Feb 24, 2017

Trump was the king of anonymous sources

In his speech at CPAC this morning, President Trump inveighed against journalists who use anonymous sources in their stories, saying "they shouldn't be allowed to use sources unless they use somebody's name."

Oh, the irony.Trump slams unnamed sources as W.H. reveals Priebus asked FBI permission to cite anonymous officials https://t.co/Gj98JDCJNa pic.twitter.com/svwwWOgNRX— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) February 24, 2017

A few problems:

  1. Trump was one of the Manhattan media's most notorious anonymous sources throughout his career as a real estate showman.
  2. For years, Trump would call in anonymous tips about himself to the New York Post's Page Six. Two of his pseudonyms were John Barron and John Miller.
  3. Trump frequently used the phrase "off the record but you can use it," according to the New Yorker's Mark Singer, who profiled Trump in the late 90s.
  4. As the Washington Post's White House reporter Phil Rucker points out, Trump's attack on anonymous sources this morning came shortly after his aides held an anonymous briefing with the press.

Go deeper

U.S. coronavirus updates

Data: The Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins; Map: Andrew Witherspoon/Axios. This graphic includes "probable deaths" that New York City began reporting on April 14.

More than 62,300 U.S. health care workers have tested positive for the novel coronavirus and at least 291 have died from the virus, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported on Tuesday. COVID-19 had infected about 9,300 health professionals when the CDC gave its last update on April 17.

By the numbers: More than 98,900 people have died from COVID-19 and over 1.6 million have tested positive in the U.S. Over 384,900 Americans have recovered and more than 14.9 million tests have been conducted.

Go deeper (2 min. read)ArrowUpdated 32 mins ago - Health

Coronavirus dashboard

Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios

  1. Global: Total confirmed cases as of 11:00 p.m. ET: 5,589,626 — Total deaths: 350,453 — Total recoveries — 2,286,956 — Map.
  2. U.S.: Total confirmed cases as of 11:00 p.m. ET: 1,680,913 — Total deaths: 98,913 — Total recoveries: 384,902 — Total tested: 14,907,041 — Map.
  3. Federal response: DOJ investigates meatpacking industry over soaring beef prices — Mike Pence's press secretary returns to work.
  4. Congress: House Republicans to sue Nancy Pelosi in effort to block proxy voting.
  5. Business: How the new workplace could leave parents behind.
  6. Tech: Twitter fact-checks Trump's tweets about mail-in voting for first time — Google to open offices July 6 for 10% of workers.
  7. Public health: Coronavirus antibodies could give "short-term immunity," CDC says, but more data is needed— CDC releases guidance on when you can be around others after contracting the virus.
  8. What should I do? When you can be around others after contracting the coronavirus — Traveling, asthma, dishes, disinfectants and being contagious — Masks, lending books and self-isolating — Exercise, laundry, what counts as soap — Pets, moving and personal health — Answers about the virus from Axios experts — What to know about social distancing — How to minimize your risk.
  9. Other resources: CDC on how to avoid the virus, what to do if you get it, the right mask to wear.

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Updated 43 mins ago - Politics & Policy

World coronavirus updates

Data: The Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins; Map: Axios Visuals

There are no COVID-19 patients in hospital in New Zealand, which reported just 21 active cases after days of zero new infections. A top NZ health official said Tuesday he's "confident we have broken the chain of domestic transmission."

By the numbers: Almost 5.5 million people have tested positive for the novel coronavirus as of Tuesday, and more than 2.2 million have recovered. The U.S. has reported the most cases in the world (over 1.6 million from 14.9 million tests).

Go deeper (2 min. read)ArrowUpdated 1 hour ago - Health