Oct 31, 2017 - Politics & Policy

White House: Trump won't visit DMZ on upcoming Asia trip

Then U.S. President Barack Obama looks through binoculars to see North Korea from Observation Post Ouellette in the Demilitarized Zone in 2012. Photo: Susan Walsh / AP

A senior administration official told reporters Tuesday that President Trump will not visit the demilitarized zone on the North Korean border on his upcoming trip to Asia. The official said there isn't enough time, and that they had to choose between going to the DMZ or Camp Humphreys, and the camp prevailed.

Key quote: "There's been a minority of American presidents who have visited the DMZ since the Korean War, less than half," the official said. "[Defense Secretary James] Mattis was just there last week, we've had [Vice President Mike] Pence there... and [Secretary of State Rex] Tillerson... it's become a little bit of a cliché really."

George W. Bush looks out at North Korea at Observation Point Ouellette in the DMZ in 2002.J. Scott Applewhite / AP
Bill Clinton takes the lens caps off a pair of binoculars in 1993 from the Ouellette guard post in the DMZ.Greg Gibson / AP
Ronald Reagan from the south side of the DMZ in South Korea in 1983.Scott Stewart / AP
Jimmy Carter waves to a crowd of military that greeted him on his arrival to camp Casey, just south of the DMZ in 1979 in Korea. AP

Go deeper

Axios
Updated 1 hour ago - Politics & Policy

Coronavirus dashboard

Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios

  1. Global: Total confirmed cases as of 12 p.m. ET: 12,772,755 — Total deaths: 566,036 — Total recoveries — 7,030,749 — Map.
  2. U.S.: Total confirmed cases as of 12 p.m. ET: 3,269,531 — Total deaths: 134,898 — Total recoveries: 995,576 — Total tested: 39,553,395 — Map.
  3. Politics: Trump wears face mask in public for first time.
  4. States: Florida smashes single-day record for new coronavirus cases with over 15,000.
  5. Public health: Trump's coronavirus testing czar says lockdowns in hotspots "should be on the table" — We're losing the war on the coronavirus.
  6. Education: Betsy DeVos says schools that don't reopen shouldn't get federal funds — Pelosi accuses Trump of "messing with the health of our children."
Go deeper (<1 min. read)Arrow
Fadel Allassan
2 hours ago - Health

Florida smashes single-day record for new coronavirus cases

Data: Covid Tracking Project; Chart: Axios Visuals

Florida reported 15,299 confirmed coronavirus cases on Sunday — a new single-day record for any state, according to its health department.

The big picture: The figure shatters both Florida's previous record of 11,458 new cases and the single-state record of 11,694 set by California last week, according to AP. It also surpasses New York's daily peak of 11,571 new cases in April, and comes just a day after Disney World reopened in Orlando.

Go deeper (<1 min. read)Arrow
Rashaan Ayesh
2 hours ago - Politics & Policy

Pelosi: Trump is "messing with the health of our children" with push to open schools

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said on CNN's "State of the Union" Sunday that Education Secretary Betsy DeVos' aggressive push to fully reopen schools this fall is "malfeasance and dereliction of duty," accusing the Trump administration of "messing with the health of our children."

Why it matters: Trump has demanded that schools reopen as part of his efforts to juice the economy by allowing parents to return to work, despite caution from health officials that little is known about how the virus impacts children.

Go deeper (1 min. read)Arrow