DOJ seeks new emergency powers amid coronavirus pandemic  —  The Justice Department has quietly asked Congress for the ability to ask chief judges to detain people indefinitely without trial during emergencies — part of a push for new powers that comes as the coronavirus spreads through the United States.

This 39-year-old New Orleans woman tested for coronavirus.  She died before getting her results.  —  She tested for coronavirus, and her results were delayed.  Five days later, she was dead in her kitchen.  —  On March 10, Natasha Ott, 39, felt the beginnings of a cold coming on.

White House Pushes U.S. Officials to Criticize China For Coronavirus ‘Cover-Up’  —  A State Department cable obtained by The Daily Beast says the U.S. and the American people are the “greatest humanitarians the world has ever known.”  —  As the number of coronavirus cases continues to grow …

The media must stop live-broadcasting Trump's dangerous, destructive coronavirus briefings  —  More and more each day, President Trump is using his daily briefings as a substitute for the campaign rallies that have been forced into extinction by the spread of the coronavirus.

A Medical Worker Describes Terrifying Lung Failure From COVID-19 — Even in His Young Patients  —  “It first struck me how different it was when I saw my first coronavirus patient go bad.  I was like, Holy shit, this is not the flu.  Watching this relatively young guy, gasping for air, pink frothy secretions coming out of his tube.”

Short-term thinking plagues Trump's coronavirus response  —  After months of minimizing the threat to the United States, President Donald Trump jumped feet-first into the coronavirus fight this week with vows of quick fixes to the testing problem, claims about potential cures …

Why have so many coronavirus patients died in Italy?  —  The country's high death toll is due to an ageing population, overstretched health system and the way fatalities are reported  —  The coronavirus pandemic is exacting a heavy toll on Italy, with hospitals overwhelmed and a nationwide lockdown imposed.

Cepheid Receives Emergency Use Authorization from FDA for Rapid SARS-CoV-2 Test  —  First Rapid, Point-of-Care and Near-Patient Molecular Test for Detection of Virus that Causes COVID-19  —  Cepheid today announced it has received Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) from the U.S. Food & Drug Administration …

Italy, Pandemic's New Epicenter, Has Lessons for the World  —  The country's experience shows that steps to isolate the coronavirus and limit people's movement need to be put in place early, with absolute clarity, then strictly enforced.  —  ROME — As Italy's coronavirus infections ticked above 400 cases …

‘Terrified’ Package Delivery Employees Are Going to Work Sick  —  Truckers and warehouse workers at UPS and FedEx feel they have no choice but to keep showing up, even with coronavirus-like symptoms.  —  Hour after hour, day after day, the packages keep arriving: food, medicine, clothes …

Democrats sound the alarm on Joe Biden's young voter problem  —  The party's presidential front-runner is taking the vulnerability seriously.  Some say it reminds them of Clinton in 2016, and won't be easy to overcome.  —  WASHINGTON — Joe Biden consolidated his gains as he races …

Exclusive: Rich Russians Are Hoarding Ventilators to Protect Themselves Against the Coronavirus  —  Meanwhile, doctors worry that Russia's regions don't have enough.  —  The family is one of Russia's richest.  Worth over $1 billion, it owns homes in some of the world's most sought after destinations …

Federal law enforcement document reveals white supremacists discussed using coronavirus as a bioweapon  —  WASHINGTON — White supremacists discussed plans to weaponize coronavirus via “saliva,” a “spray bottle” or “laced items,” according to a weekly intelligence brief distributed by a federal law enforcement division on Feb. 17.

Used to Meeting Challenges With Bluster and Force, Trump Confronts a Crisis Unlike Any Before  —  The ways he dealt with crises in his business, real estate and even his personal life prove jarring as he leads the government's response to a pandemic.  —  WASHINGTON — During his campaign …

How It All Came Apart for Bernie Sanders  —  The Sanders campaign appeared on the brink of a commanding lead in the Democratic race.  But a series of fateful decisions and internal divisions have left him all but vanquished.  —  In mid-January, a few weeks before the Iowa caucuses …

Coronavirus: Nigeria reports chloroquine poisonings after Trump touts drug  —  Health authorities see long queues at pharmacies in wake of US president's remarks Surge in interest raises concerns about people ‘self-medicating without guidance’ Health authorities see long queues at pharmacies …

Trump amid COVID-19 pandemic: With great power comes great irresponsibility.  —  Trump created a culture of impunity, buck-passing and blame-shifting in a party that once prided itself on personal responsibility.  —  The president's job is to uphold the Constitution and to see that the laws are faithfully executed.

AP Exclusive: 1st fed inmate tests positive for coronavirus  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — An inmate at a federal jail in New York City has tested positive for coronavirus, marking the first confirmed case in the federal prison system.  —  The inmate, who is housed at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn …

Live updates: FAA briefly halts flights in New York area; Fauci disputes Trump on coronavirus drug treatment  —  The Washington Post is providing this story for free so that all readers have access to this important information about the coronavirus.  For more free stories, sign up for our daily Coronavirus Updates newsletter.

Hospitals warn of shortages, closures without emergency aid  —  U.S. hospitals are warning that they are so strapped for cash that without some financial relief, they will be unable to meet their payrolls in a matter of weeks and some could be forced to close just as coronavirus cases are surging.

Coronavirus cases surge at nursing homes as workers battle ‘almost perfect killing machine’  —  At least 55 coronavirus deaths, one quarter of all fatalities, have occurred in elder care facilities, a Washington Post review finds  —  As senior care centers across the country scrambled …

Trump administration scrambles to offer guidance on what to do if hospitals run out of basic supplies for coronavirus  —  The federal government is preparing guidance on how hospitals should function if they run out of supplies and equipment, a precaution and an acknowledgment …

‘A Storm Is Coming’: Fears of an Inmate Epidemic as the Virus Spreads in the Jails  —  A growing chorus of officials and public defenders in New York City are calling for the release of people who are especially vulnerable to the coronavirus.  The alternative, they say, may be a public health catastrophe.

It's Dangerous to Be Ruled by Fear  —  The reaction to the pandemic should not be allowed to become as dangerous as the disease itself.  —  Donald Trump's first instinct when it came to the coronavirus was to dismiss the threat as overblown, over there, and “totally under control.”

Governments and Companies Race to Make Masks Vital to Virus Fight  —  President Trump resists using emergency powers to compel production, saying companies will voluntarily provide much-needed protective gear.  —  President Trump on Saturday sought to assure an anxious American public …

POLITICO Playbook: The day has come  —  DRIVING THE DAY  —  IT'S BEEN SAID BEFORE, through self-inflicted crises and global tumult.  But now, it's truer than ever: the next two days are the most pivotal in DONALD TRUMP'S presidency.  —  WITH ONE-THIRD OF THE COUNTRY relegated to their homes …

Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas just saved lives with new shelter-in-place order  —  BY THE KANSAS CITY STAR EDITORIAL BOARD  —  A few days ago, we said a total lockdown was coming as a result of the global coronavirus pandemic — even if, because of Missouri Gov. Mike Parson's reluctance …

Claim they're going shopping: Border officials allow hundreds of Mexican vehicles to cross despite Trump ban  —  Customs and Border Protection officials are defying the Trump administration's directive to block all nonessential foreign travel into the United States from Mexico …

Call Trump's News Conferences What They Are: Propaganda  —  Then contrast them with the leadership shown by Andrew Cuomo, Justin Trudeau and Angela Merkel.  —  In a time of global emergency, we need calm, directness and, above all, hard facts.  Only the opposite is on offer from the Trump White House.