiser, per a pool report:

"I was joking earlier with a couple on the call. I wonder if you're outside trying to hold down your mailboxes. They’re going around literally with tractor trailers picking up mailboxes. You oughta go online and check out what they're doing in Oregon. I mean, it's bizarre!"

Postal slowdown threatens election breakdown

This isn't a just a potential threat — it is happening before our eyes.

The Postal Service has urged state election officials to pay first class for mail ballots, which Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer says could nearly triple the cost.

Why it matters: Senate Democrats claim that "it has been the practice of USPS to treat all election mail as First Class mail regardless of the paid class of service."

USPS public relations manager Dave Partenheimer told me by email: "For years, the Postal Service has emphasized to the election community that delivery times are based on the class of service paid for by the mailer."

Partenheimer's statement says the lower rate "will result in slower delivery times and will increase the risk that voters will not receive their ballots in time to return them by mail."

Go deeper: Read a letter from Senate Democrats to Postmaster General Louis DeJoy

USPS pushes election officials to pay more for mail ballots

Chuck Schumer says paying first class for mail ballots could nearly triple the cost.

Axios

Saturday's top stories

Trump says he won't pursue Kamala Harris birth smear

Trump says postmaster general wants to make USPS "great again”

Trump says he talked to Clemson QB Trevor Lawrence about fall play

The COVID-19 learning cliff

Postal slowdown threatens election breakdown

USPS pushes election officials to pay more for mail ballots

Kamala Harris and the political rise of America's Indian community

The cardiac threat coronavirus poses to athletes

President Trump's suburbs

Trump tightens screws on ByteDance to sell Tiktok